This week marks a decade since we last saw Buffy, Willow, Xander, Angel (swoon), Spike (MEGA swoon), and the rest of the Buffy The Vampire Slayer gang battling blood suckers and their monster brethren in every single way imaginable. (The series ended its seven-year run on UPN in 2003. :-/)

Not only was Buffy a badass with a crossbow, she knew her way around a butterfly clip, too. Sure, Daenerys may win in the braid/twist department, but Buffy could work an updo, minidress, and choker while sitting in the local graveyard, waiting to stake newly sprung un-dead before heading right back to The Bronze. We watched as Buffy and Willow's late-'90s "big" hair got spiked and flat-ironed, their brown-pencil-lined lips giving way to lip gloss and frosted lids. It was an era before skinny jeans (we promise, such a time/place did exist) and ironic mustaches—the guys wore loose-fitting jeans, tight shirts, the occasional trenchcoat (sometimes in leather—hot), and gobs of gel (and lots of bleach, in Spike's case). We saw Willow blossom (ha, pun!) from a high-school geek wearing matronly jean skirts to a hot college co-ed sporting confidence, some magic skills, and a sassy 'do that left many a lady vying for her attention.

Side note: who didn’t (and doesn't) love Sarah Michelle Gellar and Freddie Prinze, Jr.? Way to win life, SMG.

This Memorial Day Weekend, consider taking some time to get (re)acquainted with Buffy The Vampire Slayer. All episodes are available to stream on Netflix, so you have no excuse. And in the meantime, check out the gang’s best looks.

P.S. If you get really obsessed (which we predict you will), try some Angel, the David-Boreanaz-fronted Buffy spinoff.

In my mind, the perfect man will be a modern-day knight in shining armor with a twinkle in his eye. (Come on, New York, show him to me!) I would like to imagine that this yet-unseen being will desire a similar sparkle in my big(ish) green eyes. And while there is some sort of scientific explanation behind the so-called “twinkle”—something to do with your pupils dilating upon seeing the person that's currently stealing your affection—I figure it can't hurt to accentuate this involuntary optic action with makeup. And I've found the perfect product: Ramy’s new OMG! Over Mascara Glitter & Liner.

I tested out the glitter mascara/eyeliner combo this past weekend at The Great Googamooga, the ultimate in Brooklyn hipster and wannabe-hipster events (I will leave it up to your own opinion as to which category I inhabit). The three-day music/food extravaganza included shows by The Flaming Lips and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and a crazy amount of snack stands, all situated in the middle of Prospect Park*. But my first step to enjoying the evening? Makeup application just inside the gates! After receiving a lecture from a security guard (who, apparently, does not share my affinity for twinkling eyes), I sat down in the grass and slicked on an oh-so-fashionable cat eye.

Glitter, once a favorite of 12 year-old me, is a substance that I now stay away from, as I think it falls somewhere between tacky and tweeny. That said, I've found if you embrace the not-so-chicness of a product (whether it be eyeliner, nail polish, shoes, a fanny pack, etc.), it becomes less lame and actually kind of cool. And for those of us who aren't confident using liquid liner, a sheer glitter gel is a great place to start; it makes the application process easy and basically mistake-free. But the best part of Ramy’s product? The duel-use wand: you no longer have to choose between glittered eyeliner and glittered mascara. How cool is that??!!! (Seriously though, why is this not more of a thing? I’m sure it has to do with the different formulae for liners vs. mascaras, but I’m begging you, product designers out there, please create this in a black, non-sparkle version.)

Anywho, I wore my eyeliner/mascara with pride last Friday and did not seem to get any, “Are you out of your mind?!” looks from anyone. However, a warning: though there may be an intentionally glittered area (the cat-eye line, in my case), you'll probably find yourself sparkling from more than just your eye after a few hours. Cheeks, nose, eyebrows... It is an occupational hazard that glitterati must accept. And while I didn't meet my prince that night, it probably had more to do with the gluttonous amount of food I consumed than the allure of my ocular area. But, #YOLO. Thumbs up for glitter mascara/liner!

P.S. I'm working on my smizing. I have a new respect for the ladies of ANTM.

*Not-so-fun fact: Prospect Park is home to fifty species of butterflies. Sure, you might be thinking, “That’s amazing! I want to go see the butterflies!” But that is where you and I differ. Butterflies are the worst, only falling behind spiders, wasps, and cicadas. I’m weird, what can I say.

—Elizabeth Brockway

Photos by David Sabshon.

Allow us to reiterate that we thoroughly enjoy reading your comments (including tweets, emails, etc). Flattering or critical, insightful or ugly, they make us think (and cry, but mostly think), and have even spurred some of our finest posts. You guys are the best / we couldn't do it without you / love to love you / all of that.

Anyway, a couple of weeks ago a comment appeared under our Mother's Day-themed Mom Knows Best story that divided the office. Well, not really, but it did have to do with that great divide atop your head: your hair part. Isabel wrote:

“This is unrelated, but I wanted to ask and didn't know where else to post! Hopefully no one will mind:

I was wondering if ITG could do a post on hair parts. It comes from a bit of an odd place; I realized that one of my nostrils was bigger than the other (the things we notice...). So I thought the best way to deal with it would be to part my hair on the side with the smaller nostril, and have my hair fall partially covering the side with the larger one; seemingly simple, but it just doesn't fall right! How do I get it to part to go the other way? Once it stays down, how do I make it so it falls naturally? Is there a right or wrong side to part your hair on (to emphasize your 'best side')?

It'd be great to finally get an answer (if there even is one!) x”

Isabel, good on you for asking! While hair cuts are often prescribed by face shape, and hair parts are discussed in terms of trends, not much has been said in the way of parting your hair to complement facial features. And, just days after we read Isabel's comment, none other than Arianna Huffington confessed to us that switching up her part once caused everyone at the HuffPo offices to think she had “done something dramatic.” Fiddling with that line, Huffington concluded, “completely changes your look.” But how? And if it's true, what should one consider when choosing a different part? And, once chosen, how do you get it to stay??

We phoned professionals of both face and follicle to comb through these very serious questions: Dr. Andrew Ordon, Professor of Plastic Surgery at Dartmouth Medical School (better known as Dr. Ordon from TV’s The Doctors), and one of our recent hairstylist crushes, Holli Smith (otherwise known as @Hollishithead on Instagram). Here are their thoughts:

On Middle Parts

Dr. Ordon: “Most women part in the middle. A center part will make your face look more full, but it also elongates and accentuates the forehead."

Holli Smith: “I suggest people to try to wear a middle part sometimes to give a more relaxed, hippie look. And if they style it in a cleaner way, it can create a really classic hair identitiy.”

On Side Parts

Ordon: “We all have basic facial asymmetries, which can be attributed to any anatomic component of the face. Changing your hairstyle can help achieve a better facial balance. To compensate for one larger side of the face, set your part on the opposite side. Brad Pitt and Beyoncé, for example, part on the left and have a slightly larger right side of the face, and Kate Hudson and Cary Grant part on the right and have a more pronounced left side."

Smith: “I like a messy side part for women to make their look cooler and grungier, and that applies to a deep side-part as well, which will loosen up your personality. A clean part can say so many different things about a person. It makes outfits look classic, graphic, or masculine. On men, a side part makes them look like real gentleman. It’s classic."

On Flexi-Parts

Smith: "Some people are used to having flexibility or can't bare to have their hair on their face at all—you know, those who like to have the physical relief of running their hands through their hair. I think it's amazing how much this look embodies character rather than image. Think of River Phoenix. My styling tip in this case would be to keep your hair from being too clean. It's going to help with that 'effortless' appearance that god knows we all need help with."

On Bangs vs. Bare Forehead

Ordon: “Bangs will make your face look less long; if you pull your hair back or comb it straight back, it will elongate your face, especially for short or oval shapes.”

Cutting for Your Part

Smith: “I most definitely cut for different parts. It depends on a person’s cowlick, natural parting, and their average place of separation."

Growing Out Your Hair

Smith: "I always suggest playing with your part to get you through the growing-out stages. Especially with bangs, in which case I’d recommend starting with a middle part, and, when the bangs start to grow out, get into the eyes, and become irritating, pushing the bangs to the side. Then, you can have the bangs turn into 'hair on the side of your face,' rather than bangs. At that point, try a deep side part. It will look really sleek and begin to take on a new life.”

The Necessary Tools

Smith: "You can use as little as a fine-tooth comb and some water to achieve a part, or even just your hands can get you there. For a perfect part, I use a comb with a silver stick end on it. We call it a pin-tail comb, in the '50s they called it a 'rat-tail comb.' The silver end lets you correct any mistakes you see in your part by sort of needle-pointing each strand onto its appropriate side of hair."

Making Your New Part Stay

Smith: "My favorite trick to changing and holding a new part is to wear a beanie while hair dries. This works for guys and girls, curly and straight hair. Bobby pins are another great au natural trick. That being said, when I’m styling, I use a lot of Oribe Maximista Thickening Spray because it gives a lot of control. If you brush it out, it will have a dry, matte effect, and if you don’t brush it out, it gives a cool, beachy, grungy look. It works for everything. For men, short hair, and afros and kinky textures, I like Oribe’s Rough Luxury Molding Paste—it’s matte but creamy."

And remember, don't be scurred!

Ordon: “I recommend working in concert with your hairstylist and try mixing it up.”

Smith: “Changing your part is a fun, temporary experiment. You have to learn to work around where your natural growth pattern in your hair meets the skin on your face.”

We're sure, Isabel, that your nose is perfect, but it seems you were on the right track. Hedging your part on your "better side" (everyone has one, right?) will indeed enhance your favored features, and can have a radical effect on your overall look. But like everything in beauty, the only thing that really matters when styling your hair is that it leaves you feeling beautiful/cool/100% badass. SO GO NUTS! (And please, let us know how it goes.)

The best-smelling people always seem to be wearing a perfume that you can't buy—it's some mysterious personal mix of oils. But mixing your own scent as an adult can seem a little like advanced cooking (think serving soufflé at a dinner party), or, maybe wearing later-in-life braces. It could go very very wrong. But don’t be discouraged!

We've found a “secret” blend that requires absolutely no background in chemistry. Named for the street address where founder Sophia Matthias first concocted it, 1509 is pure fragrance oil that comes in two deliciously personal scents: Man and Woman (though the'yre both definitely unisex). With a base of clean, warm amber, the top note of each concoction is revealed by a preserved plant stem in the little glass bottle: baby’s breath for Woman and sage for Man. A generous dab on the wrists or inner-elbows leaves you smelling sweet, balmy, and slightly smoky. Added bonus? It leaves your skin hydrated—not slick; you don’t have to worry about it getting on your clothes—and the presentation is so elaborate it looks like it was packaged by a wood nympth on speed. The 210-ml 'Collectors' bottle comes with a porcupine quill for application. It makes the whole scenting experience incredibly ritualistic. Suitable for all seasons, 1509 is certainly better than anything we could have cooked up ourvelves.

Photos by Elizabeth Brockway.

"I’m still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up. I always wanted to be a singer—my whole life, all I ever did was sing around the house. [Modeling and acting] all happened so young, before I even had a chance to really think about it. But I love what I do... People are always telling me how much they loved Empire Records. We had so much fun making that movie. I was so young—16 or 17. I still had a tutor! [Laughs] I wasn't really thinking about [making a fashion statement]. But those were my boots in the movie! Actually, we got into a huge fight, because I had this whole outfit planned, and then the night before filming, [the studio] said they wanted me in a mohair sweater and a plaid miniskirt. It was something about how they wanted to soften my look [photo 15], but being a rebellious teenager, I was mad. I was like, ‘Are you fucking kidding me? Really? Fine, screw you, I’m gonna wear my boots with it!’ Well, that’s what I said to myself.

Everything has changed so much in fashion and beauty since the Nineties, when I was starting out. I remember going to the Stealing Beauty premiere, and I loved Dolce & Gabbana so I reached out to them to borrow a dress and they sent me one. I think I had my hair done. But I would go to things all the time where I did my own hair and makeup. Or, when I did Inventing the Abbotts with Joaquin Phoenix, we were dating at the time, and I threw on this red Prada dress with my weird vintage coat for the premiere [photo 16]. I remember Gwyneth [Paltrow] came to the premiere for Armageddon and danced with me at the after-party and she had no makeup on, this little slip dress and no bra, and maybe flip-flops. It was just a different time. There weren’t as many paparazzi, the red carpets weren’t what they are now—there’s a lot of scrutiny going on and the maintenance is intense! Think about seeing Julia Roberts on the red carpet in the late 80s and early 90s in a suit with no makeup on, and that was OK. I sort of miss those days a little bit.

I really learned about makeup and skincare from watching my grandmother [Dorothea Johnson] and my mom [Bebe Buell]. My grandmother was very elegant, very detail-oriented, and kind of meticulous about her routine and about how groomed she was. She started teaching me the importance of moisturizing at six years old, putting moisturizer on me every night when I got out of the bath. She also taught me things like, ‘Never go to sleep without washing your face,’ so, at a very young age, I was washing my skin. And then I watched my mom, who was totally different. My grandma is an etiquette teacher, who’s written books on the topic—we’re actually writing one together right now—and my mom had this rebel heart. She played in punk bands and worked as a model. Growing up, I’d always watch her do her makeup, and I would break into her bag all the time and use her products. But I started working at 13! So, I can’t remember ever not having makeup or skincare around.

I'm obsessed with beauty—seriously, one of my dreams is to write a book about beauty secrets and do a skincare line. Having said that, I haven’t even begun to venture down that road, but since I was a very young teenager, I would collect masks and moisturizers, and when my girlfriends would come over, I’d be giving them ideas for what to do to their skin. I still do that all the time.

When you put a bit more effort into some things, the results are wonderful, especially as a woman—in your health, your body, your skin, your hair. It can be about that extra five little minutes a day, 30 more minutes a week. Try to shut the world out. If you’re a mom, you just say, ‘Okay, here, you’re going to watch a movie, I’m going to take a bath.’ Take the time to have a bath, to do a face mask. It really makes you feel better! And that is what makes you more beautiful—the inner-sparkle that shines out. My whole thing about skincare is starting from the inside, out. There’s no cream that’s going to make you beautiful.

That being said, I think that exfoliation is the key to beautiful skin, I really do. I use scrubing gloves every day in the shower. They just make you glow and get your blood flowing… Your skin is your biggest organ! It’s important to slough off dead cells all the time. For example, today I flew in on a red eye from L.A. and slept for four hours. So, I took a steam shower with essential oils and I scrubbed my skin, conditioned my hair, and I used the Clarisonic—just that gets your blood flowing. Your skin is flushed, awake, and alive. I’m a big believer in that type of thing. Like, if I had to go to a big event, a couple hours before, I’d take a crazy-hot bath with tons of salts and oils a few hours before. I love Kneipp Joint and Muscle Mineral Bath Salts; they’re intense. But I do more than that—I take a couple of baths a week where I use a whole box of epsom salts and either a bottle of hydrogen peroxide or a packet of baking soda. Equal parts salt and hydrogen peroxide. It makes you sweat all of the toxins out and all of the bad stuff. I learned about it from a hippie-natural-amazing pediatrician, actually, for when kids get sick.

So, I do that a couple times a week, and I’ll do a face mask while I’m in there. I love the Astara Skincare Blue Flame Purification Mask because it has lots of good oils in it and it makes you glow, or the Cellcosmet Anti-Stress Cream Mask, which I got from my facialist in LA, or Bliss' Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask. I’m also pretty much obsessed with Tracie Martyn Amla Purifying Cleanser—I put it on my Clarisonic. For toner, Caudalie Beauty Elixir is my favorite thing in the universe; I am hooked on it, and I take the travel-size one on the plane, wherever I'm going. Shu Uemura Cleansing Oil is amazing, too—when you add water, it turns into a white, milky texture and it takes your makeup off in one second.

I use different creams and moisturizers. I really like Nia25 Intensive Recovery Complex and NeoCutis BioRestorative Skin Cream, which my godmother and dermatologist told me about. It’s almost like La Mer, in that it’s soothing and very non-allergenic feeling; you can just keep loading it on and it really hydrates. After I put on my normal moisturizer, I rub tons of La Mer into my lips and then I use it as a spot treatment—a little bit under my eyes, around my nose, above my top lip. My favorite light moisturizer is Remède Alchemy Emulsion, which smells so beautiful—I’ve been using it since I was, like, 15. But the Cetaphil cream pot is my favorite, favorite, favorite moisturizer—I use it all the time, after the shower, every day. It holds the water in, and makes you have beautiful skin. At night, I’ve been using these little Pomega5 oil capsules from Bliss.

Here's one trick that I’m pretty religious about: when I’m showering, I’ll turn the water to cold for the last couple minutes, which a hairstylist friend told me closes the hair cuticle. It makes your hair really shiny and beautiful. And I always feel like it makes you a little bit skinnier. [Laughs] So, I always do that. In terms of maintenance, I shampoo and condition my hair every other day. When I condition, I use a mound of product—they say ‘quarter-size,’ but I’ve got, like, five silver dollars in there. I’ve been working with Pantene in Europe and Asia [as an ambassador] for the last couple of years, but I’ve been using their products since I was a kid, back in the Empire Records days. I like their Clinicare line, which I think is only available in Asia. It makes my hair velvet-y and light. I also love Terax products—they feel amazing.

With makeup, I like to look like I don’t have makeup on. I think I have a face that can take a lot of product. On movies, it’s always interesting because, the way my eyes are, if you do a strong eye on me, you have to keep putting it on. It’s the way my face reflects light or something, but I can take a lot of makeup. But I usually don’t wear very much, especially when I’m not working. For foundation, I mix a little bit of Koh Gen Do Moisture Foundation in #123 and #12, and put it on really gently with my finger. When someone else does my face, they’ll use a sponge, but I never, ever do that when I do my own makeup. And then I do a bit of YSL Touche Éclat #2, just to highlight places. I put Givenchy Blush Gelée on my cheeks, or this crazy-old Kevyn Aucoin Creamy Moist Glow in Pravella that I love. It’s so old, he was still alive when I got it. If I was going to the beach, I would just use Becca’s Beach Tint on my cheeks and lips and nothing else.

On my eyes, I usually work some Givenchy Magic Khol in Coffee in along the top and bottom lashes and smudge it. I don’t wear eye shadow—if I want the color to go up a little higher, I’ll just keep smudging the eyeliner upwards. Then, I love Clinique’s Naturally Glossy Mascara. I use it a lot on movies because it’s so natural-looking. I’m not a big clumpy mascara fan—I like my lashes to all be fanned and spread out.

My favorite red lipstick is Rio Rio by Topshop. It’s this amazing orange-y red. It was Alexa Chung’s suggestion, actually! I saw her once and I said, ‘Chunginator, what’s your lip color?’ She told me it was from Topshop and I was like, ‘Get out of town!’ I wore it a lot in December, to a couple of premieres—The Hobbit, Django... I like the red lip. Sometimes, I’ll use a Nars Red Square Velvet Matte Lip Pencil just to help it.

I still have a stash of my Liv’s Lips lipstick that I made with Givenchy. When I started working with them, Nicolas [Degennes, the artistic director of Givenchy Beauty] and I would always put a stain on me, whether for campaign shoots or PR events. I had a couple of different ones I’d collected that were these kind of sheer, berry stains, like the Clinique Black Honey Almost Lipstick, only a bit deeper. Eventually, he made one for me, and then they produced it as a limited-edition Rouge Interdit lipstick. If you look at it, it’s black, but it goes on really sheer. It’s kind of like a mood ring—different on everyone, but always the right color for how you’re feeling.

I’ve worn the same perfume, C.O. Bigelow Musk Oil, for so many years. And I’m telling you, every day, five people will ask me what I’m wearing. That’s all it is, musk oil from Bigelow’s! I put little drops on my fingers and put some under my arms and in my belly button. My dad taught me that—if you put it where you heat up, the smell stays with you.”

—as told to ITG

[1-14] Liv Tyler photographed by Emily Weiss in New York on April 19, 2013; [15] Liv Tyler in Empire Records; [16] Liv Tyler with Joaquin Phoenix and Natalie Portman at the Inventing the Abbotts premiere.

Unofficial Summer has arrived! School is out, it's 85 degrees in NYC, we've stocked up on summer whites, and as of Memorial Day, Citi Bike will be open for a 'preview week.' Today, would-be members received texts announcing that the bike-sharing app is finally available, so get out your iPhones and download away (it's also available through Google Play). Currently, the app displays hundreds of soon-to-be-activated cycle stations (all situated below 23rd Street in Manhattan and across Brooklyn), and a quick survey of the Citi Bike NYC website reveals stations planned for Manhattan south of 60th Street. We couldn't be more excited for the program, which is already popular in cities like London and Washington, DC. No more worrying about having your bike stolen! No more taking a wheel with you whenever you lock up! With Citi Bike, you subscribe and ride, like Zipcar, only you don't have to return it to the same station. The company offers daily, weekly, and annual memberships, so pick up a helmet and get ready to become a 'bike person'—we certainly will be.

Lisa Eldridge has won us over yet again with another flawlessly executed makeup tutorial. This time, though, she's using a fresh-faced model rather than her own pretty mug to demonstrate her new spring look, inspired by a young Brigitte Bardot (and a recent Kate Winslet Bazaar cover she worked on). And while it is easy to get lost in Eldridge’s video collection—trust us, we have—this one stands out as a great idea for the season upon us—no, not spring (though, yes, that, too), but prom and wedding season!

Anyone who's gone through the over-hyped experience of prom can appreciate Lisa's pared-down look: no glitter eyeshadow, no lip gloss, no corkscrew sideburn curls. And for those of you with nuptials to attend this spring/summer, Eldridge has got the answer, and no Kardashian-level technical skills are required. Sure, the video is not aimed specifically at these events, but we here at ITG have decided that the “Baby Bardot” is the perfect un-statement statement. Just a simple, healthy face, perfect cat eye, lush lashes, and a rosy-nude lip. Plus, in the end, even if there is nothing super special coming up on your calendar, it never hurts to look like one of the original blonde bombshells (though we advise leaving the French accent at the door).

While surveying the latest Chloë Sevigny campaign last week, we spotted Tati Cotliar in a perplexing ensemble starring a Balenciaga-esque bomber jacket, crop top, and fanny pack. We’ve been fans of the bomber for some time, but the 24 year-old Argentinian model’s mix of High Street, club kid, hip hop, and ‘90s-sitcom-kitsch made it feel, well, fresh. We can't all be doe-eyed South American babes, but we can take something away from her so-wrong-it's-right culture-clashing style. Tati swung by the Gloffice last week with two suitcases overflowing with her prized bombers and offered up some guidelines, plus the accoutrements necessary—chunky-soled sneakers, a dark lip, etc.—to dress yourself up like The Nanny, Kanye, or Michelle Pfeiffer in Grease 2. (And we picked our favorite pieces below!)

1. There's nothing like the real thing: "I’m all about sportswear. It’s something that’s happening in America now, especially since that 1950s-style summer collection that Prada did [for spring '12]. To me, it feels very Grease, like Michelle Pfeiffer. I like a proper baseball jacket, made for baseball. I buy mine at vintage stores like Allan & Suzi or little shops like Pixie Market. The shape of real team jackets gives you this attitude, this slouch. And it’s very street smart, like the kids on the Lower East Side playing basketball."

2. When in doubt, look to Clueless: "I remember in the '90s when crop tops were the item. Showing your bellybutton was the hottest thing—like in Clueless when Alicia Silverstone cuts Brittany Murphy’s shirt with scissors. And now I think they work again, especially paired with a bomber, to make it less beach-y. They’re better with a high-waisted item, too, because showing a shorter space of skin in your belly makes you look longer."

3. Be a tourist in your own town: "Fanny packs are my thing for the summer. How you wear one depends on the outfit. If you have pants on, it goes on the hips, otherwise you can wear it across the body or even over the shoulder like a purse. Mine's a chic twist on a fanny pack, which is quite silly from the start. It reminds me of Grandma Yetta from The Nanny. She wears all of these bright colors and it’s very vulgar and kitsch; fanny packs are something your dad and tourists would wear. I found mine, by Feral Pleasures, at a little shop in London. You can even add your own crystals to a plain one."

4. Find big shoes to fill: "I’m a very masculine person, and I like the style of hip-hop because it feels very masculine, moving sportswear into the everyday wardrobe. It’s about being comfortable. If you wore sneakers during the day in France they would go crazy! I’m just thinking of something I read about Julia Restoin Roitfeld. She was asked, “What are your favorite sneakers?” and she said, “Nikes, but only in the gym.” But, in America, there are so many really pretty Nikes! My shoes are Dr. Martens. They’re more 'schoolgirl' with the buckle. For creepers, I love the brand Underground."

5. Purple is better: "I never wear makeup, because I work with makeup every day. I love skincare. My favorite moisturizer is La Roche-Posay because it’s clean and fragrance-free. If I’m going to wear anything else, at night in the summer, I’ll put on a purple lipstick. It’s kind of gothic and fun. Chanel has a great matte dark, dark purple, but if I’m wearing a fuchsia, I like a little bit of shine, so I’ll use one from Lancôme. I don’t wear anything else. No mascara, nothing."

Tati Cotliar photographed by Emily Weiss in New York on May 15, 2013.

Maybe it’s the recent solar eclipse (according to Astrology Zone, I was meant to see “the big message” on Friday…), or maybe it’s just that tax season is finally over, but I’ve been working on getting a little more zen lately. And, sure, it’s nice to sit back and accept “the things I cannot change” but that’s easier said than done when your skin has been vacillating from dry to oily and back again since the autumnal equinox (for this, I can thank the radiator in my “quaint” pre-war apartment that JUST WON’T QUIT.  Landlords of New York, do you hear me?)

Over the past few months, I’ve amassed quite a collection of washes, lotions, and serums in hopes of taking back the reins on my epidermis. So when I came across a perfectly pink little tub of Aurelia’s Miracle Cleanser, I thought, you know what? Prove it. Go ahead: make my day.

The über-creamy concoction’s aromatic mix of chamomile, eucalyptus, and rosemary essential oils wafted northward—nasal-ward?—upon unscrewing the lid, and I felt my breathing sloowwww down. There’s something very Vicks-VapoRub-via-an-organic-farm-in-Nice about the smell that’s soothing in that ‘holistic’ way. (Upon closer inspection of the label, Aurelia is, in fact, a “bio-organic” line.) I gently rubbed the cream right on to my dry skin, on top of make up and all, with upward, circular motions. It already felt incredible—so gentle and not at all greasy (my skin is very reactive to oil). Then came the best part: the antibacterial muslin cloth. It’s really no wonder they wrap babies in muslin because this finely-woven swatch of organic bamboo felt like it was knit from the hairs of cherubs. (Shosh may want to know where Jessa is, what she’s wearing, and if it’s linen, but our money’s on muslin). I pressed the hot and damp cloth over my face for a mini steam before removing the cleanser. That wonder washcloth wiped away a day’s worth of buildup—makeup, grime, and dead skin cells—while apparently “stimulating circulation.” I felt smooth, hydrated, balanced, and overall unwound: a rebirth, if you will. "Eclipse season" promises its fair share of seismic shifts, and I'm still waiting on that big message, but at least Aurelia and I have got the cleansing thing under control.

—Mackenzie Wagoner

Photos by Elizabeth Brockway.

Because it's Monday, and we don't want to work yet.