♥

Hey guys, as some of you know I now write beauty pages for Xpress Magazine quarterly but was recently asked to do a fill in feature for the regular weekly issue. I decided to focus on the fact that beach and bathers weather is upon us and that it can be pretty scary!

If you’d like to download a copy of how it looks in the magazine you can do so: here (PDF version).

Otherwise read on for my top tips to beat the bikini body blues…

Summer is a comin, and with it, the promise of glorious sunny days and heat which can only be quelled by a trip down to the beach and a dip in the ocean followed by an icecream or bevvy. Sounds great right? You’ve picked out your adorable vintage inspired bikini online, stalked the postman for days and when it finally arrives somethings not quite right… suddenly you realise “I’M NOT READY FOR THIS NEAR NAKED PUBLIC DISPLAY OF FLESH!” and vow to spend summer indoors, dreaming of a snowy getaway.

But don’t give up hope just yet, if you’re in need of some guidance follow these tried and tested tips to beat the bikini body blues and reclaim the beach this summer!

IPL / SPL

Most people have heard of Intense Pulsed Light / Square Pulsed Light by now, but in a nut shell it’s a relatively quick and simple treatment that involves applying bursts of intense light to areas of the body to reduce hair growth (feels like a rubber band snapping on your skin, no worse than waxing).

It works incredibly well on bikini lines, legs and underarms and for those who are prone to ingrown hairs, is nothing short of miraculous (I used to be one of them and haven’t had an ingrown since)!

The real beauty of this treatment is in the freedom it allows you, with treatments every 6 weeks and a diminishing amount of hair each time, it gets easier and easier to slip into your bathers without any rogue hair worries. It works best on those with fair skin and dark hair, and is my number one tip for making summer easier.

There are plenty of places that offer these treatments, I’ve had great luck with: http://www.hairfree.com.au

Move Yourself

This one gets mentioned so much that it’s become more than a little redundant, there is a reason for the constant reminding though: IT WORKS! Exercising is the best way to burn calories and stress, plus get endorphins flowing around your body, all three of which will make you feel great and help you look good.

There are 54 million ways to get moving, from bikram yoga to bike riding, boxing to burlesque dancing – they will all help you get a toned tum and bum, plus improve your posture so that you stand up tall as you take your first tentative steps onto the sand this summer – just don’t burn your feet! Once you’re at the beach, you can even take it a step further by getting into some frisbee, beach volleyball, jogging along the shoreline with a pup… or you could take the unconventional approach and go for a swim.

Full Body Exfoliation

It’s time to put TLC’s “No Scrubs” out of your mind and allow yourself to enter the wonderful word of exfoliation. There’s something about having every inch of your body scrubbed that makes for feeling completely physically and mentally cleansed. It’s a great post-winter ritual that will leave your skin free of built up dead skin cells and able to get rid of toxins more efficiently. It will also make you look all smooth and glowy, which will help ease the pain of taking the majority of your clothes off. So make like a snake and shed that winter skin, you can have this done professionally at a day spa, purchase a cheap body scrub or make your own out of sugar and olive oil.

To (Fake) Tan or Not to (Fake) Tan…

So far we’re free of pesky hairs, feeling the benefits of exercising up a storm and have smooth glowing skin – so what next? The divisive topic of tan vs no tan of course!

Now I’m going to optimistically assume that everyone is onboard with me when I say: actual sun tanning is a Pretty Silly idea given we live in Australia and are unfortunately in peak hour public transport style proximity to our good friend the ozone hole, which means we are in the top four countries most at risk of skin cancer. So no sun baking okay? Yes? Great.

So now there are two choices: summery glow vs au naturale. Being of the more ghostly persuasion myself, I’m all for embracing the skin colour you born with. The advent of shows like Mad Men and all of those fancy historical films with beautiful “english rose” types has made being a fair skinned lass as equally acceptable on the beach as having naturally darker skin, so if you’re giving the colour of soy milk a run for its money then you can by all means EMBRACE IT without fear of social exclusion.

Both dark and pale skin needs to be covered up with cute hats, clothing when possible, protective sunglasses and lashings of sunscreen, or my favourite, Invisible Zinc.

If you can’t bear to get bare without a little extra colour confidence, then a spray tan is the best way to go. My pick is local brand Aussie Bombshell, who are currently taking the state (and Australia) by storm with their extremely natural looking sunless tans. You will still need to apply sunscreen though, no getting naughty and slacking off thanks. Yes miss.

These four suggestions should get you well on your way to bikini body confidence, all you need now is a warm day, your favourite beach and the all-clear from the lifeguard that there has been no shark sightings for quite some time. And that bevvy I mentioned earlier. Enjoy!

Be well,

Annette

xoxo