Looking Fabulous... On a Budget!

By Shelly Ballestero
Licensed Esthetician

CBN.com – As we flip through magazines, we see the beautiful women with perfect skin and wonder, “How can I look like that?” You could if you had an Army holding weapons such as a blow-dryer and Sergeant Stylist on the frontline, Special Effects Agent Airbrush, and Commander Makeup Artist with secret tools of mass concealer. Not to mention your personal chef and trainers, as well.

But there is hope for us Privates-in-training on healthy aging. Here’s my plan for the war on wrinkles.

Strategy 1: Know what you are using. Check the ingredients. Is it filled with more preservatives than what is beneficial to your skin? Cleansers to start your daily routine should be non-soapy and pH balanced. Cosmetics, pollution, and smoke all contribute to the residue that clogs pores, causes acne, and damages skin cells.

Let’s start with some effective cleansers that won’t break your bank account. Try Burt’s Bees Complexion Soap. I personally use Wild Lettuce Complexion Soap; I get my veggies and clean skin all in one shot (www.burtsbees.com, $8.00)! Another one to try is Orjene CoQ10 Foaming Facial Wash. It’s packed with active coQ10, olive pulp extract, alpha- lipoic acid, hyaluronic acid, and anti-oxidant green tea to brighten and refine your complexion.

Tip: Cleansing daily with a soft facial brush will prevent blackheads.

Strategy 2: Exfoliate. Without it, wrinkles look more pronounced. I recommend exfoliating one to two times a week. Burt’s Bees Citrus Facial Scrub ($7.50) or Aubrey Organics Jojoba Meal & Oatmeal with Rosa Mosqueta ® Mask and Scrub (www.aubrey-organics.com, $8.98). The ingredients in these products will eliminate facial impurities.

Tip: Try using baking soda mixed with water (a simple, at-home product). It’s like a natural microdermabrasion.

Strategy 3: Use creams and serums. The following ingredients are proven to have a positive effect on mature and rosaceous skin: Green tea, licorice root, squalane oil, seaweed, chamomile, vitamin E, rose oil, and guarana.

Some people are happy by cutting open a vitamin E liquigel in half and using the liquid around the eyes. An alternative to the liquigel is a natural roller E; it glides on without the pulling on your delicate skin.

Some great choices in creams are Red Elements™ Daily Moisturizing Crème with SPF 15 (www.jasoncosmetics.com, $15.59) and Reviva’s DMAE Firming Fluid—with a price tag of $13.49, you can’t go wrong (www.iHealthTree.com).

Serums are needed in your daily fight against wrinkles. Dr.Perricone explains how vital olive oil is for anti-aging. Here’s a serum that delivers a potent dose of olive pulp extract, CoQ10, and alpha-lipoic acid, enriched by seven vitamins essential to skin health and beauty: Orjene CoQ10 Olive Vitale Age Recovery Serum (www.jasoncosmetics.com/orjene, $17.80).

Strategy 4: The internal war. Drink green tea! If you can’t handle the taste, try Tulsi Green Tea or the Original Tulsi Tea. Experience Tulsi’s benefits. It reduces stress, promotes calmness and clarity, minimizes cold and flu symptoms, balances metabolism, and strengthens immunity and stamina (www.omorganics.com, $5.00 for 25 tea bags or www.greatvitaminprices.com, $4.39 a box).

Green foods such as wheat grass and spirulina detoxify, oxygenate, and renew skin cells. Try Greens First (www.Firstshake.com, $41.99) and get all your veggies in one scoop.

Anti-aging vitamins such as B-complex, vitamin C ester, vitamin E (400mg), alpha-lipoic acid (50mg), calcium (1000mg), omega-3, grape seed extract (100mg), selenium (200mcg), DMAE (75mg), L-carnitine (500mg), just to name a few, will help fight the wrinkle war.

In conjunction with a healthy diet, plenty of water and exercise, you will feel great!

Tip: Eat less meat, avoid carbonated beverages, and quit smoking cigarettes.

Strategy 5: An alternative to Botox. I’ve saved the best for last. It’s an alternative to needles that is safe and effective. The product is Frownies and has been around for more than 100 years. For best results, Frownies should be worn every day for 30 days to effectively retrain facial muscles, and then should be worn three to four times per week for maintenance (www.Drugstore.com, $12.95).

Good skin is inside out. Whatever you put in your body directly affects how your skin will look on the outside. Healthy aging is the best alternative. And remember to read labels, think like a detective, and dissect ingredients. What you don’t know can hurt you!

This article first appeared in Lifestyle Magazine.

Shelly Ballestero is a licensed esthetician, make-up artist, beauty editor of Lifestyle Magazine, and author. Shelly has studied under Emmy Award winner Eve Pearl, head make-up artist for ABC's The View. In addition, Shelly is one of the make-up experts for Jane Iredale cosmetics and participates in the International Esthetics, Cosmetics & Spa conference. Shelly and her husband, Angelo, a worship pastor, live in Windermere, Florida, with their two children. (Photo of Shelly courtesy of Katie Meehan, www.phfocus.com.)