7 Ways to Look Put-Together: Grooming

Looking "put-together" is one of the best compliments I like to receive. To me it means that I know what I am doing. It took me a few years to finally receive that compliment actually. Years of trial and error to know what works for me and what doesn't. Here are some components of my weekly grooming routine that help me look put-together. I do this routine every Sunday as part of Sunday Funday. 

    

1. Hair Mask

For silky and shiny hair. 

I use heat on my hair at a regular basis as I have wavy and puffy hair. To prevent my hair from feeling dry and looking dull I do a castor oil hair mask every week. I soak the middle to the ends of my hair with castor oil and let it sit for a few hours. In my opinion, it is best to keep the hair mask on for at least 3 hours. 

Castor oil is quite thick but nourishes the hair really well. 

2. Shower

For clean hair and skin.

In the shower, I wash off the castor oil by shampooing my hair twice. Any shampoo should work. I follow my regular routine making sure I double cleanse my face using soap and a face scrub. Currently I am trying different products but so far my favourites are the Dove Beauty Bar and the Neutrogena Deep Clean Face Scrub.

3. Moisturize Body 

For soft and supple skin.

Coming out of the shower I moisturize my entire body as I have very dry skin. Currently, I am using the Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula cream but, let me warn you, it is very thick. Any body lotion or cream will do. My favourites are the Body Creams from Bath and Body Works as they are really moisturizing and smell great.

4.  Facial Hair

For a groomed look that will bring confidence.

Eyebrows: 

• Keeping your eyebrows groomed is a key to looking put-together. Usually women groom their eyebrow by following the trends of the time. My advice is to keep them groomed by only plucking the hairs outside the eyebrow. Trim the length of the hairs using small scissors to keep them from going wild.

Moustache:

• Everyone has different ways of maintaining their upper lip. It all depends on the thickness of your hairs, their amount and their growth rate. The best thing that works for me is plucking out the thicker hairs one by one. Yes it is a little painful. Then shaving the remaining baby hairs with a women's facial razor. 
• From my experience, these razors are quite dull. They will not cut your skin easily. They are great to use if you do not have thick hairs. 

5. Skin

For clean and groomed skin ready for makeup.

Pores:

• Pores are one of my struggles. When I go out I usually cover my pores with makeup so they are not being treated too well. 
• From time to time I use a pore peeling mask however they don't work well on me.
• The only option that I am left with is extracting my pores with a pore extractor tool. These can damage the skin very easily thus it is important to use a light hand and only extract what you can using this tool. 

Face Mask:

• After making my skin go through so much pain I like to soothe it with a sheet mask. Sheet masks are really fun to try on as there are many different kinds with different benefits.
• I also like using masks on my face. I currently use the Innesfree Jeju Volcanic Pore Clay Mask.  

Moisturize:

• Lastly, I like to moisturize my face with the Pond's Clarant B3 cream as it has the perfect consistency for my combination skin. 

6. Body Hair

For a groomed look that will not distract others.

Epilate and Trim: Once a week

• Every Sunday I take out my Philips Satinelle epilator and hair trimmer to groom my body hair. This is a great way to keep your hair from growing back ridiculously fast, like from shaving alone.
• Epilate: I epilate my underarms and my legs. It is painful but it helps my underarms from looking dark as it pulls the hairs from the roots. 
• Trim: I like to trim the rest of my body hair using the accessories that come with this epilator. I really recommend this product as it has multi-use. If you use the trimmer heads remember to be careful as they can cut skin if angled incorrectly. 

Shave: During the weekdays

• When I notice that my body hair is growing during the week I shave it in the shower just to maintain the look of clean and soft skin. 
• I really like combining the use of the epilator and a razor for shaving. It is my favourite way to keep me from being hairy.

7. Nails

For feminine hands and feet.

Favourite Nail Polish: Sally Henson Complete Salon Manicure in Rosy Quartz

• This colour is great if you like having natural looking nails. It adds the perfect sheer amount of pink to give it a feminine look. 
• Also, this colour is perfect for nails that chip almost immediately as the look of chips is almost unnoticeable.

Top Coat: Superchic Lacquer Glossy Quick Dry Top Coat

• If your nails take forever to dry I recommend using this Superchic top coat as it helps nail polish dry quickly.
• This prevents wet nail polish from denting and smudging.

Neat nails

• Maintaining neat nails requires practise and experience. The more you do it the easier it will become. 
• The basic steps of grooming nails that I follow are:
1. Removing old nail polish
2. Filling down and trimming nail length
3. Removing cuticles
4. Painting nails
• All the tools I use below are available at most drugstores. I do recommend the Delon Cotton Rounds as they have a textured side that easily removes stubborn nail polish.

These are my main grooming tips that, performed continuously, will make you look put-together. I hope you are able to find some new tips and incorporate them into your own beauty and grooming routine. If you have any tips yourself please do let me know in the comments below. Thank you for taking the time to read this post and God bless.

- Beverly 💕