When I was growing up, the only kind of blush I ever used, or was even introduced to, were powder blushes. I have come to learn that there are so many variations besides powder now, that I want to make sure you know, too.

In this video I mention several different types of blushes/brands. They are:

• Three Custom Colors Crème to Powder Blush in "Morning After" (*PR provided)
• tarte Cheek Stain in "True Love" (*discontinued - boo! - GWP)
• Clinique Blushwear Cream Stick in "Shy Blush" (*mine is a mini-tube GWP)
• MAC Blushcreme in "Florida" (*PR provided)
• Benefit "Posie Tint" (*from a gift bag)
• NARS Cream Blush in "Penny Lane" (*from a giveaway)

I forgot to mention a couple of brands/products that def deserved to be shown, too. The first is the Sue Devitt Starbrights Lip & Cheek Gel in "Capella" (*got in a gift bag). This cheek gel scared me when I first saw it becaus it is *purple*. But after the lovely MUA put it on my cheeks and showed me how pretty it could be on my skintone, I was hooked.

The second one that should have been in the video is the Covergirl & Olay Simply Ageless Sculpting Blush. Besides being a creamy blush that goes on easily, it is also the only blush that incorporates Olay's Regenerist Serum into the mix - making it not only pretty, but good for your skin, too. (*of course, I can't help but to mention that I was lucky enough to have celebrity MUA Jake Bailey apply it on me and it looked *good*). (*warning: I may be biased).

Like I said in the video, the colors are going to look more intense in the package, but with a light touch, you make just about any color work for you. Also, don't forget what I said about layering - you can start with an alternate type of blush, finishing off the top with your powder blush for a longer lasting cheek.

Let me know if you have tried any of these, or if you have heard of another blush type that I didn't list here. I would love to hear about it.

I am *not* your fashion info go to girl, by any stretch of the imagination. However, I have picked up a few things here and there over the last year. Like, when people started talking about the "armadillo" shoes from Alexander McQueen's Spring/Summer 2010 show, it was hard not to listen. They were unmistakeable - to the point that when I saw the new Lady Gaga "Bad Romance" music video I heard myself saying (out loud, mind you, in an empty room) "Holy crap, she's wearing the Alexander McQueen's!" Yeah...I don't really do that - at least not about fashion stuff.

I kind of did that again when I read that someone had actually worn the AM shoes in public, on a Red Carpet, and hadn't needed anything to assist in walking in them. I had to find out who this creature was and see proof of them out in the real world. Turns out it is the rich "couture collector", Daphne Guinness.

I had no idea who she was, so I did some googling and found out some things:

• • She is the daughter of Johnathan Guinness, of the Guinness Brewery family - making her an heiress.
  • She spent part of her childhood in an artists’ colony in Spain, where she used to swim in Salvador Dali’s lobster-filled swimming pool.
  • She says that her weird obsession with armour "might have come from the Surrealists" that were there.
  • In the 80's, she lived in NYC with her sister, and hung around with the likes of Andy Warhol, Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager, the owners of Studio 54 and Fred Hughes, the editor of Interview magazine, while playing wih the idea of being an opera singer.
  • At 19, she married Spyros Niarchos, son of the Greek shipping billionaire Stavros Niarchos, whom she had 3 kids with and divorced in 1999 with a (disputed) $40mil settlement.
  • Her trademark skunk colored hair was "accidental". She "..glue(s) bits on to it and this is how it turns out."

All of that is just background to the woman she has become. She can be described as many things: "a designer, stylist, writer, filmmaker, collector and now a perfumer with a scent called Daphne", but she can not be called boring, that's for sure. In fact, some of her quotes crack me up:

Discussing why she created her own scent:

Or when discussing how she didn't fit in St. Tropez, while she was married:

Gawd, so pretentious, but you can see how she completely wouldn't think that - maybe that's why it cracks me up.

 So, there she was, walking the Red Carpet with François Nars (NARS Founder and Creative Director) for the launch of the NARS 15X15 Project. The project is a celebration of the 15th Anniversary of NARS and the centerpiece of the project is the "15X15" book, in which Daphne is included. There is only a limited edition run of 1500, with the full $80 purchase price being divided between 15 different charities. However, there are indivdual portraits available for purchase, too.

Man, I love learning about creative people and things. Don't you?