Guess what showed up in my mailbox this afternoon?  The newest Sephora Holiday Catalog, “tis the season to GIFT PRETTY!”  And how fitting given that their Friends and Family 20% discount starts today (FF2008 at checkout).   I am a bit ticked that that dang-blasted LASH STASH is out-of-stock though!!!                                                                                                 

This year Sephora is celebrating their 10th year, and to have some fun let’s speculate about what beauty products might be in the Sephora catalogs in 2018. Here are my predictions for Sephora’s beauty products of the FUTURE:

1. DIY non-toxic injectible Botox kits - let’s hope this one enters the market soon!
2. BE’s Moon Mineral Makeup line (made from actual Moon Dust Minerals)
3. In response for the need for more eco savvy beauty containers, Sephora will create re-usable containers that can be cleaned and recycled, AND you can refill your cosmetics and skincare items from bulk dispensers!

I better hire my patent attorney (Laurel are you there?) and get these ideas protected ASAP.  I really like that last one!

Yet again, another t-shirt site has grabbed my attention!  LTD Chix.com offers a great variety of colorful and clever tees for Moms, who are constantly saying to themselves,

“I was a better mother before I had kids.”

I particularly love LTD Chix’s Halloween tee, and can sooo relate to it.  I have and continue to be the candy-loving woman who slaps on a witch hat and follows her kids around trick-or-treating.   Halloween weather isn’t always ideal either, but some years have been fabulous.  I remember one particularly cold Halloween where it was SNOWING outside and the bitter winds were so terrible that my children were in tears because they were literally freezing, but they couldn’t stand the thought of not continuing to trick-or-treat!  I always love houses that give kids full-sized candy bars or a can of soda too!  One family in our neighborhood gives out cups of warm spiced cider and doughnuts to their Halloween night visitors.  Halloween is the best holiday EVER!   Check out these fun spirited Mom Tees:

Halloween Mom
Beach Cart Mom
Cleaning Mom
Cooking Mom
Laundry Mom
Minivan Mom
Multi - Tasking Mom (brand new design)
Referee Mom
Shopping Mom
Under Weather Mom
Working Mom
Workout Mom

LTD Chix.com is offering us a nice coupon code for first time buyers – you can recieve 15% - just type in 14blog.   They have also recently decreased their prices by 15-25% per shirt.  These shirts would make great holiday gifts for the women in your life, and don’t forget to pick one up for yourself!

Tuesday I wrote about using a sheer red lip gloss instead of a full color red lipstick called, “This ain’t your Momma’s Lipstick: Going Red.” I go for the sheer red lip look because of feeling intimidated by a true lipstick in red. With many lipstick shades I feel like a kid that sneaked into my mother’s pocketbook and tried on her lipstick.

So my friend Marilyn asked, “Wait a minute! Where’s the photo of YOU in that lipgloss?” My response, “Isn’t the one I posted of Christina Aguilera so much better!? I am a beauty blogger, not a beauty model.” It is always difficult for me to pose and demonstrate a product or shade in a picture. To please Marilyn here is my attempt at taking a picture of myself wearing Becca’s Glossy Lip Tint in Cherrybomb. To intensify the color and keep “in bounds” I first lined my lips with the newly released and fabulous 24/7 Glide-on Lip Pencil by Urban Decay in a shade called “Wicked.” It’s wicked pretty together with Cherrybomb don’t you think?

My little Becca even joined me during the photo shoot! I think that is another reason why I love the Becca Cosmetic line so much; it has a beautiful name.

Hope this inspires you Marilyn!

Modern Jackass?   According to Nancy Updike, a contributing editor for the NPR radio program “This American Life,” to be a Modern Jackass is to ”talk expertly about something we don’t actually know anything about.”  Modern Jackass is the term they created to describe an imaginary magazine devoted to such blathering.

Have you noticed this epidemic?  I certainly have.  We gather bits of information from magazines, the Internet, infomercials and blogs, and suddenly we believe we are an authority on the subject.  There is so much information to sort through, and how do we ever come to some form of truth or authority on any given subject?  and particularly relevant to this site, the subject of beauty.

I find the amount of contradictions in the beauty world staggering.  I read and try to compile and process a monumental amount of ever changing, new and improved material.    And at the end of the day, I could possibly be the beauty editor for the next edition of “Modern Jackass.”  While brainstorming, here are some of my first ideas for columns.

• Should you use a skin toner? Is it necessary, or just an extra superfluous step? (The word superfluous is itself superfluous!)
• Is it okay to use your fingers to apply cosmetics?
• Bad versus good silicones, or no silicones at all?
• Antioxidants: they are good for you when eaten but are they good to put them on your face?
• How does a great big peptide molecule get absorbed into my itty-bitty skin cells?
• Should I use tap water on my skin, or no water, or only purified non-chlorinated water?
• Does Botox get absorbed into our bodies and even scarier, our brainstem?
• Why did Courtney Love mess with her perfect lips?
• Which Foundation?  Liquid, cream, power, matte, semi-matte, dewy, loose mineral, liquid mineral, liquid to powder, powder to liquid, tinted moisturizer, mousse, spray on, oil-based, oil-free, what did I miss?
• Skincare creams:  In what order do you apply them?

If you have any real scientific information to answer any of these questions, feel free to comment.  Yes, I will even welcome any Modern Jackass speculation.  Don’t get defensive, just be honest, we are all doing the best we can with our experience, research, personal preferences and our hope to appear 21 again.  I would settle for 31.

ur regular Wednesday Beauty Reviewer Mo, is taking a brief intermission to spend time with her family this summer. Miss you Mo! Hope you are all having fun wherever you are!

Mo took this picture of an extraordinary Iris.  Have a wonderful family vacation, you all deserve it!

Just so you know, my favorite beauty forum is Megsmakeup.com. Meg is looking for a new addition to her reviewing team for the weekly Thursday post, “Drugstore Deals Thursday.”

If you have reviewing experience, a burning desire to share your drugstore cosmetic obsession, and gift for writing, just GO FOR IT! This is a wonderful opportunity to expand your horizons and receive some amazing free makeup. The deadline is tomorrow, so there is no time to waste! Here is Meg’s invitation:

WE NEED A NEW TESTER & CREST WHITE TEETH STRIPS! DRUGSTORE DEAL THURSDAYS!

We’re looking for a new Drugstore Deal writer. What we need.. Do you laugh in uncomfortable situations? Have you ever stalked a man? Sometimes do you wake up in a cold sweat over an inappropriate text message you’d sent the night before after too many cocktails? Do you like dogs? Do people say to you “OMG I can’t believe you just said that?” Then start to giggle in agreement? Are you cool? Are you unable to leave a Walgreens/CVS/Duane Reade without a beauty item? Can you write descriptive/funny/tear-jerking posts? DO YOU LOVE MEGSMAKEUP? Can I rely on you to send me a review due once a week by Wednesday night 8pm? Hmmm.. Can I?

What’s in it for you? Not only love, appreciation and my soul BUT FREE HIGH END BEAUTY PRODUCTS DELIVERED TO YOUR MAILBOX Just because you write the DD doesn’t mean that you are not sent the pricey items. I just need to know you’re committed to leaving a thorough, honest comment on what you’ve been sent. This gig gives you thousands of dollars of the most elusive and upscale items out there. Plus, I throw in a DD item for your own post that goes up every Thursday.

Who gets the gig? We believe in democracy at Megsmakeup.com so here’s the deal. My teeth are looking stank. They look old and coffee, red wine and cigged out. I just bought for the first time, some Crest Tooth Whitening Strips, the 7 day to whiter teeth version. Does this work? Have you tried it? What have you gotten from the local drugstore chain that really works if these don’t. What led you to buy a tooth whitener? Talk to us! Oh yeah, you start Sunday. That’s when we decide!

Who will be the next Drugstore Deal Thursday Diva?!  This is very exciting and cannot wait to find out who gets picked.

Mother’s Day, Ugh!  This is a post about why my Mom is the hardest person on the planet to buy something for.  Let me explain.

My Mom is a beauty minimalist.  She doesn’t wear foundation, and cannot wear eye makeup.  Very sensitive eye issues make it impossible for her to wear mascara or eyeshadow.   She uses her lipstick on her lips and than dabs some on for her blush and voila!  She’s gorgeous.

[What do you think Mo, does her hair style look familiar to you?  Yes, that is me in agony on Santa's lap.]

She loves antiques and collectibles, but I never go to auctions or to flea market shops where they sell these things.  First, I have no idea how to assess anything there accurately, I don’t enjoy bartering, and it is a nightmare bringing small kids into places that have wall to wall breakables.  My Mom could literally host the “Antique Roadshow” on PBS, and unfortunately I am completely clueless in this arena.

I really don’t know what she has or doesn’t have.  We live 2,000 miles away from eachother and I am not up to speed about what she needs.  She has also lived out the country for 4 of the last 6 years overseas in Cambodia and Indonesia. 

She loves jewerly, but the good 18K kind, and real gems.  Big bucks, sorry Mom, no can do!

She loves to gamble.  Lottery tickets might work!?

Maybe just a card, with some cash.  Oh, crap, she isn’t even home right now.  She is out visiting her family in MA and selling her wares at the Brimfield Antique and Collectibles Show!  My card won’t get to her on Mother’s Day, but this Smilebox slide show will have to suffice.  If you are at Brimfield this week, and recognize this woman, tell her I honestly tried!  She doesn’t even own a cell phone!!!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

 I love you Mom!  The only person probably more difficult to buy a present for is me.

Why should Mo have all the fun?!

This morning instead of using my boring brown eyeliner, I grabbed Urban Decay’s dark, sexy purple ROCKSTAR 24/7 Glide-on pencil and did my best to create the glam swoosh-liner look. Mo emailed me about a 30% off friends and family code through April 30th at Urban Decay. Simply enter code “FFA30″ at checkout!  I also applied on my lips my newly found favorite Glossy Lip Tint in Cherrybomb by BECCA., proceeded to grab my electric guitar and voila! I am a ROCK STAR MOM!

Watch out Madonna, move over Fergie, Jen at Mythbuster Beauty has arrived!

My daughter Amanda did an incredible job taking and editing some rockin’ shots of her madre today. Thanks for the inspiration Mo!

The Mother’s Day Edition of the Sephora catalog just arrived. I think fashionable shots of the supermodel mother-to-be, or posing “glammed-up” next to her toddler is a very sweet gesture. As a real life momma, I can only *chuckle* thinking about the dirty looks I would get from the women behind the counter at Sephora if I allowed my toddler to unload a stack of beauty products on the floor!

What I would have given to look half as good as the pregnant rock star mom on page 12!

You don’t have to be a mom to love Sephora, and this late spring catalog characterizes women in four cosmetic style types.

“Glam” - Where flashbulbs go, she follows. If it’s not fab, forget it, dah-ling.

“The Rock Star” - Edgy, push-the-envelope treats are right up her electric avenue. (Mo, I thinked they have you pegged)! Someone in this group would love to get the…

Urban Decay Wallpaper Shadow Box - 9 pigment rich shades including “shot gun,” “shattered,” and “asphyxia.” ($34), or

Winning the Urban Decay Showers to Flowers contest - deadline 4.30.08

“The Sophisticate” - She wears many hats, never a hair out of place. Her trick? Products that work as hard as she does.

“Earth Mother” - Saving the world one biodegradable lipstick tube at a time, her must-haves are as earth-friendly as she is.  She would go ga-ga to over…

tarte’s natural beauty cheek stain and double dose T5 gloss - yes, these two gems are what we gave away last month for the tarte march madness giveaway at MBB! Sharon absolutely loves her new tarte lip glosses, and reports she is “hooked.”

I am placing myself in the “Earth Mother” category. Mainly because of my thick and crazy naturally curly hair, and the fact that I honestly believe women are most beautiful with very little makeup on.  Just sit me under a shady tree with my hair flowing in the warm breeze, wearing my homemade tie-dyed t and faded jeans while listening to Simon and Garfunkel. I can picture my kids frolicking in the sunshine, and chasing after butterflies. I would be in hippie heaven.

But secretly, in my heart I am a rock star mom wanna be!

Which cosmetic style would best describe you?

If you get a chance, listen to this radio broadcast link from Studio 360. Elna Baker is a comedienne living in NYC, and tells the story of her dramatic weight loss, self esteem, and a unique dating culture. It is absolutely a must listen to for all women.

Studio 360: Girls, Blume, and Mulatu Astatke: My Grandmother’s Dress, Elna Baker

Way back when, I experienced a very similar date scenario like Elna’s. Only subsitiute Doug with John, and being intolerant of people who are overweight with being intolerant of people who are gay.

The one thing I cannot tolerate is intolerance.