As any New Yorker will tell you, Duane Reade has a virtual monopoly over all drugstores in Manhattan. There is literally a Duane Reade on ever other street corner throughout the city.  I have always had a love/hate relationship with the store. I mean I love the fact that every for every $100 you spend, you get a $5 free coupon. (I have secured more $5 free coupons than I care to outline here.) I also love the availability of the store- and its hours. Many are open at all hours meaning you can pop in for whatever, whenever. I don’t particularly like the selection in the store. The cosmetics rarely update and the stores themselves are somewhat grungy (some worse than others.) However, Duane Reade is in the midst of a store overhaul across Manhattan, and I have to admit that they look great. Cleaner, brighter, new items, better selection. But my mind was truly blown by the luxury Duane Reade model in Herald Square. I first read about the rebuild in WWD, and I just had to check out what was literally being billed as the Sephora of all Duanes. And it didn’t disappoint. This particular 2-story gem was loaded with goodies- an entire aisle of Essie polishes, high end haircare (including Bumble and Bumble) and boutique makeup including Pop Beauty, Global Goddess, and Ramy. For goodness sake you can even get your eyebrows done. I mean- this was a DR to die for. At any rate, I bought 2 terrific Pop products (with my $5 coupon) that have become quick staples: Lid Bronzer and the Bronze Belle kits. Both are perfect for creating a lovely light bronze look as my skin fades to pale this Fall. Check out their website here.

I always say (to anyone that will listen) that J. Crew is just doing everything right, right now. I am seriously in love with their catalogs and read them as though they were a magazine. (Secretly I want to cut the images out of their catalog and tape them to the inside of my closet for styling tips and ideas on how to wear my cardigans with belts and ropey pearls, a corduroy skirt and metallic pumps.) Everyone is copying them- everyone, everywhere. I mean a quick pop into Ann Taylor Loft offers a myriad of blatant, bold J. Crow copies. Honestly the same goes for The Gap and Banana. This whole ruffled, feminine blouse trend? So J. Crew. The Jackie Kennedy-esque cardigan with skinny jeans? So J. Crew. Anyway, all this is to say that whenever possible, I love to shop J. Crew. Especially their adorable shoe shop. I am a flats girl (I am pretty tall and don’t need heels, lest I want to tower over everyone. Plus, my bad posture makes for a bit of a wobbly heel situation anyway.) I am in love with the J. Crew embellished and metallic flats. They look amazing with everything, but especially jeans, and they dress up most any boring look. In fact, I was in the aisles of Safeway buying cereal just yesterday and I got several spontaneous compliments about my new gold flats. See them here.

I just pulled myself away from my new website OBSESSION to write this post and turn you on to it. Please immediately check out Fashionair.com. It is like an interactive fashion magazine (better than any fashion site I have seen, even of the new crop of magazine hybrids) and features addictive little videos (think Fashion Television from like 12 years ago) and insider perspectives on the industry as well as must have product and shopping advice. This is my new daily read.

I am currently mid- media tour, writing to you from the US Airways lounge in Charlotte, NC before boarding a plane to Little Rock for tomorrow’s tv appearance.  This week has already been a bit of a blur of travel,but travel I must to spread the word about the Karen Neuburger pink parties at Dillards. During the month of October, KN will donate 30 minutes of research to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation with each purchase of a KN pajama at Dillards. (This roughly equates to about $30 per pj.) Get a jump on your holiday shopping for a great cause! Check out  our pj fashion show in Cleveland here or my segment in Phoenix here.

One of the best things about living in Santa Monica last year was that my daughter met one of her first friends, Ava. It was one of those first friendships when toddlers recognize each other and request to see each other. A friendship that isn’t forced by parents but is sweet and natural. I also became friends with Ava’s mom, Beth, and we had some fun playdates ourselves. We miss them a lot now that we live in SFO, but we are thrilled with the adorable fashion business they have started with another Santa Monica friend, Brandy. To put this into proper perspective, I want to note that Beth and Brandy are quintessential California girls. Super cool, adorable, laid back, and healthy. (I was always so impressed with the healthy aspect! I learned a lot about organic eating from Beth.) Their clothing line is just as adorable as they are- and healthy too- in that they used recycled materials whenever possible and make a conscious effort to be beautiful and responsible. Check out their website and their adorable blog.

I have a long list of my latest hits and misses makeup-wise. I have purchased so much recently trying to pull together a makeup look for my media tour in the next week. Here is where I have netted out with a few of my trials:

1) MAC Mineralize- I am absolutely loving this mineral powder collection. I purchased the sheer liquid and powder foundation. (Essentially the sheer liquid serves as a beautiful base and the powder, a shimmery top.) This collection is excellent because of the color range. The NC-35 is perfection- matching my skin but not making it look ashen or too ruddy the way other mineral collections do. It also has great staying power. This is a must buy for Fall.

2) Illamasqua- I am going to have to say that I am not totally excited about this new cosmetic collection that is hitting Sephora stores this month. It is a British brand based around the concept that women have an alter ego at night. (And while we are on the topic of alter egos, what in the world was up with the Alter Ego photoshoot on the Real Housewives of ATL? So random.) This collection is supposed to serve as nighttime makeup. I just wasn’t super impressed with the colors. I purchased a matte pink lipstick from the collection , but I had a hard time finding anything else I wanted from the line. That is saying a lot for me. I can find a rational reason to purchase almost anything.

3) Too-Faced Centerfold lipstick- The perfect, perfect, perfect shade of nude/mauve/pink. Seriously, this is the color I have been searching for. I almost never look at the Too-Faced collection. I don’t know what it is- maybe the packaging? But something turns me off about the line. Yesterday, while perusing the Sephora flagship in SFO, I saw a makeup artist applying Centerfold to a girl with my coloring, and it looked amazing. I promptly purchased. I am hoping this will show up on camera. We shall see.

4) Neutrogena Advanced Solutions Acne Kit- This collection just won the Allure Best Acne Skincare collection for the 2nd straight year. Becoming increasingly disillusioned with Proactiv, I decided to give it a try and I think I am loving it. (But I always love new skincare at first, so I will have to report back on this one.) I do feel that my skin is a bit clearer and more “glowy” after about a week and a half on this line. I haven’t cancelled my Proactiv yet, but I am thinking I will.

I have long obsessed over Loeffler Randall boots. They have the slightest little wedge heel and have a slightly pointed toe. They come in this awesome rich patent colors, look good with jeans and dresses, and are absolutely boot perfection. While I systematically refuse to drop $800 on them, I have been on a secret search for a good replica for at least 3 years now, ever since I first eyed them on a fashionable gal in the Starbucks in my old building in New York. At any rate, I have excellent news to report. I found a reasonable copy at Aerosoles. Yes, I know, Aerosoles is sort of matronly and lame and you would never ever shop there. But I am telling you that hidden in the boot section I found a gem of a boot- almost identical to LF’s except in a shiny brown faux snake-skin. Soft, comfy, and perfect. And for $120, you cannot go wrong. I promptly purchased and am in love. I see myself wearing these with skinny jeans and a comfy, oversized sweater. (It really is too bad that San Francisco has backwards seasonal weather and just when I want to bust out Fall clothes, it is 90 degrees outside.)

There are some times in life when you want to start fresh. Out with the old. I go through this phase every so often, and it usually involves me cleaning out my closets or throwing out the loads of old shampoos and conditioners I have collecting in my linen closet. Who knows what prompts this urge to move on. It could be emotional or seasonal, but whatever it is- I am seriously feeling it now. I want to redo everything. I want to toss my makeup drawer (or more likely bring it into the office and let the girls here tear through it. Half the stuff has never been used.) I also want to clean out all the items I totally over-wore this summer- gladiator sandals, Tory flip flops- and never look at them again. Other fresh starts may be needed too. We shall see. But the old is making me positively crazy right now. Time to move on to something new!

The September Issue just opened in San Francisco, and I have to admit racing to the theater to see it. I am obsessed with fashion magazines- I have been since I was 7 years old. When I thought of what my life would be like when I was a dreaming pre-teen, I always imagined myself working at a fashion magazine. It wasn’t until I graduated from college, interned at Seventeen Magazine, and the cruel realities of the editorial paycheck set in that I realized I could not live in New York City on $15,000 a year. So, I moved on to other pursuits but have always held a dear place in my heart for magazines and that entire world. Because of this, I knew I would love The September Issue. It gives fascinating insight into the creative forces behind American Vogue, Anna Wintour’s magazine. She touches all of it- literally every piece- and her influence is feared and revered all at once. She is such a strong figure that the world’s most renowned designers literally revise their collections to meet her approval and present previews of their line to her and her team with quivering hands. And for all of her iciness, I find her amazing. Anyone who read reviews of the film learned that Grace Coddington, Vogue’s passionate Creative Director, was the movie’s breakout star. She lives for the work she does for the magazine and her intensity and passion are visible throughout the film and throughout the pages of the magazine. All I can say is that I loved the film, and while rumor has it that McKinsey is at the Conde building at 4 Times Square slashing budgets and employees even as we speak, I can only hope that Vogue remains unscathed. It is fashion and beauty and art all at once. The true fashion bible.

It was last year that I blogged about my love of Rachel Zoe. As her show has, thankfully, returned to BRAVO, my heartfelt love for her has returned, tenfold.  First off, her sensibility is so right on, it amazes me. On last night’s episode, she dresses to take the Marc Jacobs fashion show by storm, and I promise you that few could pull off her shoulder-padded, patterned jacket and top with Louis “tranny” shoes any better. My heart soared as she pulled clothes for a “day to day” wardrobe for Liv Tyler. It was as if she were pulling items for me! Her understanding of what someone, particularly a mom, wants to wear about town in a city is just uncanny. As Liv tried on her baggy shorts and sporty sundresses and then paired them with a leather jacket, I mentally catalogued her looks intent on finding cheaper knock-offs and making them my own. In addition, I could listen to her talk about fashion for days. I want my own private Zoe to walk me through my closet each morning. I am, in a word, obsessed.