Subscribers to Beautypedia.com know that our Web site is home to reviews of thousands of skin-care, makeup, hair-care, and body-care products. From Avon to Zo Skin Health, if it’s on the market, Beautypedia probably has a review of it—or we’ll get to it eventually!

Part of my job as Beautypedia Database Coordinator at Paula’s Choice is to keep our Web site’s information as current as possible, and that means tracking the launch of all new beauty products as well as discontinuations and reformulations of existing ones. Something as innocuous as a single new shade of a foundation means that research must be done—in fact, any change to a product means that its review needs to be revisited and potentially revised. With over 300 brands represented on Beautypedia, simply saying that keeping up with the industry is “a lot of work” is somewhat of an understatement. Sometimes, my head swims just thinking about it! But thanks to our readers, my job and that of the rest of the Beautypedia team isn’t nearly as difficult as it could be.

On a regular basis, my inbox teems with your insider tips, alerts and feedback. Many of our Beautypedia subscribers have become an important part of our Cosmetics Cop Team. Fielding these emails is a part of my job I always enjoy, because I’m continually impressed at the insights, knowledge, and tenacity of our readers—and I’m grateful for their willingness to share information with us! Those of you who take the time to let us know what cosmetic counter representatives are telling you, or what you’re seeing (or not seeing) on stores shelves are helpful to us in ways that defy words.

Not surprisingly, a good number of our readers are industry insiders themselves, and they let us know what new products are in the works, or just take the time to thank us for our hard work and dedication to holding this industry accountable for the empty promises it makes to consumers. And let me tell you, those thanks fill us with a lot of pride in what we do!

The email product alerts we receive makes Beautypedia (the big, beautiful, information-laden beast that it is) a more interactive experience for us and our subscribers. What amazes me about this process is that the information you give us gets cycled through Paula and the Cosmetics Cop Team and right back to other subscribers. And often, there’s very little lag. If a reader alerts us to a reformulation, we can research it, confirm it, and have the team revise the review and rating, usually the same day. Same thing goes for discontinuations. That’s pretty cool, and it makes Beautypedia more than a Web site—it’s an active community of fellow Cosmetic Cops!

He came home from the local salon with his hair looking better than I’d ever seen it. You didn’t have to be a hairdresser to see this was a great cut. And the salon was close enough to get to on foot. And they have a fireplace and serve you lattes. This was getting very tempting, but I think of myself as someone who is not easily seduced. I was wrong.

It only took me a few days to make my appointment. This was my first venture to a new salon since 2002, when I first let Christopher take scissors to my strands. I didn’t think anyone else could do a better job, because up to that point no one had. Getting to Christopher’s salon had become quite the trek since I relocated from the city to the burbs. Now, a salon appointment involved nearly an hour’s drive both ways. But it was worth it, or at least that’s what I kept telling myself. Besides, Christopher always has a glass of red wine for me, and the latest gossip (he being a swinging single and me being happily settled).

But I just couldn’t resist trying this new salon, after all, the goal is great looking hair and vanity often has no boundaries. I think I was more nervous than a teenager on a first date, which I was certain the assistant could tell by the way I gripped the shampoo chair, not quite ready to make my way to the stylist’s seat for the snipping to begin. I needn’t have worried or felt so guilty: Sarah, my new stylist, who I was soon to become devoted to, was energetic, eager, and full of ideas. She spent an hour cutting and styling my hair, being precise and reassuring the entire time. I loved the cut. It was perfect in every way but the styling clinched it. Christopher never styled my hair in a manner I really liked. But he cut my hair well, so I let it go, reasoning I was being too fussy. Sarah got it right, and without any guidance from me. In fact, I didn’t have plans for afterwards but felt compelled to make some, just to show off my new haircut!

The real moment of truth came when I went in to see Christopher for highlights a few weeks later. He knew something was up—but he liked my hair. I expected to come off as sheepish but instead said with an authoritative tone I was now seeing someone else for haircuts. I was surprised at my own conviction. Christopher will remain my go-to guy for color (Sarah specializes in cutting). It turned out to be a great division of duties, though I did have to convey to Christopher my anxiety over seeing someone new, which stroked his ego a bit (always very important to do before someone applies bleach to your hair).

Despite my anxiety, I discovered that having a monogamous relationship with your hairstylist doesn’t always work to your advantage. And it’s reassuring to know that my neighborhood salon is every bit as good as my big city standby!