Chandler Burr has trashed the new release Chloe in his reviews - in writing and in person - so when it showed up as a sample in a Sak’s order, I thought… well, let’s give it a whirl and see if I agree or not. The little sniff I had before was on paper, and that tells me next to nothing. Notes of peony, lychée, freesia, rose, magnolia, lily of the valley, amber and cedar wood. Peony is a note I adore in everything, so I should be pre-disposed to liking this. It goes on like a floral dud. Seems big and then just bursts, scatters into nothing very interesting at all. There’s almost the smell of bug spray in there. Must be a synthetic note that’s just off in my nose. But with that, and with the proviso that a note may be coloring the whole thing for me, this is awful. It’s mushy with no definition, just a big ole floral soup. Gah.
Now, why do we have the Vanity picture? Well, I treated myself today to the first in a series of 3-5 IPL photofacials. I used to be out in the sun a lot when I was a kid, either working on the farm or later just sunbathing trying to get as dark a tan as my very fair, English skin could manage. Over the years, capillaries broke, there was a lot of underlying sun damage on my face, which is kinda cute when you’re young. As I now am within spitting distance of that major age milestone, the ruddiness on my cheeks/nose was just bugging me. I kept putting off doing the IPL (intense pulsed light) because it is costy and unnecessary, and it really doesn’t add anything to my life or my worth or well-being… except, well, I wanted to be able to once again run around without any foundation on my face and not feel/look like the ruddy washwoman fresh from the steamy suds.
Listen, if you have rosacea or broken capillaries or acne scars or just a really uneven skin tone that makes you feel not as fresh-faced as you would like or that you always have to have your face on before you exit the house… go.now.do.IPL. Save your pennies, take out a second mortgage on your house, just do it. With one treatment, even with the little pinkness the first day, my complexion looks clear as a bell, fresh, youthful. I can’t even imagine what 2-4 more treatments will do, but I absolutely will be able to not even bother putting on foundation - just throw on some eyeshadow and mascara and be done with it.
What is the treatment like? It’s a little annoying. You get all trussed up on your cot, they put on goggles, then she just pulses your skin with the laser. It feels like a little bit of a rubber band snapping your skin. The first few minutes are annoying, but then you get used to it. When they are going over the more sensitive areas around your nose, cheeks, with the most damage, then it can get really annoying, but it doesn’t take long. The forehead is the weirdest, because even with the goggles, you get the bright red light somewhere in your optical area - a strange sensation. Takes about 60 minutes from start to finish.
Am I vain? Not really. And just a little. Yes, those two opposites can live in perfect tension. Nothing in me wants to be young again, I’m just not ready to be old.
How much vanity can a woman live with once she gets to a certain age, and how much aging does she have to put up with so she doesn’t become a cartoon character of herself? This goes for men, too, because I know more and more men are doing cosmetic procedures. How do we know when we’ve gone too far?
