You Don’t Need to Spend a Million Bucks to Look Like It
August 29, 2011The other day I was getting my nails done at the salon down the street, and a very nice classy looking lady walked in and asked a question to the owner. Why was I listening? Well, you need to know that when you are getting your nails done, there isn’t anything to do. They’re usually playing a soap opera on TV, or some random program that you have no interest in. There are magazines to read, but think about how difficult it is to do because you have to put the slippery magazine in your lap making it difficult to turn the pages. Remember why you are there also; you have to keep changing hands while the manicurist works on you. So the best way to pass the time is to people watch. That is what I was doing when I overheard the conversation between the classy patron and the salon owner.
The patron asked if they had eyelash extensions and inquired to the cost of the service. The stylist let her know it was $85 for the extensions and she’d need to come in every two weeks for a retouch – for $40 each time. I literally gasped out loud, trying to remain calm because I didn’t want them to realize I was eves dropping on their conversation. I was so shocked because first of all, I didn’t even know what eyelash extensions were, so I thought it was the old “fake eyelashes” like my Mom used to wear in the 60’s. You glued on a strip (probably the precursor to astro turf) to your eyes and looked super “mod,” but everyone could tell they were fake.
Oh no. Not now. These are natural looking individual eyelashes a trained technician attaches (glues) to your existing eyelashes. They are “permanent” so you can sleep in them and they will fall out naturally. Since they fall out, you need to come back to get them retouched every other week. That means $125 the first month, and then $80 bucks a month going forward for eyelashes. That is over a thousand dollars in a year.
The list of things we do for beauty is endless – highlights to make our hair look like it is streaked in the sun, extensions to make our hair longer, straightening irons, anti frizz products—not to mention skin care, make up, and nail care. We aren’t even going into fashion and jewelry. Let’s add up some typical things women spend money on for beauty – these aren’t even extreme.
- Hair cut and highlights $125
- French manicure $65
- Spa Pedicure $50
- Facial $60
- Skin care products $60
- Makeup $20
- Waxing (facial hair removal) $20
The beauty regime comes to $400 per month and we haven’t even gotten dressed yet. Of course, we don’t want to look like we crawled out from under a rock sporting a uni-brow, but at the same time, a lot of ladies (and I am picking on women today) spend thousands of dollars on things when there are less expensive ways that produce the same desired result.
How to be beautiful without overspending:
Consider the desired result. Is it really beauty or is it to draw people to you? In other words, are you seeking to be attractive to others? Attractiveness isn’t only about looks. Dale Carnegie has an answer from his classic book, How to Win Friends and Influence People. Dale tells us to be genuinely interested in others. People are interested in people who are interested in them. Taking the focus off of ourselves and putting it onto others may actually make us more attractive. So if you want to be attractive, be interested in others. Find out what is important to them, what they are doing in their lives, and what their opinions are. You’ll be the most attractive person in the room.
Beauty is skin deep – drink water. I distinctly remember a conversation I had a few years ago, I met a woman at a company meeting sitting at one of those happy hours after a training. She had incredible skin – glowing and healthy looking, and I couldn’t help but remark how great she looked. Flattered, she told me her secret, and it was remarkably simple. She said, “I drink tons of water every day.” I was shocked because you are always brainwashed by the beauty magazines that you need this or that skin cream. Water. Lots of it. Ok. That was easy and inexpensive.
Exercise is a way to enhance your beauty for free. Put on your tennis shoes and shut the door behind you. Getting out and breaking a sweat helps your skin glow naturally. There are also the added benefits of stress reduction and increased energy.
Spend wisely. Take advantage of the group coupon rage going on right now. With sites like Groupon and Living Social sending offers of more than half off services, spa lovers can get their French manicure, eyelash extensions, massages and facials at super low prices. If you love your stylist or technician and want to be loyal to them, consider working with them for a volume discount. Also, stylists often give you a discount when you send them a referral, so carry their cards with you and write your name on the back so when your refer someone, you’ll get credit. My stylist gives me $10 off when I book my next appointment in advance, of course I can always reschedule if the time isn’t convenient, so there is no downside to doing that. The skin care company I use gives discounts for loyalty, and since I have been using them for years, I don’t pay retail prices. I also time my purchases, making sure I hit the level I need for free shipping to reduce my costs.
Do it yourself. Maybe not cutting your own hair, but consider doing some of the services yourself, such as your pedicure or nails. For example, good skin doesn’t run in my family. Wrinkles run in my family. So early on, I took great care of my skin and got facials once a month all through my thirties. When I hit my forties, I had more demands on my time and money so I started doing them myself once a month — steaming a pot of chamomile tea and draping a towel over my head, followed by a seaweed mask to exfoliate (which my kids cracked up when they regularly saw my green face), followed by a good quality moisturizer. On my “girl’s weekends,” my friends all brought our beauty products and did the home facials together, combining a wonderful social get together with free facials!
The key is making the most of the money you are spending to be beautiful. Take an inventory of what you are spending and ask yourself if it is worthwhile. Then put your money where the most value is, and that just might be toward a new pair of tennis shoes.
Resources: