Cheers to the Delta Gammas of Pepperdine University for being so welcoming to me at yesterday’s event!  I spent nearly two hours answering their beauty questions on everything from whether benzoyl peroxide really works on zits (answer: yes, but it can be harsh and often needs to be use sparingly) to what the proper age is for beginning an anti-aging regimen (answer: you’re never too young to use sunscreen–obviously!–but your mid-to-late twenties are the optimal time to begin introducing retinoic or glycolic acids into your routine, along with peptides and ample antioxidants).  Oh, and by the way…I feel like I ruined my life by not going to school in Malibu.  Where can I sign up for one of those thirty-million-dollar beachfront mansions?  I’ll take two, please.

For snippets of me at my book party last week—waving my hands in front of my face like a deranged person (hi, champagne, much?) and just generally shrieking about why I love makeup—check out this clip that Jossip posted here. It cuts off at the end, unfortunately, but you still get a glimpse of my “fresh” hair and the more-expensive-than-anything-I’ve-ever-worn-in-my-life Christian Lacroix dress that I rented from Wardrobe NYC.

I’m not exaggerating when I say that today was one of the most exciting, nervewracking days of my life. My Today Show segment was finally shot (live!) this morning, where I discussed secrets for whipping stunning makeup together in five minutes. Since I have rosacea, I have a habit of turning beet red when hot, stressed or exercising (and this morning counted as all three, since my hotel elevator broke and I had to hoof it down fifteen flights of stairs in three inch heels immediately before leaving for my segment — thanks, Essex House!) I was worried that, on live TV, I’d stutter, trip, have my outfit rip in an unfortunate place….you know, the usual embarrassments…but luckily everything kept together and I had such a fun, thrilling time. And two hours after my segment, in another area of town, a stranger approached me and say, “Hey, I saw you on the Today Show this morning! You were great!” which, of course, made me grin to myself like a complete idiot for the next six blocks. For a clip of the segment, look here. (Were I more tech savvy, I might discover a way to embed it into my blog, but…alas. I do makeup, people. One thing at a time!) Thank you, thank you, thank you, by the way, to all my readers and friends for your support — Beauty Confidential shot to the top of the list on Amazon this morning and is now number 7 in Health and Beauty (directly after Victoria Beckham, Nina Garcia and Carmindy’s books)! Love you all!

Many of my beauty blogging brethren went to New York City this weekend for Fashion Week.  Rather than schlep my ass all the way out there to spend five minutes interviewing various harried, sweating makeup artists as they paint foundation on girls named Natalia and Agyness, I flew to San Francisco for the first stop on my college book tour!  (Don’t worry, my fearless interns Traci and Bess are backstage digging dirt, for those of you who are into that thing.)  The event–at UC Berkeley–was a bit nervewracking, as I was speaking to eighty fiercely intelligent young women who also seemed more than a little well-versed on the ins-and-outs of how to be gorgeous.  (”What if they hate me?” I fretted to my friend R.  “And then my mind will go blank, and I’ll begin sweating, and then of course I won’t be able to stop stuttering, and before I know it, they’ll be whispering and jeering and throwing tomatoes at me!”  “I doubt they’ll have tomatoes,” was her reassuring response.)  Thankfully, the event went off without a hitch, and the ladies in the audience seemed to enjoy it as much as I did.  After explaining who the hell I was—and why the hell I was qualified to be speaking about beauty!—I read several pages from Beauty Confidential, and then answered their questions.  Here, a few of their queries:

“What’s your favorite mascara?” (Answer: Lancome Definicils, although I also sang the praises of Max Factor Lash Perfection)
“Can you recommend a good eye makeup remover?” (Answer: Lancome, once again!  Their Bifacil is tops.  I mentioned that Neutrogena Oil Free Eye Makeup Remover is a good drugstore alternative)
“Do eyelash curlers really make a difference?” (Answer: Absolutely, as long as you pick a good one.  Eyelash curlers are one category where you do very much get what you pay for.  If it’s not Shu Uemura or Shiseido, don’t bother) 
“What’s your favorite foundation?” (Answer: No surprise here–Bare Escentuals Bare Minerals, of course.  With SPF15, weightless, flawless coverage…you know the drill by now, don’t you?) 
“How often do you wash your hair?” (Answer: Twice a week.  Gross!  No…not really.  Yes, I obviously bathe daily, but unless you have extremely oily hair or are a fitness nut, you can get away with washing your hair every other day…or even every two days.  My schedule: wash ‘n wear days 1&2, then pigtails days 3&4.  In the interim, hair powder works wonders, and keeps your ends from getting dried out!  For you gym rats, wash and shampoo as normal on day 1, then simply rinse with water on day 2)

I’ve just landed back in LA after my reading at Boston University, and the trip was exhausting but exhilarating.  Scores of young women attended, all who were genuinely interested in what I had to say, peppered me with endless beauty questions and even, in the case of a few, asked nervously if they could hug me, as if I were a real celebrity or rock-star or something. (Which we all know is simply not the case!)  The mascara questions came up over and over, as did queries about how to use Bare Minerals, advice for women with rosacea and eczema, and a list of the best intensive conditioners.  The lazy response would have been, “Hey, it’s all in Beauty Confidential…on sale now!” but I did my best to give in-depth responses. Speaking of mascara, I’ve been using Lancome High-Definicils, and I’m really on the fence about it.  All of Lancome’s offerings have so blown me away in the past that I was expecting a similarly transcendent experience, and I was disappointed when I applied the formula and it just seemed…good…not great. After using it exclusively for a few weeks, however, I think I might have initially been a bit harsh.  I plan on doing a little at-home test each day this week, with the High-Definicils on one eye and a few of my other favorites on the other, to see how it compares.  To be continued…!

I’m at Louisiana State University for a charity beauty event tonight called Delta Glamour (for those of you who don’t know, I was a Delta Gamma at Columbia University) that should be really fun.  I’m reading from Beauty Confidential, answering beauty questions and talking about how blogging has impacted my career, then it’s on to an evening of massages, manicures, blowouts and beauty tips from Arbonne and Mary-Kay.  Right now, I’m staying in a guest room at the sorority house, and I’m feel like I’m 20 again (in more ways than one).  Of course, I forgot my camera—what do you want from me??  We all know I’m going senile—but I’ll try to get photos from the girls to post.  My poor body is jetlagged as hell from traveling so much recently, and daylight savings definitely didn’t help (yeah, I totally slept through a meeting Monday morning).  It’ll be nice to return to LA—in time for Fashion Week!—and just breathe.