A few pictures of me...

So, before I put the pictures in I wanted to say a little something about photo editing. I am not good at it.  A few of these pictures were edited using the app FaceTune...which is pretty cool in that it lets you blur backgrounds and that sort of thing. It also lets you edit your features...and I do that sometimes - it would be a lie and somewhat disingenuous to not tell you that I do that. BUT I will always try to TELL you when I have done so. Sometimes it's nice to be able to blur those forehead wrinkles and stuff, you know? 
But I try not to take it too far... and really, once you get to know me, you'll be able to tell which ones are edited and which ones aren't...

Generally I DO edit things a bit. they are, after all, MY photos. right? Right! I tend to use a filter as well - just one of the built in ones on my iTouch. Mostly because it helps cancel out some of the redness I have...

Oh and you will also notice that I usually take pics at a certain angle...because I can't for the life of me seem to take a picture of the other side of my face without it looking...distorted or something... does anyone else have that trouble?

I liked my lashes on this day...

The two above are mostly to show the lashes I was wearing...Like I said in a previous post...lashes are new to me and I am obsessed!

Liked my coppery eyeshadow in this one...

HIGHLY edited pic - as you can tell by the fancy border and stuff...plus I think I did some stuff to the lighting... but I thought it was quite dramatic!

Edited a bit for chest redness and I think forehead lines...But mostly I like this one because it show that you CAN wear highlighter after 40!

This is a favorite picture...mostly because I loved the way my eye makeup turned out. Slightly edited - and should have been MORE edited to get rid of the crap you can see in the background...ha!

 the above picture is not edited - you can tell by the redness of my chest area - which is something I generally edit out....and wish that I could edit it right out of my life!  They say your face and neck should match to avoid a mask look, and often they will test a foundation on your neck - which NEVER works for me because I am so red. I blend into my neck but so far have not gotten into putting foundation on my chest...

A little about me and my current skin care routine

Greetings!

I just wanted to pop in and tell you a little about myself.

I'm 46. Married. One cat. Those are the basics.

As for my skin...well, that's more complicated in a way. I still have the occasional breakout (thanks hormones!) but generally speaking, my skin is pretty normal or combination during the times that it's ticked off at me.

I seldom stray from my cleansing routine. I find that a lot of experimentation does NOT make my skin happy. So, although I occasionally make a foray into the vast forest of skin care products, I find that if I do what I always do, my skin is pretty happy. I have recently added a retinol to my regime, which I put on at night before my moisturizer. Other than that, I stick with the same stuff, day in and day out. These products include:

• Neutrogena Rapid Clear Oil Control Foaming Cleanser - about $7
• Philosophy Purity Made Simple One-Step Facial Cleanser - about $25 depending on the size you get
• I use a Clarisonic Mia once a day (about $150)
• Olay Active hydration moisturizer - about $8
• RoC Deep Wrinkle Serum - about $24
• Ponds Evening Soothe Facial Wipes- about $6 for 30 
• Simple Micellar Cleaning Water - about $6

I wash twice a day, morning and night. On days I work out, I tend to just give my face a swipe with a wet washcloth and/or use the Simple Micellar Water on a cotton pad. I put my Olay on too. I leave the heavy duty cleansing until I get back from my workout.

In the morning I use my Neutrogena cleanser in the shower with my Clarisonic. Followed up with Olay.

At night, if I have a full face of makeup on, I use the Ponds wipes to take off at least some of my makeup. If I have worn false eyelashes (a new obsession of mine!) I use a little coconut oil to soften the glue. After that I use the Philosophy cleanser on a washcloth to take off the bulk of my makeup. I follow that up with a second cleansingusing the Neutrogena cleanser. Washing twice seems excessive maybe, but it seems to work for me at this point in my life. I follow that with the RoC serum and finally more Olay. I have tried lots of moisturizers and it seems like this is the only one that isn't too heavy and doesn't break me out. I will say that if I have dry patches or my neck is irritated (which happens a lot in the winter) I use some First Aid Beauty cream. It's good stuff, but pretty heavy duty. Thankfully it's not sticky.

If I haven't worn makeup, I skip the wipes and sometimes the second cleansing. 

Whew! When I write it all out it seems complicated but I guess I have been doing it long enough that it all goes quickly and easily. 

Welcome to Pavonine Beauty!

Greetings everyone! I have thought long and hard about whether or not to start a beauty blog or not...

Does the world really need another beauty blogger? Probably not. BUT I have noticed that there doesn't seem to be many blogs directed at those of us who are 40+.  So, that's my goal: to offer ideas and inspiration and reviews and thoughts from the perspective of someone who falls into that category of a woman who has lived a bit, but still likes to play and have fun with her makeup.

I guess I am not all THAT intersted in creating a blog that just talks about anti-aging products and that sort of thing - IMO we talk to much about that stuff. Maybe we can somehow get to a place where we are accepting of our changing skin and beauty routines without giving in entirely...or worse, falling into the trap of some kind of ageism...like all of those snide comments you read or stupid commercials they make that poke fun at your Grandmother...I don't know about you, but I loved my Grandma and I love my Mom and it annoys me to no end how we are constantly reminded how we shouldn't dress/decorate/makeup like our Grandmother.  As if it were the worst thing in the world to be like your Grandma...

Anyway...just a personal soapbox there...

So, without further ado...Let's get on with the makeup!

If there is anything you'd like to know about or even potentially see me review...just let me know... I'm not sponsored or any of that - so everything you see here will be stuff I have purchased myself. And if ever it's not, I will be sure to let you know. But my goal is to give you honest feedback and opinions.