
There are some beauty issues only women understand. From worrying about wrinkles to experimental treatments for flawless skin, women go through A LOT when it comes to skincare. The struggle is, indeed, real. Over the last few weeks, we’ve received many requests (especially from expectant mothers) to tackle one of the most universal issues that affect our beauty routines — stretch marks. You know it’s a problem when even Chrissy Teigen has admitted to worrying about them. But we’re here to tell you that this is one less issue you should agonize over. Thanks to some amazing products with nourishing extracts, stretch marks don’t have to be part of your reality. Want to tackle them now? Scroll down for the best creams and oils to help keep those unwanted streaks at bay.
1. Art Naturals Stretch Mark & Scar Cream ($18): Infused with aloe vera and vitamins E and B5, this rich cream also employs coco and shea butters to heal stretched skin. The organic formula means no harsh chemicals, so it’s totally safe to use during or post pregnancy, when many women are worried about stretching. Not to mention, both the green tea extract and grapeseed oil will strengthen and firm skin to stop streaks from forming.
2. Clarins Stretch Mark Minimizer ($54): This cream boasts some seriously unique and rare ingredients for smoother-looking skin. Extracts of crowberry, a natural anti-inflammatory berry from cold-weather regions, and centella, a healing plant that’s known to soothe and comfort, work together to make skin stay supple and bounce back when stretch marks occur.
3. CeraVe Intensive Stretch Marks Cream ($13): Seeing streaks along your stomach or thighs? Try this super-serious remedy packed with ingredients that minimize the lines. Ceramides help maintain and restore the skin’s natural protective barrier and work hand in hand with hyaluronic acid and moisturizing argan oil for soft skin. The genius technology means no worrying about constantly reapplying, since it continuously moisturizes for a full 24 hours.
4. SheaMoisture Mommy Stretch Mark Body Butter ($13): Stretch marks get worse when your skin is dry, so for best prevention, a rich moisturizer is a must. This one has organic raw shea butter, which keeps skin elastic while it stretches, and passiflora extract, a super emollient packed with vitamin C that forms a protective layer on skin, locking in the moisture.
5. Mustela Stretch Marks Prevention Oil ($31): Sometimes you feel like a cream, sometimes an oil. When you’re jonesing for the latter, this non-greasy, fast-absorbing pick does the trick. The soothing blend infuses pomegranate, avocado, musk rose and baobab to nourish and improve elasticity. This formula also incorporates lupeol, an ingredient from lupine seeds, to help skin stay firm during stretching.
6. Mumsie Maternal Skin Care Stretch Mark Relief Cream ($15): Stretch marks are the result of tiny tears in the dermis, AKA the deep layers of skin, and those lines on the surface are the skin’s reaction to them. This shea butter and avocado oil-based cream has darutoside extract, a botanical that’s proven to promote collagen, rebuild those torn layers and improve skin’s elasticity, so that scars on the surface are barely noticeable.
7. The Honest Company Organic Belly Balm ($15): One of the most nagging side effects of stretch marks is the constant itch due to irritated skin. This vegetarian formula has a blend of five oils that nourish dry skin, and calendula, which soothes away that annoying, itchy feeling.
8. Spectrum Organic Coconut Oil ($7): This solution is as easy as opening your pantry. Thanks to its saturated fats (which are super moisturizing) and healing properties, coconut oil can be a major player in your stretch-mark care.
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Welcome to Selfmade Finance School, our new money series with Block Advisors to help small business owners with their tax, bookkeeping, and payroll needs year-round. This week, we explore the tax implications of bringing family members into your business.
The question for today is this: Does hiring your family members make sense for your business? Let me be clear. This is not a piece about whether hiring your family members makes sense for your relationships with those family members. As someone who is part of a family business, I could fill up a lot more than 600 words on my opinions about that. For today's purposes, we focus on whether it makes sense from an overall "good business and tax implication" perspective. As it turns out, there is a decent amount of tax nuance when it comes to employing your family. Let's break it down based on relationship to the employee:
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Spouses Who Are In Business Together
Personally, if I had to be in business with my husband, it would not go well. However, many couples build viable, strong businesses together and I say, good for them! Depending on how you have your business entity structured, it will make a big difference on the tax treatment of you and your spouse working as partners. Because a business jointly owned and operated by a married couple is generally treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes, the spouses must comply with filing and record keeping requirements imposed on partnerships and their partners. The election to file two Schedule C (Form 1040) forms, (one for each spouse) permits certain married co-owners to avoid filing partnership returns, provided that each spouse separately reports a share of all the businesses' items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit. Under the election, both spouses will be subject to self-employment tax and on net earnings from self-employment and receive credit for Social Security earnings.
One Spouse Employs Another
If you have a dynamic where your spouse is an employee of your business, then your spouse's wages are subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare taxes. If you are self-employed (not a corporation or a partnership), your spouse's pay does not have to be included in your federal unemployment tax account (FUTA) contributions and payments. However, if your business is a corporation or a partnership you must include that spouse's pay in your unemployment tax contribution calculation.
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You Employ Your Child
First, let's be clear. I work in my family business, but I am an adult, so I am treated just like a normal employee. However, if you, for example, run a family restaurant and want to hire your children under 18 to work for you, there are some tax benefits. But first, you should check with your state for rules on how many hours minors can work (in non-agricultural jobs) and reference the Fair Labor Standards Act for information on limitations on the kinds of work children can perform.
"This is an often overlooked or under-utilized strategy. Paying your children for true services they provide in your business can be a powerful tax-saving tool," says Cathi Reed, Block Advisors Regional Director. "If you are a sole-proprietorship or single member LLC, and the child is less than 18 years of age, the business is not required to withhold FICA or payroll taxes. The child can use his or her standard deduction against income you pay."
You Hire Your Parent
Oh dear. If you are brave enough to do this, know that you will need to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your parent's wages and make the appropriate withholdings, but you don't have to pay unemployment taxes. Now all you have to do is convince your parent that you are the boss. Have fun with that!
Is Hiring Family Members Worth It For The Tax Benefits?
"There are some positive tax advantages to hiring family members. It's important to treat a family member like any other employee. Hiring your children can result in substantial savings for businesses. Make sure your child has real, age-appropriate work to do and a reasonable pay rate, comparable to other employees. Consult with a Block Advisors small business certified tax pro to ensure that you are complying with all requirements," advises Reed. "Block Advisors, a team within H&R Block, is dedicated to meeting the tax, bookkeeping and payroll needs of small business owners year-round. To start working with the tax experts at Block Advisors, visit blockadvisors.com."
In my opinion, you should not hire a family member solely because of the tax benefits. You should always hire based on whether that person is right for the job and keep in mind how this hire could materially impact your relationship with that person and others in your family. Finally, as I mentioned, make sure you have a tax professional on your team when making these determinations. As you can see, things can get a little tricky!
*All details were sourced from IRS.gov and blockadvisors.com
The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect those held by Kestra Investment Services, LLC or Kestra Advisory Services, LLC. This is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations for any individual. It is suggested that you consult your financial professional, attorney, or tax advisor with regards to your individual situation. Comments concerning the past performance are not intended to be forward looking and should not be viewed as an indication of future results. Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. O'Keeffe Financial Partners and any other entity listed herein is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS Investor Disclosures: https://bit.ly/KF-Disclosures