Several women in my family went prematurely gray, and since they were not slaves to the beauty industry I knew from an early age those strands which society hates so much would pop out soon. Sure enough, at the age of 12, they started. Remarks were plenty, but none (that got to my ears) were patronising about my choice to leave it be. (Frankly, the thought of that carcinogenic sludge on my hair or skin was less the attractive option than staying salt-n-pepper, never mind the time sink of perpetual coloring sessions.) Here in Southeast Asia, with the role of women as they are (subservient, servile, invisible unless spoken to), the pressure to look good is greater, which explains why the taboo of gray hair is so much worse than it is back … [Read more...]
for Intl Women’s Day: women-owned beauty biz
It's still International Women's Day in Cambodia (holidays falling on weekends are observed on the next working day), and today's topic is natural beauty. About the time I got married 5 years ago, I was on an organic / natural makeup and skincare kick. I don't normally use makeup, but around a year ago people started asking if I were tired, since I've started to develop dark undereye circles. Yikes-- back to those companies I used for my wedding makeup! Here's a list of my favorite women-owned small-business eco-friendly natural makeup and skincare lines: Markey has a lot of raw materials for the do-it-yourself skincare enthusiast. In recent years she's begun to offer finished formulations, and now she opened a storefront location … [Read more...]
