Valen’s Vanity Square

Aging is a natural process, and there is nothing that can stop it from happening.

The more I look at the mirror when combing my hair, the more strands of white hair I found! I can’t stop white hair from growing out, so I need to dye my hair. Well, although I can start taking supplements for reducing white hair, but dying hair is the fastest way to cover up the whites.

That’s why products that have to do with anti-aging, anti-wrinkle, anti-white hair, anti-hair fall etc are forever so popular. For most men, they usually start to worry about aging when they see the first sign of baldness. For women, a strand of gray hair or one fine line under the eye would trigger the aging alarm - it’s time to use anti-aging products or apply anti-aging skin care measures!

But actually, anti-aging skin care should start way before the symptoms of aging appear. Basically, it’s about practicing proper skin care from young, follow a healthy lifestyle, avoid stress, drink lots of water, etc. Additional anti-aging skin care products can be added when the signs of aging start to manifest.

Today’s market has a gazillion of anti-aging skin care products to choose from, but finding one that is suitable for your skin type is not that easy. Some brands are well-known but may not suit your skin, while some that you’ve never heard before may be the right one for you. So it’s always best to do a bit of research here and there.

For example, if your friend told you that prototype 37C had done wonders for her skin, perhaps you should find out more about the product first by checking out prototype 37c reviews online or from magazines. This helps to ensure you are investing in the right kind of anti-aging products.

Well, same for me. I also need to do a bit of research on anti-aging moisturizers now, gotta replenish my L’Oreal Revitalift very soon!

Went for my facial today, my beautician changed some of the ingredients used in my mask and massage since I told her I got skin allergic reaction the last time I did my facial.

Now, I’m anxiously waiting to see if any allergic reaction will appear…

As for shopping, didn’t really have the chance to do so, coz the mall was so crowded. It’s school holiday, it’s Saturday, and it’s a public holiday! Bad time to shop, for me at least. I don’t like to shop when there is a big crowd. Make me dizzy.

So, the next best thing to do is to come home and work on my internet activities and get my old files backed up. I’m also considering getting a online backup service to keep a copy of all my websites.

This morning I encountered problems viewing several of my websites; they wouldn’t load, and showed a message about error in the server data. Although those websites can be viewed now, but it certainly reminded me about the need to back up my website data and info.

You see, you can’t afford to lose websites that are making you money, can you?

Thank god it’s Friday! Going for facial tomorrow, plus some shopping to make myself happy.

But I feel so ‘fat’. I haven’t eaten a lot these few days, but somehow I’ve been feeling quite bloated. And passing air out a lot in the office. Shhhhh…. Haha!

I thought after I started working, I would ’slim’ down due to work stress and lack of sleep (and the climbing of stairs!). But when I checked my weight, it is still the same! And my butt and thighs seem to be getting bigger. Grrrr….

May be other gals would have been so tempted to use diet pills to lose weight, it never come across my mind to use weight loss pills. I don’t even take dietary supplements, just don’t have the habit of ‘popping’ tablets or pills or capsules. But for anyone who want to take weight loss pills, remember to do your research, including finding out if there any side effects of diet pills that you need to watch out.

Oh well, it’s Friday night, perhaps I should get onto the elliptical machine and get my butt moving for 20 minutes or so. If I can’t lose weight, at least I make sure I don’t gain weight either.

If you think gray hair or wrinkles are what makes you look old, actually the dark circles under your eyes can make you look more tired and unhealthy, and much older than you think!

While insufficient sleep and fatigue due to stressful work can be the main reasons for dark under eye circles, you may also have dark eye circles even if you get plenty of sleep. This will be the case if you are afflicted with allergies, eczema or nasal congestion, or if you smoke or drink alcohol, or it just simply runs in your family. These are just some of the reasons.

If you ask me how to remove dark circles in general, I suppose the cheapest way is to DIY, ie self care methods at home, such as use cold compress (eg chilled teaspoons, cooled used teabags) on your eyes to reduce the dilation, and thus the discoloration of the under-eye blood vessels.

Most importantly, get extra sleep. And when you sleep, try to sleep on two or more pillows to elevate your head. This helps to prevent puffiness caused by fluid pooled in your lower eyelids.

If you have some money to spend, than you may ask your doctor to prescribe you with special creams that help to reduce discoloration or prevent under-eye circles. These creams usually contain vitamins, such as vitamin C and vitamin E.

Other than that, apply concealer to hide those dark circles. Choosing the right color of concealer is important here. Use a peach-colored concealer if the dark circles are bluish.

As the reason for my own dark under eye circle - less than 8, sometimes 7, hours of sleep every night!

Had a yummy and delightful dinner with hubby and his colleagues at The Soul, but good jolly mood was spoiled on the way home! For don’t know what reasons, the highway traffic was so darn jammed. A 40-minute drive became 1.5 hour drive! That was frustrating!

We thought there must be some kind of road accident that has slowed the traffic, or perhaps a collapsed tree that had blocked the road due to an earlier storm, but there wasn’t anything at all. Duh!

So what caused the traffic jam? Well, it’s a mystery, and it will remain as one.

If you’re in Texas, drove a truck and had a road accident, you’d probably get a Texas Truck accident lawyer that could get to you right away at the accident spot to help you sort things out.

But here, it will take ages for even your family to get to you. If there can be traffic jam in the absence of an accident, what do you think the traffic will be when there’s one?