This week: Madewell, Starwood, Kerastase’s Initialiste serum and Central Standard.

Some reality TV shows exist purely for entertainment value and often exploit vulnerable people in the process. But some motivate the contestants toward greatness, and in turn, inspire millions of viewers. I’ve recently become a fan of “Dancing with the Stars” because two people on the show have touched my heart: Wynonna Judd and her drummer hubby, Cactus Moser.  

Kirstin Kloss and Justin Bentley weren’t thinking marriage in 1999 when they first held hands in the hallways of Mount Prospect’s Prospect High School. College and careers took them in different directions for more than seven years, but the timing was finally right for the duo in 2007: Bentley moved to Chicago from Champaign-Urbana to work at Madison Capital Funding, and found Kloss living in Mount Prospect and teaching fifth grade in Vernon Hills. The two reconnected to celebrate his birthday, and three years later, they were engaged.

The latest intelligence from the retail scene: Make Up Forever, Crystal B. Designs’ Walk the Line, Common Threads’ tasty event and Moon Voyage.

Nearly 4,000 miles away from the Andes mountains where her brand’s luxurious alpaca fiber is sourced, Peruvian Connection’s founder Annie Hurlbut has found a home for her line in Chicago: 925 W. Armitage.

On Showtime’s Chicago-centric hit “Shameless,” Shanola Hampton plays Veronica, a delightfully raunchy, spellbinding train wreck who makes the characters on a telenovela seem mundane by comparison. It’s a role that’s pushed Hampton to uncharted acting territory. “The way they’ve taken her story is beyond my wildest imagination,” Hampton says. “[In this season], Veronica is so desperate to have kids, she’s letting her husband and mother sleep together.” And that isn’t even her raciest plot twist — you’ll have to tune in to find out more.

“I’m actually not a breakfast person,” says Andrew Brochu, the newly minted chef of The Monarch, a German-beer-hall-turned-gastropub in Wicker Park. So why did Brochu and owner Colin Burke recently launch a menu starring pork belly eggs Benedict ($13) and duck confit chilaquiles ($14)? Because despite its imperial name, this eatery is ruled by the people. “Our customers and friends love brunch,” says Brochu, “because it’s like when you’re a kid and your mom tells you, ‘OK, now you can have two more laps in the pool before we leave!’ It’s your last chance to be carefree all weekend.”

Hi Jenny, So I have a question (if that wasn’t obvious enough!). I’m 14 and in 9th grade. I really like this girl, she is beautiful and has a great personality, and we talk a lot. But she has a boyfriend. What should I do? — Connor, Vernon, N.J.

Up your culture quotient with these 10 Chicago exhibits.

Guests on my show tonight are Eva Mendes, Donnie Wahlberg and my sister JoJo McCarthy. When I tell you that it’s a good one, I mean it’s a GOOD one. First, JoJo and I have been in a Twitter picture war of posting horrific shots of one another for two years. Tonight, I surprise attack her with three not-so-flattering pics, causing her to lose her mind. Don’t worry, she gets me back — and good — by the end of show.