Monday, March 22, 2010

The Price of Beauty

I'm not usually too huge on getting all done up and worrying about my looks.  I know that's kind of good and bad.  But when you work in an office pretty much by yourself (my boss stops in once in a while), there's no one to really impress every day.  So my wardrobe consists of jeans, flip flops and comfy tanks or shirts.  I rarely ever wear any makeup at all, though I do make sure to cleanse my face and then moisturize it every day.  I blow dry my hair each morning (usually) but never curl it or put any product in it at all.

So why is it that now that I am getting married I am suddenly so concerned with looks type things and finding myself giving in to the beauty regimens that are available to us in this day and age?

Growing up, I never waxed any part of my body at all.  Hell, in my mid-20's my roommate told me that she couldn't handle looking at my bushy eyebrows anymore and made me start getting them waxed regularly but that was the extent of any outside help I ever received :)

Of course, when I know I have a cool vacation or super special event coming up, I will hit a tanning salon for a month before the big day so that I have a healthy glow and dark skin.  I do look better tanned...there's just no doubt about that.  But I would never do that on a regular basis and I just don't have time to lay out at a pool or beach.

Yet, here I am, 25 days before the wedding and I have been putting myself through some unfortunate torture.

A few months ago I started having almost my entire body waxed:  eyebrows, upper lip, legs (from the knee down) and full bikini area.  Now, I told you I've had my eyebrows waxed on a regular basis so I didn't think it'd be that big a deal to add in the rest of my body.  HA!!! Boy, was I wrong!  Waxing is pure torture.  I mean, it has it's benefits for sure.  But it is pure pain.  And then you can't shave in between waxings or it defeats the whole purpose of what you're trying to achieve so I turned into a hairy beast for the first few months while we were starting up :(

On top of that, I have to waste 15 minutes a day in a tanning salon as well right now in the midst of all the other crap that I am trying to accomplish.

I have visited my hair stylist's salon many more times than usual trying to work out a good hair style and color.  She and her husband are invited to the wedding, by the way - as well as my aestetician who does my waxings and facials :)

This Thursday, I will be getting Botox around my eyes to get rid of those horrible lines that show up when I smile.  I am not paying a couple grand for photos that have to all be edited just to make me look younger.

And of course I hired a stylist to do my hair and makeup for the wedding.  Not only is all of this stuff either painful or inconvenient but it is also just ridiculously expensive!

Overall, I will be so glad when the wedding is over and I can be done with all this beauty crap and just go back to being the normal regular Mrs Beever :) that Mr Fix It thinks is beautiful.

My recommendation for all of you who sweat like pigs just like me:  Dry Idea Clinical  It can be bought over the counter and is just as strong as a prescription deodorant but without the pain those can bring.  I have had perspiration problems my entire life and not until I found this deodorant a year or two ago has anything ever worked for me! 

Have any of you gorgeous ladies put yourselves through hell to try to make yourself more beautiful?  Is it worth it?

8 comments:

JEM - Aqua Bride said...

OMG, i'm with you. I don't wear makeup at all unless it's for a special occasion and then i'm lost cuz I suck at doing makeup. I usually just use some vaseline or something on my lips to keep them from getting chapped, not even nice lip gloss. I really need to step it up though since my wedding is only 4 months away.
Don't worry it'll all be worth it when you see your gorgeous photos.

Shannon said...

I usually pluck my eyebrows but I've started waxing them to make them look nicer however that's the only part I plan to wax! I don't do pain :)

I'm also trying to figure out the spray tan vs. tanning bed options for the wedding. I hate the thought of going to the tanning bed b/c it's so bad for you but I've gotten mixed reviews on the spray tans and it's more expensive so I may just suck it up and go like 5 times to the tanning bed to get a decent color.

Kim said...

I'm a bit of a hair product and makeup junkie, so I haven't switched too much for the wedding aside from upgrading to nicer (and more expensive) products. I've never dyed my hair or waxed my eyebrows, but I do pluck them weekly. I have a feeling I'm going to start adding some new beauty regimens into the mix as the wedding draws closer. It's true, the price of beauty is high!

Salt said...

Oh trust...if I could wear yoga pants and my hair back in a ponytail to the office every day, you better believe that's what I would be doing. Before the wedding, I had never gotten a facial or really washed my face with anything other than bar soap. I never really cared much about fancy moisturizers or anything like that. Then suddenly about a month out, I became a beauty regimen psycho.

And as you know, I got Botox too. You are going to be so pleased with the results, I promise. It was SO NICE to not have to edit my stupid forehead in all our pics!!

Chocolate Lover said...

Ha! This is my life lady! One of the downsides of being from a Mediterranean Island? We are hairyyyyy! I have been waxing for years and years now, and have been doing it on my own. Sometimes I switch out and shave my legs, especially in the summer when there is more leg showing. I recently tried threading and preferred that for eyebrows and upper-lip to waxing. Give it a go if theres a place nearby. Its kinder to your skin.

Mrs T said...

I think everyone is the same before their weddings! That deodorant sounds great - I sweat when I'm nervous. Although I don't think any amount of deodorant could have prevented sweat on our heat wave wedding day. Man it was hot in a satin dress.

You are going to look killer hot on your wedding day!

The Professional Bridesmaid said...

Waxing your whole body. Enough said. I bow down to you! No pain, no gain...they say, I guess it's true, sorta. hehe.

Gaynor {Our Day by Design} said...

Sounds painful!

I can only go as far as eyebrow waxing; thats sore enough!

I have been spending a fortune on manicures lately though and have a facial booked for thurs.

Then an eyebrow wax, manicure & pedicure next week, just before the wedding.

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