Cheryl Shops

Little-broadcasted fact: I am a Lucky magazine Alpha Shopper, which basically means that I get sent free stuff, and sometimes I write about it. Recently, however, Lucky went all out, inviting a select group of the Alphas to a luncheon at Condé Nast headquarters to celebrate the launch of Dior Beauty on Dior.com. We were treated to a presentation, complete with product demonstrations, lunch, and even a makeover, which felt very decadent in the middle of the day. But the point was to show us the updated Dior Beauty site, which is now shoppable. Of course, you can buy Dior makeup and fragrance everywhere from Sephora to Nordstrom, so why shop Dior.com? It's the difference between buying at a hectic, cluttered department store counter versus buying at the Dior boutique--you are getting the entire Dior experience, which is somewhat decadent and definitely glamorous. Not to mention, there's all manner of fun content on the site, my favorite of which is the Miss Dior minisite, which features a cute little diorama (pun intended) with a Brigitte Bardot song playing in the background (très Dior). Appealing to shoppers' practical sides, however, there's the Dior Diva club, which promises members shopping rewards, free shipping offers, special news, and more--it's the web equivalent of having an attentive in-store salesperson.

The most fun part of the luncheon was getting to actually shop the Dior website; I ordered the new Diorshow Brow Styler, which is like my favorite Kevin Aucoin brow pencil but better (it comes with a tiny built-in brow comb); the 5-Coulours Iridescent Eyeshadow in Sunset Café, a collection of flattering but not boring neutrals; and my old standby, Diorshow Backstage Mascara, a mascara that has yet to be outdone in my book. If you're looking for other goodies, they let us test the new J'Adore Dior L'Or, which is a souped-up version of the bestselling fragrance and, if you like florientals as much as I do, smells like heaven. (While we're on the subject of fragrance, I should also note that you can buy the impossible-to-find Dolce Vita on the website!) I was also taken with the Dior Addict Lip Glow, which creates a unique color based on your chemistry, and the Gris Montaigne nail lacquer, which just might give Chanel a run for its nail-color dominance.


When my order arrived, it was like an early Christmas--I opted for the Couture gift wrapping, which means your order comes in a fancy Dior box with ribbon and plissé tissue paper. Let me just say, you don't get this kind of service from Sephora. It's a mere $5 normally, but now through 12/22, you can receive it free with promo code LUCKBLOGS2010. If you're giving the gift of Dior this Christmas (a wise gift for any lady), it makes your recipient feel like a couture customer--which may be the best gift of all.

FTC full disclosure: Perhaps realizing I need all the help I can get when it comes to makeup, Dior.com gifted the aforementioned items to me.

Guilty Pleasure: People Style Watch
Remember how exciting it was when Lucky magazine debuted? Well, I thought it was exciting; countless others (mostly journalists) decried the arrival of the "magalog" and thus the end of magazines as we know them. Of course, yesterday's revolutionary concept is today's eight-year-old, slightly predictable rag that I read whilst my toenail polish dries and then I throw into the recycling bin. Sorry if that sounds a bit harsh. I do still enjoy Lucky, but some of its quirks annoy me: its adjectives, the fact that the "real people" featured in the magazine are obviously not always "real," and the fact that, like most fashion magazines, the prices of the items featured in its pages seems to have risen in proportion to its high-end advertisers. I am all for escapism in magazines--this is why W is one of my favorites--but when it comes to a magazine about shopping, I want to be able to actually shop it.

Which leads me to People Style Watch. People is the most successful weekly magazine of all time; back in the '90s, it spawned the also mega-successful In Style magazine. While you wouldn't think that People would have amazing fashion coverage, its Style Watch section has expanded into its own magazine of the same name, which comes out 10 times a year. While Lucky tends to have only one celebrity-related feature per issue (its cover story), Style Watch is unabashedly all about the celebrities, from "who wore it better" stories to "how to get her look" features à la Who Wear What Daily. Maybe I've been reading too much Us Weekly, but considering the influence celebrities have on the way we dress (I'm not saying it's right), I think it's silly to ignore it. Cousin In Style pioneered the fashion-through-the-celebrity-lens concept, but if you're like me and don't want to read through all of the cliché celebrity profiles and "how to buy a watch" features, Style Watch should be right up your alley. It also deserves points for truly presenting a wide range of price points and, as can be appreciated in these recession-bound times, cover lines promising "127 Fab Finds Under $50" and "231 Cute (& Cheap!) Summer Looks." Yes, you'll read it just as quickly as Lucky. But the difference is that afterward, you'll have a shopping list of things you can actually afford.