The World Belongs to the Pretty

"Looks don't matter".  

"Beauty is only skin deep".  

"It's what's inside that counts."  

We've all heard these, some of us more than others.  We all grow up with adults telling us that looks don't matter, but don't they matter?

I'll never forget the day when I was 12 and someone said to me "Your sister is so pretty.  You don't look anything like her."  Uh thanks - do you realize you just told me I was ugly?  That one comment scarred me for years.  I still remember it like it was yesterday.  It never mattered how nice or mean my sister was, how smart or stupid, or anything else - because she was pretty, she got everything she wanted.

I was awkward and ugly as a girl and young teen, and it leaves scars that don't go away in time.   I heard nasty comments about my glasses, about my teeth, about a freckle in the middle of my lip, about my boring brown hair and eyes, about my height, about my clothes..... I became so self-conscious I would never even make eye contact with people.

As I grew into my late teens, my looks improved, but the trauma of being the plain sister never went away.  I never go out without makeup, and I always make sure I look my best so no-one thinks I'm ugly or plain.  You'll see a pretty person go about in sweats and a ponytail, but someone who has been plain or ugly always puts their face on to do errands.

You see the attractive people getting extras everywhere - discounts, being allowed to cut in lines, and always seeming to get away with things that a more plain person would never get away with.  People look at you, and yes, they are judging you by how you look.  It's definitely not fair, but that's the way it is in the world we live in.  People deny it, but you see it every day.   I'm not plain any longer, but as a former plain person, I've been on both sides - pretty is definitely better.

The Great Cleanser Adventure!

I get acne.  That's a fact of life that I've grown accustomed to.  It started when I was about 13 and has continued into my 40s.  I've tried so many cleansers, I can't even remember them all.  I took tetracycline and minocycline for years, and even that didn't help my acne very much although it did turn my teeth and the whites of my eyes blue due to a rare side effect to the medication.  I tried cheap cleansers, mid-price cleansers, and the really high end cleansers.  Some made my skin much worse, but none really helped my acne.

Younique entered my life in November of 2013.  They had a cleanser, but I didn't buy it right away because I thought it was too expensive at $39, and it wouldn't help anyway.   I had signed up as a presenter for Younique and was doing fairly well selling and recruiting, so I earned $250 in free Younique products.  That's when I decided to give their cleanser a try.

WOW

I noticed a difference in my skin the first couple of days.  I get those horrible huge pimples that hurt and seem to last for months - yet in a couple of days they seemed to be smaller and not so painful.  Well, okay, that was awesome.  I noticed I was getting some really small pimples that went away in a day, and then I noticed a huge difference in my skin.  Suddenly the redness I always had was fading, the horrible painful pimples stopped coming & the ones I had were getting smaller every day, and my skin started looking smoother.

This might not seem like a huge deal - but for someone like me that had never been able to wear the sheer types of makeup, it was a big thing!   So, what's in it you ask - here's what it has in it:

Licorice Root:  It helps get rid of redness and inflamatian, it helps with rosacea, psoriasis and drug induced skin erruptions - so for those of us on the pill, that means us!  It also has licohalone which helps control oil production which also helps acne-prone skin.

Aloe Vera:  Aloe is moisturizing but not greasy, so it's perfect for those of us with oily or acne prone skin.  Aloe also has anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties that help reduce skin inflammation, so your skin can heal more quickly with minimal scarring.  It also has antiseptic properties that help rid the skin of impurities


Garden Chrysanthemum:       Chrysanthellum Indicum extract is a highly effective anti-inflammatory.  It also helps neutralize free radicals which slows premature skin aging.   It's also effective against rosacea

The cleanser was originally called Awake.  Just this week they brought the manufacturing to the US and changed the name to Illuminate Clear.  There is also an Illuminate Clean for those with normal or dry skin - but Illuminate Clear is the one I use.

I had a few moments of doubt last week and went back to use up one of my old cleansers I'd tried just because I hated to throw it out.  Less than 3 days later, my skin was back to where I started - painful huge pimples all over my chin!  I threw that out yesterday and ordered myself another Awake/Illuminate!!!!!

This is what my skin cleanser miracle looks like.  It's well worth the $39 to have clean, smooth skin that doesn't break out constantly!!!!!

If you want to check it out, go to:  www.youniqueproducts.com/elizabethbarber