The best charger I could find comes with four AA's (and four AAA's), and is about $40. On top of that, we need about 46 Eneloop rechargeable batteries (the good kind that hold their charge) at $2.50 each, for a total of $155. That was all well and good until I discovered that Costco was selling packs of ten Eneloop batteries and a charger for $19.98. Oh, beautiful, bargain-hunting bounty!

Prior to this stellar deal, it would have taken considerable use to justify the expense, but since our cost is down to $100 total, it will only take us four years to re-coup the cost. The manufacturer claims that the batteries will last for 1000 recharges. In my example, we would only have recharged them eight times in four years, so in theory we could continue using them for another 496 years. I can find no information on how long the batteries will last, but I highly doubt I will get my 1000 recharges in. The Sanyo website says ten years is not an unreasonable expectation. If we could get ten years, that would be the equivalent of $250 worth of batteries, so we could save $150. An extra fifteen bucks a year isn't exactly going to send us back to Europe anytime soon, but it will save 950 batteries from going into the landfill. The return on investment is even better where you have a few batteries that are recharged frequently--such as in a camera. I would get a Costco membership and a freezer or extra insulation in the attic or even a box fan first, but if you already have those, this is a good investment.

In the past, I've never been fashionable enough to actually choose good things at a thrift store. Now that I'm better at analyzing cuts and fits, I think I could do better. Since everyone else is going thrift-shopping in Seattle this weekend, I made up my own tour of Bay Area thrift stores. Believe it or not, I did not include every thrift store known to man. I only included ones people said were fabulous. I have divided them up into tours by city or region. My goal will be to see whether it is truly possible to get items of the same quality as those in my current wardrobe for pennies on the dollar. I remain dubious as to making a wardrobe completely out of thrift store and yard sale finds. Some claim there are quality designer pieces at tremendous discounts as well as funky vintage pieces at the right thrift stores. By augmenting such finds with quality basics that last, I expect one could construct a wardrobe quite affordably. Right now, I have most everything I need, so thrift store find will have to be extra tempting. I do need sundresses, so that will be my main focus. While looking at sundresses, I should be able to make a list something like the grocery price book to help me compile a list of good prices for similar items at various stores. If anyone would like to come on any particular part of this excursion, let me know.

Even better than thrift stores, she says, are garage sales. I didn't think garage sales existed anymore between Craigslist & FreeCycle, but I was wrong. What do you buy at a garage sale you ask? She says she virtually never buys things new at the store. Rather, she keeps in mind things that are likely to give out soon, items that could fill the gap till the perfect thing is found, and tools that would allow her to repair items that break or make things that would lower their cost of living/raise their standard of living. She mostly talks about how fabulous they are for kids stuff, since they usually outgrow it before it breaks. Since I don't have kids, I had sort of skipped that part. There are still supposedly fabulous yard sales in wealthy neighborhoods where you can get designer clothes and fabulous kitchen gadgets. Moving & divorce sales are supposed to be the best. Craigslist usually lists where they will be held on the weekend by mid-week. 'Tis the season!

Part of the difficulty is the fact that I don't know what the energy needs would be for an energy efficient large home, let alone one that pumps and filters all its own water or one that tries to replace its natural gas usage with solar, so regard all of this as wild conjecture. The average American family uses 10,656 kWh per year or 888 kWh per month. I figure I can set up a very energy-efficient home (much like the water-conserving home I planned), but I will have additional costs, so let's leave it as is.

This solar calculator (www.findsolar.com) tells me I would need a 6.79 kW installation to cover those requirements here in sunny California, which would cover 679 sq. ft. of south-facing roof (which agrees with my own calculations). Such an installation would cost approximately $54,000 they say, or about $28,000 after tax breaks and incentives. It guesses that my average monthly savings would be $129.77 for a 25 year savings of $64,851.61. My calculations are a little more grim. By my calculations, even though it pays for itself in energy savings after 14 years, it doesn't beat leaving the $28,000 invested in an interest-compounding investment and paying the energy bills. The capital outlay is simply too large for the return.

However, if you can get a loan for the panels at 5% so you aren't providing the initial capital outlay, and you pay it off within the life of the panels (25 years), the picture is better. You initially pay more than you would just paying the electric bills, but when inflating energy costs overtake your fixed loan payments in year 10, you can start paying yourself back for the extra you initially spent, and in year 17 you break even. At that point, you can start saving the money you would be paying to the electric company in an interest-bearing account. In other words, the investment in solar isn't a good enough investment for your own money, but if you can leverage someone else's, and you don't mind increasing your payments a few hundred dollars a year initially, it can pay you back twenty years down the road.

Some of you may be wondering about the mysterious wonders of leasing solar panels. Basically, you continue to pay the same amount per month for energy, it's just that now you pay half of it to the solar company and half to the electric company. It doesn't really save you any money--it's just for if you want to reduce your carbon footprint (which we all would appreciate. If they ask you to pay a couple grand up-front for the installation on top of the lease, it's clearly a losing proposition.

What is really worthwhile, though, is the new third-generation photo-voltaic cells, which are much cheaper to produce and much more efficient at capturing energy. Unfortunately, they are still in development and won't hit the residential market for another 10-15 years. The question is: how much cheaper will they be and how soon will they come out? I've heard wild rumors that they would be able to be installed for something closer to $12,000, and that they would be able to cover your whole roof, so you might even make money selling energy back to the electric company (at a discount of course). IF something were to come out in ten years and IF you could install it for $12,000, you would make a lot more money by waiting and paying for electricity until that happens. However, if it costs more than $12,000, then your gains from waiting start to dwindle. You're still making money by waiting even if it costs $24,000 then, especially if the cells last longer than 25 years. If it takes 15 years for them to hit the market, you still make money until the projected capital outlay balloons to $20,000. All in all, it's a gamble. Interest rates are low right now, you could lock in a return by getting a low-rate loan and reduce your carbon footprint. Who knows, maybe in 10-15 years, interest rates will be much higher, solar companies will want to recoup their research costs initially, and the price will be more than projected.

So the jury's still out on solar. I think if you have the credit, and you doubt the pace of technological advancement, you switch over to solar. If, however, you believe in all this alternative energy talk, then you make sure when you renovate or build that your house is wired for solar. And then check your roof insulation. You lose thirty percent of your house's heat through the roof. Make sure that's sealed up tight. Make sure your dryer and stove are gas, or start hanging your laundry to dry (you can use hangers on a free-standing rack indoors). Keep one side of the sink filled with soapy water and do your daily dishes by hand. Switch all your lights to cfl's and then turn them off when you leave the room for more than half an hour. Plug all your appliances and adapters into power strips, and power the strip off when you're not using them. Other than hanging your own laundry to dry, none of those takes any longer than arranging for the installation of panels. Lower your energy costs now and put the difference in an interest-bearing account for the day the new panels arrive. You might just be able to buy them outright.

You see, it occurred to me, while sitting on the lakeshore in Bellagio watching the fisherman pull in his nets, that with a suitable location it might be possible to retire from working and live a life that wouldn’t wear so hard on the earth. Mostly it was an intriguing thought experiment, but now with the job market being what it is and the not-too-distant sale of my house, it’s a little more practical to think about. So I’ve been reading up on sustainable living, which includes totally normal things like growing fruits and vegetables in your backyard to crazier stuff like how to farm your own fish in a tank under your tomatoes.

Yesterday, I was looking into catching and storing your own rainwater. I like the self-sufficiency of the idea, but wondered if, like most solar installations, it costs more than it saves. I did some digging and found that the average American family uses 236 gallons of water per day, or 86,447 gallons a year. I added up my own numbers and figured a family of four could get by on 138 gallons of water per day between four showers, 8 teeth brushings, cooking, running the dishwasher, a load of laundry, and five bathroom visits each. 138 gallons per day adds up to 50,370 gallons per year. Coincidentally, about 47,500 gallons of water each year falls on a 3000 sq.ft. roof in the east bay. So that’s good—with some tinkering, you could get by on the amount of rain you get—as long as you can store all the winter surplus for use in the summer.

So this is where it gets fancy. Because we have dry summers and wet winters, by the end of March, on average, you would have to be holding 19,672 gallons of water in storage to get you through to September. That’s a little more than most backyard swimming pools. Obviously, the first best step is to see how little water you could get by on each day. If you saved your laundry, shower, sink, and dishwasher water for use in the toilets and the garden, you could get by on 88 gallons per day, and you’d only need to store 16,104 gallons of water. That’s still a lot, but not impossible. Adam had mentioned seeing something the other day where people sunk massive water tanks under their driveway to store all their rainwater. Since a 5,000-gallon tank runs about $2000, and I can get no clearer indication on how much a complete system costs, I decided to guesstimate $10,000. This could be wildly off, but we’re using the guess-and-check method here. My question is: which offers the better return on investment, leaving the $10,000 invested with compound interest and paying your water bill, or buying your own water system and investing the saved the water bill payments. Like always, I gleefully trotted out my excel spreadsheet and furiously typed in my calculations.

Interestingly, buying one gallon of water in the East Bay costs the same as buying 172 gallons per day, so if you’re going to try to save here, you’ve gotta’ go whole hog. A family using our 138 gallons of water per day and living above 600 ft. in elevation (because who doesn’t want a view?) pays $918.04 per year to East Bay MUD. If that same family saved that money each year and invested it in the same interest-bearing vehicle as they would have had the $10,000 in, they save about a thousand dollars a year, while the $10,000 only makes about $300 in the early years. By buying the water system, the family starts making money in year 11. Now that’s a long time to wait for something to pay you back, but after thirty years, the water tanks are ahead by $41,336,99 (adjusted to today’s dollars). Even if you need a new pump or some filters, I still think you’re ahead. If you’re like my grandparents and you spend 55 years in your East bay house on the hill, the water tanks installed the first year in the house pay you back $199,793.60 (in today’s dollars) more than the $10,000 would.

I’m not yet saying that this is what you should do with your money or your water. There are probably a number of other hidden costs, like maintenance, energy to run the pumps, filters, etc. Let’s say it costs you $200 a year in maintenance. You’re still ahead at year 15. All that additional costs do is move your break-even date. What I’m saying is that it is a financially reasonable decision to save and filter your own rainwater. Now it’s time to look into a pond as storage that would also farm tilapia and fertilize the tomatoes.

So, here goes. Following an example from “The Tightwad Gazette,” I started a price book. A price book is a book you use when grocery shopping to record the ingredients you frequently purchase (one per page), and its price per ounce at local grocery stores. I’m sure in the not-too-distant future it will be possible to take a picture of the item or scan its barcode with your phone and pull up a list of prices at nearby stores, but until then… I kept a list of the items on my shopping list. Not surprisingly, everything is cheapest at Costco. That creates two small problems: 1) Costco doesn’t carry everything, and 2) where do you store two gallons of olive oil?

The first problem is solved simply—FoodsCo (FoodMaxx/Kroger’s) carries many things, including usable quantities of fresh produce, at Costco prices. The first time I shopped there, I got a full cart of groceries for $60. The parking lot is a little off-putting (bring handi-wipes), but the values are well worth it, and the people are super-friendly. The few items I can’t find at Costco or FoodsCo are usually available at Lucky, which is the next cheapest and often has things on special for lower than Costco prices. It pays to scan the circulars for Safeway and Lucky online once a week to check for produce or meat specials (this is how you find the fifty-cent-a-pound pears). Specialty items can be gotten at Rainbow Co-Op or Safeway. Now that I virtually never shop at Safeway, when I do go for something I’m shocked by the prices. Oatmeal at Costco costs a tenth of what Safeway charges. A trip to Safeway for dinner that night costs about a fourth of our average non-Safeway grocery bill for the month.

Problem number 2 is really a matter of how much you enjoy the concept of a pantry. I, personally, love the idea of an entire closet full of delicious food that virtually never perishes. Honestly, what could be more comforting? Most everyone has a closet full of junk, a cupboard housing pots and pans you never use, or an awkward space that could be used for storage. I moved all my vitamins to the bathroom and put lazy susans in my corner cupboards to get more storage, then I stocked up on the canned goods we use and oatmeal. It really wasn’t hard to fit an extra bottle of olive oil, or six extra cans of tomatoes. I passed on the 25 lb. bag of sugar, and it turns out that’s fine since it periodically goes on sale at the grocery store for the Costco price. By only buying things I know I will use, and then using them, finding space for Costco purchases hasn’t been a problem.

So far, so good. However, meat & vegetables are hard to get through in bulk. It helps to use the Debbie Meyer Green Bags (available at Bed, Bath, and Beyond) and to store all your produce properly. You can also organize your freezer better to get more in, but sooner or later, you come to the line in the sand. There is no turning back from an incredible sale on fifty pounds of frozen meat (or in my case, free turkeys). You can purchase an extra freezer for less than $500, and over the course of a year, it will almost certainly pay for itself in what you save on meat. It allows you to keep just about everything you eat nearly indefinitely. You can freeze shredded cheese, nuts, egg whites, cream—anything with a reasonably high fat content. You can pour leftover liquids (juice, tomato paste, chiles, soft cheeses, pesto, etc.) into ice cube trays, then store the cubes in freezer bags. You can save batches of soup, casseroles, fresh bread—just about anything that might go bad in your fridge can be saved in the freezer. Additionally, it allows you to cook in large batches and freeze half, cutting your cooking time in half. You can track down your most expensive food purchases, like pasta sauce, and make and freeze your own when the vegetables are in season. Or increase the quality of your eating by always having things like homemade toaster waffles and pancakes on hand. The freezer makes life so much easier (and better!). Now I can aim to go to the grocery store once, maybe twice a month. I only have to cook a couple days a week, and we eat better than we ever did before.

If you want to go whole hog, you can can your own fruits and vegetables. Unless you get a fabulous deal on produce and the thing you’re making is really expensive, it’s probably not worth it. However, for things like making your own Pad Thai sauce or your best Mango Chutney, you can save yourself quite a bit, so I thought I’d mention it. All it takes is a pressure cooker and some jars (which Wal-Mart carries at the best price year-round). There are ample government and university websites covering the various food safety measures that must be taken, but none of it is that difficult. You just need a timer.

So now that it’s all out there, before you go calling me crazy, take a look at the USDA's cost to feed families at different levels of spending. Many who work at meal planning and bulk shopping come in well under their thriftiest plan (I think I manage for about half that). Adopt some or all of these strategies as they suit your needs. The difference between the most liberal plan for a two-person family and the thriftiest is about $4200 a year--and they're not including eating out. There are a lot worse things you could do for an after-tax $5000 per year.

To find out more:
californiaprogressreport.com
healthvote.org
ballotpedia.org
L.A. Times Editorial

After some experimentation, this is what I came up with.
1) Eat breakfast. Skipping it is easy, but bad for building long-term habits. Have a bowl of oatmeal made with 1/3 c old-fashioned oats (2/3 c water & 3 min. in the microwave). It’s only 100 calories, and you can add sugar-free Splenda syrup or cinnamon for calorie-free flavor.
2) For lunch, have something small: leftovers, a piece of fruit and cheese, soup & salad, or half a sandwich. Usually, I can keep lunch under 300 calories, though yours might be larger.
3) Dinner is normal, though I try to only use whole-grain, high-protein, or high-fiber carbohydrates. I like to stick to Sonoma Diet-like proportions: one half plate vegetables, one fourth plate meat, and one fourth plate carbs.
4) No dessert. It’s crucial for me to get away from eating sugar & high-glycemic index carbohydrates. They are my Achilles heel. Since going cold turkey is too cruel, I allow myself dark chocolate. It’s dense enough to be satisfying in small quantities. Additionally, it has raised my standards for dessert—now I want a lot more flavor and less butter/sugar. I also think The Finer Things Club is helping. There’s no shortage of dessert to look forward to in my life, so it makes it easier to put off until then.
5) I also avoid alcohol, though I’ll have a drink at a party (no mixers).
6) On the weekends, I eat what the boyfriend’s eating, which is usually healthy, but if it’s not, I don’t stress. It slows the weight loss, but keeps me from feeling like I’m depriving myself. Getting back on the program on Monday is hard, but easier if I focus on eating just the three meals. My choices get healthier as the week goes on.
7) Exercising while on a low-calorie diet is difficult. What works best for me is wearing a pedometer during the day, then going for a walk in the evening that gets my daily total up to 10,000 steps (usually a 20 minute constitutional around Dolores Park is just right).

There are days I’m sure I have less than a thousand calories, but I don’t think I’m managing it consistently (which is good). However, aiming at less than a thousand seems to let me actually lose weight instead of aiming at twelve hundred and ending up at fourteen or sixteen hundred. I don’t think I’m losing at an unhealthy rate—in a month I’ve lost about six pounds.

After a few more pounds, I will go back to my healthy eating plan. Because I’m not crazy about cooking, I designed it so that I make a double-batch of lunch one day, then a double-batch of dinner the next. That way I only have to cook once a day, and there is always something healthy available.

All of this is to say that losing weight is hard, and getting too hung up on rules (“never go below 1000 calories a day,” “no carbs,” “don’t break with the plan”), can make it harder. My theory is that when you start by doing all the things you know you’re supposed to, you can break a few rules.

CorningWare or Pyrex
I like having at least three sizes with lids, but you can probably start with a 9x13 for roasting vegetables, making casseroles, brownies, and broiling. For a couple extra dollars, you can get a value pack with an 8x8, which I love, because I can mix up recipes for a 9x13, divide them in half, bake one half in the 8x8 and freeze one half in an 8x8 catering pan (Pyrex 4-pc. Bakeware Value Pack, Target, $12.49). Finally, if you enjoy the convenience of microwave steamed vegetables, try the a 2-qt. covered casserole (Target, $8.49). Anchor makes discount glass bakeware.

You need a few crucial items for preparing foods before cooking them. You probably have many of these already, and if not, most are available at Ikea for a few dollars a piece.
Chef’s Knife
The only thing that chops everything. Cooks Illustrated’s favorite is Forschner Victorinox Fibrox 8-inch knife ($23 at www.cutleryandmore.com).
Kitchen Shears
You don’t know you need these until you have them. So wonderful! Messermeister's Take-Apart Shears (Model DN1070, $19.99 at www.cutleryandmore.com).
A Cutting Board
Plastic or wood, both have anti-bacterial properties as well as pros and cons. I just like it to be small enough to pull out and put away (as low as $1 at Ikea). It’s also nice to get an acrylic mat to go on top, since it makes it easier to transfer your chopped veggies ($2 at The Container Store).
Metal Measuring Cups
With engraved amounts because the numbers on the plastic ones wear off (Ikea $4.50, CuisiPro $25).
Measuring Spoons
Any metal ones will do (but preferably the slide-y spoons) Kitchen Art Adjustable Pro Teaspoon & Tablespoon (about $12 for both tea & table, $3.50 for your basic at Ikea).
Grater/Zester
Ikea has my favorites because they have a removable bottom that holds shavings ($6 for Griller or Charm). If you have a food processor, you just need a rasp grater for citrus and spices.
Can Opener
Ikea $2-5.

There are a few things that you can get by without, but that make life so much easier, they’re well worth the few extra dollars.
Silicone Spatulas
You need a flat scraper for the sides of bowls, a concave spoon spatula or spoonula for pushing things around in a sauté pan, and a turner or pancake spatula for flipping things. The nice thing about silicone is that it never melts or splits the way rubber does. Get one with a heat-proof (non-plastic) handle as well so you can lean it on the side of your pan.
Mixing Bowls
Ikea has a set with covers for $5. You can also get glass, which is microwavable.
Meat Temperature Thermometer
The probe goes into the meat and the cord goes out of the oven to the LCD display. This is how you know whether your chicken and steak are done without cutting into them and letting all the juices escape. ThermoWorks Original Cooking Thermometer/Timer ($19, www.thermoworks.com).
Collander
Pasta strainer & salad drainer (at Ikea for $2)
Roasting Pan
A cheapy tinfoil one at grocery store will probably suffice until you start roasting a lot of meat.

If you plan to do any baking, you’ll probably want the following:
Cookie sheet
Forget about non-stick for baking sheets. The darker pan color cooks the bottom of the cookies faster than the top and gets scratched too easily trying to get the cookies off. Get a regular one without sides (which reflect heat), and use parchment paper to keep cookies from sticking (Vollrath $15.69-$19.95).
Loaf pan
Preferably pyrex or glass. Again, use rectangles of parchment paper to make it easy to lift loaves out without sticking.
Fruit & Vegetable Peeler
There are new horizontal ones that take wider stripes of peel and work for lefties too. Ceramic ones never rust or dull. (Ikea, $1.50).

Countertop appliances are complicated, but there are several I particularly love.
George Foreman Grill
This fabulous item allows you to grill year round and removes an amazing amount of fat from your meats. It also makes paninis. Get one with interchangeable plates so you can put them in the dishwasher, or at least submerge them in water to wash. Some versions will even double as a griddle and waffle maker, which is great if you eat a lot of frozen waffles (Amazon, $99.99).
Toaster Oven
Great for cooking small portions, toasting open-faced sandwiches, and re-heating pizza. Next time your toaster dies, get one of these instead.
Stand Mixer
You can get by forever on a hand-held mixer, but this is much more fun and lets you use attachments to make ice cream, juice fruits, roll pasta, and fill your own sausages. Cuisinart’s is now considered top of the line, but the classic Kitchenaid should do plenty (Cuisinart 5.5 Quart Stand Mixer, $349, www.cooking.com; Kitchenaid Classic Plus Stand Mixer, $149.99 at Costco).
Food Processor
Basically a wide blender with different kinds of blades for chopping different things, and a feed tube so you can add more. Cuisinart was the classic, but now Kitchenaid makes the best (Kitchenaid 12-Cup Food Processor-model KTA KFP750, $160-200 depending on color & store). If you just need something for chopping nuts and spices, you can start with a miniature version for a fraction of the price (KitchenAid Chef's Chopper KFC 3100, $39.99). Between a blender, a stand mixer, and a grater, you probably don't need one of these, but if you have a dishwasher and enjoy the thrill of watching things be instantly atomized, this may be more for you than a stand mixer.
Slow Cooker/Pressure Cooker/Rice Maker
If you don’t actually have a stove or oven, you can still make plenty of delicious food with one of these. The most incredible sounding one has a browning feature that lets you brown the meat before you add the other ingredients. An electric pressure cooker will let you cook the same dishes in a fraction of the time a slow-cooker takes, but a slow-cooker lets you start things in the morning. My favorite is a Fagor 3-in-1 Electric Multi-Cooker ($119.95, Amazon.com).

Have fun!

So that was it. I wanted cheap, easy, quick, delicious, healthy food—in essence, takeout from my kitchen, but better. I started by making a list of thirty things that the boyfriend and I like to eat (Variety—check!). Then, I got recipes for those dishes on my favorite website, www.cooksillustrated.com, (Delicious—check!). Then I compared those to the recipes in the Cooking Light cookbook, and added more vegetables and lean protein to trim down the calories (Healthy—check!). In order to make the recipes less daunting, I re-formatted them to list instructions and ingredients just once, to make times easier to track, and to let me know what pans and temperatures to use right at the top (Easy--check!). Anything that took longer than half an hour got simplified or cut out (at first, I tried to make some exceptions to this rule, but I still haven’t made those dishes, so… Quick—Check!). The last part anyone born after 1965 will find totally crazy—inconceivably, I planned my meals for the month.
That’s right, I made a calendar of meals for thirty days. I grouped together things that used the same fresh ingredients. It allowed me to figure out what basics I could keep in the cupboard or freezer, and what I could shop for fresh once a week. With a finite shopping list, it was easy to stock up and then go to the grocery store just once a week (check!). And from there, it was easy to find the cheapest grocery stores (which I’ll talk about more later).
In case you’re looking for a similar situation, you can see what I came up with here.

Bonus: Check thebudgetfashionista.com for all the latest sale info.

So, first you must know your hair texture—-fine, thick, or medium smooth. Fine hair is delicate, fragile, and seems ready to break. You can usually see the scalp on someone with fine hair both at the part and beyond. Fine hair lays flat against your scalp. Thick hair has a wider shaft and feels a touch coarse or wiry when running your fingers through it. It tends to take a long time to air-dry (an hour or more) and puffs up and out. Medium Smooth hair is everybody in between. Then, you must know your hair shape—straight, wavy, or curly. Hair shape can change on the same head of hair. Many women have more wave below the crown.

Once you know your hair texture and hair shape, you can start to choose a haircut that works with your hair, requiring less styling. I don't really have room or time to discuss all the best haircuts for each hair type, but his book does a pretty good job. Unfortunately, it doesn’t list a whole lot of shoulder-length or longer cuts (maybe because they're all pretty much the same). Fine, thick, and curly heads are the least flexible in terms of styling, so a cut that works is more important. If you have medium-smooth, straight, or wavy hair, you can do most anything, which means, you can focus on framing your face. Bangs are a huge help at this. Short hair that comes to your chin can also do this quite dramatically.

Finally, I learned quite a bit about products and was quite heartened to learn that most hair problems can be solved with the right products and proper technique. He has a chart of products that is very helpful if you don’t know what kind of products would help you style your hair. I had never heard of “Thermal Protector” or “Blow Dry Setting Spray” (both turn out to be crucial for a frizz-free blow-dry). Did you know you are never supposed to rub your hair? It creates frizz. Most all products should be worked into your hair from just below the roots down. Allure Magazine puts out a Best of Beauty Hall of Fame for useful products that have been winners year after year. Feel free to add yours in the comments section:
Sunsilk ThermaShine Conditioner
John Frieda Frizz-Ease Hair Serum (try the Thermal Protection Formula)
Phytodefrisant Botanical Hair Relaxing Balm
Conair Infiniti Tourmaline Hair Designer (I recently tried this, and was amazed at how fast it dried my hair. It was also much straighter than usual, but not smooth & shiny right away)
Wella Liquid Hair Brilliant Spray Gel

All in all, it is a book well worth checking out of the library. I have yet to find the styling regimen that leaves my hair looking great in 20 minutes a day or less, but I no longer believe it is because my hair is impossible--rather, I expect I just need to learn how to style it well (and get bangs!).

Foundation—Use for spot coverage along the center of the face and as a base for eye shadow on eyelids (it will help keep it in place). Carmindy says to use liquid foundation for our age group (try L’Oreal Paris True Match Super-Blendable Makeup) or tinted moisturizer if you have dry, flawless skin (like Neutrogena Healthy Skin Enhancer). Bobbi Brown likes a stick foundation for carrying in her bag. Modern women don’t wear as much foundation as they used to, so it doesn’t have to be such an investment—you just need the color to match. Walk outside into the daylight and check in your compact before buying.

Concealer—Bobbi Brown’s number one product for brightening a face, and the one place she says to invest (maybe that's why she makes such good ones). Buy this somewhere where you can try them on before buying. Multiple shades are fine. Your skin changes color throughout the year, some are good for blemishes (like Stila Cover-Up Stick and Revlon Color Stay Concealer), some for under eyes. Always put this over foundation to prevent overloading on it and getting cakey. Carmindy likes light-reflective concealer sticks for under eyes and on the inside of the nose (like The Body Shop Concealer Pencil or Benefit Eye Bright), and says they look more natural. Under-eye concealer should be a shade lighter than your foundation.

*Any cream highlighters or blushes should be applied before powder.*

Powder—to set makeup down your nose, across your chin, over cheeks and eyelids, and under eyelids if necessary to set concealer. Try Cover Girl Clean Pressed Powder or Mac Blot Powder if you don’t already own any.

Highlighter—Use a powder pearly shimmer under your eyebrows, on the inside corners of your eyes, and the tops of your cheekbones by the outer half of your eye. This is Carmindy’s go-to, better-than-shadow makeup trick. It’s certainly quicker and easier to carry, though for my time, I'll take shadow.

Blush or Bronzer—apply to apples of cheeks with a face powder brush for a seamless finish.

Eyeliner—brown pencil works on everyone. Work it down into the lash line and smudge with a q-tip. Alternatively, you can use a dark shadow and skinny brush, which Carmindy usually does on the show. Start one fourth of the way out from your inner eye to keep it looking light.

Mascara—Apply one coat to top lashes only (classic Maybelline Lash Discovery—-waterproof smears less). I like to put this on before anything else because I always get black spots somewhere and have to wipe them off and start over. Nonetheless, I’m leaving this here because that’s how Carmindy says to do it. If you use mascara, you will need an oil/silicone-based makeup remover, such as Bi-Facils.

Lip Color—surely you have many of these already. One you may not have thought of is just all-over pencil with lip balm.

If you have time, eye shadow makes for a more made-up look. Smoky eyes are sexier than bold lip color for an evening out. To make more of your eye color, use hues that are the opposite, blue eyes=brown shadow, green eyes=purple, hazel=green, brown=blue or green.

Do not run out to buy products unless you have NONE of these at home. If you are at all like me, you have a lifetime supply of these already. Try them back out (especially after using your new self-tanner) before spending your hard-earned money. Label them “summer,” “winter,” etc. Mix heavy or cakey formulations with some lotion. Add a few drops of rubbing alcohol to broken powders and press them back into shape (when the rubbing alcohol evaporates, they’ll be back to pressed). Organize eye shadows and lipsticks into “going out,” “work,” “natural,” and “summer” groups so you can grab them easily and remember what goes together to make a look. You will probably have some things you simply don’t like and never really used. Have a makeup party with girlfriends and see if anyone else wants your products before casting them into the landfill (this is perfect for all those sample size things and lipsticks that come free with purchase). If you must go buy something, check the drug-store circular where you shop for specials and coupons (or check drugstore.com, which has discounts and free shipping over $25). Makeup is fantastically over-priced and the discounts can be substantial. Buy department store cosmetics at gift time or when you can get a makeover from a professional makeup artist who will show you how to apply it.

See lists after the jump.

Her Makeup Bag:
Stick Foundation
Concealer
Pressed Powder
Highlighter
Blush
Lipstick
Brushes for concealer, blush, and powder
Perfume in atomizer (says I)

Carmindy’s Day-to-Night Desk Kit (kept in an inexpensive metallic clutch):
Oil-blotting papers (Clean & Clear—in a pinch you can use toilet-seat covers)
Dark eyeliner
Shimmering eye shadow
Evening lipstick

You should choose your skin care products based on your skin type. If you have oily skin, use foaming gel cleanser (like L’Oreal Ideal Balance) and an oil-free lotion with SPF 15 or higher. You must use lotion to keep your skin from compensating and producing more oil. Lotions with Alpha Hydroxy Acids will help exfoliate skin and keep pores clear. If you have normal skin, you probably actually have combination skin, and need to choose products from the “oily” and “dry” categories as they meet your needs. If you have dry skin, use a creamy cleanser (like Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser) and a moisturizing cream with SPF 15 or higher. If skin feels tight five minutes after applying moisturizer, your formula isn’t rich enough. Try using a humidifier in winter for extra moisture. Once you are consistently wearing a moisturizer with SPF, you will need a self-tanner. I hate extra steps, so I wanted a daily moisturizer with SPF and tanning lotion all-in-one. I found:
Jergens Natural Glow Face Moisturizer (which Carmindy recommends), Neutrogena Summer Glow,
Olay Regenerist Touch of Sun UV Regenerating Lotion, and
Olay Complete Touch of Sun.
If none of those is moisturizing enough, you can add some super-moisturizing cream and shake it up (try a small mix first to make sure they play well together).

The only other skin product that people are really insistent on at our age is eye cream. If you have puffiness, look for formulas that firm (like Neutrogena Healthy Skin Eye Cream). If, like me, you have dark circles under your eyes, you need to accept that concealer will probably do more for you than anything else. If you have allergies, sometimes getting allergy shots to reduce your reaction can help. When looking for dark circle products, find ones with vitamin K and that DO NOT address puffiness—they can thin the skin making circles appear darker. Shea butter and beeswax are ultra-hydrating at night, but in general, what works during the day should work during the night. Amazon reviewers see results from:
Vita-K solutions,
Neutrogena Radiance Boost Eye Cream, and
Skin-Ceuticals Eye Cream.

If you want more contoured and tanned limbs, body lotion is also a must. Olay makes a Body Touch of Sun without SPF that might be good for legs and arms in the winter. Otherwise, you can make your own. Buy unscented lotion from the drugstore, then mix in essential oils (like coconut, jasmine, or rose), and liquid shimmer (try Sephora Luminizer, Neutrogena Shimmer Sheer, LORAC TANtalizer, Stila All Over Shimmer, or Laura Geller Illuminizing Color Wash).

As for teeth, I think bleaching your teeth sounds scary, so either chat with your dentist or try a whitening toothpaste (such as Colgate Simply White Advanced Whitening). If you’re feeling adventurous, there are many varieties of whitening strips that can be used with strengthening toothpaste.

Perfect brow-shaping:
Carmindy gives the most concrete description I have ever seen of how to shape your brows, and it’s worth checking the book out of the library just to see the pictures.
1) She starts with brushing brows up and trimming any extra-long hairs.
2) Then, you must identify where the brow should begin—she says to rest a brow brush along the side of your nose, and where the brow brush crosses your brow is where your brow should start (or even a tiny bit closer to your nose, according to the picture). Pluck right after your shower for the least pain. Remove any stray hairs in between brows.
3) Your arch should be where the brush crosses your brow when lined up with the outside of your lip and the outer edge of the iris. Pluck hairs under the arch to make it taper more clearly.
4) Your endpoint should be where the brush crosses your brow and is lined up with your nostril and the outer corner of your eye. Pluck any that stray beyond.
In general, err on the side of fuller brows, since they look more youthful.
Interestingly, most models and celebrities dye their brows to both make their hair color more believable and to make their eyes pop. Darker eyebrows give eyes definition, lighter brows soften your look. You lighten them with plain drug-store hair bleach. Take it off in 5-minute intervals your first time until you have a sense of how long to leave it on.

Once you have all of those down, you should be able to do makeup in five quick minutes.