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10 Fast and Green Fixes for Beauty Emergencies

posted by Jana, selected from Sprig.com Dec 23, 2008 11:00 am
10 Fast and Green Fixes for Beauty Emergencies
4 comments

By Carrie Stern Kleiner, Sprig.com

Flat hair? Tired eyes? Wrinkled cocktail dress? That’s no way to attend a holiday party! So we found quick (and green) beauty touch-ups and style tricks to guarantee you’ll look glam even when you’re short on time–disaster averted.

1. Emergency: You pack evening clothes for a quick office change, but they’re filled with wrinkles.

Fast Fix: We admit, it’s hard to keep clothes smooth–and natural materials hold more wrinkles than synthetic ones. So pack each item in an old plastic garment bag and fold them into your carryall, suggests designer John Patrick of John Patrick Organic. The plastic acts as a barrier between the fabric when folded, preventing creases. Save bags from your dry cleaning, or ask for a few from your local dress shop–with each new shipment of clothing, hundreds are thrown away. You’ll end up saving your clothes and saving plastic bags from taking a trip to the landfill all at the same time.

2. Emergency:
You have just seconds to refresh your makeup.

Fast Fix: Save time by grabbing a three-in-one cream that you can dab on your eyes, lips, and cheeks, says Joanna Schlip, Los Angeles makeup artist. “Sheers and neutrals work the best since they mimic the shades in your skin. Avoid reds, berries and oranges–those colors are too harsh to wear all over your face,” says Schlip. In a jam, use your lipstick. Try Cargo Plant Love in Lindsay, a sheer pink cream shade that comes in corn-based, biodegradable packaging.

3. Emergency: Your red lipstick looks awful on your chapped lips.

Fast Fix: To combat a dry, peeling pucker, mix up your own lip scrub, says Wang. Combine a pinch of coffee grounds with a dime-sized amount of honey–both things you can usually find in your office kitchen–and “dab on your lips, then massage in a circular motion,” explains Wang. The honey draws moisture in while the coffee exfoliates the dead skin cells giving you smooth, lipstick-ready lips.

4. Emergency: Static cling is giving you trouble.

Fast Fix: The static in winter air can be problematic for that flowing silk dress you love. Luckily, the solution is a no-brainer: Just give the problem areas a quick spritz of water, explains Lindsey Wieber and Gwen Whiting, the founders of The Laundress, a luxury fabric care and specialty detergent line. The water removes the static force, giving you a smooth silhouette.

5. Emergency: A nasty snowstorm messes up your hair.

Fast Fix: When bad weather throws your locks into disarray, pull your hair into party-ready ponytail, says Chaz Dean, creator of WEN, a line of eco-friendly hair products. To make it look chic, start with a deep side part and smooth hair back into a ponytail that hits right at the nape of the neck. Make your own ponytail holders by using old, run pantyhose, cutting horizontally up the leg every inch or two. They’re a good way to recycle and they hold incredibly well. Another makeshift hair elastic–dental floss. If you have some in your handbag, tie it around your hair to keep it in place.

6. Emergency: You need an instant breath freshener.

Fast Fix: When you’re on-the-go, get a just-brushed-feeling by squeezing lemon juice (find two slices at the bar) into one cup of cold water and swish and gargle stale breath away, says Susie Wang, founder of 100% Pure. Citric acid in the lemon juice kills bacteria that causes bad breath and also breaks down food particles and tarter on your teeth. An added bonus: It whitens your teeth too.

7. Emergency: Your hair has fallen flat.

Fast Fix: Don’t waste time and electricity blow-drying hair with a round brush to get sky-high volume. Instead, grab an eco-friendly root lifter, says David Babaii. Try his Volcanic Ash Root Amplifier that has ingredients like rich volcanic ash, jojoba oil and panthenol to add thickness and volume. Lift sections of hair, spraying on the root, then allow hair to fall naturally for an awesome, party-ready style.

8. Emergency: You have a run in your tights.

Fast Fix: Paint a non-toxic, cruelty-free clear nail polish like Zoya Armor Topcoat, on the edge of the run to seal the tear and prevent it from getting bigger. If the run isn’t in a conspicuous spot, the tights can last you weeks and wears to come.

9. Emergency: You spill wine on your dress.

Fast Fix: If you spill your drink, head straight to the bar. The old go-to club soda is still the best cure for a wine spill, say Wieber and Whiting. The bubbles in the soda stop it from absorbing into the fabric, preventing a stain.

10. Emergency: Your eyes are tired from so much entertaining.

Fast Fix: White eyeliner on the inner rims of your eyes does wonders to brighten up the whites, making even the most sleep-deprived eco-ista look awake. Try Dr. Hauschka’s natural Eyeliner Duo

Sprig.com’s mission is to inform, inspire and motivate the mainstream smart, socially engaged person into becoming a little more green without sacrificing quality, convenience, style or budget. We point out what’s good about green living–how it benefits your health, looks, finances and of course the planet.

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4 comments

4 comments

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4 comments add your comment
Adam R.

So we found quick (and green) beauty touch-ups and style tricks to guarantee you'll look glam even when you're short on time.


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Cat P.
  • Cat P. says
  • Jan 4, 2009 12:18 PM

thank you for posting the paragraph on static cling! I can now begin to reclaim my clothes from static!

Caralien S.

Rolling clothes also helps prevent wrinkles when packing (vs lying flat where they could get scrunched), but I usually stick to packing knits unless there's something really formal I have to attend.

For chapped lips I'd probably avoid coffee and simply use sugar; the coffee grinds can really stain the skin, and if some gets caught in your teeth it would look funny.

Ann Fonfa

Using tissue paper between clothing folds works well and the item can be hung in the shower (away from water) and 'steamed' free of wrinkles in moments.

Ann F.

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