Skip the Steps (A K8 Revelation)

Quite often, I find myself in a "Thanks, but no thanks" moment, typically related to a fashion or beauty suggestion.  It happens a lot when I'm thumbing through a fashion magazine and see what appears to be the Holy Grail of some new beauty routine that includes nine steps and 17 different products.  I initially read it with excitement and wonder, but by step 6 1/2 (and product A + B layering over C), I realize, "Thanks, but no thanks - I'm all good with my Clairsonic and trusty Clinique cleanser."  My quick dismissal is always satisfying because it's somehow defiant and victorious at the same time (and typically means I don't have to invest in something new, try a crazy process, or leave my house with an unforeseen side effect).

I just enjoyed this experience as I was flipping through my recent issue of InStyle and seeing all the new holiday hairstyle how-to's - who really has the time for the multiple steps involved in making your hair look perfectly "UNdone?"  (I suppose I have an automatic "Get out of Gel Free" card with my short do, but it's still really nice to be able to flip right past "A Great Blowout in Six Easy Steps" or "20 Minutes to the Perfect Conditioning Treatment."  Then again, the grass isn't always greener - a bad hair day for long hair is easily solved with a ponytail, while us cropped-cut gals are stuck, literally, layering on the product or positioning a hat with the precision of a surgeon to reveal some hair while also covering the scare hair).

So next time you have a "revelation" about some process, product, or trend you can skip (neon..really??  The 80's don't EVER need to come back, in any form or fashion - um, even the 80's Sharpies colors didn't sell!), revel in the moment knowing you just saved yourself time, money, and the avoidance of entering into any kind of "multiple step program."