Botox Brilliant

Botox is widely known for its ability to diminish crows feet, wrinkle lines on  the forehead and  the "number 11" lines between the eyebrows.
It is frequently (and somewhat brilliantly) used to give a non surgical brow lift, fix lip imperfections, and perform all manner of youthful trickery.

Unfortunately not everyone who gives Botox shots know what they are doing, hence the slew of perpetually freaked out looking women prowling the malls, looking fierce. (but not in a good way!)
If you are thinking about having Botox it is imperative that you find a practioner that not only has a huge grasp on aesthetics, but who also has a massive understanding of the intricacies of the musculature of the face.

Make sure you get referrals from people who have had really fantastic experiences with Botox, or you may end up looking like the lady who sat opposite me on the plane the other day. She looked like a trippy Norma Desmond, albeit with only one expression,  leading the casual observer to believe the plane was in a vertical spiral, and we were coming into the fast part.
And her eyebrows were hoisted halfway up her forehead...

Anyway, once convinced that we were in fact maintaining a somewhat horizontal flight path, it got me thinking about some other uses for Botox.
My Dermatologist always tells me how wonderful it is in the treatment of pain, especially for migraine sufferers. (unfortunately my migraines don't center in the right place for me to be a candidate.) and
I've read that it can be used to eliminate excessive sweating.

Another cool one I just read about is "Tennis Elbow", the term used when tendons in the lower arm get damaged from prolonged repetitive movement. (I have Makeup-Artist-Kit-Carrying-Elbow from dragging my heavy makeup cases around, so I empathize...)
Resting your arm often solves the problem, but for some it can be ongoing and very painful.

Researchers at the Khomeni Hospital Complex in Tehran recently experimented using Botox to relax the muscles putting tension on the tendons, allowing the tendons to heal.
Sounds incredibly clever to me!

So if you see me cruising around with a wickedly youthful looking left elbow, you'll know exactly what I've been up to...

Island Of Longevity

Did you know that there is a small Greek island in the north eastern Aegean, who's residents out live the rest of the world?

This photo of Ikaria is courtesy of TripAdvisor

Ikaria is a small, unspoiled, verdant island named after the famous myth of Ikaros, who tried to fly with the Gods, but got burned by the sun and drowned in the surrounding waters.

What is super interesting (other than the insane beauty of the place) is that compared to America the people of Ikaria get one fifth the rate of cancer, half the rate of heart disease, and one ninth the rate of diabetes.
They reach the age of ninety with virtually no Alzheimers disease or dementia.

Scientist Dan Buettner, who has studied them extensively, gives 7 main reasons for their health and longevity:

1. They walk everywhere.

Ikaria's mountainous terrain is not really conducive to car travel, so they typically walk everywhere.

2. They eat their greens
There are more than 150 varieties of wild greens growing on the island, some of which have more than 10 times the levels of antioxidants found in red wine.

3. The stick to the Mediterranean Diet.

Well, after all, they do live in the region, and there is no Walmart or McD's anywhere near, so their diet is all about whole grains, fruits, vegetables, fresh pressed extra virgin olive oil, and fish.
Their fruits and vegetables are eaten shortly after being picked, and are higher in disease fighting compounds.
People who live on the Mediterranean diet outlive people who don't by a good 6 years.

4. They drink goats milk.

Most Ikarians over the age of 90 have been drinking it all their lives.
Goat's Milk is richer than cow's milk in a blood pressure lowering hormone called tryptophan, and it also has antibacterial compounds.

5. They take naps.

Daily afternoon naps, even for just 30 minutes, decreases the risk of heart attack.

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6. They don't worry about time

Everything gets done when it gets done, which lowers stress and lowers the risk of everything from arthritis to sagging skin.
(they got my interest at "sagging skin". Who wants it?? Not me!)

7. They drink tea all day long.
Many teas lower blood pressure, as well as the risk of heart disease and dementia.

Mesachti beach, Ikaria

I think I want to move there...

Four Fabulous Moments in Fuchsia

This season is all about bright, electric color, my personal favorite of which is fuchsia.

I cannot get enough of it.

Its bright, its bold, and its super feminine and flattering.

I love it.

 I decided to find you some non-makeup fuchsia items to add to your spring 2011 love list

Last year Karl Lagerfeld designed a limited edition aluminum Coca Cola Light bottle. (who knew?) Now this year he is at it again with three new bottles, in a color scheme of black, white, and my favorite color of the season, fuchsia.

image courtesy of La Chanelphile

The bottles are again a limited edition, and as far as I know come out in June, but who knows where.
Maybe just Europe?

image source La Chanelphile

The accompanying ad campaign features Coco Rochas, Heidi Mount and Jeneil Williams, and was photographed by Lagerfeld.

For more cool items on all things Chanel, check out La Chanelphile



Keeping up with the fuchsia excitement, the divine Monsieur Louboutin is showing these fabulous glittered fuchsia pumps.

The Declic Glitter Pump has a 5 1/2 inch self covered heel, and a concealed 1/2 inch platform (so its really only a 5 inch heel...), leather lining, and of course, his trade mark red sole.




Jason Wu ( one of my fave designers) "Lauren" clutch in fuchsia.

This is a traditional style clutch, quite small and dainty, perfect for a lunch date, divine with a silk dress for the evening, lust worthy in fuchsia python.





Last but by no means least, I'm loving wide leg pants for spring/summer. I love the way they sashay your sweet stuff as you glide across the room! And why not in fuchsia?

Marc Jacobs wide leg pants in fuchsia. You need the hat too!

How To Fix Chapped Lips

No, you didn't imagine it - your lips really have become more chapped over the winter! As the air's moisture levels plummet, the water in your skin is drawn out, and as a result you get tiny fissures, or cracks in your lips that can be both painful and hard to heal.

The first step on the road to recovering smooth, healed lips is via lip balm. Lip balm needs to be worn and reapplied all day everyday, and applied before bed each night.

EOS Evolution Of Smooth Lip Balm

Avoid longwear lipsticks, and drying matte formulations, instead choose extra moisturizing lip formulas, or utilize a great lip pencil paired with a quality balm such as Burts Bees.

Look for lip balms with ingredients such as petrolatum, shea butter, dimethicone, and hyaluronic acid to restore moisture.
Preferably choose a formulation that is viscous rather than waxy so that the active ingredients can penetrate the cracks in the lips. (if you're going to be out in cold weather, waxy formulations can help protect the lips from chapping.)
If you have severely chapped lips look for a formula that contains ceramides, which are proven to help restore the skin's barrier.




If your lips are sensitive or extra sore, avoid balms that contain known irritants such as lanolin, or those that are scented or flavored (especially cinnamon, which can be extra irritating).

As much as possible avoid licking your lips. It temporarily makes them feel better, but ultimately makes things worse.
Toothpaste can make things worse too. Avoid getting toothpaste on your lips (as much as you can), rinse them off after brushing your teeth, and apply lip balm.

The Luxe Life

Did you get what you wanted for Christmas?
I couldn't help but notice the glaring omission of the Keurig coffee maker that I wanted so badly, but that was so markedly absent under the tree. Maybe Santa was drunk? or just forgot? - he is old afterall.

Another thing that clearly wasn't there, hadn't actually been on my list anyway, but nevertheless intrigues me no end, is the ultimate statement of the luxe life, the Hermes Birkin Bag

 This 35cm fuchia crocodile gem of a Birkin is actually on ebay right now for a mere $43, 999.00
Bargain.
If you're in the market for one I guess. I have clients and friends who own Birkins, and they are fun to walk around the house with, but I have a hard time seeing the value in them, much as I try.
If you look on the Createurs Deluxe website you'll see exotic Birkins for $75,000.

I wonder if any of my blog readers anywhere in the world got a Birkin for Christmas?

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One of my favorite blogs dedicated to the Hermes phenom is Ladyhermezz. You can read all kinds of fun things about the Birkin here.

The luxe perfection that is Victoria Beckham is frequently spotted with Birkins.
Could she even look more fabulous???
(and what on earth is the white stuff on the side of that dude's face? Something About Mary? Looks like he's got new shoes on too)

 Marc Jacobs takes his white Birkin to the beach, at the same time taking decadence to a whole new level.

But if you are in the market for a new Birkin, this one I found on the Createurs Deluxe website certainly does have a spring/summer feel to it, and could no doubt take a girl any place she felt she needed to go.

I do enjoy Mykonos too...

Travel Packing 101

As I'm about to get global again in the next few days

it seemed like the perfect time to 

start talking about packing skincare & makeup for travel.

Whether that's business travel, vacation travel

or destination honeymoon travel,

in the end it's all the same

and you use the same set of tricks to make it all work.

We've all had those icky travel experiences where items get broken,

spill, or go missing.

The moment your bags are out of your sight on the airline conveyor belt, they are being thrown around, dropped, getting heavier bags dumped on them - you name it - they're getting worked over.

So its crucial that your makeup and skin care is packed properly

and is well protected.

This starts with well structured, well built cosmetic bags that don't allow your products to move around.

I personally use travelbags from Stephanie Johnson

www.StephanieJohnson.com

 These beautiful bags have detachable inner pouches.

I use the see through pouches in my carry on bags.

Perfect for the security xray machines, they save your products from rolling around and getting lost.

Lipsticks, lipglosses, any mini skin care items you want to take onboard with you are easy to see.

When you get to your destination, just snap them back into the main bag. Its brilliant! Nothing ever gets lost.

You can easily and efficiently separate off your skin care and makeup items, and pack them firmly into the inner bags.

Nothing moves around,

you get to your destination intact.

I've used these bags on SheKnows.com and in magazine articles.

They come in all kinds of different shapes and sizes,

and different patterns too.

the La Paz set has a blue and white tribal print, with hues of gold and lime, inspired by the ancient Incans.

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The Cancun features white coral on a peach laminated canvas with turquoise grosgain trim

Mumbai Yellow has brilliant gold stars against a background of ornate metallic gold bengaline, with vibrant bursts of yellow.

There are tons more to choose from too.

I would love to take credit for finding these, 

but they are actually a celebrity favorite

found in the hotel bathrooms of most of the celebs

I work with.

In closing:

*find well structured bags that enable you to keep your things packed in tightly.

* use bags that can be wiped clean easily

* use bags that let you separate your products and keep grouped items together.

* have more fun than you ever thought possible 

Fun Stuff!

Is it still plagarism if you fess up to it???

I really truly wish I had found this one myself, but it came to me via one of my favorite beauty blogs, the entirely lovely
Beauty School Blog.
And frankly it was entirely too genius to pass up.
I was compelled to share it with you.
I hope you get as big of a giggle out of it as I did!

Oh, and Jen at Beauty School Blog - you are truly fabulous!

Christmas In London

I grew up in the southern hemisphere, where the seasons are reversed. So all my childhood Christmases were in mid summer. Its light out til 10 o'clock, so the houses aren't decorated with twinkling lights like they are here, the last thing you want is hot cocoa, and you'll never see snow.

So when I moved to London, Christmas was a crazy, new, exciting experience. It was cold out, and got dark by 3 or 4 in the afternoon. And those Londoners really know how to throw a fabulous Christmas!

Every year there would be the pre Christmas runs to Calais to stock up on cases of fab french wine, cheeses, pates & other french delectables. We'd jump on the hovercraft and zoom over to the hypermarkets (enormous supermarkets) buy all the goods, and head back after lunch. Man it was fun!!!Is that trippy, or what?

And London itself would get all tricked out for the festive season.

The street corners would have old men standing over smoking barrels of roasting chestnuts - one of the greatest aromas ever. I have a million memories of walking out of cool jobs into the cold London air, all wrapped up in killer cool London chic and getting these little bags of salted roasted chestnuts from the street vendors.



I'm not sure if I ever actually ate them, & couldn't for the life of me tell you what they actually tasted like, but the smell and the warmth they gave were deliriously fabulous!

These guys are actually in Switzerland - I couldn't find pics of the London ones, but you get the idea...
Can you just smell it???

And I soooo loved the way they would decorate the streets of central London, and more significantly the windows of the major department stores. They were completely fantastic!

Debenhams 2008

Selfridges 2008

Back then I think they were even better than the Manhatten Christmas windows. Who knows?






Regent Street



Regent Street


Looks like fun!

Euro Christmas Magic!

Anyway, the European Christmas experience was divine, and forever ruined me for summer Christmases.
My American Christmas? Love it! I get all kinds of homesick every year, but oh I how love winter Christmas!

Wiggle Those Popsicle Toes

Christmas toes.

Its time to go get the first of your yuletide pedicures, and in all honesty, regardless of what fashion dictates, I think the most festive (and downright sexiest) toe color is red.

Whether you're in boots and they're hidden, or whether they're proudly popping out of your metallic Stuart Weitzmans, holiday toes are perfect in red!


My favorite polish is always OPI. They have the best colors, they hold true and don't flake or peel.

Their new collection is called Espana, and true to its Spanish inspiration, the reds are fab!
My faves are Manicurist of Seville and Bullish on OPI.
Great fun reds.

So why not rock a little Gypsy King action and go take care of your toes.
Get festive but skip the tacky designs - plain red toes are where its at!

Check out this video of the OPI photo shoot. Its cool!

Save The Boobies!!!

Its October now, Breast Cancer Awareness month.

Several cool things have come across my desk this week with regard to raising money for the magnificent mammary, and the research needed to protect it.

Here are a couple that I want to pass on:

Firstly, the very fabulous Halftime Designs have come up with a super cool "Pinktini" design that is available in several different styles of shirts, plus bags, pooch -wear, coasters, water bottles - all kinds of cool stuff.

A percentage of the proceeds from the "Drink Pink" products will be going to
Making Strides Against Breast Cancer. Click Here to go to their website and check out the cool products and all the details!

Aren't they brilliant? Halftime Designs also do chic and unique designer T's etc for the girl who loves football, but doesn't want to wear her boyfriend's over-sized jersey to a game. (or any other place either for that matter!)
Make sure you scroll around and have a good look when you go to their site!

NAPA Autoparts are also in boobie protection mode, having partnered up with Susan G Komen For The Cure to raise $250 000, with a unique initiative highlighting the importance of preventative maintenance for both your breasts and your car! How cool is that?

I loved this line in the press release: “Our service technicians preach the importance of regular preventive maintenance for your vehicle and the same principle applies for the attention your body needs,”. Quite genius! Preventative maintenance for the boobies - I'm all for it!

If you spend $25 in a NAPA Auto Parts store, or at a NAPA Auto Care Center you will get a Susan G Komen mug.

Even more genius, on October 17th in Charlotte NC, NASCAR driver Michael Waltrip will be driving his NAPA sponsored Toyota Camry with a new pink paint scheme, and apparently will be wearing pink too, to help create awareness for the cause. I would love to be there to see it! (Funnily enough I've never been to a NASCAR race, but it is on my to do list)

I have however been to several NHRA races. On October 11th in Richmond Va NHRA Funny Car driver Ron Capps will also be sporting a pink paint scheme on his NAPA car.
The details can be found at www.NAPAonline.com and at www.komen.org

And really, NAPA has to be supported, because afterall, they do keep bringing us those hysterically funny commercials.



Quite frankly, if I ever need to buy a cold start valve temperature switch, I'll head straight to the nearest NAPA store....

Look after your lovely lady bits!

xo

C

Those Flight Attendants Are Naked!!!

One of my Twitter friends (@NHRAChat) turned me onto this hilarious video.
Luckily only 4, 741 000 people had already seen it before me...

Anyway, this may seem like a shameless plug for my country's airline, and in a way, it is. I actually fly Air New Zealand on most of my long haul flights. From Los Angeles to Auckland if I'm going home, or to Sydney if I'm Aussie bound.
I've flown them from Los Angeles to London, I've flown them across Asia.

Patriotism only goes so far when you're cooped up in a plane at 37 000 feet for 12 plus hours. And as much as I love flying the flag for NZ, I wouldn't fly the airline if my experiences with them hadn't left me feeling everytime that I had just flown the best.

The flight attendants are generally really friendly and accomodating. The food is not like regular airplane food - its actually really fabulous. Kiwis love great cheeses and wines, so they are available in abundance too.
The seats are always the most modern, which translates to the most comfortable, and on long haul flights, that is everything! You have leg room. You get your own TV with an enormous number of choices on demand.
They are awesome with kids, and super helpful if you're flying alone with a small child. (the number of times a flight attendant has slipped into my seat next to my sleeping child, so that I could go to the bathroom, or stretch my legs!)

If I'm going somewhere that they don't fly, its somewhat of a rude awakening.

So yes, I love them.

But check this out - this video has Air New Zealand flight attendants buck - naked!

Kia ora nudies!




Gotta love the "making of" too! These were real Air NZ employees!



So if you've got a flight to book, check them out!
Come fly the friendly skies with Air New Zealand
And if you've never been, its the greatest vacation, so check out my beautiful New Zealand

Oh, and Chat? Thank you buddy!

Checking Out Miss Hayden P....

When Hayden Pannettiere showed up at David Letterman a couple of weeks ago, the fashion world let out a collective "aaaahhhh!"

And so did I.

Every blog under the sun wrote about it, and because some of my favorite blogs were amongst them, I decided to wait a while out of courtesy.

So lets just have a little look at Miss P.




Firstly lets analyze whats right about her makeup.
Well that was quick - everything!
I have got to say here that whoever did her makeup this day was 100% on the money and needs a raise. This is what makeup perfection looks like! This is also what reading the moment perfectly looks like.

Hayden has a soft, beachy hairdo going on, so the makeup needs to reflect fresh face, glowing skin and give a 'natural beauty' vibe.
I love the attention and accent given to her cheeks, making the structure of her face the main focus.
The super-soft brow lends itself to the beachy feel, the eye is soft yet defined. We are taken in by her eyes, but not overwhelmed by them. The soft neutral lip gives more attention to the eye.

I would love to see more girls rocking that lovely, summery look! Just perfect!

The dress I wasn't loving.



However, once we hit the street we were back in perfection again! The shoes!!! Oh my! The shoes!!!
Who cares about the dress when you have shoes like that? I love them!!!

Stuart Weitzman Tijuana's.
Even the color name is cool. Not 'black', these beauties are 'jet mirror'.

On the 'must have' list. These go beyond have to have. These are must have, as in must have in order to keep breathing.





I actually have no idea whatsoever as to what she was there to talk about that night. I was far too busy checking out the make up and the shoes!
Last night Danica Patrick was on Kimmel, and I have no idea what she was promoting either, as I was completely absorbed with the fierce thigh boots she had on. Her hair and make up were great too, but the boots! They were quite something! But thats another story...

You see shoe love, my friends, is true love...

Lovin Those Locks!

This weekend there was a Locks Of Love charity event put on by Tony Pedregon Racing at the summit Racing NHRA Nationals in Norwalk Ohio. Supporters lined up to have 10 inches or more cut from their hair to be used to create wigs for those who have lost their hair due to medical ailments. There were also auctions etc to raise money for Locks Of Love. The idea for this event came from Tony's young daughter, who gave something around 10 inches of hair herself!

This got me thinking about a trip to India that I was supposed to take in March of last year. Seems like a stretch I know, but stay with me here.

One of my brothers lived in Bangalore for 3 years, running operations for an international bank. I had planned on taking my little guy for a visit at the end of that 3 years, thinking he would better remember and absorb it all if I waited til he was 7. We were all set to go after months of teaching my boy about India, feeding him the cuisine, and getting him all prepped, when wouldn't you know it, my brother had to move back to Sydney a month earlier than originally planned. The trip had to be cancelled, and we didn't get to go.

I have had a fascination with India for many years. I find the culture intriguing, love the food and the people and the history. From an artistic point of view I think the women are incredibly beautiful, I love their saris, their make up, the inner strength and peace in their faces. And I love Bollywood.

Anyway, with my great love of rituals and pageantry, one of the things I had planned to do while in India, was to travel to Andhra Pradesh to Tirupati, to Tirumala, the world's most visited site of pilgramage.




Everyday between 50, 000 and 100,000 take the 2 1/2 hour walk up the mountain to the temple, and wait hours for a 5 second viewing of the sacred Idol.


There are some 3000 steps to take. (like I would have ever survived that!)


I may have some facts confused here, but it is my understanding that Lord Venkateswara, one of the forms of the hindu god Vishnu is in residence at the temple.




Many of the pilgrams top the visit off with what is called "tonsuring". The women wear their best saris, in shades of bright pink, orange and turquoise, and line up for hours outside the temple's tonsuring room to have their heads shaven, in the belief that by doing so the God will grant them their wish. Some get tonsured as a sign of gratitude for blessings in their lives, and historically the act of tonsuring is done as a sign of completely surrendering one's ego at the feet of the lord.



Both men and women get tonsured, and little kids too.



This family sits patiently after being tonsured. (I would still be complaining about the walk up...) Sometimes after the weight of such long, thick hair is removed the women get dizzy and have a hard time standing back up.

The hair is collected, washed and treated and sold to become wigs and hair pieces. Temple hair as it is called, is considered to be the highest quality hair available. The glossy, healthy, waist length hair has never been treated with anything harsher than Ayurvedic soaps and oils, and becomes the most lush, exquisite hair extensions and pieces.
There is such a huge market for temple hair that approximately 500 tons of it is harvested and sold at auction from Tirumala each year at top prices. The temple consequently has extraordinary wealth, which it pours back into the community.




I am sure some of the wigs and falls that I own must have come from temple hair. Maybe not from Tirumala, but from any of the temples in India that perform tonsuring.

So I missed the trip to Bangalore, missed staying at the Leila Palace, missed staying at my brother's beautiful home, missed touring the sites with my sister in law and their much loved driver, Ramu. Seeing it all thru pictures just isn't quite the same.

I know that the spectacular visual impact of India and its people would have left me so inspired.

But inspiration can also come in the form of a pint sized little girl who not only was willing to give up her own hair to help another, but also had the drive to make an event out of it, get her family involved and raise money and collect hair for Locks of Love.

I don't know if they are still taking donations, but if you would like to help check out www.tonypedregon.com

If you would like more information about Tirumala check out this great blog by Esben Agersnap at www.eagersnap.blogspot.com