Feeling Beautiful?

For those looking for some great new reading, there is a young Brisbane woman, Sophee McPhee, who has just launched a magazine called QCG Magazine (Queensland Calander Girls).

The magazine is refreshingly distinctive, targeting a more mature audience and focusing on celebrating real women. Based on the inspirational and heart-warming box office hit, Calendar Girls (starring Helen Mirren & Julie Walters), QCG Magazine was developed to connect, inspire and celebrate all women. Their philosophy is, "skin - not plastic", and the pages are filled with real stories from real women.

Whilst reading the magazine I was consistently reminded that age really is a mindset, so is confidence and beauty. Inner beauty and confidence will carry a woman through her whole life. It will allow a woman's life to continuously unfold into an exciting adventure, propelled by her life experience and wisdom. It is a woman's mindset that masters a meaningful life, not her outer beauty.

Our society as a whole tends to be obsessed with all things youthful - this information is not new. Women wear the brunt of this bias more than men though. Does no longer looking youthful mean women can't be beautiful? How sad if this is what we allow ourselves to believe.

Annie Infinite from The Zen Bull recently submitted this article about women and beauty. I'm happy to see women like Julie Carrington and Sophee McPhee really working hard to shift these biases.

"As women grow older there is a strange phenomenon that happens to them. Julie Carrington of The Jewellery Gallery says that it is like a 'cloak of invisibility' is thrown over them. Women start to feel invisible because they no longer get the looks they used to when walking down the street.

"Women lose their confidence in their beauty and begin to feel less beautiful. As women age they look into the mirror and see only the parts of themselves that they don't like."

Feeling beautiful at any age has become the focus for new workshops held regularly by Julie and her partner Lea Sanson. They welcome women who want to reclaim that lost feeling of beauty.

There are few things more alluring than a woman who is sexy, bold and full of confidence. She feels good and that confidence shows. Julie says,"Woman ARE beautiful at any age and we want them to feel that beauty each and every day. We want women of any age to step out of the house each day and boldly strut their stuff."

Using confidence building strategies, a mirror and beautiful jewelry adornment, Julie and Lea help women transform their perception about their age and most importantly their beauty.

"When a woman is dressed in something that makes her feel amazing and then we add an adornment to the outfit, she transforms right before her own eyes in the mirror. It is all about seeing the whole woman, the whole picture - rather than focusing on the bits we don't like. Suddenly women can come alive. They stand with their heads high and get a little strut into their walk and you can see that they're feeling bolder and more beautiful in just a couple of hours."

Julie and Lea have a few tips for women who want to start feeling beautiful right now:
• Dress the part. Pick clothes that flatter your figure and make you feel like the bold, beautiful woman you are. Try not to squeeze into clothes that no longer fit or are unflattering, even though perhaps in fashion.
• Go for glamour. Purchase a few staples for the season and dress them up differently depending on your mood or the occasion.
• Adorn yourself. Find amazing jewellery to compliment the outfit you have chosen. It only takes one amazing piece to draw the eye where you want it and you will find yourself being complimented all day long. What a wonderful way of downplaying those places you are not so proud of.

This is the key to feeling and looking amazing explains Julie - accentuating the positive and downplaying the negative. "Seeing yourself as a whole picture when you look at yourself in the mirror is a big part of feeling beautiful. How often do we look in the mirror and only see the parts we don't like? "

Seeing the whole person, the full effect will allow you to get out there and let the world know that you have the leading role in your life.

"Strutting your stuff is really important. When you walk into a room looking confident, you'll be amazed how quickly you'll begin to feel sassier and more confident than ever before."

Wallflower anyone? I don't think so...

'Women Feeling Beautiful at any Age' Workshops are held regularly in Noosa on the Sunshine Coast at The Jewellery Gallery. For more information on the next workshop please email Julie or Lea on admin@thejewellrygallery.com

How to Buy Prom Evening Shoes Online?

The right shoes will make your evening prom amazing. You should spend more time to purchase the very best shoes possible for your prom. With such a wide variety of evening shoes to choose from, it can be a little daunting to select the best pair for your outfit. Here are the tips on how to buy the right evening shoes online.

Firstly, you should try the websites of those shoe brands that you normally buy from. That way you will know that the shoe will fit correctly. You should also know your shoe size because companies each have their own size chart, your shoe size may be off by a half size or so.

Choose evening shoes in designs and colors that never go out of style. Normally, color black and color gold will work well. The color black can be serious, conventional, mysterious, sexy, and sophisticated. In clothing, black is visually slimming. In fact, black is one of the best choices for evening shoes, not only because we are so fond of our little black dresses, but also because black works well with so many other colors. The color gold shares many of the attributes of yellow. It is a warm color that can be both bright and cheerful as well as somber and traditional. Normally a pair of gold evening shoes serve as a bold accessory for print, gray or black evening dresses. Also, the height of heel is just as important as the color of evening shoe. Evening shoes that are high heels will be uncomfortable, and no matter how glamorous they may look in the photo they will never look right on your feet.

E-STORES often provide coupons, reward programs, and advance notice of "bargains" to their regular customers. So register for E-STORE newsletters. These newsletters often have shoe coupons and competitions that can win you evening shoes. Also, you can search the keywords "shoes name + coupons" in GOOGLE to find the coupons.

Before making your decision you should pay much attention to the photo galleries and details on the E-STORE, think carefully about the size, color, style and height. Also you should consider in what situation you will be wearing the evening shoes - formal or informal? Then find out about shipping costs and guarantees. Many E-STORES offer free shipping which means you will save more on the cost of a pair. The last thing you should do is to check their returns policy, just in case you make the wrong choice!

By Ariel Lily

Women - An Easy and Affordable Way to Protect Yourself

By ReShonda Young

All women, no matter what the age, should be protected! In fact, all women from age 18 to 88 (and beyond) should be protected with good, powerful, effective pepper sprays! These days there are too many stories in the news about females getting mugged, attacked, or having purses stolen. The time has come for these ladies, no matter their ages, to fight back! Imagine the surprise of a guy thinking he will grab a purse from a so-called "easy mark," but instead she sprays his face with a burning hot pepper spray? He will be in for the shock of his life!

The pepper spray is a very humane way to fight off an attacker. It won't cause any long term or permanent harm or damage to the thug. However, he will cough, choke, sneeze, and maybe even vomit, as his eyes feel like they are on fire. He will have difficulty breathing, and will not be able to continue with the attack or the purse snatching. The lady will be able to get away and get to safety. Most pepper sprays also contain a special marking dye which would possibly assist law enforcement personnel in identifying the criminal later on.

Defense spray Pepper

Pepper sprays come in various sizes and strengths and are legal in all fifty of our United States. There are a few states that have restrictions, and perhaps require their people to buy them in a certain type of store or with specific paperwork required. Most of our fellow Americans can buy them anytime, anywhere, and from a number of great websites that contain self defense items. The main thing is for all women, who are capable of carrying and handling a pepper spray, to obtain at least one, and carry it with them! Some gals keep one in the house, another in the car, and a third in the pocket or purse!

You can buy a pepper spray that is disguised as a lipstick, a beautiful ring, and another that is smaller and attached to a key chain. There are larger sizes that look about the size of a can of a popular energy drink! Whatever size you choose, or decide to carry, really doesn't matter. So long as you obtain and carry a pepper spray, you will at least have Peace of Mind and you will be protected, just in case anything ever happens. So, if you don't already carry one, it may be time to get one!

Finally, as a women we needs protection ourself.

Smart Women Have Better Sex

Women considered to be 'emotionally intelligent' - can express their feelings and read those of others - have better sex lives, recent research from the UK shows.

This makes sense doesn't it? Smart women can read situations better, are more in touch with their feelings and are more likely to get what they want from their partner sexually. According to this recent research, emotionally intelligent women have twice as many orgasms. The results also show that 40% of women find it difficult to fully enjoy sex.

I spoke with Kim Gillespie recently about this. Kim and her business Secrets from The Boudoir specialize in female sexuality. Why does this continue to be such a complex area for many women? I asked Kim this and for any tips she felt would be helpful. Her thoughts are below.

1. Good sex does begin in the brain. It is as simple and as straight forward as that. If, for example, you are holding in anger - it will be very difficult to get in the mood for sex.

In my experience, many women are holding in a lot of repressed anger and this inhibits their sexual pleasure.

Please ladies, if this is the case with you then go and see a psychologist who specializes in women's issues. You owe it to yourself to get to the bottom of your anger and resentment. Try to communicate your feelings more and/or do other activities that have a calming effect on you such as meditation, yoga and relaxation exercises. The most important thing is to stop internalizing anger and pain. Your long-term sexual satisfaction really does depend on it.

2. Lubrication - many things can affect vaginal lubrication. Hormones or medications, for example, can impact. More importantly, a lack of stimulation has a dramatic impact on sexual pleasure. Women in general need at least 20- 30 minutes of foreplay to achieve orgasm and the average male needs only 3-5 minutes. It is not a failure on the woman's part to need extra lubrication but you need to feel confident and comfortable enough to communicate this to your partner. If you feel dryness is a problem even with extended foreplay, then see your family doctor for advice and invest in a good quality natural lubricant (SYLK - can be bought from most chemists and supermarkets)

3. Attitude - if you want to feel sexy... you have to think sexy. Our sexuality is all about embracing ourselves as the wonderful, amazing women that we are. Who cares if we don't have a perfect size 10 body? Most women have wrinkles and cellulite and a little extra padding. Ladies EMBRACE YOUR CURVES. Look at Beyonce and Jennifer Lopez - with curves that would be shunned by any modeling agency. They make no apology for their sexy, full, womanly figures. When you have a sparkle in your eyes, know who you are and where you are headed, you realize the only one holding the key to your own sexual pleasure and enjoyment is you.

4. Too tired for sex - of course you are tired. Modern lives are very hectic for women with kids, career, family and running a household. We all need to slow down and take time out for ourselves. We need to remember to live sensually as women and take the time out to enjoy sexual pleasure. Even if you feel tired initially, it is amazing how quickly you can get in the mood with the right partner. Make time for sexual pleasure.

5. Fantasize - did you know that the more we think about sex, the more we want it? Take time to read erotica ( try Mills and Boon - Blaze - very sexy, or for the really adventurous souls - visit my website to read Mistress Vixens Fantasies) and connect again with your sexual energy.

6. Foreplay - every man needs be taught that foreplay should last 24/7. It is not just love notes and a little 'rub here and there.' Foreplay is about doing the dishes or maybe running you a bath while he puts the kids to bed. We need to communicate this to our partners and insist we are feeling valued at all times of the day, not just when it comes to sex.

7. Get to know your own body - learn how your body responds to touch, discover what you like and dislike. If you don't know what turns you on, then it will be difficult to tell your partner what pleasures you.

8. Embrace your sensuality - looking after your body is important. We need to cherish the temple in which we live! When you rub body lotion onto your skin, do you just slather it in or do you gently massage it into your skin? Take the time to think about how it feels on your skin - is it hot /cold? What does it smell like? How does your skin feel as you glide it over your curves?

Spoil yourself with sexy lingerie. Take notice of how your body moves when you are feeling more confident and sexy. Instead of dragging your body around, climb back in and really feel how amazing it is to be inside.

9. Try a new rule - instead of giving pleasure first, make sure you orgasm before he heads down his pathway to pleasure.

10. Get in touch with your body first, and speak up - it's time to start feeling good about yourself and your sexuality.

This is only a small part of what I teach in my Goddess Guide to Essential Learning and Good Girls Guide to Naughty Sex Workshops.

So ladies, have confidence in yourself, learn what makes you feel good, and learn to show your partner what you enjoy. Believe you are truly desirable and you will be.

Who needs female Viagra!"

By Kylie Welsh