Olay Professional Pro-X Products Just As Effective As Prescription Retin-A New Study Shows

Olay Professional Pro-X skin care products are just as effective as prescription strength Retin-A (tretinoin)?!

Drugstore as good as prescription??!!

Well, we're certainly scratching our head over the recent news. An 8-week clinical study was conducted by Proctor & Gamble which owns the Olay company. And the British Journal of Dermatology has published the findings.

The trial compared an off-the-shelf brand, Olay Professional Pro-X, to the leading prescription wrinkle regimen, 0.02 percent tretinoin, or retin-A or Renova. The study found Olay Pro-X regimen clinically improved the appearance of facial lines and wrinkles, as well as the prescription regimen in eight weeks. An 8-week, randomized, parallel-group study was conducted in 196 women with moderate to moderately severe periorbital wrinkles.

So, exactly what did the clinical study show:

Of the 196 women participating, the results showed that more than half of the subjects using Olay Professional Pro-X Intensive Wrinkle Protocol (58%) were judged to look better for visible wrinkle reduction compared to subjects using the 0.02 percent tretinoin regimen (41%) after 8 weeks of treatment. Further, the Olay Professional Pro-X regimen reduced visible facial wrinkle size by 17%, compared to 11% by 0.02 percent tretinoin regimen after 8 weeks of treatment.

To be fair, dermatologists would tell you, that Retin-A is a slow mover. It takes quite a while for results to show. The prescription takes 24 weeks to see full results and longer term comparative results may be different. So, that is a key point right there. Remember, the Proctor & Gamble trial was only 8-weeks long.

Another point, Retin-A generally comes in 3 strengths: 0.1%(strongest), 0.05%, and 0.25%.

Still, we find the results in this recent skin study to be quite impressive. Plus, the British Journal of Dermatology is nothing to sneeze at. They are one of the world's leading peer-reviewed medical dermatology journals.

Professional Pro-X is Olay's most expensive skin care line in their large arsenal of anti-aging drugstore products.

Smart And Simple Hair Care Tips From Celebrity Stylists

Hair. It really is a big deal to most women. And when you take a look at beautiful celebrities, their hair always seems to look perfect, polished, and healthy. Julia Roberts. Penelope Cruz. Giselle. Salma Hayek. Rachel Bilson. Debra Messing. Jessica Simpson.

How does she do it? Let's take a look at celebrity stylists and learn some smart and simple hair care tips.

Hair color. Extremely important. Color isn't just for covering up a few grays. The right hair shade speaks volumes about a woman's beauty. Just ask one of the best in the business, master colorist Kim Vo.

"Skin tone is the most important factor in deciding your perfect color," Kim Vo says. "It takes a professional eye to determine, but for a simple read, use the veins on your wrist. If your veins are blue, warm tones like chestnut and auburn tones are for you. If your veins are more green, caramel and golden hues will compliment you. If your veins are blue/green, then warm and cool tones can be added seamlessly".

Shiny, healthy hair is another key to polished locks. Salma Hayek has one of the glossiest manes around. Is it sheer luck or lucky genes? According to celebrity stylist Robert Vetica, it's even simpler than that.

Any woman can achieve high-voltage shine with one product: Moroccanoil. Robert Vetica explains how he styles Salma's hair:

1: Separate hair into small sections.
2: Add Moroccanoil Treatment and Moroccanoil Hydrating Styling Cream to each.
3: Use round brush to blow dry sections.
4: Let hair fall and mist with Moroccanoil Gold Glimmer Shine Spray.

And when it comes to curly hair, a little extra TLC is needed. Nicole Kidman goes back and forth from bouncy curls to sleek, straight hair. Her secret? Bio Ionic hair care products.

Kerry Warn, Australia's own celebrity stylist, uses the line on Nicole Kidman, so she can change up her hairstyle without damaging locks.

"These products use the Trinity FX charge to shatter water molecule clusters by up to 10 times their size and keep them apart, allowing the properties to penetrate deep into the hair shaft." You end up with straight, silky, smooth hair.

Even if you don't have perfect locks, and need some for a special occasion, like wedding hair, relax! You can fake it.

Jessica Simpson's favorite stylist Ken Paves, has designed beautiful hair extensions that are very easy to put in. Why not try his Clip-In Bangs. They're made with heat-friendly synthetic fiber so you can curl, cut and style - just like your own hair.

"Now you can have super chic blunt bangs without the commitment of cutting your own hair. This fabulous fringe looks real, feels real and stays put! Just clip in and go," says Ken Paves.

Whatever you do, remember your hair says a lot about who you are and the style you are embracing. For more hair tips check out hairstyles on Wikipedia.

Going Nude In Spring/Summer 2010.....Lips Baring It All

Lips are baring it all for spring/summer 2010. Nude lips are back in a big way. Just ask Kim Kardashian. She loves to rock this look, along with a very smoky eye and sexy spray tan. That is Kim K's signature look. And as of the moment, NARS Belle de Jour ($24) is one of Kim's favorite nude lipsticks.

The season is calling for either a bold or bare pout. We've seen many pretty celebrities painting on the nude lips....Fergie, Leona Lewis, Carrie Underwood, Penelope Cruz, Mary J. Blige, and the list goes on.

Academy Award winner Sandra Bullock has been glossing up with a nude lip for several red carpet events, and then wowed her fans with a very strong, red lipstick when she took home her Oscar recently.

You can wear bare and bold lipsticks but you have to be very careful, in both beauty respects.

Let's be frank here---red lips are not easy to pull off. But then again, going nude isn't so simple, either. You can look washed out and even ill, if you haven't mastered wearing the right shade.

Our simple beauty tip: Experiment with going nude this spring and summer. Try on a few nude lipsticks, liners, or glosses until you nail the most complimentary 'beige-y-ness' for you. There is a nude shade for every woman, but it might take a few tubes until you find the perfect one.

You might like wearing Kim K's Belle de Jour. If not, here are a few others:

1. Cover Girl Wetslicks AmazeMint lip gloss in Freedom of Peach

($6.25, drugstores). This shade has a little more of a color punch to it.

2. Clinique Defining Liner in Berry Nude ($14, fine dept. stores like Macy's). This is very bare, hardly there. A nice natural look.

3. Bobbi Brown Sunset Nude lipstick ($22, bobbibrowncosmetics.com). A warm shimmering nude shade that will show off your smile. Bobbi Brown is a genius at perfecting the natural look.

100 Calorie Snacks Like Frozen Banana Keep Diet Plan In Check

It's a 100-calorie snack world. Or at least it seems that way. Everywhere you turn, there are mini versions of the snacks we love on grocery shelf after grocery shelf.

But does the 100-calorie snack concept really help you lose weight? Can these tiny snack packs keep your diet plan in check?

We say, yes! As long as you are sticking to one 100-calorie pack, and not any extras. In other words, never eat out of the bag. 18 pretzels equal 100-calories. Not 30 pretzels. And we'll talk about the delicious frozen banana treat in just a bit.

First of all, when you get a snack attack, you want to satisfy it. And when the snack is pre-portioned or pre-measured, then you eat what's in the bag or drink what's in the can, and that's it. Your limit is set for you, and if you follow it, the 100-calorie packs or drinks are great for the diet watcher.

We found this excellent advice from Webmd.com:
"If you focus on the calorie count, it can make it much easier to chose a snack and much easier to stick to your diet, and you can't stray too far if you only allow yourself that 100-calorie limit," says Christine Gerbstadt, MD, RD, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.

One of our favorite 100-calorie snacks is the frozen banana treat. And it so delicious, it really tastes like banana ice cream. It's simple. Peel a banana, and slice it into small circles. Pop them into the freezer until firm. Yum!

Bananas are excellent for you, too. What's not to like?

We all know that bananas are rich in potassium. But the yellow, creamy 100- calorie treat is much more than that. Bananas are pretty close to being a perfect food. They are packed with fiber, iron, and protein, Vitamins B6 and C. And bananas also stop your craving for sugar. And the fruit is high in minerals that reduce cholesterol. And they are great for pregnant women, because they contain good things that help keep blood sugars up.

Here are some other healthy 100-calorie snacks:

1. Fudgsicle. You loved these as a kid, and now these chocolate pops are made just for the dieter and include a good source of fiber and calcium.

2. Sun Chips. This tasty multigrain snack packs 5 grams of fiber along with vitamin E in each little bag.

3. Emerald Cocoa Roast Dark Chocolate Almonds. Satisy your sweet tooth and also load up on some essential fats in this small 100-calorie pack.

4. Cracker Barrel 2% Milk Cheddar Cheese Sticks. Okay, so there is an amout of fat in these, but.....there are also very decent levels of protein, calcium, and other nutrients which gives these snacks the thumbs up.

5. Oreo Minicakesters. Nabisco knows how to do them right. Not much in the way of nutrition, but boy, these taste really good. Moist chocolate cakes and creme-- need we say more?

New Website: LockandMane All About Hair Hair Hair

Ladies, if you want to visit a friendly place that talks only about hair, hair, and only hair, then try this new website called Lock & Mane.

As the website likes to say: Indulge, rinse, repeat.

LockandMane.com has only been up for a few months now, and already, it's a very popular site at which to, 'let your hair down.' InStyle magazine also named LockandMane one of their Best of the Web sites.

You will find luxury hair accessories and hair products for women, that are approved by NYC celebrity dermatologist Michael Lorin Reed, an expert in hair and scalp health.

At the website's 'About Lock & Mane page,' the products listed, aren't just thrown out there to make a fast buck:

"We firmly believe in every product we sell at Lock & Mane. We believe in them, because we use them ourselves. Every shampoo, conditioner, hair gel, blow dryer, hair clip and curler in our inventory has been thoroughly tested and evaluated by our team to ensure that we only offer the best.

In addition to being your destination for luxury hair products, we are your resource for all things hair. We know that everyone is different: Some of us have dry hair, others damaged. Some of us live with frizz and others (both men and women) suffer from thinning hair. It’s why we’ve ‘taken to the field,’ talking with medical and salon professionals to find out what products they value the most. We get the scoop on which over-the-counter products they recommend and bring those products to you."

There are hair vitamins and herbs at LockandMane.com. And there are products for just about every hair challenge out there....from dandruff to nourishing hair masks to oils to damaged strands to fine/thinning hair. Trust us. You can find the solution there.

And talk about hair accessories, these products are so beautiful. From casual barrettes to silky headbands to elegant crystal tiaras, some of the loveliest hair adornments we've seen.

They say, "It's all about the hair." And often times, it is, because when a woman's hair looks good, she feels good.

How To Get A Beautiful Firm Round Butt In A Box By Bremenn Labs

Butt Lift in a Box.

We kid you not. That is the name of a new beauty body product by Bremenn Research Labs. The same folks who brought you popular Hylexin for serious, dark undereye circles and Lumedia for brightening skin tone.

It's a 3-step system that will, er, 're-model your rump.' Inside the box, for $99, you receive:

• Plumping Catalyst, 4 oz.

• Lifting and Firming Emulsion, 4oz.

• Exercise Booklet • Exercise Band

Victoria's Secret, Dillard's, and Sephora, are just three out of many popular places, where we found this butt lifter.

So, what's in the ingredients? Skin smoothers like peptide-based topical creams. These formulas help reduce the appearance of cellulite, and provide a firming look to the rear, at least temporarily.

Does it work effectively......in other words....can you 'create' a killer butt with Butt in a Box?

Well, we couldn't find any customer reviews anywhere. So we will be watching, from behind, so to speak. But let's be honest.....we are a country that is obsessed with a firm round butt! Jennifer Lopez, Beyonce, Kim Kardashian. Need we say more?!

This is how Bremenn Reasearch Labs explains the reason for developing their Butt Lift in a Box:

"Over time, our bottoms are assaulted by a combination of skin flaccidity, loss of muscle tone, and the redistribution of fat in the underlying tissue matrix. Surgery can help by removing excess skin to lift sagging buns or by plumping up a deflated rear end with buttock-rounding implants."

Bremenn Labs' product claims to deliver:

"This amazing Butt-Lifting Kit not only helps reduce the appearance of cellulite, but it restores a youthful, head-turning roundness as it "plumps up" even the saggiest of rear ends."

By the way, Bremenn Reasearch Labs has also introduced 2 more new beauty body products: Boob Job in a Box and Tummy Tuck in a Box. For real.

Meet Simon Cowell's Idol Mezhgan And Her Me Makeup Line

Her name is Mezhgan Hussainy and her popular makeup line is called Me. And she just happens to be Simon Cowell's 'idol.'

Okay, maybe we're being corny here, but American Idol's Simon Cowell is quite smitten with the 36-year-old Afghan beauty. In fact, Simon introduced the world to his fiance last night on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Of course, Simon was coy and playful and didn't exactly indicate when he would marry his Idol makeup artist. But it's nice to see a happy celebrity couple.

Mezhgan, pronounced 'Mish-gone,' knows a lot about makeup. She is the makeup artist to Idol judges Simon and Randy Jackson, and has used her talent to create beautiful faces on contestant after contestant on the hit show. She joined American Idol on Season 2, and has been there ever since.

Adam Lambert, who won't go anywhere without his fab eyeliner, raves about Mezhgan's Me makeup line.
"He loves it because it doesn’t smudge," she says. "He’s always talking about it on red carpets. I should give him a lifetime supply."

Mezhgan has a very interesting and brave background. Her family escaped from Afghanistan in 1979 and later settled in Los Angeles, where Mezhgan did some modeling, and started going to dental school. And then, eventually ended up with a super career as a makeup artist, as she tells the dailygab.com:

"The irony for me is that, in my country, once the Taliban took over, women couldn’t even show their face or put on makeup," Mezhgan says. "And here I was doing exactly that on the No. 1 show. I realized how important that was; [Makeup] is part of being a woman, and it does give you self-assurance and confidence. In a way, you’re ready to conquer the world."

You can take a look at her Me makeup line here. There are lots of products designed for face, eyes, lips, and cheeks, and a nice assortment of makeup bushes. We especially like Me's variety of undereye concealers and bronzers.

When you think about it, Mezhgan Hussainy is the face of Idol.