T3 Bespoke Featherweight Hairdryer

This is not a post for those of you with stick-straight, smooth, glossy hair. This is not a post for those of you who let your hair dry naturally every day, or for those of you who blowdry your hair and don't have to finish it up with a flatiron or curling iron. You will read this post, roll your eyes, and ask who in the world would pay $200 for a hairdryer.

No, this is a post for those of you with hair that is curly/wavy/frizzy/coarse/thick or all of the above. This is for those of you who dread humid days, would never set a foot out of the house with even slightly damp hair, and have thrown out a shoulder in an effort to blowdry your hair into submission. You guys will understand my love for the amazing T3 Bespoke Featherweight tourmaline blowdryer.

Okay, let me first say I received this as a gift--I'm not sure I could have shelled out $200 for it, because I didn't know how awesome it was. Now that I know, I can tell you, it's worth it.

First, it is incredibly lightweight, which is so necessary when you have really thick hair that takes a while to dry. By the time I make it to the back of my head with a regular hairdryer, I just feel like giving up. The T3 is so effortless to work with, it takes a lot of the work out of drying your hair. It's incredibly quiet. And it dries hair so quickly, 60% faster than normal hairdryers, according to the T3 website, and I believe it. It has significantly shortened the time I spend drying my hair.

But most importantly, it leaves you with shiny, smooth hair. I still sometimes flat iron the ends, but that's it. Once it's dry, my hair stays smooth even in the humidity. So it lets you keep the volume in your hair, which I always miss when I flat iron from roots to tip. On top of all that, it's supposed to be less damaging to your hair than regular dryers.

Here's the explanation of how it works from the T3 website:

The Tourmaline negative ions seal the cuticle, locking in moisture while eliminating static and frizz. The far infrared heat penetrates the hair strand drying from the inside out— without over-scorching the surface of the hair.

If you're happy with your hairdryer, you don't need this. But if your hair is on the frizzy side, I think you'd love the T3 Bespoke Featherweight. Yes, it's expensive, but it's that much more effective than every other dryer I've tried.

My fave new sunscreen for face

You guys know I'm a little crazy about sunscreen. I am like the fairest person in the world (in an extremely pale sort of way, not a Snow White/Magic Mirror sort of way), so sunscreen has always been a priority of mine for health reasons--no skin cancer please! But I've also become suddenly and extremely afraid of wrinkles. So on summer days in Texas, when the temperatures are as insane as they have been recently, I feel my regular SPF 30 is not enough, and I pull out the big guns--SPF 70!

This Aveeno Continuous Protection Sunblock Lotion for Face is so great. It's oil-free, and not greasy at all, so it won't cause breakouts. The scent is very mild, so you can definitely wear it to the office, but it's also waterproof, so it's perfect for the pool as well. SPF 30 already blocks about 97% of UVB rays, so SPF 70 doesn't increase the protection that much, but every little bit helps--I figure why not get the best protection I can? And it has broad spectrum coverage, so it protects against both UVB and UVA rays (if your sunscreen doesn't say that it protects against both, it may only protect against UVB rays, so look at the packaging before you buy). It also lasts through 80 minutes of sweating or swimming. Not much is getting through this stuff! $10.99, at Drugstore.com (a bargain compared to the plastic surgery you will need later if you don't protect your skin now!)

Strawberry Carmex

Remember Lip Smackers, the flavored lip glosses that were in the caboodle of every 11 year old girl? I loved them, and had a ton of flavors. Fast forward 20 years later, and I feel a little too old to stock Lip Smackers in my makeup bag, so I was pretty excited when my friend Ashley introduced me to strawberry flavored Carmex. I'm completely addicted to this stuff. It has the signature tingle of the original Carmex, but has a really sweet strawberry scent (it's not flavored, but it smells amazing). It's also super moisturizing and has SPF 25. Only $1.79 at drugstore.com.

OPI Matte Nail Color

I'm totally intrigued by OPI's new line of matte nail polishes. It could be awesome, or it could look like you took a magic marker to your nails. The color I'm most interested in is Russian Navy, featured in the gorgeous Marie Claire shot above. Shiny blue nail polish is a little much, but matte seems more wearable. Per OPI, the matte colors don't wear as well, and you're also not supposed to wear a topcoat with them, so this is definitely not a low-maintenance look. But can't you see this against all the fall jewel tones? Definitely worth a try I think. It comes in several other shades as well, including Alpine Snow (a bright white, which may or may not make you look like you got into the white-out while bored at work) and Lincoln Park After Dark (the classic deep, deep plum).

My New Favorite Deep Conditioner

If you color your hair, your stylist has probably told you that the sulfates contained in drugstore brands of hair products will strip your color and leave your hair like straw. This in turn has probably frightened you into leaving the salon with $30 bottles of shampoo. No more! Finally there's a drugstore line of products that contains no sulfates, the L'oreal EverPure system.

I tried the EverPure Smooth Deep Control Mask last weekend, and I really love it. It is really thick and rich, and left my hair smooth, shiny and super soft. AND it's under $10 AND it smells really great, it has a rosemary mint scent that is very spa-like--I promise you will not miss your salon products one bit, and you can use the money you save to buy something much more fun than conditioner. $8.99 at drugstore.com. I'm going to buy the entire line.

Smoothing Lip Balm

Sorry readers, I know I have been a terrible blogger recently, but my life has been super busy lately! I will try and do better!

So with that, I have to share with you this great lip balm I recently discovered. My lips were so chapped and cracked, it was horrible, and my regular old Chapstick was not doing the job. Enter this Berry Smooth Lip Nutrition Lip Balm by Neutrogena ($7.59 at Drugstore.com). Two weeks later, my lips are perfectly soft and smooth. It's a miracle worker, truly.

It has little jojoba beads that gently exfoliate your lips. It's also really moisturizing and smells delicious. Seriously, buy this now before your lips react to the winter weather!

Aveeno Hand Cream

I really like this Aveeno Intense Relief Hand Cream, $6.79 at drugstore.com. It's very creamy, not greasy, it absorbs really quickly, and it has serious staying power. The bottle says it lasts through hand washing, and it really does. It makes your hands really soft, and never feels sticky. It has really helped my cuticles look better too. My one criticism is that I wish it had SPF in it, but other than that, it's a great product.

Best Facial Cleanser

Cetaphil without a doubt makes the best facial cleanser around. I've been using it forever. It's extremely gentle, and works on every type of skin. It leaves my skin feeling really clean and fresh. And it's cheap! $11.99 for 16 ounces at Drugstore.com! You can't beat that. Personally, I like the version for oily skin. Don't waste your money buying face soaps with a bunch of treatment ingredients in them, they just wash down the drain. Spend your money on treatments that you apply after washing your face, where they'll actually do some good. There's no reason to spend more on face soap, this is the best. Highly recommended.

Best Concealer Ever

I cannot live without this product. Seriously. I need it to survive.

It's Prescriptives Flawless Skin Total Protection concealer, and I'm pretty sure it has magical properties. It covers all those dark undereye circles beautifully, and has SPF 25 so you get sun protection for the undereye area as well. It also works on blemishes, sunburns, redness...you name it. It's a cream to powder formula, and provides great coverage.

Note to Prescriptives: If you ever discontinue this product, I will have to hunt down your scientists, steal the formula, and start making this out of my garage. So please just keep making it.

Powder Sunscreen

I absolutely hate when I'm out with a full face of makeup and need to reapply sunscreen. There's nothing worse than smearing on a creamy sunscreen over powdery makeup--yuck. You basically wind up taking off all your makeup.

That's why this product is genius!! It's mineral SPF 30 from Peter Thomas Roth. The powder is inside the brush. All you do is swipe over your existing makeup and you are protected from both the sun and smeared makeup. Available at Sephora for $30.

My latest nail obsession

Chanel has a new line of nail colors out, the limited edition Robertson Boulevard collection. The colors are so fun (from left, L.A. Sunrise, L.A. Sunset, Melrose and Rodeo Drive). I have to have the pink and purple, they are adorable. The collection was created to celebrate the opening of the new Chanel store on Robertson Boulevard in L.A., and is available at the new store on May 31. The rest of us have to wait until July, and, I kid you not, there is a waiting list. Ridiculous? Yes. Do I love the ridiculousness? Again, yes. Is my name on the waiting list? If you have to ask, you don't know me at all. $25 each at Chanel.com.

Summer Body Wash

I am a sucker for tropical scents, especially this time of year when it is getting sooo hot outside. I was wandering around Bath and Body Works last week when I stumbled across this "Fresh Pineapple" scent. I don't know if it's new, but I had never seen it before. Um, it is delicious. I want to drink it. It smells like a perfectly ripe pineapple with a little coconut thrown in. It's the body wash equivalent of a pina colada. It's really fresh and light. It's pretty much the perfect summer scent, and I am loving it. $9.50 at Bath and Body Works.

Best Deep Conditioner

Okay, I'm not sure this is THE BEST deep conditioner, because I haven't tried that many, but I really love it, so I had to share it with y'all. Neutrogena Triple Moisture Deep Recovery Hair Mask.

If you color your hair and don't use a deep conditioner, your hair hates you right now. Using a deep conditioner every now and then is a must for keeping your hair in good shape.

I have really thick hair that I completely abuse with color and heat styling. This stuff makes my hair really soft and smooth. I use it once a week in place of my regular conditioner, and it keeps my hair really healthy. I cut it like once every 6 months, and have no split ends. Also it smells great, and is only $6.99 at drugstore.com!

If you have really thin hair, this might weigh it down, I don't know. It's pretty heavy. But if you have thick hair and/or coarse hair, this should be perfect for you.

Best Eye Makeup Remover Ever

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a woman in possession of a good mascara must be in want of a great eye makeup remover (sorry, I'm re-reading Pride and Prejudice for the thousandth time).

Anyway, given my intense love for mascara, you must have anticipated my reliance on eye makeup remover. After trying out a lot of brands, both more and less expensive, from drugstores and department stores, I say there's none better than Almay Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover Pads (make sure you're buying the oil-free kind--very important, or you will end up looking and feeling as though you have smeared vaseline around your eyes). These pads remove all traces of end-of-day raccoon eyes, and are so gentle. They're made with aloe and green tea, and are really soothing on your eyes. Highly recommended, and only $4.99 at www.drugstore.com.

Best Self-Tanners

It's that time of year again when I realize that my everyday winter rituals of sitting around inside watching TV while wearing sweat pants and eating chocolate have somehow not resulted in a perfectly bronzed, toned, swimsuit ready body. This weekend I'm hitting the beach with some girlfriends, and while the toning isn't going to happen with one week notice, the bronzing I can definitely handle.

Now, I'm by nature a very pale person. Like Nicole Kidman pale, but without her lovely, glowy aura. I'm also not really that into skin cancer, I'm more an SPF 50 kind of girl. So I'm all about the self-tanner.

Self-tanner is extremely tricky. I've used several that I like--L'oreal Sublime Bronze is pretty good--but the best, by far, is Origins The Great Pretender, which is 17.50. There are so many reasons why this tanner is superior. It's tinted, so you can see where you've already put it--essential in self- tanning application. Also, I like it because it's a little bit shimmery--don't worry, it's not like body glitter, but it contains mica, so it just gives you a little shimmer in the sunshine. It doesn't smell like most self-tanners, it has kind of a minty smell, and is not super strong. It leaves your skin super soft. But the best thing about it is the color--it gives you a true tan color that is not at all orange. You can buy it at the Origins store at the Domain.  As far as application goes, just make sure you exfoliate first, rub in completely, and apply lotion to your feet elbows and knees after applying.

For face, I really like Neutrogena Build-a-Tan for Faces, which is $8.99 at drugstore.com. This has SPF 15 and is oil free, has a really nice smell, and gives a golden color that builds up gradually over use, and doesn't streak. I use this as my daily moisturizer in the summer.