After a rather long hibernation period, we are ready to re-awaken the section formerly devoted to reviewing the latest and greatest beauty products. Lotions, potions, cosmetics…you name it, I will review it and tell if you if it is worthy of your attention as well as your hard-earned ducats.

This week’s featured company is tarte cosmetics, originally founded by Maureen Kelly. In addition to adorable packaging, tarte’s products are infused with natural botanicals vitamins, proving that they are not only fun to cart around ‘cause they look good, but good for you as well. One of their best products is the 24/7 Mineral Lip Sheers with SPF15. I am pretty much a chap stick whore, for lack of a better term, so I am always on the lookout for good ones that offer sun protection and perhaps a bit more. These purdy little purple tubes definitely stand and deliver. Offered in a wide variety of colors, these standard-sized tubes wipe a light, sheer stain of color while providing sun protection as well. These little babies include vitamin E, mango and cocoa butter with a hint of mint, so even your man can’t complain about some nasty, flavored goo coating your pout. The best part is that the color lasts. I prefer the “Saturday” shade, a deep, sheer red that makes me feel like Bettie Page in hot pants and is indeed perfect for a Saturday night out on the town.

Now let’s bitch about eye shadow for a minute. It seems that no matter what type of eye shadow I use, it is pretty much non-existent four or five hours later. So I must admit I was skeptical when I tried the Lock & Roll Creaseless Eyeshadow Duo. This little device consisted of a double-ended tube with a liquid cream shadow on one side and a powder shadow on the other. After brushing on the sheer cream shadow, then topping it off with the matching loose powder, my eyelids looked like brand new pennies: bright and shiny! However, the real test would be how they would look after six hours of serving tea and coffee. Amazingly enough, they looked the same. I am astounded, blown away, and pleasantly surprised. Even my friend, who is a beauty product addict, commented on my awesome eye shadow. Heck yes! Available in four different metallic colors, these shadows are a must-have for any and all weather conditions!

Another worthy lip product I tried was the fRXtion Sugar Exfoliator & Lip Balm Duo. This ingenious little creation definitely deserves an A+ in the packaging department; the lid has a slick mini mirror that pops up when you take it off, so you can properly see what you’re doing, or check for food in your teeth…you know, whatever needs to be inspected at any given moment. In any case, this balm consists of a double-sided stick, one side is a sugar exfoliator, and the other is a vitamin E balm with natural waxes to keep your lips moisturized. Now I have never been a huge fan of lip exfoliators, mainly because they leave the exfoliation bits on your lips (kind of yuck), but this one is made of sugar, so I can just eat it anyways, right?! Yum!

tarte’s line of cosmetics are designed with an on-the-go attitude and the understanding that women want products that are packaged well and work well, too.

All tarte cosmetics are available on their website (www.tartecosmetics.com) and at Sephora stores.

- Anne Vickman, October 18, 2007