Permanently Beautiful

In the 1950s and 1960s, tattoos signified rebellion against middle-class conformity, according to historian Jonathan Zimmerman. They were associated them with street gangs, motorcycle clubs, ex-cons and drunks. In 1959, the National Education Association advised schools that “potential juvenile delinquents” could be identified as “those with male kin who are tattooed.”

And it was mostly males who got inked, not females. In a culture of straight-laced Organization Men, tattoos came to embody a kind of rough-hewn, frontier-style masculinity. That’s why Philip Morris USA Inc. decided to adorn its Marlboro Man – the epitome of 1950s machismo – with a small piece of body art on his hand. “We wished to show a man who, during some moment – some loose moment – got himself tattooed,” an advertising executive explained.

Fast-forward to earlier this year, when toymaker Mattel Inc. released its Totally Stylin’ Tattoos Barbie doll. It comes with a set of tattoo stickers that can be placed anywhere on her body, plus a tattoo gun that allows children to ink the doll – or themselves.

That tells you all you need to know about the changed cultural meaning of the American tattoo. It has become just as common among women as among men. Most of all, it has gone 100 percent mainstream. If even Barbie is getting inked, and it’s totally stylin’, we can be sure that there’s nothing remotely rebellious about it.

That could be the best news of all, if you’re still debating about yourself and tattoos. If you get inked, you won’t be defying social propriety. As tattoos become more accepted, indeed, it will be unusual to find someone who doesn’t have one.

That’s why the heavily tattooed ex-rocker and reality-show star Ozzy Osbourne warned his own daughter against body ink. “To be unique, don’t get a tattoo,” Osbourne urged. “Because everybody else has got tattoos.” Of course, his daughter got one anyway.

A subtle and gorgeous way to get inked is with permanent make-up. You can flaunt it or keep it hushed as your beauty secret.

Summer’s just around the corner. And along with summer fun comes the heat and humidity that can wreak havoc with your hair. Here are a few great summer hair care ideas we culled from places like InStyle:

Frizz-Free Curls

 If you’re lucky enough to have natural curls like Beyonce, flaunt them. Avoid frizz by simply adding an anti-frizz serum to your morning hair routine. Then gently scrunches the hair while blow drying on low with a diffuser. Don’t comb it out! Let it be natural and sexy. 

Long-Lasting Braids

 Drew Barrymore and Charlize Theron recently joined the long list of stars sporting braids this season. Braids look cute straight down or pinned up. No matter how you wear them, braids will hold better and longer if you start out with wet hair, use a stronger gel than normal and spray with a little hair spray.

Straight Hair

 Celebrity hairstylists say the key to straight hair in the summer is a ceramic wet-to-dry flat iron. First, apply a protecting spray to damp hair and then use the iron. The iron helps lock in moisture and fight flyaways. Bonus tip: After using the iron, apply the spray again on dry hair to help protect against the sun’s UV rays.

 Summer beauty is no sweat with permanent make-up. It won’t melt away in the heat, dissolve into your sunscreen or disappear in the water.  With luscious lips, gorgeous eyebrows and defined eyes, you’ll be totally hot but in a good way.

Scarlett Johansson has them. Jessica Simpson and Serena Williams, too. What?  Allergies.

 If your allergies are acting up, it’s natural to want to crawl back under the covers and take it easy. But that’s not an option for celebrities who want to stay on the public radar.

 Your nose is running, you’re sneezing a lot, eyes are watery and red – and the spotlight’s on you.  It’s not easy. But trying to focus on your job whether it’s in front of a movie camera, a live audience or just your computer screen can be challenging when you’re coping with allergies.

 It’s also challenging to try to look your best. Irritating allergy symptoms can affect the skin around the eyes and nose. Constantly blowing the nose and wiping eyes can lead to sore, chapped or dehydrated skin. Other allergies such as eczema can also flare up when hay fever starts.

 Here are some beauty tips for allergy season:

·        If skin is sensitive or prone to other allergies then be careful about which brands are used. Try new products before buying and seek expert advice about which brands are safe to use with allergies in mind.

·        Chapped and dehydrated skin will sting when product is applied. This is because the surface of the skin is sore, rather than being the result of an allergic reaction. Balms can help to minimize this and repair skin, especially those with naturally soothing ingredients.

·        Minimize make-up if eyes are itchy and puffy. Anything which might irritate further such as a kohl pencil or glitter eye shadow is to be avoided. Consider permanent make-up as your perfect year round solution and you’ll always look good, even when your allergies are acting up. 

Utter the magic word “Chanel” and what do you think of? Hot haute couture fashions flaunted by supermodels like Carmen Kass and Claudia Schiffer. Or you may think of Chanel’s signature quilted purses, emblematic Chanel No. 5 perfume and signature little knit suits.  

But there really was a Chanel who started it all. Her name was Coco Chanel. We have a lot to thank her for. She’s the one who put women in pants and knee length skirts. And her classy comfortable suits. Just imagine. Before Coco Chanel, all women went around dressed like extras from the cast of Mary Poppins! 

Rumor has it that because Chanel, the child of a prostitute, was sent to Catholic boarding school, clerics’ garb was the creative child’s inspiration for the famous black and white women’s suits she designed. And the little black dress.

But there is one Chanel innovation that we’d all be a lot better off without today – the chic suntan. There really is no such thing. When Chanel started hanging out on the French Riviera with the jet set, she decided that a deep tan was just the ticket to set off her white summer wear.  

What Chanel could not have known is that a tan is really your skin’s response to an injury caused by ultra-violet radiation. That means the rays of the sun. Even if you don’t look burned, the damage is done. And the damage is cumulative. It builds up. So someday you are going to be wrinkled. Seriously wrinkled. 

Tanning beds also are bad news. As bad for you as the a direct hit from the sun itself. Go instead with a self-tanning cream or brush-on bronzer. And give your face some extra pop with permanent make-up.  You’ll look fabulous even when you’re in the water!

We read that at the recent Roberto Cavalli fashion show a dark smoky cat eye with a 60s style mane of hair was the new hot runway look in beauty.

 Both hairstylist Guido Palau and makeup artist Pat McGrath cited Brigitte Bardot as their inspiration for this super-sexy look. Jennifer Lopez  comes to mind as another icon of this look. To achieve the dramatic eye, McGrath applied dark liner around the entire eye, as well as in the crease and inside the lower lash line, blending slightly for definition. The liner was then topped with eye shadow in a black hue and lashes were coated with major mascara.

It’s power-house glam with a lot of drama. Perfect for a special night when you want to amp up your volume. Why not get a head-start by having a base coat of permanent eye-liner all ready applied to both your upper and lower eye-lids?  You’ll save precious time when you’re in prep mode for getting ready.  Plus there’ll be less margin for error when you’ve all ready got a permanent eye-liner guideline to follow.  Just trace it over and build it up.

 Then when you want to dial it back down, you’re all ready there!  And if you’re having a special sleepover, you can go ahead and take it off – your evening eye make-up that is – assured that when morning comes, you’ll look fresh and gorgeous. No caked smudges or black flakes of make-up around your eyes. And you won’t look like your face is missing in action either.