In some of my previous posts, I spoke about the value of a smile and what is in our hearts shines through our eyes. However, our smile and our eyes makes up only part of our countenance. According to vocabulary.com, Countenance comes from a French word for “behavior”, but it has become a fancy term for either the expression of the face or the face itself. What does your countenance say about you? The Bible is full of references about ones countenance, mainly describing how ones face had changed for the better or worse. I can’t emphasize enough about how the way we feel affects the way others perceive us.
Being stressed or anxious affects your mind, body and spirit. It especially disturbs your countenance and impacts your overall health. When you are feeling sick, you don’t look good. A peaceful face is naturally more beautiful than an anxious face. God’s word gives clear advice on how to handle anxiety and receive the peace of mind, body and spirit that will surpass all understanding. That means you can look and feel peaceful in spite of any negative circumstance. However it requires you to read Gods word and obey it.
“Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again-rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember the Lord is coming soon.
Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything.Tell God what you need and thank him for what he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your heart and mind as you live in Christ Jesus.
And now dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all that you learned and received from me… and the peace of God will be with you.” Philippians 4:4-9 NLT
Friends these are not my words but rather the words of Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ giving instruction to fellow believers. This is only one of the many promises of God available to you through the reading of His Word found in the Bible. And I can personally testify to the truth and faithfulness of this promise.
My healing testimony
Over twenty years ago I was diagnosed with a stomach illness that required a particular medication for the rest of my life. This really stressed me out because I hate medication. One day as I was reading my Bible, the Holy Spirit revealed to me through this scripture, that my illness was caused by worry and anxiety and so were the deep frown lines that were beginning to set in between my eyebrows. So, considering my health and my obsessive vanity, I took those words to heart, meditated on it and put it into practice. By the grace of God my illness no longer was an issue, no more stomach pain, constant gas, bloating, and constipation. I no loner needed that medicine. Ten years later I received an email about a class action lawsuit for all the people who were affected by that particular medication. Apparently it caused an even more serious side effect. My faithful Father had not only healed me of that stomach issue, but He prevented me from getting something worse. Our God is so faithful and worthy to be praised! It is my hope and prayer for you that you develop a relationship with Jesus and seek what he has to say to you through the reading of His Word. He will lift your countenance and you will become His exquisite creation who is absolutely beautiful inside and out. (Check out the 2 minute Abide meditation below on releasing anxiety.) By the way this blog is one way God has used my vanity for His glory. I’m a work in progress!
Fresh Face Makeup Tips
A well defined eyebrow is a must!
It literally frames your eyes! Get a good brow wax or shaping at your favorite salon or spa, or check out a DYI tutorial on YouTube. As for filling in those brows there are many different types of eyebrow makeup available from pencils, to stencils, powders and gels. You can even use dark eye shadow close to your eyebrow color which is a very cost effective choice. When choosing powders which is my personal choice, use a stiff angled brush for application. Simply scrape the brush into the shadow or eyebrow powder, tap the excess off and turn the brush vertical to apply into the thick part of your eyebrow. Then turn the brush horizontal to fill in the thin part. Use a spoolie or an old clean mascara brush, to blend across the eyebrow with upward brush strokes. Some of the excess might go out of the line, but this wipes away easily with a damp cotton swab. The eyebrow is now softened to a natural denser look. If you want to define it further, use a touch of concealer with a clean soft angled brush and blend into the skin around the newly shaped eyebrow. I recently discovered Boom Boom eyebrow makeup available on Amazon and I love it. It actually has more staying power than eyeshadow and can be used wet or dry. (Using a damp brush will intensify the color.) This product lasts a longer than pencils which must be sharpened often, thus rendering it advantageous.
I love subtle eyeliner because it makes the lash line look thicker
Before I begin the eyeliner, I brush the entire lid with foundation powder, the same color as my skin using a soft flat eyeshadow brush. I use Bare Minerals foundation powder, available at Ulta, Sephora and Amazon. This neutralizes any oils on the lid which forms a base that will prevent eyeshadow from creasing and keep your eyeliner from running, especially in the heat of summer. I use dark eyeshadow with a wet, very thin eyeliner brush, but you can use any eyeliner. I try to avoid eyeliner pencils because the soft waxy or coal ones make thicker lines that easily smudge and run while the hard dry ones pull the delicate eyelid too much during the application.
If you want to have your eyes appear closer together start your eyeliner at the inner most corners your eye; if you want your eyes to appear farther apart, start at the inside lash line. A little trick I was taught to get a nice thin line is to lift the skin above your lash line straight up with one hand and with the other gently lay the liner directly on the lash line moving toward the outer corner of the eye. When you release your finger holding the skin taught, your lash line will appear thicker and the eyeliner itself will be barely noticeable. Many people don’t realize they have a little fold of skin that lies on the eyelash line; this is especially true with heavy eyelids. When you apply eyeliner without lifting that fold, the liner goes on thicker. This can give you more of a dark smokey eye effect, (especially on heavy eyelids), which is more suitable for evening or more dramatic makeup. Remember we’re going for natural here to go with a bare face.
Now to accentuate your lower lashes, delicately dot your eyeliner brush without adding any more to the brush along the lower lash line. Then wipe your liner brush using a tissue flattening the bristles to keep the line thin, removing the excess and gently smudge from the inside out. This eliminates the need for mascara on your bottom lashes and the smudging that occurs from sweating or touching under your eyes. Inevitably that was an issue for me due to itchy eyes from working with chemicals and allergies. I had trained myself to not touch my face years ago if I wanted my makeup to last all day. Today this is crucial to due to the current pandemic.
Eyeshadow is optional
There is a basic principal about light and dark when thinking about your makeup application. Basically, light brings an area forward and dark will recede an area. Therefore smaller eyes can brush a delicate highlighter or light eyeshadow over the entire lid, while larger eyes should consider a neutral matte color in the beige, tan or taupe family that is not too dark. I have always preferred matte eyeshadow that does not contain mica because it flakes onto the face and can clog large pores causing blackheads and even acne if your skin is not cleansed properly. I also think matte shadow is softer and more natural, especially in daytime. These days my favorite is Meet Matt(e) Trimony by the Balm cosmetics available on Amazon. If you want to define your lid further, use the soft angled brush with the slightly darker neutral color of choice across the crease of your eye. Again where you start applying the darker shadow in the crease depends on if you want your eyes to appear closer together or farther apart. The choice is yours.
And finally mascara or false lashes are the piece de resistance!
If you hardly have any lashes, you might want to consider false lashes. In my opinion the individual ones look the most natural but you may need a professional to help you apply them. This is naturally more costly than mascara but they last a bit longer. Im sure I don’t have to stress that you should be gentle washing your eye makeup off if you’ve spent good money on false lashes. As for the rest of us mascara will do. I’m an old time Maybelline fan, but I have used many great mascaras including Givenchy at a hefty price. I loved the ball tip wand on that one but less expensive brands have since followed suit. I am currently using Maybelline Lash Sensational. It doesn’t have the ball tip wand I was so fond of, but this one give me thick looking lashes.The price is very cost effective and I can purchase it from my local supermarket. FYI your mascara should be replaced every few months to avoid eye infections.
A great mascara application tip is to open your eyes wide and place the wand at the base of the top lash line and roll the wand as you are applying it to the lashes. I do not recommend mascara on lower lashes. As I said before this can get messy and makes the under eye look dark at any age, but you definitely don’t want that if you’re over 40.
Finish under the eye with your favorite concealer and you’re ready to mask up and show off your God-given inner beauty shining through those radiant eyes. Keep smiling under that mask and when it comes off what a beautiful countenance everyone will see!
I love you all and thank you for taking the time to read my blog. Next time I will talk about necessary fruit and glowing skin. For further information on some of the foundations for my belief in the power of new beginnings through a personal relationship with Jesus, please let me know so I may encourage you further in your walk with the Lord. Also If you desire information on a personal physical makeover or personal suggestions on some of the above mentioned fresh face make up tips you can email me.
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