Going intensive with skincare

Vaseline Intensive Care is my product! I advertised Intensive Care while pregnant with my fourth child. Recalling memories of squeezing into my clothes I rummaged through battered carnation boxes to retrieve very old photos I had forgotten about. My dusty box, the cajon de los recuerdos, yielded a colored leaflet on beauty tips from Pond’s I wrote in the ‘70s, which are still applicable today. I am reprinting some beauty guidelines such as "Beauty need not be the shape of the face but an attitude towards life… therefore, a beautiful person keeps herself in top form inside out, head, heart and soul, and head to toe," among others. The following article is based on McCann Erickson and Lintas Ad Company’s campaign on skincare.

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The face: Most women make the mistake of classifying their skin type as oily or dry. Normal skin and combination skin exist, too. Skin types vary but always cleansing your face thoroughly protects the complexion. There’s a Pond’s white liquid soap that’s sheer and thin in consistency. Smooth on the face, its slippery texture takes only an instant to slide on the skin’s surface. No pressure, no undue stretching, no taxing the complexion with heavy strokes. Its deep cleansing ingredients penetrate the tiniest pores and guard against sebum that clogs the pores causing blackheads and inflammation, which is the onset of bacterial infection resulting in acne. How should I cleanse my skin? Wet a small towelette and put some soap on it and gently rub on your face in circular movements. Your face, now clean and dry, needs a moisturizer. Wet your face slightly. Do the same with Pond’s Cold Cream to lock in the moisture. Thin as it is, it locks in the cream and the water. Feel how terrific and smooth it feels when it’s massaged on the face. Spread over the face with your fingertips in upward strokes. Use twice a week. Cool your body with Vaseline Intensive Care lotion to avoid dry chapped and itchy skin.

Your hands are the finest precision instruments ever created, yet we often take them for granted. We use them to reach out to loved ones, to cure others’ wounds, drive cars, write letters, play the piano, gather flowers, massage our necks. Take care of them. Fingernails and hands reveal personalities and tell whether a woman’s growing any older.

After washing your hands, rub Vaseline Intensive Care Lotion on the skin to moisturize and soften your skin. Apply it in circular or horizontal motion starting from your knuckles upward. Spread Vaseline Intensive Care Lotion all over your hands and let the lotion seep into your skin to acquire that velvety feeling.

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The feet can take a lot of pressure and weight. Appreciate them, spoil them once a day. Massage this delicate structure consisting of 26 tiny strong bones in an upward direction from the soles of your feet to the ankles and from the tips of your toes up to the legs.

To treat calluses and corns while having a pedicure, rub the corns with a wet pumice stone in circular movements to gradually lessen their thickness. Massage Vaseline Intensive Care Lotion, or VICL, right after a bath to soften the calluses. Do this regularly and the pumice stone will do its work. All it takes is habit, patience and VICL.

Relaxation is essential for your body. A massage stimulates circulation and eases fatigue from overwork, sports, or stresses from work. Three steps are involved: Kneading, stroking and rolling.

Rolling motions are achieved by pressing with the flat of your palms. Let your fingers do the work with an upward and outward pressure. This upward motion helps prevent drooping muscles. Kneading is pinching and rolling in small and large circles. Do it on the shoulders and neck. It’s heaven.

Think, a firm body due to exercise is a beautiful and healthy sight. Here are simple exercises that even the laziest of people can do anywhere, anytime.

For the waist, stand on two feet. Inhale. Step forward with your left foot. Twist upper torso towards the left side, swinging both arms to the left. Exhale. Alternate between left and right. Repeat 10 times.

For the arms, stand with both feet slightly apart. With your right arm folded at the elbows with clench fist turned upwards, push arms straight up six times. Alternate between left and right arms.

Hold left elbow with right hand. Right elbow with left hand. Push arms together and feel your chest muscles with force. Repeat eight times. Relax. Repeat eight times to firm your bust.

Place hands on doorknob or wall and stand 12 inches away, keeping body erect. Raise right leg back as high as you can while keeping the body straight. Alternate. Repeat six times each side to lift up your derriere.

For your thighs, sit erect with hands on side of the chair to balance yourself. Extend your legs outward in front of you. Raise the right leg waist high. Alternate. Repeat six times.

For the hips, stand with feet together and place hands on hips. Raise right leg sideways as high as you can. Alternate. Repeat 10 times.

With back straight, lie down or stand up. Lift a leg as high as you can. As you go on doing these exercises, you will notice some improvements. You’ll find you can raise your legs higher, your muscles aching less, and you doing repetition more than six, eight and 10 times at a time.

Find yourself drenched in perspiration? You’ll want to take a fast refreshing shower. After you do, rub VICL over your whole body to enhance your skin. It’s the all-around miracle liquid, the skin’s fountain of youth.