Sizzling hot beauty secrets

PHOTO: Martin Boose

For anyone who knows me, it's no secret that I love Valentine's Day. Besides the fact that I adore bouquets from secret admirers, heart-shaped cards and pink stuffed gorilla dolls, I consider it one of the best opportunities to break out some of my very favorite and most decadent beauty tricks.

1. Bath first, dinner later.

Nothing will get you into seduction mode quicker than a really romantic bath. Light some candles and treat yourself to a hot bath with plenty of bubbles.

Don't forget to add a rich oil to help moisturize your skin (but be careful, this will make the bathtub slippery!). I love the scent of LaLicious' super rich body oils ($24, Lalicious.com).

For a super easy and budget-friendly option, try pouring a little olive oil into your bath water.

2. Glow in all the right places.

I often sing the praises of highlighter because it's an essential tool for enhancing your best features. Just as you would use a highlighter to bring out your lips, brow bones and cheekbones, you can use a shimmery powder or luminizing lotion to bring your favorite physical features into the spotlight.

Got great gams? Blend a little shimmer lotion like Smashbox Body Lights ($35, Sephora) onto your shins and the tops of your thighs.

If you'll be baring your shoulders and decolletage, don't forget to give them a little dose of sexy shimmer as well. If you want to give your honey bunny a tasty surprise, you can even brush on a little flavored body powder like the ones made by Urban Decay ($26, Urbandecay.com).

3. Send some smoke signals.

One of the all-time, sexiest makeup looks ever is the smokey eye. While smokey eyes created with black eye shadows will probably always be sexy, gray eyeshadow is still super hot right now.

If you plan on wearing a strong smokey eye, keep the look balanced with a romantic soft pink blush and lush nude lips.

4. When in doubt, wear red.

If you prefer not to wear heavier eye makeup, go light on your eyes and play up your lips. There are few makeup looks more festive for Valentine's Day than one that includes a pair of seductive, ruby red lips.

Beauty tricks to beat the winter blah's

It's that time of year again. The excitement of the holidays is over. Spring is still too far away. And it's still friggin' cold.

Wouldn't it be nice to jet off to the Bahamas right about now? While most of us can't just hop a plane to paradise for a much needed tropical vacay, it is easy to shake the cold weather blah's by bringing a little warm weather glamour into your winter beauty routine.

1. Self-Tanner

My favorite winter beauty boost is to reunite with my beloved fake tan. Products like Fake Bake Tantalizing Self-Tanning Body Butter ($24, fakebake.net) have the added benefit of delivering much-needed moisture to dry winter skin

2. In a hurry?

If you're short on time or you aren't a big fan of self-tanner, you can always brush on your favorite bronzing powder. Because skin trends to be drier in the winter, however, I particularly like to wear subtly tinted moisturizing bronzers this time of year.

Products like Tarte Sunburst ($28, Sephora) contain a small amount of bronzer that's just enough to give you a warm, glowy complexion without looking unnatural. Another option is to to just mix a few drops of liquid bronzer with your everyday moisturizer.

3. Brighten up with blush

If you're not the bronzer type, try waking up your complexion with a pop of peachy pink blush. One of my favorites is Neutrogena Healthy Skin Blends blush ($13, CVS) and a new one that you may be interested in is Coralista blush by Benefit ($28, Benefit).

4. Sniff your way to a warmer place

The sense of smell is powerful and it has the ability to evoke memories and even change your mood. For an instant pick-me-up, try a perfume with fragrance notes that remind you of summer.

While you can go for a summery perfume like Elizabeth Arden Mediterranean Breeze ($47.50, elizabetharden.com) or the new Island Michael Kors Bermuda ($62, Sephora), another option is to explore single note fragrances like the ones made by Demeter. Choose single note perfumes like "Honeysuckle" or "Grass" or blend your own to recreate the scent that reminds you most of the summer months.

5. Indulge in cold weather beauty treats

Take advantage of the chilly weather and pamper yourself with some luxurious skin treatments that you might not normally indulge in during the warmer weather months.

For example, you can make your own deep-moisturizing spa treatment at home by whipping up a batch of heated body cream. You can spoil yourself even more and follow up your moisturizer by donning a heated bathrobe. For more details and how-to's, be sure to check out my post on how to get rid of dry winter skin.

Hot Lables: Keet Fit, Beauty, Body Shape, Eye Care, Eyebrow Shaping, Neck Care, Skin Care

Turning 30 and looking better than ever

Turning 30 is a little bit like crossing a threshold. No longer are you flying by the seat of your pants, trying to figure what's right for you in the moment, falling flat on your face, dusting yourself off and continuing on�you just don't do that anymore. You are learning from your mistakes and settling into yourself.

For Samantha, a single musician living in Los Angeles, leaving her 20s brings on nothing but positive emotions, "I feel so hopeful for what's in front of me versus what was behind me."

Samantha looks younger and happier at 30 then when she was in her 20s. As she becomes more grounded and secure in herself, the more it blooms and lights up her face. "Being a woman, like a fine wine, gets better with age, but you need to take care of yourself," says Samantha. "You want to preserve that for as long as possible, so I have some tricks that I do with beauty stuff and lotions are very important... treat your body like a temple, treat your body as you would anything else that you love and cherish, because this is what your going to live with the rest of your life."

"I used to not even think twice about what I look like on stage and I had this long crazy hair and I didn't care what I was wearing and I just did it," says Samantha. "But I realized that if I feel like I look really good and I'm put together--it's kind of a good meditation to put my makeup on, put my lotion on and my clothes--that helps me kind of get in synch with my performance."

Here are a few pieces of advice to help you age with grace:

Take care of your body and accept your limits

"Your body is your temple and you need to take care of it regardless of how invincible you think you are--I think I'm the most invincible person in the world, I can go on three hours of sleep and get on the airplane and get off and play a concert and go to bed in a hotel and wake up the next morning and be fine. But the reality of it is that my voice is going to get tired. I'm going be a little bit fatigued and that kind of shows, especially as a performer. I'm kinda glad that I have to put myself to bed every night by 11 o clock every night and drink tons and tons of water because it makes me feel better in the morning. I can get up and go on a run easier and that type of stuff."

Take every opportunity

"It's so easy to put limitations and boundaries on what you're trying to create, but now that I am 30, life explodes into a million different opportunities and I never looked at life like that before. I thought life had to be this one straight shot, north and south, but I didn't realize I can also be an artist, I can paint, I can direct movies, I can start a non-profit business, we can do anything we want, really, if you can just let yourself. That's a beautiful thing."

Have a positive attitude

"Being very enthusiastic and being optimistic and positive have always worked, they never fail. And that has carried me through some tough times, if things aren't really going your way or something happens with your career or your relationship or you want to make a move in your life, you maybe want to try living in a different city or just make a change, enthusiasm will always get you through the day. It's infectious, other people around you feel it and that helps you out."

Take ownership of yourself

"I feel like I can accomplish so many more things in my day and I'm so much more fulfilled because I know, I'm trusting that even if there's a couple mistakes thrown in there, I'm still correcting and adjusting them. I'm never going to be perfect, but I am going to lead a much more well-rounded life and my decisions in general are going to be a lot better."

Celebrate your body

"I never allowed myself to feel like I was super hot and sexy before and I know I can do it. I never, ever allowed to be who I am and now I really take ownership of that sexuality and sensuality as a woman. Knowing that I am beautiful on the inside and the outside and allowing myself to feel that way and celebrate that. I think a lot of women don't do that, especially in this culture and I think they should because it just makes everybody else so happy."

"With the knowledge that I've gained in my 20s with living life and pursuing my dreams and just being a woman, really being a woman in an American society--experiencing the things that everyone experiences, I've gained a lot of knowledge and a lot of wisdom," says Samantha. "I can gracefully enter my 30s with a sense of vitality and inspiration and hopefulness."

Hot Lables: Keet Fit, Beauty, Body Shape, Eye Care, Eyebrow Shaping, Neck Care, Skin Care

Easy Overindulgence Antidotes

I, for one, am NOT going to judge you for chowing down over the holidays. A nervous eater myself, I'll scarf every cracker in sight while awaiting my Christmas dinner ... and, finally seated at the table, continue to stuff potatoes and rolls and soggy salad and ham into my unhappily overstuffed gullet. Additionally, I truly love many of the foods associated with wintry holidays: Gingerbread, stuffing, cranberries, and anything pumpkiny. Yum City, no?

Whether you're noshing nervously on appetizers at a cocktail party or savoring traditional family fare with your loved ones, you're bound to eat more than usual in December and January. The holidays mean an endless stream of social gatherings centered around food ... and limited opportunities to work off those celebratory calories.

And although I positively COMMAND you to be kind to yourself about any holiday-related foody activities, I also understand that the aftermath of overindulgence can be daunting. Even when the parties have finally ceased and you've returned to normal levels of consumption, your options for jettisoning those fruitcake-and-eggnog pounds remain limited. It's still winter, it's still cold and dark outside, and your body still just wants to hibernate.

Hopefully, you don't need me to tell you that it is completely natural to gain some weight during these frigid times. Hopefully, you're able to recognize that, even though it feels a little harder each year to work off that holiday heft, it's well worth your time and effort to do so. And hopefully, you're well aware that punishing your body with a crash diet or outrageously intense exercise regimen isn't actually going to help in the long run. As aggravating as it can be to go the slow route, the healthiest way to return to your pre-December self is by eating smallish, healthy, balanced meals and engaging in moderate-but-regular exercise.

But in case you're looking for a few simple ways to boost your exercise routine and kick that metabolism awake once more, here are some things I do all winter long to supplement my trips to the gym and combat the effects of holiday eating:

Park far away
This can be positively painful if you live in a land of subzero temperatures (as I most certainly do), but you will be absolutely astonished by what a difference it can make. Park as far from the door as possible when you drive to work, the grocery store, the movie theater, the mall, the library, EVERYWHERE. Three to six extra minutes of bracing cold per trip adds up fast, my pretties, and soon you're getting in a bonus 20-minute walk every day. Over the course of an entire winter, that accumulated exercise works wonders on the wubba.

Invest in some free weights for home
Even if you live in a studio apartment that could never accomodate a bulky treadmill, likelihood is you've got room for a set of dumbells under the bed. Although free weights will certainly help you keep your arms from going to mush, these little darlings can also help with obliques, quads, hams, and glutes. This site may have slightly goofy-looking animations, but if you cruise around a little, you'll see dumbell-centric exercises that work nearly every major muscle group. When you can't make it to the gym because it's blizzarding outside, you won't be trapped at home with no way to work out.

Do the stairs
I don't just mean take the stairs to your office. I mean take any and all stairs that present themselves to you. In parking garages, airports, malls, doctors' offices, bookstores, and schools. If you need to get to the 23rd floor, take the elevator to floor 18 and walk the rest of the way. If it's too cold to walk outdoors during your lunch break, spend 10 minutes going up and down a friendly flight of stairs instead. I do at least 15 flights per day, more if I can, and it prevents my hiney from expanding to epic proportions when the wind is whistling outside.

Although many of us allow our bodies to poof up with winter poundage until we simply can't fit into our pants, we CAN choose to take action sooner. Now that the shindigs have finally subsided, revert to healthy living habits, and tack on these easy activities that will keep you active a bit more each day. You'll feel stronger and more energetic, healthier and stronger ... and you'll establish some new fitness habits that will serve you well even after it warms up again!

Hot Lables: Keet Fit, Beauty, Body Shape, Eye Care, Eyebrow Shaping, Neck Care, Skin Care