The foreign press had a field day when they caught a glimpse of Beyonce's underarms looking stubbly at the premiere of Cadillac Records.

I think those fools can't tell the difference between an unflattering shadow and a chinchilla, but I won't contest that underarm irritation and discoloration have ruined many a sleeveless moment.

To prevent any drama, remember to use shaving cream (not just soap) and a fresh razor blade (at least three blades are best to prevent nicks and red bumps), when you shave. Change your blade every five shaves.

Also be aware of how your underarms react to different antiperspirants. If yours is too harsh, you could get a mean rash. Look for gentle products like Almay Clear Gel Antiperspirant & Deodorant ($3.29), formulated with aloe vera, and Dove Antiperspirant/Deodorant for Sensitive Skin ($3.29). Secret Flawless Touch with Olay Aqua Current Technology ($4.99), is a good moisture balancing stick.

If your underarms are darker than the rest of your body--which is really common--try DERMAdoctor Total Nonscents Ultra-Gentle Brightening Antiperspirant ($28). It helps even out your armpits' skin tone.

As if you didn't have enough to think about.

Marc Jacobs said he doesn't care about what his M&M and Sponge Bob tattoos will look like when he's 80. Good for him.

But a friend is saving up for laser removal on her decade-old Spring Break souvenir--a dolphin/zodiac hybrid. Yikes.

If you want to cover up a tattoo but don't have the cash or patience for laser treatments, Hollywood makeup artist Kyra Panchenko (who has covered up a bunch of doozies in her time) has some advice:

"I swear by CoverBlend by Exuviance, [$22.50]" she says. Dab it on with a brush and cover that with powder." The regretfully inked also rave about Cover FX Cream Foundation SPF 30 ($42).

If the tattoo has a lot of blue--the hardest dye to conceal--Panchenko applies an orange pigment like Ben Nye Mellow Orange ($7) first, then layers on one of the flesh tones described above.

And not to sound like your mom, but next time, bring home a souvenir shot glass instead.

You know when you're too tired (or tipsy) to wash your face? These quick helpers make you look better when you wake up. Plus they're easy to use even when you're clumsy.

1. I keep a packet of Pond's Clean Sweep Towelettes, $5.69, in my bedside table to wipe away makeup and grime, no rinsing necessary.

2. Drink a glass of water before dozing off and then hydrate your skin while you're at it. Clinique's new Comfort on Call Allergy Tested Relief Cream, $39.50, moisturizes without irritating.

3. One of life's mysteries: Why you're almost guaranteed to end up with a honking pimple after a long night. Clean & Clear Advantage Acne Spot Treatment, $6.99, is easy to dab on and has salicylic acid to clear up zits fast.

4. That extra glass of wine making you puffy? Garnier Nutritioniste Skin Renew Anti-Puff Eye Roller, $13.49, is laced with caffeine to help prevent undereye bags.

5. Yes, La Mer The Lip Balm is pricey ($45) but it really does fix seriously parched lips, thanks to all the marine extracts and vitamins. Too expensive? We also love Nivea Sun Protection Lip Care SPF 30 at a mere $2.99.

Now that your skin looks better, take two Advil and have a carby breakfast.

Shampooing every day is a bore. My solution? Dry shampoo. It allows me to skip a day--even two--without feeling or looking like a greaseball. Even better: it adds major volume and gives your hair that fashion-y matte look. Here's how to dry out:

Pick a dry shampoo that comes in a can. They're the lightest and sheerest and can be misted all over your head without creating any gunky spots or looking like dandruff. My faves: Oscar Blandi Pronto Dry Shampoo, which has a lemon verbena scent so your hair smells as clean as it looks ($11); and Klorane Dry Gentle Shampoo with Oat Milk--the classic, as in every stylist we know has a can or two in their kit ($18).

Flip your head over and do a serious misting, like you're one of those insane hair-spray lovers from the eighties. I let 'er rip for a full ten seconds--and I've rarely overdone it.

Flip your head back up and tousle your hair with both hands to distribute the dry shampoo.

Revel in the fact that you could look this good with so little effort. 

Kate Bosworth looked positively feline at the Fashion Group International Awards, and I'm not referring to her feathery Burberry dress.

Did you see her lashes? Extra long and super-exaggerated at the corners, they made her eyes look exotic, but not overdone.

The easiest way to re-create the look is to use the most powerful lengthening mascara you can find--I trust L'Oreal Double Extend Mascara in Blackest Black ($9.79)--and slowly drag it out as far as you can. (Only do your top lashes. If you do the bottom, your eyes will look more rounded rather than almond-cat-like.)

If you're bold, apply individual falsies like Shu Uemura's Flare Lashes ($16) along the top lash line, focusing the majority on the center of the eye (just above your pupil), not the outer corners. The brand’s artistic director, Gina Brooke, taught me that.

What's your go-to mascara for extra-long lashes?

Thank God I was wearing Chanel Barcelona Red Lipstick.

Last week at a cocktail party for François Nars, I nodded politely as he went on about how tired he is of seeing women wearing blah neutrals on a daily basis.

"I'm going to Madrid tomorrow to launch the brand in Spain. Now they wear color," he said, visibly giddy.

"To-tally," I said.

Standing there, lying through my teeth, I realized I'd fallen into a rut of nude, beige, and tasteful pinks. Now motivated, I'm busting out these bold shades. Intense, yet not jarring, they're just the ticket I need out of Dullsville.

Lipstick Queen Saint Sheer Lipstick Red. The red is crazy bold, but the sheer, moist formula is not. I could just kiss Poppy King for creating it.

Stila Lip Glaze in Pomegranate. This shimmering bright purple looks feminine and pretty. I like to wear it with neutral shadow and blush. (After all, it is purple lip gloss.)

Nars Cream Blush in Lokoum. Apply this candy-pink blush on the apples of your cheeks, add a sheer gloss, and you'll quickly realize how washed out you were before.

Maybelline New York Expert Wear Eye Shadow Duo in Sea Glass. I like tracing pale green shadows along my upper and lower lash lines. Add tons of black thickening mascara, and you're done.

Too Faced Foiled Liner in Metallic Mermaid. This shiny, dark green liner looks like precious jade. It's not too flashy, but just special enough.

See? Bold doesn't have to automatically be a big deal.

Beverly Hills hair stylist Neil Weisberg is accustomed to helping celebs upgrade their images in a pinch at his salon, Neil George. Here, his five must-haves for making the transition as painless--and pretty--as possible:

Hot Tools Spring Iron. "This curling iron heats up faster than any other I've used," says Weisberg. His hasn't died, even after years of abuse.

Bumble and Bumble Surf Spray. Weisberg's tip for creating beach hair: "Mist it on towel-dried hair and let it air dry for a sexy, tousled look, or use it after you've used a curling iron to keep waves from looking too 'prom queen.'"

Phytovolume Actif Volumizing Spray. Weisberg's tip for adding mega-body to limp, fine hair: Spritz this onto the roots of your towel-dried hair, flip your hair over, and hit it with a blow dryer. "This is the best root lifter on the market," he says.

Neil George Intense Repair Mask. Weisberg created this mask to give heat ravaged hair a boost of shine. It's made with Indian gooseberry and vitamin C, which gives hair a shot of antioxidants and restores elasticity. Best part? You can use it every day.

Parlux 2600 Super Turbo Hair Dryer. Weisberg's favorite hair dryer isn't exactly feather-light, but it packs a ton of muscle. "It's extremely powerful, and can straighten even the tightest curls," he says. My suggestion: Make sure you have strong arms, or start weight training now.

Beverly Hills hair stylist Neil Weisberg is accustomed to helping celebs upgrade their images in a pinch at his salon, Neil George. Here, his five must-haves for making the transition as painless--and pretty--as possible:

Hot Tools Spring Iron. "This curling iron heats up faster than any other I've used," says Weisberg. His hasn't died, even after years of abuse.

Bumble and Bumble Surf Spray. Weisberg's tip for creating beach hair: "Mist it on towel-dried hair and let it air dry for a sexy, tousled look, or use it after you've used a curling iron to keep waves from looking too 'prom queen.'"

Phytovolume Actif Volumizing Spray. Weisberg's tip for adding mega-body to limp, fine hair: Spritz this onto the roots of your towel-dried hair, flip your hair over, and hit it with a blow dryer. "This is the best root lifter on the market," he says.

Neil George Intense Repair Mask. Weisberg created this mask to give heat ravaged hair a boost of shine. It's made with Indian gooseberry and vitamin C, which gives hair a shot of antioxidants and restores elasticity. Best part? You can use it every day.

Parlux 2600 Super Turbo Hair Dryer. Weisberg's favorite hair dryer isn't exactly feather-light, but it packs a ton of muscle. "It's extremely powerful, and can straighten even the tightest curls," he says. My suggestion: Make sure you have strong arms, or start weight training now.

Colored mascara seems fun enough. But who wants to buy one if you're only going to use it once in awhile?

There's an easy way to jazz up plain mascara with eye shadow. Benjamin Rousseau, a Lancome makeup artist taught me how.

Step One: Dip a small, flat eye shadow brush into any powder or cream eye color. (If you go with a powder, be sure to tap off the excess.)

Step Two: Apply your usual black or brown mascara and quickly continue to step three.

Step Three: Before the mascara dries completely, pat the shadow brush along the tops of your lashes. (Look downward as you do this.)

I haven't spent a penny, but I feel as though my makeup collection has expanded exponentially.

I love a stylish ponytail, but every time I try to make mine a little teased and Bardot-esque, I end up in softball player land. I asked Kevin Lee, creative director of Manhattan's Kenneth Salon—bastion of old school glamour—what the hell I'm doing wrong. His pointers:

•Start by applying a root-lifter to dry hair. Forget gel and hairspray: They'll be murder to comb through.
•Flip your head over, and blow-dry. This activates the root lifter.
•Backcomb (aka tease) the roots at the crown of your head. "What’s that mean?" you ask? Good question. "Pretend you're wearing a yarmulke," says Lee. "Get as close to the scalp as possible, and backcomb the roots of the hair that would be under it."
•Now very delicately, use a classic boar-bristle brush to smooth hair over the teased section. The point is to conceal all that backcombed hair.
•Make a ponytail in the center of the back of your head and fasten it with an elastic, smoothing any fly-aways with a light finishing spray.
•Check your profile in the mirror. "If your ponytail looks like a question mark, you did it!" he says. "But if the back of your head looks humpy, start again."

Lee says this look takes practice, but after you've pulled it off once, it gets easier and easier. He's right. I'm wearing mine right now.

While I lay on the spa bed, my facialist peered at me and delivered the diagnosis:

"En-larrrrggged pores," she said.

I left and called Cristina Bartolucci. Before she co-founded DuWop, she was a makeup artist for film and television, you know, where pores are banned from the set.

Here's her quick-fix:

"Immediately after washing your face, apply a very"—very, she stresses—"light dusting of translucent powder before foundation or tinted moisturizer. It fills in pores without looking cake-y."

It sounded crazy—the moisturizer-over-powder thing seemed like a mess—but I tried it. As long as you use a light hand, it works. My secret is a really soft brush for the sheerest coverage.

With the Bare Escentuals Angled Face Brush (it's really good at getting around the nose), and ultra-light Shiseido Luminizing Color Powder, the results were as flawless as promised.

The whole operation was quicker than using a liquid primer, and feels much more natural, too. One more trick in my bag of.

My new yoga instructor is operating on a higher level.

Not only can this woman twist herself into a yogic pretzel, she does it with a pair of false eyelashes that look natural, yet amplified. Did I mention she's not a makeup artist?

My latest mission is to learn how (forget the pretzel; I mean the lashes). I dialed Gina Brooke, Shu Uemura's Artistic Director and Madonna's makeup artist. Here's what she told me:

Apply mascara first. "Curl your lashes and apply mascara before—not after—putting on the fake ones," she says. "This gives you a thick, long base to work with."

Use lash clusters, not the fake-looking drag queen ones that come in a strip. "For each eye, I use anywhere between five and 15 on the top lash line,” she says. A good set to try: Shu Uemura Flare Eyelashes, $16.

Focus on the center. Place the longest lashes in the center, directly above your pupil. "That's where they're naturally the longest," says Brooke. "The shorter pieces should be nearer to the inner and outer corners of the eye."

Step outside. "Always check your work by a window or outside," says Brooke. "If your lashes look weird in natural light, it's a dead giveaway you're wearing falsies."

Follow Brooke's commandments, and you'll be batting your lashes all the way to your next yoga class.

Sometimes the smartest actresses are the ones who play dumb. Exhibit A: Amanda Seyfried. This gorgeous actress (she's August's Allure's Face) first popped up on our radar in Mean Girls as a ditz who learned how to predict the weather...with her breasts. Since then, she's caught our eye on Big Love and in her starring role in Mamma Mia!

At the New York City premiere last night, it's clear that this is her moment. She turned out looking absolutely gorgeous. Not edgy, not fashion-y, just gorgeous.

Her makeup was pretty, yet basic: Soft liner, a little shimmer, and mascara; peach blush; and rosy gloss. But most awe-inspiring? That hair. Long, flowing, and curled at the ends, with one section twisted and pinned back. Very Sleeping Beauty meets Dancing Queen.

Think this look is only for red carpet starlets with hairstylists so fab they go by one name? Think again. All you need are a little know-how and the right products.

Start by spritzing clean, damp hair with a light treatment like Matrix Biolage Thermoactive Setting Spray (to protect hair from heat damage). Part your hair down the middle, and blow it straight. Curl the ends with a large-barrel curling iron, and tousle. Then twist a one-inch section on one side of your part back, secure with bobby pins, and mist with a flexible hold hairspray like Joico JoiShape Medium Hold Shaping & Finishing Spray. The result? Hello, gorgeous.