Three Beauty Tips I wish I knew Growing Up

Three Beauty Tips I wish I knew Growing Up

By: Lena

Everyone has things they regret or wish they knew in the past. Despite growing up with a ridiculous collection of Seventeen magazines, I remained relatively clueless about so much beauty-wise. I often wish I could go back and tell myself to stop attempting layers (it doesn’t work with my hair!), but when it comes to my skin, these are the things I would make sure to drill home.

Moisture is not the enemy

This is a big one for me. I believed that having oily skin meant I needed to dry it out (sound logic, right?). My routine consisted of using a foaming face wash, followed by an astringent (the horror!), followed by a clay mask, and followed by a benzoyl peroxide spot treatment. Even writing that, I feel my skin starting to crack. What I didn’t realize is that drying skin out causes it to produce more oil, so I would break out even more. It wasn’t until college that I first started using moisturizer, and by that point I could barely tolerate it on my skin. Now I am a facial oil aficionado, and love pampering my skin with a luscious oil. My face not only feels so much better, my skin has never been clearer.

Put the tweezers down

I see this with so many girls, so I don’t feel alone on this topic. If I could go back in time, I would grab my tweezers from my medicine cabinet and throw them out immediately. I’ve always had very fine, light brows, and at age 13 I decided to pluck them into oblivion, making me look like I had min tadpoles swimming above my eyes. Looking back at pictures is painful, and luckily there aren’t too many of me then. It was bad. And, of course, they took forever to grow out, and I still don’t think they’ve grown back entirely. It’s fun to experiment with brows shapes, but if you’re not used to plucking, put the tweezers down and get thee to a beauty salon, stat.

Everyone has an awkward phase

The number one thing I’d tell myself? Chill out. Only 5% of the population goes through puberty effortlessly, and they’re genetic freaks. Everyone goes through an awkward phase, and it’s unfortunately usually when we’re at our most hormonal and sensitive. Now I look back at my photos with braces and I think, “I look so cute!” No one is expecting perfection, so don’t make that your goal. Embrace the awkward and focus on being yourself, because that’s what people will remember.