Severance Beauty Secrets


For some reason now that I am over 50, I get asked for my beauty secrets! It has been happening a lot in the last year and especially with the Vogue.com Beauty Secrets Video that has received over 16 million views !! Why is this? Is it because older women are now in fashion and more and more editorial layouts and ads have women over 50 in them? Is it because I look better now than I did when I was younger?

I have no idea. However, it has sent me in a direction of looking into ways to maintain my appearance as I get older. I never really thought about it much until that Vogue.com video. When they asked me to do that – I was shocked. Why me? I thought about it on another level and decided to do it. I watched a few that they had and realized my worst fear–it was shot on an iPhone!!! Yikes!!! The lens on any cell phone is so bent that my thin face always looks so much thinner – like looking into a spoon. Not a good look and not a good beauty look. But I threw caution to the wind and felt that if I am to share secrets, then I needed to be “real”.

I decided to do the no make-up look after watching several of their videos of secrets where some of the subjects had make-up on already. I wanted to be different and daring and reveal a part of myself that few knew about at the time. The fact that I have a condition that is shared with well over 2 % of the world population. It is called Vitiligo. I do not and have not let this condition get in my way of my two fabulous careers as an actress or super model and up until recently never gave it much attention. That being said – I thought this platform would be a good way to introduce myself to the masses in an entirely different way.

As women, most of us have been programmed to wear make-up (mask) everyday and especially when we leave the house. I was. There is nothing wrong with this, except the fact that we often feel insecure or uncomfortable when we don’t have it on. Funny, when we show our real “face” we feel bad about ourselves! I think it is time that women are allowed to look as they do, without the  make-up mask. If we wish to be equal to men – then we need to consider this o
ne step that puts us more in an equality mindset.

That being said, I feel skin care is a must. As we age and if we are not going to wear make-up, an alternative is to have great looking skin. Skin that doesn’t have to be covered with a mask. Skin that can be enhanced with a bronzer or a slight tan from real sun. A little lip, if yours need enhancing and a brow fill, now and then. The “foundation”, “base” must go. That is what I am calling the “mask” 

My beauty faves are simple and mostly natural products, when possible. Olive oil and /or coconut oil are my favorite make-up removers as well as moisturizers. You can cook with them and eat them, so they have to be good for your skin. And they are available all over the world, so traveling is never an issue.

I use salt and/or sugar mixed with Mario Badescu enzyme cleansing gel for a weekly face scrub with a spritz of their rosewater facial spray to finish it off.

Mac Half Red lip liner, L’Oreal Voluminous Black/Brown mascara, Anastasia brow pencil medium brown and Nars  Laguna bronzer. That is pretty much what you will see on my face daily.

Enjoy the process of life and beauty and always know that your inner beauty far surpasses the outer beauty, so let it shine>

Joan