5 Simple Beauty Secrets I Learned from My Mother

One of my favorite things to do as a little girl was to watch my mother get ready for the day in the morning hours. I would climb up on the fuzzy peach toilet seat lid cover (with coordinating peach and country blue powder room accents, of course) and observe her simple daily rituals, all with the music of show tunes playing from a cassette player. My mother never harped much on external beauty; she simply accented her natural beauty features and took special care of her hair and skin. With all of the mental notes I took growing up, I could narrow down what I observed to five simple beauty secrets:

1. Wash your face before bed

No matter how tired she was, my mother always washed her face before bed when I was a child (and still does!). She really honed in on the fact of how important it is to remove all of your makeup before you go to sleep at night, giving your skin a chance to breathe while you sleep. Now I am meticulous about a nightly ritual of face washing and plan to encourage my own daughter to do the same!

2. Use natural products and leave the expensive stuff behind

My mother was never one to purchase expensive eye makeup remover or fancy creams. She always used baby oil to remove mascara and Vaseline to moisturize the under eye area, for dry, cracked hands, or as a nightly lip balm. I now use the same, and these simple items work amazingly well for pennies on the dollar.

3. Stick with what makeup you know

Once my mother finds a makeup she loves, she does not deviate far from that product line. I have found that to be true for myself, and anytime I attempt to try a new foundation it typically breaks me out. And as many mascaras I have tried, I always go back to Cover Girl thick lash! (the red tube, if you are curious).

4. Find out what your strong suit is and highlight it

My mother has incredible skin. I do not think she had acne a day in her life (me on the other hand? Every day from age 10 until age 30). No matter what, her skin always looks flawless. She uses makeup as a way to accentuate her skin, not mask it or make it look fake. My grandmother never leaves home without a strong red lipstick, regardless of how dressed up or down she is. Find out what your strong suit is, and use makeup to further enhance your natural beauty.

5. Allot time to get ready then be done with it (“Put your face on.”)

My mom was always an early bird and had an allotted time to get ready for work or an outing. My dad referred to this as “putting her face on.” She had a committed time and then she’s done with it, and the rest of the day does not involve makeup or hair prep. I usually get ready and figure that’s about as good as I can do today.

I never felt that my mother wanted to draw attention to her appearance based on makeup, clothing or hair, but she and my grandmother both have always had a complete, pulled together look. More than how to dress appropriately, they trained me immensely on how to act appropriately toward others. And in a culture where being “ladylike” is fading fast, I believe that has been their greatest beauty lesson of all.

What are your favorite memories of your mother or grandmother and their beauty rituals?