Decisions, decisions. Stroll down any beauty aisle and it can be overwhelming. So many prod ucts...and prices! Well, Well combed the corners of the cosmetics cosmos to pick products that deliver the biggest bang for your beauty buck. Never be bummed by body wash, blusher or lip balm again!
Lipsticks
1. Almay Stay Smooth Anti-chap Lip Color in Cherry, $9 Honest-to-goodness, old fashioned cherry red.
* 2. Too Faced in Kitten, $15 A glitter-infused grape for kittens on the prowl.
* 3. Avon Ultra Color Rich Renewable Lipstick in Flirty, $6.50 "Mom, what are you talking about? I'm not wearing lipstick!"
* 4. Fetish in Emotional, $6 That perfect purple-y/bronze-y/shimmery shade to wear in winter.
* 5. Julie Hewett in Nude Noir, $18 That perfect pink-y/bronze-y/shimmery nude color that feels like summer.
* 6. Bare Escentuals i.d. In Luscious, $15 Gives you that great "I just ate a popsicie look, without the sticky chin.
* 7. Skin-market Lip Paint in Smooch, $8 For lips as lovely as rosebuds.
8. * Fetish in So Sexy, $6 A great, sparkly, deep cranberry.
* 9. Cargo in Big Sur, $15 A sparkly pink that doesn't look like you borro wed it from Barble.
* 10. Clinique In Raspberry Glace, $12.50 An everyday shimmer with a nice berry hue.
* 11. Cargo in Sahara, $15 Light, lovely pale beige.
Lip Gloss
Skinmarket Fruity Lip Syrup in Why Resist, $5 Super-glossy with a touch of clear pink
* Clinique Glosswear for Lips in Juicy Apple, $12.50 An exact match for your pucker, plus it feels great. You could wear this playing sports and no one would mock you.
* Bloom Lip Gloss In Sugar, $16 A sweet belge-y pink
* Two Faced Gossip Gloss in Snitch, $16 We love the container. We love the cotton-candy color Adorable!
* Senna Lip Lacquer in Kissy, $16 No wimpy color here--glossy hot pink!
* Fetish Lip Shine Wand in Let's Go, $5 Brown with a touch of purple but nottoo much shine.
* The Body Shop Satin Lips in Cherry, $10 Oddly, it's a great grape gloss.
* Skinmarket Magic Wand in Hot Rod, $7.50 A true glossy red! Va-va-vooml
Lip Kits
Some days, you just can't decide what color you want to wear That's why we love duos and lip kits!
Flavored Gloss & Balm
Cargo in Walla Walla, $15 The perfect pink by day For some edge, add a dab of the deep purple at night.
Tommy Hilfiger Sparkling Color Kit in Pink Palette, $25 Every single color rocks, and you can gloss them all with glitter. Fabulous!
Smackers Roll-on Shimmer in Strawberry Kiwi, $3 Really, is there any competition here? Smackers has the flavors and formulas to make us smile.
Better Botanicals Ajowan Lime Up Balm, $5 You'll dig the unique flavor of lime and herbs blended with kokum butter. And it's Veganl
We Love It!
Lora Lip Polish in Frolied $17.50
Lora Lip Polish In Amuse, $17.50
We've always wondered what it would be like to use nail polish as lip gloss. Now, Lorac has super-shiny, super-colorful gloss in tiny bottles with adorable brushes! Cute!
Body
Body Wash
Get Fresh Bath Salts in Cucumber Mint Tea, $17 Bye-bye, bubbles. Hello, bath salts! You'll dig the energizing scent of this cucumber and mint combo. Get Fresh adds a hint of olive oil for extra moisturizing power. Your bathtub will beg for more.
Tommy's Lemon Cream Pie Shower Mousse, $18 leaves skin feeling fresh, clean and oh-so sweet. Use it with a puffy body scrubber (those net-like ball things). Dee-lish!
The Body Shop Mango & Peach Bath and Shower Gel, $12 We've died and gone to mango-peach heaven. It feels great, smells unbelievable and lather better than most gels.
Bath & Body Works Refreshing Shower Gel in Absolute Tulip, $7.50 Cleans and moisturizes skin with a crisp, flowery scent. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Shaving Creams
Skintimate Moisturizing Shave gel in Peaches, $2.50 Clings to legs like Cool Whip on a Jell-O mold. Gives a clean close shave and smells like Georgia in July.
Terax Body Pr'ax Moisturizing Shaving Cream, $10 If you've ever felt like your legs were being sanded instead of Shaved, you've gotta try Terax. Smear on a little and your razor just glides over your skin, giving you a super-close, super-silky shave. Ahh...
We Love It!
Benefit's Pineapple Facial Polish, $24 Yes, the stuff costs more than most of your clothes. But one sniff and you'll happily Dole out the dough. Extoliating beads and pineapple smoothers leave face feeling soft.
Scrubs
St. lves Apricot Body Scrub, S3 Gentle enough to use on your face but packed with micro-scrubbers that leave feet and elbows feeling silky smooth. Fnuit-tastic!
Bare Escentuals Liquid Loofah Body Brightener, S12 This serious scrub is made of crushed walnuts but smells like German chocolate cake. Go figure. Really smoothes off dry, flaky skin and rinses clean.
Body Lotions
Girl 28 Lemon-Lime Body Lotion, S18.50 If you love Frult-stripe gum, you'll understand our deep attachment to this lemon-lime, light yat super-motsturzing lotion. Sinks in and leaves you smelling faintly like Sprite. Obey your dry skin!
Bath & Body Works Purely Silk Body Lotion in Sweet Pea, S9 Ever wish your lotion would leave you soft and silky and smelling like Sweet Tarts? Yummy.
St. Ives Cucumber, Melon & Vitamin E Lotlon, $4 Wanna pay $4 for a big bottle that'll last the winter? We love St. lves Cucumber Malon-and not just because it counts as a serving of fruits and vegetables. Oh, we're kidding.
Girl 28 Lavender Body Scrub in Groavy, $28 Doesn't leave you covered with a thick, glue-like film. Leaves your skin soft and you smelling like a French beach holiday.
TeTao Chinese Herbal Therapy Body Smoother, $12 The ancient Chinese secret of this body scrub is its citrus-peppermint smell. Not too abrasive-even for gats with sensitive skin.
Dusting Powder
Origins Ginger Glimmer Glistening Body Powder, $25 There are a zillion ways to shine (everybody and their grandmother seem to love major glitter), but we love the subtle sparkle of this powder and its sweet, spicy scent. Dust night where you want it Sassy!
Nail Polish
Nails
We Love It!
Andrea Nail Q's Clean Up Sticks in Strawberry, $3 If you're ambidextrous, please feel free to skip ahead. If not, polishing boo-boos are bound to happen. For quick and easy clean-ups, grab one of these oh-so convenient cleaner-uppers and swab away all evidence of stray polish. They even smell delightful.
Glitter Polish
Tony & Tina Sparkle in Evolution, $10 Other glitter polishes only coat like a faint dusting compared to the glitter blizzard of Tony & Tina's polish. Fat flakes cover your whole nail--wimpy sparkles need not apply Evolution (a cool silver color) makes your nails look like little disco balls. Groovy baby!
Nail Polish Remover
Tony & Tina Nail Paint Remover, $10 We freely admit lust about any drug-store brand will take off your polish (though please look for the acetone-free variety). But how many generic no-name bottles look this lava-lamp cool sitting in your bathroom? We thought so.
Top Coat
Sally Hansen Mega Shine, $6 Last year the trend was nails with a dull, matte finish. Who's the killjoy who thought up that awful idea? Not us! We want our polish fresh and shiny, even days after we do our nails. That's why we brighten up our manicures every other day with a fresh coat of this miraculous stuff.
Nail Therapy Kit
Barielle "5 Gems of Barielle" Nail Therapy Kit, $14 Everybody has problems: weak nails, thin nails, soft nails, blah blah. Pity the poor soul who has all these problems at once! Barielle sure does. That's why they made these five minis that solve all your nail issues in one neat kit. Even comes with a quick-dry top coat. Yay.
Eyes
Eye Shadow
TRENDY BLUES
Isabella Rossellini's Manifesto in #04, $15
Bare Escentuals i.d. in Blueberry, $11
Girl Cosmetics Velvet Eye Shadow in Satellite, $14
Cargo in Lake Louise, $14
We Love It!
Petite Lashpro Curler, $19 Never leave a straight lash behind! The Petite Lashpro finds fringe other lash curlers miss. By bending your lashes in small sections, you get a prettier, more eye-opening effect.
Mascara
THE BEST BASICS
Cargo in Georgia, $14. Bare Escentuals i.d. in Demure, $12 Tommy Hilfiger in Quiet, $10
PRETTY SPRING PALES
Senna Glow Eye Color in Fantasy, $13 Bonne Belle in Little Pinky, $2
BEST TRENDY KIT
Fira in Dream Girl, $10
LASH FATTENING
Bourjois Volume Glamour in Noir, $12
LASH LENGTHENING
Rimmel Endless Lash in Rich Brown, $3
Eye Pencn
Girl Cosmetics Glitter Eye Pencil in Cyberbabe, $12 Think glitter lavender eye pencil wouldn't be wearable? Well, probably not for gym class, but we're amazed how much this pencil brightens everyone's eyes.
BEST BASIC KIT
Clinique High Impact Eye Shadow in Double Date, $12
CLINIQUE
Face
Blush
Lorac Lip/Cheek Sheer Wash in Sheer Emotion, $24 Roll on cheeks, and then blend quickly for cute "I was just playing in the snow" cheeks.
Girl Cosmetics Blushed Cream to Powder Blush in Flushed, $18 The prettiest sheer pink glow. Blends easily before drying to a dewy powder finish.