New York City is funny.  You can walk down an industrial-looking street into a completely nondescript building with a broken buzzer, enter a freight-like elevator and when those doors slide open?  Anything goes.  The other day they opened to a glamorous loft space with exposed-brick walls and slick, modern decor—home to Sparty*... and, that day, home to an afternoon of fun surrounding the Women's Health 2nd annual beauty awards. 

I got a shoulder massage.  I got a manicure.  They served sangria and red-velvet cake.  Oh, and, um, of course most importantly I learned all about WH's picks for the best beauty products of 2008. 

There's truth behind the look-good-feel-confident philosophy and, according to WH beauty editor Liesa Goins, their readers' primary beauty concerns are acne and otherwise sensitive skin.  WH asked numerous experts and found that Proactiv Solution is the best beauty bet for acne and that Aveeno Ultra-Calming Daily Moisturizer SPF 15 has "Valium-like virtues" on sensitive skin.  After all, I don't know about you, but when I'm fighting a breakout, I just want to curl up on my couch.  And what's fun about that? 

Some other WH beauty all-stars:

• Best Hair Volumizer: Phyto Phytovolume Actif Volumizer Spray, $28 for 4.2 oz, beauty.com
• Best Do-It-All Mascara: Lancôme L’Extrême, $24, lancome-usa.com
• Best "Green" Lipsticks: Cargo Plant Love Lipstick, $20, sephora.com & Aveda Nourish-Mint Lipstick, $14, aveda.com
• Best Believable Bronzer: Guerlain Terracotta Spray Bronzing Powder Mist, $57, Nordstrom.com
• Best Hand Cream: Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Age Shield Hand Cream SPF 30, $6 for 2 oz, drugstore.com

* NOTE: If you're planning a bachelorette party in NYC, a private spa party at Sparty would be such a fun way to bond with your bridesmaids!