Fighting Blemishes

I have a secret to share. I still break out...badly. On my chin once a month and across my nose and cheeks when I'm super stressed.

In April, right before I went on a two-week vacation to Italy, I was so stressed that I broke out across my nose and cheeks. When I got back, I went to the dermatologist. Nothing he gave me worked. Finally in August (yes, four months of it!) I had a facial.

After she pointed a laser into my pores for an hour (it hurts!), she gave me some moisturizer to use at night.

The Jan Marini Bioglycolic Cream is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! It cleared up my skin within a week. And the second I think I'm going to break out, I put this on and the pimple never appears.

It's expensive and smelly, but so worth my vanity!

The Best Lipgloss On Earth

Rachel G., this is for you!

The best lipgloss on earth.












Yes, the Mentha Lip Shine from C.O. Bigelow! I love it because it's minty and fresh and, if you accidentally get too much out of the tube, you can rub it on your front teeth and be kissable ready!

Lip Plumpers

It sounds like many of you are on a quest for a lip plumper. Please comment on this blog posting about your favorite lip plumper (if you haven't already) and I'll post reviews of them all in one spot so you can decide which is best for you.

C.O. Bigelow

I am a C.O. Bigelow fan. My sister introduced them to me many years ago when she bought some lipgloss she didn't like (and yet we somehow have the same blood!) and gave it to me. I've been hooked since. I am a lipgloss junkie, after all.

But then I graduated from lipgloss to hand soaps and lotions and shower gels.

When it comes to beauty routines, I am ultimately lazy. I hate, hate, hate to put on lotion after the shower. Rather than give in and spend two minutes putting on lotion, I search high and low for a shower gel that moisturizes IN THE SHOWER.

In my search, I bought the Mentha Body Smoothing Body Buffer. I can't decide if I like it. My shower smells like a mint heaven every morning, but I don't know that a) it buffs anything or b) moisturizes.

Does anyone have experience with this product?

The Body Shop

Is anyone a fan of The Body Shop?

I'm in the Minneapolis airport and we stopped in there to waste a few minutes. There is nothing in that store worth a dime, in my opinion.

Do others have differing opinions?

Lip Plumper

Rachael asked me today if I have a favorite lip plumper. She said she tried the Benefit one (but couldn't remember the name), but that she was open to new ideas.

I've tried them all and am not typically a fan. I am a sucker for marketing tactics and I think this is one that does not work.

That being said, Sephora sent me a "beauty insider" gift and it was a lip plumper. It's the Bare Escentuals Buxom Lips.

Granted, I've only been using the sample for a few days, but I like it! It's minty and massages my lips when I put it on. Plus it has a nice pink tint that makes me look glosssed, but not overly made up. I have no idea if it's making me look like Angelina Jolie, but I like the feel of it when I put it on, and it doesn't taste half bad either!

Smashbox O-Gloss and O-Glow

My friend Erin and I visited two Sephora locations in Las Vegas a couple of months ago. You know, just in case one had something the other didn't. What we found is Smashbox O-Gloss and O-Glow.











The lipgloss is a Sephora "best of", but don't let that fool you!

Don't get me wrong. I was intrigued by the idea that the gloss and blush go on clear and adjust to your skin tone. Some of you even got to see me demonstrate it..."Watch! It's clear going on and turns pink after it's applied! Cool, huh?"

Turns out, the O-Gloss really dries out my lips. The O-Glow is just a gloppy mess that doesn't really adjust to your skin's chemistry.

I'm the first to admit marketing tactics work on me, but save yourselves. Don't buy it!