Dear Ether,

People seemed to really like some examples of some beauty writing that I’ve done in the past.  Well, I just had a freelancing gig and wrote for a pretty famous company (hence the XXX when you see them in the writing below) about shaving and self-tanners.  I worked with the advertising and promotions teams to create an advertising page for the magazine promoting  2 beauty products.  Basically a magazine and a brand will work together to get a product(s) promoted without making it too obvious by having it mesh with the editorial feel of the magazine.  You’ll usually see in the upper-right hand corner of the page, “Advertisement.”  But if you can pull it off, sometimes you can get the reader to think it’s part of the mag and that’s when you can really hit home and maybe get the sell.  I did this for two brands.  “Billy Jealousy,” a shaving product and “Mystic Tan,” a self-tanning product.  You’ll see how I write the pieces as if they are 100% editorial, but I am promoting their products ONLY.  Clever, eh?  This was for one pretty famous beauty supplier who was advertising in a mag.  So here you go and enjoy.  I think it’s fun and I enjoyed writing it.  And, you do learn about self-tanning and shaving.  It is, in theory,  really and editorial piece.  I just used specific brands rather than brands of my own choosing.  It’s amazing how many elements go in to making a magazine, right?  Anywhooooo…the fun part is when you see it laid out.  Have a great Sunday and I will see you for the “Wish List” tomorrow.

Dedicatedly yours,

—One of 365

Self-Tanners: 

Mystic Tan's Perfect Tan Kit, $54, Sephora.com

Self-tanning has always been tricky.  When the first products came on the market we were left with a radioactive tangerine tint that made us look more George Hamilton than groovin’ with a J-Lo glow.  But since those “dark days,” products have evolved.  Cutting- edge brands like Mystic Tan have given natural-looking hues to almost 200 million people.  XXXX is delighted to carry Mystic Tan’s new luxe line of DIY products that have revolutionized the self-tanning world.  Their collection includes the Perfect Tan Kit Body, Perfect Tan Kit Face, Sunless Tanning Spray Face and Body, Sunless Enhancing Moisturizer Body and Shimmer Face.  [Pssst!] If you’ve ever envied Jessica Simpson’s golden skin, Mystic Tan is her secret.

But no matter how “golden” the self-tanner becomes, the application process is not always fail-safe.  So…Welcome to Self-tanner 101!  

The first step for any self-tanning guru is exfoliation.  Removing dead skin cells is key because you don’t want dry zones like knees and elbows to collect tanner and make the product appear dark, muddy and uneven. Now, here comes the fun part…the application!  But be wary.  Many of us have earned the Scarlet Letter of self-tanners: discolored palms (the true sign of a novice).  A helpful hint: Use latex gloves for application.  Worried about having white hands?  Problem solved. All you need to do is rub the backs of your palms with self-tanner in a clockwise direction.  Works every time!  

Okay. Body exfoliated?  Latex gloves snapped on?  You’re ready!  Believe it or not, this is the easy part.  Using gentle, long strokes, apply the tanner as evenly as possible along your skin.  A great tip is to add a dollop of moisturizer to the tanner, making the product a bit more malleable and therefore easier to apply.  This is also excellent for tan enhancement, because it helps saturate the color into your skin.   

So you’ve tanned yourself, and you’re wondering, “what now?”  Well, don’t allow your skin to get near water for at least 4 hours.  Also, this stuff can stain!  If you’re planning to throw on that white Prada maxi-dress right away, that’s a huge no-no.  

If you have the time to tan and set during the day, more power to you.  But the ideal time is just before you turn in for the night.  Then you can shower off the residual product in the morning.  (To protect your sheets, wear a scruffy pair of old pj’s.)  This is ideal because you maximize the amount of tan time allowing, for the deepest color possible, and you don’t have to worry that any of the above uh-oh’s will happen.  

So now that you’re tan and gorgeous, all you have to do is maintain your new radiance.  Moisturizing is key, because it keeps skin from sloughing off and also prolongs your beautiful bronze.  Use Mystic Tan’s Sunless Enhancing Moisturizer Body that provides offers a subtle amount of color while keeping skin hydrated.  

(Okay. That’s it.) You glow, girl! 

Shaving: 

Billy Jealousy Hydroplane Super-Slick Shave Cream $20 sephora.com

We all—men and women alike– have nightmare stories about shaving. Many a prom night photo has been ruined by guys with Band-Aids slapped over razor burns.  And surely there have been countless summer BBQ’s where girls showed up in pants instead of cute new dresses because they had a shaving fiasco.  

The simple fact is we didn’t have the “cutting-edge” razors that populate the market today–razors with names that sound like launch vehicles designed by NASA!  Well, we’ve come a long way from that scary man in the barbershop wielding a straight edge blade, a leather strop and a shaky hand.  What’s so exciting about this razor revolution are all the brilliant products that have arrived to help us in the fine art of shaving. Creams, waxes, oils, foams—even lasers! 

XXXX’s team of specialists is always on hand to help you select the shaving option that’s perfect for you (and we’ve got quite a selection).  And now we’ve found something genuinely unique that’s going to make any shaving aficionado “jealous.”  Hint: it also won Best Shaving Cream at Esquire’s 2007 Grooming Awards.   Oh, and George Clooney is a fan.  Care to read on? 

Hydroplane, by Billy Jealousy, is a foamless shave cream that lubricates the skin to give you the closest shave possible while also protecting against razor burn, nicks, bumps and ingrown hairs.  A little goes a long way with this 8oz. bottle, because it miraculously gets slicker and more powerful as you add warm water to it.  As we all know–ouch!–shaving can leave a burning sensation but Hydroplane provides a pleasant cooling effect as it performs its magic.  The formula includes micro-silicon beads that have a slight exfoliation action–also fantastic for an ultra-soft finish because it sloughs off dead skin cells.  And with chamomile and aloe to keep skin calm and humectants to preserve moisture, it’ll give you the happiest skin on the planet.  Because Hydroplane is perfect for every skin type, all you have to do is massage onto face, shave, and rinse with cool water.  And, because it’s such a smooth product, women are grabbing it off the shelves after rave reviews from the men in their lives.  Hey, if a guy can steal your shampoo and conditioner, why can’t you steal his shaving cream? 

XXXXXX’s Tick List: Do’s and Don’ts of Shaving  

1. Always shave with warm water.  The best time is after a steaming, hot shower.  Or, ladies, a great time to shave is IN a steaming, hot shower!
2. Make sure you have a sharp blade.  Dull blades are going to tear skin, cause ingrown hairs and create razor burn.
3. Never shave against the grain (even though we’re tempted because we think we’re getting a closer and quicker shave: we’re actually causing small cuts to the skin that could lead to infection and ingrown hairs).
4. When you’re finished shaving, always rinse with cool water.  This closes the pores and calms the skin.
5. Moisturize! Use an after-shave balm, lotion or cream and avoid anything alcohol based (unless you want to encourage burning!).
6. Don’t be cheap!  Sometimes things are worth spending a little extra money on.  That bag of 100 razors for 99 cents is priced that way for a reason.  Invest in a quality razor and a well-researched product.

Okay, when I said I needed a hand finding a bra, I didn't mean literally! Wow! This would DEFINITELY not be a good T-Shirt bra--can you imagine the lines? Anyway, finding the perfect bra is a necessity and a mission. I think I found my new best spandex and nylon friend--if the bra in the above picture could gesture, he'd give me 2 thumbs up!

Dear Ether,

Okay. Finally. It has happened.  I have found the right bra.  This is shocking to me too.  As I sit here writing, breasts where they should be (and should’ve been for the past 16 years) I am feeling perky (truly).  I’m a woman who has NEVER skimped on a bra.  I have bought Wacoal, Lejaby, Elle Macpherson, Chantelle. I know what it means to own a good piece of underwire (I don’t know about you, but I can’t wear anything that doesn’t have support).  

I was given 200 pounds worth of gift vouchers from a Revlon event to go to Rigby & Peller (for those of you who are unfamiliar with this lingerie love-nest it is an English staple for any woman who thinks she has been wearing the right bra or 20+ years and then discovers with one quick glance of a pro’s eye that she hasn’t).  I walked into the shop off of Old Bond Street, ready with an appointment, and a very old woman gave me a look of dismay right away (and I was wearing a heavy sweater and a scarf—she must have had X-ray vision).  The whole experience is hilarious and degrading at the same time.  You go into a tiny room, take your top off in front of a total stranger, she looks you up and down and then claims you are a totally absurd bra size.  It’s so funny—you hear things from other booths like “38G—what! I’ve been a 34B my whole life.”  Or, “34B, YES! I thought I was a 34AA.  Wait until I tell my boyfriend!”  Well, my “girls” were sagging and my bras were looking tired and the lady told me that I was a 32C.  I actually wasn’t far off—I’d been wearing a 34D. LOL!  She explained something interesting that I didn’t know.  She said you should always buy a bra and wear it on the loosest hook because the bra will stretch and then you will need room to make it tighter.  If you’re wearing your bra on its tightest hook to start, the back is too big.  Good piece of FYI, right?  Anyway, Rigby & Peller is very expensive and I only walked away with 3 bras (seriously) for 200 quid and I didn’t want to waste the money on utility bras—I wanted them to be beautiful.  So, now that I knew my real bra size I knew I needed help!  

Months of sagging went by and I didn’t do anything about it until finally I looked in the mirror and saw myself in clothes and thought, “enough is enough!”  I was on a mission.  But here’s the deal—it is not an easy task finding a 32C.  I guess the back size and the cup size aren’t a usual match and I couldn’t get anything decent for the life of me.  Until….I hit of all places, The Gap!  English gent decided he wanted a nautical looking top and where better to go than the above (they’ve been pumping those suckers out since the bloody 80’s).  As he was looking around, I popped around to the back of the store near the storage area and noticed they had a body section.  I didn’t even know The Gap made loofahs let alone brassieres! I love a sale and all of their body section was having a blowout.  And what do they have an abundance of—32C’s!  Excited, I grabbed a lovely nude convertible bra and a sexy lilac convertible with lace.  With the help of a wonderful sales lady and a dressing room, I got my “boob” on!  Slipping these gorgeous and lightweight bras on that held me in like a corset but gave my boobs a lift and cleavage like a Miracle Bra—well, I just didn’t know something so vanilla as The Gap could dream up such things.  Originally priced at $40 I paid about $13 for each and they came with free clear straps so you could have a sheer line if you chose (I don’t care for that look but some people love it—I just think plastic, latex straps look tacky).  Unbelievable.  I have to say, I am so much more confident with my new boobs.  I have found in the nude seamless a great t-shirt bra or an ideal strapless piece and with the lilac lace, a lovely dressy bra and a fab halter or cross back in a feminine and unusual color.  

I have to say I have not been to The Gap in years, but I will definitely be going back for their lingerie (I also bought two pairs of adorable underpants, they had great bargains on those as well–5 pair for $20 and they were so comfy and with great patterns!).  They feel good and the price is right (even full price it’s a good buy) and the service was top-notch.  Oh, and I noticed they went from the tiny to the mighty in terms of bra sizes so there was something for everyone—and they had unusual sizes as well.  

So now that I have discovered The Gap, I no longer have a “gap” where my cleavage should’ve been all these months!  Excellent.  They shall sit delightfully next to my pricey Rigby & Peller’s.  I bet you the R&P’s will be resentful, but hey, if the job is done with cheaper labor—and we know they’ve raised the bar, in so many words, well, they’ll just have to stuff it (not with tissue I hope!). 

Dedicatedly yours,

—One of 365