HOW!?!

*twitches* OK!!! I give up!!! I tried by myself and I failed, quite miserably I might add. I'm using PS7 and I was just wondering how in the world do you get this effect:

(icons courtesy of anthony_inc)

(and not that I like the icons in any way, I only know who one of them is and I would never use a britney spears icon, but they are gorgeous icons and) I just need to know how to get that effect! That pale clarity! Its more than just sharpening and using the selective color for black and white, at least I think its more than that since I couldn't get anything near to it using just those. I was so dying to have my first entry in this community to be a tutorial of one of my icons but I'm desperate... PLEASE HELP ME BEFORE I GO CRAZY!