Carrie Underwood Wants To Be More Daring, Thinks You Should Call Your Mom

No matter how you feel about country music, there's no denying that Carrie Underwood is adorable. With a bubbly, girl-next-door persona, the country cutie makes us wish we were friends in real life. Well, we got to pretend we were BFFs for a hot minute when we sat down with her to talk about Olay's new Beauty By Example program. As a spokesperson for Olay, Carrie told us that, just in time for Mother's Day, every person who logs on to Facebook and signs Olay's online declaration to acknowledge their moms as their inspiration Olay will donate an ounce of product (up to a million ounces!) to the Look Good, Feel Better organization, a national non-profit dedicated to improving the self-esteem of women undergoing cancer treatment. Read on for more beauty insight from the sweet and humble country superstar.

Your style is constantly evolving from laid-back and girl-next-door, to glammed-out country diva. How would you describe that transformation?  "One is real life, and one is make-believe. I'm a pretty simple jeans and a T-shirt, great pair of shoes kind of girl. In my normal life, I don't have time for a lot of crazy stuff, like too many outfit choices. Everything needs to come together when I travel, and I try to make it as easy as I possibly can. When I'm on stage, or doing a performance at an awards show or a red carpet, it's a chance for me to play a character. That's what I love about music: I get to play a role. I try to dress and look, with hair and makeup, like I fit in that role." 

Now that you've been doing this for a while, and have had access to a lot of hair and beauty experts, have you picked up any tips or tricks? "I always try to pay attention if I'm doing a magazine shoot. I try to watch what they do, what they use. I like to think that if you have the right base going — taking care of yourself, drinking water, moisturizing, eating right, exercising — then you can really do wonders with just about anything. We all have our favorites, and it's about trying out what works on us. "

Speaking of trying things, are there any trends or looks you've been wanting to try but have held back on? "I'd love to do a little more with hair color. I've always been blonde! The problem is, I don't want to shock people –– like if I dyed my hair brown, I don't want people think I'm turning dark and serious. I wish I had started changing my hair around in the beginning, then it wouldn't be such a big shock if I did something like that now."

What about makeup? Is there anything you'd like to try out? "I wish I could pull off glam, old Hollywood — like a tighter updo, bold red lips. I'm not great with red lips. For some reason, I feel like I get it all over my face, or all over my teeth. I just feel like something really embarrassing is going to happen by the end of the night. But I kind of tend to play it safe with my lip color, and I wish I had more guts to try more daring things." 

You're very close with your mom, so we know Mother's Day is important to you. Can you tell us about the Beauty By Example initiative Olay is doing?  "Well, their initiative is all about moms, and them being your Beauty By Example. My mom certainly is, just because she's beautiful inside, outside, and every other way in between. She always took care of us and she's just a wonderful person. The whole thing is for other people to jump in and say their mom is awesome too. If they go to the Facebook page, sign a declaration, and tell people their mom is wonderful, then for every person that does that, Olay will donate beauty products to a wonderful organization called Look Good, Feel Better, which helps women with cancer feel better about themselves. It's a time in their lives when it's difficult to feel confident. I love Olay because they do so much to encourage self-esteem and women helping women –– I'm just very proud to be a part of it."

What's the best advice your mom has ever given you? "My mom and I have only recently become friends. When I was growing up, she was just my mom. I loved her very much, but it was only since I was in my twenties that we could talk as friends. My mom is an advice giver, but she's just so supportive. She didn't have to tell me she was proud of me and that she loved my singing, because she drove me to all the talent shows, all the stuff I did as a kid –– the piano lessons, any crazy thing I wanted to do growing up –– she was the one taking me there, paying for my lessons. She's always been so supportive."

All together now folks...Awwwww! Head over to Olay's Facebook page to give your mama a virtual shout-out, then go pick up the phone and give her a real one too.