For spring, H&M is introducing some vivid new colors to their makeup lineup to help you achieve a fresh look without spending a fortune. Nail polish colors include a tropical metallic aqua green, deep bright purple and light yellow. Shimmering lip gloss comes in apricot and bubblegum pink, while eye shadows come in purple, green, turquoise and pink.

I love all the brights but find these colors often look better in the box than on my face. Nail polish is an exception - I could wear H&M's entire range from the lemon yellow to the more subtle shades like mud beige, concrete gray or old rose. Look for H&M makeup at your local store.

If you're looking to update your spring makeup, be sure to check out Sonia Kashuk's new Spring 2011 Limited Edition Collection, available exclusively at Target. The collection features luxurious brush sets made from natural materials and color palettes in all the must-have shades of the season. I haven't had a chance to try out these items myself but season after season, Sonia Kashuk delivers department store quality so I expect this spring would be no different! Don't you just want one of each? So pretty. Keep reading for more eye candy.

Revlon was kind enough to send us some of their new product, CustomEyes Shadow & Liner, for review recently; our resident beauty maven (aka my sister Chantal) puts them to the test. —BB



by Chantal B.
Six different sets of colors offer a lot of different options, and there is definitely a palette to suit everyone's taste. Cute, compact and easy to use with a helpful numbered picture on the back, Revlon's new CustomEyes kits are a great way to learn how to apply different shadow colors to different parts of the eye area to create fun, flirty or dramatic looks. The color mixing in each palette is really spot on - you can tell they took the time to pick colors that will look really fantastic together (and makes my life easy so I don't have to worry about mixing two colors that will look freaky).

But not all the palettes seem to be created equal. There are some that are fantastic, some that I will accept for the price and one that just disappoints.

Recently Sally Hansen sent me some of their new Sally Hansen Salon Effects Nail Polish Strips kits to try out, so I shipped a few to my sister, Chantal, in Chicago because she loves trend-setting nail polish and she's very critical and discerning when it comes to testing new beauty products. Of course, I had to give these a go myself, and I was beyond impressed with the results! Keep reading for Chantal's awesome review, and let us know if you've tried Sally Hansen Salon Effects in the comments. Plus stay tuned for a great giveaway where I'll be giving away 5 Sally Hansen Salon Effects Nail Polish Strips kits to one lucky reader. —BB





by Chantal B.
I love, love, LOVE these nail polish strips! I honestly had no idea what to expect from this product, but I can definitely say they are my new obsession, and I can't wait for Sally Hansen to come out with even more styles and colors (maybe some more neutrals or "adult" colors that are office-appropriate?)!

But, before I get ahead of myself, let me tell you about the 24 amazing options already available. The Salon Effects nail polish strips come in a really fun array of patterns (like leopard, zebra, florals and lace) neon colors and glittered options (thought I would hate the glitters but the gold one, Glitz Blitz is actually my favorite so far).

One of the highlights for me from New York Fashion Week was going backstage at the Adrienne Vittadini Fall 2011 presentation, where the beautiful Tippi Shorter, Global Stylist for Avon, took some time out from her busy schedule to share the inspiration and techniques used to create the hair looks for the show. Mind you, this was no ordinary show: Adrienne opted to showcase the wearable, classic collection on some of the most legendary models in the business, including the incomparable Pat Cleveland (who you'll see in the video), Carmen Dell'Orefice, Niki Taylor and many others. Watch the video above to find out how Avon stylists worked their magic on the icons, then click through to see more exclusive backstage photos.