PRIME Makeovers

By Debbie Gardner PRIME Editor Three women ... Three ages ... Three hours ... Total wow! When PRIME took Shapes salon hair stylist Tina Braska up on her proposal to coordinate a makeover session for three willing clients, we were thinking along the lines of a hair-and-makeup story that would make a nice feature for our May issue. But Braska herself a 40-something woman had something more in mind for her clients 46-year-old Cindy King, 53-year old Gail Sullivan and 61-year-old Christine Doyle. With a little help from her friends namely personal trainer Dan Ingram, CPT, of Century Fitness; registered dietitian Paula Serafino-Cross MS, RD; fashion consultant Carol Kononitz, owner of Added Attractions Fine Clothing & Accessories; and makeup artist Cynthia Ziemba of Motives Customized Cosmetics Braska arranged a mini-lifestyle makeover for her three subjects. And PRIME was there to listen in on all the advice. "The reason I wanted to do this was to show how people 40 and up can still stay in style, keep in shape and eat nutritionally, in the hopes that [PRIME's ] readers would say, 'Hey, if they can look this good, so can I!'," Braska said. "Why not?" said Cindy King in reaction to PRIME's question of why she volunteered to spend a Sunday morning being made over by Braska's team of experts. "I thought it would be fun. You can get tired of your look ... sometimes you just need a change!" Nutrition: "What I find is that women spend a fortune on makeup and hair, and when it comes to nutrition, they buy vitamins," registered dietitian Paula Serafino-Cross told PRIME as we chatted during the Sunday morning makeover session at Shapes Salon. "Women are the last to take care of themselves nutrition-wise," she continued. "I feel that if women take care of their health, they will be better able to take care of others, such as their children and aging parents. " She added that in taking care of themselves, women are better role models for their daughters and their sons, who will then understand the importance of a wife or girlfriend taking care of her health. Serafino-Cross said her goal in the limited time she had with each woman was to help them make the most of their everyday nutrition. "Many things can be prevented through diet and exercise," she said, adding that many women in the makeover age group are already struggling with conditions such as high cholesterol, diabetes and high blood pressure. "I'm not anti-medicine," she said about these common mid-life health issues. "I just say 'give me six months and let me see what I can do" As far as her work with the three makeover subjects, Serafino-Cross said she gave them each a pre-meeting assignment. "I asked everyone to write down what they had eaten for three days, and set one nutritional goal for themselves," she said. As I listened in on her sessions with King, Sullivan and Doyle, I overheard Serafino-Cross talking about adequate calcium intake, using ground flax seed as an easy way to up each woman's Omega 3 fatty acid intake, adding soy products to their diets if there was no history of breast cancer and watching their iron intake if they were postmenopausal. "She's great," Doyle said after her 10-plus minute consult with Serafino-Cross. "She really gave me some good tips ... I found out why I get that 3 p.m. [energy] slump ... I was eating too many carbs and not enough protein, and too many non-fat things." Take-away nutrition tips: Women need to consume at least 1,000 milligrams of calcium a day at mid-life and 1,200 to 1,500 mg. after menopause to help stave off osteoporosis. It's easier and easier to find organic foods that are affordable. Add them to your market basket! Milled flax seed is available in most supermarkets sprinkle it on foods such as oatmeal or yogurt to up your Omega 3 fatty acids. Know your numbers that means keeping track of things such as your cholesterol level, blood pressure and weight. A breakfast of a little organic cold cereal with skim milk or soy milk if soy is appropriate for your health profile and a sliced banana is a good start to the day. If you're looking for nutrition advice, be sure you're working with someone who has the proper training, such as a registered dietitian. To find a qualified nutrition counselor, check out these websites: massnutrition.org eatright.org wamda.org (local) Health & Wellness: "The biggest issue with the success of any fitness plan is compliance ... being committed and being consistent," personal trainer Dan Ingram told PRIME as we discussed the health and wellness aspect of the women's mini-makeover. Ingram said he started his mini-assessment by getting a little background on each woman's exercise habits and health. He also brought along a hand-held device that estimated the user's body fat. "I was more worried [about the results] than what the actual results are," said Gail as she took her turn gripping the estimator with her two outstretched hands. "It's just another simple test, and a way to look at making yourself healthier." The end result of the fitness assessment, Ingram said, was a picture of what each woman wanted to achieve as a short-term goal. If, for example, the fitness goal was weight loss, Ingram said he'd look at current behaviors and habits and develop a plan from there that was "reasonable and personalized." Ingram said he also did a quick wellness balance assessment with each woman. "It's a little beyond the scope of fitness ... it looks at all aspects of lifestyle," he said. The assessment evaluated what Ingram referred to as the "six pillars of wellness" social interaction, emotional interaction, physical interaction, spiritual interaction, intellectual interaction and environmental interaction. "The graph should be a circle ... we're looking for major deficits ... [areas] where a client needs to put more energy [to achieve balance], he said. Take away fitness tips: Find [an activity] you enjoy enough and fit it into your lifestyle. Learn to set reasonable short-term goals to address issues such as weight loss. Hair: "One of the hottest trends is dimensional color something with some depth to it," Tina Braska told PRIME as she went to work on Cindy King's hair. "I'm going to turn her hair back to its natural color ...she's been blonde for so long!" King's reaction to the news ..."I've been blonde forever ... it's probably time for a change!" Braska said another big trend for the spring season is the asymmetrical cut. "It's coming back ... the bi-level [cut] is coming back, too," Braska said. With Sullivan's hair, Braska said she went a little bit deeper in color all over, and for dramatic effect, "added black around the face and at the crown." She also cut her hair in a short shag with "a lot more layers and definition." Braska added that, as women mature, they tend to keep their hair at shoulder length and above, a point illustrated by the new, slightly shorter styles she created for her three makeover clients. "It's not what's 'in,' but what looks good on us," she said. Doyle's hair was a good example of this Braska said she didn't "do something too different" to her client's chin- length do. "What is different is the placement of color to frame her face," she said. Doyle later said she loved the haircut, and planned to have Braska repeat the style at her next appointment! Hair take-away tips: Don't get hooked on the latest trends, they don't look good on everyone find a cut that's right for you, taking into consideration your face shape, the amount of time you're able to spend on your hair and your lifestyle at this stage of your life. Consider using color not just to cover grey, but to add depth and dimension to your hairstyle. Strategically placed color can be a subtle way to frame and brighten the face. Makeup: "Everybody wants to have their makeup done," Motives Cosmetics Consultant Cindy Ziemba told PRIME as she began blending a custom-mixed foundation for Gail Sullivan. She read the subtle colors of the woman's skin, and produced a perfect match. "Now your head doesn't look detached from your body," Ziemba said as she stepped back to survey her handiwork. She turned Sullivan toward the mirror to admire her skin. "It doesn't feel like I'm wearing anything!" she exclaimed. She went to work on Sullivan's' eyes next, choosing a light lavender for the lids and blending it carefully "As eyes get older, you need to blend," Ziemba explained as she worked. You don't need quite so much color ... go lighter on the lids so they can become the focus of the eye." Working with an earth-toned palate of colors, Ziemba chose shadow, blush and lipstick, keeping in mind Sullivan's affinity for the color purple. When Ziemba was finished, PRIME asked Sullivan what she thought of the look created for her. "I do love the makeup," said Sullivan. "Everybody wants to look natural [and] the foundation doesn't look like foundation ... not like going to the store. And the colors of the lips and eyes are what I would have chosen [for myself]." And her excitement over her new look was even more impressive when Sullivan began talking about her regular beauty routine. "Nobody ever has the time ..." she said. "I keep my hair short ... it only takes two minutes to do and I get out the door. But adding a little more makeup ... [the result is] just amazing." "It was really very easy to apply," Christine Doyle said, as she talked about the makeup session with PRIME during a follow-up discussion about the makeover. "I learned some things ... and you didn't have to spend a fortune [to recreate the look]. Makeup take-away tips: Beauty starts on the inside. If you are having problems with your skin, it's time to take a close look at your skincare routine. A good foundation is the key to a great look at any age. "If you have a great foundation, you can wear any color!" On days when you're tired, add a little white shadow in the inner corner of the eyes "People will never think you're tired!" Pay attention to your brows. "People skip their eyebrows ... they're a frame for your eyes!" Go lighter with eyeshadow as eyes get older. Style and Fashion: "Most women, regardless of their age, want to look good. They want to feel good about themselves mentally and physically. And they want to have fun with fashion." So said Added Attractions boutique owner Carol Kononitz as she showed PRIME the array of outfits she'd brought for each of the three makeover clients. Her shop, which specializes in contemporary pieces and distinctive accessories, offers clients an opportunity to keep up with the latest trends without getting caught up in the cookie-cutter fashions of major department stores. "I brought sizes and accessories. I tried to consider the personality of the clients ... Tina clued me in on the kind of clothing they would like and would work well for them." Kononitz talked about the trend away from expensive "investment dressing" wardrobe pieces and toward a more fluid approach to fashion. "People are looking for more versatility in clothing," she said. That sense of versatility was reflected in the outfits she selected for the makeover subjects. Kononitz put Cindy King in black crop pants detailed with a krinke-back hem, paired with a petal-motif blouse over a black camisole. "She's a vivacious person, and the clothes fit her personality perfectly," said Kononitz. For Christine Doyle, she selected side-slit ankle pant and a jacket-style shirt in a sandstone stretch jacquard material. Gail Sullivan looked elegant in a black rhinestone zip-front jacket and stovepipe pant. Either chunky, stone-inspired or gold jewelry accented each outfit. "You have to take that giant step and be a trend-setter," Kononitz said of the bold accessories she paired with each outfit. Fashion take-away tips: Women like to look good. It's a clothiers job to help women feel beautiful, not just in style. Black and white are back in a big way for spring and summer, as are the naturals. The use of color(s) are also very important for this season and looking forward into the fall "We can't be afraid of color ... My shop has a lot of black and white and naturals and I'm popping the looks with color." Crochet is very big. Gold is becoming the metal of choice in accessories. Big, bold, chunky jewelry is very popular. Details beading on denim, cut-outs, jacquard patterns and accessories, accessories, accessories! Where to find the experts: Nutrition: Paula Serafino-Cross, MS. RD. 413-596-4485 Fitness: Dan Ingram, personal trainer Century Fitness, North Main Street, E ast Longmeadow 413-525-8800 Hair: Tina Braska Shapes Salon 219 Shaker Rd. E. Long. 525-4242 Makeup: Cindy Ziemba Motives Custom Cosmetics 737-2225 Fashion: Carol Kononitz Added Attractions @ Gasoline Alley 250 Albany St. Spfld. 732-0008 Personalized in-home fashion consultations available.