Dear Rihanna,

Hi, it’s us checking in again. Today’s topic: your lips. Because we’re in the market for something new to try and frankly your sartorial choices of late aren’t really office-appropriate, you know with the transparent tops and all.

So imagine our glee (another current obsession!) when you popped up in Paris with pretty purple lips. Those shots of you at the shows in not one, but two, different shades of that royal color made us imagine we could do it too. It’s like an evolved version of the black shades that we’ve already moved on from.

SNL’s Deep House Dish may have been creating a mock rivalry between ultimate icon Madonna and current talk-of-every-town GaGa, but the sketch did illustrate that there are a few requirements to being a dominating diva.

Here, four of the key elements that led to these two conquering the charts and the monde of mode:

1. Eschew pants, of course. After dedicating unlimited hours to yoga, Pilates and the Anderson Method, assets must be placed front and center.

2. Become a blonde. Both Gaga (nee Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta) and Madge (born Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone) ditched their brunette roots years ago.

3. Lash Out. Overdone eyes are de rigueur for aspiring performers. Rumors of Madonna sporting mink lashes by Shu Uemura on her R-Invention tour spawned the company’s new Luxe line, a synthetic version featuring criss-crossed strands for a more dramatic effect. Or try applying the individual Make Up For Ever to create a customized look. And the only-at-Sephora fiber-infused Fiberwig mascara promises fluttering—and lengthened—lashes without the hassle of glue.

4. Bestie up with MJ. Duh.

Looks like this economy’s bringing even the most reclusive of the beauty glitterati out of hiding to pimp their brands.

This Thursday, April 30, celeb stylist Frédéric Fekkai’s making a rare personal appearance at the Fifth Avenue Sephora - between 48th and 49th streets. He’ll be there from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. giving one-on-one style consultations and advice to promote his at-home color line Salon Color.

They aren’t taking appointments so we’re expecting a whole lot of craziness which means you should probably get there early, with a book and some patience if you’re dying to talk to Fekkai about your ideal summer cut and color.

While you wait, we’d suggest snagging a bottle of their new Au Naturel Dry Shampoo—it’s our latest obsession and the perfect post-beach product.

And if you do get a sit down with the man, please share his style wisdom with us and let us know if he’s convinced you to go blonde. Bonus points if you send in pics.

—MEGAN MCINTYRE

Fall 09 Fashion Week’s theme is turning out half-Barbie, half-recession.

While more and more designers pull out and scale back, Barbie’s taking on New York with all the force her tiny waist can muster.

First up, it’s two days of Barbie makeovers at the 5th Avenue Sephora. To celebrate the doll’s golden anniversary, Stila’s releasing five limited-edition Barbie Beauty Cans. Each one’s full of all the make-up you need to make your face look like either Ponytail Barbie, Malibu Barbie, Foxy Barbie or Jewel Barbie.

Stila’s make-up artists will be there Friday, February 6th and Saturday, February 7th from 12pm to 6pm.

So if you see us out and about looking a little too Malibu for a New York winter, just know we’re revving ourselves up for this kind of unusual Fashion Week.

“The job is, in many cases, the second one a girl has after working in a fast-food chain, and the wage scale reflects that short step up the career ladder. The frenetic pace of the drive-thru is still there, as are the constellations of acne breakouts (due, I guess, to a promiscuous level of cosmetic experimentation). The polyester smocks and Madonna headsets are there, but now they are a fashionable black; instead of cleaning fry vats, the girls are armed with tool belts and oil-dissolving cleansers.” - Cintra Wilson, on the in-house makeup artists at Sephora, in the New York Times.

Confession:

I can never stop fidgeting with my lips. So I inevitably end up needing vats of lip gloss by my side, which is probably part of why I’ve always loved those hefty Cargo tins Sephora keeps stockpiled in every shade possible.

So it’s with some urgency that I tell you Sephora is having a sale on their site, right now, and all those Cargo lip gloss duos are now $14 instead of $20. And if you spend $50? Free shipping.

So let’s do the math - Four duos equals $56, which equals free shipping, which equals moist, glossed lips right through Fall 09.

Which is amazing.

If you got the expected $50 gift card to Sephora from your brother this holiday season, may be make a makeup suggestion?

Too Faced just launched their newest line, the Smurfette Collection, which we know is all we need to say to convince you.

The collection includes a mood-activated lip gloss (goes from Smurfy blue to pink, if you’re up to it), face powder, eye shadow palettes, and liquid liner.

So far, it’s only available online, which we think fits in quite nicely with post-holiday grazing anyway.

Fact: We love Cintia Dicker.

Fact: We love that she landed the Sephora holiday campaign, even if we’ve just realized it now.

Fact: We do not love that they’ve airbrushed her freckles off of her face. It’s like erasing Cindy’s mole or virtually eliminating Lara’s curves.

Fact: We know they’re trying to sell make-up, but there is such a thing as too much green eyeshadow and Sephora might’ve reached that point. Does this really make you want to go on a cosmetics spree?

Fact: She still looks gorgeous.

Today’s WWD reports a bite-size partnership between Sephora and Dylan’s Candy Bar.

They’re putting out a line of bath and body products for this holiday season, all inspired by desserts. Picture stuff like Strawberry Licorice lip balm and Birthday Cake Batter lotion.

Even though we’ve never been fans of the gourmand trend for beauty (not even Laura Mercier’s Crème Brûlée could convince that we want to smell like food), we know this will be a big hit for teenage girls.

But what will happen to Philosophy’s adorable Gingerbread Man scrubs and Peppermint Cheesecake shower gels, so popular during those last few weeks of December (and really, what almost everybody knows the brand for), especially at Sephora?

Could be some tension on those shelves.

During a transitional period of my life, I enjoyed a brief stint as a wardrobe stylist for Playboy magazine - also known as the most ironic job ever.

It was probably the most fun job I’ve ever had - deciding which frilly pieces of lace went with which table top, kitchen counter, couch, pool table… you get the idea.

Believe it or not, naked girls have been popular since long before Dita - but they haven’t always been “in fashion.” But now I can name a handful of lingerie designers (it’s funny to think that Kiki didn’t even exist three years ago) who one-up plenty of designers on the runway, and even mega-store Sephora now has a pin-up campaign.

Lingerie’s been on the mainstream mind since Marc’s Spring 08 show, since burlesque took over the LES, since Kate Moss for AP, since that Playboy France cover shot by Karl - but I’ve been taking notes since puberty.

So that’s why I’m so excited to see lingerie and pin-up get their due with a real-life fashion model - continue after the jump to see Anouck Lepere, and witness just why Playboy France might soon be getting more fashion props than Vogue.

— JAZZI McGILBERT

Sometimes, it’s the little things that make you happy.

This week, BeneFit Cosmetics releases PosieTint, a spin off of their famous BeneTint liquid that stains lips and cheeks (and eyelids, if you’re really brave and know what you’re doing).

The texture, durability, and ease of BeneTint is amazing, but the color hasn’t changed since it was first invented, and if you don’t like having a deep rose color on your face, it’s probably not the right product for you.

But PosieTint has the same formula, it’s just lighter and pinker.

You may think it would be best for fair-skinned girls, but we dare all of you with honey and coffee-colored skin to try it, too - it’s cool how great a sweet, light pink shade can look on darker skin tones.

Amy Winehouse may be elusively avoiding fashion contracts - and also detox and jail - but her influence rings clear.

Even when she herself can’t be present on a photo shoot, she seems to leak in anyway. We saw it in Vogue Italia when Lara Stone posed with massive painted tattoos on her body. We saw it in the Chanel Cruise show, when Siri wore crazy cat eyes and teased hair, and in the new Chanel ads with Coco.

And now, we’re seeing it on the Sephora website, where they grab Kat Von D, the tattoo artist and fetish model from TLC, dress her up like Amy Winehouse, attempt to sell her makeup line, and call her a beauty insider.

On the upside, she must be cheaper than the $1 million rumored to be Amy’s fee for a private appearance - and Kat will be clean and sober on a photo shoot.

What kind of friends would we be without letting you in on some of our coolest finds?

When Jazzi told us she’s been using a website called Ebates to get paid for shopping online, we were like, “Whatever” but after hearing her out, we thought, “Woah! this could really add up.” If you’ve heard of it, you love it, and if you haven’t, allow us to explain:

1. It’s basically a shopping savings account that very simply gives you back money for shopping. Most websites make money for referring you, but Ebates just shares the wealth.

2. All you have to do is sign up (10 seconds max), then shop directly at some of your favorite stores through a link on the Ebates website.

The hardest part is remembering to go through the Ebates when you feel like shopping, but they even have a “reminder tool” for that, so we’ve got zero complaints. And the perks? Well, money for shopping and referring friends, no spam, a lot of shopping options (sorry, no Net-a-Porter), plus you get a $10 gift card just for signing up. And the best part? More shopping, less guilt.

So if you feel like shopping on the likes of Nordstrom, Shopbop, Bloomingdale’s, Old Navy, Saks, Target, Zappos, Bluefly and YOOX - to name a few - at least make some cash doing it for, you know, more shopping.

We seriously just made $39.00 on some relatively small purchases we would have made anyway. Maybe it really is magic…

— JAZZI McGILBERT

Those who haven’t gone overseas this season can still reap the shopping benefits, thanks to Sephora:

The beauty mega-store has finally imported Dior’s Blue Poison nail polish - and the only other place you can get it is in Europe.

We can say from experience that the polish is great, with the following advisements:

1. It should only be used in one coat, or else it looks black.

2. It needs to be followed with two topcoats of clear polish, because it chips easier than a cookie from City Bakery.

3. It can also be mixed with white polish to create the elusive “Sky Blue” shade of Clueless and Hard Candy fame.

If you’re still obsessed with matching your nails to Eva Green’s and Charlize Theron’s, it’s $19 well spent.

Otherwise: Wet ‘n Wild 4ever!

We always end up flipping through Sephora’s catalogues, not so much out of curiosity, but because they arrive in our mailbox so consistently.

But, in truth, they bother us every time. And this time is no exception.

Page 5 of the catalogue reads, “Wear the Trend - Red Lips,” and then the reader is shown the usual suspects of Nars, Dior and Sephora’s own house brand.

Page 7: “Wear the Trend - Coral Lips” (Sephora’s own brand is included again.)

And the real kicker:

Page 9: “Wear the Trend: Nude Lips”

Huh?

We understand that it must be difficult to categorize what are basically the same shades of makeup from the same group of companies several times a year into groups that are visually appealing and that egg you on to drop your cash. But we still don’t understand why you would just contradict yourself on every other page. We do like makeup, but that doesn’t mean we’re stupid.

Can anyone explain?

Consumer Botox kits aren’t available yet (unless you’re Nicole Kidman), but thanks to Sephora, there’s another medical procedure that’s getting a takeout carton:

Electrolysis.

Sephora just released the No!No!, a series of laser-like gadgets that use heat beams and tiny razors to remove hair.

The No!No! looks like a cell phone, and according to Sephora, it works like a salon visit, as it should:

The device costs $250, which equals about five waxing sessions at a good spa.

It actually looks fun to try, but also a little lethal:

Maybe if it doesn’t smooth your legs, you could use it to stun intruders?