MTips

How to Apply Makeup With a Monofocal Lens
By Kyra Sheahan
How to Apply Makeup With a Monofocal Lensthumbnail Keep your monofocal lens clean and clear.

When you have cataracts, your ophthalmologist may recommend cataract surgery in which a monofocal lens is surgically implanted in the eye. This surgery, which is invasive, is an outpatient eye operation. To get the most effective results, and to avoid bacteria buildup or infection in the eye, heed your doctor’s advice when it comes to wearing makeup afterwards. The eye that was operated on will be sensitive following the surgery, and, as such, it’s critical to consult with your ophthalmologist before putting on any makeup.

Topic To Apply Makeup With a Monofocal Lens:

• All Day Eye Makeup
• The Eye Test

To Apply Makeup With a Monofocal Lens Difficulty:

• Moderately Easy

To Apply Makeup With a Monofocal Lens You’ll Need:

• Eyelid primer
• Dual-tip makeup applicator
• Eye shadow
• Eye shadow brush

To Apply Makeup With a Monofocal Lens Instructions:

• Apply eyelid primer to your eyelid using a clean dual-tip makeup applicator. Eyelid primer is effective for reducing the amount of moisture buildup that can develop on the eyelids when you wear eyeshadow. Prevent sweat and moist makeup from dripping into your monofocal lens by prepping the eye with eyelid primer first.
• Throw the applicator away after you use it for the eyelid primer. Avoid the risk of infection by using all new and clean products with your makeup.
• Dip one side of your eyeshadow brush into a palette of eyeshadow. Dust off the bulk of the eyeshadow so you have a thin coat on the brush. Close your eye and brush the eyeshadow onto the lid, being careful to not get the makeup too close to the waterline.
• Avoid wearing eyeliner or mascara when you have a monofocal lens, unless your doctor gives you specific permission to do so. Eyeliner and mascara come into close contact with your waterline, which can transmit the makeup into the eye to cause infection. It may also cause the monofocal lens to look blurry if it’s stained with makeup.
• Apply your other makeup, such as blush and lipstick, regularly.

• Remove makeup on the eyes gently with water or a doctor-approved makeup remover that is gentle for the eyes, such as baby wipes or an alcohol-free product.

The Safety of a Tongue Ring
By April Marie
The Safety of a Tongue Ringthumbnail Take the extra time to care for your tongue piercing.

Having your tongue pierced is one way to set yourself apart as a teenager, and sometimes as an adult as well. While this mark of individuality will get you noticed, it is important to keep in mind the safety and hygiene of your piercing, too. A piercing inside the mouth can lead to a number of health problems. If you decide to go ahead with the piercing, make sure you are prepared to invest the extra time in oral hygiene to keep your tongue ring clean and infection free.

The Safety of a Tongue Ring Instructions:

• Finding a Safe Piercer - The most critical precaution you can take is ensuring you are having your tongue pierced by a professional, trained piercer. Citadel Dental Group, one of the many dentists that cautions against tongue piercings, recommends looking for disposable gloves and an autoclave, a tool used to sterilize the instruments. The piercing technician should have his health certificate prominently displayed; if not, ask to see it. Check to make sure the studio itself is clean and free of any grime or detritus on the walls or floor.
• Possible Problems - Getting a tongue ring puts you at risk of infection, since the open wound it leaves can attract bacteria, according to Citadel Dental Group. A tongue ring can also cause problems chewing and swallowing and can even chip your teeth if you aren’t careful. A piercing on the tongue can also lead to loss of sensation or numbness in the area. In addition, you may learn after the piercing that you are allergic to the metal in the jewelry.
• Aftercare – If you take proper hygiene and safety precautions during the healing process, you will likely avoid most of the problems. Citadel Dental Group recommends rinsing your mouth with warm salt water as often as possible and using mouthwash after every meal. Avoid spicy, sticky or highly acidic foods. If you notice any pain, reddening or swelling near the site of your tongue piercing, see your dentist as soon as possible.
• Beyond the Healing Process – Once the piercing has healed, it will be very tempting to play with the new jewelry in your tongue. Try not to bang it against the roof of your mouth, chew on it or touch it with your hands. This will keep infection from entering your mouth and prevent tooth or gum damage. Always wash your hands before removing or changing your tongue jewelry. Delta Dental Insurance recommends removing the tongue jewelry in the early stages while eating, sleeping or performing strenuous activity. This is meant to protect the teeth. Your piercing parlor may sell a plug that can be put in the hole so it doesn’t close up in the meantime, according to Delta Dental.

How to Apply Makeup in Your 40s
By Cindy Ramos
How to Apply Makeup in Your 40sthumbnail Makeup can enhance your best features while evening out your skin tone.

Applying makeup in your 40s is a balancing act. You don’t want to go au naturel — after all, there are some things to cover up — and at the same time, you want to steer clear of the heavy foundation, frosty eye shadow and black eyeliner. Makeup can enhance your best features when you use the right colors and techniques. When you’re in your 40s, moisturizers with sunscreen, primers and concealers will become your best friends.

To Apply Makeup in Your 40s You’ll Need:

• Moisturizer with sunscreen
• Eye cream
• Makeup primer
• Concealer
• Makeup sponges
• Makeup brushes
• Foundation
• Loose powder
• Blush
• Lip liner
• Lipstick
• Eye shadow
• Sponge-tip applicator or cotton swab
• Eyeliner
• Mascara

To Apply Makeup in Your 40s Instructions:

• Apply moisturizer with at least an SPF 15 to your clean face. All skin needs moisturizer, even oily and combination skin. Find a moisturizer suited for your skin type and apply to your face and neck in upward strokes.
• Apply eye cream with your ring finger, gently patting around the eye area. The ring finger applies the lightest pressure of all of the fingers. Eye creams work on various eye issues including dryness, wrinkles, sagging and dark circles. You will also find that your concealer will go on smoother when an eye cream is applied underneath.
• Apply a makeup primer all over your face. Primers fill in fine lines and pores to smooth out the surface of the skin, allowing foundation, concealer and color cosmetics to go on better and stay on longer. Choose an untinted primer and one that is suited for your skin type.
• Dot concealer with a cosmetic sponge on the areas you need to cover up. Usually, this includes dark circles under the eyes and age or sun spots, which become darker as you age. Use a concealer that will blend with your skin tone. A yellow concealer is recommended for covering dark circles, acne scars and age spots. Blend well with a cosmetic sponge.
• Dot foundation all over the face down and use a cosmetic sponge or clean fingertips to blend. Avoid putting on too much foundation, as it can cake and look heavy. Choose a foundation suited for your skin type. If you find that it cakes or dries up too quickly, you may have to switch your foundation to one made for normal to dry skin.
• Set the foundation using a round powder brush dipped in loose powder. Loose powders go on lighter than pressed powders and typically contain more oil-absorbents to keep makeup looking fresher longer.
• Apply a peach or rose color of blush to the apples of your cheeks. Use a gel or cream blush if your face appears dull or your skin is dry.
• Outline your lips with a liner that matches the pinkest part of your lips. Fill in your lips with a lipstick or non-shimmery lip gloss in a light rose or peach color. Avoid dark and bright colors on the lips, as these can instantly age you.
• Sweep a neutral color of matte eye shadow on your eyelids. Choose browns, grays, nudes and peaches. This is the time to put away the bright and frosty colors, as the shimmer accentuates wrinkles. Using a makeup brush instead of a sponge-tip applicator will allow for a more natural and blended look. Apply a darker shade in the crease of your eye for a dramatic effect. Leave the frosty ivory for highlighting just under the eyebrow for special occasions.
• Outline your eyes with a gray or brown eyeliner. Outline the eye with gentle sweeps of pencil eyeliner, getting as close to your eyelash line as possible. If you want to outline only the top or bottom, stick to the top, as outlining only the bottom will drag the eye down. Stay away from jet-black eyeliner and colors such as blue and green. Finally, smudge the line with a sponge-tip applicator or a cotton swab.
• Brush a dark brown or black mascara on the bottoms of your lashes and then the top lashes. This is the time of your life when mascara will do wonders to open up your eyes and make you look alive, so don’t skip it!

• If you want a super-fast beauty routine use a moisturizer, concealer, mineral powder foundation, blush, lipstick and mascara.

How to Brush Your Teeth With a Tongue Ring
By Laurie Dickinson
How to Brush Your Teeth With a Tongue Ringthumbnail Tongue rings need special dental care.

The tongue is a highly vascular muscle, so the many veins and arteries running through it make it a more sensitive area for piercing than the ear, nose or lips. Because the mouth carries a high load of bacteria, good oral hygiene is especially important with a tongue ring. If you are considering a tongue ring, make sure you understand that a tongue ring piercing requires extra care to avoid infections from bacteria.

To Brush Your Teeth With a Tongue Ring You’ll Need:

• Alcohol
• Soft bristle toothbrush
• Toothpaste

To Brush Your Teeth With a Tongue Ring Instructions:

• Remove the ring and post from your tongue. Rinse your mouth, especially the hole in the tongue, with warm water. If you rinse with mouthwashes that contain alcohol or a saline solution, this might sting the wound if your piercing is fairly new.
• Wash the tongue ring in warm soapy water, then dip it in alcohol to assure it is clean and free of bacteria. Set aside.
• Put toothpaste on a soft bristle toothbrush. Brush your teeth as you would normally do, using care not to brush your tongue until after you have completed brushing your teeth. Carefully brush the roof of your mouth and then your tongue.
• Rinse your mouth thoroughly finishing with a warm rinse. Rinse the tongue ring in warm water to remove any residues of the alcohol. Place the tongue ring back in the piercing hole.

• For proper dental care, the tongue ring should be removed and disinfected once a day.

How to Know When a Tattoo Hasn’t Healed Right
By Kathryn Hatter
How to Know When a Tattoo Hasn’t Healed Rightthumbnail Tattoos require frequent monitoring to ensure they stay healthy.

A tattoo involves injecting pigments into the top layer of the skin using sharp needles. Because these punctures pierce the skin, the skin bleeds in response and it must heal. By following the aftercare advice of your tattoo professional, you can help to ensure that your tattoo heals properly. Watch a tattoo carefully to know when a tattoo hasn’t healed right, seeking medical help if necessary.

To Know When a Tattoo Hasn’t Healed Right Instructions:

• Watch the healing process to ensure that it follows general expectations. Normally, a tattoo scabs over and the scab should flake off by about one to two weeks after the procedure.
• Check the tattoo daily for signs of infection. If you notice swelling, redness, warmth on the skin, drainage and pain, the tattoo may be developing an infection. Call your tattoo professional for advice and consider seeing a physician.
• Monitor the tattoo for other problems that may occur. Bumps developing beneath the skin surface (granulomas or lichenoids), sores, peeling, raised and puffy keloid scars and swelling of the tattoo site can indicate a reaction or a problem with the tattoo.
• See a physician if you notice a problem with a tattoo. Issues, such as delayed hypersensitivity to the tattoo dye, can occur even years after having a tattoo. Red tattoo dye can be especially problematic. Some reactions may require tattoo removal to resolve the problem.

• A physician may inject steroids to treat an allergic reaction to tattoo dye. Additionally, antihistamines and anti-itch lotions may improve symptoms.

• Keep tattooed areas out of Sun exposure. Apply sunscreen to prevent adverse reactions in the tattooed area.

How to Dig a Barrel Cactus
By Dawn Gibbs
How to Dig a Barrel Cactusthumbnail Barrel cactus spines can be white or red.

A barrel cactus is a species that has a cylindrical shape without the arms of the more iconic saguaro cactus. They are common to the American southwest. If you have a barrel cactus growing in your landscape and you need to dig it up to transplant it, you can do so without any special equipment. If the cactus is more than 2 to 3 feet tall, have a helper assist you because they can be too heavy to handle alone.

To Dig a Barrel Cactus You’ll Need:

• Chalk
• Shovel
• Garden hose
• Scissors

To Dig a Barrel Cactus Instructions:

• Mark the south-facing side of the cactus with a piece of chalk if you are transplanting it. When you replant it, it will need to have the same orientation to prevent sun scald.
• Insert a shovel into the soil 6 inches from the base of the cactus. Pull the shovel out and insert it into the soil again, cutting a circle around the cactus that is always 6 inches from the base.
• Dig under the cactus, starting at your 6-inch cut. Cut through the roots with the edge of the shovel.
• Wrap a garden hose around the middle of the cactus. Lift it out of the ground by the hose so you do not cut yourself on the spines.
• Lay the cactus on its side. Examine the roots for any torn or damaged roots and cut them back to just above the tear.

How to Remove a Tongue Ring If Drooling
By Ann Jones
How to Remove a Tongue Ring If Droolingthumbnail Latex or nitrile gloves can help you get a better grip on a tongue barbell.

The jewelry worn in a tongue piercing is not actually a ring, but rather a barbell, with beads that unscrew from both ends. Because your tongue is frequently in motion, piercers screw the beads on tight when inserting a tongue barbell. Removing the beads yourself can be difficult, especially when you’re drooling. Drying your tongue and wearing the same kind of gloves a body piercer wears can help you more easily remove the beads of your tongue barbell.

To Remove a Tongue Ring If Drooling You’ll Need:

• Antibacterial soap
• Paper towels
• Alcohol-free antibacterial mouthwash
• Sterile gauze
• Latex or nitrile gloves

To Remove a Tongue Ring If Drooling Instructions:

• Clean your hands and your mouth before touching your piercing. Wash your hands with antibacterial soap and rinse your mouth with alcohol-free antibacterial mouthwash for 30 seconds.
• Dry your hands with a clean paper towel and put on a fresh pair of latex or nitrile gloves.
• Stick out your tongue and blot away the saliva with sterile gauze.
• Hold the bottom bead of the tongue barbell with your thumb and forefinger. Use your other hand to twist the top barbell to the left until it comes unscrewed.
• Pull on the lower bead to slide the barbell out of your tongue. Remove your gloves, wash the jewelry with antibacterial soap and dry it with another paper towel.

• Tongue piercings close very quickly once the jewelry is removed. If your piercing is less than two years old, do not leave the jewelry out for more than a couple of hours.
• Do not attempt to change your tongue jewelry if the piercing is less than two months old. If you need a shorter bar once the swelling goes down, go to your piercer’s shop and have her change it for you.
• If you suspect your tongue is infected, do not remove the jewelry. The hole must remain open for the infection to drain. Visit a piercer certified by the Association of Professional Piercers immediately. If you have a fever, go to a doctor.

What Are the Causes of Eye Color Changes?
By Rachel Watkins
What Are the Causes of Eye Color Changes?thumbnail Sudden dramatic eye color change is called heterochromia.

The color of the eye’s iris can vary dramatically between individuals due to genetic differences. Yet eye color can also vary over time in an individual. Eye color change can happen as a result of natural changes in the body or as a reaction to medications. Sometimes a medical disorder is the cause of a lighter or darker iris pigmentation.

What Are the Causes of Eye Color Changes Instruction

• Pupil Contraction – The ring of color in the eye is called the iris. The iris contracts and expands around the central pupil to let in more or less light as needed. When this movement occurs, the color of the iris may appear to change color. Contraction of the iris causes the eye color to appear darker, while expansion of the iris causes the eye color to appear lighter. Strong emotions such as anger or love, which cause the heart rate to rise, may also cause the pupil to contract and change the eye’s color.
• Age – The eye color of fair-skinned infants is often light blue or slate grey. Melanin is the biological chemical that colors the skin, hair and eyes, causing this light eye color. As the child grows and is exposed to sunlight, the body produces more melanin in response. Increased melanin production in the body causes the infant’s eyes to change color during the first year.
  Adult individuals with light eye colors may experience gradual eye color change as they get older. Ten to15 percent of the Caucasian population experiences this gradual change. The color of the eye may get lighter or darker because of changes in melanin production due to advanced age.
• Medication – Some medications, including glaucoma treatments and medications for growing eyelashes, may cause the iris to change color. Usually these medications are in eye-drop form and cause the iris to permanently darken. The skin around the eye and eye lashes may also darken in color. Hazel eyes are most often affected by these medications.
• Medical Disorders – When the eye color of an adult changes from blue to brown or brown to green dramatically, it is called heterochromia. This type of change could result from a disease such as Fuch’s heterchromic iridocyclitie, Horner’s syndrome or certain types of glaucoma. It is important to see a doctor if this type of change occurs to be correctly diagnosed and treated to prevent vision damage.

Causes of Eye Color Change in the Elderly
By Michael Brent
For most people, eye color will remain consistent throughout a lifetime, since the color of one’s eyes matures in infancy and generally stays the same color. In a small percentage of people, however, various factors can cause eye color to change in old age, while ailments such as glaucoma can also alter the eyes’ appearance.

Causes of Eye Color Change in the Elderly Instructions:

• Changes in Eye Color – The color of our eyes is determined by the amount and color of pigment granules, called melanin. These granules vary in color from a neutral tone to very dark brown, with darker eyes caused by darker melanin or a greater degree of melanin, and vice-versa. The color of the iris is caused by pigment in the stroma (the connective tissue of the front layer of the iris), and this color can lighten if the amount of pigment granules in the stroma decreases, or if the granules produce lighter pigment. Unlike skin and hair, eyes don’t synthesize color pigment all the time, but retain the accumulated pigment in the stroma. If the pigment degrades over time, this can result in a lightening of eye color.
• Disease – One typical factor that can cause a person’s eyes to change color is disease. In fact, a change in eye color could be a symptom of an eye disease, so any noticeable color changes should be examined by a doctor. Some of the most common diseases that can lead to a change in eye color are Horner’s Syndrome, pigmentary glaucoma and Fuch’s heterochromic iridocyclitis, which generally occur most often in the elderly.
• Genetics – Genetics has much to do with whether or not your eyes will change color as you age, and 10 to and 15 percent of Caucasians will experience change in eye color (races with darker eyes generally experience little change as they get older). This occurs because the amount of melanin in the iris will decrease over time, causing the color of the iris to alter. This is the same principle that causes hair to change color as we age, and the rate and age at which is this occurs can vary due to genetic determination.
• Yellowing – Another change that can happen to eyes as we age is the appearance of yellowing, a fairly common occurrence among the elderly. This occurs because the chemical composition of the eye’s variable lens can change over the course of time as proteins are produced in different proportions than they used to be. These chemical changes can cause the lens to take on a yellow appearance, reducing the lens’ transparency and causing it to become somewhat opaque.