Beauty Posts

Ever noticed there aren’t a lot of wrinkled fat people walking around? Along with cleavage, being mostly wrinkle-free is one of the benefits of packing extra pounds.

Personally, that doesn’t stop me from obsessing over skin care. After trying everything under the sun to keep my pores clean and small, I’m looking into making the switch from harsh chemicals to natural skin care products, because I suspect those chemicals I’ve been using might actually be making the problem worse. Sure, they temporarily shrink my pores but they’re so harsh that I wind up having to use heavier moisturizers, which are notorious for clogging pores!

Opting for organic skin care products seems to make more sense. After all, natural skin care compounds like tortara tree essence are not only anti-bacterial but they’re potent anti-oxidants, too.

So, here I’ve been all smug about finally working out, making an effort to get in shape instead of merely typing about it, and actually watching what I eat. (Not so much on the latter.)

Then today I decide that, because my workout was so hard and the weather was so nice, I’d dig out my swimsuit and go for a dip in the hot tub. Hadn’t I earned that kind of pampering, after all? Wouldn’t my sore muscles love the opportunity to sit and soak in warm, balmy waters?

Yeah. Sure. But then I saw the one thing in the mirror — other than my butt — that truly grosses me out: backne. You know, the zits you get on your shoulders, back and, yes, sometimes even your backside… a/k/a back acne?

Which, incidentally, is not something I dealt with prior to exercising. And it’s not a pretty side effect. Oh, sure, I’ll spend a fortune on weight loss pills that don’t work, but having to shell out for the best acne treatment and then apply it to rear end? Well, that’s one side of exercising nobody ever warned me about.

As much as I love winter since everyone looks a bit Chubby under multiple layers of clothing, I absolutely hate winter skin. The dryness, the flaking, the itch.

It’s not for lack of drinking water. I easily gulp 10 8-oz. glasses of liquids a day.

It’s not for lack of moisturizing either: for years I’ve been in the habit of slathering on lotion the instant I towel off after a shower. I’ve been using Dove or St. Ives (whichever is priced lowest at the drug or grocery store), and wondered for a while if maybe I ought to try one of the fancier product lines like Jane Iredale.

Yesterday I remembered hearing an interview with Sophia Lauren, a legendary beauty, who praised the virtues of olive oil as a moisturizer. Hey, if if it’s good enough for the woman considered by many to be the world’s greatest natural beauty, who am I to doubt its success?

Of course, it felt a bit strange slathering a cooking oil all over my body after my shower, particularly since my last memory of using EVOO involved slathering it on our Thanksgiving turkey (whose skin, incidentally, was just as white and riddled with goosebumps as mine was while standing there in my chilly bathroom). Then again, that turkey turned out quite lovely and moist, and my husband and son absolutely adored its skin.

Know what? It worked! I spent an itch-free night and woke up this morning to find my skin still soft and supple. Granted, I’ve got a craving for pasta carbonara going on right now, but I don’t have dry, flaky skin.

As any Chubby Gal knows, hot weather and chubby thighs can be a lethal combination. Sure, a sun-dress is the most flattering and comfortable thing to wear when the days are humid and the temperatures are high. But that combination can also produce pain.

Here’s a trick to stop the chafing: dust a little cornstarch wherever your legs meet each other as you walk. No, I’m not kidding. It works like a charm! I keep a small plastic container of it in my purse for touch-ups throughout the day. With a wad of tissue and a little privacy, my thunder thighs no longer bear painful red marks at the end of the day.

Works great if you’re large breasted and prone to heat rash around your bra line, too.