Before heading to a party in Santa Monica last night, I made a quick video as I was freshening up my makeup.  (Blotting sheets are key!  Right now, I’m using Allison Raffaele’s powder-free Blotting Tissues, which I highly recommend and have been very impressed with, as they sop oil without leaving the residue that other sheets can.)

The contest is now over: congrats to winner Jessica Sheehan, who will receive The Sak tote bag with my book and all the great beauty products!  Enjoy, Jessica!

I was just included in a Boston Globe article on the marked decline of grooming in the face of the economic downturn: 

She’s not the only one longing for a grooming non-proliferation pact. Nadine Haobsh, author of “Confessions of a Beauty Addict,” also sees the schlepification of America as a relief: “I’m hopeful this is a national cleanse. Over the past decade we’ve become so appearance focused. You look at Paris Hilton and all the reality TV stars and it’s literally about using what you look like.” But the recession is changing that, she said. “I think we’re moving back to this more organic state of appearance.”

Read the full article here. Thanks to Beth Teitell for interviewing me!

Top UK beauty blog Cult Beauty just interviewed me on some can’t-miss products, the beauty trends I’m most excited about, and my favorite beauty destinations the world over!  Click here for the full interview; I’ve included a little snippet below:

Cult Beauty: What is your favourite beauty trend for S/S 09 and A/W 09?Jolie: Excellent skincare and make up at mass-market prices! Target (which is kind of like Boots) is carrying Jemma Kidd, Pixi and Napoleon Perdis. And Olay is really proving itself to be among the world’s true leaders in skincare/anti-ageing. It’s nice that women are realizing you don’t have to spend a ton of money for great products.Cult Beauty: What do you think is the strangest new trend in make up?Jolie: I don’t get all these Barbie Collections that Stila is doing. It’s just weird to me. In general, I also don’t understand the MAC obsessions. Good on them for figuring out a way to make consumers rabid about purchasing every single new thing you do, but it occasionally feels gimmicky and like a waste of money to me.Cult Beauty: What’s the best new product on the market?Jolie: Living Proof No Frizz – it’s an anti-frizz hair cream that works like magic, and thoroughly coats the hair without weighing it down. Use it with a FHI hairdryer and flat iron and your hair will be sleek and shiny!

Just in case one giveaway isn’t enough for you, how about this?  HarperCollins and The Sak have paired to win The Sak’s Sakroots Pax Eco Canvas yoga mat bag, stuffed with a copy of my book, as well as Shelter Me by Juliette Fay and What I Did For Love by Susan Elizabeth Phillips!  Click here to enter, and tell ‘em Jolie sent you.

Jolie has a little flower-child hippie inside of her, as you might know, and she delights in readings and teachings that expand her consciousness, challenge her beliefs and just plain ol’ blow her mind.  (And apparently, she also loves talking about herself in the third person.)  The past couple of years have been up and down for me: I’ve been blessed by more once-in-a-lifetime experiences than anybody could realistically dream of, and have been humbled by crushing defeats, personal setbacks and emotional losses.  It’s been wild and big and messy, but I feel lucky on the whole. Much of my stability comes from lessons that I’ve been taught over the past year by my coach Sarah Klein, who I went to college with and who studied under Martha Beck (the Oprah guru).   What exactly is coaching, and how does it differ from therapy?  In Sarah’s words:

“Therapy’s focus begins in your life today and moves backwards through time to heal, understand and “have closure” on troubling events, attitudes or behaviors in the past. Coaching begins with your life today and moves forward, claiming the strengths, gifts, and insight you already possess. Coaching helps you learn about your own power and how to unleash your own potential. Therapy is about healing the past; coaching is about dealing with what is holding you back or causing you pain now and then moving forward into the great life you deserve.”

Sarah’s wonderful website is now up, and I cannot gush enough about how loving and supportive she is, and how grateful I am to benefit from her warm, witty and helpful advice.   Most people around the world increasingly seem to be more open to concepts of ego, the Universe, the Law of Positive Attraction and spiritual cleansing–but it’s the kind of thing that sounds feeble-minded, ridiculous and idiotic…until you experience the transformation that can occur when you open up, stop resisting, learn and really see. Long before my mother died, I was putting lessons into place that Sarah and I worked on, and after losing Mama Jolie, I’ve found tremendous personal strength that I didn’t even know I had, in large part due to teachings Sarah introduced me to.  If you’re a fellow seeker, or plagued by the nagging feeling that your life is out of focus, or sick of having good intentions that result in bad relationships and bad choices, take charge!  Each day is a chance for a fresh start, and I’m a firm believer that the life you expect is the life you get.  Sometimes, all is takes is a little push in the right direction (and maybe somebody gifting you a cute broom!) to clear the cobwebs out.