Infusion D'Iris

Photo: Gregor Halenda; stylist: Marissa Gimeno

Fashionable Fragrance
Fresh and green and intriguingly beautiful, this Prada fragrance, Infusion D'Iris ($210 for 13.5 ounces plus a 30-milliliter portable splash flask and funnel), comes in a bottle so wickedly elegant, we want to display it on our mantel—maybe even decorate an entire room around it. The scent, a mix of orange blossom, mandarin, iris, vetiver, and cedarwood, has a pristine quality—evocative of the kind of perfectly ordered, fashionably appointed life we always seem to be dreaming about this time of year.
Bath products

Photo Credit: Marko Metzinger/Studio D

Water Worlds
“A 'bath tonic'? What's that?” asked our famously skeptical executive editor when we showed her the L'Occitane Bain Tonique Biphase ($26). Frankly, we didn't know what to tell her—we were still trying to make sense of the recent influx of fancy European bath products, some of which promise to do everything but make you a sandwich. For example, the L'Occitane tonic is supposed to depuff and detoxify with a blend of cypress oil and red vine leaf extract. Austrian skincare guru Susanne Kaufmann claims the rosemary note in her aroma therapeutic Sensual Bath Oil ($40) will sharpen your senses. The British company Space NK must have spiked its Enrapture Bath Oil ($40) with some crazy love potion; the scent is intended to make you feel as if you'd been whisked away on a romantic Roman holiday. Who needs such lofty ambitions? We're captivated by the divine fragrances, and whatever magic it is that leaves us feeling delightfully pampered.
Compacts and blush

Photo: Marko Metzinger/Studio D

Put on a Happy Face
Jessica sashayed into work feeling especially sunny one morning—till a co-worker asked solicitously, “Wow, are you tired?” Suddenly feeling less luminous, Jess raced to the beauty closet for a compact—any compact—from the Laura Geller Baked Basics Collection ($48). The trio includes Balance-N-Brighten, an allover powder that tones down ruddiness (and heightens radiance); Blush-N-Brighten in Berry, a sheer, natural blush perfect for every complexion; and Bronze-N-Brighten, the world's most believable bronzer. She swept on Balance-N-Brighten, and instantly Jess's complexion perfectly matched her happy disposition.
Oscar Blandi shampoo spray

Photo: Marko Metzinger/Studio D

Dry Cycle
We feel pretty fabulous after a salon blow-out, so we hate to shampoo that gorgeous style down the drain. But after a couple of days, we're always ready to wave the white towel and surrender to a good washing. Now we don't have to—we spritz our roots with Oscar Blandi Pronto Dry Shampoo Spray ($19), wait a few seconds as its rice- and oat-starch formula absorbs excess oil, and then brush. Our hair looks fresh, and a blast of that crisp lemon verbena scent is the next best thing to a real shampoo.
Age repair cream

Photo: Marko Metzinger/Studio D

Protein Packed
Sirtuins, naturally occurring proteins in the body that have been shown to delay the aging process, are exciting the researchers at Avon; they think these molecules are key to keeping skin looking younger, longer. Avon Anew Ultimate Age Repair Night Cream and Avon Anew Ultimate Age Repair Elixir ($34 and $54) contain a complex that researchers believe stimulates the production of sirtuins, resulting in firmer, smoother, and more evenly toned skin. (The elixir contains twice the amount of active ingredients and promises faster results.) We can't vouch for the increased sirtuin production, but after using the cream, our skin felt softer and luxuriously moisturized.