Continuing last week’s theme of Beauty during Venus Retrograde, (read here), today I’ll be doing a deep dive on the anti-aging miracle remedy, Beauty Formula No.8, as well as sharing my favorite rituals for nourishing, plumping, glowing and reversing time.
I created Beauty Formula No.8 as a natural alternative to botox and filler. For those whose stress and tension have shown up on their face in the form of eleven lines (the furrowed brow), nasolabial folds (sides of the mouth), sallow skin, dark circles and dry skin. We get deep expression lines from chronically held tension in our faces. Botox may relax the muscles by paralyzing them, but Beauty Formula No. 8 works by relieving the stress that makes your face tense up in the first place.
From an allopathic medicine perspective, those who need No.8 would be told they have high cortisol/cortisol belly, adrenal depletion and hormonal issues (with dry skin or thinning hair). I see it as depletion on the spiritual level, which shows up as loss of volume in the face.
Emotionally, you may be very critical of your self and see your imperfections magnified, think you look haggard and may feel hopeless or depressed about getting older, sure that your best times are behind you. Beauty Formula No.8 rejuvenates the skin and brings back vitality, relaxing the facial muscles and returning the sparkle to your eyes. It clears the skin of breakouts and encourages self-acceptance and a love of where you are right now.
Warning: You will glow so much that your magnetism will cause strangers to approach you.
For ages 10-110: This formula is for any age if the description matches. It’s an all around rejuvenating tonic that is supportive after childbirth, illness or after a long period of stress. Also excellent to relieve TMJ and tension headaches.
If you’re resonating with No.8, this means you have likely been pushing yourself too hard, over giving, over doing it. Now you need to take good care of your self, slow down and be gentle with yourself. Be your own doula during the rebirth this formula will bring.
8 GREAT BEAUTY TIPS
1. Scents and sensuality: Remember that it feels good to have a body? Sensuality is not just what we feel when we’re with a partner. It’s about feeling beautiful. Wear silk and cashmere, fabrics that feel soft on the body. Wear perfume, even when you’re not going out. I love all the BODHA botanical perfumes. Avoid synthetic fragrances as they disrupt hormones. I also light BODHA incense in Ground at night during my little twilight meditation.
2. Nourish: Nourish yourself, not only with food and what you put on your skin, but the people you surround yourself with and the content you watch. Take a break from watching anything that stimulates fear (political Instagram rabbit holes, horror movies or movies with dystopian, end of the world themes). That’s all death energy and if you’re feeling old, the last thing you need to fill your psyche with is impending doom and suffering. Fear is aging and causes inflammation. Watch movies that celebrate beauty and are set in the past. I recently watched “The Taste of Things” and was hypnotized by Juliette Binoche’s unaltered face and the beautiful shots of a French country kitchen.
3. Get fat!: When we are depleted and tired, we tend to look hollowed out (and fall prey to the craving for fillers). A gaunt face looks older than a fat face (hence the horror show of “ozempic face”). This is not the time for diets, self-denial or self-punishing, high intensity workouts (unless you love that… in which case you’re probably an O blood type haha). Read more here about which exercise is best for your blood type.
Eat fat! Ghee, olive oil, coconut oil, coconut meat from young coconuts and avocado are all nourishing for adrenals and will plump up your skin. Live like an Italian and enjoy your food and your life, eat from the farmers markets and avoid processed foods. Get a little protein every day. Lentils, salmon, eggs (only from the farmers market for me) and soaked walnuts and almonds are my proteins of choice. Seatopia carries mercury-free fish with no microplastics. To further plump up the volume, eat these little Beauty Clouds by Shiva Rose, a yummy puff designed to promote collagen production in your body, leading to plump, glowing skin, healthy hair, and strong nails.
“I’ve been asked what is my Beauty secret? Well as I matured (61 years old) I’ve put on weight. Yes, 10 lbs. to be exact! It is the natural filler to my face! No fillers, no botox. Just weight & good genes! Lucky me!”
- Iman, supermodel and wife of David Bowie
4. Skincare: Move away from anything that strips the skin and harsh, chemical-based skincare. Remember, everything you put on your skin is absorbed into your body, so opt for clean and green products. AM: take four drops of Beauty Formula No. 8 under the tongue. Splash your face with cold water about 30 times. This will wake up your circulation. Pat dry and follow with generous sprays of GARA Jasmine Hydrosol. With face still damp, massage in a face oil and focus on areas of tension. I use Living Libations Best Skin Ever. Follow with a serum and moisturizer. I am loving Moon Juice Plump Jelly and Cosmic Cream. Don’t neglect the neck and decollate. You can use code ALEXISSMART for a Moon Juice discount. Follow with a non toxic sunscreen. Le Prunier Plumscreen is great because it’s also a skin treatment. PM: cleanse with a gentle cleanser like CAP Beauty blue. Follow with Jasmine Hydrosol and Plump Jelly. I sometimes skip heavy moisturizer at night because this is a time when our skin breathes and detoxes.
5. Abhyanga: I have been doing the Ayurvedic ritual of Abhyanga massage with oil before bed and I love it. It reduces stress and anxiety, nourishes the skin and stimulates the lymphatic system. This quiet time of self care reconnects me to my body. I start with dry brushing. (Start at feet and work towards the heart with long strokes, use gentle circles on the stomach, avoid the breasts, circles on the bum and hips then as much of your back as you can reach. Then start at the hands and go up. Follow this with the oil massage in the same pattern. I love the tri-doshic Basium Ayurveda oil. You can use code Nurture for 15% off. I do a little breathing meditation while doing my massage. Breathe in beauty, breathe out shame. Breathe in gratitude, breathe out criticism. Breathe in the future, breathe out the past. I follow this with a warm bath and get into bed feeling like a princess.
6. Tea: Drop your coffee habit. It spikes adrenaline (the aging baddie) and it’s a diuretic, causing you to lose minerals and hydration. Opt for antioxidant green tea or Hibiscus tea instead. I discovered hibiscus tea in Egypt years ago. Because they don’t serve alcohol, the cafes offered either fenugreek or hibiscus tea, which they called “Egyptian whiskey.” I drank it every day and I noticed my skin got really good. I have since discovered that it’s a powerhouse of vitamins and minerals, is hydrating and helps reduce hyperpigmentation.
7. Expanders: Find inspo pics of people who are getting older but are still full of life and inspire you (my friend Lacy of To Be Magnetic calls these “expanders”). I love Lauren Hutton, everything about her. She’s been modeling since the 60’s and refused to have the gap in her teeth fixed, knowing it’s what made her unique. I love her wrinkles. Like me, she has no kids, loves to travel to exotic places and favors tomboy dressing. She’s still getting big modeling campaigns at 81. When I look at her lined face, I can’t imagine changing anything. A surgeon would turn her into a real housewife, which she could never be.
8. Be like the French: The French focus on skin care and treatments like facials and lymphatic massages and go minimal with makeup. Makeup can really age you. I have a simple formula. Three products: blush (which I pat on the lips too), concealer and brows. I like RMS because they’re non-toxic and have very natural colors. Blush will take years off your face. I love a healthy flush in the color you would be if you ran in from the cold. I use RMS UnCoverup and only cover spots and under eye circles, letting the rest of my skin and freckles show. I’ve pretty much stopped wearing mascara. It’s too harsh. I think going without mascara creates a very Pre-Raphelite look. If I do use mascara, I opt for brown. For brows I use a taupe pencil or shadow. I really don’t like this trend of microblading. I think it looks very unnatural and is already starting to look dated. Remember, be a classic! Check out Casey Gouveia for so many great makeup and beauty tips too, and use code gobeyou10 for 10% off everything.
I should close by saying I don’t judge if you choose to have botox and filler. Whatever floats your boat. Personally, I just love seeing women who haven’t had “work” done. As the world becomes more and more the same, I am so drawn to uniqueness in men and women’s faces. It’s harder and harder to resist the pressure to conform to the beauty trends that are forced on us, now more than ever with Instagram, so I am hoping just to be a voice of influence coming from the other side, saying there’s nothing wrong with you.
Remember that the aesthetic now is a passing trend. Be a timeless beauty by being yourself. If I had succumbed to the 90s aesthetic trend, I would now have huge fake boobs, no eyebrows and a Celtic cross tattoo on my ankle. Just sayin’.
Be yourself and share your beauty with the world!!
Love,
Alexis x