Mom and me, circa 1979
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by CoverGirl.
Mother’s Day is this Sunday and I’m so excited. Not just because Mr. Spoiled Pretty and my son, Westley, are treating me to a decadent brunch. But because it’s an opportunity to celebrate my hero, Andrea Stamps.
I must admit that until two years ago, Mother’s Day was just another CONTINUE READING
At Christmastime, I agonized over what to get my son's daycare teachers. There are 12 of them - and even though he has his two main teachers, they all have interaction with him and take excellent care of him. So I needed to buy 12 gifts to show my appreciation, without breaking the bank. $10 each seemed doable, except CONTINUE READING
As a beauty expert, I’m embarrassed by how late I am to the BB Cream party. In the past year, so many friends and colleagues have asked me about BB Creams—what’s the buzz, which brands are the best, etc. —and they would look at me funny when I admitted to not having tried BB Creams yet. I mean, they CONTINUE READING
I’m very fickle about my fingernails. Before I paint my nails or get them professionally did, I spend a inordinate amount of time pondering my polish options. I consider the season, recent trends, my wardrobe that week and anywhere special I might go. But despite all of this planning, I’m usually over my polish choice before it even dries.
Not CONTINUE READING
After beauty products, handbags are my secondary addiction. But when it comes to arm candy, I have discriminating taste. For me, the perfect handbag seamlessly marries fashion with function, is handcrafted from high-quality materials, has really unique hardware and is classic but edgy - all at the same time. I don't like to carry the of-the-moment "it" bag. I CONTINUE READING
Earlier this month, Kate Spade (aka creator of cuteness and the reason why I can't seem to keep money in my wallet), launched a brand new line called Kate Spade Saturday.
Kate Spade Saturday is a new global lifestyle brand created to channel the spirit of Saturday seven days a week. This younger, more accessible sister to kate spade new CONTINUE READING
I just found out about this cool new product via emakemeup.com, a great online community for beauty lovers. Anyhoo…
Inspired by Mohammad Ali’s famous quote “I float like a butterfly sting like a bee,” these lipsticks lie down as sheer as a butterfly wing and shimmer with a hint of turquoise when the light hits them. Supposedly, this blue flash is very flattering and helps your teeth appear whiter.
Butterfly Ball Shimmer Treatment Lipstick ($20) is available in five shades: Float, Fly, Trance, Moment and Goodbye.
The cold weather hit Philly earlier than I had expected. So this weekend, I switched out the contents of my makeup bag (I don’t even want to say how many products I had crammed in there…I’m embarrassed) and replaced them with the following cold weather beauty essentials.
Last week, it was cold and wet in my neck of the woods. It’s not even November yet, and my hands are crack-a-lackin’. So I retired my summer hand lotion, and pulled out the heavy artillery…Aveda’s Hand Relief. If this isn’t the best hand lotion on the market, I don’t know what is. It hydrates and soothes even severely dry hands – without leaving them greasy or sticky. And the citrusy scent is a nice pick-me-up. If you’ve never tried Hand Relief, now is the best time to buy. The Pink Ribbon special value tube has 7% more product than the regular size, and Aveda will donate $4 from each purchase to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation.
Clear Nail Polish is another cold weather essential I highly suggeststashing in your makeup bag. Not only does it protect your polish against the elements and extend the life of your mani, it’s also great for stopping stocking runs and rips in their tracks.
Remember how I told you that I carried a mini tube of Donna Karan Cashmere Mist Deodorant in my purse this past summer? Well, it’s still there. And that’s where it’s gonna stay this season. Yes, I realize that the mercury is falling – but layered clothing combined with co-workers who like to jack up the thermostat can have you smelling quite ripe, if you’re not prepared. I am…are you?
Chapped lips are the bane of my existence. I hate how they look, how they feel, and how they’re the prelude to a bleeding, peeling, jacked up mess of a mouth. Preventing chapped lips doesn’t have to cost a fortune, as is evidenced by one of my new cold weather beauty finds – Carmex Moisture Plus. It moisturizes with Vitamin E, Aloe, and Shea butter and protects your pucker with SPF 15. I love the vanilla menthol scent and the fact that, despite the sun protection, I don’t feel like I’m eating sunscreen if I lick my lips. The slant tip applicator also ups the fab factor.
Stila Convertible Color is a makeup bag must have year-round, but I always fall a little deeper in love when it gets colder and the summer glow fades from my face. This versatile bestseller brightens cheeks and lips with creamy, translucent color. If your skin tends to dry out during the colder months, you’ll love the formula – and how it gives your complexion a lit from within, realistic glow. I use Poppy to give my cheeks a pop of color – for a straight from the slopes, snow bunny look.
This post was sponsored by Carmex Moisture Plus Ultra Hydrating Lip Balm. Thanks to them, I’m giving away a $25 Visa gift card and a one year supply of Carmex Moisture Plus samples! To enter this giveaway, please leave a comment by Wednesday, October 28th at midnight – and tell me one of your favorite cold weather beauty products.
For more chances to win, visit DivineCaroline.com. There, women are sharing their five favorite beauty products and entering to win a $250 gift card. Check it out!
For the past six months, I was anxiously counting down the days until September 24th. Not because it was my birthday, but because I had insider information that MAC was re-releasing its Volcanic Ash Exfoliator as part of the Style Black Collection. If you’re a Spoiled Pretty regular, you’ve probably heard me mention it once or twice…or, possibly, a million times. That’s how much I adore this scrub.
I’ve tested an excessive amount of exfoliants, so it takes a serious scrub to even get my attention…and the Volcanic Ash Exfoliator is, hands down, the best EVER. Yes, I said ever – as in since primordial soup ’til today.
Originally released as part of MAC’s Future Earth collection last summer, it became a cult classic. Those who missed out were singing the shoulda woulda coulda’s. And those who got a taste were wishing they could jump in a DeLorean, rev up the Flux Capacitor and go back to June 2008 and snag a lifetime supply. I fell into the second category, rationing my Volcanic Ash Exfoliator like it was a bag of beans on a season of Survivor.
Now that MAC has answered my prayers (and even packaged it in a convenient tube), I’ve stocked up and I suggest you do the same. It’s already sold out on maccosmetics.com, so I suggest you do your best Sherlock Holmes impression and sleuth that sh*t out (hint: Macys.com and Nordstrom.com still have it in stock).
And don’t just buy one lonely tube. Ah, naw. by the time you buy one, try it, and realize you can’t live without it, exfoliating fools will have wiped out the supply. So just trust me on this one, act like you’re at Costco, and buy in bulk.
The Style Black collection also includes these other gems:
Volcanic Ash Thermal Mask, $19.50 Formulated with volcanic ash and natural oils, this ash-black facial mask simultaneously deep-cleanses and treats the skin. When water is added, the mask heats up and the oils instantly lubricate the skin, leaving it feeling soft and clean. Helps keep skin moist, clean, soft and evenly textured.
Mineralize Eye Shadow, $19.50 Cinderfella: Mineralize black with silver pearl (frost) Gilt By Association: Mineralize black with gold bronze pearl (frost) Blue Flame: Mineralize black with blue pearl (frost) Young Punk: Mineralize black with pinkish purple pearl (frost)
Mattene Lipstick, $14.50 Night Violet: Deep purple grape Midnight Media: Dense matte black
Glimmerglass Lip Gloss, $18 Bling Black: Sheer black with gold pearl (as seen at NYFW Fall 2009) Blackfire: Sheer black with pinkish purple pearl Blackware: Creamy true black
Nail Lacquer, $12 Seriously Hip: Black with gold particle pearl Baby Goth Girl: Black with pinkish purple pearl Nocturnelle: Black as night black
For the Alice + Olivia Spring 2010 presentation, MAC created two very different makeup looks. The first was a black super smoky eye, worn by The Plastiscines, who performed at the show.
The models, on the other hand, sported two different shades of pink shadow (Rosy Outlook and Perky) along with a white shade (Just So). Irridescent powder was applied to the cheekbones and the inner corner of the eye. Cream blush in So Sweet was blended onto the cheek, and the above pink shadows were blended together and layered on top. The brow shape was kept natural and kept in place with brow gel.
Angel Lipstick (Kim Kardashian‘s fave) was applied to lips, with Lipglass in Underage and English Accent on top. Silver dust was also mixed with moisturizer and applied to the entire body, for a ethereal glow.
Key Makeup Artist Nadine Luke emphasized that the look flatters a wide range of complexions, as evidenced by my backstage photos.
“The hair for Alice + Olivia is a crossroads of edgy and girly,” said Frédéric Fekkai. “We created a look for funky, confident women.”
Andre Rodman, Lead Stylist for Fekkai added a fun, punky edginess to the s weet, girly looks at the Alice + Olivia show. To get the look Andre twirled crimped hair around a double barreled iron in a figure eight pattern. He then pulled the front piece to the side, smoothed it with Fekkai Coiff Magnifique Ultra-Light Finishing Crème and secured it neatly with jeweled pins. Finally, Andre set the style using Full Blown Volume Lifting Hairspray.
Alice + Olivia for Payless shoes
How darling are these labels?
These boots were made for Payless…and that’s just where they’ll be. One of these days these boots are gonna come on home with me.
Impossibly chic booties – for cheap (also for Payless)!
Katty Besnard, lead singer of the Plastiscines (note the sooty black eyes)
Get gorgeous on the go by carrying all your essentials in this surprisingly little case that includes the season’s perfect hues for lips, cheeks and eyes. The collection is filled with coordinating urban neutral tones with a twist, for a flirty, feminine look. Mix and match shades to your heart’s content and create a personalized look that is perfectly flattering on a range of skin tones.
The kit ($20) contains 2 Lip Color Shades, 2 Lip Gloss Shades, 2 Eye Shadow Shades and 1 Cheek Shade.
