Blogs

Last night marks the 3rd year of QVC’s partnership with the CEW, in presenting our Beauty with Benefits event. This is one of the biggest shows of the year and certainly one that I take deep pride in being a part of. The theme of our event is “better together,” which encompasses so many of QVC’s core missions within our community and most importantly with each other.

This year, 19 of the leading brands in beauty came together to celebrate the power of friendship and make up! I hope that you were able to join us for a wonderful evening whether it was via social media or tuning in to our LIVE show. I wanted to give you a behind-the-scenes look at the entire event, including my day of preparation! 

I was so excited for the show; I thought it called for a new dress!

Then it was off to meet Chaz Dean’s salon for a hairdo refresh.

When I need to get my skin in shape for any event, I rely on a mask. Since my skin felt dry, I first exfoliated with the Ole Hendrickson Mini Strip Peel. It left my skin smooth and glowing. Then to get more hydration, I pulled out my favorite Tatcha product.

 I have been using the Tatcha Luminous Deep Hydration Masks for over a year now. I was so happy when we finally started carrying them on QVC . They are my little secret for when I want my skin to look firm and super hydrated. Plus they have the added bonus of really freaking out my entire family. Here I am cooking dinner before heading to work. I’m channeling my inner Michael Myers.

Then it was time to leave my Halloween look behind and head to the studio. I can’t/don’t want to imagine what sort of reaction the Tatcha mask would have received walking around QVC, haha!

Before my salon appointment, it was time to walk through the show. Rehearsals aren’t very typical around QVC as you may have noticed how very LIVE our presentations are, but because this was such a special event with a lot of added features and segments, a rehearsal was definitely necessary!

After our walk-through I was off to the salon with our stylist Russell.  I wanted to wear an up-do for the show, but because my hair is a little short my vision would have been a little tough to pull off -- BUT where there’s a will there’s a way, or at least there’s “Style-A-Do” from Hairdo!

The “Style-A-Do” looks very natural and added some volume in the appearance of length!  

    Not only did Russell do a fabulous job on my hair and make-up, but I’d say he also has a knack for taking selfies too! I received a couple of questions on Facebook about my makeup. It was mostly a mix of tarte and Laura Geller, including the tarte Amazonian Clay eyeliner and my lip color was Laura Geller’s, Love Me Dew Lip Crayon, in Purple Currant.

Meanwhile, back in the green room, our guests were having a social media ball! Thanks to our special supporters, Sonia Kashuk and Cindy Crawford, we were able to make this year’s event extra unique. Sonia and Cindy’s friendship so genuinely embodies the theme of last night’s event – better together.The two have supported and loved each other through difficult times, including Sonia’s diagnosis with cancer.

 Because Beauty with Benefits means so much to this dynamic duo, they decided to open the larger conversation of beauty and friendship to all of you. Between 8 and 9pm Sonia & Cindy were fast and furiously typing away during QVC’s live Instagram chat – a place for fans and beauty lovers to chat and ask questions to both Cindy and Sonia. It was a beautiful moment in social media, where our vendors chimed in with positive messages and beauty tips!

Here are some more photos from the green room & social party!     

(Alberti & Jessica Foust from BareMinerals)

(Maureen and Leigh from tarte)

(Chaz, Mally, Ashley, and Alberti)

Somewhere between prepping for the show, salon time, and chiming in on our Instagram chat, I realized I was missing something sort of important! Sometimes when I am excited or nervous I tend to be forgetful (I can’t be the only one, right?) So forgetful, that I forgot my shoes at home!! (I love my Skechers, but I’m not sure they complimented the dress like my other pair did!)

My poor husband had to pack up both kids into the car and drive my shoes out to the QVC studio. (If you’re reading this – THANKS AGAIN!) I was feeling a little guilty on top of the excitement and nerves, but he assured me that I would do the same for him. Then to make me feel better he texted me this picture of my girls outside the building. It made me laugh and calmed my nerves to see my “home team” was cheering me on!

Now that all shoes were accounted for it was show time! I stopped in the green room to see all of our beautiful vendors and was SO excited to see our friend Ashley was part of the party. Ashley is a cancer survivor and avid Beauty with Benefits fan that reached out to QVC (via social media) during last year’s event. Ashley shared her story and appreciation for Cancer and Careers and inevitably became part of this year’s story. I am so honored to have met Ashley and to share her strength and wisdom with all of you. Ashley – thank you so much for being you! Your positive outlook on life is contagious and we are so happy to have you in our QVC family!

Well there you have it! It was a long, exciting, and at times stressful day of preparation for an evening that was nothing short of amazing! I am so thrilled to have been able to share this amazing evening with all of you and of course with my co-host/partner in crime Alberti Popaj!