Showing posts with label beauty. Show all posts
Showing posts with label beauty. Show all posts

Monday, July 21, 2008

Girl-Woman-Beauty-Brains-Blog Receives Brillante Award

picture of Brillante Award logo on black background with a little crstal trophy

Kimmie -- Editor of See Pretty Things, The Kitten Lounge, Social Diva, and Kitten Couture; contributing writer for Gliteratti Magazine; and founder and publicist of Bliss NY PR -- nominated Girl-Woman-Beauty-Brains-Blog for the Brillante Award. Humbled by Kimmie's arm-length résumé, we are honored that she bestowed the Brillante Award upon us.

The Brillante Award highlights those blogs that are amazing and allows the person who receives it to pass it on to other blogs that they love -- seven blogs only. Reading hundreds of blogs a week on Coutorture, Total Beauty, and blogs residing all over the blogosphere, this was a tough choice for us.

Drum roll, please...

We bestow the Brillante Award honor on the following blogs:

In the fitness category, hands down, MizFit is our fave blog. She is a combo of brains on humor, brains on fitness, and pure brains! Owning her studio and working with clients from all walks of life allowed her to realize that the key to lifelong fitness success is a healthy helping of education, motivation and HUMOR that she shares in her blog.

In the fashion category, Kristopher Dukes. We might have found somebody that moves as fast as we do. With the witty "Wanting...Wearing...Hating..." format, Kristopher Dukes has created a fashion format that is unsurpassed by any other blogs. This is brains on fashion.

In the beauty category, Jen from Fifty-Cent Head, works for a very well-known and trend setting cosmetics company as a makeup artist and is ahead of the curve when it comes to beauty trends and alerts. Plus, she is techno wiz and has helped us with techie stuff many times. Smooches for that.

Also in the beauty category, Jamie -- not our Jamie, although they both graduated from Indiana University -- editor of The Beauty of Life also has a fascinating résumé. Along with her daily blog posts, Jamie also is the Associate Beauty Editor for Teen Scene Magazine and works full-time as the Copywriter for a major fashion company. We find that this background knowledge makes her blog articles indispensable reading. She also has been in our court since the inception of Girl-Woman-Beauty-Brains-Blog.

Stiletto Jungle, an online shopping blog, is written by a young attorney who has bridged the gap between the life of a struggling student and the life of luxury. We always find the best deals and steals at Stiletto Jungle.

Beckie is particularly partial to blogs for women over forty.

Fabulous over Forty. Seriously, girls, there are not many beauty blogs for women over forty. Sad but true. Kari offers tips and reviews that real women over forty and fifty can use.

The Best Kept Secret: With editor Karen Hamilton's humorous and witty essays on how she deals with perimenopause, and contributing bloggers, like Beckie Temple of Girl-Woman-Beauty-Brains-Blog, The Best Kept Secret is an outstanding source for women over forty. "It’s like swapping stories and secrets over a glass of wine with girlfriends. You never know what you might find out."

We are humbled and honored to be associated with these tremendously talented bloggers.

Cheers,
Beckie and Jamie

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Monday, July 7, 2008

Girl-Woman-Beauty-Brains-Blog Asks, "What is Beauty?"

picture of ash blonde woman thinking, with elbow in one arm and finger on chinGirl-Woman-Beauty-Brains-Blog was designed to not only inform women but to make women think. Aesthetics is a branch of philosophy -- the philosophy of art and beauty. But what is beauty?

In an effort to explore this question, we are going to offer a topic every week that will hopefully challenge you and entertain you. At times, you will get two diametrically opposed viewpoints from Girl-Woman: daughter versus mother, under 40 versus over 40.

Today's topic is Aristotle's quote: "Personal beauty is a greater recommendation than any letter of reference."

Do you agree or disagree?

For our responses, click on read more.

Beckie: Although I totally disagree with the concept, there is much to support Aristotle's quote. In a recent Wall Street Journal article that inspired my post, Botox for the Resume, a 49-year-old woman took ten years off her resume and had youthful pictures taken in order to get a job. The article exposed many other educated women who were resorting to cosmetic procedures and lying about their age in order to gain employment.

Jamie: The stark reality of the job market and career building is that employers want vibrant, young, innovative people as part of their team.

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Friday, May 2, 2008

Beauty and Fashion Chick Lit


Beauty and Fashion Chick Lit from my network partners at Coutorture and Total Beauty:

Australian Fashion Week is like reading a coffee table book at Coutorture.

Read this and weep: The biggest and best Green giveaway on the web is from Total Beauty.

Smelly Blog combines poetry and science to review Lily of the Valley perfume.

Add length to your lashes: Check out Viva Woman's amazing experience.

Want your cake and eat it, too? Whiten your teeth and gloss your lips in the same product from Tia Williams.

What Not To Wear's Carmindy has an Sally Hansen makeup line. Read Blogdorf Goodman's take on the new beauty product line.

A La Mer Mother's Day gift that says "I love you" in every language from The Beauty of Life.

Read a chapter on nails about OPI's new Fun in the Sun from All Lacquered Up.

Spoiled Pretty keeps us posted about People's 100 Most Beautiful People.

Ding Dong, Avon Calling, from Cybele Says.

15 Minute Beauty Fanatic educates us on the science behind retinoids.

A sun-safety kit from Savvy Skin will keep you protected when you are lounging on the beach reading the perfect beach read.

Stella McCartney's skincare line from Daily Dose of Coffee is another great chapter on organic products.

Style It answers a reader's question about when is it permissible to wear madras.
Talking about reducing stress, Product Whores gives us a one-two punch: Get a free massage with a children's book donation to Project Sunshine.

Another sweet-smelling read from All About The Pretty -- a Mother's Day gift option.
A Mom in Red High Heels offers great inexpensive gifts for Mom, including the Shemergency Survival Kit.

Smart chick lit from Temptalia: Read the schedule for Free Skin Cancer Screening from Aveeno.

Beauty Chat Blog says Yes To Carrots for her hair.
The Fashionable Housewife is giving away a free clutch.

Pink Rock Candy wants to know if you suffer from Loubout-itis -- Christian Louboutin shoes.

Spring cleaning tips from Eye4Style will have your closet spiffed up in no time.

Great sales from Nordstrom -- fabulous yellow trench coat -- from Fasshonaburu.
A coveted Botkier Lita pink clutch will bring you to tears from Haute and Bothered.

Are you reading any books or blogs you would like to share with us?
Happy reading!

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Wednesday, December 26, 2007

12 Beauty and Fashion Essentials for 2008

caricature of woman

Oh, how I love New Year's Day. January 1st brings with it a refreshing and miraculous excitement to our lives. It's like a metamorphosis for many of us – a chance to change and grow, a chance to wipe one's slate clean. Over the next two weeks, I will offer 12 beauty and fashion essentials to transform your mind and body into the best you that you can be.

Many women and girls' resolutions include improving one's health, fitness, and appearance. These include losing weight or eating sensibly and exercising on a regular basis. For others, it's more about personal development, enjoying your life while making conscious decisions on a daily basis about how you feel, it's about having more control over your own actions and emotions.

The bottom line, everybody who makes a resolution is resolving to make 2008 better than 2007. The 12 beauty and fashion essentials will catapult you into 2008 feeling happier, healthier, and classically stylish.


  1. Wear Color.
  2. Befriend a good tailor.
  3. Adopt a good skin care regimen.
  4. Bankroll the basics.
  5. Clean out your makeup bag.
  6. Invest in a great handbag.
  7. Find your perfect jeans.
  8. Wear what you love.
  9. Tame your mane.
  10. Diet is not a four letter word.
  11. Move that body.
  12. Be comfortable in your own skin.
  13. My secret New Year's resolution.

What is your New Year's resolution? Before the ball drops on New Year's Eve, tell me your resolution. I will help you stay committed to your goal through the year.

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Wednesday, December 19, 2007

How to Erase Pillow Face Creases

a dog with lots of wrinkles

I woke up this morning with pillow face creases swarming all over my face, formed by too many late nights and sleeping face down on my pillow. Argh! Of course, time heals the embossed skin, but if you want to erase the wrinkles quickly, splash your face with warm water and massage moisturizer in the crevices. This combo plumps up the dehydrated skin and increases circulation.




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Saturday, December 15, 2007

Instead of Chewing on Holiday Cookies This Weekend, Chew on This

candy cane Christmas cookies

Almost Packed delights with a dog purse that will make you howl.

Boomer Girl does a survey on the trifecta of eyelash curlers. And the winner is...

Fassonaburu has the coupon and code 411.

Haute and Bothered share the news about the Stila warehouse sale. Great stocking stuffers.

MonkeyPosh offers a look back and a look forward at the chocolate eye palette.

RealSelf discusses how to prevent wrinkles.

SheFinds offers a budget-find sunscreen.

Swish Style has a great statement tee.

The Budget Babe displays inexpensive cocktail rings.

The Couturist Record shows the IT color for fall 2008.

Trendinista puts together a "Pretty Period Kit." Humorous and functional.

Viva Woman tells why perfumes can be hazardous to your health.

Wardrobe Oxygen focuses on boots.

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Sunday, December 2, 2007

The Primer on Facial Primer

wrinkled dog sitting in front of an iron

I have yet to find the perfect solution to ironing out my facial winkles, and my laugh lines are no laughing matter now that they are carving out a niche in my face. I would gladly consider Botox except that a 20-year ride of Botox would cost as much as a new BMW 335i coupe. (The truth: $40,000 for Botox or the BMW). So what's a girl to do? Spackle, girls, spackle!

The truth: My previous primer, Perfekt Skin Perfecting Gel, was a perfect symphony of primer and foundation, but it only lasted approximately 24 pumps, to the tune of $1,000 a year. (My Sephora BFF indicated that it should last 240 pumps.) In the quest for the perfect primer, my primer morgue includes, among, others, Laura Geller's Spackle Makeup Primer which tends to coagulate in my lines like platelets in a blood vessel, Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer and Nars Makeup Primer which left a filmy residue that looked like the inside of my shower door.

The naked truth is that anybody's skin looks its best naked -- freshly exfoliated and intensely moisturized -- no matter what you apply as the next layer. Perfekt is still the best smoke and mirrors on the market to date. Although Brains indicates the primer is too costly, Beauty wins this debate: The multitasking Perfekt foundationPerfekt can be worn as a primer or as a light foundation. It covers redness, fine lines, and looks very natural. I am off to see my little gal pals, Leah and Amy, at Sephora to turn in my empty container of Perfekt for a new one with the hopes that I can achieve a 240-pump regimen.


Once again, I must applaud our local Sephora girls and Chantelle who helped at the Christ Child Society fashion show fundraiser. Between Sephora's gals and Chantelle, owner and stylist who owns the salon Flashbangs, they turned our models into supermodels.

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Friday, November 30, 2007

7 Gifts for the 7 Dwarfs of Menopause

seven dwarfs

I am sure you have run into at least one of the seven dwarfs of menopause: Sweaty, Bloated, Itchy, Bitchy, Forgetful, Sleepy, and All Dried Up. The following list should help you match seven gifts with seven moods and find the menopause dwarf's inner beauty.

  1. Sweaty: Night Sweats Sleepware will keep Sweaty cool when she has haute flashes.
  2. Bloated: Her Puffiness can disguise her bloat with sweatpants from Nordstom.
  3. Itchy: A 100 percent organic cotton tee from Pristine Planet would soothe Itchy's skin.
  4. Bitchy: An Effexor prescription or a little stud -- diamond that is -- from Blue Nile might temper Bitchy's mood.
  5. Forgetful: Uh, what was I writing about? Oh, yes, Do Not Forget door hangers from Uncommon Goods is a to-do list for Forgetful's brain. (See Forgetfulness is a Tool of the Brain for those concerned about their memory loss.)
  6. Sleepy: A gourmet coffee gift basket filled with selections of coffees from Starbucks, Ghirardelli, Godiva, Wolfgang Puck, and Coffee Masters should motivate Sleepy from the arms of Morpheus and give her a needed dose of caffeine.
  7. All Dried Up: Olive and Basil Body Butter from Crabtree and Evelyn will baste All Dried Up's parched skin.

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Sunday, November 25, 2007

HOLIDAY BEAUTY GIFTS WITH DEEP DISCOUNTS ON CYBER MONDAY



Cyber Monday offers deep discounts in the cyberspace malls. Returning to their place of employment after the Thanksgiving weekend, workers use their time to shop online because of the speedy Internet connections. Check your favorite online beauty or apparel store for great holiday deals, girls. Almost half of the retailers are offering some type of discount. You can also save piles of pesos if you start your holiday shopping at the following sites:

  • Shopzilla.com has a convenient Go To Store button next to each search return.

  • Shopping.com, PriceGrabber.com and Froogle.com are among the most popular comparison sites offering price comparisons and merchant ratings. Brilliantshopper.com is a lesser known comparison site but will also save you mucho dinero. CNET.com compares electronics and computer gear.

  • Smarter.com spotlights coupons and discounts in its search results.

  • Shop.com has a separate On Sale section.

  • Dealio.com offers a downloadable toolbar that alerts you when it finds the item you're considering for a lower price somewhere else.

  • Fatwallet.com and Gottadeal.com have uber-fat deals. Both sites post timely information on who's got what for how much, along with money saving tips and tricks.
If you are shopping at your workplace, be careful of Pink Slip Tuesday and Credit Card Wednesday.

Lastly, not to burst your bubble -- er, brain, but Cyber Monday is considered by some to be a marketing ploy. According to Business Week, the idea was born when a few people at Shop.org were brainstorming about how to promote online shopping. After discarding suggestions such as Black Monday (too much like Black Friday), Blue Monday (not very cheery), and Green Monday (too environmentalist), they settled on Cyber Monday.

You can still snag lots of apparel and beauty product deals on Monday but caveat emptor!

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Thursday, November 22, 2007

COSMETIC COMPANY RIP-OFF



Women, are you feeling overwhelmed when you are at the cosmetic counter or perfume counter at Macy's or Nordstrom? The cosmetic companies are trying to reprogram your brain. According to The Journal of Consumer Research, researchers have found that presenting a confusing sales pitch and then restating the pitch in a more familiar way increased sales. The combination of a confusing sales pitch and the offer of free cosmetic samples is a financial tsunami for me. I am like Pavlov's dog: Enchant me with free samples, romance me with a free makeover, confuse me with snake oil psychology and I will drool like a dog and paw you my credit card in one fell swoop.

Then add another element to the manipulative madness. The beauty industry is dominated by a few key players. According to Forbes, L'Oréal, the world's largest beauty products company, owns more than 20 brands, including Maybelline, the world's top selling brand; Lancôme; and salon brands like Soft-Sheen and Carson. Estée Lauder owns 25 brands, including Prescriptives, Bobbi Brown and M.A.C Cosmetics, as well as Origins, Tommy Hilfiger fragrances, and Crème de la Mer.With many of the companies selling virtually the same product under a different name with sexier packaging at a higher price, what is a consumer to do?

So use your brain: This is a research tool that every women should have in her makeup box, Don't Go to the Cosmetic Store Without Me, written by a self-anointed cosmetic cop, Paula Begoun. Her website also offers an ingredient dictionary so that you compare brands. To examine the ingredients of drugstore brands, Drugstore.com is a good weapon to have in your research arsenal, too.

Gotta dash! Pavlov's bell is ringing...

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