Barbizon Blog

When caring for your face always use gentle motions smoothing upward and outward. Drink plenty of water to rid your skin of toxins and know your skin type:

Normal: Has no shine and clear tone. Soft and supple, but not greasy.
Oily: Very shiny with visibly enlarged pores.
Dry: No shine. Has flaky or dry patches. Thin skin tone.
Combination: Oily in the T-zone area. Normal to dry in other areas.
Sensitive: Has acne flare-ups when using cosmetic products.

Select your cosmetic products according to what is recommended for your skin type. Most products are labeling with information on the skin type for which they are suited. Try Barbizon Cosmetics as we offer a variety of skin care and cosmetics.

Self confidence, or feeling good about who you are, creates positive energy. People are attracted to positive energy! Don’t you like to be around happy people? Happy / confident people help others to feel good about themselves. Knowing who you are gives you substance and allows you to feel like somebody versus feeling empty or jealous on the inside. Everyone wants to know the “somebody” that’s in the room. People will want to know who you are when you feel good about yourself. Confident people know themselves, their strengths and weaknesses, and accept who they are. Confidence communicates knowledge and ability. The confident person “get the job” because they present themselves in a professional manner and appear to be a quick learner. If you are a Barbizon graduate, you are definitely one of those happy / confident people. If not, contact us for more information on how we can help.

Use the following as a guide to when fashions are available according to the different seasons:

EARLY SPRING: transitional garments, usually in stores by December 15.
SPRING / SUMMER: swimwear, beachwear, shorts, etc.; usually in stores by late February.
FALL / WINTER: begins around Memorial Day, heavy presentation begins in stores early July.
HOLIDAY: in stores by early November.
CRUISE: in stores by early December.

Be sure to Contact Us to get more information on “dressing for success.”

There’s nothing worse, in business or not, than someone who greets you with a bad handshake. What do we mean by bad? Some people may shake your hand with a viselike grip. Others have a cold, clammy, wimpy grasp, like shaking hands with a plate of spaghetti. Instant bad impression — and an instant giveaway that you’re either insecure or overcompensating. Here are four Barbizon handshake how-to:

1. Keep your posture straight, make and maintain eye contact.

2. Step in toward the person when you shake hands; your grasp should be relaxed but firm.

3. Give a confident, sincere shake (about five seconds max), and, especially when in a stressful situation, make sure your palms aren’t sweaty before offering your hand.

4. To be ultra-feminine, you can turn your palm down and place only your fingers in his hand. Keep your chin down and your eyes up.

Click here to learn more about what Barbizon has to offer in their course curriculum.

Manners Matter:  Manners you use around friends need to be a little more polished around others — like adults, job interviewers, teachers and strangers.  For example:

1.  Your friends could probably care less if you eat your salad greens with your fingers.  But if you’re out to dinner with your parent’s friends or your friend’s parents, you’ll look immature and out of place doing so.

2.  The way you sit in the food court may work fine on a Saturday afternoon, but when you are being interviewed for an after-school job, slouching is out.  Sitting up straight and attentively sends the message that you are interested in the job.

3.  You might tell a friend that you’re “pissed off” when she goes to the movies and doesn’t invite you, but using those words with your teacher will not make a persuasive argument for why that “C” should have been an “A”.

4.  You can nickname a friend “Skittles” because he raps worse than Eminem,but you shouldn’t do that to your grandma or the person who hired you for a job.

Sound off:  Can you think of a few more examples of casual vs. formal manners?  Be sure to Contact Us to find out more.

Do you remember being read the fairy tale Chicken Little when you were young?  In the story, the chicken is obsessed about the sky falling down and didn’t notice Foxy Woxy prepping for a nice chicken salad. There’s a little bit of Chicken Little in everyone.  Instead of focusing on what’s in front of us, we humans devote too much time to daydreams and thinking about everything but reality.  In many cases, it’s not sweet dreams but worrying or “awfulizing” that eats up our time.

Do you have the “What ifs?”  What if I fail the math test?  What if I never find a boyfriend?  What percentage of the day do you spending imagining worse case scenarios?  Optimism, in reasonable doses, is far more constructive than pessimism and it will inspire you.  But be careful.  Too much optimism and believing “nothing bad will happen” can give you a false sense of security.  Talking to a parent, older sibling, or teacher as well as going to Barbizon can help you develop a more positive way of thinking.

You must sell to the prospective employers the fact that you know how to conduct yourself.  In other words, you must convince him or her that you will get the job done in the manner of a professional who is aware of the importance of:

BEING PREPARED:  This means knowing your skills, consistently striving to perfect them further and knowing the needs of the job.

BEING FLEXIBLE:  This means keeping an open mind toward all learning experiences on job interviews, on the job, and being willing to accept constructive criticism.

BEING RELIABLE:  This means keeping appointments, being on time and following through on directions.

BEING CONFIDENT: This means believing in yourself, your abilities, and what you are doing.  You have to believe in yourself before other people will believe in you.

Here are Barbizon’s 12 Keys to Personality Plus Development. Try to accomplish at least one of these each week:

1.  Be wise about human relations.

2.  Don’t put off until tomorrow.

3.  Develop hobbies.

4.  Go places and do things.

5.  Become an avid reader.

6.  Broaden your circle of friends.

7.  Learn to compliment people.

8.  Learn to remember names.

9.  Maintain a sense of humor.

10.  Learn to show enthusiasm.

11.  Speak up.  Assertiveness can be fun.

12.  Learn to use gestures.

Like what you see here?  Click here to learn more.

Here are some hair dos and don’ts from the Barbizon experts:

1.  Avoid tight styles like ponytails.  They will cause breakage.

2.  Never use a rubber band.  Always use cloth-covered bands.

3.  Avoid over exposure to the sun.  If you can’t avoid it, use a leave-in conditioner and spray it through the hair periodically.  Leave-in conditioners tend to have UV protectors in them.

4.  Do not use a brush on wet hair.  The hair is at its weakest point when wet and it will severely damage it.

5.  Limit your use of flat irons, curling irons, and blow dryers.

6.  Fight frizz with a silicone based serum.  They are non-greasy and usually contain added vitamins.

Want more Barbizon Tips?  Click here for the 411.

When models are on the runway, not all of the emphasis is on what her legs and feet are doing. Facial expression also plays a major role. Often times the choreographer will tell the girls what kinds of expressions he wants on their faces. Normally, this would help establish and be in sync with the mood of the clothes. There are six facial expressions for the runway.

1. NATURAL: This is a peaceful content look.
2. SOMEPLACE ELSE: The model looks a though she’s a million miles away.
3. HAPPY: This is a friendly face, but not overly smiley.
4. BLANK: The model is emotionless and expressionless.
5. DYNAMIC: This is a flirty expression.
6. JUNIOR: A very happy face, big smiles.

There’s so much more to learn in our Barbizon Modeling Classes.