{Giveaway} Rainraps


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Rachel Teyssier and Stacy Struminger are giving away one of their stylish Rainraps, a lightweight wrap that protects your clothes from the rain without weighing you down. Enter to win one by answering this question in the comments, below: Which color Rainrap is your favorite?

Best FOFriends Rachel and Stacy met at a playgroup in 2001, when their kids were just a few months old. Once they started talking, they realized that they had a ton in common. Both ladies grew up in New Jersey and eventually moved to New York City, both relocated from New York and were raising families in Richmond, Virginia, and both have kids who are the same age.

Ten years later, Stacy was headed to a meeting when it started downpouring. As she sat at that meeting, soaking wet, she thought how convenient it would be to have a waterproof wrap, similar to her favorite pashmina, that she could throw on over her outfit to protect her from the rain. She told Rachel about her idea, and the two searched the web to see if their dream raingear already existed.

“We were typing in ‘waterproof scarfs,’ ‘waterproof capes,’ ‘waterproof pashminas,'” says Rachel. “We did tons of different online searches to see if there was anything like it out there, and realized that there wasn’t.”

In late 2011, Rachel and Stacy rolled out the first prototype of their Rainraps, a fashionable alternative to the slicker which protects your clothes without leaving you looking like…well..a tourist at Seaworld. The waterproof wrap folds up into a tiny square that fits in your purse, and can be worn several different ways to compliment any outfit.

In the four months since they started selling online and at retail stores in Virginia and North Carolina, Stacy and Rachel have sold over 1,800 Rainraps. The stylish rainwear has also been featured by nearly every magazine under the sun from Good Housekeeping to More to Oprah’s O Magazine.

So, how did they climb the ladder to success so quickly? Rachel offered this piece of advice:

“You’re never going to know unless you give it a shot, and I truly believe that if somebody has an idea, there’s a way to get it made.”

Enter to win a Rainrap of your own. View the Rainraps collection, here, then enter to win by answering this question in the comment section: Which color Rainrap is your favorite?

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One FOF will win. (See all our past winners, here.) (See official rules, here.) Contest closes June 21, 2012 at midnight E.S.T.

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{Giveaway} Lisa Hoffman’s Perfume Jewelry

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FOF Lisa Hoffman is giving away one of her brilliant fragrance bracelets. You choose the scent. Use Lisa’s iScentify Scent Finder to find your best fragrance, then enter to win by answering in the comments below: Which Lisa Hoffman fragrance bracelet would you most want to try?

FOF Lisa Hoffman, wife of A-lister Dustin Hoffman spent her child-rearing years traveling the globe with her celeb husband, loving her role as a full-time mother and wife. But once the kids were grown, she longed to indulge a new passion and start a fragrance and beauty line. This time, she’d have to make her own way. “Dustin’s very supportive and would help me in any way that I asked,” said Lisa in an interview with FOF last year. “But really, the beauty business is very much a woman’s world.”

In 2007 she launched her fragrance line, Lisa Hoffman Beauty. Lisa’s perfumes are all inspired by exotic destinations she’s visited, and each scent comes in four variations for different times of day: morning, day, evening and bedtime. Immediately upon its release, her fragrances were welcomed with accolades–the “Newcomer of the Year” award in 2008 by Women’s Wear Daily, two consecutive Allure Best of Beauty awards in 2008 and 2009 and her fragrances “Madagascar Orchid” and “Japanese Agarwood” were nominated for FiFi awards alongside Acqua di Parma, Karl Lagerfeld, Chanel, and Tom Ford.

But, Lisa didn’t rest on her laurels–instead, the FOF got to work on her next product–fragrance jewelry, “a new way to wear perfume that puts you in control,” says Lisa. “On when you want and off just as easily.” The fragrance jewelry, launched at the end of 2011, is comprised of earrings, pendants and bracelets featuring a round charm “featuring a proprietary delivery system that slowly releases perfume as…exposed to air,” according to Lisa’s press materials. The design for the fragrance-emitting charm was inspired by a pair of Victorian era earrings given to Lisa by her husband, Dustin. Already, the fragrance jewelry has been picked up by HSN and nominated for a FiFi award. Lisa says fragrance jewelry will particularly appear to women over 50. “As we age, we are more apt to develop sensitivities and allergies,” she says. “I can’t tell you how many times women approach me and are so thankful they can actually wear fragrance without it touching their skin.”

So, what’s Lisa’s favorite scent a la mode? “My daughter was just married and I’m still reeling in the romance of the occasion–Madagascar Orchid, my current favorite just smells like love.”

Enter to win a Lisa Hoffman fragrance bracelet. Use the iScentify Scent Finder to find your best fragrance, then enter to win by answering this question in the comments below: Which Lisa Hoffman fragrance bracelet would you most want to try?

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One FOF will win. (See all our past winners, here.) (See official rules, here.) Contest closes June 14, 2012 at midnight E.S.T.

Thank you for entering. This contest is now closed.

{Giveaway} Jana Feifer Letters for Literacy Tote

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FOF Jana Feifer is giving away her gorgeous Letters for Literacy tote. You choose the color and letter. Enter to win by answering in the comments below: Which color do you like best?

Up until 2001, California-based FOF Jana Feifer designed promotional products for fashion mega-brands including Calvin Klein, Estee Lauder and Donna Karan. When 9/11 hit, the economy dipped causing many of these companies to cut their marketing budgets and consequently put Jana’s company virtually out of business. While some FOFs would mope over their bad luck, Jana remained positive and saw it as a blessing in disguise. “I always wanted to have a product line of my own, so it was really good timing for me,” she says.

That year, Jana launched Jana Feifer handbags, starting with a small luxury leather line of bags in bright colors. “I was very lucky–my first collection was picked up by Bergdorf Goodman, Henri Bendel and I got a lot of press without really having to do anything,” she says.

One success bred another success. Jana’s second collection, leather bags with custom initials, garnered attention from celebrities such as Halle Berry, Lisa Rinna and Renee Zellweger  and even was named one of  Oprah’s Favorite Things. “My business grew from a half a million dollar company to a six million dollar company in a month,” says Jana.

However, in 2005, Jana faced yet another obstacle–this time, a skin cancer diagnosis. Jana’s handbags took a backseat as she focused on her health for the next seven years.

Once again, Jana has bounced back from difficult times. The now, cancer-free FOF relaunched her bag company just this year with a line she believes will be even a bigger success than before. Her comeback bags are made from Jana’s custom-blend of PVC and leather which keeps costs down while still maintaining luxury quality. Her new Letters for Literacy tote (a lucky FOF will win one!) is made from cotton canvas hemp with Italian leather trim and printed with a custom initial. 10% of proceeds from the Letters from Literacy bag will benefit a division of the United Nations called “Literacy Initiative for Empowerment (LIFE).” “They help children and women all over the world achieve literacy,” says Jana. “I hope I can make a change.”

Enter to win a Letters for Literacy tote by answering in the comments below: Which color do you like best?

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One FOF will win. (See all our past winners, here.) (See official rules, here.) Contest closes June 7, 2012 at midnight E.S.T.

Thank you for entering. This contest is now closed.

{Giveaway} A copper and turquoise collar

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FOF Brenda Cline is giving away this gorgeous copper and turquoise collar. Enter to win by answering in the comments below: What’s the best beach you’ve been to?

Brenda Cline, an FOF from Satellite Beach, Florida, comes from a family of avid surfers–her husband, daughter, son and grandson all love riding the waves. Brenda too, enjoyed surfing until she had a run in with a shark in 1982.

“I couldn’t handle it, I was hyperventilating,” she says. Brenda stopped surfing, but continued accompanying her family members on their surf trips. Looking for something to occupy herself while they hit the waves, Brenda started combing the beach for sea glass and stones. When she returned home, she’d experiment, turning her findings into jewelry.

Brenda started with silver and sea glass, but then, a friend gave her a piece of recycled copper. “That began my love for copper,” says Brenda whose bestsellers are her signature copper collars. “Recently I reflected, asking myself, ‘why do I love working with metals so much?’ My dad was an ironworker. I think that’s a big part of it.”

More recently, Brenda has begun experimenting with aluminum. She crafts each piece from her Satellite Beach studio and sells at art shows and on Etsy. Each piece is a one-of-a-kind creation using recycled and repurposed metals from hardware stores and natural elements from her family surf trips. On her last trip to Nicaragua, she filled her suitcase with over 16 pounds of stones, for her new “Surf Safari” line. “I sacrificed packing my clothes to bring back stones,” says Brenda. “I have so much passion. Everything I look at, I think: ‘how can I make art out of it?’”

You can see more of Brenda’s pieces in her Etsy shop, Metal Souls.

Enter to win a gorgeous copper collar designed by FOF artist Brenda Cline by answering in the comments below: What’s the best beach you’ve been to?

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One FOF will win. (See all our past winners, here.) (See official rules, here.) Contest closes May 31, 2012 at midnight E.S.T.

Images courtesy of Brenda Cline

Thank you for entering. This contest is now closed.

{Giveaway} A Skite (Skirt + Tights)


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FOF Mary Jane Parrish is giving away her brilliant Skite, a skirt and tights in one. Enter to win one in any solid color by answering in the comments below: Which color Skite do you like the best?

Remember when deliriously happy married couple, Katie and Hubbell, (played by Barbra Streisand and Robert Redford), were strolling on the beach in the 1973 movie, The Way We Were? Didn’t it make you just want to run to the beach, and stay forever, with a man who looked and behaved like Hubbell?

When Mary Jane Parrish and her husband saw the movie, they were newly married and he told her: “We’re going to live on the beach some day.”  Two years ago, they made the move, to Grayton Beach in Northwest Florida’s Panhandle. “We grew up vacationing down here,” explained Mary Jane, who met her Hubbell in Bowling Green, Kentucky, (a town of 50,000) when they were 10. They’ve been married almost four decades.

“We’re living our dream. You couldn’t blast me out of here,” said Mary Jane, who taught interpersonal communication, including public speaking, to high school and college students in Kentucky, before moving to Memphis.  There, she became a “corporate wife” in a “corporate town.”

“Corporate life was great, but we were done with it,” she said. Florida beckoned and it’s been a perfect environment for Mary Jane to enjoy the activities she loves, including tennis, yoga, running, pilates and aerobics. In Florida, she noticed that FOFs rarely returned home after their workouts and would wrap something around their waists to cover their butts. “I thought, there’s got to be a better look than ‘gym rat.’ Why couldn’t workout wear look great on us after we finished working out?,” said Mary Jane. “Tennis skirts [with bare legs] and running shorts were cute when our legs were cute, but now we want to cover cellulite, varicose veins and brown spots.”

And alas, the Skite was born.  A combination short skirt and tights, Mary Jane’s Skites come in four lengths (short, bike, capri and ankle), and even the shortest covers the backside and “makes me feel cute again,” she added.  Constructed in Grayton Beach from the “same material that Lululemon uses,” (purchased from a fabric manufacturer in New Jersey) the Skites are wrinkle- and odor-resistant and moisture-wicking and are “sassy and classy, not faddish or clingy,” said Mary Jane. “They’re age appropriate and comfortable, not too short and tight.”

When Mary Jane introduced the well-priced Skites ($59 and $69) at a popular running event just over a year ago, she sold out. “I sold every single one of the 50 I brought and took orders for 50 more,” said Mary Jane. “It’s fun to make women feel good about themselves and help their self esteem.”  She also plans on introducing short and long-sleeved tees to go with the Skites, in the near future.

Enter to win a Skite, a skirt and tights in one, invented by FOF Mary Jane Parrish by answering in the comments below: Which color Skite do you like the best?
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One FOF will win a Skite in any solid color. (See all our past winners, here.) (See official rules, here.) Contest closes May 24, 2012 at midnight E.S.T.

Images courtesy of Mary Parrish and theskite.com

Thank you for entering. This contest is now closed.

{Giveaway} Paula Dorf Lipstick in Mermaid


Kate Walsh (left) , Heidi Klum (center) and Cyndi Lauper (right) all wear orange lipstick.

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Orange you glad tangerine tones, copper colors and peachy pigments are the hottest lipstick shades for summer 2012? Okay, okay…we weren’t so thrilled either. That is–until two celeb makeup artists (and FOFs!) Carolyn Diamond and Paula Dorf convinced us otherwise. “Orange lipstick can be one of the most powerful weapons in any woman’s beauty arsenal. Yet many women assume they can’t wear it,” says Carolyn, who says she’s proudly puckering up in peach this season… and you can too. Read on for Carolyn and Paula’s orange lipstick dos and don’ts. Then, enter to win Paula Dorf’s Lip Color Cream in “Mermaid” by leaving a comment, below.

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…consider your skin tone when choosing the perfect orange shade. “If you have pink skin undertones, opt for a coral shade with blue undertones,” says Carolyn. “Olive-complexioned FOFs look great in a lip color that has more of an orange base. Women with darker skin tones look great in rich burnt orange tones.”

…be precise when applying. “A bright orange lipstick should never be applied casually,” says Carolyn. “Also, always be sure to check your teeth and blot your lips.

…match your lip liner to your lipstick. “Your lip liner shade should either exactly match the orange lipstick hue or be a darker, complimentary tone,” says Carolyn.

..keep the rest of your makeup simple. “The important thing to remember when wearing an orange-hued lipstick or gloss, is that the lips are the eye catcher,” says Carolyn. Paula agrees: “Apply a softer, more natural color blush on your cheeks since you want most of the attention directed to your lips. Even a delicate bronzer would look great.” Carolyn recommends: Glo Minerals gloBlush in Papaya and Glo Minerals Bronzer in Sunkiss. “These shades look great on almost all skin tones,” she says.

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…wear heavy eyeliner. “Opt for a brown eye pencil and smudge it to defuse the intensity. A dash of copper or gold dust to your eyelids (just enough to catch the light) can be sexy and playful,” says Carolyn. “Using mascara, play up those lashes, ladies (black for brunettes, brown for blondes and redheads), and don’t forget to apply it to your bottom lashes–it opens up your eyes.

…match your lips to your outfit. “Your new rust-colored maxi dress may be gorgeous, but don’t choose the same shade for your your lips,” says Carolyn. “For your lips, choose the color that is best suited for your skin color.”

…try this trend if you have thin lips. “Orange can tend to make lips look smaller,” says Carolyn.

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Recommended Orange Lip Products:

1. Paula Dorf Lip Color Cream in “Mermaid”, 2. Glo Minerals Lip Gloss in “Mango” and 3. “Peony” “These color look great on almost every one,” says Carolyn. “They have the perfect undertones to compliment any skin tone.”

To learn more or for an appointment with Carolyn, contact Diamond Studio, 1518 Spruce Street. Philadelphia PA. 267-664-7712, www.carolyndiamond.com

Enter to win Paula Dorf’s Lip Color Cream in “Mermaid by leaving a comment, below.

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Five FOFs will win. See all our past winners, here.) (See official rules, here.) Contest closes May 17,s 2012 at midnight E.S.T.

Images: Kate Walsh, Heidi Klum, Cyndi Lauper, Carolyn Diamond, “Do”, “Don’t”

Thank you for entering. This contest is now closed.

{Giveaway} 4 FOFixers you need, pronto!

Win these 4 FOFixers by answering in the comments below: Which one do you want to try the most?

Sore feet, gray hair, saggy breasts…we can all complain about the ails of aging, but our hats go off to the few women who actually rose to their feet (aching arches and all!) and did something about it. Meet three of these super-smart ladies and learn about their brilliant FOFixers.

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Foot Petals


Tina Aldatz knows a thing or two about achy soles. As a child growing up in California, Tina Aldatz burnt her feet when she accidentally stepped over hot coals in the sand. As an adult working in the NYC fashion industry, she endured hours of pain walking in high heels. In 2001, Tina set out to create stylish solutions for tortured tootsies and launched her company, Foot Petals. Many of Tina’s products use a space-age material called Poron, which is a durable shock-absorbing foam. Foot Petals, now grosses multi-millions of dollars in sales and manufactures more than 20 products sold nationwide in stores such as Nordstrom, Dillards and Nine West.

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Gray Disappear


A health scare in 1995 made Jasmine Abedi, a former California-based entertainment attorney, reevaluate her beauty cabinet. All the hair dyes and roots cover-up products she could find, contained parabens, which, in some studies, have been linked to cancer. Unwilling to risk her health for beauty, Jasmine and her business partner, JD Larson, invented Gray Disappear (retail value: $15.99), a gray hair touch up product applied with a mascara wand. It comes in 4 shades: gold (blonde), blaze (red), espresso (brown) and onyx (black) and is free of parabens, sulfates and propylene glycols. Jasmine’s “magic” wand has most recently cast a spell on Whole Foods execs, who quickly grabbed up cases of the product which will be available in many of their West Coast stores this spring.

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Bring It Up Instant Breast and Face Lifts


Denise Curtis won’t give in to gravity. She is the FOF behind Bring It Up, a line of products designed to lift everything from your brows to your breasts–sans surgery. The Los Angeles salon owner was downright tired of listening to her clients complain about their double chins, turkey necks and saggy breasts–so in 2001 she created her first product, Bring It Up Instant Breast Lifts (retail price: $20 for a pack of 8 pairs, sizes A-D, or 3 pairs, sizes D and larger). The lifts are crescent-moon shaped, transparent, waterproof and hypoallergenic adhesives that work by lifting the breasts from the top. Since Denise introduced the product, they’ve been featured everywhere from Glamour and The Rachael Ray Show to that “best things” bible, O magazine. But, she didn’t stop there. A few years later, she released Instant Neck Lifts (retail price: $20 for a 30 day supply), small adhesives that tighten the neck from behind your ears. We hear Cher’s a fan…but, shhh… we didn’t tell you that!

Win these 4 FOFixers by answering in the comments below: Which one do you want to try the most?

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One FOF will win. See all our past winners, here.) (See official rules, here.) Contest closes May 10, 2012 at midnight E.S.T.

Thank you for entering. This contest is now closed.

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{Giveaway} Hot Girls Pearls


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FOF Connie Sherman is giving away a “cooling” Hot Girls Pearl Necklace and travel purse. Enter to win by answering in the comments below: Do you own a set of pearls?

When FOF Connie Sherman turned 47, her doctor found “questionable cells” in her breast tissue and put her on Tamoxifen. The medication came with an unpleasant side effect–frequent, agonizing hot flashes. “I’d literally come home and stick my head in the freezer,” says FOF Connie Sherman, now in her sixties.

Two years ago, still heated about her hot flashes–Connie began to think about out-of-the-box solutions. A former creative director in NYC for Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue and Bloomingales, fashion was always on Connie’s mind. “I wanted something I could wear, that would actually do something about the heat,” says Connie. “And I’m not talking about a bandana.” She got to work on a prototype for Hot Girls Pearls, jewelry made from beads filled with the same non-toxic icy gel that’s in medical ice packs.

Last June, when she was satisfied with her prototype, Connie rolled out her Hot Girls Pearls necklace in three sizes (16”, 18” and 19.5”) and a bracelet. More recently, she has added two new colors to her line: gunmetal and dusty pink. Her pearls start at $30.

Connie’s cool jewelry has proven a hot commodity–they’ve been featured on ABC’s The View, The Today Show and in Oprah’s O Magazine. Connie estimates she’s sold 5,000 Hot Girls Pearls in less than a year. “There’s not one woman who doesn’t sigh in relief when they put them on,” says Connie.

Enter to win a Hot Girls Pearl Necklace and travel purse invented by FOF Connie Sherman by answering in the comments below: Do you own a set of pearls?

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One FOF will win. See all our past winners, here.) (See official rules, here.) Contest closes May 3, 2012 at midnight E.S.T.

Thank you for entering. This contest is now closed.

{Giveaway} Cellfolios

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FOF Jamie James is giving away her brilliant Cellfolio cell phone case from the Jamie James Collection. It doubles as a wallet AND keychain. Enter to win by answering in the comments below: How old were you when you got your first cell phone?

“My life requires me to be organized,” says FOF Jamie James, a divorce attorney and mother of four in Andover, Massachusetts. Yet Jamie admits that on occasions she’s misplaced her bar license and had trouble getting into court. “I’d stash my license and debit card in my pants pocket for easy access, but I’d forget to take them out when I got home at night.”

In 2010, Jamie noticed her daughter, Caitlyn, a junior at Princeton, carrying her credit cards in a plastic cell phone case, behind her Blackberry. “I started to do the same, but I was used to carrying leather Tory Burch and Kate Spade bags–this plastic jelly case didn’t really fit my style,” says Jamie. A friend suggested that Jamie design something more her taste.

Jamie James with her family at daughter, Caitlyn's, graduation.
Jamie with her family at Caitlyn's graduation.

“I had a big wish list,” says Jamie. “I wanted this case to hold cards, be made from high-quality Italian leather, be manufactured in the U.S. and fit a variety of phone sizes so you wouldn’t have to throw it away if you upgraded.”

Nine months later, in July of 2011, the Cellfolio was born. “It was truly like a birth,” says Jamie. “It was hard to get all the components to come together.”

The hard work paid off. In less than a year she’s sold 7,000 “Cellfolios,” hybrid wallet and cell phone cases that come in five different styles and over a dozen colors. Each Cellfolio holds three cards, and some styles have an exterior photo ID window. It fits any size smart phone.

Jamie sells the Cellfolio exclusively through her website and at speciality shows around the U.S. “I think people are looking to minimize now more than ever, and I was ahead of the curve on that,” says Jamie. “I only carry my Cellfolio now. It has really simplified my life.”
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Enter to win a Cellfolio cell phone case invented by FOF Jamie James by answering in the comments below: How many years ago did you get your first cell phone?

One FOF will win. (See all our past winners, here.) (See official rules, here.) Contest closes April 26, 2012 at midnight E.S.T.

Thank you for entering. This contest is now closed.

{Giveaway} Brush On Block


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FOF Susan Posnick is giving away her brilliant Brush On Block. Enter to win by answering in the comments below: Have you used sun protection your whole life?

FOF Susan Posnick spent her early adult years suntanning and teaching on the island of St. Croix. There, she met a well-known NYC advertising photographer, Wendi Hilti, who became her mentor.  “We would sit in the afternoons and drink our Campari and sodas, and he’d say, ‘what are you going to do when you get off this godforsaken island?’” recalls Susan. “I’d say, ‘I don’t know. Teaching kids is not my thing. I’ve always been about fashion and beauty. But, I grew up in a small town and have no idea where to start.” Wendi introduced Susan to his fashion connections in New York City and helped jumpstart her career in beauty.

Susan spent the next thirty years as a professional makeup artist, working on celebrities such as Cindy Crawford and Rene Russo and eventually became the personal makeup artist for Mary Kay.

While Susan had the good fortune of meeting Wendi in St. Croix, she had the not-so-good fortune of developing skin cancer on her face, which was diagnosed in her 50s but is most likely the result of her years spent in the Caribbean sun.

“What was the size of a pinhead on the outside, was the size of a quarter underneath,” says Susan of her melanoma. “Fortunately, I caught it in the earliest possible phase.”

After a successful operation to remove the cancer, Susan made it her personal mission to develop fuss-free sun protection that every woman could incorporate into her beauty routine. “When I got skin cancer, I was allergic to all the chemical sunscreens,” says Susan. “I really wanted to make a mineral product that felt good on the skin, was portable and easy to use.” In 2001, she launched ColorFlo, a refillable brush with mineral foundation that also protects the skin from UV rays. ColorFlo was a retail hit but Susan felt the product was limited to just women.

This year, Susan launched Brush On Block, which, like ColoFlo is a refillable brush with mineral sun protection. However, Brush On Block contains very little color pigment and appears transparent on the skin. It has an SPF of 30 and stays on in the water for 80 minutes. “I wanted to create a product that would work for the whole family. My goal is that people will wake up every day, wash their faces, brush their teeth and brush on block.”
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Enter to win Brush On Block invented by FOF Susan Posnick by answering in the comments below: Have you used sun protection your whole life?

One FOF will win. See all our past winners, here.) (See official rules, here.) Contest closes April 19, 2012 at midnight E.S.T.

Thank you for entering. This contest is now closed.