Girl Power

“If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends; make it last forever; friendship never ends.” from 1996 Spice Girls break-through single “Wannabe”

My boyfriend Rics adorable four year old granddaughter Averie has a new mantra “girl power”. She recites it as she heads down the soccer field attempting to score a goal (sometimes heading in the wrong direction to the other team’s goal), and loves to wear the “Girl Power” tee shirts from Poppa.

What is the phenomenon of “girl power” and where did the term originate? I did some research and learned some interesting (and unknown to me) facts. The term “girl power” came from the mid 1990’s and the Spice Girls. At that time, girls just knew which Spice Girl they wanted to be (Ginger Spice, Sporty Spice, Posh Spice, Scary Spice or Baby Spice) and young girls all over the country were dressing up, singing their lyrics and shouting “girl power” with enthusiasm.

Their message was a clear sign of the times–loud and bold. Women across pop culture during that era were singing and shouting about being unapologetic for the way they chose to live their lives.

Mel B. from the Spice Girls defined “girl power” as follows: “A message for women supporting other women no matter what background you come from, no matter what you look like. It’s about embracing the fact that you’re a woman especially back then and especially now and women need the support.”

It’s about inner confidence and strength; the ability to be recognized as someone with knowledge, talent and skills to make a difference in whatever role they desire and achieve that goal. I love that my “almost daughter” Lindsay is teaching her four year old that she can be whatever she chooses as long as she tries hard.

Contributors to an article from “The Branding Man”, an opinion piece from women growing up during the “Spice Girls” era summed it up eloquently:

“That you shouldn’t hate thick thighs, strong arms or pudgy stomach on yourself or on another woman. That you should be allowed to be confident, talkative and want to get things done without being called emotional or bossy. That you are beautiful just the way you are and shouldn’t change for anyone. That your body is your property and you can do whatever you want with it and no one can tell you otherwise. That you should stand up for what’s right and hold your head up high when doing so.” I know these are things I struggled with thinking or doing on a daily basis growing up. I wish my mom had shared these values and philosophies with me!

I always believed in the importance of women helping and supporting on another. That got me thinking about girl (women) power and the importance of sharing knowledge with other women. I love this quote from Margaret Fuller, “If you have knowledge, let others light their candles in it”.

This is one reason I love writing my blog posts and sharing information and points of view with my readers. I have been receiving many compliments lately on my skin and I do feel it is looking better than it has in a long time. I am trying to eat more plant based meals and that could be part of it. My friend Carole, the esthetician who works at Sephora in the mall commented a few weeks ago, inquiring if I tried Botox. (I did not)! Some women in my condo complex (ranging in age from late 20’s to late 70’s asked me if I had good genes or just used good products and could I share my secrets! I have some wrinkles and age spots but my latest skin care finds are definitely helping. Of course I will share with my gal pals (that’s what girl power is all about)!

My most recent discovery is It Cosmetics Hello Results Retinol serum cream It is amazing. A pea sized amount covers your full face, neck and decollete. It smells like citrus, is not drying and doesn’t cause peeling like most other retinols and works wonders fairly quickly. It is one of their newer products and has received rave reviews. It is $69.00 on QVC and on Itcosmetics.com but last week was on sale for $48.00 at Ulta. It is worth every penny. If you want to spend less money on retinol, go to Colormebeautiful.com. Adrian Arpel has retinol capsules for nighttime and vitamin c capsules for morning together for $36.00 for both called 24-Hour Beauty Sensation. I do receive a small commission on those sales. If you go to the website directly, you can add my name as your affiliate. I have been using their Vitamin C capsules religiously every morning after I cleanse.

Don’t forget this important rule. If you are using retinol at night, you must use an SPF of at least 30 during the day. Retinol tends to make your skin even more photosensitive. All the good that the retinol is doing with regard to fading sunspots and lessening wrinkles will be undone by the sun the next day if you don’t protect with a high SPF. We should all be using this anyway because the sun is the main cause of premature aging and May is skin cancer/melanoma prevention month.

Another recent beauty find is called Beauty Pie. Their mission is “to make you feel like a kid in a cosmetics candy store. To bring you the fairy tale. To deliver the absolute best in beauty nonstop at prices so amazing, even a splurge is a steal. Because there should be guilt in getting gorgeous”. It’s like Costco for beauty products from all over the world. For example, you can purchase a deluxe angled brow pencil from Germany for $9.43 (retail value $30.00) or a cult status cleanser imported from Japan worth $35.00 for $8.16. You need to become a member and pay $10.00 monthly to access these great deals. It’s fun to browse if you are a beauty junkie like me.

And who doesn’t want to look beautiful at any age? I will leave you with this quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson, “The age of a woman doesn’t mean a thing. The best tunes are played on the oldest fiddles.” Love it! XO Penny