My beauty secrets!

So I have received a ton of mail asking me about various beauty tips so I thought it would be cool to actually talk about what I do. Plus, if you have any beauty tips of your own, feel free to send them in and I'll post them up. I think it's awesome if we can all share our collection of knowledge on this sometimes confusing topic.

Here's an email I received:

Hi Amin! It's so nice to see someone from Canada achieve so much in the Indian pageant circuit. I have checked out your photos and I noticed you always seem to have really good skin. I don't know if the photos are touched up or if your skin is really that smooth. I have had acne problems all my life and my mom told me it would clear up on its own. I stopped eating certain foods that I heard cause acne and I feel like I have bought every product out there to help me but nothing works! Do you have any tips?
-Suhana

Okay so one of the biggest issues seems to be skin care.

So here's a few tips from me

Rule 1: I never go to bed without washing off all of my makeup

This is so important! I don't care how late I go to bed, I force myself to wash all of my makeup off.  Believe me, I used to be guilty of this. I would came back late and be so tired that I would want to just fall into bed and sleep. I did that for a while but noticed that I would get big red pimples on my chin. And I'm sure you all know that gross feeling of waking up in the morning and having your eyeliner running all over the place and your eyelashes stuck together from tired up mascara. I hated that feeling in the morning. So after a while, I started to wash off my makeup regularly and pretty soon I saw a big change. Not only did I feel much more fresh in the mornings, my skin seemed healthier.

Tip 2: Don't just wash your face with soap and water.

Seriously I know so many girls that think just using soap and water works. It's fine if you don't have any makeup but soap is not strong enough to get down into your pores and remove makeup. So I use a simple astringent and clean makeup pad removers to wipe my foundation off. I usually go through two makeup pads. Keep using them until you see nothing on the makeup pad, then you know you have cleaned up your skin. I love black eyeliner and mascara but it's so hard to take off. So I use a special eye makeup remover (make sure it says it's for eyes!) and makeup pad removers. Be careful when you are rubbing your mascara off. Your eyes and eye lashes are sensitive so if you're too rough with rubbing your eyes, you can cause your eyelashes to break off. After I have rubbed off my foundation and eye makeup, I then wash my face with soup and warm water.

Tip 3: Moisturizer is your friend!

Everytime I wash my face, I make sure to use a moisturizer to keep my skin healthy and fresh. I used to get patchy dry areas on my face but ever since I started to use moisturizers every day, I don't have dry skin anymore. And I live in one of the coldest places in Canada where it can get as low as -50 with windchill! Skin is so important. If you don't take care of it now, it's going to be so hard to try to fix it later.

Tip 4: Don't be afraid to go natural!

Alright ladies, I know this can be a hard one. I used to never walk out of the house without all my makeup on so I looked like I was going out even if I was just going to get gas in my car lol. But one of the best tips I got from my years in pageants is to give your skin rest. What I mean by that is don't be afraid to not wear any makeup. Seriously.

I have so many friends that will cringe when I tell them this but it's true. Your skin is constantly getting beat up with various weather conditions like extreme cold to extreme heat, wind damage, sun damage, makeup, etc that it's no wonder we get pimples! Try to give you skin at least two days a week where you don't wear any makeup and only wear moisturizer and sunscreen if you're going to be outside.

Tip 5: Watch what you eat.

Seriously, I have the biggest sweet tooth ever. I love anything chocolate! Not to mention, my family cooks the most amazing Indian food ever but as we all know, Indian food can be really greasy. So what to do?

Definitely treat yourself from time to time but what you eat will be reflected in your appearance. I know we all dream that we can all look like super models and eat that yummy chocolate bar all the time. However if you eat greasy and fattening food all the time, it's going to show in your skin. It's not the food itself that can be the culprit all the time. How many times have you accidently touched your face while eating fries? Eating greasy food means getting greasy fingers which can be transported to your skin by a simple accidential touch. I learned early on in the pageant world that it's important to eat natural foods like fruit and veggies and lots of water. Yes, go ahead and eat that delicious butter chicken but make sure to have a salad first. If you're going out to the clubs, try to limit the amount of alcohol you drink.

When you start eating more healthier, you will notice it in your skin and even in your body and in your mental health.

Tip 6: Protect your skin!

I have been lucky enough to travel to various parts of the world. While it's fun and all, I noticed that the various weather and climate elements can really hurt your skin. In Canada, we sometimes have freezing temperatures so just standing outside can cause your skin to freeze. In India, it can be so hot that your skin feels like it's melting. So what's a girl to do?

I always limit my time outside. In winter, I try to avoid going outside without protective gear. I always wear a toque and I always wear a scarf about my mouth and chin. I make sure to cover up as much of my body because the cold temperatures really dry out your skin and make it all hard. Yuck! When I'm somewhere hot like Indian, I always wear a baseball cap to protect my face when I'm outside in the sun. The sun rays can really age your skin. I always wear a moisturizer with some SPF and cover up my face as much as possible. I also don't tan. As an Indian, I'm blessed to have a sunkissed look all year round but I have so many friends that lay out in the sun all summer and sometimes even get burnt. I can't stress how bad that is your skin. I have seen many Indian women in India who work outdoors during crops that have really been affected. Their skin becomes tight and dry and most of them look older than they are. So just try to protect your skin and cover up when you can. Of course we all need a little bit of sun but what I'm stressing is not to exposure yourself too much.

If you have any specific questions, feel free to email me. Bottom line, follow these simple few steps and your skin will thank you. Remember when your skin is stressed, that is why pimples occur. Believe me, I do not go for any expensive skin care treatments or use any magical potions. I use these few tips that I have picked up from my years in pageants and it has really changed my skin for the better.

Till next time,

Muah!

-Amin xoxox

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