In 1992 Evelyn Lauder vowed to create a ribbon across the country that would raise awareness for breast cancer, and the pink ribbon initiative followed shortly thereafter.

This year the senior corporate vice president of The Estée Lauder Cos. – and founder and chairwoman of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation – has marshaled her company’s troops into creating limited-editions products whose sale in October will benefit breast cancer research.

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Most people associate the smell of fresh cedar only with closets or saunas. But as a personal fragrance? The first time I tried it, I heeded a magazine suggestion to combine cedar oil and cucumber essence (I prefer the one by Kiehl’s) to create a fall scent. I still love it, and it never fails to get remarks and compliments.

So I was keen to try Sweet Lime & Cedar by Jo Malone, the company founded by the British perfumer known for her inventive combinations of fresh accords. The cologne ($55-$100 at Neiman Marcus or jomalone.com) was released this month.

Fans of citrusy scents will be in olfactory heaven, but don’t get the wrong impression from the name: This is no two-dimensional blend. The herbal notes (sage, lavender), exotic spices (cardamom, coriander) and tender florals (ylang ylang, jasmine), combine to create a blossomy scent with some sharp peppery edges.

Want to win a bottle of your own? Click on this link to send me an e-mail with your name and mailing address, and the subject line SWEET LIME & CEDAR. I’ll choose one winner from the messages received by Friday, Sept. 26. Good luck!

ammit

WHAT SAM WORE: 9/20/08
The shirt: Baseball jersey-style T-shirt (Neiman Marcus)
The shorts: Cargo shorts by Abercrombie & Fitch (Buffalo Exchange)
The shoes: Sandals by Teva (That’s right: I am wearing Tevas. I fit right in on my trip to Home Depot today.)
Listening to: “Pretty in Pink” by The Psychedelic Furs

sammit

I was surprised last year when Tom Ford introduced his signature, eponymous men’s fragrance: For someone who has built his empire on salaciousness, the scent was (pleasantly) tame. That December he released a limited-edition Extreme version of the fragrance — and while I enjoyed the original scent, the Extreme sent my heart racing.

Making things worse: I only had a tester-size bottle — and it was already out of stores! I kept it hidden from my roommates, known to appropriate scents they liked into their own regular usage.

Extreme wasn’t a longer-lasting, or more potent version of the original Tom Ford fragrance — which I considered a good thing. (Who welcomes industrial-strength cologne?) Instead of “Tom Ford times two,” it was richer — both in terms of ingredients (black figs, oak-aged patchouli, shoyeido incense) and price ($125).

Because it was so treasured, I performed what I considered a noble deed: I bestowed it upon one of my best friends on our birthday (we were both born June 19 — mark your calendars!). And he responded like someone in the know should: He displayed it on a shelf and refused to let anyone else touch it. The last time I visited, I snuck a little bit and when he entered the room he yelled, “I LOVE TOM FORD!” and I knew I’d been caught. I missed it so much I considered “accidentally” taking it home with me, but I know I would’ve had my bags checked at the door had it shown up missing.

This month is cause for celebration: Tom Ford Extreme has been re-released: It will be a Saks Fifth Avenue exclusive for the month of October, then roll out to wider release. And, no doubt because of many tales like mine, this time it’s permanent. No need for hoarding!

Want to win a sample-size bottle of your own? Click on this link to send me an e-mail with your name and mailing address, and the subject line TOM FORD EXTREME. I’ll choose one winner from the messages received by Friday, Sept. 26. Good luck!

ammit

WHAT SAM WORE: 9/19/08
The shirt: Lightweight cotton long-sleeved button-down by Theory (Neiman Marcus)
The pants: Plaid cotton trousers (Banana Republic) The brown actually goes with the shirt, I swear!
The shoes: Leather sneakers by Puma (Nordstrom)
The scent: Fou d’Absinthe eau de parfum by L’Artisan Parfumeur
Listening to: “When I Get Where I’m Going” by Brad Paisley & Dolly Parton

sammit

Sometimes I think Tommy Hilfiger tries too hard. Case in point: Hilfiger, his fragrance for men that’s exclusive to Macy’s stores this month and rolls out to wide distribution in December.
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There is something about a single-dose skin care product that makes me giddy. I don’t know why — maybe it’s because I get the impression it combines super freshness with science? When those individual GoSmile tooth-whiteners came out, I walked around with one in my pocket day and night … just in case.
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“I can’t believe you have never been to a dermatologist before,” one of my roommates said incredulously. “You of all people.  I thought you’d have one in your friends and family plan.”
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The first of my San Francisco purchases arrived yesterday afternoon. (Is it possible to feel wistfully nostalgic about something that happened only two days previously?)

I tried my best not to be carried away by the scene — there it was, early August, and people were walking around in sweaters and scarves and jackets. It made me whimper a little. (I think if I could wear a lightweight V-neck sweater, some funky trousers and good shoes every day for the rest of my life, with maybe a hat or scarf or jacket as an accessory, I would die happy.)

I managed to hold off all the way up until the last day, when I couldn’t take any more, broke down in the middle of H&M and bought a cotton jersey scarf. Perhaps the most ludicrous purchase possible at H&M, I know: A scarf, to be worn in the Valley of the Sun. (Maybe I was overtaken by visions of Chuck Bass or something.)

The rest of my purchases were more along the “brilliant!” line, however. When my friend Joe and I were wandering around the Hayes Valley neighborhood — which, I was surprised to learn, has no real visible “valley” involved — he ducked into a store called Flight 001 in preparation for his upcoming trip to Spain (with his parents, for their 40th anniversary). I, meanwhile, beelined for the shelves where I saw the Comme des Garçons fragrances.

“This one is supposed to smell like gold,” I said, waving the “888” at him while he mmm-hmmed his way over to luggage. But I fell in love with the incense-themed bath and room sprays named after exotic cities: Jaisalme, Kyoto, Zagorsk, Avignon and Quarzazate. I wanted almost all of them but decided on Quarzazate, which has a great blend of woods, pepper, spice, and almost a camphoraceous accord straight out of the bottle.

Want to experience it yourself? Order a sample vial for $3 here, or find the full 1.7-ounce bottle here. (For some reason, the Flight 001 website doesn’t list the Incense line among its Comme des Garçons offerings, or I would send you there instead.)

And as a postscript: When I got home, I also couldn’t stop thinking about a (now-discontinued) Tumi T-Tech laptop case that was on clearance at the store for about $60 off the original price — it was the last one on the shelf. When the fragrance showed up today — the last thing I bought was the first to arrive! — I took it as a sign I should thank the store for its quick delivery by buying that laptop case, too. So I did.
ammit

WHAT SAM WORE: 8/7/08
The shirt: Long-sleeved cotton button-up wtih epaulets and … sleevelets? What do you call those tabs that hold your sleeves up? (answer: sleeve tabs) (Ben Sherman, San Francisco)
The pants: Glen plaid trousers (Ted Baker, Las Vegas)
The shoes: Black leather slip-ons by Rush by Gordon Rush (Last Chance)
The scent: Quarzazate by Comme des Garçons
Listening to: “Human Fly” by Nouvelle Vague

sammit

Last weekend my friend Michael and I had a most excellent Sunday morning: Original cheesesteaks at Forefather’s in Tempe; shaved-ice treats at Bahama Buck’s (which really was open on Sunday, don’t heed the Web site); then a trip to the Philosophy store in Chandler. (Then we sat by the pool all afternoon.)

I ostensibly was looking for gifts for my sister’s birthday and my parents’ anniversary. But the store can’t ship your purchases – so unless you want to make a pilgrimage to the post office, you might as well buy online. And perhaps not surprisingly, I ended up spending more on myself than them.

Well, sort of: When I walked in and saw that the Old-Fashioned Lemonade body scrubs were buy-two, get-one-free, I stocked up. Not for myself, but because they make perfect “oh my God, it’s someone’s birthday tomorrow!” presents. So I have all three in my Magic Drawer, ready to pull out in the next birthday emergency.

But while I was there, my vision fell upon a label with the words “root beer.”

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Even though some classics like the Spice lip pencil have been around for decades, M•A•C also releases limited-edition products that create beauty buzz and, cannily, keep shoppers coming back to the counter to check out what’s new. And although the company made its name with cosmetics — what do you think the “C” stands for, after all? — sometimes the offerings include a few non-makeup gems, too.

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Let me preface this by saying I really wanted to like the new Vaseline Cocoa Butter Vitalizing Gel Body Oil. Really, REALLY wanted to like it. For starters, it has the classic cocoa butter scent – scrumptious and summery and reminiscent of tropical sunscreens past (although – be warned! – there is no sunscreen factor in the product.)

But.

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