I suppose that my views on "beauty" align most closely to the ones I hold on architecture...that everything generally falls under one of three main categories...

1) the ones whose natural beauty and integrity are allowed to shine through

2) the ones who have been spackled and embellished to within an inch of their lives

3) those for whom the builders have been called in and they are now in a no-man's land...a travesty of their former selves (hello Britney's lips)

As you've probably guessed by now, I am a fan of skin care...minimal make-up...and regard plastic surgery as a form of self-mutilation (I can barely stand the thought of surgery for a medical condition, paying someone to take a knife to you purely for aesthetic considerations is beyond my comprehension). In consequence, I have a love of all lotions, potions, cleansers, toners, and associated goos designed to keep my skin in as good a condition as possible.

In case you're wondering what brought about this beauty-based introspection...I was recently given a "skin gift"...one of Dr. Brandt's discovery kits, a kind of deluxe pick-and-mix of four products (microdermabrasion, r3p cream, laser tight- tighten, and crease release). I can firmly say that I am now addicted to two of them...a twice a week polish with the exfoliating crystals in the microdermabrasion combined with a nightly smear of the r3p cream and not only is my skin as smooth as a baby's behind (not that I've ever actually done a comparison...I'm just going with popular wisdom on this one) but my pores are less visible...as are the fine lines.

The laser tight and crease release are the "big guns" which, thankfully, I don't need right now on a regular basis...so I'm saving them for special occasions...before a big night out...and possibly the morning after as well. So, all in all, this was a perfect gift...possibly the one that "keeps on giving" as popular wisdom is also so fond of saying.