Witch Hazel Stinky But Delivers Naturally Smooth Skin

If you can get past the stinky smell, nature's ancient witch hazel, makes a very nice astringent or toner for the skin.

What exactly is witch hazel? Or its
scientific names: Hamamelis viginiana ?

We were curious about that, too, so we dug a little and found out that witch hazel is a plant. And a very useful one, according to http://www.drugs.com/:

Witch hazel is a deciduous bush or small tree that is found throughout most of North America. It has broad, toothed oval leaves, and golden yellow flowers. Brown fruit capsules appear after the flowers. The dried leaves, bark, and twigs are used medicinally.

Witch hazel water is the most commonly found commercial preparation, usually kept in most homes as a topical cooling agent or astringent.

Most people use witch hazel after facial cleansing. All you need to do is rub a cotton ball of witch hazel over your face, and enjoy a cool breeze. It is soothing and kind to sensitive skin. It relieves redness and swelling. And something in it, delivers back smooth, clear skin.

Many acne sufferers have tried witch hazel after their complexions refused to respond to expensive prescription acne drugs and over-the-counter blemish-free products. And the results have been excellent.

Dickinson's has been selling witch hazel since 1866. And the company boasts that their product offers "exceptional cleansing, soothing, and healing properties" as an herbal extract.

And the stuff is economical. For under $5, you can get a 16 oz. bottle. Just hold your nose. The smell isn't pretty.

Yes, You Can Wear Violet And Plum Lipsticks. Really.

Visions of plum, violet, lilac, purple, and amethyst, are dancing in the heads of designers and makeup artists for fall 2009.

These bold and sometimes subtle shades have been seen on the runways, on the streets, and on young celebrities like Drew Barrymore, and across to the UK on the lips of Peaches Geldof. Mac, Smashbox, and Dior have all stocked their shelves with violet hues.

Lately, it's all about the lips. Violet and plum are very popular at the moment. And yes, you can wear these different shades of lipstick. You just have to experiment and find the color that flatters your skin tone.

And just one, little purple reminder: Violet and Plum lipsticks, unfortunately, can make your teeth look yellow. Yes, it's true, especially with certain lilac shades. So choose your purple lipcolor carefully. Avoid purples with brown in them. Choose purple lipsticks with blue undertones, and then your teeth will pop with whiteness.

As far as makeup goes, choose the softer route. In other words, pair your nice violet lips with black mascara and some rose blush.

Meantime, here are a few purple shades to try this Fall 2009
:

1. Dior Diorific Lipstick No. 018, Violet Twist, $28, http://www.dior.com/.

2. Maybelline New York Color Sensational Lipstick , Yummy Plummy $7.50, http://www.cvs.com/.

3. Estee Lauder Signature Lipstick, Plum Amethyst, $20, http://www.esteelauder.com/.

Maybelline Super-Sizes Mascara With New Great Lash BIG

You can have your $25- $50 tubes of expensive black mascara.

Yes, we have tried several, but we still come back to the old classic and favorite of many professional makeup artists:

Maybelline's Great Lash.

It's been noted that one tube of Maybelline's Great Lash Mascara is sold every 1.6 seconds in the United States.

Why? Because the product is that good. You can build beautiful, dark, thick lashes at the very affordable price of barely $5!

And now, Maybelline's is introducing: Great Lash Big.

So what's so super about the newest Great Lash Mascara? It still contains the same superior lash-lengthening ingredients. The newness is in the applicator. It's a big, wide brush. We're not kidding. Be careful how you wield this applicator.

According to the folks at Maybelline's, Great Lash Big, accomplishes these beauty steps:

The Great Big Brush provides a bigger, bolder lash effect
Great buildable formula still conditions as it thickens with even greater intensity
No clumps or globs

Great Lash Big is available at your local drugstore for $6. We think it's worth the price.

Wrap Yourself Up In Scarves And Pashmina For Fall 2009 Beauty

We admit. We often look to glamorous celebrities to give us a heads up on fashion trends and style.

Today, we're wrapping ourselves in colorful scarves and pashminas.

And many of us really enjoy when an attractive celeb is working the casual look, and not the red carpet.

Why?

Because that is when we get to observe celebrity style that is not over the top. We see glam women like Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Alba, Rachel Bilson, Kim Kardashian, and others wearing clothes we often appear in.....a white tee shirt, jeans, camisole, cardigan, etc.

For Fall 2009 beauty, why not wrap yourself up in an easy, yet stylish scarf or pashmina wrap?

A scarf or wrap is an instant wardrobe boost. And these simple, beautiful accessories never go out of style.

The pashmina wrap, a baby soft cashmere fabric, is a favorite of celebrities, and comes in a rainbow of bright, eye-popping shades. Look at the hot pink pashmina in the photo. We found this one for Only $8.99!! At Amazon.com. Scarf_tradinginc Storefront

You can find pretty scarves and wraps in stores everywhere and online, too. Shopping sites like http://www.oldnavy.com/ and http://www.forever21.com/ sell beauties to wrap up in for Fall 2009 at low prices.

Steal Their Celebrity Bling For Less At Emitations.com

We all love the celebrity bling. And yes, we like to imitate their style. We're talking about the fabulous and famous women like Jennifer Lopez, Angelina Jolie, Katherine Heigl, Jennifer Aniston, and Karina Smirnoff, just to name a few.

When it comes to red carpet events, we always notice the gown, the hair, the makeup, and yes, the beautiful bling! Who doesn't love sparkling jewelry and gems?

And there are times we all wish we could just borrow that stunning pair of earrings for an important event. Or show our jeweler the engagement ring of a certain celebrity, so that it could be custom-made?

Well, now we all can. Check out this website: http://www.emitations.com/. You can 'steal their style' for just a few dollars. Imitation celebrity jewelry. Let's take a look at sexy Jennifer Lopez at her recent 40th birthday party. J.Lo wowed the crowd with a striking white Grecian style gown, along with a pair of drop-dead glam set of chandeliers and bold cuff bracelet.

Emitations.com has reproduced the gorgeous bling for a lot less, with gold tone, gold plated, and 14k gold jewelry accented by beautiful CZs and rhinestones.

Your cost: $665 on sale for the Gold, CZ Corset Bracelet
$34.95 for the gold tone Chandelier Earrings


And how about Dancing with the Stars' Karina Smirnoff? The petite and lovely Karina is proud to show off her engagement rock. And why not? Her handsome fiance, Maksim Chmerkovskiy, sure has good taste in rings.

And now you can own a pretty celebrity knock-off. Steal Karina's style with a princess cut, 3 stone faux diamond engagement ring for $65.

As Emitations.com likes to call their jewelry: "Affordable elegance."

And there are lots of celebrities to look at and 'steal their style.' Think about it, who has $20,000 to spend on a diamond cocktail ring, when you can buy an elegant fake for just $75?!

We love celebrity bling, and are happy we can copy it for much, much less.

Find your fav celebrity, right here: http://tiny.cc/bgzVR

Look Polished For Fall With The Retro Moon Manicure

Burlesque beauty Dita Von Teese has been ahead of the trend on this one, for quite a while now. Check out her sexy nails. She is queen of the moon manicure. The retro moon mani is big this fall 2009.

Think of it as a reverse French manicure. It's basically a two-tone paint job. Dita Von Teese is sporting scarlet nails and leaving a small white crescent at the nail bed. Very dramatic and clean. And this trend was actually quite popular back in the 1920s when glamorous movie stars began wearing this interesting manicure.

The moon manicure has been featured on some of the fall runways, and the Dior show really catapulted the look onto the mainstream fashion pulse.

The moon manicure can be quite bold in black and white, as pictured here, courtesy of Instyle.com. And their directions follow on how to create your own moon mani.

STEP 1 Apply one coat of opaque white (Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Nail color in Whirlwind White) over the entire nail and wait for the polish to dry completely.

STEP 2 Using a semicircular French-manicure stencil sticker (Orly French Manicure Tip Guides), block off the bottom third of your nail.

STEP 3 Paint two coats of black ( Essie nail polish in Licorice) from the stencil to the tip of the nail. Once it dries, peel off the sticker and finish with a shine-enhancing top coat over the entire nail.


And here's yet another example of the retro moon manicure. Nails are painted dark red, and the bottom crescent is left naked and a clear top coat is later applied to the whole nail.

We happen to think this is a very sophisticated, lovely look for nails for fall 2009.

Women Here Begging For Pond's Age Miracle Cream Big In The Philippines

Remember Pond's cold cream?

Well, we've heard lots and lots of good beauty gossip about Pond's these days. And this ain't your grandmother's little jar of Pond's.

Women here in the US have been begging parent company, Unilever, to sell to us, what the lovely ladies of the Philippines already know. And that is, there's something special in Pond's Age Miracle Daily Resurfacing Cream.

Deirdre Gonzales, a business entreprenuer from Cebu City Philippines, now based in Florida, wrote an article about the Pond's day cream, which has become one of the most popular skin care treatments in the Philippines:

".......considered today as one of the most popular beauty products in the Philippines as well as in other countries. The brand is the ponds age miracle cream. The ponds age miracle cream uses some of the most technologically advanced formulations that specifically target the 7 signs of skin aging, which are fine lines and wrinkles which are usually seen on the eyes and on the forehead, rough skin texture, uneven skin tone which is usually the result of sun or UV rays, skin dullness, visible pores, blotches or age spots, and dryness of the skin. Through targeting these signs, the ponds age miracle cream is known to stop the aging process."

The Pond's Age Miracle Cream was also featured on the Tyra Banks talk show last February, where it was labeled 'Asia's cult dream,' and, "it's a # 1 seller, the most awarded and it's beaten prestige brands in blind tests. The cream is one of the best kept beauty secrets of the east. "

And women have been going wild trying to track some down, ever since.

Who wouldn't want to rub some onto their skin? Unfortunately, Unilever has not made the Pond's cream available in the United States at this time.

But there is always Ebay.com, folks. And yes, Ebay sells a number of Pond's Age Miracle Daily Resurfacing Creams. Most come in at under $20, with a $10 shipping fee. Look here:http://tiny.cc/hRClU

We have not tried this so-called miracle in a jar, but many Asian women seem to adore the product.

If you have tried this Pond's Age Cream, please leave us a few comments. We are curious to learn how well the cream works.