Dear Laura,

I’m desperate. For many years I have searched for the perfect highlighter/illuminator that would give my skin a subtle glow akin to the skin of celebrities on the red carpet. For many years, I failed.

Finally, I found it: your Face Illuminator, widely hailed as the greatest product to hit the beauty market since your revolutionary tinted moisturizer. My heartbeat quickened as I read the reviews online: “life changing”, “the best beauty product I’ve ever purchased”, “great for all skin types, especially pale skin”, “makes you look prettier than you ever imagined“. I readied myself for finally reaching the holy grail of shimmer, and I rehearsed what I would say when I got millions of compliments about my makeup. “Oh yeah, it’s no big deal, just this sick Laura Mercier illuminator. I know, so pretty, right? You should totally buy it.” #shitgirlssay

What a fool I was. Anything that cool is clearly sold out everywhere, and anyone who hasn’t already bought it is clearly a huge loser. I checked your own site, Blue Mercury, Sephora, Nordstrom, Saks, Neiman’s, Bergdorf’s, Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, the list goes on. I Googled it to death and even went four pages into a Google search trying to find it. I made phone calls to every local retailer to see if one lonely compact magically still lingered on the shelf. Not one face illuminator exists anywhere along the Eastern seaboard.

Just as quickly as they were created, my dreams were shattered, and a deep, dark devastation settled over HCG. My mood grew so despondent I even resorted to searching for this product on eBay and, as much as I love getting limited edition things that others cannot find, I just can’t stomach dropping $150 on a $42 face illuminator (to the person selling this on eBay – F you). Plus, my recent successes with after-Christmas sales have placed certain restrictions on my discretionary spending budget. That Neiman’s sale gets me every year.

Do I blame myself for not knowing of this product earlier when it was released in the fall? Of course I do. But I don’t think I deserve to be tortured in this fashion. I became so crazed for your face illuminator that I seriously debated stealing the used sample I saw at Sephora this weekend until Joe convinced me (1) I would get arrested and (2) stealing a sample is dirty even if you scrape off the top layer. I should’ve done it when he wasn’t looking.

Please release more of this product. I beg you. I’ve learned that certain LM retailers have received additional shipments of other recently released limited edition products, but no face illuminators were ever provided. WHY GOD MUST YOU TORTURE ME? Are my weird undetectable skin/food allergies not enough?

I will not rest until I obtain this product.

xo,
HCG

P.S. I think you’re awesome.

HCG loves a messy side bun – or a messy bun positioned anywhere on the head, really. Yours truly has a serious amount of hair (we’re talking long and heavy), and keeping my mane back in a bun requires at least 72 regular bobby pins and more upper arm strength than any woman should need to secure her hair. The effort is worth it, though, to achieve our favorite messy bun inspiration:

When we heard Goody created some newfangled spiral bobby pins that allegedly could hold up all of our hair with minimal effort, we laughed for a long time (hahahahaha!). But then we broke down at Target and decided to give these spin pins a try, and the results were shocking. Not only did the spin pins successfully hold up all of our hair for an entire 15-hour day, our messy bun stayed put even when we shook our head back and forth. Read that last phrase twice, friends.

This handy little how-to that accompanied the spin pins was so easy to follow and, most importantly, the process actually worked. Even considering the normal handicap all new hair/beauty products require, mastering the spin pins is incredibly easy. Just look:

No, really, that’s it. We’re sorry we doubted you, Goody. Did we mention we love you?

Goody Simply Styles Spin Pins, $6.29 at Target

Spring keeps teasing us here in Philly, but stupid winter refuses to let go its sad, cold grip on our region and our hearts. We’ve had enough of tights, boots and pale skin, and we’re in desperate need of some serious sunshine. Just as we were contemplating our next spray tan to at least pretend warm weather is around the corner, HCG reader and friend Brittney inquired all the way from St. Louis:

What are the chances HCG has a self tanner (face AND body – I have high expectations of HCG at this point) product review coming down the pipe?

Brittney,

Thanks for your confidence in HCG. We’re all over this one! For years HCG has used Kiehl’s Sun-Free Self-Tanning Formula for Face and Body – it’s the only at-home self tanner that is gentle yet effective enough on our super sensitive and very pale Irish complexion.

The last part of the product name (”for Face and Body”) is one of the many reasons this is HCG’s self tanner of choice. Unlike other at-home self tanners, the Kiehl’s version is perfectly safe for use on the face. It manages to gradually deepen your color without causing any adverse skin reactions.  Although this product does have a slight unavoidable self tanner smell, the smell is not offensive or overpowering.

As is the case with all at-home tanning products, HCG has found that this self-tanning product is most beneficial when used to extend a spray or natural tan, but we’ve used it in the dead of winter when we’ve had no base tan, too, and the product has yielded great results. We love this stuff so much we go through several bottles each summer. That may sound excessive, but the bottle size is relatively small, and, as much as we enjoy the experience of lounging in the sun, we are not interested in prematurely aging our skin or jumping on the skin cancer train.

Hoping you’re bronzed and glowing in no time!

xo,
HCG

Kiehl’s Sun-Free Self-Tanning Formula for Face and Body, $22.50 at Kiehl’s and Nordstrom

A great neutral nail polish is tough to find. As much as I love the Essie pink classics – Mademoiselle, Ballet Slippers, Sugar Daddy – they can be a bit boring and sometimes too bridal. Every once in a while, a girl needs something a little more interesting than the same old blah colors to switch things up.

I was pleasantly surprised when I grabbed Essie’s Lyford Lilac off the color shelf at my nail place on Saturday. Like many nail polish colors, the name isn’t entirely indicative of the color. Lyford Lilac isn’t really lilac but rather a mauve creamy coffee-like beige with a purple undertone. As my friend Dara remarked over the weekend, your skin tone dictates how Lyford Lilac will look on you. For those well-versed in Essie colors, Lyford Lilac is a lighter, more beige sister to Mink Muffs (based on the timing of my Mink Muffs post, it seems I tend to lean toward these colors in March. Weird).

After a winter of deep dark colors and smoky grays and metallics, Lyford Lilac is the perfect transitional color to boost my mood for spring. Now all I need is 75-degree weather, endless sunshine, an M&M Blizzard, a poodle and a high-paying, low-stress part-time job and I’ll be all set.

Essie Lyford Lilac, $4.99 at Amazon and $6.00 at Luxury Parlor

When it comes to eye makeup, HCG loves a sharp, jet black eyeliner on the top lid. We’ve been frequently disappointed when our eyeliner fails to stay put and, only hours after application, causes us to look like we applied it the morning after a night of binge drinking in a poorly-lit public bathroom on the Pennsylvania turnpike. Alas, we have found hope in the Get in Line liquid eyeliner from mark, the younger, allegedly cooler division of Avon.

This miniature size product has gotten a lot of press lately. We’ve followed its progression in magazines and on beauty blogs and often found ourselves thinking, “Is that mark eyeliner really as awesome as everyone says it is?” We even resisted purchasing it despite Lauren Conrad’s constant proclamations that it was life changing because, really, does Lauren Conrad need our help in succeeding in life?

We eventually gave in and this liquid eyeliner is now part of our morning routine. The tiny little brush is perfect for precise application and achieving a winged eyeliner look, and the painted black version is a wonderfully dark black. It took us a few tries to perfect the application of this eyeliner, but we’ve got it down pretty well after a week of daily use. The best part of this product is the eyeliner’s refusal to budge – seriously. After 15 hours of wear – including an after-work pilates class – we experienced no smudging or scary raccoon eyes (sorry Little J, but that’s just not the look we’re going for. Also, we’re relieved your return from exile was only one episode long. We really can’t handle the whole child prostitute + horrible extensions thing you refuse to give up).

The ticket price is pretty sweet, too. Even with shipping, our entire bill was less than most high quality liquid, cream or gel eyeliners. If black eyeliner isn’t your style, fear not – three other colors are available as well. Brown eyeliner? Little J wouldn’t dare.

Get in Line Hook Up Liquid Waterproof Eyeliner in Painted Black, $6.00 at mark

Yes, it’s ridiculous, but HCG is a proponent of $200 eye cream.

Like many women in their late 20s, we have a lingering fear of prematurely aging. Part of this fear may be innate, but we’re pretty sure most of it is due to the constant barrage of anti-aging products and advertising young women encounter every day. Whatever the reasons for this fear of aging, we have long been convinced that every woman should use a good eye cream. I first started using eye cream shortly before I turned 21, and I remember thinking I was already 10 years too late. In the years that have followed, I’ve used many different eye creams and have been consistently disappointed. After so many years of failure, I decided a serious focus on the high end eye cream market was in order.

Linda Harding, my gifted facialist at Rescue Rittenhouse Spa, shared some words of wisdom a few years ago that resonated deeply with me: There are two things in life worth spending extra money on: 1) fragrance, and 2) eye cream.  More money buys better ingredients. We know Dateline and the Channel 6 Action News team may disagree with us, but their investigative scientific work is no match for the HCG research team. Linda’s wisdom as applied to fragrance is simple.  You KNOW a cheap fragrance when you smell it, and the same goes for a more expensive scent. This advice from Linda has become my personal anthem for life, and I share it with anyone who will listen.

I’m happy to report that Linda’s line of reasoning has proven true in the eye cream arena. HCG spent months researching and testing two of the most expensive and popular eye creams on the luxury market: the La Mer and Chanel eye creams. I requested samples from the La Mer and Chanel counters at Neiman’s and employed the slick tactic of telling the sales associates at the Chanel counter that I was currently using La Mer and was considering switching to Chanel and vice versa at the La Mer counter. Brilliant, I know. I obviously appeared to be a very wealthy lady because I was awarded samples the size of a typical eye cream container. These samples lasted for months and afforded me the opportunity to determine which eye cream was worth a small fortune.

Although the La Mer eye cream was satisfactory, it didn’t give me the results I sought after dropping $200, and the results I experienced after using the Chanel eye cream were just too good to ignore. The Chanel Sublimage eye cream is by far the best eye cream I’ve ever used. Within a few days, any fine lines were practically gone and, after nearly a year, I still have at least 1/3 of the eye cream left. The gut-wrenching price tag doesn’t seem so bad when stretched out over 12 months. The texture of this eye cream is thick but not heavy and is rich enough to require only very small amounts for each application. Believe me, HCG treats this stuff like pure gold and uses as little as possible each morning and night. I once dropped the glass container on my bathroom floor and practically cracked my jaw diving to catch it. I shudder just recounting that heart-stopping moment.

We fully acknowledge that $200 is an embarrassing amount of money for a non-celebrity or someone other than Melinda Gates to spend on eye cream, but this is one area where HCG has no cheaper alternatives. We spent the past seven years trying lots of less expensive (and we’re not talking cheap) eye creams with no success. In some cases, the eye cream moisturized but didn’t diminish fine lines (see how the anti-aging marketing language has become part of my normal conversational speech?). In other cases, the product would leave my eye area dry, itchy and red. Never did I find something worth the twice-daily application by my oh so delicate ring fingers.

If you’ve had great results with a more reasonably priced eye cream, give us the deets!

Chanel Sublimage Eye Essential Regenerating Eye Cream, $200 at Saks and Neiman Marcus

A summer filled with weekends spent on the beach means the feet are in need of some extra attention by the time August rolls around. While I faithfully use The Body Shop’s Hemp Hand Protector to soften my soles, a good foot lotion gets a girl only so far.

A solid foot scrub is necessary to keep your feet as pampered as possible. Enter Lush’s Ocean Salt Scrub, a bright blue and fresh-smelling scrub made primarily of sea salt and lemon, lime and grapefruit juices. The Ocean Salt Scrub is labeled “face and body scrub,” so I was unsure that it would be intense enough for the feet. But the sales associates at Lush in Philly assured me it’s the best product to use on feet, and, fortunately for them – HCG hates nothing more than a liar pushing a product – they were right.

The Ocean Salt Scrub is rough enough to get the job done but not so harsh that it hurts, and the avocado and coconut fats help to moisturize the skin. The best way to use this scrub on the feet is to apply a small amount of thick foot cream on dry feet (as mentioned above, I use the Hemp Hand Protector) and then go to town with the scrub – note: very little scrub is necessary. Rinse, pat dry and slather on your foot lotion for optimum results. At the Haus of Gina, this ritual takes place right before bed, and we awaken to super soft feet in the morning.

If you don’t feel like dropping $20 on foot scrub, just mix together some sea salt and random juices in a bowl. I’m sure you’ll get the same result.

Ocean Salt Scrub, $19.95 (4.2 oz.) at Lush

HCG cherishes our summer manicure/pedicure sessions, and these recently released Chanel nail polish colors will surely be added to our stable of favorites.  Nouvelle Vague, a shimmery soft turquoise, reminds us of Chanel Jade – the fall 2009 limited edition green we obsessed over last year.  We can easily envision ourselves wearing this sea blue shade nonstop for the rest of summer.  The punchy pink Riviera could not be a more perfect color for toes, and Mistrial would make for a neutral, fresh but not boring at all manicure.

Is there really anything better than a stack of magazines, a perfect mani/pedi and an icy cold drink on a hot, lazy Saturday?  Perhaps that line up followed by ice cream and a nap.

Chanel Le Vernis Nail Colours, $23.00 each at Chanel.com, Macy’s, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Saks or any store where Chanel beauty products are sold.

Just because we’re deep in the middle of summer does not excuse HCG from our obsessive daily moisturizing regimen.  In fact, weekends spent lounging on the beach tend to leave our skin needing more hydration than usual.  We’ve dutifully kept up with daily applications of our longtime Kiehl’s staple Creme de Corps even though it was starting to feel a little heavy in the oppressive Philadelphia summer heat.  When our one-liter pump of the CDC finally ran out, we ransacked our arsenal of Kiehl’s samples and decided to go nuts and try something new.

The lucky little Kiehl’s sample packet we tore open was the Imperial Body Balm, a recently-released body moisturizer promising to revive and soften lackluster skin.  It took only two consecutive uses of the IBB to realize that the product was worth giving the CDC the boot, at least for the summer.  Although the IBB is much thicker than a typical body lotion (it is a body balm, after all), it’s not at all greasy.  At least 8 hours after initial application, the skin still feels hydrated.  This stuff is A-MA-ZING.

And, unbelievably, the best part about the IBB isn’t the way it makes your skin feel – the best part is the scent.  The first time I applied this body balm before coming to work in the morning, MR chased me down to ask what scent I was wearing.  The mixture of cocoa butter and honey is muy delicioso!

There’s just one downside to the IBB: the product is available in only one 8-ounce size, which is pretty large for an initial purchase and too big for practical travel (unless you’re going to Hawaii for two weeks at the end of the summer and relish the slow application of luxury body products while on vacation.  In that case, take the large size with you).  HCG recommends grabbing a few samples to ensure you like it before diving into the large size.

Kiehl’s Imperial Body Balm, $42.00 at Kiehl’s or Nordstrom

If you fancy yourself a beauty product junkie, you’re no doubt familiar with the long-running hype about NARS Orgasm – the shimmery peachy pink color with a cult following which was born into a blush and blossomed into a lip gloss, multiple stick and even a limited edition nail polish for Sephora.

HCG has long been a fan of Orgasm, and the gloss is one of our go-to wands.  The color is universally flattering, incredibly wearable and gives off a soft, glowing sheen.  NARS glosses aren’t overwhelmingly shiny, so they work well in situations calling for a more understated lip color (i.e., work meetings).  But as much as we love Orgasm and other NARS gloss colors, we were disappointed to learn that the consistency of NARS glosses varies from tube to tube.  My first NARS Orgasm gloss was smooth and creamy, but the most recent tube I purchased was an entirely different animal – sticky, tacky and difficult to apply.  Even despite this flaw, I still wear Orgasm on top of Kiehl’s Lip Balm #1 if necessary (the #1 helps to create a silkier texture) simply because the Orgasm color is damn near perfect.

If $24 seems like too much to drop on lip gloss for yourself, think of your friends the next time you’re in need of a small present.  HCG loves gifting (and receiving) expensive lip glosses.

NARS Lip Gloss in Orgasm, $24.00 at Nordstrom and  Sephora