As the economy continues to falter, I am trying hard to limit my extraneous purchases and really focus on necessities. This is hard for me. I love extraneous purchases! But I also realize I have to be mindful that we could be facing our generation’s answer to the Great Depression. So, I took heed when I read about the best beauty buys in Allure magazine this month. (The recession is going to be the topic du jour in women’s mags. In my PR capacity, I am already hearing that many stories are focusing on items under $50 and beauty under $10, etc. So expect to see lots of these stories in your favorite magazines in the next few months.) This particular article mentioned Maybelline’s Mineral Power foundation and Lash Discovery Mascara as products that are inexpensive and terrific- mainly because their formulations are like those of much more expensive products. I am a fan of both of these products, and I was inspired to pull them out of my drawer and revisit them today. The mascara really is great- light and clean, it finds and lengthens even the smallest little lash. The Mineral Power foundation is also very fresh-looking. It has a sheer, natural coverage that isn’t too matte or too sheen-y. It is just right. I need to revisit older items more often. It will save me loads.

I have been on the road for the past month, for the most part, and all of this traveling has done such a number on my skin. I keep bemoaning its dire state every time I have a chance to write, and I am not exaggerating. I feel like I look rough. Aside from the resurgence of teenage acne (which I have to equate to flying), I have also noticed the beginnings of somewhat dark circles under my eyes, slight puffiness when I don’t get enough sleep, and the beginnings of what appear to be lines/wrinkles forming. I am personally struggling with this fact as I feel like all of this has emerged over the past month. This story does have a happy ending, however. After getting a majority of my Proactiv confiscated on my way to Nashville this month, I popped into CVS for some emergency skincare upon arrival and selected Neutrogena Age Reverse Anti-Oxidant Eye Cream. It is truly awesome. It deflated puffiness (almost instantly) and does wonders on the little lines. The dark circles seem to go away on there own when I get enough sleep. All this is to say that I am in a state of post travel detox and hope to restore that rested fresh-faced look I so aspire to.

My faithful readers will know that I am presently traveling around the country and promoting events that are being hosted by my client, KN Karen Neuburger, and Dillards and Bon Ton stores.  KN is funding mammograms for underserved women across the country and throwing pink parties to generate awareness and interest in the cause. As a part of the public relations effort to get the word out about the events, I am appearing on local media stations and talking about the program while showcasing the best of the best pink picks from the KN line. This little nightie (see that link) is so comfy and totally adorable- a fun pink print (my fave!) I thought I would share it with you because the program has such a great message and the product benefits BCRF, another wonderful cause. Check me out talking about the events in Dallas here.

I am reporting from the road- Atlanta. I had a 4:45am TV appearance this morning and drank 2 huge lattes so I am a bit wired and totally raring to write about my latest skin trauma-ramas. As I mentioned earlier, I have been on a sort of media tour this month, promoting some of my client’s products. I have basically criss- crossed the country, and I fully believe that all of this traveling plus the stress of leaving home and being on camera has literally wreaked havoc on my skin. I arrived home from Nashville this past weekend with truly terrible skin. This is problematic on 2 levels- 1) I am fully obsessed with good, clear skin and simply cannot be personally happy when I have spots and 2) I am on camera and need clear skin to be a professional-looking spokesperson for my client. One other problem I can blame my poor skin on is the fact that my Proactiv was confiscated at LAX last week on said cross country trip, and I was forced to buy some crazy Body Shop Tea Tree product line that smelled terrible and worked worse. (I think it totally exaccerbated the situation.) So I promptly tossed it and raced to get new Proactiv and some new makeup this weekend to cover and heal all skin traumas. I beelined it for Sephora and purchased Cargo’s Blu-Ray product line of powder, concealer and lip gloss. This is a product line developed for high definition television. It is totally full-coverage but so sheer it is almost invisible under the bright lights of the studios. Also, it totally mattifies and lasts and lasts. I am in love- true love with this product. It does require a bit of bronzer to add some dimension and life to the skin, but the powder especially is absolutely wonderful and did an awesome job of covering all spots and skin traumas.

If you have problem skin like me and are hyper aware of the world of beauty offerings for said problem skin, then you are probably also aware of Zeno, the little device that claims to cure your mild to moderate acne. I have looked at this product for about a year and was driven to purchase this morning at CVS (when all I really needed was a little Draino.) This month, I am traveling around the country doing some local news for one of my clients, and I really need great skin now. After my appearance of Fox News Milwaukee last week, an appearance where I had to camouflage like 6 fledgling pimples, I decided it was time to take further action. I selected the Zeno Mini to buy this morning. (This decision was mainly based on the fact that it is a smaller and cheaper option than the original, but has the same effect.) At any rate, once the little Zeno heats up, you place it on your pimple for 2.5 minutes, listening all the while to the little beeps it makes when it is ready, as time goes by, and when the treatment is complete. You can feel the heat working on your skin, and while my face was a bit red after treatment, I am also quite certain my pimple was much reduced. I think I may love Zeno, but I am so fickle that my undying love one moment could quickly turn to indifference. I am going to give this more time but I can promise you that if this little number truly erases blemishes, this will be a long-standing love affair.

I purchased an amazing cropped leather jacket 2 weeks ago, and I have stared at it in my closet ever since. It really is perfect. Not too hard edge, just right. When I first noticed it at Zara, I became immediately obsessed. It seemed like something you could wear when you are dressing up or down- it is funky and something I would usually assume was not really me just by nature of it being black and leather. However, once I tried it on, I realized it was 100% me and exactly right for LA. At any rate, after swooning over it in my closet for the past 2 weeks, I wore it out for sushi tonight and really felt it was very special.

From now on, when I am stressed or tired and this induces crazed shopping sprees, I am going to refer to this behavior as “going Zoe-y.” I am so ridiculously in awe of her shopping spree at New York Vintage in this week’s installment of The Rachel Zoe Project that I feel I must somehow incorporate this new term into my everyday existence. She literally rampaged the store and walked away with thousands of dollars worth of amazing clothes- in like 20 minutes flat. It may sound completely materialistic and shallow, but I aspire to this sort of insane shopping bonanza. It has further secured her as my shopping idol.

I am reporting from my lovely hotel room in Detroit this morning. I am traveling for work but felt the need to immediately post about the No Frizz by Living Proof product line I wrote about last week. The No Frizz solution arrived, and I tried it out yesterday morning before I left for the airport. Here is the drill- it is somewhat unfair of me to review the true nature of this product after I just got my hair straightened last week. However, when I go in for straightening touch-ups, the stylists only chemically straighten my hair’s re-growth and leave the older straightened areas as is. So the older hair is pretty straight, but not straight straight. Also, that older hair doesn’t repel frizz as readily as the newly straightened hair does. The net of this is that the solution did stop frizz and kept my older straightened hair very sleek looking. There was literally no frizz at all. However, rather than leaving my hair shiny and lustrous the way a silicone-based product would, my hair felt very dry. So, while it works, it is not an immediate love affair. I will continue to assess the product and use it more- especially in higher humidity.