For those of you who have been Cosmetic Report subscribers since the beginning, I'm sure you'll remember our first $10 Challenge. The goal of the $10 Challenge was to see just how far $10 could go at my local drugstore. This week, I am excited to introduce a new crop of products for our second $10 Challenge:

Maybelline Great Wear foundation	$1.73 (used two $1.50 off coupons)
Nat Robbins Mechanical lip liner	$2.47
Jane Blushing Cheeks	$2.29
Aziza Daily News eye shadow trio	$3.44
Total:	$9.93

In next week's report, read my full reviews of these incredible bargains, and which ones are worth adding to your cosmetic bag.

After reviewing Revive, the super-antioxidant cream from California company Lite Cosmetics (from The Cosmetic Report, December 27), and really liking it, I was thrilled to receive their eye wrinkle cream ($14.95) in the mail last week. Although I have never seen drastic results from an eye cream, this one is nicely moisturizing and very lightweight. It has no fragrance, no added colors, and you need the tiniest of dabs to cover the entire eye area. If you are looking for a good, basic eye cream that's gentle enough even for contact lens wearers, this one from Lite Cosmetics is a good choice.

After my terrific complimentary Clarins mini-facial a few weeks ago, I got to take home a few samples of their Multi-Active Day Cream ($45.00), and Body Lift ($45.00), to see what I thought of the products. Despite the fact that I can't see myself spending over $40 for a moisturizer, the Multi-Active Day Cream was a nice product that is lightly moisturizing and leaves a semi-matte finish. For someone with slightly oily or combination skin, this cream could be a good choice. It doesn't deliver much sun protection, however - only SPF 5 or 6. For overall texture, moisturizing benefits, and sun protection, I still like Kiehl's Ultra Facial Moisturizer SPF 13 or Lancome Bienfait Total SPF 15 better.

As many of you know, I'm not much of a believer in "miracle" creams that claim to lift, firm, and erase everything we don't like about our bodies. Even so, I am always intrigued by the advertisements for Clarins Body Lift ($45.00), a cream-gel that is supposed to "diminish the appearance of cellulite". Of course, Clarins tells you right in the product literature that a healthy diet and regular exercise are key to seeing real change, but I was curious about what this gel could do by itself. I have a pretty healthy diet, but I hate to exercise, so I felt like a good candidate to try Body Lift for myself. After two weeks of using the product samples on my "target area", my skin is smoother, like it would be with a good moisturizer, but that's about it. Body Lift does have a refreshing citrus fragrance and a tingling feeling on the skin (to make you think it's working?), but I have yet to see any significant lifting or firming. I do plan to continue using the product for a full month, to see if there are any better results, but at this point I'm not convinced enough to spend $45 on a moisturizer.

As far as drugstore makeup goes, I think Jane products are a great value and a fun way to try something new without killing your wallet. Everything from foundation to makeup brushes are typically under $3 at most major drugstores and cosmetic outlets. This week, after receiving a flyer in the mail for new products at my local Drug Emporium, I rushed down to see their brand new items from Jane: Outer Limits mascara, Writeaway concealer pencil, and a new flip lipstick in some pretty in-the-moment colors (all $2.27).

I really like the Writeaway concealer pencil the best of the three. Its smooth yet slightly dry texture made it easy to apply on red spots or blemishes, but it's dry enough to stay put during the day without smearing or melting. The flip lipstick comes in as my second favorite for great creamy texture and long wear, but not for the color selection. Unless you are under 25 years old, these colors will not work at the office or at family functions! The best choice I could find that wasn't pale beige (too light for me), gold, or shocking pink, was "Strobe Light", a medium shade of purple that looks a bit like grape juice. Great for a night on the town, but that's about it. If you can find a color you like that you would actually wear, this is a nice lipstick at a great price.

Last, and really least, was the Outer Limits mascara. I imagined with a name like "outer limits", it would make my lashes look ridiculously long, right? Wrong! While it worked well to define each lash without clumping, I really had to work to make my lashes look like I was wearing mascara at all. If a mascara could make my lashes look shorter, this one did. Even at a mere $2.27, I can't recommend this mascara over some other great choices, like Jane's other mascara, Flashes, or L'Oreal Voluminous.

Thank you to everyone who participated in last week's Cosmetic Poll. The results were really fascinating! The question was: How often do you change your skin care routine? This means not just adding products to what you already use, but a complete change from one system to another. Here are the top 5 responses:

1. Never (most will experiment with cosmetics, but not skin care)
2. Once a year or more (most say they change every season)
3. Once every 6 months
4. Used to change often until discovering the line they use now
5. Has used one line faithfully for a long time

I'm glad to hear so many of you have found skin care that really works for you! Before I started Cosmetic Connection, for which I try new products all the time, I used to change my skin care routine just about every season to accommodate changes in my skin type.