I love it when Allure Magazine gives away free stuff!  The products are so great and it’s actually not that hard to win them, but it is really hard to keep track of all their giveaways!  Well, with technology, comes great improvements–they’ve got a new system where you can be alerted about giveaways every time they happen.  Text “FREESTUFF” to the shortcode ALLURE (255873), and you will get a reminder sent to your cell phone a half-hour before each giveaway begins.  Good luck!!

Last night I tried Kai Perfume Oil from one of my friends and I loved it so much that I’m going out to buy a bottle right now.  I just googled it and it’s $45, but it’s a small price to pay for that scent!!  If you love tropical, fresh scents, you need to go out and try this.  It’s like you’ve just picked a bunch of tropical flowers and pinned them to your shirt, or put them in your hair.   I loved the gardenia tones, and it’s not overly girly or flowery either–it’s got that “fresh/clean/exotic” thing going on, which I am dying to have for the summer!!  The best part about the roll-on is that it’s potent, so a small amount goes a long way, and the bottle is so compact that you can toss it in a clutch or purse with no worries about weight.  This is a winner with an A++ scent!

Clinique just came out with this new powder, which they say covers up your imperfections and reduces shine without the usual heavy feeling that foundations and pressed powders sometimes give.  When I read about it, I went out and tried it because I loved the description:

The ingredients are combined in liquid form and evaporated into a powder with tiny air pockets to give it a lightweight texture.”

I really liked how light the powder felt, and the color I tried (neutral) worked great.  It also comes in lighter shade categories (Very Fair, Moderately Fair) for fair skin, which is something that some readers have been looking for.  I also like how there are all these antioxidants and moisturizers to give it added benefits (Vitamin E, SPF, etc.).   For the coverage and protection, it definitely didn’t feel like a standard heavier product–I think it’s great for summer, when shine definitely becomes an issue! ($22.50)

Earlier this week, actress Blake Lively, star of “Gossip Girl,” wore Minx Silver Lightning nails to the Nina Ricci After Party for the Met Ball in New York City. Minx nails are a new nail fashion made of flexible film, and available in sparkly metallics, personalized graphics and photo-quality designs currently unavailable in the market. Minx gives women a new and glamorous way to extend fashion to their fingertips.

Celebrity manicurist Elle Gelle did Blake’s nails with Minx for the event.

Who else has been Minxed to date? Top stars like Beyonce (who wore Minx at the AMA awards, which you covered in your blog), Victoria Beckham, to model Riley Presley (Elvis’ granddaughter who wanted Silver Lightning toes) and Lady GaGa (she had nude Minx with black fishnet overlay for her new album cover!).

I read this great story in People magazine that I know you’ll find inspirational too for your Mother’s Day weekend.   Abbey Curran (20) is the reigning Miss Iowa USA who competed in this year’s Miss USA pageant in April.  She’s got everything a Miss USA contestant would have, only she was also born with cerebral palsy, which forced her to wear leg braces until age 10 and limp, dragging her left foot behind her.  When she told her teachers that she wanted to be like the beauty contestants she saw on TV, they encouraged her to be realistic because she could never be like them.   Instead of discouraging her, the comments made her work harder to be what she wanted to be…and now, in addition to competing in the Miss USA pageant, she raises funds to hold the yearly “Little Miss You Can Do It” pageant for disabled little girls and young women, hoping it will inspire them to “be whatever they want to be.”  Says the beauty queen:

The biggest hurdle isn’t cerebral palsy.  It’s getting over what everyone else thinks.”

Now I’m not sure how you feel about beauty pageants, but I love this story because it shows that perseverance and believing in yourself are what really makes you shine.  Feeling good on the outside is great too, of course, which is why we love beauty products!!  But here’s Abbey Curran’s perspective, which I’m definitely taking with me from her very moving story!:

I believe it’s the heart that matters most, then I’ll worry about the hair.”