Tips on Choosing the Best Skin Care Product for You
November 30, 2008
Your face is the first thing that people notice when they meet you. So, it is no wonder that skin care is big business! Millions are spent each year to treat acne, under eye circles, wrinkles, discolorations, and a variety of other ailments. If you are in the market for a skin care line, there are a few things that you should consider before settling on a product. First you need to look at the type of ingredients the product contains, and then find out what works best for your particular skin type. So, get ready to put your best face forward!
A good skin care product is only as good as its ingredients. Make sure to read the label before you buy. If you are unable to pronounce anything on the bottle, move on to something else. The best skin care products are made with natural ingredients. Look for a formula with Aloe Vera and vitamin E for a great complexion. You want a skin care line that keeps you looking your best, while feeling great on your skin. Cleansers and creams shouldn’t burn or sting. Depending on your skin type, you may find that formulas that contain alcohol can actually aggravate your problem. So do your homework beforehand. If you have a specific problem like acne or sun damage, you will want to find a skin care line that focuses on your problem areas. Benzyl peroxide has been known to work wonders on acne, while alpha-hydroxy helps improve the appearance of wrinkles or sun damage.
Tips to Clean Silver Jewelry
November 30, 2008
Sterling silver is easy to care for if you follow a few simple steps, so don’t be afraid to cover yourself in silver. You will love the look!
In this article you will find easy ways to keep your sterling silver clean with a minimum amount of time and effort. Sterling silver really is not that difficult to take care of whether it is your precious sterling silver jewelry or fine tableware. Keeping sterling silver tarnish free and sparkling is really pretty easy.
Though this article is mainly about cleaning your sterling silver jewelry, it applies to all sterling silver. All the products mentioned here are products that our silversmith’s use and recommend for cleaning sterling silver jewelry. They are available through most reputable jewelers, and directly through W. J. Hagerty and Sons, South Bend, Indiana, but Southwest Affinity does make them available for purchase here for your convenience.
If you wish to purchase any product mentioned here and you don’t see it available below, please contact us and we will assist you in locating it.
Liquid silver jewelry is very difficult to clean. You can use a soft cotton cloth or a Sunshine Cloth. Avoid dips. They leave residue deposits between each bead, and make the necklace stiff.
Plastic Surgery Gone Wrong Not Just News
November 29, 2008
As with just about anything in life, there are many things that can go wrong with plastic surgery. But just as we don’t hear news reports about the millions of planes that have taken off and landed safely, there is not the same attention devoted to the many success stories of cosmetic surgeries as there is to plastic surgery gone wrong. There are risks involved with this type of surgery, as there are in undergoing operations of any kind, but the usual difference is that while no doctor can force a patient to have surgery of any kind - even if it is a life-saving operation to remove a cancerous tumor - plastic surgery is generally a little more elective than the other.
And perhaps this is why we seem to delight in hearing about plastic surgery gone wrong. Nowhere is our interest in celebrities as heightened or as vicious as in this arena. While assigning the delight we find in the personal disaster of another human being to jealousy might be overly simplistic, there is doubtlessly a sense here of revelling in the fall of someone we thought - or felt they thought themselves - to be untouchable.
The Dangers of Plastic Surgery
November 28, 2008
There is very little in this life that comes without risk, and the dangers of plastic surgery are a prime example of this. Most of us have been reminded by elderly relatives that our lives could be cut short any day simply by crossing the street; this adage is usually quoted to remind us to live each day to the full, and to do the things that will bring fulfilment to our lives, despite the many risks inherent. While it is true that the sensible among us put the inevitable risks of daily life to the back of our minds in order, simply, to stay sane, a balanced life is perhaps knowing risks to pay attention to, and which to ignore.
There is little doubt that the dangers of plastic surgery are multiple, but its popularity nevertheless continues unabated. These dangers, clearly, are for many people acceptable one, and plastic surgery seems to be something that offers potential benefits significant enough to plough on regardless.
The Truth About Platinum
November 27, 2008
Is platinum a new metal? After all, in the past, one would associate diamonds with gold. Nowadays, the most expensive fine jewelry designs set diamonds in platinum. The truth is, platinum has been on this earth for billions of years. This brilliant metal really came from the skies. Meteorites contain platinum and meteorites have been landing on earth for billions of years already. Kind of romantic if you think about it. That pure white platinum jewelry could once have been part of a star. Part of a meteorite that travelled through space before it landed in our world. Ironically, there was a time when platinum was thought to be an inferior metal by people searching for gold. Platinum looks like silver, so in 1590, when the Spanish discovered platinum, they named it platina, which means little silver. The newly rediscovered platinum was thrown back into the river, its value totally misunderstood at that time. 2 centuries later, King Louis XVI of France declared platinum to be the only metal fit for kings. Thus began the love of platinum by the royals. In fact, the late Queen Mother, Queen Elisabeth’s crown was made of platinum. Owning a piece of platinum jewelry today gives you something in common with the royals. Both you and the royals wear platinum. Even Hollywood Royalty appreciates the value of platinum. The King, Elvis Presley exchanged platinum wedding rings with his wife Priscilla. Joe Dimaggio gave Marilyn Monroe 3 carat solitaire diamond platinum engagement ring. Movie legends would set their diamonds in platinum. In fact, diamond platinum engagement rings are the preferred engagement rings of the well heeled. Platinum is a special metal. It does not fade or tarnish. It does not corrode. In fact, it is so lasting, platinum was used to make the standard kilogram weight. Platinum is eternal. Diamonds are eternal. That is one of the reasons why diamonds and platinum are the perfect match. Another reason why diamonds an platinum go together is the color of platinum. Platinum is a brilliant white. Diamonds are graded on their color among other factors. The whiter the diamond, the higher its value. When a diamond is set in platinum, the whiteness of the platinum makes the diamond look whiter, brighter, more precious. Platinum is extremely pliable. It can be drawn into a very fine wire very easily. Yet it is so strong. That means jewellers can create very intricate jewelry pieces with platinum. Jewellers can create fine prongs with platinum with which to hold the diamond, yet these thin prongs are so strong they hold the diamond securely. Diamonds aside, platinum is the metal of choice for anyone who has sensitive skin. Jewelry rash can occur even with gold jewelry. The impurities in most other metals, including gold, can cause a rash. The rash could even happen years later, after wearing the jewelry daily for long periods of time. Platinum wearers don’t have to worry about jewelry rash. Platinum is 95% pure. Platinum is hypoallergenic, so the best way to deal with a jewelry rash is to switch to platinum. The problem with platinum is that it is so rare. It is 35 times rarer than gold. There is so little platinum on earth, yet its uses are so wide. Because platinum is compatible with the human body, platinum is used in medicine, to make pace makers, for example. Platinum is also a catalyst and is essential in many chemical processes. Platinum is such a precious metal that during World War II, U.S. banned platinum from being used for any non-military purpose. That is why, for so many years, platinum was not used in jewelry making. Due to its rarity, platinum is an excellent precious metal to invest in. Anything that is so rare and has so many uses would appreciate in price, with time, which makes platinum jewelry a wise investment.
Cosmetic Chin Surgery - The Final Facial Touch
November 26, 2008
When either cosmetic or plastic surgery are mentioned to us, our thoughts run immediately to breast implants or liposuction, but there are many other procedures available that although they might not receive the same attention of their more obvious counterparts can have a huge impact upon both the appearance and the self confidence of a patient. One of these unsung heroes is cosmetic chin surgery, which can exert a profound effect that belies the ease with which it can be performed.
Cosmetic chin surgery is a relatively simple procedure that is usually performed in about an hour or so. Scarring is minimal, and though the patient might be limited to a liquid diet for the two or three days following surgery, recovery time is typically fast, and patients are back to their usual routines within a couple of days. Side effects, including the risk of infection or numbness in the area, are rare, making the benefits of cosmetic chin surgery far outweigh the risks.
Surgery for the Stars
November 25, 2008
While plastic surgery might remain for many of us something of a pipe dream, the thing we’d do if we won the lottery, for those in the entertainment industry, it has slowly but surely become akin to an entry pass into Hollywood. While there are still a large percentage of women in the general populace who are quite content to sit around with their girlfriends and talk about what they would have done, there is a certain faction of womankind - though as the pressure to conform to a particular ‘look’ increases, the male membership of the group increases also - for whom plastic surgery is simply inevitable.
It is very difficult to find a woman in tinsel town whose only surgeon has been the natural passing of time - in fact, there is a growing subsection of the entertainment and gossip industry that thrives off the maudlin reportage of what stars are having done, and how wrong it is going. While there is undoubted interest, and even admiration, for the woman who has had plastic surgery go right, we seem to take greater delight in perusing photograph after photograph of some former beauty who has suffered the misfortune of having something not quite go to plan in the surgery room.
Should You Get Plastic Surgery?
November 25, 2008
These days, plastic surgery is often much maligned, and while the apparent levity with which it is sometimes undertaken and its almost epidemic-type spread can seem rather worrying, the benefits of plastic surgery can easily be overlooked. While there is an overwhelming array of various plastic surgery horror stories reported in the press, the quiet stories of success often remain untold. For the right candidate, plastic surgery can truly be a life-enhancing procedure.
It would be wonderful to live in a world where everyone is truly accepted, regardless of their physical appearance, and while this type of world might one day evolve, these days, being different is undeniably difficult. For those people who suffer under the weight of a single feature that seems to swallow the rest of them whole, plastic surgery is simply the door to a new life. One of the first things that many patients notice after surgery is how the correction of this feature can bring a sense of balance to their whole appearance. For the woman with big breasts or the man with prominent ears, the hated feature can dominate their self perception, and its alteration to a state that blends in more easily with those of others, truly allows the rest of their self, both physically and spiritually, to blossom.
Pull Off a Blazer with These Five Steps
November 24, 2008
The key to this season is to mix it up. This season is looking more towards a laid back but sophisticated look. The piece that drives this is the blazer. A blazer is a requirement for a man’s wardrobe. I will include a few ways that the fashion professional helps you to look good this season.
? Always wear a blazer with complimentary trousers. They don’t have to match completely. Just make it look good. Match colors, and make sure you don’t look like a clown.
? A denim blazer works in the day time, with a beautiful knitted sweater. Try also an evening look with a strong woven shirt with some plaid highlights.
? Tweed and a herringbone can be good options also for a blazer look. Have a look towards the fashion start of the season and find some updated colors in a blazer. Blacks and browns are accented with a navy blue, or other dyes.
? Your blazer should be able to be worn during the day and night, and great option is a blue blazer. Blazer’s with jeans and a nice worn large belt buckle and a dark t-shirt underneath is for the nightclub, social scene.
The Manicure - More than Pretty Nails!
November 23, 2008
Pretty and well cared for hands are more than a delight to the eye. In the business world the two things often considered the most important in presenting yourself, are a good pair of shoes and well-groomed hands. Our hands say a lot about us and well-groomed hands make a good impression. Business and social occasions often require us to meet and greet colleagues and acquaintances. The first thing we do when we met someone is hold out a hand to greet the person.
Taking care of your hands with a regular manicure will add more than style to your appearance; it will also keep your hands well-groomed and prepared for all occasions. Whether you choose a full spa manicure or opt for an at-home treatment you need to follow a few guidelines to ensure that your hands are your best assets.
The manicure: Ultimate pampering at home or at the spa
1. At home or at the spa start with a comfortable place to sit. Soak each hand in a bowl filled with warm water and perhaps a few drops of your favourite aromatherapy oil.
