Thursday 28 August 2014

LOVE AROUND THE WORLD

WAYS TO MOTIVATE YOUR PARTNER


It is easy to lose spark when facing various challenges in life. Nowadays many people feel tired and exhausted due to stress, job loss or overload. If your partner is facing hard times, then you have a great role to play to support and help them find the way out. If you really love your significant other, you should do your best to boost their confidence and motivate them when they feel down. Show your love and care for them to understand that they are not alone. You should be ready to deal with nervousness, because when we have problems we usually turn emotional and lose stability. Here are steps on how to motivate your loved one to handle the situation and become strong again.

1. Remind them of their success
If things are not going well for you partner, try to provide an encouragement for them by offering a pep talk. You are the one who should remind them how wonderful and talented they are. You can give the example of their past accomplishments. Try to persuade them in their originality and abilities to make their dreams come true. This strategy will help you boost your partner’s self-confidence and self-esteem.

2. Suggest small steps
Sometimes the way to your dreams can be long and complicated. You can find the goal unachievable, because of unexpected challenges and obstacles that arise along the journey. If your beloved doesn’t know what to do, where to begin or how to move forward, advise them to start with small steps and actions. You can share your vision of the situation and suggest a list of small steps and people who can help them overcome tough times.

3. Show Concern
Try to determine the cause of your partner’s troubles. If it is possible, try to create a cozy atmosphere and find a suitable moment to talk to them and understand what is bothering them. When you know the reason, you can start on the emotional support instead of criticizing and complaining about how your beloved is changing in a bad way.

4. Don’t be importunate
When we want to help somebody, we should be careful enough not to put too much pressure on them. It is important to feel the line support and mental pressure. Your partner has the risk to get more stressed and annoyed if you bother them about something. I think no one likes pushy people, especially when you are surrounded by problems and want everyone to leave you alone.

5. Don’t praise too much
Praising your partner is one of the most significant things to motivate them to move on, but you should know when to stop. Too good isn’t good, too. When you are doing it all the time, they will find you insincere. Don’t gush too much about their goals and accomplishments. Just remind them about their advantages from time to time in order to give them a push to live happier.

6. Find something positive in their actions
If you have advised your partner to do certain small steps to go through hard times, you should take responsibility for your actions and try to notice and accentuate all the good things that result from their actions and attempts. You can find different positive moments and changes in their deeds. If they go in for sports, you can remind them how strong and wonderful they look.

Nowadays, even strong and highly successful people can face problems and lose motivation. If you have a persistent desire to overcome all difficulties in your family life, you should be brave enough to face harsh realities of life and be a single whole in spite of everything. Moreover, you should support your partner economically, if necessary.

Have you ever tried any other effective ways to motivate your significant one? Share your tips with us please.


By Chizzy Okoye

Wednesday 27 August 2014

BEAUTY

Your Secrets to a Perfect Beautiful Skin


Natural beauty starts with beautiful skin. You can learn how to maintain your skin in a healthy way and give it that luminescent glow that makes natural beauties so attractive. Diets and exercise are as important as using gentle and effective cleanser and moisturizer. There are just few steps which you can follow to achieve a wonderful beautiful result.

Wash your face at night.
Over the course of the day, makeup, dirt, and oil build up on your face. Make cleansing your skin part of your bedtime routine. Always use makeup remover. Not only does this prevent dirt from clogging up your pores and causing breakouts while you sleep, it also stops you from smearing bacteria on your pillow, where it can get into your skin night after night. Use a gentle soap. Remember that you want to clean your skin, not completely strip it of all oils.  If it feels tight and dry after washing, you're using something too strong. Avoid the eye area; the skin around the eye can be too delicate for most cleansers. Rinse off by splashing water on your face. Using a washcloth or rag to roughly wipe your skin clean can irritate it more. Instead, bend your face over the sink, cup your hands together, and bring up small amounts of water to splash over your face. About 10 splashes should do it. Pat dry. Don't roughly rub your skin dry with a towel. Instead, dry it with small, gentle pats, or let it air dry.

Apply toner.
A toner removes excess oil and dirt from your skin that the soap missed, in addition to closing your pores. Not everyone needs to use a toner, but some people find it helpful. Put a few drops onto a cotton ball or pad. Swipe it lightly over your skin. Only use astringent if your skin is exceptionally oily. Astringent is a stronger type of toner that can be up to 60% alcohol. If your skin tends to be dry, using astringent could actually cause acne by driving your oil glands to overcompensate. Witch hazel is a natural alternative to synthetic toner/astringent. Consider applying toner to only the areas of your skin that tend to break out. For instance, you might only use it on your nose or forehead.

Smooth on some moisturizer.
Using lotion in the morning acts as a primer for your makeup, helping it "stick" to your face throughout the day. Moisturizing at night helps your skin repair itself and stave off wrinkles. Bottom line, it's one of the best things you can do for glowing skin over the long term. Consider using a lighter moisturizer during the day. If you're prone to breakouts, save the heavy cream moisturizer for night time and use a light or gel moisturizer during the day. Don't forget your neck and décolletage. These areas can get super dry and irritated if you never moisturize them.

Protect your skin from the sun.
Avoid leathery, tough skin by applying a light sunscreen every time you plan to be outside. The lack of sun damage will keep your skin dewy and supple for years to come. Remember, it only takes 15 minutes to get sunburn, so be prepared. Stick to SPF 30 — anything higher doesn't have much more benefit. Search the makeup aisle for spray-on sunscreens that are light and dry. Use a foundation or tinted moisturizer with sunscreen, so your face is already covered.

 Prevent acne before it starts.
Here are some small daily-life hacks you can use to prevent pimples before they happen: Change out your pillowcase every four or five days. A fresh, bacteria-free pillowcase can stop your skin from erupting overnight. Keep your hands off your face. If you tend to rest your chin in your palm, or you're constantly fussing with your face, stop. The oils on your hands can cause breakouts, even in small amounts. Tie your hair back while you sleep. If you have long hair, keep it off your face while you rest. Braid it back, and use pins or a headband to keep bangs off your forehead. Get your beauty rest. Stress can lead to breakouts, so make sure you're well-rested and calm.
Change your birth control (females). Some oral contraceptives containing oestrogen can calm down regular breakouts. Ask your doctor if this is the right choice for you. Do not pick or pop pimples. Doing so can make the infection worse and lead to permanent scarring.
 Exercise always.
Aim to get 6 to 8 glasses of water a day. The water will clear your skin and make it glow because it makes it easier for your body to flush out toxins quickly. Carry a water bottle with you all day to make sure you always have water on hand. Drink herbal tea or other non-caffeinated beverages to hydrate when you're tired of water.  Exercise is very important part of great natural beauty care for the skin. A brisk walk in nature provides you with fresh air and oxygen.

Eat a healthy diet.
Healthy proteins and nutritious fruits and vegetables go a long way toward making skin glow. Naturally eating a healthy diet that provides all the important nutrients are important for healthy skin. Staying from toxins is also important. The best way to avoid toxicity in your body is to live a healthy lifestyle that includes a whole grain diet, walnuts, almonds and avocado. You will want to eat healthy and stay away from any refined carbohydrate foods such as white bread, cookies, etc. Drink a lot of tea and water to make sure you are keeping yourself hydrated. Nutrition is a major part of how your skin looks. View your body as a machine: the food you eat is your fuel. Fibre-rich foods, fresh vegetables, nuts, and unprocessed fruits help keep a fine balance and to be regular, not sluggish, in the gastrointestinal area. You may look and feel tired and sickly (headache and abdominal complaints), if you do not have regularity of elimination/movements once or more every day.

Take vitamins.
If you're worried you aren't getting enough of necessary vitamins and minerals, try taking a multivitamin.  Take multivitamin supplements, or supplement specially for good skin, hair and nails. Or even better, eat a very healthy diet that includes omega3 and omega6 found in almonds, walnuts, grape seed and also, you should have plenty of vitamins C. Vitamin C will help existing pimples heal faster, so eating a few servings of citrus fruits and spinach will help.

 Work out.

Cardio makes your skin glow because it stimulates blood flow. It's also healthy for your body and will make you stronger. You'll see results immediately and long term, too.

Monday 25 August 2014

BEAUTY



The Beauty of Henna Designs
 
Henna is a natural dye which is derived from the dried, crushed leaves of a shrub called Lawsonia inermis. Though the leaves are green, the dye produced ranges. Research has shown that it is henna that produces the lovely reddish hair colour favoured by many Middle Eastern and North African women. It is also used to paint designs upon the body, traditionally the palms and soles, for the purposes of beauty for a bride, various festivals, celebrations and also spiritual benefits in other parts of the world. The historical trail of henna began in ancient Egypt, but today it is used in almost all parts of the world. Much of the modern revival of henna derives from its popularity in India and Pakistan. It is however, believed that the plant arrived in India as a gift from Egypt and there is much debate as to when it actually arrived on the subcontinent, perhaps as late as the Mogul Empire.


How to mix and apply henna: There is no one or special way to mix henna. Different henna artists have their different and peculiar ways of mixing their favorite hennas; they have their methods as well as their tools. People have different skin types, some respond well to one henna, others respond well to some other. What might work perfectly for one person may not work for the other. Henna can be stored in an airtight, light- proof container in your freezer; when stored this way, it can stay good for years. But when kept in the light, in an open or hot place, it will lose its dye potency.
 


What is needed to mix your henna paste? Basically, not much! First you will need a container, henna and lemon juice: Not so much is needed to make a good henna paste. Your henna and lemon juice can get you started. Mix your paste in a plastic bowl using a plastic spoon. Metal bowl and spoon are not advisable to use because the acidic henna mix can react with some metals and tarnish them. When you apply the paste on the skin, remember that the paste has to stay on the skin for a while to make a stain.  The longer you leave the henna pastes on your skin, the better the result. To keep henna on your skin from falling off, add some sugar to it. This makes it stick better and makes the henna paste smoother and silkier to work with.
Remember that hennas are different, so also is the day. On humid days you may need less sugar, and on dry days, you may need more. Add some grape or lemon fruit juice or anything sour. Add whatever sour liquid you want to use, little bit at a time, stirring it in. when your henna paste is well mixed, you’ve stirred in enough sour liquid for a start, then cover the henna paste with plastic wrap, press out all the air, and let it rest for a while. Henna paste doesn’t stain your skin until it releases the dye. That’s when the sour stuff beaks up the cellulose of the henna leaves, and makes the dye available. This takes some time though, and will be slower or faster if it’s cooler or hotter. After applying, leave for a while and allow the henna paste to dry off on your skin. Then, by choice, you can wash off the henna from  your skin. By this time, the henna must have gained and reveal the stain that is required on your skin. Leave for a while to dry up and the beauty designs of henna on your skin will be clearly revealed.


By Rifkatu Yusuf

Thursday 21 August 2014

BEAUTY


PERFECT EYEBROW



A perfect eyebrow, they say, is a perfect face definition. Most of the time over-plucking has resulted in brows not meeting this end point. If that's the case for you, the following steps will help you decide what hair to keep or to remove.
The first rule in getting a good shape for your eyebrow is: You can only work with what you have.


1. Draw an imaginary straight line from the outer sides of the ball of your nose to your brows. That is where eyebrows should start and where you should begin, especially if you're new to shaping. It's also good for wide set eyes (too far apart), because it makes eyes "appear" closer together. A large forehead also benefits, because taking too much hair in-between the brows makes the forehead look even bigger. The general rule of thumb for eyebrow shaping has been that if you took a ruler to the inner corner of your eye that is about where the brow should begin. But be careful, this is the farthest you want to go. If you're unsure, it's better to leave more. It's easy to remove hair instead of waiting for hair to grow and penciling them in.

 



2. On deciding on how to arch your eyebrows, one of the most important part of designing the brow, for a large eyelid and straight brows, you go for a small arch.
So placing a ruler (or something else straight) on the tip of your nose as a reference, and taking the ruler over your pupil to get a section that you see below. This will be the "peak" or highest point of your arch.
Another reference point is the top of the nostril, still aiming for over the middle of the pupil for a medium arch, but the far side of the pupil for a large arch. (Tip: right nostril for right eye, left nostril for left eye).

 



3. Place the end of a ruler at the outer nose and put on the corner of the eye, this is where the brow should end. Lastly, join the three imaginary points together to get a good eyebrow shape and trim off the hairs that are not on this line with an eyebrow shaver to get a perfect eyebrow.


 

See you next on how to draw your pencil to get that perfect shape.
 
By Chizzy Okoye