Swagalicious! Bendel's Beauty Breakfast

There is no more delicious (ok, practically no more delicious!) start to the day than a strong cup of coffee and a ton of free beauty products. And that is just how H&B began her day. This morning, at Henri Bendel's semi-annual swagfest - also known as the beauty breakfast - all the usual suspects from the top mags and a bunch of prominent webs showed up eager to get their well manicured hands on the latest spring offerings.

Since last year, the event has been held on the 3rd floor, a departure from previous years when it was held on the main cosmetics level, and the big name brands which used to participate (Nars, MAC, Paula Dorf, Pout, Rodan + Field, etc.) have bowed out to allow new offerings to take the spotlight (much to this swag-whore's dismay!).

That said, it is a great opportunity to learn about new brands that haven't previously been featured at the store as well as some sophomore jaunts. While there was far less color in house today, there was an abundance of face and body products - boasting the buzz word du jour - au natural.

Top picks included Mally's Blush of Spring Kits ($35/Feb) which include a sheer glossy red she made for Zooey Deschanel (called bien sur, Zoeey Doll!); Beauty Rehab's rose salve lip balm ($12) - a Beckham fave apparently making its stateside debut from Britain; Kai's latest addition - a body butter ($55) in its to die for floral scent; and Le Metier de Beauty - another newbie with amazingly smooth glosses and the ultimate perfect applicator black eyeliner.

Ted Gibson - the man AND salon were on hand blowing out hair and offering hand massages for a most unexpected surprise.

With all of that, you'd think I wasn't still hungry at lunch, but when it comes to products, H&B is always ready for more!