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When Susan invited me to share my favorite finds on BlogHer's new Beauty Hacks, I immediately got out my Sharpie and the stack of Sephora, Bliss and Benefit catalogs that I hoard. With a glass of wine in one hand I flipped through the dog-eared pages, pausing every few seconds to circle must-try products.
After selecting oh, say, a hundred products that were on my short list for must-tries, I sighed, and kicked my feet up onto the couch. Glancing down, I noticed that once again, my poor, poor legs were swollen, and in particular, my ankles and the tops of my feet were ballooning.
That is JUST NOT RIGHT. Since the birth of my third kid, my feet grew almost two sizes. This means that not only do none of my old cute shoes fit, but my new shoes have to be wide width and accomodating of my swelling. Big shout out to the folks at
Zappos and ShoeTrader.com for stocking a ton of cute styles for wide
widths. Incidentally, my ankles and feet swell up at inopportune, but predictable times.
Temperature over 80 degrees? Swelling.
Airplane travel? Hello, cankles.
Sitting for more than a few hours? These little piggies went wee wee wee and swelled up to the size of my thighs.
Clearly, something has to be done. Benefit's Jiggle Gel needed to be done. I'm a big fan of what I like to call "action cosmetics." Anything that heats up, cools down, shrinks, tingles, or does the samba on your scalp, I'm all for it. I like to KNOW there's something doing something. I like a little bang for my buck, if you will.
So, the package says "the body gel that's fab on flab" and "with invisi-girdle technology" which, um, whatever. Even better:
Only you can judge your own jiggle. This potent gel feels like an invisible girdle. Apply once a day to legs, ankles and arms if they're feeling heavy or puffy... they won't for long. With each application of this stimulating lightweight gel, legs become more energized and resilient. Where did that jiggle go?
Well, then! I mean, I bought it to de-puff my ankles, but this sounds like it might actually replace exercise. Or serve as a full-body cast.
At $26, Jiggle Gel didn't break the bank, and it comes in a generously sized 200 ml/6.7 fl oz tube decorated with retro women. I'm also a sucker for retro-looking packaging. Perhaps I'm merely a sucker. Discuss.
After 3 hours at my computer, when my house was at 90 degrees and my ankles were doing their best dirigible impression, I slathered on a thin layer of Jiggle Gel. It's got a nice, citrus scent, although it does smell sort of astringenty too. It went on easily, with a nice, cooling sensation. (Action cosmetics, baby! Cheap thrills!)
After 10 minutes, my ankles resembled ankles. And my poor, swollen tops of my feet? They were greatly improved. Normally, I can leave a fingerprint indentation in my foot at the worst of times, and I was startled to see how effective Jiggle Gel was.
The next morning, I applied some Jiggle Gel first thing in the morning. No grotesque swelling occured, despite being hugely busy at my desk. Huh.
I don't know how it works, but I'm guessing some sort of alcohol-type concoction because of the cooling and the astringenty smell. Who cares, though, because it doesn't dry out my lizardy skin, and it isn't sticky - and it made my feet not swollen.
I tried it out on my arms, to no hugely noticable results. I took one look at my midsection and decided that "invisi-girdle technology" has a way to go yet before it can handle The Big Apple. But for my painfully swollen ankles and feet? I give Benefit's Jiggle Gel ten toes up.
I'd love to hear what other tricks have been successful in depuffing swollen ankles - help a girl out? Is there another product I should try?
Benefit's Jiggle Gel is $26, and is available through their website.
