Mariah Carey has always been famous for surprising her personal staff, but this year she’s outdone herself. The gift in question, worth more than €13,000, consiting of french champaign, whisky, Belgian chocolates and cuban cigares, an iPod and a laptop computer, among other things. A while back, the singer and actress gave them a trip to a spa in the Carribbean, so that her consultands could relax an entire weekend.

The musical sensation, Mariah Carey began in May working on new songs that were supposedly recorded in the Virgin Islands. However, according to new reports, this collection won’t be released for a few more months. With her recent appearance in the DVD of her tour The adventures of Mimi that was released on a worldwide basis, Mariah Carey is already looking forward to the spring of 2008.

Talking about her new album, the bachelorette ensures that it “is the best she has done up till now” and that it will be very femenine. Although as of right now it doesn’t have a title, a few weeks ago it was leaked that Will.I.Am, Jermaine Dupri and Bryan Michael-Cox will collaborate in the extremely awaited project by the followers of the diva after her extremely successful album, The emancipation of Mimi (2005).

I'm still in the process of completing the gallery with old magazine pictures. Today we have the scans of "Self" magazine that has Mariah on its cover back in 1998, and "Cosmo Girl" magazine with two cute pictures :

Word is spreading that Mariah Carey will be hosting New Year's Eve at TAO nightclub at the Venetian in Las Vegas.

Tickets aren't cheap, at $200, but it could make for a very special New Year's Eve.

I have scanned two old magazines with Mariah on their cover. First, we have "Instyle" and then "Allure". Click on the thumbnails to view the pictures :

Mariah Carey performs at the 18th Annual Glamour Women of the Year awards at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall Monday, Nov. 5, 2007 in New York.

It doesn't get any flyer than chillin' in Monaco with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Danica Patrick — which Jay-Z did last year for his "Show Me What You Got" video. But for his fans, you really can't beat the nostalgic feel-good vibe of seeing Hov back in New York at the 40/40 Club with his crew.

Yes, the "Roc Boys" — Memphis Bleek, Beanie Sigel, Freeway ... you know the gang — assembled at Jigga's Manhattan haven of cool a couple of Fridays ago to shoot his latest video, for "Roc Boys (And the Winner Is ...)." Mariah Carey, Nas, Zab Judah and Diddy were also among those partying.

"The 'Roc Boys' is the height of celebration," Jay said Tuesday night at West Hollywood, California's House of Blues a few hours before the kickoff of his short tour. He's hitting a handful of cities to promote his just-released American Gangster album, which includes "Roc Boys (And the Winner Is ...)" as well as "No Hook" and "Ignorant Sh--."

"You can't celebrate by yourself, so I invited all these great people to be a part of the video," he added. "It just felt like a celebration. ... It was natural."

Mariah Carey launches her new fragrance 'M by Mariah Carey' at Macy's Herald Square, Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2007 in New York.

Singer Mariah Carey says she never really wore perfumes -- until she fell in love with her own creation from Elizabeth Arden, called M.

"This is the first fragrance that I wear," Carey says. "I'm not really a perfume person at all. . . . Things that are too strong and overwhelming, that's what I was always not a fan of."

Carey says the fragrance, which comes in a purple bottle with her signature butterfly icon on top, was based on some of her favorite things. One is a Moroccan incense; another is a flower called the Living Tahitian Tiare. But another scent mixed into the fragrance is unexpected: toasted marshmallows. That aroma was added because it evoked happy campfire memories from her childhood. But she adds: "It's blended in there -- it's not like you're gonna walk around smelling like marshmallows."

Elizabeth Arden Inc (RDEN.O) reported a meager quarterly profit on Friday that still beat Wall Street estimates, helped by higher international sales and the launch of the Mariah Carey perfume. The company, known for its namesake and Britney Spears line of perfumes, also stood by its full-year profit and sales forecasts.

Net income was $350,000, or 1 cent a share, in the fiscal first quarter that ended Sept 30, compared with a loss of $1.3 million, or 5 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding restructuring costs, the company earned 4 cents a share, beating analysts' expectations of a 5-cent loss per share, according to Reuters Estimates.

Arden had previously forecast a loss for the period, citing stepped-up spending for the Mariah Carey perfume.
Sales rose 6.7 percent to $271.8 million, helped by the launch of the "M" by Mariah Carey perfume, an 18-percent rise in international sales of its self-branded products, and demand for its fragrances in the United States.

The New York-based company said it still expects to earn in the range of $1.15 per share to $1.20 per share for the first half of fiscal 2008. However, it now expects sales to grow by 5 to 7 percent, compared with its previous forecast of 6 to 7 percent. Elizabeth Arden stood by its full-year earnings and sales forecasts -- sales are expected to rise by 5 to 7 percent. and earnings are expected to come in at $1.65 per share to $1.75 a share. Analysts expect it to earn $1.68 a share for the full year, according to Reuters Estimates.

I have added a selection of really cool pictures of Mariah, I hope you will appreciate them :