The Best Beauty Products of The Year & A Gift Bag Giveaway

Soon on store shelves you'll see more beauty products with "CEW Award Winner" stamps of approval on their packaging. Last Friday I attended the awards ceremony where the best of the best were celebrated at the Waldorf Astoria in NYC.  There were over 650 entries and we (the industry) voted on 185 finalist.  Allow me to present the winners... Oh yea, and I'm giving away a gift bag from the event!  Read on to find out how to win.  GIVEAWAY ENTRY:

1. Comment below and let me know what your product in your vanity wins your beauty award and why.
2. Fill out this form so I have your info to contact you if you're the winner!

The 2013 CEW Beauty Awards winners are... right here!

CEW Announces Beauty Award Finalists & Top Trends for The Year

In the beginning of March I attended the Cosmetic Executive Women (CEW) Product Demonstration (see post), where the latest and greatest products of 2012 were put on display to preview.  Today, CEW announced the finalists, who will all be voted on and the best products of the year will be announced in May at the Beauty Awards.  This is huge in beauty, guys.  Here are the top trends of the year and a list of the finalists.  Did your favorites make the cut? Beauty Trends:

o   Lip Hybrids: Lip products that have it all – long-lasting color, moisture and a light-weight feel.

o   Skin Volumizers: These collagen-building formulas reduce the look of deep lines and fine wrinkles – they’re like the fountain of youth in a jar.

o   Bold Brows: Fuller, bushier brows are back in vogue and new gels and serums make it easy to style them.

o   Gel Nails: Both mass and prestige brands now offer consumers a multitude of styles and colors to achieve long-wear, chip-resistant nail color at home.

o   Spot On Treatments: Brands have been creating a myriad of products that immediately target dark spots and prevent future spots from developing.

o   Bright Eyes: Serums that lighten and brighten sensitive skin under the eyes took center stage this year, with unique applicators that cool skin on the spot.

o   High Tech Skin Care: Handheld tools offering powerful dermatologist technology at-home have emerged to provide a more youthful look

 And now... presenting... the finalist list!  Who do you want to see win?

The Ultimate Giveaway: A CEW Beauty Award Finalist Gift Bag

This one's for you!  Well, all of my posts are, but this is one of my biggest beauty giveaways of the year so I have to highlight it.  Last night was the Cosmetic Executive Women (CEW) Product Demonstration, which is a display of all of the top new product launches from 2012 that will be voted on and then the winners will all receive awards in May at the beauty Oscars. Last year I presented an award at the ceremony (see post) so I can't wait to tell you about what's in store for this year. There were over 300 beauty companies and 625 brands, making this was the largest product demonstration held by CEW yet.  The categories that we vote on revolve obviously around skin, hair and makeup, but this year two new categories were added due to an explosion in products being developed: Lip Treatments and At-Home Devices.  The best of the best will be announced in May and I'll fill you in on the winners!

For now, I'm giving away a CEW GIFT BAG that's filled with about 20 pounds of nominees!  Sign up here and a winner will be chosen at random and announced on my Facebook page on April 1st.  Good luck!

My CEW Beauty Awards Prep & Hysterical Presentation Thanks to Mario Cantone

Last Friday I had the honor to be a presenter at the CEW Beauty Awards at the Waldorf Astoria.  I can't even begin to explain how excited I was and how big of a deal this was for me.  Everyone who's anyone in the beauty industry is there.  CEO's of every company, their PR and marketing teams that I work with daily and everyone in edit.  Literally, the Waldorf Astoria ballroom is full of about 1,000 of beauty's best.  Let's put it this way, it's an honor to be invited every year, but to be ask to present is the biggest honor.  This is the first year they had members of the industry present.  Mario Cantone from Sex and the City hosted as he does every year and let's just say he decided to have some fun introducing me. I began my prep by hunting for the perfect dress, which wasn't hard to find.  I knew I wanted something bright and when I laid eyes on Nanette Lepore's Spring 2012 collection  I  was sold.

A spray tan the day before at Sundara followed by conquering loose waves the morning of at Dry Bar (I swear by their blow outs) I was prepping for this like it was the Oscars.  It is the Oscars for us beauty people.  To top it all off CoverGirl set up a suite for the award presenters at the Palace Hotel so we could get our makeup and hair done.  Thank God!  While I can do my makeup for everyday, I'm no makeup artist and definitely needed some help.  My makeup artists understood who I was and the natural look I was going for and I couldn't have felt more confident.

Now here's where things got a little cray... As Mario Cantone was introducing me he decided to take "BeautySweetSpot" and have some fun with it in a sexual kind of way.  Ladies, I can't even explain it all because it would sound too vulgar if it were typed, but let's just say that I was prepared to go up to the podium, say what I had to say and sit back down.  Instead, Mario decided to have a little fun with me and we ended up putting on quite a show in front of the whole industry!  I had to clear up that "BeautySweetSpot" is not sexual and he decided to pretend to "find my sweet spot" in front of everyone!  Go ahead, use your imagination... yes, that happened!

If I had a career bucket list (which thank God I don't because it would be outrageous), presenting at the CEW Beauty Awards would have been on there.  I'm so honored and glad that I had a chance to stand up in front of the whole industry and thank them.  If it weren't for everyone in that room, I wouldn't be where I am today.  Here's a complete list of the winners.

CEW asked me to participate as a presenter in its Beauty Awards.  In exchange, I have received a gift bag that includes samples of the nominated products.  The opinions expressed in this post are my own.…

Honorable Gig: I'm Presenting at the Oscars aka CEW Beauty Awards

I'm so honored and excited to be a presenter at the CEW Beauty Awards this year! For those of you who are unfamiliar with the event, it's like the Oscars of the beauty industry.  This Friday, Mario Cantone from Sex and the City will be hosting (again) and I'll be presenting awards in several categories to some of my favorite brands.  For now, I'm practicing, "And the winner is..."  Stay tuned for details from the event!  I can't wait to show you what I'm wearing!