So, it's official: I am smitten with Chandler Burr's latest book, The Perfect Scent. Read it; you won't regret it. Burr, the perfume critic of The New York Times, was gracious enough to talk with me about perfume last week. Be sure to read his opinions on why a celebrity scent succeeds or fails, and read on to find out why a perfume can seem so great on paper, but can smell different when you wear it.

In your book, you mention that perfumes are now created to smell good on paper when you're in the store, rather than being formulated only for the skin.
It's the new construction because of the way people buy perfume. The way that people buy perfumes today has a huge impact in how a scent is constructed. It used to be that one would go into the atelier at Guerlain or Coty in Paris, and put the perfume on, and the assistant would bring cakes and tea. You'd smell the perfume and it would stay on your skin past an hour or two hours — for an entire afternoon. Today, you're trying to grab 10 minutes between the movie or the next business appointment, and you're not putting perfumes on skin because you're already dressed. It's like buying clothes without trying them on.

For Chandler's advice on shopping for perfume, read more

Ask and you shall receive. I read your comments on yesterday's post about nail polishes that contain formaldehyde, and I wanted to respond by giving you a few safer suggestions. Brands such as Butter London and Priti Polish are free of formaldehyde, toluene and DBP — and here are some other options.

For a few of my favorite safe-polish picks, read more

Welcome back to my series on recession-proof beauty. I've already written about how to keep your beauty spending under control, but if you want to get beauty products for free, there's another way: swap them. I know some of you are skeeved out by this idea, but if you follow a few guidelines, it's a great way to purge unused products from your stash and pick up a few goodies at the same time. The biggest community for doing so is Makeupalley, which has 236,830 items up for swap today. As you can imagine, you can find just about anything there, so I'll show you how to make the most of its enormous swapping opportunities.

The concept is pretty simple. After signing up for an account, you can list your unwanted beauty items for swap. Then you can browse the up-for-grabs swap lists of other members. When you see something you're interested in, contact the member to see if she's game for a swap. If it's a fit, you'll both ship out the goods and leave a "token" — similar to eBay's feedback forum — for each other.

Of course, there are a few etiquette and sanitation guidelines you should follow. To find out what they are, read more

Reader missy k is obsessed with finding a microdermabrasion treatment that will make skin, as she puts it, "as smooth as a shiny new egg." I was excited to hear about her experience with Kiehl's Re-Texturizing Microdermabrasion ($40). I'll turn it over to her for the full scoop:

Formulated with "diatomatious earth," which is apparently made from "crushed microshells derived from ocean sand," as well as aluminum oxide crystals (the stuff used by dermatologists to perform real microdermabrasion treatments). Over time, it tells me, it will reduce lines, refine texture, diminish pores, and instantly impart miraculous softness. Yeah, yeah, I’ve heard it all before.

To see what missy k thought of the product, read more

It's official: bright, crazy nail colors are all the rage this season. While I'm having a lot of fun playing with these new shades, there is something to be said for the old standbys. And if any nail color is classic for this time of year, it's pink.

This week I want to know what you love for a beautiful pink nail polish. Do you go for pale, sheer, matte, bright flamingo pink, or all of the above? I love an electric pink shade, like this MAC Nail Lacquer ($10) in Steamy.

Share your choices by bookmarking items from around the web and tagging them with the phrase pink polish. I'll feature your favorites here next Tuesday.

To learn about Beauty Mark It challenges and how to add your picks, check out this how-to. To see some of my favorite online beauty stores, read more

I think it's high time that the men in our lives joined us on the organic and natural product bandwagon. That means I'd like to see less Gillette and more brands such as Herban Cowboy in guy's bathrooms.

The founders of Herban Cowboy started out a few years back with $1,000. Working out of a log cabin down a rural dirt road, they concocted their products from scratch. That salt-of-the-earth attitude resulted in an eco-friendly collection of grooming goods. The vegan line is certified organic, and their products are packaged in 100% recyclable materials.

Their carrot, cucumber, and shea butter After Shave Balm ($7.99) sounds positively heavenly, and I am thinking of picking up some of their aloe, lavender and peppermint Shaving Cream ($8.99) for myself. So whether it's for you or your man, I think we could all use a little cowboy in our lives.