Product Fiend

FAREWELL YOU FIENDS

2008-12-31T18:00:00Z

The other day, I caved and went to a dermatologist. She told me to lay off all the fancy products and put me on a strict regimen of the following sexy sexy PX staples:

Benzoyl Peroxide 4% Creamy Wash (to prevent breakouts)
Clindamycin Phosphate Topical Lotion 1% (antibiotic for acne)
Tretinoin Cream 0.05% (retinol for acne and sigh, anti-aging)

That's right. No sumptuous eye creams. Silky serums? Not so much. Zero glow-inducing exfoliant. Why am I even bringing this up? Well, in one way, it seems oddly fitting to share this new, no-nonsense routine on the last day of Product Fiend, a blog essentially devoted to the endlessly fascinating minutiae re: skincare news. But it also seems appropriate to share as we hurtle--and I do mean headlong--towards 2009, a year that seems destined to be defined by simplicity.

Not to be all Debbie Downer, but when Obama said that in the coming months ahead, we're all going to have to make sacrifices, yada yada, he wasn't being coy. Look, if you haven't been touched by the cold, bony Skeletor fingers of the recession yet, you know someone who has. Hell, according to the Times (ah, so sad to be linking to my last "Skin Deep"), even the well-heeled Park Ave plastic surgery patrons are tightening their alligator belts and cutting back on Botox. Sheesh. But seriously, times they are a changing and the frivolity of the past is well, behind us. And ya know what? Let's be optimistic here. From an environmental standpoint at least, that's not such a bad thing. Erm...]]> But, against that cruel, minimalist backdrop, we're certainly proud that Product Fiend stood out from the crowd and evolved to be a blog about so much more than pores. We've discussed politics (oh Sarah!), corporate greenwashing, which beauty and fashion ads make us feel weird, cosmetic manipulation, airbrushing and CGI, the role of plastic surgery in our society, which famous people set a good example and which ones just make us sad, oh and so much more. And yeah, we did call out a few duds and a whole lot of miracles in a jar and even Etsy gold. We even persuaded one beauty manufacturer to discontinue the use of plastic beads that endanger marine life. That was pretty awesome.

If anyone's actually interested, I'll still be showing up around the interwebs now and then (for one, do check the most excellent The Frisky), and today, with some trepidation, I begin my own diary, Style Slacker, a blog that continues in the Product Fiend tradition with critical beauty coverage but also all kinds of say, sartorial observations, pop culture (music, books, film, YAY), and well, I guess what they call "lifestyle" coverage for chicks that are too lazy--some say "lazy," I say "evolved"--to get all Martha Stewart/Rachel Ray on that ass. Ladies like you. Please drop in and say "oi!" some time.

Anyhoo, I'm feeling kinda cry-cry right now, so just wanted to thank the AMAZING team of Fienders (Susan! Nazy! Wendy! Sarah! Ricky! Oh my! Also! Tom Wallace and all you executive boys for taking a chance!), the readers (BIGGEST MWAH!), the makers of delicious beauty products that we know are all superficial and stuff but goddamn--yum--and well, I'll miss all the goodness.

Next year, may the simple things in life give you immense pleasure. And may your skin look absofuckinglutely luminous.

xoe

P.S. Smell ya later...

PARTING IS SUCH SWEET SORROW

2008-12-31T16:30:00Z

I'd be lying if I weren't sad about the news that Product Fiend was going to be ending as of today. I was in on the ground floor, reviewing products and writing notes for months before we had a site or even a name. In fact, it's no coincidence that Product Fiend has a lot of things in common with my own personal product blog, Product Anarchy. I wanted to take a moment to thank you guys for indulging in our flesh-borne fantasies of perfect, glowing complexions. It has been an honor to be a guinea pig in our quest for the best bang for the beauty buck.

You can still find me, being anal and obsessive about ingredients and price points, over at Product Anarchy, where we talk about skin care and also, makeup, shopping and whatever else pops into our silly heads. Thank you for letting me go along with you on shopping trips and to the beauty counter. Keep in touch!

TRICKY PACKAGING? PLEASE GO BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD

2008-12-30T19:00:00Z

Sampar just sent me a sample of their new, peptide-filled Eye Rule--"Apply morning and evening to eye orb,"--ahem. And while I kind of love the idea of the roller ball at the end, the fact that you pump the product into the dispenser via a clicker mechanism--think Touche Eclat, but with a silver ball replacing the brush--reminded me how much these newfangled "high tech" packaging innovations annoy me.
]]> ExfoliKate. It really is one of those facial in a jar type of products that makes your skin look a thousand times better-glowy, even-toned, poreless-after you use it. HOWEVER. In order to access this holiest of holy elixers, you have to press down on this plastic contraption and it squirts out a measly dosage. Now, I have a couple of problems with this. First off, there are environmental concerns. Excess plastic means more waste. Second, after the first few times I used it, the dosages got smaller and smaller, so I was trying to polish my whole face with an amount of exfoliant equivalent to approximately one half of a pea. Then, the stuff dried up altogether. I assume that you're supposed to get more than approximately eight uses out of the jar--especially given the fairly outrageous $85 price tag--so most likely, some malfunction occurred here. I'd love to just hack it open and get at the good stuff that way, but that plastic is fused to the top and it's fucking indestructible. SO.

This tragedy is on par with the time my InFiore exfoliant molded.

Anyway, I like the Sampar stuff. It gives my eye area fatigue a run for its money. However, the complexity of the packaging truly concerns me. That's all I'm sayin'.

CAROL'S DAUGHTER HAS US ON A SUGAR HIGH

2008-12-30T15:00:00Z

Image via Carol's Daughter

Like 40-50 percent of the population, I have Keratosis Pilaris, which is annoying, rashy-looking, goose-pimple skin caused by a build-up of excess keratin (a naturally-occurring skin protein) around the hair follicles. Sure, it doesn't hurt or itch and is completely harmless, but it's also kind of fug. I find I get it most on the skin that is covered by clothing, so during the summer my lower arms look normal, but combine the drying elements of winter with long sleeves and it comes back with a vengeance. There's no known cure but the only way to combat the bumps is with constant vigilance via exfoliation and moisturizing with products containing alpha-hydroxies and urea (don't think about that last one too much). The easiest way to deal? Viva la body scrubs!
]]> Now that the winds are turning cooler, I'm on a quest to retain my hard-fought Pilaris-free summer state. Origins broke my heart when they discontinued their Pomegranate Scrub, so I've been road-testing a bunch of potential replacements. DermaDoctor's KP Duty is the only line that is specifically formulated to deal with the agony of the Keratosis situation, and while they do make a scrub, I'm reluctant to try it because I tested their standard moisturizer on my arms and saw negligible results after a month (sorry Dr. Kunin!). While I'm waiting for my delivery of the scrubs Erin suggested a few months ago, I've been using Carol's Daughter's utterly delicious Sweet Honey Dip Chocolate Brown Sugar scrub this month and can report that my skin is touchably smooth. So far, I've been sitting on my well-moisturized bottom for 10 hours a day and still defying the evil "back of the thigh" bumps, too. Also, I get a monsterous craving for a Cadbury's Crunchie bar whenever I take a shower, because this stuff smells omfg yummy.

Of course, you can always make your own scrubs easily enough (and I have, when The Body Shop discontinued my favorite aromatherapy sugar scrub but still carried the essential oil) too, and bonus, you can put it into a plastic container rather than take the risk of having the jar explode when it falls in your shower, leaving you stranded in a field of shattered glass while you're barefoot.

CHEAP, EASY, D.I.Y. DETOX/ANTI-AGING AT-HOME

2008-12-29T20:00:00Z

Don't ask me how I came across this random Wall Street Journal beauty article, but I did. (I suspect it had something to do with being bored one day at Aunt Merle's house over the holiday break or something like that.) But the main idea is this: Green tea is your friend. And it's ridiculously easy and inexpensive to incorporate ye old yet sophisticated anti-aging polyphenol action into your skin care routine. Here's a great tip, after the jump!
]]> We know there are tons of skin care products out there that make the most of green tea, and charge you plenty of money for it, too. But, hold the phone, tea is a relatively cheap and widely accessible ingredient, right? Well, apparently, even people who own their own skin care companies just deal with the real:

Ms. [Lina] Tanaka, co-founder of the Tokyo-based skin-care company Medical Research International, has made the inexpensive product into a central element of her daily skin regimen.

The medicinal properties of green tea have long been documented in Asia. Green tea contains chemical substances called polyphenols, which are antioxidants that mitigate the damage free radicals cause to the skin.

When Ms. Tanaka brews her daily cup in the morning, she sets aside a small serving to cool. Once the tea feels cold to the touch, she uses it to tone her skin. Ms. Tanaka likes to pour a little of the tea into her palms and splash it directly onto her face, but it's also fine to use cotton puffs, she says. She follows up with her usual facial creams so that the watery concoction doesn't dry out her skin. --WSJ

She also pours leftover green tea in a spray bottle and carries it with her to spritz on throughout the day. While I think this is a slightly crazy pants level of attention to pay to one's skin, I have to admit it's one helluva fantastic idea. Is this realistic or am I smoking green smack? You tell me.

Image via elite-tea.com

IN SEARCH OF AN AUTHENTIC INDEPENDENT SKIN CARE BOUTIQUE

2008-12-29T15:48:51Z

In my travels, one of the things I always check out before venturing into a new city is the situation on the skin care front. If you rely on Yelp or the various city websites, you'll walk into a place that has been raved about up and down the 'Net and then discover that, fuck, it's just another Aveda salon. Nothing against Aveda, but you can buy the entire line in any podunk town in this great nation and there are no surprises. I want to be tantalized. I want to see something new. I'm starting to think they don't exist. So far, I've found exactly three indie skin care boutiques that fit the bill...
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Herringbone (Berkeley, CA): I wandered into the shop by accident, as I had arrived early for reservations at Chez Panisse up the street and lucked into a fantastic discussion with proprietor Shawn Burke about indie skin care lines. I walked out of the store $100 poorer and loaded up with as many free samples from Shawn's stash as I could get. If only I hadn't scheduled a date with Alice Waters, I would have rested my head on Shawn's shoulder and poured out my sad tale of gigantic nose pores and super sensitive skin. Lines include Komenuka Bijin, Skyn Iceland, Dr. Jessica Wu, Anthelios, and Protective Nourishment, among others. Considering that Shawn showed me not one, not two, but three lines that I had never heard of, you're sure to be surprised by the stock.

Rouge Luxe (Martha's Vineyard, MA) Okay, this one is a little diluted with some semi-mainstream brands (I love the stuff, but did we really need another place to buy Bliss or Kiehl's?), but it shines in the nooks and crannies with smaller lines (Olivina, MOR, Mistral) that would never see the light of a Sephora, so I can forgive them for devoting so much counterspace to the bigger lines. Besides, I would probably be distraught if I hit the salty waters and then realized that I had forgotten my Kiehl's Leave-In Conditioner with UV.

Skinfo (Lincolnshire, Il). Goofy name that almost kept me from driving to the Chicago 'burbs to check this place out but I was very glad that I put my prejudice behind me. Run by derm Dr. Amy Taub, Skinfo is loaded to the rafters with its own brand as well as an eclectic assortment of high- to mid-range skin care brands like Obagi, Prevage, Skinceuticals and the hard-to-find Blue Lizard. The boutique definitely isn't as artful as the previous two, but the medical cred and the on-staff skin care specialists make up for the somewhat drab shopping experience.

DO WE REALLY WANT TO SEE OUR POLITICIANS NAKED?

2008-12-23T18:12:43Z

Apparently, someone does. Chicago artist Bruce Elliott is the mad genius behind the "Nude Governor Series," which so far includes Sarah Palin and now, of course, Rod Blogojevich in a tasteful, delicately rendered little ditty titled, "The Cavity Search."

Yeowsas!

]]>

If you too, stay up all night speculating what Rod's, eh, rod might look like, see these paintings on display at the Old Town Ale House in Chicago (ahem, owned by Bruce's wife). But do hurry. I think such masterpieces are clearly destined for grander exhibition spaces, not to mention the fact that private collectors are gonna snap these up faster than a Damien Hirst diamond skull. Why, look at all the press they're already getting!

Elliott cites many sources of inspiration for the painting, which shows the governor, who was arrested last week on corruption charges, preparing for a potential first day of incarceration. Among them: the extent of the governor's alleged misdeeds and the artist's desire to respond to criticism from Republicans and women about the Palin portrait by painting a Democrat in the buff.

"I was stunned when I found out what that criminal complaint [outlined]," Elliott said as he examined the painting in his Old Town studio. "Hopefully, someone is going to find this irreverent."--Chicago Tribune

Irreverent? Sure. Irrelevant? Um. Hmm...

Image via Fraccers

"YOU CAN CALL ME FLOWER IF YOU WANT TO..."

2008-12-22T17:22:53Z

Mayhaps you've heard that I'm a fan of In Fiore, a small San Francisco-based company that makes gorgeous, all-natural skincare products and divine fragrances that are refreshingly, the opposite of what a scent by say, Paris Hilton or Britney Spears (or let's face it, their corporate "people") might make.

Anyway, they have a new face cream called Creme de Fleur Complexe Rejuvené! And of course I'm obsessed! And it's really rich which is great because it's frickin' freezing outside! And it smells like heaven! And I know these exclamation points are ridiculously annoying which is why I'll stop using them after the jump. Follow me...
]]> As I mentioned, it's really cold right know which means a lot of folks are dealing with dry skin. I'm not going to lie to you and say there aren't cheaper drugstore lubricants that'll do the job (Eucerin springs to mind), but for the lady (or dude) who loves a little luxury in her life and ahem, still has disposable income despite these hard times--god bless ya honey--BUY THIS INSTEAD.

It's got some pretty standard, straightforward humidifiers: There's avacado-, jojoba-, rice bran-oils and shea butter, and infusions of antioxidant green tea and seaweed. Now, word on the street is that they can also boast a "High Resonance Water Base," derived from volcanic filtered water that somehow helps the ingredients be more efficacious. (I will have to check with my buddy, cosmetic chemist and blogger Niki Wilson on that one someday, but moving on.) Being a sucker for the amazing way In Fiore combines scent and sensibility, this cream may cost $150, but it smells like a million. This is not some crappy grandmotherly floral aroma. You get hit with hints of Bulgarian rosewater, bergamot, neroli, jasmine, sage and rosemary, and it's anything but cloying (unlike my schoolgirl crush on this brand). And if it sounds incredibly rich and fragrant, which, I guess it kinda is, the texture is light and sinks right in. Even my oily, sensitive skin loves it. I certainly wouldn't mind finding this stuff under the tree this year. Hint, hint...

IS A FACE TRANSPLANT ETHICAL?

2008-12-19T22:00:00Z

Being the extremely superficial person that I am, naturally I've been thinking a lot about the first U.S. face transplant. (Who wasn't obsessed with Isabelle Dinoire, the French woman who received the first partial one in 2005 after her labrador mauled her when she OD'd on sleeping pills? (Um, yeah, Jesus.)) It's astounding. Of course, part of the fascination stems from the fact that we can all identify with these women, on a few levels at least. The human face is so intensely personal--it's a bit more important than a kidney. And this seminal moment has precipitated a national dialogue about the breakthrough's ramifications: Should organ donors consider the fact that their face might be used in this way?
]]> And well, the questions keep on coming. Some experts have raised ethical concerns regarding these kinds of surgeries in general. Is it cosmetic, considering the fact that this is not a lethal defect? Given the extremely high risk of rejection, how do doctors justify the need to operate? Do concerns regarding the social ostracism of the severely disfigured experience on a day-to-day basis outweigh the medical risks? There are clear psychological implications. Indeed, the patient underwent intense questioning and mental diagnosis designed to weigh the potential effects of living with a cadaver's face.

The debate isn't brand spanking new. After all, high falutin' medical ethics committees in England and France once ruled that the surgery risks outweighed the benefits. But that was a few years ago, and obviously technology has advanced, and well, in some ways you have to wonder if the prevalence and social acceptance of plastic surgery doesn't play some role here.

Not to state the obvious, but human reactions to disfigurement are innate--the recent transplant recipient claimed that children cried when they saw her--so it's easy to understand how a patient would be absolutely desperate to achieve some degree of normalcy no matter what the cost. In some ways, social acceptance, or "fitting in," is something to be achieved at all costs, to the vast majority of us anyway. That's just human nature. But what if she had died as a result of the insanely complicated 23-hour procedure? (Doctors took different shifts so they could rest in between.) While the medical practitioners involved are currently being lauded for their success, would charges have been leveled against them had they failed?

I honestly believe it was the right thing to do. Certainly in this situation, where the subject could not eat or breathe properly, there were legitimate reasons to operate. But going forward, how will these decisions be made? Where will the line be drawn? Personally, I would like to have the option, and I'm happy and relieved for this woman and hope that the result is that her life is vastly improved. That's where I stand anyway. But it's not a black and white issue, now is it?

Of course, I have one more question: How do you feel about it?

IS THERE SUCH A THING AS BEING TOO PERFEKT?

2008-12-19T19:30:00Z

I've been jonesing for Perfekt Beauty's Skin Perfection Gel ever since Erin wrote about it last year, but I finally broke down during Sephora's Friends and Family sale and ponied up the cash for this Not A Foundation, Not A Primer.

I nabbed the shade Luminous, because as you know, my complexion is as fair as the driven snow during the winter months, but I did worry a bit about it being too dark. Like many foundations today, Perfekt claims that their colors will blend to your natural tone, but I didn't really believe it until I applied for the first time. The goop comes out really spackley (is spackley a word?) but then it seems to spread and melt into your skin until it becomes this perfect canvas of awesome. Jen's got a nice set of process photos in her own review, so you can witness the blending magic. What's even more unbelievable is that I had applied on my freshly washed face during a major rosacea flare-up and it actually reduced the redness without looking super chalky or thick like some foundations do, and the phrase that I couldn't quite shake was "fresh-faced!" even though it sounds achingly like a Cover Girl commercial (blergh). Also, where did my crater-sized nose pores go? I'm not sure but apparently Perfekt convinced them to take the night off, or maybe they got filled in with all of Perfekt's vitamins and the all-important alpha lipoic acid, the anti-aging super ingredient.
]]> Perfekt is a little hard to define: If you really had to put Perfekt Skin Perfection Gel into a definite category, it would be "tinted moisturizer," although the texture is the typical dry weirdness of silicone-based products and reminds me a lot of Dermalogica's Barrier Repair. It's like Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer and the sheerest professional airbrush foundation got together one crazy night and made a baby. What's most impressive is that throughout a very raucous holiday party that involved lots of sweating and trips out into the cold air, my skin still looked freaking radiant and, dare I say it, fresh-faced when I got home in the wee hours of the morning. Not sure how it will fare in the summer when the humidity makes everything slide down my face, but for winter beauty? Consider me sold.

If you're too nervous about investing a bunch of cash into liquid assets, Perfekt has nicely come out with a travel-sized version, so you can get your gorgeous on without breaking the bank.

WOULD YOU TATTOO A COMPANY LOGO ON YOUR EYELID?

2008-12-18T16:00:00Z

Oh boy oh boy, have we got a deal you can't refuse. A beauty website across the big river is paying, wait for it, 100 Great British Pounds (dude, isn't that like, $200 in American money?) for folks to ink their eyelids with their corporate logo and well, wink a lot. Finally, a recession-proof job with great benefits and all that lucrative foreign currency to boot. (Just like Gisele, you too can insist on getting paid in pounds!) Incredible. The details on how you too can get involved in this extraordinary offer, after the jump!
]]> Here's the want ad:

With the credit crunch continuing to bite, why not try an alternative way of making money by renting out your eyelids as advertising space.

feelunique.com is offering people the chance to earn 10 pence per wink in return for displaying the company's logo on their eyelid space. People who sign up to star in the campaign will have the feelunique.com logo temporarily transferred onto their eyelid and will be paid on a Pay Per Wink (PPW) basis -- up to a total of £100 per model.

Amy Rebours of feelunique.com says:

"We all take notice when we're being winked at so what better way to advertise feelunique.com than on people's eyelids. It's a genuine marketing first, which encourages people to spread a feel-good winking moment and earn some much-needed extra income in the process."

Okay okay, it's a temporary tattoo, but wow. Special. (And we thought that whole Bailey's porn moment was kind of genius marketing. Ha, amateurs!) I mean, can you even imagine getting to "STAR" in your own beauty ad campaign? Freakin' priceless. Hell, keep your fancy money. Sign me up!

NSFW BAILEY'S AD INTENDED TO BE SFW

2008-12-17T16:00:00Z

Um, right from the get go, I knew that somehow Bailey's new "sexy lips" campaign would get wildly out of hand. And well, their latest commercial, "Listen to Your Lips," proves it. I'm not sure if whatever highly paid ad team realized it or not--I'm gonna go with some frisky young 'un was cracking up and everyone else in the conference room was all like, "Yup, this is great stuff. Print it!"--but these images of creamy brown liquid dropping into a woman's slightly parted pink mouth reminds me of certain "exotic" videos my perverted neighbor used to try and get me to watch with him. It's kind of hilarious, definitely (unintentionally) raunchy, and oddly, totally, completely mesmerizing.

Get a load of this (ha), here.

And thank you Jezebel, for bringing this important cultural milestone to my attention.

READER Q: WHAT THE HECK IS THAT ON MY THIGHS?

2008-12-16T22:00:00Z

Dear Product Fiends,

I have a stretching / cellulite / unsure-what-it-is skin problem and I'm only a teenager! Across my hips and butt, I have raised lines that are darker than the rest of the surrounding skin -- they almost looks like scars. The marks are less than a pencil's width and are 1.5 to 2 inches long and spread across both my butt cheeks following the same pattern for the most part. I have a tan complexion and these marks are reddish-brown in color. I'm roughly 105 pounds, don't exercise actively, and I'm looking for a way to get rid of these marks. I'm very worried about them, especially since I live in an area where you go swimming everyday in the summer. I definitely don't want to go about wearing a bikini with marks like these. Do you have any products or exercises I could use to reduce or get rid of these?

Thanks,

Another self-conscious teen

]]> Dear Self-Conscious,

First of all (**don't freak**), what you're describing sounds like stretch marks. Despite the reputation, stretch marks aren't necessarily a sign of weight gain. It's simply the sign of skin being stretched and lots of teenage girls get stretchmarks at the joints of their limbs from the simple truth that you're getting taller. Yeah, it sucks, but what sucks even worse is that as a society, we hide and airbrush them away like its something we should be ashamed of. Lots of women have them. Gorgeous young women, like Scarlett Johansson, Halle Berry, Salma Hayek, and Paris Hilton.

I'm not aware of any exercises that can reduce or prevent stretch marks, but a deficiency in dietary zinc can cause them. Make sure that you're eating a balanced diet and getting lots of water. Also, race and genetics play a huge factor in whether you're going to get them: while fair-haired or fair-skinned women are more likely to develop striae, a survey of women of color found that 80 percent of them had stretch marks, even the younger ladies and women who had never been pregnant.

Now, that doesn't mean that you're cursed. There are lots of creams and lotions on the market that claim to reduce stretch marks, though I've never seen anything that has touched my own legacy from puberty. Of course, it certainly can't hurt anything to make sure that your bod is super supple and moisturized: if stretch marks form because the skin is stretched beyond its elasticity, it would follow that if you improve your skin's elasticity, it will be able to stretch a little better without scarring. However, the only scientifically founded way to get rid of them is by visiting a dermatologist or plastic surgeon. You said that the marks are still raised, so I'm assuming that they are still red, which means that you're a great candidate for knocking those suckers with some Retin-A, which has been found to be effective in diminishing the scarring, or fractional laser resurfacing.

There's always the camouflage routine: you can hide the marks pretty well by using a self-tanner (real tans don't touch the stretch marks and can make them stand out, so even MORE reason to wear sunscreen) or using body makeup, like Dermablend's Leg and Body Cover or my favorite (and totally waterproof) Make Up Forever's Full Cover and I've heard MAC's foundation mentioned at least a dozen times when this topic has come up, but I can't vouch for how well it would do on a high friction area like underarms or thighs. Whatever action you decide to take, it's most important to remember that stretch marks happen and they shouldn't prevent you from putting on a bikini and getting out in the sun and surf.

ADORABLE, AFFORDABLE, ATHENA'S AT ETSY

2008-12-16T15:30:00Z

Product Fiend reader and Athena's Olive Tree creator emailed me because she noticed that I'm kind of into Etsy and stuff and would I check out her wares? So I did. And I loved what I found.

Since Rachel started making homemade products at the age of 16 to help fight her own acne--dang, i just doused my face in Clearasil because I didn't know any better...overachiever much?--I trust that her breakout prevention pieces really have something going for them. Vegan-friendly Tea Tree Oil Acne Soap Bar sounds rad: Personally, I've been into tea tree since I got down with the Body Shop's line, but at $5.00 (and some nutmeg thrown in for extra goodness), this seems like a steal. And wouldn't ya know it? There's even more stuff, after the jump...
]]> Yes indeedy. There's also I-kind-of-need-this $5.00 Sweet Bay Rose Soap Bar: "Basil, bay, and eucalyptus essential oils with a drop of rose oil," oh my. Peppermint Scrub ($6.00) with exfoliating sugar and moisturizing olive oil is better for you than the ice cream version being pushed like crack this time of year. The $11.00 French Green Clay Mask is good for holiday-party skin detox, and Honey Almond Bath Cookies (yeah, "bath cookies," surely you've heard of them) make for amazing $3.00 stocking stuffers.

Not too extravagantly priced, all-natural comfort products? Sounds like a real good idea right about now.

TOP 10 CELEBS WHO NEED TO STEP AWAY FROM THE SCALPEL

2008-12-15T16:30:00Z

Photo via Splash

In a society that gobbles up trashy celeb rags and watches Access Hollywood before dinner, we tend to well, take it kinda personally when our favorite stars start fucking with the faces we originally fell in love with. That seems to be the overriding sentiment behind The Frisky's look into the method behind the madness of ten famous examples of disastrous cosmetic surgery meltdowns. While Nicole Kidman, Heather Locklear, Meg Ryan and Jennifer Grey were somewhat surprisingly absent from the list, they did manage to remind me of the pain I felt when Jennifer chopped off her famous nose in order to look, quite frankly, more boring. Who made the, ahem, "cut" after the jump!
]]> Number ten on the list is Melanie Griffith, and there's no disagreement from me. What was Melanie thinking when she waltzed in to some surgeon's office and demanded Angelina Jolie's lips? Literally, it was a big mistake. Nine is Kenny Rogers, who admitted to People that he regrets looking like an alien, not a country legend. Courtney Love is a reminder that at first, her augmentation looked undeniably kind of great, but that less is always more when it comes to the undertaking. Mickey Rourke and Burt Reynolds are just pathetic, and Joan Rivers and Faye Dunaway (who, with her insane bone structure, absolutely would've naturally aged beautifully) are victims of Madamism:

The term is based on the puppet-like effect caused by too much plastic surgery, and was coined from the puppet "Madame" who has appeared numerous times on television game show Hollywood Squares, and dance show, Solid Gold.

The worst plastic surgery victim of all time? C'mon, I'm sure you can guess. While Jocelyn Wildenstein's M.O. continues to perplex--hell, and even astound us--the most tragic downfall is OWNED by Michael Jackson, perhaps because his repeated attempts to alter his image seem to stem more from some deep seeded self-loathing and not gross vanity.

So I say to you today my friends, let these train wrecks be a lesson to us all: Next time you're feeling all shitty about aging and your mind starts to wander towards Park Avenue, remember, at least you still look like you, and not a hideous taut-faced puppet that scares the living crap out of small children.