Otherwise titled as “A Post That Really Has No Point, But Just ‘Cause…” 

When I started working at Lucky, fresh out of college, I was a lowly beauty assistant with little input, terrified of everybody around me.  My job initially consisted of opening packages, arranging products in the beauty closet, organizing the in-demand director’s schedule (well, okay, that would be attempting to organize the in-demand director’s schedule, since I was universally acknowledged to be a terrible–but oh-so-eager!–assistant), and answering phones.  Hardly tasks necessitating an Ivy League diploma—yet I was hooked.  The place was drenched in glamour, each editor was more fabulous than the next, and as time progressed, I was passed micro-pieces to work on, eventually graduating to the Secret Ingredient page and occasional Q&A’s for the burgeoning website (oh, 2003, how long ago you seem!)  Those Q&A’s became the inspiration for the Beauty Questions I now answer (but which y’all have been lazy about recently, so send ‘em in!), and, of course, led to the creation of beauty blog 1.0 formerly called Jolie in NYC.

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Yesterday was the biggest social event on the English calendar: Cartier International Polo Day at Guards Polo Club in Windsor.  I’ve been lucky enough to attend the past two years, and it is a seriously massive to-do; the 2006 party remains the best and wildest I’ve ever attended.  (And, believe me, with the pretty polo people, that’s saying something!)

Prince Harry attended with Chelsy Davy last year; this year, spectators were treated to an insanely dapper-looking Prince Charles. 

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Billie Piper has been a huge star in the UK for years, as much for her personal life (at 18 years old, she proposed to and married then 35-year-old English millionaire Chris Evans, who she divorced six years later…without taking a penny…then invited to her second wedding) as for her acting career (not only did she star with David Tennant on Doctor Who, but she released a chart topping pop single called “Because We Want To”, becoming the youngest person ever to have a number one UK hit.)  Her new Showtime series Secret Diary of a Call Girl—based on the popular Belle de Jour blog about a secretary named Hannah who secretly moonlights as a prostitute—all but guarantees she’ll hit household name status over here soon, too.  I’ve always found Billie interesting because, while doubtlessly gorgeous, she’s not a conventional Hollywood-standard beauty: she has thick brows, strong features, a generous mouth, isn’t a size 0 and often is photographed in nerdy Buddy Holly-style glasses.  (Plus, she lives in Midhurst, England, my old stomping grounds.)  The more I’ve learned about her over the years, the more I like her. 

The raunchy, sexy UK ad..

And the cheerful American one for Showtime, which seems to say: “Yay, prostitution!  Isn’t it fun?”

Fellow Anglophiles will either delight or disgust in the official start of summer: Big Brother 2008 premiered yesterday in England.  Now, to understand the cultural impact of Big Bruv, you have to realize that England is much, much, much smaller than America, so the 16 initial housemates make up, like 2% of the entire population.  (I kid, but only sort of.)  Housemates are voted off weekly by the nation (much like American Idol), and the program is shown basically 24/7 on various channels, so voyeurs can—and do—watch in real time as things happen.  Finally, there are several nightly wrap-ups hosted by famous English comedians (Russell Brand from Forgetting Sarah Marshall hosted a particularly hilarious version of Big Brother’s Big Mouth), and all the newspapers have breathless write-ups on a daily basis.  So even though the numbers for this season’s premiere were the lowest ever, it’s pretty much everywhere on that side of the pond.  Each year I insist I will not watch, bemoan the crappiness of the new contestants, raise my fists at the gods for the deterioration of society…and every year I get sucked in.

Stephanie McMichael believes the most signifcant moment in her life was her birth.  Deep.

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S. writes:

I’ve been reading your beauty blog for about two years now, and really love it!  You give great advice and your honesty about bad products make your rave reviews even more trustworthy.  Thanks for all the tips.  I have a question for you:  my mom is traveling to London for the first time ever (she is so excited!) and is worried about her hair styling tools working abroad.  I lived in Spain for a year and had no problems just using a converter with my American curling iron, but she has heard England has higher volts or some such nonsense, and she doesn’t want to fry her (very expensive) Chi flat iron.  Any advice?  Do you use a converter when you travel abroad, or do you use tools you purchased in England?  Any help would be much appreciated.  Thank you!!

Oh, dear God, S., do not let your mom use her American tools in England!  I have fried the hell out of my hair twice this way; the voltage is indeed screwy (something I can never understand) and not only will she be at a higher risk of burning her hair, but she may break the flatiron, too.  She’s better off going to Boots any buying a “cheap” (I say this with quotes because of the exchange rate) English version.  I’ve had the misfortune of both ruining an expensive flatiron and frying the bejeezus out of wide swaths of my hair while in London, so I speak from very traumatized experience!  Of course, she could always embrace the crappy English weather and try to rock a wavy look while there, but in that case, I’d recommend she bring grooming creme and anti-frizz lotion (the John Frieda Frizz Ease line works well), as well as some hair elastics, a chic skinny scarf or headband, and a damn-the-torpedos attitude!