No update this week. I am working through some emotional highs and lows right now, and I'm so busy I haven't had a chance to really spend time thinking on them. In fact, this is the first time I've been home all week. It's hard to concentrate on talking about hirsutism when I can't even concentrate on even more personal matters. But it's not all bad stuff, and I'll probably be back next week to contemplate some Important Things before my next endo appointment.
Love to you all!
June 16, 2011
June 10, 2011
Product: Kiss My Face Moisture Shave
Kiss My Face presents an image that is environmentally conscious, anti-animal testing and uses natural ingredients. In addition, I like that the products are really unisex. Some stores put the moisture shaves with the women's foams and waxes, and some stores put them with the men's stuff. But they don't look either masculine or feminine, so if you're self conscious about putting a product for guys in your cart like I am, this is a great feature. I have seen some hirsute women recommending this one, so I felt it was time to check it out.
Kiss My Face Moisture Shave, Fragrance Free- 118 mL
Ingredients:
Things I liked:
Things I didn't like:
Did it do what it promised?
"Emollient and moisturizing" it was, to the point that it makes it one of my favorite gels so far. A shaving oil would still feel more moisturizing of course. "Astringent," yes, I felt that. Not my favorite feature. It didn't make a difference in my spots, but mostly that's because my spots are not caused by acne in the shaved areas--they're caused by ingrown hairs and nicks. "Styptic" (which means, it helps stop bleeding) I didn't really notice, but I think that's a cool feature to advertise in a shave gel.
This product has a lot of neat plant ingredients that all have benefits. But the important aspects for me were that it felt nice to shave with, and the stinging worried me inasmuch as astringents can dry out your skin. I would probably use it again, if it was on sale.
See what other people thought of Kiss My Face Moisture Shave:
Amazon.com
MakeupAlley
Nouveau Cheap
EDS Skin Care Forums
Kiss My Face Moisture Shave, Fragrance Free- 118 mL
Ingredients:
- Aqua, potassium myristate (derived from vegetable oils), sodium myristate (derived from vegetable oils), propylene glycol, TEA stearate, cocos nucifera (coconut oil), olea europaea (olive oil), aloe barbadensis, retinol, ergocalciferol, tocopherol acetate (vitamin E), lecithin, citrus aurantifolia (lime), alchemilla vulgaris (Lady's Mantle), saponaria officinalis L (Soapwort), mentha piperita (peppermint), equisetum arvense (Horsetail), nasturtium officinale (Watercress), cymbopogon schoenanthus (Lemongrass), salvia officinalis (Sage), hydrastis canadensis (Goldenseal), citrus dulcis (Orange Flower), arnica montana, hydroxyethylcellulose (plant source), methylparaben, propylparaben, sodium benzoate.
Things I liked:
- Obviously, it's a gel. You can see where you're shaving, and it feels luxurious.
- It doesn't smell at all perfumey or chemically. It's a lovely non-smell smell.
- For people who like a bit of lather, you can get some suds from this one.
Things I didn't like:
- It stings on freshly shaved skin. Not nearly as much as BikiniZone, but still, that can't be good. When you look at the ingredients, you can see why it might. Some of this stuff has astringent properties for acne, but personally I don't like anything stinging on my already abused face.
Did it do what it promised?
"Emollient and moisturizing" it was, to the point that it makes it one of my favorite gels so far. A shaving oil would still feel more moisturizing of course. "Astringent," yes, I felt that. Not my favorite feature. It didn't make a difference in my spots, but mostly that's because my spots are not caused by acne in the shaved areas--they're caused by ingrown hairs and nicks. "Styptic" (which means, it helps stop bleeding) I didn't really notice, but I think that's a cool feature to advertise in a shave gel.
This product has a lot of neat plant ingredients that all have benefits. But the important aspects for me were that it felt nice to shave with, and the stinging worried me inasmuch as astringents can dry out your skin. I would probably use it again, if it was on sale.
See what other people thought of Kiss My Face Moisture Shave:
Amazon.com
MakeupAlley
Nouveau Cheap
EDS Skin Care Forums
May 31, 2011
The Beard Project
Bearded woman Paula documents her experience when she challenges herself to stop shaving for three months.
And then this weekend, she posted this video to mark the unexpected end of her project:
So the beard had to go because of a job interview. And it's one of the last things I think about, when I fantasize about being utterly myself, inside and out, by letting the beard grow. If I had that courage, I could probably deal with the strange looks, or alienating some people who I thought were my friends. My beard would be a filter, separating the important, truly loving people in my life from the shallow ones. As there's no other noted bearded lady where I live, people would probably quickly come to recognize me, and either be repulsed, or realize that here's just another human being with a neat genetic quirk. It might inspire people, the way these videos inspired me... not so much to do the same thing, but to just be okay with who you are. Because really, there are a lot of other women just like us.
But when it comes to a job, very few would employ a woman with a beard to represent their company in any way. Most want a clean-cut, normal-looking person... and some will only hire especially good-looking employees. You often can't have unique-colored hair or piercings, or express your personal style through clothing... and that's just because so much of a business' reputation is all about image. As Paula points out in her latest video it's true for women and for men. I know I could not be allowed to do my job if I stopped shaving. Actually, that might be a fascinating situation to see how my boss might approach asking me to shave, and if I refused, how he would decide to dismiss me in a legal and politically correct way. That would be kind of amusing...
And being unable to find a job anywhere but a circus (I'm exaggerating here) would leave me free to pursue my artistic dreams, for which I do not have to represent anybody but myself and my work. That's almost tempting.
Anyway, I loved watching these videos and seeing a woman who faces her fear like that. If I ever saw her on the street I think I'd just run up and hug her, and royally freak her out. Thank you to Sophie for finding these!
And then this weekend, she posted this video to mark the unexpected end of her project:
So the beard had to go because of a job interview. And it's one of the last things I think about, when I fantasize about being utterly myself, inside and out, by letting the beard grow. If I had that courage, I could probably deal with the strange looks, or alienating some people who I thought were my friends. My beard would be a filter, separating the important, truly loving people in my life from the shallow ones. As there's no other noted bearded lady where I live, people would probably quickly come to recognize me, and either be repulsed, or realize that here's just another human being with a neat genetic quirk. It might inspire people, the way these videos inspired me... not so much to do the same thing, but to just be okay with who you are. Because really, there are a lot of other women just like us.
But when it comes to a job, very few would employ a woman with a beard to represent their company in any way. Most want a clean-cut, normal-looking person... and some will only hire especially good-looking employees. You often can't have unique-colored hair or piercings, or express your personal style through clothing... and that's just because so much of a business' reputation is all about image. As Paula points out in her latest video it's true for women and for men. I know I could not be allowed to do my job if I stopped shaving. Actually, that might be a fascinating situation to see how my boss might approach asking me to shave, and if I refused, how he would decide to dismiss me in a legal and politically correct way. That would be kind of amusing...
And being unable to find a job anywhere but a circus (I'm exaggerating here) would leave me free to pursue my artistic dreams, for which I do not have to represent anybody but myself and my work. That's almost tempting.
Anyway, I loved watching these videos and seeing a woman who faces her fear like that. If I ever saw her on the street I think I'd just run up and hug her, and royally freak her out. Thank you to Sophie for finding these!
May 24, 2011
Whoops.
This weekend I gave myself one of the worst nicks I've ever had. It immediately flooded me with anger, because I know I was being careless and trying too hard to get a close shave around my chin area. Idiot, it's a new style of blade, I'm still learning how to use it! Should have been more careful.
So now there's a Psycho-esque mess going down the drain, and it will not. Stop. Bleeding. I tried all the usual tricks. Cold water. Pressure. Bits of toilet paper. Globbing on the thickest substance to hand (usually my facial soap) just to at least keep it from streaming down my neck. Nothing worked but time. And then trying to cover up the scab with make up? Forget about it! Every time I tried, I would disturb the clot and and open the flood gates all over again.
I ended up having to cancel my plans for the morning. I thought there was no way I was going out to be around human beings. So I shed some tears of frustration and self pity, cuddled my dog, had a cup of tea. And then when I felt I'd wasted enough time feeling sorry for myself, I just... went on with life. But the awareness that I avoided something because I wanted to hide how I looked haunted my mood for some time afterward. I know full well that is not the way it should be. But it's the way that it is--it's hard to help that.
So now there's a Psycho-esque mess going down the drain, and it will not. Stop. Bleeding. I tried all the usual tricks. Cold water. Pressure. Bits of toilet paper. Globbing on the thickest substance to hand (usually my facial soap) just to at least keep it from streaming down my neck. Nothing worked but time. And then trying to cover up the scab with make up? Forget about it! Every time I tried, I would disturb the clot and and open the flood gates all over again.
I ended up having to cancel my plans for the morning. I thought there was no way I was going out to be around human beings. So I shed some tears of frustration and self pity, cuddled my dog, had a cup of tea. And then when I felt I'd wasted enough time feeling sorry for myself, I just... went on with life. But the awareness that I avoided something because I wanted to hide how I looked haunted my mood for some time afterward. I know full well that is not the way it should be. But it's the way that it is--it's hard to help that.
May 11, 2011
Where's Allerleirah?
I'm here. And I've not forgotten about you guys.
I'm going through various family and personal stuff right now, unrelated to my usual hairy self. Very little of it is dire, some of it is even very positive, but it is very consuming because it's happening all at once. I need to focus on life for hopefully just a little bit longer, and then we should be back to a more normal updating schedule. Please be patient with me. I am coming back.
Oh, and guess what happened to me tonight? My hair dresser got a little carried away and now my hair is so short I can't hide behind it. That's been a fear of mine for ages, but my hair dresser knows I'm timid about cutting it, and I always remind her of where I draw the "too short" line. Nothing above the chin! Maybe she was having an off day, I don't know. It's a beautiful cut, but it's not me, and it's not comfortable. But regardless, now I have to live with it. At least it'll grow back, and fairly quickly.
I'm going through various family and personal stuff right now, unrelated to my usual hairy self. Very little of it is dire, some of it is even very positive, but it is very consuming because it's happening all at once. I need to focus on life for hopefully just a little bit longer, and then we should be back to a more normal updating schedule. Please be patient with me. I am coming back.
Oh, and guess what happened to me tonight? My hair dresser got a little carried away and now my hair is so short I can't hide behind it. That's been a fear of mine for ages, but my hair dresser knows I'm timid about cutting it, and I always remind her of where I draw the "too short" line. Nothing above the chin! Maybe she was having an off day, I don't know. It's a beautiful cut, but it's not me, and it's not comfortable. But regardless, now I have to live with it. At least it'll grow back, and fairly quickly.
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