The Cosmo Beauty Awards

It's that time of year again -- our beauty team has gone crazy spritzing, squirting and sniffing all the latest products. Their mission: to determine which ones are so fun, so gorgeous or so life-changing that they deserve a place on your shelf.

Ingenious Inventions

These revolutionary beauty products will have you wondering, Why didn't anyone think of this sooner?

Easy-to-Buy Beautifiers
We love all the loot from the new makeup line Flirt!, but Chicksticks Sheer and Shiny Lipcolors, $10 each, are our favorites. They have a creamy texture, and the packaging matches the lipstick hue, so it's a cinch to pick out the perfect color.
Buy it at Flirt!

Sensual Skin Scent
Donna Karan Cashmere Mist Pure Cashmere Body Oil Spray, $38, makes skin feel like velvet, without any of the greasiness you usually get with body oils. This warm floral scent is a classic, but the new formula is totally innovative.
Buy it at Neiman Marcus

Smart Body Softener
Olay Moisturinse in Shower Body Lotion, $5, is a brilliant new moisturizer that you actually use in the shower just like body wash. It's so hydrating that you won't need to spend precious morning minutes applying body lotion after you towel off.
Find a store locator at olay.com

Instant Leg Perfecter
Finally, a foolproof way to get bronzed stems: Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs, $10. This tinted mist will warm up pasty skin and hide leg imperfections. Plus, it won't budge until you wash it off.
Buy it at ulta.com
Fastest Smile Brightener
There's nothing complicated about Crest White-Strips Premium, $35. Just wear a peroxide gel-coated clear strip for 30 minutes twice a day for a week, and your teeth will be significantly whiter for a whole year. Presto.
For online retailers go to crest.com

Awesome DIY Facial
Until now, micro-dermabrasion has been a pricey treat. But L'Oréal ReFinish Micro-Dermabrasion Kit, $25, lets every one afford it. You get a professional-strength exfoliating cream, plus an SPF 15 lotion.
For online retailers go to L'Oréal

Tip: If you want to check out a new product, ask a salesperson if he or she has a trial size.

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Unbeatable Bargains
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These picks prove that you don't have to spend a fortune to look like a million bucks

Greatest Shiny Gloss
It seems that the glassier the gloss, the stickier it feels. Revlon Super Lustrous Lipgloss, $7, is infused with sparkles that give your lips a ton of gleam minus the goopiness. We also like the posh-looking tube. For online store retailers go to revlon.com

Awesome Everyday Scent

Mark Self Sanctuary Kiwi Lotus Scent Mist, $12, has a fruity floral scent that's light enough to spray all over your body, and since the price is so nice, you can use it as often as you'd like without breaking the bank.
But it at Mark

User-Friendly Self-Tanner
We were thrilled when we found Neutrogena Build-a-Tan Gradual Sunless Tanning Lotion, $10. It's a body lotion that's spiked with a bit of self-tanner, so the first time you use it, you just get a subtle glow. Apply it daily till you reach your ideal color depth.
Buy it at drugstore.com

Texturizer
If you're bored with your limp do, try Garnier Fructis Shake Effect Liqui-Gel, $3, a light spray gel that gives your hair that swimsuit-model tousled effect without any stiffness. It also has a zesty citrus-green apple scent.
For online retailers go to Garnier USA

Best No-Budge Shadow
We hate how most cream eye shadows crease and fade away. Not so with Maybelline New York Liquid Eyes, $6.50. Blend the liquid onto your lids, and it quickly dries to a powder finish that won't move for hours.
Buy it at ulta.com

Makeup-Bag Staple
There's a fine line between a sexy, subtle sheen and garish-looking glitter. Rimmel All Over Pencils, $4 each, make it easy to add just enough luminosity to your eyes, cheeks, lips or any other feature you want to highlight.
Buy it at ulta.com

Tip: If you love a particular beauty brand, check out its Website. Most likely, it offers special online-only discounts and samples.

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The Ultimate Date-Night Arsenal
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When you want to look your absolute hottest, rely on our top-rated get-gorgeous tools.
Prettiest Cheek Color
Using a cream blush is a great way to create a flirty cheek effect, and we have to give honors to Giorgio Armani Sheer Cream Blush #3, $36. It's a punchy pink hue with a pearlescence that'll make any skin tone look extra radiant.
For a list of store locators go to Giorgio Armani Cosmetics

Beautiful Body Bronzer
We may never have the rocks that she's got, but copping J.Lo's sun-kissed look is now achievable with Glow by J.Lo Bronzing Body Moisturizer, $25. It's a light, tinted shimmery lotion that'll make your own bod bling.
Buy it at Macy's

Most Alluring Aroma
For steamy dates, you need a scent that's seriously seductive. Our prizewinner, Dior Pure Poison, $55, contains jasmine and sandalwood -- an intoxicating combo that sends a message he won't be able to resist.
Buy it at Sephora

Primo Lash Primper
The phenomenal formula of Cover Girl Fantastic Lash Mascara, $6, dramatically fattens up eye fringe while the brush separates each lash for a clump-free look. You can layer it on without fear -- it'll stay smooth and won't flake.
Buy it at Cover Girl

Last-All-Night Lip Lacquer
Most lip glosses fade quickly. But with Lancôme Juicy Wear Shine Lip Duo, $25, you get an ultrareflective lip effect that stays put all night. Just slick on the creamy, long-wearing lip color, then top it off with the sparkly glaze.
Buy it at Lancôme

Super Hair Volumizer
Nothing says bombshell like full, tousled tresses. That's why we love Victoria's Secret Beauty So Sexy Volumizing Mousse, $8.50. It pumps up strands to sex-kitten status, plus it has an amazing floral scent.
Buy it at Victoria's Secret Tip: To make your makeup last, use a fluffy brush to dust loose powder over your whole face after you're finished primping.

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Stellar Problem Solvers
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From mean breakouts to torched tresses, some of your worst beauty issues can be fixed by these little miracle workers.
Wonderful Prewax Prep
If just the thought of a bikini wax makes you shudder, then fear no more. Try L.M.X.4, $47, a cream that numbs your skin for about an hour so you can rub it on your bikini line or eyebrows to make a hair-removal session pain-free.
Buy it at DERMAdoctor.com

Best Blotchy Skin Solution
If your skin often looks red or blotchy, then you know how irritating it can be. Enter Prescriptives Redness Relief Gel, $50. It contains a special antiredness complex that neutralizes the appearance of a flushed face. With regular use, it'll help make your skin less reactive.
Buy it at Prescriptives

Super Strand Saver
Flat-ironing your tresses can inflict damage on your hair in the form of split ends and dullness. Matrix Sleek.Look Iron Smoother, $14, creates a protective barrier between your locks and your flatiron. It also contains silicone to add shine, so you get an ultraglossy look and no signs of styling abuse.
For online retailers go to matrix.com

Top Dark-Circle Diminisher
Chanel Eye Tonic Dark Circle Corrector, $50, is like a magic bullet for girls who work hard and party hard. It stimulates collagen production, which helps make circles less visible over time, and the metal roller-ball applicator feels great on tired eyes.
Buy it at gloss.com

First-Rate Zit Zapper
Clinique Acne Solutions Concealing Stick, $13.50, has light-deflecting particles that minimize the appearance of skin imperfections so you don't have to apply layers of cover-up -- just a dab will do the trick. And because it's so thin, you can dot it precisely where you need it.
Buy it at Clinique

Fiercest Frizz Fighter
Infusium 23 Complete Frizz Control Treatment, $5, is the only styler you need to tame unruly locks. Apply a few drops to wet hair to prevent frizz from forming or smooth it on dry strands to tame your mane.
For store locators go to infusium.com
Tip: Stash an emergency beauty kit in your desk. It should contain concealer, lip gloss, makeup remover, powder, bobby pins and a brush.

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Super Spa Treats
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Pamper yourself with these indulgent hair and skin beautifiers. You deserve it.
Best Blemish Buster
Bath and Body Works Pure Simplicity Neem Face Mask, $16, is like a facial in a jar. The thick green clay is blended with the powerful, all-natural, oil-busting leaves of the neem tree, which purge your pores of dead skin cells and dirt.
For store locators go to Bath & Body Works

Perfect Body Scrub
Many sloughers feel like gravel against your skin. Not so with Estée Lauder Body Performance Exfoliating Body Polish, $28. It's gentle but gets the job done and packs an extra softening punch because its beads release hydrating vitamin E.
Buy it at Estée Lauder

Scrumptious-Smelling Bath Soak
Calgon Ahh...Spa! Tropics Pampering Milk Bath, $7, lets you create a little pocket of paradise in your bathroom. It contains a fruit cocktail of yummy scents, including guava and mango, plus skin-pampering avocado.
Buy it at takemeaway.com

Ace Allover Wash
If the scent of a day at the beach could be bottled, it would smell a lot like Ralph Lauren Blue Shower Gel, $32.50. Lathering up with this crisp orange flower and jasmine-scented body wash is a blissful sensory experience.
Buy it at polo.com

Swankiest, Softest Robe
The minute we slipped into a Kashwére robe, $145, we never wanted to take it off. So we weren't surprised to hear that celebs love them, too. It's made out of a special fabric that feels like real cashmere, but since it's machine-washable, it's much more practical than its pricey counterpart.
But it at Kashwére

MVP Hair Mask
If you're a highlight-aholic, a frequent flat-ironer or a curling-iron queen, then treat your abused tresses to Redken Smooth Down Butter Treat, $13. It has macadamia oil and candelilla wax that'll revive your mane and make it supple.
For salon locators go to redken.com

Tip: Enhance your at-home spa time: Buy a shower CD player so you can listen to relaxing music in the shower or tub.

Source: http://magazines.ivillage.com/cosmopolitan