The Family Groove Fashion & Beauty

ASK A GROOVY GAL
TFG DEPUTY EDITOR AND BEAUTY DIRECTOR CHELSEA KAPLAN GIVES THE GUYS
THE GOODS ON GETTING GORGEOUS

I just had boy/girl twins and want to dress them alike—or at least in a complementary manner. I am having a hard time finding boy/girl outfits for newborns that fit this bill. Any recommendations? —Mirabelle, Scarsdale, NY

Yes! I advise checking out the clothes from Pixie Lily, all of which are made of incredibly luxurious materials and feature classic, almost vintage-inspired, timeless colors and prints. Check out the Nursery Rhyme Collection. Why not dress your little boy in the Humpty Dumpty tee and legging set while you dress your daughter in the Little Bo Peep version ($38 each)? If you’re looking for something a little dressier, I love the thought of dressing them in matching pink and blue items from the Mercerized Knit Collection (I wrote about this in a past column — go to www.thefamilygroove.com/apr_fbaskgroovy.htm). In fact, I actually took my own advice and dressed my second son in their digs for his bris ($175 for the Mercerized Cotton Baby Sack Gift Set). Equally adorable are the pink and blue heirloom batiste bubble suits ($60 each). All items are available at www.pixielily.com.

As they get older, check out Kelly’s Kids (www.kellyskids.com), which has a catalog and website that offer all sorts of cute, undeniably preppy little boy/girl matching outfits.

Should I use different moisturizers at night and during the day or can I use the same ones? —Hallie, Freehold, NJ
If you have fairly normal skin (read: no acne, dryness, aging/pigmentation issues or sensitivity), it’s perfectly fine to use the same moisturizer both morning and night. If you fall into one of the aforementioned categories, however, it’s a good idea to use different products, as your skin during the day is exposed to the sun and other damaging factors. At night, skin is at rest, so to speak, and is therefore better able to soak up treatment ingredients to help fight your skin issues. This is why so many night creams and lotions are packed with potent skincare ingredients, much more so than day creams are. No matter what, I recommend using a daytime moisturizer with SPF to protect your skin from sun damage. My absolute favorites are from Kinerase. Use the Daily Defense Lotion with SPF 30 if you have oily skin, and the Daily Defense Cream with SPF 30 if you’re drier or have aging skin ($135 each, www.nordstrom.com). Both products not only include SPF, but also contain the active ingredient kinetin, a powerful antioxidant scientifically proven to enhance skin’s ability to maintain more moisture. At night, you obviously don’t need SPF, so instead try a moisturizer with ingredients that specifically target your skin concerns. If you’re oily, consider a product like Philosophy’s Hope in a Bottle, which contains salicylic acid to fight breakouts and help enhance skin texture and appearance ($38, www.sephora.com). If you’re dry or have aging skin, I love Bliss’s The Youth As We Know It, a virtual one-stop shop for wrinkle renovation ($79, www.blissworld.com). It’s formulated with the 10 most effective anti-aging ingredients that Bliss Spa experts have found in their 10-plus years of skincare.

The product I’m loving this month:
	Gucci by Gucci Eau de Parfum ($80, www.sephora.com) This crazy sexy scent isn’t subtle and perhaps therefore more of a winter fragrance, but I think it’s way hot for summer. It’s woodsy and musky, but just light enough to keep it youthful and feminine. Perfection.

Need a good laugh? Click here to read all about Chelea's life with child—and one on the way—in her blog, “The Momtourage”