We have mentioned E.L.F. (Eyes, Lips, Face) makeup before in both our Drugstore Essentials article and last year’s Stocking Stuffer Gift Guide. I have personally been a huge fan of E.L.F. makeup for years. The reasons are 1) you can’t beat the price and 2) for the price, you can have both quality and quantity. Indeed, E.L.F. offers premium quality cosmetics and, at these prices, you can afford to have fun and grab the latest colors in eyeshadows and lipsticks, experiment with new colors and shimmers and bronzers…without a trace of guilt.
If you are not familiar with E.L.F. makeup, you [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
When I attended MORE magazine’s Reinvention Convention this last June and heard Dr. Will Kirby speak about healthy skin (I wrote about this in an article, Ageless Skin De-Mystified), it had me wonder when I should start teaching my girls about skin care. And, are there any products out there, besides acne products and sunblock (did you notice how far we have come since the days of calling it suntan lotion?), that would help encourage tweens (between 8 and 12 years old) to start caring for their skin? I was, of course, looking for a [...]

Would you choose to put lead in your lipstick? Not a single one of us would, I’m sure.
My favorite consumer advocate, Annie Leonard (we mentioned her Story of Stuff video here) has created yet another engaging video to alert us to the untold problems of chemicals in our personal care products. Sure, we are now more educated about the nastiness of Parabens and Phthalates but ingredients such as these are but a few of the potentially harmful chemicals present in our lotions and potions. And although we could actively search out “natural” products, we are still trusting blindly on what [...]

It’s mid-July and it’s getting painfully obvious that, by now, I will not manage to get sun-kissed color on my depressingly white body through normal outdoor activities. I have not had the time – nor the desire – to sit in the sun the get that natural glow. I’m going to have to fake it. And by fake, I mean a “natural”, with natural sunless tanners.
As most of you, I have become acutely aware of the toxic chemicals abundantly present in our personal care and homecare products. I am making a progressive effort to move everything to all-natural products. That [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
I saw it on the fashion runways (well, I mean on the photographs of the runways) but now I am seeing it on the streets and, I must say that I really love this new trend. Metallic Nail Polish creates bling without having to wear it. From metallic silver, gold and brass, to metallic green, black and plum colors. It can give a dramatic look to an outfit, but can easily be worn for daytime wear also, especially with short nails. My treat once a month is to get a pedicure. I usually skip the [...]

Ever wanted to try that luscious emerald green eyeliner but didn’t feel like risking $18 in case it didn’t work out? Might you or someone you know be a sucker for sample makeup? If so, you’ll want to hear about Birchbox.com.
Birchbox is a subscription service that will send its monthly subscribers a lovely, hand-packaged box with four to five luxury beauty samples. Cost? $10 per month and it includes shipping. The samples include well-known brands like Laura Mercier, NARS, Stila and Phyto. They also include lesser-known, hard-to-find, niche and prestige brands. Beauty samples can include makeup, skincare, body and hair [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
I could certainly relate to Sara Buntrock as she talked about her tween daughter when I met her this last January at a gift show. Being a mother of a tween myself (any child between the age of 7 to 12 is considered one), I know that they start having very mature tastes at a very early age (thank you Hanna Montana/Miley Cyrus and iCarly/Miranda Cosgrove).
Make-up is definitely one area that young girls love to explore. Although I do not encourage my young daughters to wear makeup, I feel that a little lip gloss is [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
I recently went camping for five days  with my sister, her daughter and my two daughters. On the third day, it rained so heavily, with no sign of letting up, that we decided to head to town. We ended up in a Wal-Mart Superstore, in the pharmacy department. My niece, Alex, discovered these great Nail Color Pens by Sally Hansen. We grabbed a bunch of colors with some of the Nail Art Pens and headed back to the campground for an impromptu Mani-Pedi party.
The pens were so easy to use. My 4 and 6 year olds had no [...]

WE HAVE OUR WINNER! CONGRATULATIONS Tammi!
You have won the Juice Beauty Clear Skin Kit.
The winner was selected at random using the Random Integer Generator. This giveaway CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED but do subscribe via RSS or email to get updates on new giveaways as they get posted. Thank you all for playing!
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My son is a senior in high school. His school is all abuzz the upcoming senior prom in May. The other day, his girlfriend and I were talking about her hair and makeup for the prom. I told her about this great website that I learned about, [...]

I used to be the girl that would walk out of the house without any makeup and still feel quite pleased with myself. As I age though, there are a few things that need a little extra patching and thus there are now  quite a few products in my vanity that I canNOT live without.