Anderson Cooper and Stacy London school us on ugly sweaters, red lips, and sexy jeans

Live blogging at Anderson Live

Style tips & more

When we heard style maven Stacy London was co-hosting today's episode of Anderson Live, we were even more psyched to pop into the studio and get a firsthand look at the show. We couldn't dream up a combination of TV powerhouses that we'd rather see host alongside each other. And whether they were talking fashion or telling stories from their childhood, this duo didn't disappoint.

As we tried not to eat all of the cranberry scones in our green room, we contemplated the magnitude of seeing our favorite style guru, Stacy London, co-host of TLC's What Not to Wear and author of The Truth About Style, in person — and (let's be honest) hoped that our outfit, a very carefully chosen fitted blue Theory shift dress, black tights and black patent pumps, was up to par.

As if there weren't enough beauty know-how in the house, we heard makeup artist Bobbi Brown was stopping by to offer up a few of her famous cosmetic tips and tricks. Then we caught a glimpse of her in the hallway before the show — and now we really want a pair of those cool-girl glasses she sports. We feel lucky: It's a great day to be an Anderson Live blogger.

Here are a few of our favorite topics discussed on today's episode:

Ugly sweater December:

It was festive on-set! Anderson Live staffers (even the ones behind the camera) were sporting ugly Christmas sweaters — some including electric twinkling lights. Which begs the question: Are those battery-powered? Do they charge, like an iPhone? Inquiring minds want to know! One sweater featured a portrait of the terrifying Merry Krampus, a fictional demon designed to scare small children into behaving, which is a legend we kind of love, not going to lie. The show is sending the fan with the ugliest sweater on a trip to Hawaii, so tweet or email those pics. "Yeah, that's not her color," Stacy says of one viewer photo. We think that's the least of these sweaters' problems!

How about these fashionable sweaters for winter? >>

The secret to keeping your jeans looking new (and what to wear with them):

On the show, Anderson admits to Stacy herself that he's not terribly creative when it comes to fashion. "I have no style," he says. "In my real life, I wear a T-shirt — gray or white — and a pair of jeans, literally the same pair of jeans every day. They have these jeans you don't have to wash now, or so they say." The brand: APC — the idea is to go six months before you wash them.

But for those of us who do want to wash our denim? (Which is most of us, we think!) Stacy has a hot tip for you: "The idea with denim is to maintain the integrity of your denim, wash in cold water, no soap, and air dry it." Soap messes up the grain, she says.

Now, as for what to wear on top... Stacy came to the show bearing gifts: A black sweater emblazoned with a cat face for Anderson and a matching one for her. Yes, cats! They're so hot right now, Stacy says: "It's super-chic!" In case you're wondering what the cat sweaters looked like in person, they looked fantastic, because this is Anderson Cooper and Stacy London, and they are fabulous! Also, the laws of physics dictate that Anderson Cooper cannot look bad in anything.

Check out some more graphic sweater trends we love >>

Bobbi Brown says: Not into red lipstick? Don't bother!

We've seen all the cool downtown girls and hot celebs showing off a super-red lip lately, but makeup expert Bobbi Brown, author of Pretty Powerful, says it's not mandatory if you're just not that into that intense rouge. "You're either a red lipstick person or not," Bobbi says. "If you can't find a good red, stop looking!" It's nice to breathe a sigh of relief and know that you don't have to follow trends that don't suit you. We say, what Bobbi says goes: Embrace your personal brand of beauty!

Extreme foot makeovers!

Now this is serious surgery: Some women are having their pinkie toes removed to fit into their favorite high heels. Stacy hasn't gone that far, but she has had the cosmetic filler Restylane injected into her feet, courtesy of Dr. Suzanne Levine, of Manhattan's Institute Beauté. "It cushions your toe so that the corn isn't rubbing up against your shoe. It lasts for nine months," Stacy raves. "It was the most revelatory experience I've ever had. I wasn't in a bad mood for one day in nine months!"

One guest, Mariela Lucas, actually had three of her toes shortened and two bunions taken care of. "I was just unhappy with my feet... I just had ugly feet. I didn't feel confident or secure. I'm a woman — we like to look pretty and have our hair done." Would she do it over again? Abso-freaking-lutely. "I am so happy," she says. We overheard in the hallway before the show that she's even recommended the surgery to her friends.

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