Daily Archives: September 8, 2009

Inner beauty is great…but gimme a little outer beauty, too!

If you watched Miss Universe recently, you’re probably feeling overly conscious of your age, your pores, the crooked teeth your miserly parents always assured you were “characterful.”

At the same time, beauty pageants are fun to watch—how could they not be, with all that beauty on display? If you like to look at pretty things, Miss Universe is a must-see show.

You just have to hold on to your perspective. Remember, those women have trained for years to get where they are now, and it hasn’t been easy. That looking beautiful is their job, while for the rest of us it’s very much an optional extra.

My latest book (Her So-Called Fiancé, out from Harlequin Superromance this week), features a beauty queen heroine. Sabrina is forced to keep a hold of her perspective when the media attributes her dumping in the first round of the Miss USA pageant to her chunky thighs. Ouch!

So, what can we learn from beauty queens? Some beauty tips, obviously! Try these, which come courtesy of Hollie Domiano, a volunteer in the Miss America program and author of Myths America: A Practical Guide to Pageantry (self-published through Lulu.com for the specialist pageant market):

– Use hair conditioner for shaving your legs etc. It lubricates the hair and makes shaving easier. Your skin will be smoother, too.

– Got sunburn? Take a cup each of cornstarch and baking soda, place in a bath of cool water, and soak in it.

– Need moisture on your skin? Try oatmeal. It’s great for moisturizing dry skin.

For a lighthearted look at keeping our wannabe beauty queen feet firmly grounded, Julie Linker, author of young adult novel Crowned, passes on these “truisms” :

You know you’re a beauty queen when
– You know the difference between a crown and a tiara.
– You own 2 pairs of taupe leather pumps.
– You think 5-inch acrylic heels go with everything.
– You paid more for your evening gown than for your car.
– Your coach has never caught a football.
– Diet Coke is the breakfast of champions.

Hmm, I think I just got disqualified.
What’s your take on beauty and pageantry? Are you pro-pageants – or do they just make you feel a mess?
Abby