I am not even going to pretend - I am a sucker for a good lip product.  That product can have great packaging, a great concept or just be a great color.  I do not discriminate.

Avon's new selection of lip products just make sense.  They are practical & functional with a hint of fun, just like real women need.

My favorite new Avon lip product, launching in July, is the Pro 3-In-1 Lip Wand (pictured at left).  Available in 10 shades for $9.50 each, the product has everything you need in one.  Lip liner is coming back in a big way (who doesn't desire perfectly drawn lips), plus coordinating lip gloss and lipstick brings everything you need for your day perfectly packaged into one wand.  Jillian Dempsey, Avon Global Creative Color Director (and wife of mega hottie Patrick Dempsey), helped design the coordinated shades with a satin finish.  Her expert tip? Blend lipliner with a touch of gloss so you don't get a harsh line.

Are you the kind of girl that carries 5 different lip colors for one day? I've carried 11 lip products in one day - true story.  Starting in June, you can combine 7 different shades of lipcolor into the same container.  I don't know how Avon has done it, but it's pretty darn spiffy.

Merely turn the dial on the bottom of the package, and you can customize your lip shade from the two chambers of color contained inside the packaging by clicking from 1 through 7.  Jillian recommends starting with the darkest shade, and dabbing the lightest shade in the center of your lips to create fuller lips.  Don't you just love an optical illusion?  Specktra Color Lipstick is available in 10 shades (x7 gives you 70 colors) for $9.50 starting this June.

Who knew Avon could be so innovative?  To check out more of Jillian Dempsey's influence, check out the Professional Collection.

Designer Rachel Roy sat down with all around cool girl and Rachel Rachel Roy lookbook model Karen, author of WhereDidUGetThat.com, to chat about her design sensibilities and the upcoming diffusion line.  If you can't get enough of Rachel Roy, follow her on Twitter & fan her on Facebook.

K: Youʼve already created a strong presence in the design world with the Rachel
Roy brand. What made you want to branch out into a diffusion line?

RR:  Iʼve always wanted to do a clothing line that had designer sensibilities, that really
respected the art of design and the thought behind design. What I didnʼt understand
was that to do that well costs a lot of money and therefore, the garments cost a lot of
money.

Growing up, I was not able to shop in the kind of stores that had the kind of clothing that
I wanted. I just couldnʼt understand why you couldnʼt put what I was seeing in
magazines into the stores that I had access to. But as I got into design and retail, I
started to understand more.

When you pay a fair salary for labor and you get fabric from Italy, the cost goes up and
up, until you finally have a $1,000+ garment.  So, how could I do everything that Iʼm
trying to do in designer for a wider audience at a lower price point? Itʼs not easy. It takes
a lot of money, but when I partnered with Jones Apparel Group, they had that backing
so it was the perfect opportunity to say, What story can I tell and what design details can
I do that really still respects the customer, the idea and the art of a designer point-of-
view at an accessible price point?

I have one foot in the designer world and I think with that side of my mind. The other
side is, Iʼm a consumer, I want a good deal yet I want beautiful clothes that I can afford.
So, itʼs always been something that Iʼve really wanted to do - itʼs a balance.

K: How would you define the typical Rachel Rachel Roy customer?

RR: Iʼm designing for a girl that likes to have fun with fashion, take risks with fashion,
wear prints that donʼt necessarily go together, wear colors that donʼt necessarily go
together. So, hopefully sheʼs a girl that if sheʼs not yet willing to take risks, weʼre
allowing her to do that, and giving her some confidence to just have fun with clothes,
and tell a story through clothing.

K: How do the pieces in this collection reach women of diverse backgrounds?

RR: Thatʼs a great question, but you know, clothing is clothing, and girls are girls, and I
think clothing appears to your style and your sensibility, not your color, or your hair color,
or your eye color. Itʼs the nice thing about art, itʼs the nice thing about fashion, itʼs the
nice thing about music. If you like it, you like it, and it really has nothing to do with where
you were born, or who youʼre born to, or what economic status you were born to. Itʼs
just opinion at the end of the day, and itʼs just fun. 

K: Tell us about your designer line versus your diffusion line. How are they
different? Is one more versatile than the other?

RR: I definitely think that the more inexpensive collection is more versatile, because you
can obviously buy more and mix it up more. Itʼs the same sensibility, same point of view,
sheʼs just much younger, so sheʼs at an earlier stage in her life than the Rachel Roy
designer brand.

K: What are your favorite pieces in the new Rachel Rachel Roy collection?

RR: I have a few. The trench coat, itʼs kind of an abstract leopard print. I also love the
silk jersey jumpsuit because itʼs easy and chic. The jeweled ballet flat is also a must - it
dresses up any look.

K: Which of the Rachel Rachel Roy pieces best represents you?

RR: Me personally? You know, honestly, I change from day to day.  What I love is that
clothing allows me to change with my mood. I like not necessarily being boxed into one
thing, because I think women have so many aspects to them.  

K: What is the one article of clothing every woman should own?

RR:  I think we should all have those easy pieces that make us feel really good quickly
without a lot of effort. So for me personally, thatʼs a well-tailored blazer that you can put
over a jumpsuit, a crazy beaded dress, or little shorts with stockings, which is a look I
love. You can do to the same thing with cardigans that you can do with blazers. Itʼs also
always nice to have little, frilly underpinnings, so you can feel nice on the inside, no
matter whatʼs going on on the outside.

(photo credit:  Paula of Older Girl Beauty)

During The Makeup Show on Sunday, Amber of Beauty Blogging Junkie and I had the opportunity to chat with the Stila's latest girl, new owner Lynn Tilton.

Upon first meeting Lynn, you realize she is one tough chick.  From her tanned skin to her shiny blonde hair to her love of boots, she seems to be every bit the opposite of what you would think a savvy businesswoman would look like.  But within seconds of speaking to her, you realize she has her sh*t together, and she knows what she's doing.  She may not be able to write the encyclopedia on Stila's vast product history, and she's okay with that.  She is open to becoming every bit the Stila girl, while focusing on the company's distribution and customer retention.  She was so eager to purchase Stila that from the time she heard the brand was for sale to the time the deal closed took all of 10 days.

Sephora may currently be Stila's biggest door, but Lynn is making strategic moves to entice the Stila girl to StilaCosmetics.com. The ink is barely dry on the contracts and you can already see evidence of her savvy.  Stila has just launched the Stila Love rewards program.

It is similar to Sephora's Beauty Insiders, but with a much better points system.  When you spend $100 on StilaCosmetics.com, you receive free shipping for the remainder of the year.  At $250, you receive $50 to spend on the site and at $500 spent, you receive $100 to spend on the site.  It's a pretty great incentive program for a brand whose customers have such a passion for the product.

Towards the end of our conversation, Lynn asked Amber & I's opinion on something - "What do you think of the brand Jane?".  We both became so excited - Amber believes Jane is one of the most underrated drugstore brands, and if you've spent 5 minutes with me, you know how much I love the pan bronzer in #07 Sunkissed (the best bronzer for pale gals!).  Lynn has such a passion for saving struggling companies, and Jane is certainly on her radar.  (If you love Jane leave a comment below!)

If you think that drugstore news is good - try this - Lynn is toying with the idea of Simply Stila.  Simply Stila is conceived as a drugstore brand with similar products for half the price.  Would you buy Simply Stila or are you simply a Stila girl?

All in all Lynn Tilton is a delightful woman, who is truly a force to be reckoned with in the business world.  From helicopters to Arizona Iced Tea to Stila, she's one smart cookie.  I can't wait to see what she has in store.

Speaking of - today & tomorrow only use code STILAPRO for 40% off plus free shipping - how much do you love Stila?

Before you go getting googlie-eyed at this post, you should know that I was SO nervous and SO excited that there are no photos or video.  So sorry, but that's the truth.

I learned of a Pat McGrath/Dolce & Gabbana The Makeup event at Saks Fifth Avenue via Makeup Minute.  I instantly made an appointment, and inquired as to the minimum purchase requirement. I was shocked when the woman on the other end of the phone answered "None".  Curious, excited and nervous I headed to Saks for my 1pm appointment.  After waiting about 15 minutes while the darling Princess Poochie had the artists work their magic on her.  Once I got in the chair, a darling makeup artist (eeps, can't remember his name) took a lot of time walking me through the line, explaining the products to me and making sure I had a great experience.  During the session, I heard a boisterous woman talking to the makeup artist behind me and walking him through the application on the customer behind me.  This woman, I later learned, was Pat McGrath's assistant.  When my MUA was almost finished, Pat herself glided down the aisle of Saks, walking up to each customer to say hello, and direct the MUA to getting our looks just right the Pat McGrath way.  She was so kind, so sweet and so eager to talk to all of us.  I truly walked away feeling like we shared a genuine moment.  Now THAT is what I call an experience.

What I purchased from the line:

• Dolce & Gabbana The Nail Lacquer in Stromboli (AMAZING) $20
• Dolce & Gabbana The Eyeliner in Stromboli $29
• Dolce & Gabbana The Eyelinerin Coffee $29
• Dolce & Gabbana The Eyeshadow Quad in Nude $59

While in the MUA's chair, I overheard and learned a few things:

• Anything named Stromboli is a must have (obviously I bought into this by my nail polish and eyeliner purchase)
• Notice I didn't purchase a lip gloss? The glosses were recalled due to a defect in the brushes - the brush hairs literally fell out!
• Paula of Older Girl Beauty overheard during her appointment that the reason there were no makeup brushes available for purchase was that D&G could not decide on the logo for the handle, therefore they are not available for purchase
• The lipsticks smell like Estee Lauder, aka old lady
• If you watched RuPaul's Drag Race, you might remember Rebecca Glasscock, one of the finalist drag queens.  Outside of the dazzling drag world, Rebecca is known as Javier, who is apparently a Freelance Makeup Artist.  He was the one receiving all the coaching from Pat McGrath's assistant.
• Don't even think of attempting to open the nail polish bottle while the gold cap is still in place. You must remove the cap to expose quite a boring, black corrugated lid to open the polish.  Design fail.
• The D&G counter at Saks Fifth Avenue is directly across from the Giorgio Armani Beauty counter.  I like to call this space the Pat McGrath hallway of greatness

Overall, I think the line is overpriced for what it is. The Stromboli color is STUNNING and an absolute must have from the line.  The brushes were soft, but I'm not even 100% that these were the brushes from the actual line.  The assortment of bronzers is amazing, and the powders in the eyeshadow quads are smooth. I think the price I paid for the products was worth my experience, but I can't say 100% that I would be repurchasing the product.  I purchased the experience and the opportunity to shake hands & double kiss with a legend.

Have you had a chance to check out the line? Is there a color/product you're dying to see?

It has a been a long (and exhausting) day spent at The Makeup Show NYC.  More photos and recaps are coming, but I wanted to share with you some of the great brands and products that were represented (clockwise from left to right):

• Smashbox Fushion Soft Lights in Sunset (can't seem to locate on their site)
• Mini gloss in Accessories
• Mini gloss in Happy Hour
• Naked loose pigment in Urban Rustic #05
• Luminess Tan Airbrush Tanning System
• Giselle Cosmetics 6 in 1 Eyeshadows in Contradiction
• Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Loose Color in Glisten
• 3 Custom Color Lipstick in Frangipani
• Pencil Me In Eye Accent Pencil in Indigo
• Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Lip Tar in Grandma
• Stila 24k Appreciation Gloss in Brilliant Pink
• Stila 24k Appreciation Gloss in Golden Charm
• Stila Convertible Mascara

Any favorites? Any products you wish you could get your hands on? Any products you want me to review? Tell me in the comments below!

Also, since the winner of the 2 tickets to The Makeup Show NYC didn't contact me, if anyone wants to attend tomorrow (May 18) leave a comment below - 2 tickets are still up for grabs, and the first comment wins!

I’ve been using a flat iron since high school. It’s not that I have insanely curly hair; I just like my hair to look as straight as possible. You have to imagine that over a decade of straightening can cause hair to look a bit, dare I say, frazzled at the ends.

I’ve tried a few products that only leaving my thin hair looking oily, even if used sparingly. And some do little more than leave my hair feeling wet or slippery. However, I have found renewed hope with CHI Silk Infusion.

Not only is it lightweight enough to prevent greasy tresses, but it makes those flat iron-fried ends looks silky smooth. It smells great to boot!

No matter what type of hair you have, with continued use, this product will more than likely work wonders for your damaged ends, as it did for mine! Just don’t apply too generously!

CHI Silk Infusion is available at BeautyChoice.com for $8.95

Beka authors reLYME.com and is an all around rockstar - don't believe me? Visit her site to prove me wrong ;).