Rating: 
Summary: I feel enlightened!
Review: I used to buy a Chanel moisturizer thinking that if I paid more, I must be getting the best treatment for my skin. Paula's book really gives the inside information on cosmetic companies and how the marketing can get a woman to buy their product even if the product doesn't really do what it's supposed to do. There are so many of those skin care lines from Paris that a lot of the beauty spas use and maybe for one day my face will look good, but to buy the whole line of products for a daily skin routine would cost me $200 or more! Paula has her own line of cosmetics and skin care. I've bought some and it really is a "no-frills" line and very inexpensive. I would recommend it for people to use, but for myself, I've just used other products that she recommends in her book.
Rating:
Summary: Follow-up : a year of following Paula's recommendations!
Review: I bought this book a year ago, and wrote a favorable review on 4/21/99. Starting in August, 1999, I got serious about my regimin. I have oily skin prone to breakouts and, at 44, am very "concerned" (read "vain") about wrinkles, etc. I use Paula's 1% BHA lotion in the morning, followed by her 15 SPF moisturizer/sunscreen. At night I use a 2% BHA she recommends in her book, though it's made by another company. Last month I met an old friend who hadn't seen me since March 1999. The first thing she did, after goggling, was ask what I was using for my face because I looked "absolutely wonderful". She isn't the first or the last to comment on how smooth and fresh my skin looks. My skin is baby soft now and seldom breaks out. Even my husband has commented on the positive change, and this isn't something he's prone to notice. You could visit her website for intial skin care information before deciding whether or not to buy the book. She made sense to me a year ago, and I'm a firm believer now!
Rating: 
Summary: Slightly biased view of the beauty business.
Review: I, too,upon reading this book, found that it offers great justification for downsizing, pricewise, one's beauty regime, regarding both treatment and makeup products. I immediately ran out to the closest Clinique counter, and purchased Dramatically Different Moisturizer rather than my usual Moisture on Line, which I had been pretty well pleased with. No more Lancome mascara for me...it was Maybelline all the way. Well...three months down the road, my skin looked dull and lifeless. The Cetaphil cleanser that I had started to use was not doing what my former, more pricey cleanser had done. The Maybelline mascara was great, but it did not wear nearly as well as the Lancome mascara. It didn't take long for me to resume using products that were higher priced, yet effective. Basically, you have to determine what your priorities are, before reading this book. If your main goal is to economize, and you are willing to sacrifice benefits, results, and convenience, then look for the smiley faces without the dollar signs in Paula Begoun's book. But if it's results you are looking for, if you want your mascara to wear well, your lipstick to stay on, your foundation to hold a true color, and still be on your face, and not your clothes at the end of the day, I would suggest putting this book on a shelf, where I believe it belongs, along with every other biased and one sided works that we have spent our hard earned dollars on. Is there no merit at all in this book? Of course there is some. I believe that Paula probably gave what she believes to be a fair and just review of her own cosmetic line. There is worth in everything. It's just that in this instance, what you get is much less than what you think you are getting from this book. Nice try, Paula. If everything that you said was true, cosmetic counters would no longer be center stage in most of our department stores. Yes, beauty is a business, but writing books and having them published is a business as well. May everyone enjoy the fruits of their efforts.
Rating: 
Summary: Good for knowing about skin care ingredients, not much else
Review: The best reason for owning this book is to know more about the ingredients in skin care products, as to which ones may irritate and which ones are completely useless. The cosmetics ratings are not as helpful, though, primarily because Ms. Begoun herself has oily skin, and only a small percentage of adult women share this type. Consequently, for example, a powder blush that she describes as "silky" may blend poorly on dry skin. She also favors mascaras of the stiffer, more dramatic variety, which you find out after trying enough of those mascaras that she recommends. So, in the end, you don't end up saving much money on cosmetics, because these areas are too subjective and you have to end up buying the products and trying them out for yourself to find out what works for you. I also ended up lowering my rating a bit because of Ms. Begoun's cruel, insensitive and totally ludicrous assertion that pink-toned women should cover their natural skin color with yellow-based makeup. Consequently, her influence (as well as Bobbi Brown's) on this matter has lead to the industry discontinuing many cool-based cosmetics, which greatly contradicts Begoun's tone of self-righteousness in caring about consumer sensitivity and freedom of choice. Overall, there's plenty of both good and bad points to make about Ms. Begoun's books and newsletters, and if you can accept that fact, you'll find enough in them to be worthwhile.
Rating: 
Summary: Good but a bit contradictory
Review: I really like this book, but what I don't understand is that when you read about a product she says not too good things about it and then in the end of the book ranks it high. I don't understand how she does her ratings. Some things get good rankings (smiley faces)but not good written writeups which is quite confusing.
Rating:
Summary: Good but a bit contradictory
Review: I really like this book, but what I don't understand is that when you read about a product she says not too good things about it and then in the end of the book ranks it high (under best moisturizer for example) I don't understand how she does her ratings. Some things get good rankings (smiley faces)but not good written writeups which is quite confusing
Rating:
Summary: Stop Wasting Money and Buy This Book!
Review: There are a lot of ingredients in skin care products and cosmetics that are bad for ANYONE'S skin and Paula lets you know which ingredients these are and which products contain these ingredients. I like the way she's not afraid to tell it like it is and be honest (some people would refer to this as sarcasm). She also points out which expensive products and reasonably priced products have the SAME ingredients so you don't waste a lot of money. The first cosmetic purchase I made after reading Paula's book I saved enough so that the book paid for itself. I have to say that the cheaper brand is doing just as good a job as the more expensive brand. Also since I'm sure she knows what she's talking about, I purchased her skin care routine. I LOVE it. My skin looks and feels better than it has in a long time and my makeup looks great because of her opinions. Now every time I need to buy something I refer to her book.
Rating:
Summary: This Book Was Great!
Review: Having oily sensitive skin prone to breakouts, I have constantly struggled to find the right products and couldn't understand why they didn't work. Not until I read Paula Begoun's book did I understand that most products for acne actually make it worse. I have seen a great improvement in my skin after using the products she recommends. I did not find her tone sarcastic, in fact I think it would be a dry book without a sense of humor. However, the Best Products chapter is not easy to use and it was time consuming to find the best products for acne prone skin. However the pull out section - Your Personalized Beauty Guide - is very handy when you are shopping.
Rating:
Summary: A reference worth every penny and then some!
Review: I've been buying this book since the first edition (way before she 'got into the business') and it has saved me tons of money because I (still) love to buy new makeup. No, I haven't agreed with all of her recommendations, but guessing based on her 'first pass' has proven at least as good, and usually much better than my own guesses or guesses based on advertising or on a commissioned salesperson. I've discovered some great new lines (drugstore and department) and products as well. She also points out the bad shades (i.e. unnatural looking), which if you're over 30 really helps, and she lists the companies that still do animal testing. I know it seems conflicting since she went into the business, but she wasn't in it for a long time, and her reviews of the other lines don't appear to have altered any since she got in. Yes she recommends her own stuff, but she -- and her reader base -- recommends a lot of other products too (still too many to make the decision easy). I still trust her more than anyone else, she tells it like it is so I can cut through the hype, and I happen to really like her skin care line. Unfortunately, by the time ANY book goes to print it is a little out of date, so I finally broke down and got her newsletter to get the latest scoop on new product lines in between editions. See for more info and a little free advice from her books.
Rating:
Summary: Will prevent me from making anymore mistakes
Review: I checked the reviews on products I had previously purchased and did not like. Paula gave unhappy faces to the products. So since she agreed with me I trust her opinions. It would be easier to read if the final chapter of "best products" were listed in columns.
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