Your body undergoes so many changes during pregnancy, so how will this affect your beauty routine?
Posted: 24 November 2011
Face
The first three months tends to be the time when mums-to-be feel their worse. Although a lucky few women sail through the first trimester with nary a twinge, morning sickness is likely to hit during this period – and it’s hard to look gorgeous when you can’t keep anything down…
What’s more, you’re probably feeling utterly exhausted. Your body’s doing a huge amount of work as it adjusts to prepare for your developing baby, leaving you really tired. The heightened emotions caused by discovering you’re pregnant can also mean you’re not sleeping well. Luckily, there are a host of cosmetics around to help mask the effects of fatigue. “If you look less tired, you’ll feel less tired,” says Simple skincare’s resident expert Caroline Frazer. “So it’s essential that you look after yourself.”
Try these products...
1) Convertible Color, made by Stila, £16.00 for a single pack, from Beauty Bay.com
Feeling queasy? Use a cream blusher to add quick colour to pale cheeks. This one can also be used on lips and comes in a handy compact.
2) Lemon Aid, made by Benefit, £16.50, from Boots
Cover up red eyes with this colour correcting miracle worker, which also acts a a good base for eye make-up.
3) Ginger Essence Sensuous Skin Scent, made by Origins, from £27.00, from John Lewis
The smell of ginger can really help combat morning sickness. A dab behind the ears will mean you’ve always got some on you!
4) Instant Radiance Concealer Pen, made by No. 7 at Boots, £13.50, from Boots
Hide the evidence of sleepless nights with a light-reflecting pen to mask those dark circles.
5) Dazzle Dust, made by Barry M, £4.59, from Barry M
Add some sparkle with a fun eyeshadow and help yourself feel a little brighter.
6) Lip Care in Strawberry, made by Nivea, £1.29, from Jinny’s Mall
Carry around a tinted lip balm for an easy way to add colour to your face when you’re feeling pale and uninteresting.
Hair and Body
Pregnancy has a surprisingly strong influence on your hair, effectively halting it’s regular life cycle in its tracks from the moment you conceive. Depending on whether you fall pregnant while your hair is growing, resting or shedding, it will remain in that phase for the duration of your pregnancy. International stylist Anestis Cobella, founder of the Cobella chain of salons, explains: “If you hair is in a disconnected phase and is naturally falling out, you may feel as if your hair is thinning and falling out in handfuls when really it’s not – it’s simply an extended ‘shredding phase’. If, however you are lucky enough to conceive when your hair is on a growing or resting phase, it will appear that your hair becomes thicker and more lustrous throughout your pregnancy.”
But there’s a rude awakening in store: “Just before the birth or soon afterwards, you are very likely to lose all of the hair that would normally have been lost,” says Cobella. Finally, you may be more than usually sensitive to smells at this time, so choose your perfumes carefully.
Try these products...
1) Bergamot and Lime shampoo, from the Duchy Collection, £5.95, from Waitrose
Using organic cosmetics means fewer chemicals get into your body. Recent studies have detected several everyday chemicals in breast milk in new mothers.
2) Lemon and Tea Tree Shower, made by Original Source, £2.29, from Superdrug
Give yourself a wake-up jolt with this zesty shower gel. Many women find citrus scents also help against morning sickness.
3) Gloss, made by Bumble & Bumble, £9.90, from Bumble & Bumble
Make the most of a thicker head of hair by adding dramatic shine for a truly glossy mane.
4) Prenatal Bath Soak, Natalia by Vital Touch, £8.25, from Amazon
Take a well earned soak at the end of a hard day. Relaxing essential oils of lavender, ylang ylang and vetiver will help you drop off.
5) Rosemary Mint Shampoo, made by Aveda, £11.00, from Aveda
Use a volumising shampoo if your hair’s looking thinner that you’d like during pregnancy.
