I have to admit, I don’t generally do drugstore hair products. But this hair oil is fantastic. Incredibly light, smells lovely and smooths and hydrates in a non-greasy way.

I jumped on the Argan oil bandwagon a while ago. It really is a very effective beauty oil I try to incorporate head to toe. I love that John Frieda is bringing it to masses and combining it with his historic Frizz-Ease technology.

Take it from me—and I have the coarsest, trickiest tresses that go bezerk in humidity—skip your pricey hair oil and pick this up at your local drugstore for under $10.

P.S. My other favorite frizz-fighting products.

It’s the little things

This cute tube of brush-on cuticle oil was a spontaneous Sephora purchase a few months ago and it fast became one of my everyday habits. A keep-by-your-bed and throw-in-your-purse kind of thing. It’s effective and incredibly easy to use. I now realize that having conditioned skin around your nail beds has a huge impact on the overall appearance of your hands. Manicure or not. Hang nails, ragged, dry cuticles begone!  I also use it around my pedicure. It’s especially good to use on feet now that it’s sandal season. A light application really perks up the look of your polish.

File this one under: necessary convenience.

I just returned from a week-long trip to Italy, my absolute favorite country—land of chewy pasta that somehow doesn’t make me gain weight, buttery olives the size of lemons, and delightful Aperol spritzers, accompanied by extensive, exotic snacks at every cocktail hour.

But enough about food. I’m back to Starbucks and sushi.

What really struck me was the beauty scene. The Italian women are so gorgeous. I wanted to learn their rituals and secrets. But the one, glaring aesthetic that struck me the most was the Italian culture of tan. Women take their tans very seriously. They must be tan at all costs. Whether the tan is by bottle, bed or beach, it is the highest beauty priority. I, of palest pale and mightiest SPF, was almost taken aback by the spectrum of brown and bronzed skin. My friend H. who’s lived in Milan for 15 years now, confirmed the local tanning obsession. Italian women go to extreme lengths to get color. At dinner one night, a very tan friend of H.’s. even showed me some “vitamins” she takes to “help her skin develop melanin.” I was seriously shocked by all this. Don’t the Italians think about the hazards of being so tan? The women laughed gently and shook their heads. “No.”

Amazingly enough, Italians have a lower skin cancer rate than Americans. I checked. Maybe it has something to with the chewy pasta.

On a more personal beauty note, I could not live without my Palmer’s Heel Repair stick, Benefit concealer and was amazed at how my Tom Ford eyebrow pencil withstood the sweltering heat. Also, I used my Suntegrity sunscreen daily and am happy to report I returned to New York City as pale as I left.

Little luxuries make me happy. Like this divine tinted lip balm from Lancome. And I’ll be the first to admit that you don’t need to spend $26 on a moisturizer for your pout. But Baume in Love is just so perfect—it feels so decadent and smooth and has the subtlest, most enduring wash of color I’ve ever seen. I have the barely-there Peche Pout, but the line offers a range of really wearable sheer neons in pink,  purple and orange that I can really get behind, especially in summer.

This is one of my favorite photos of me and my dad. It captures his spirit so well. I’ve been pretty lucky in the dad department— this weekend I celebrate my wonderful, warm and funny father (who I don’t get to see nearly enough), my husband—a better dad for my girls I could not imagine, and Pop, a grandpa my daughters are lucky to have in their daily lives.

I hope you have a great weekend celebrating the Dad’s in your lives.