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Apr 14 2010 12:30 PM ET

Keri Hilson Steps Up as Avon’s Newest Face

Charley Gallay/Getty

Avon’s celebrity stable is about to get even more gorgeous in the coming days. The brand has announced the appointment of singer Keri Hilson as its newest spokesperson, taking over for Jennifer Hudson, who has been with the brand since 2007. “We had a great partnership with Jennifer Hudson, and we found that so powerful that, in the same spirit, we wanted to take it a step further,” Lily DeStefano, executive director of Avon North America Beauty, told WWD. “Keri just brings a youth and vitality to our brand. I think that she’s just the perfect transition.” For Hilson, a partnership with Avon also made sense: “I love fragrance. I love beauty,” said the 27-year-old Grammy nominee, who joins fellow Avon faces Reese Witherspoon, Zoe Saldana, and Fergie. “I love to teach women that they should feel confident and feel good about themselves for themselves.” Tell us: What do you think of Avon’s newest face?

Apr 14 2010 11:00 AM ET

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Support Mary J. Blige’s Charity by Shopping at Carol’s Daughter Today

Philanthropic singer Mary J. Blige appeared on Oprah yesterday to talk about Be Beautiful & Give Back, her joint campaign with Jay-Z, Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith and natural bodycare company Carol’s Daughter to give disadvantaged young women the opportunity to go to college. Carol’s Daughter will donate 30 percent of all online purchases on its site today to Blige’s charity FFAWN (the Foundation for the Advancement of Women Now). “These are bright girls with even brighter futures who don’t have the means,” said Blige in a statement. “So I partnered with Carol’s Daughter to Be Beautiful & Give Back…to send these women to college.” To contribute, shop the extensive hair, body and bath collections at carolsdaughter.com on April 14th.

Apr 14 2010 09:30 AM ET

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FIRST LOOK: Brooke Shields Relaxes in New Royal Velvet Ads

Tony Duran

Brooke Shields is taking what she knows best—modeling—and making it a family affair! The entire clan–including Shields, husband Chris Henchy, and daughters Rowan, 6, and Grier, who turns 4 this week–starred in their second campaign for home brand, Royal Velvet. “It was such a treat today to have my kids and my husband with me,” she says in a video on Royal Velvet’s website. “Having my husband appreciate how hard [modeling] is to do this I think he has a first-hand appreciation now.” As part of a multi-media marketing campaign, the lush black-and-white ads were shot by famed photographer Tony Duran in a private estate in West Hollywood, Calif. and is all about a family enjoying each others’ presence — and a mom getting her own quiet time, in beautiful shots of Brooke alone. But with so much going on with being a full-time working mother, how does Shields relax? “There is nothing really better than a great great bath and taking the time,” she says. “Now that I’ve gotten older I sort of feel the luxury and the peacefulness just to idle down.” To find out more about the brand or to watch the video, check out RoyalVelvet.com. –David Yi

Celebrity Ad Campaigns

Apr 13 2010 05:30 PM ET

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Sarah Jessica Parker ‘Couldn’t Say No’ to Halston Gig

Mario Testino/Vogue

She may be known the world round for her peerless ability to carry off daring dresses and teetering heels with ease, but how did Sarah Jessica Parker decide to become involved in the busines of fashion? The Vogue May cover girl told the magazine of her decision to become a fashion exec at Halston Heritage, the archive-inspired secondary line of Halston, “There was every reason to say no, and there were very compelling reasons to say yes. It’s an exciting time at that company… It has a wonderful legacy, and I couldn’t say no, and I’m…uh, figuring it out… ” She comes to the job with a measure of awe, saying of her first years in New York in the Broadway cast of Annie, “It was 1977 in New York City, and you couldn’t be alive and not know the name Halston.” Parker acknowledges the potential juggling act she’ll face balancing her new duties with her movie career and her off-screen role as mom to son James Wilkie, 7, and 10-month-old twins Loretta and Tabitha, saying, “Does it scare me? Am I intimidated? Am I challenged? That’s kind of the way I’ve always made decisions.” But the actress happily notes that she has geography on her side, joking, “Luckily, the Halston offices are about a ten-minute walk from my house.” To read more from Sarah Jessica, pick up the May issue of Vogue or visit vogue.com. – Marissa Patlingrao Cooley

Mario Testino/Vogue

Apr 13 2010 03:25 PM ET

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Should Snooki’s Hair Have Its Own Television Show?

She may be the self-proclaimed “Queen of Reality” but even Jersey Shore’s Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi must admit that it’s her hair that’s become biggest star of them all. In a new video promoting Pantene’s “World’s First Reality Hair Star” competition—where one winner will star in the company’s first live commercial in May—the outspoken 22-year-old flaunts her dark locks while explaining just why her long tresses reign supreme. “I have the greatest hair ever. It’s thick, it’s naturally straight and I can pretty much do whatever I want to it,” she says. “My hair can have its own TV show.” The petite reality star even demonstrates the veracity of her signature hair pouf by clipping a mound of hair into a towering bob. “It’s real, there’s no extensions, sweeties,” she explains, then adds: “don’t hate me because I’m beautiful. Every girl’s trying to do the pouf and they can’t because it’s my pouf!” To enter the contest and to show off your own mane style, log onto pantene.com. And check out other videos from reality stars Lo Bosworth and Jill Zarin and enter yourself at pantene.com/realitystar– the contest ends April 18th! Tell us: Do you agree with Snooki’s hair perspective?-–David Yi

Hair

Apr 13 2010 12:30 PM ET

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Zoë Saldana on Giving Herself ‘Permission to be Pretty’

Courtesy SELF

Don’t be confused by Zoë Saldana’s glamorous red carpet looks–in real life, the star of Avatar and Star Trek isn’t exactly a girly-girl: “I’ve never really been that feminine,” she says in the May issue of SELF. “Look in my closet and you’ll see things that are elegant, sexy, tomboyish, sophisticated, beautiful, aggressive. It’s harsh. It’s a lot of black. Pretty is the last word you would think of.” The 31-year-old cover girl has held her personal fashion preferences since her childhood growing up in the Dominican Republic. “The Caribbean is the most floral-happy culture in the world, and my sisters and I were like three little Jackie O’s with big sunglasses, reading all these sophisticated magazines and dressed in black at all times,” she says. But that’s not to say the actress doesn’t occasionally enjoy playing dress-up. “These florals [I'm wearing] tell a story… I was channeling that South Beach-looking-for-a-millionaire-husband-from-Switzerland kind of thing. I live in constant storytelling mode,” she says of a hot-pink strapless confection she wore during the shoot. “Sometimes, I have to give myself permission to be pretty.” To hear more from Saldana, pick up the May issue of SELF or go to self.com. – Marissa Patlingrao Cooley

Courtesy SELF

Apr 13 2010 10:30 AM ET

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Chace Crawford’s New (Temporary) Gig: Fashion Editor!

Isaac Brekken/WireImage; Fame; INF; 310 Pix

Three seasons on the set of Gossip Girl has exposed Chace Crawford to the latest and greatest in trend-setting apparel, and now the 24-year-old star is getting to translate those years of sartorial immersion to an off-screen role in fashion. The actor is lending his hand as a guest fashion editor this week at British website Grazia Daily, giving his expert commentary on fellow celebrities and their fashion senses. When asked to critique Gwen Stefani, shot in a sheer black top with a pine-green mini and ankle booties, Crawford opines, “She’s got her own style that’s unique to her… those signature red lips. And she’s obviously a beautiful woman. This is a pretty slick outfit, and those bracelets are cool.” And how about the laid-back Kate Bosworth in a beige sweater over a playful floral mini-dress with dark shades and dark suede shoes? “Cool ankle boots, I like them,” he graciously quips. “This is a Spring kind of a look. And those shades are great.” But what does PEOPLE’s hottest bachelor think about the always eccentrically dressed Lady Gaga in a blonde wig sporting a white asymmetrical top, black front-cut-out skirt and heeled platform boots? “Wow, I don’t know what to say about this. She looks like Andy Warhol with that hair and those glasses. She is unique. Those boots are pretty serious,” he says. “But it works for her, she’s a musician…” To read more of Chace’s commentary, check out Grazia Daily.–David Yi