RIGHT NOW (through December 1st), there's a Friends & Family 20% Off sale going on in Kiehl's stores—I was in the Manhattan outpost on Saturday, and the whole place was a happy mob. Bring a printout of this picture to get the discount.
What is your number-one favorite Kiehl's product? Quick, quick, don't think too hard! Or else you'll come up with too many things. Mine: Amino Acid Shampoo. Jean Godfrey-June's: Lip Balm #1. Now YOU go.
—Cristina Mueller, senior beauty editor
I have a new Etsy obsession, one that's shared by our fashion director Hope Greenberg, who has been wearing a Brookadelphia necklace around the office. They're all laser cut and super-intricate—and everything's extremely well-priced. I wish so much that I lived in Texas, Ohio, or California ... or even Brooklyn, so that I could have my statehood around my neck immediately. Instead, I'm going to settle for being a post-post-modernist—or I'm going to wait three weeks for a Montana charm.
A little over 10 years ago, Gwyneth Paltrow attended the VMAs in a sleek, skinny red velvet pantsuit made for her by Tom Ford. It was, at the time, one of the coolest things I'd ever seen, and it kicked off a decadelong odyssey of velvet failures for me. See, there's a problem with this plush fabric. While it's soft, festive, and sometimes even regal-looking, it can also quickly slip into a Ren-Faire-1983-piano-recital-New-Age-Jimi-Hendrix-bad-fashion abyss. However, around this time of year, every year, my obsession is reignited, and I wonder: Can anyone look cool in velvet? I found some streamlined-looking blazers today on eBay (here, here, and here). Should I try to pull one off?
Seeing this photo of Kate Moss wearing an incredibly cute rugby-striped shawl-collar cardigan sent me over the edge. The look falls somewhere between sporty and sophisticated, making it as suitable for Saturday errands as it would be (with a pencil skirt and heels) for going to work. I have no idea who makes the one she has on in the picture, but after poking around for a while, I was able to come up with a very similar version by For Joseph. It's satisfyingly streamlined but cozy, and it would do well in countless scenarios. I like how she gives it an edgy twist (mussed-up hair, printed tee, rock boyfriend), though you could play up the collegiate aspect too and add baby-wale cords and old-school sneakers or go sleek with skinny black trousers and black ankle boots.
Feeling thrifty, yearning for simpler times and freezing cold, I went shopping online at The Vermont Country Store. I purchased flannel pajamas and hideous but incredibly warm socks. I was utterly satisfied with my purchases when they arrived. My children were fascinated by the old-fashioned-looking catalog they came with—it produced shrieks of laughter for many hours in fact.
Eventually, they drew my attention to the beauty section—which is large and full of amazing things: Gee! Your Hair Smells Terrific! and Body on Tap shampoos, for instance.
The winner, for my children at least, was an extensive line of body products, all under the rubric of Tired Old Ass. No Philosophy, no Bliss, no Chanel, no Origins, just Tired Old Ass. Tired Old Ass Cream, Tired Old Ass Splash, Tired Old Ass Soak, and (my favorite) the Tired Old Ass Sampler.
Just in case you know someone whose self-esteem-boosting efforts have spiraled into haughtiness.
*People always want to know how I manage to function without allowing my children to watch TV. The Vermont Country Store catalogue is my new answer.
—Jean Godfrey-June, beauty director
A Lucky editor just asked me what the most fail-safe, beloved piece in my closet is. I'm having trouble deciding—it's actually a really tough question. As is very well documented in this column, I have big love for J.Crew cashmere cardigans: They're simple but luxurious, fit perfectly, and can be incorporated into just about any outfit. But there are other contenders too. My Grey Ant high-waisted jeans are not only the most comfortable pair I own (their stretchiness and stomach-constricting properties have made them pretty addictive) but also the most versatile. And I'm hooked on white James Perse scoopneck tees; I ended up buying three of them because I couldn't keep up with washing them as often as I wanted to wear them. Now it's your turn to tell: What's the item in your wardrobe that you can't live without? My editor and I want to know!
It's not. I'm a sucker for an artfully constructed top. I like the high-wattage fuchsia here, particularly because it's tempered by gray and black. I'd keep it really simple, by wearing it over a T-shirt, or under a fitted blazer. I'm really into the back, too.
I always know I'm sharing an extra-great, kind-of-secret eBay find when writing about it makes me wince. That's exactly what happened today when I started sorting through the incredible stuff at Filthy Gorgeous Vintagea??I kept wanting to write about things but also kept frowning and sucking air through my teeth. Anyway. 
Among the 65 items up for sale right now, I want almost everything, including this drapey accordion-pleated dress, 
spotted fur (it's real, grrrr), an amazing pale yellow bomber with a winged pony stitched on the front, an oversize Izod sweater, 
and this dress. All of the inventory is (right now at least) exceptionally well-priced, and some of it is even Buy It Now, so you can scoop up a number of items with just a few clicks. Hurry over there now, you can thank me later.
Especially Pantene Pro-V shampoo and Dove bar soap, which look even cuter when they're tiny and travel-size.
—Rachel Siegel, fashion assistant
Walt Whitman-like, I often roam New York City contemplating the Big Questions: What is my purpose? Does the Scientology Center have a room for secret man-on-man celebrity canoodling? Is it okay to hate someone who knows a single quote from The Canterbury Tales and uses it often? Can a pink wig be high art? What broke up Bennifer? Who IS Charles Schwab?
And finally: Should I be using toner for my acne? Because I don't.
There are arguments on both sides.
"It doesn't do anything," says a supremely knowledgeable Lucky editor, who gives better acne advice than anyone (plus, no co-pay).
"I see you don't use toner," says masterful New York facialist-to-Gisele Christine Chin, correctly, studying my skin under an unforgiving microscope/lamp contraption.
Vexing.
What do YOU think (and if you do believe, what specifically works for you)?
—Cat Marnell, associate beauty editor
