Sassy Auburn's Diary Of A Glamour Junkie…

Today, I will conclude my 1^st Annual Sassy’s Slammin’ Style Awards. A couple of weeks ago, I handed out the little bronze shoe award to different items in the field of fashion and accessories. Today I will honor items that were discovered this year that keep me looking my youthful best on a day-to-day basis. These skin care and makeup products might not be new to the retail market, but they are new in my routine. Maybe they came my way via a sample, advertisement or referral. No matter. They are award-worthy. So, a round of applause to…..

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Best Performance By A Facial Moisturizer

RÉNERGIE MICROLIFT R.A.R.E.™ Superior Lifting Cream SPF 15 Sunscreen by Lancome – Just like a movie trailer, samples are a tease to get the public interested in their feature so when it becomes available, you’ll want to be the first in line to be a part of it. That’s how I was lured into falling in love with this moisturizer. Lancome managed to put  age-fighting ingredients as well as a decent SPF into this rich cream that keeps my face smooth all day long. After one week of usage, I noticed an immediate difference in the texture and tone of my face. I no longer had uneven redness, my fine lines were less noticeable and my face was softer. With most products that contain an SPF, I was worried my sensitive skin would freak out, especially since it contained so many other high tech ingredients. But after using it the first week, I was happy to see that it didn’t. I was also very happy that I was able to find ONE product that was able to do the job of three. The price, I will say is steep ($80)! But the jar is quite large and the amount you use is very small. I think it is very possible that it will last well over 6 months. (Available at Sephora.com)

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Best Performance By An Eye Cream

Eye Believe by Philosophy – If keeping your face looking young is as important to you as drinking bottled water, then keeping your eyes looking young and wrinkle-free should be as important as taking the cap off of the bottled water! It is a fact that your eyes are one of the key indicators of aging. You want an eye cream that keeps the skin in the eye area moist and well hydrated. BUT… here’s the key… if you get a cream that is too rich, you can actually clog the small pores around the eye causing tiny clusters of little white bumps. That’s bad. Very bad. I tried this eye cream for a week and loved it almost immediately. It’s a silky cream that isn’t too heavy or thick, but still has all of the age-fighting peptides that are crucial in youthful looking eyes. It glides on with a powder-like finish so you can put your makeup on right over it and not have to worry about any greasy residue causing your eye makeup or foundation to slide off your face. Again, a little goes a long way. I’m just finishing up my first tube, and I’ve had it for almost a year. (Available at Sephora retail stores and Sephora.com)

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Best Designer Performance By A Drug Store Product

Lip Shimmer by Burt’s Bees – The name Burt’s Bees is as well-known in the glamour industry as Coke is in the area of beverages. I will admit, I’ve read and heard fabulous things about their lip products but had never bought a single item. Every makeup review site I have ever written for or looked on has endless compliments about the Lip Shimmer products. Maybe I was just being a makeup snob, thinking that an inexpensive skinny little drug store tube could actually be so great. Well, I guess the crowd was right on this one! This long-lasting sheer shimmered color infused into a vitamin-enriched, natural balm is perfect for moisturizing my lips for an extended period of time and giving them a designer look. Plus the slight mint tingle is soothing as well. Available in 11 various colors, this little goodie is now a constant in my purse while being easy on the wallet! (Available at most drug and retail stores)

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Best Supporting Role In A Hair-Styling Situation

frizz Wave Shaping, Curl Defining No Frizz Styling Cream (for Medium to Thick Hair) by Living Proof – While returning a hair product that I had purchased recently because it basically turned my hair into a glob of matted muck, my favorite salesgirl clued me in to this hot new product. She told me that The Today Show featured the frizz line on a recent episode, and before 5pm they were completely sold out of the product. What makes Living Proof’s line of anti-frizz products so unique is that they are designed for several different types of hair. They have specific items just for fine/medium, medium/thick and thick/course hair. And if you aren’t sure exactly what group you are in? They have a guide to help you find your formula. I have just a touch of wave in my color-treated, thick hair and I wanted a product that would enhance that without making it feel gluey. I wanted something to moisturize my hair while still controlling frizz. I don’t ask for much, do I? But they had exactly that! Not only was this light, nicely scented solution able to do all of what I wanted, but they also managed to create it in a way that actually repelled dirt! If I don’t wash my hair on Day 2, it’s no big deal… it looks just as fresh, soft and clean as it did on Day 1. Say goodbye to hiding under the hat on bad hair days!! (Available at Sephora retail stores and Sephora.com)

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Best Performance By A Foreign Fragrance

L’Eau The One by Dolce & Gabbana – Sometimes you will get a whiff of a fragrance that smells totally unique, completely different from any other scent that you usually wear. It intrigues you so much that you keep sniffing your wrist or the little cardboard card where you spritzed a test spray to see if it jazzes you as much after an hour as it did when you first tried it. That’s what I did when I tried D & G’s newest fragrance. Its description of having a “fruity, head-turning twist” is dead on. It is a more glamorous scent with a hint of diva-tude than your average citrus-infused perfume, but still appealing enough to wear with anything and everything… from jeans and a glitter t-shirt to a backless evening gown. (Available at Nordstrom.com)

Tags: balm, Burt's Bees, Dolce & Gabbana, eye cream, fragrance, frizz, hair, Lancome, lip, Living Proof, moisturizer, Philosophy, shimmer