Beauty in the media is portrayed in terms of ideals; a specific hair-type, body-type and sense of style. Many of these ideals change with the times; from blonde to brunette or lithe to curvy. Some never seem to change, like youth and money. True beauty however is more than a hair color, a silhouette or in-season wardrobe. True beauty lays in the Golden Rule, in good physical and mental health and self-confidence.
    Let’s take an example. Leslie is a beautiful, successful, single art purveyor living in San Francisco. She is a luscious, womanly size 10 with intriguing green eyes and a gorgeous, thick head of chestnut hair. Shy and bookish, Leslie didn’t date at all in high school, and only a very little in college. Not because she isn’t attractive; even with her favored severe buns that hide her gorgeous hair, glasses that obscure her eyes and books that protect her from eye contact with strangers, Leslie has an allure. However, she is so self-conscious and uncomfortable in her own skin, that Leslie can never relax and be herself.
    Other than when with family and a few close friends, Leslie only feels settled when talking about her main passion; art. Never shy or self-conscious in the gallery, Leslie discusses an artist’s use of light, the pigments used and brush strokes, all while smiling and carrying on a charming conversation. She is funny, intelligent and most of all, comfortable in her own skin.
    “Just pretend you’re selling him a piece of art,” Leslie’s friends joke when she goes on a rare date and finds herself preemptively tongue-tied.
    After a particularly painful blind date, during which Leslie feels alternatively nauseous and faint and the conversation dwindles during the pre-salad glass of wine, Leslie wonders what is so wrong with her. Grabbing a spoon and the ice cream from the freezer and pulling sweats on over her nylons, Leslie pours over a glossy woman’s magazine and turns on Turner Classic Movies.
    Tiny waists, long legs and botoxed foreheads jump from every page, even Marilyn Monroe had an immaculate Hollywood sex appeal in Some Like it Hot. Times may change but, even after Betty Friedman and Simone Debouvier, women in the media are usually portrayed as a set of stereotypes grouped together to form a pleasing, if unrealistic, image.
    Leslie waits for the mental barrage that she frequently submits herself to; I’m too fat, my hair should be blonde, I should dress like that. She waits to feel angry at herself for not looking like a page from a beauty magazine, and Leslie does feel angry, but not at herself. Suddenly she feels angry at Photo shop and the professional stylists and makeup artists, she feels angry about the fashion “steals” advertising “designer” labels to soccer moms who want to be Eva Longoria.
    Leslie is tired of feeling like her hair should be different, like she should alter her basic body-shape and dress differently to matter. Leslie decides she needs to treat herself like she matters first, and then others will follow suit. The Golden Rule must go both ways; treat others as you wish to be treated, but also treat yourself how you wish to be treated.
    Leslie is tired of feeling angry and decides to transform her negativity to positivity. She turns off the TV and puts away the ice cream, she puts the magazine in the recycling and draws a lavender-scented bath. After a relaxing soak, Leslie goes to bed early, knowing getting enough rest is an important part of being healthy.

The next morning, Leslie wakes up early, pulls her running shoes from the dark corners of her closet, and jogs around Golden Gate Park. Her muscles ache in the shower, she is tired and sweaty, but Leslie feels better than she has in a long time.
    Over the next few months, Leslie makes big and small changes in her daily schedule. Some mornings she runs, but Leslie has also joined a gym, where she swims, takes aerobics or lifts weights a few days a week. Leslie gets more sleep, both getting up and going to bed earlier. She drinks more water, has become a vegetarian after finally reading Fast Food Nation, and drinks only one glass of wine a day.
    Leslie has weekly massages to help combat muscle fatigue, she has bi-monthly mani-pedis that make her hands and feet both look and feel terrific and she has a new haircut, falling in soft layers just below her shoulders, that shows off her hair’s natural low-lights and high-lights.
    Leslie has begun opening up; when strangers waiting in line at coffee shops make inane, friendly comments Leslie doesn’t mutter and look at her shoes; she smile and responds, joins in the daily gaiety of life. When businessmen in sleek suits open doors for her at the bank or in the gallery, Leslie makes eye contact and smiles as she thanks them; she is a woman comfortable in her skin.
    Here at the Beauty Shop Kauai we want to help every patron feel like Leslie. We promote physical health and metal well-being, as well as provide a little pick-me-up when needed most. Paint the town red with a sophisticated french-tip manicure, ace that interview in an amazingly flattering hair-style, and as a reward afterward relax with a beach-side massage.
    Beauty is not looking like a fashion model, dying your hair for this season’s color or using surgery to stop the clock. Beauty is about confidence, radiant and far-reaching confidence.

Let the friendly and experienced beauty team at the Beauty Shop Kauai help you feel your confident, radiant best!