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...

Black Orchid, Black Magic

One of the things I love most about this time of year (apart from all the presents, parties and gluttony) is the profusion of truly decadent, dark flowers. My favorite Black Magic roses hit their sultry, mysterious stride, with hues that resonate more depth than at any other time of year.

This season I am feeling the slightly gothic, incredibly deviant lure of the Black Orchid.

 Elusive, sexy, a little bit kinky, a little bit wrong.

Completely alluring.

Sexiest man on earth, Tom Ford is feeling their siren song too.

Ford has released a Limited Edition Black Orchid Collection

which includes a deep plum lipstick and matching nail polish, 

as well as a solid version of his Black Orchid fragrance.

"I created the fragrances using the blackest orchid I could find, and notes that are spicy, slightly peppery and incredibly rich" says Ford who considers the reddish plum lips and nail polish "dark, bold and exotic".
Which is reason enough to buy them, even without trying them first.

Cool Hats For Fall

"Without hats we would have no civilization" 

 Christian Dior

Hats can be such a fun, glamorous and chic accessory.Check out these fabulous hats for fall!

Betmar Precious Present Angora Beret in pink, also comes in ivory, black, light blue and leopard.

Kangol's gorgeous Furgola Cloche in Purple $47

Peruvian Alpaca Nordic Aviator in beige $32

Betmar Snowcap Pleated Fleece Bucket $30

 Parkhurst Jacqueline in charcoal/black $40

Betmar Captivate Velvet Cloche in purple $44

I found all of these, and loads more super fun, cool, high fashion hats at uber-cool  website

Village Hat Shop

Chanel Pulsion

Here's another great gift giving idea, this time from Chanel.
A little change up from all the traditional holiday reds, Chanel gives us their new nail polish, Pulsion.

This is a beautiful, fuchsia-like deep, cool, pink creme.

Intensely feminine and powerful, pretty yet chic, modern and very fashion forward.
Pulsion is the ideal compliment to all of fall/winter's blacks, navy's and browns.
The formulation is nicely pigmented, glossy and dries quickly.

Lets Get Nude!

The two biggest looks for lips this season are a bold sexy red and a soft, sensual, barely there nude.

Nude in fact, is never really out of vogue. A great selection of nudie lip shades make a fabulous base for your makeup wardrobe, but choosing the right ones can be a little tricky at times.

h.wood.beauty has taken the hassle out of finding a great nude shade by releasing their new line of 6 gorgeous shades, oh so appropriately called "Get Nude".

 h.wood.beauty is an eclectic line of high fashion cosmetics, inspired by the super cool h.wood Tea Room (tucked in an alley off Hollywood Boulevard, the h.wood Tea Room is LA's secret Wednesday night hideaway, where very famous faces join the super cool to sip "Prohibition teas" spiked with spirits).
All h.wood .beauty products are made in LA, and take their names from the City of Angels - street names, freeways, music venues, beaches, daytrips from LA.
Crazy cool, ultra hip, uber chic.

beautiful Angelina Jolie in nude lip

The Get Nude collection lets you find your perfect nude. The lipsticks are matte with moisture, meant to be layered together, or worn alone. The color pay off is fantastic, the staying power divine.

The six shades are each named for a local LA beach.

Malibu - a nude beige with a slight pinky undertone, very flattering to skin tone

Zuma -  a light coffee beige, very warm and beautiful

Newport - a beautiful pink beige

Topanga - a rich, mauve/tawny beige, the deepest of the 6

Laguna - a pale nude beige, like an autumn latte

Venice - a soft, pale, coral beige

All have a hint or warm vanilla caramel, just like the famous teas.

The best way to wear a nude lip is to apply it matte then add the simplest sheen. More tips tomorrow...

If you're not in LA you can order these lovely nude lips (and their other beauty products) online

www.hwoodbeauty.com

Jennifer Lopez in a pinky nude lip, very similar to hwood beauty Newport

Ruby Wooooo

When beauty, nature, eastern mysticism and New York boho chic all come together the result is an edgy cool, modern and unique jewelry line called Ruby Kobo.

Yuvi Alpert, the back packing son of a diamond dealer, and Danna Kobo, jewelry designer combined their talents to create pieces that are neither too masculine nor too dainty, and not necessarily gender specific. Their pieces are intended to be layered, and easily manoeuvre  from  fashion day wear to glamourous evening wear.

Yuvi's travels through South America and East Asia gave him a love of ancient eastern mysticism which features predominantly in Ruby Kobo's deigns, where high quality materials such as rubies, diamonds and gold meet up with pave lined hasma hands, Tibetan masks and Tulsi wood beads.

Their intense attention to detail has made them a celebrity favorite, with a client list that includes Rihanna, Julia Roberts, Gwyneth Paltrow and Naomi Watts.

Julia Roberts in Ruby Kobo

Naomi Watts wearing Ruby Kobo at the premiere of Nine

Yuvi Alpert in the original Gold Hasma Pendant

Lindsay Lohan is a big fan of the Ruby Kobo Sashi bracelets, which have faceted crystals and studs enmeshed in brightly colored woven cords.

Whether you're looking for a simple something special to wear with Levis and a t-shirt or for something to dress up your LBD, check out Ruby Kobo

Meet My New Love - Opal!

If you've been following this blog or watching my segments on SheknowsTV then you will already know that I am obsessed with my Clarisonic, and love skin care products that give you an immediate, visible result. (I'm not overly into waiting for months for a possible remedy.)

So imagine how excited I was when the two came together! The brilliant team at Clarisonic decided to target the eye area - the first place out faces show signs of aging, and created just for you and me, the Opal.

The amazing Opal Sonic Infusion System takes the already proven sonic technology and with a soft applicator tip delivers 7500 micro massages per minute, kneading a specially formulated 

PRO RT3 anti aging sea serum into the outer layers of the skin. In just one minute Opal hydrates, smooths, soothes and brightens the eye area, with results that last for hours.

You see an immediate result, the first time you use it. So technically, they had me at hello.

Opal visibly reduces fine lines, under eye puffiness and dark circles, drastically.

The anti aging sea serum counts as your eye cream, and with the sonic delivery system taking it deeper into the epidermis you see a level of hydration that seems to last longer throughout the day than other eye products do. 

The skin around the eye area glows, looks radiant and over the course of a couple of weeks I felt it was much firmer too.

Personally I see a huge difference in how makeup goes on, how well it wears, and how well it lasts since I started using the Opal. Typically the first place that your makeup starts looking icky is the under eye area, but with the Opal the skin under the eye stays so much more hydrated and firmer, that at the end of the day under eye makeup is still looking smooth, balanced and new. All of which make a girl look more youthful!

The Opal Sonic Infusion System comes with the anti aging sea serum and an extra applicator tip, both of which you replace as needed.

Love, love, love it!

Get Your Leopard On!!

Normally fall fashions get overwhelmingly tedious with all the gray/brown/blackness that reach out and hit you over the head like a dulled mallot. But not this season. Fall 2010 is giving us a little excitement in the form of leopard prints. Fun, fabulous, fantastic leopard!

Kate Moss - always perfection

We are seeing leopard everything - from shoes

to handbags to belts and scarves.

 Fall 2010's bottoms look best dressed in a leopard thong...

thong by Sensuelle

The divine leopard print coats and jackets that ruled the runways, can kick up any old black ensemble and make it super sleek chic and cool.

Moschino

Unless you are JLo or Jackie Collins don't try to pull off head to toe leopard. Instead of suggesting a little inner feline you'll look like you're unleashing your full on cougar! Ideally wear one statement piece (dress/coat) and counterbalance it with a simple solid, or take a couple of fab leopard accessories and use them to bring the drama to anything you own.

When using more than one leopard piece, make it more interesting by layering different sized and colored prints, and combine different textures.

There are two major makeup trends to pair with leopard this season.

The first is a smoldering, sexy eye coupled with a soft nude mouth. Major eye shadows to use are a metallic shimmering eggplant, or a copper khaki shimmer. Make sure you make the eye very sultry, buffed out and with considerable depth.

Angelina Jolie, gorgeous in leopard

Use a full bodied foundation, give your cheeks lots of autumnal love, then soften it all with a dewy finish on a nude lipstick.

Maxim Magazine's sexiest woman on earth, Christina Hendricks

Divine.

The other major trend is to again use a full, luminous base (try Makeup Forever HD) a well contoured cheek, and this time add in a power brow - well groomed and defined, a soft, bare eye shadow on a well lined heavily lashed eye and set the whole thing alight with a bright, bold, catch me if you can red lipstick. Avoid burgundy reds, purple reds and dark reds. If you only buy one piece of makeup this season, make it a bright, modern, exciting red!

Fierceness!

Here is the SheKnows.com Daily Dish segment all about leopard for fall 2010:

Pour La Victoire Irina Suede Pumps

Check out these amazing shoes!!

I am always on the lookout for a fabulous high heel, so was totally excited to find this one.

Pour La Victoire Irina suede pumps 

 are absolutely to die for!

Not only are they the perfect nude shoe for fall, but they also come in black and a sensational gray, as well as royal blue,

which I'm thinking is actually a pretty exciting color.

This is a simple pump with a beautiful, leg flattering cut. 

The lush suede is lovely when paired with this perfect classic shape.

(also available in leather)

The heel is a firm 5 inches, supported with an inner platform, so they're easy to wear all day.

This shoe is smart and chic to wear to work, or with skirts and dresses, and is completely killer with jeans or pants on the weekend.

Even better, they are only $250 at shopbop.com

Rolling Stone Magazine

The most recent Rolling Stone covers

have been sensational!

Check this out:

The September 16th issue

How much fabulous can you handle???

The makeup! The hair! The wardrobe!

I love looking at fabulous actors being, well, fabulous!

January Jones' thigh looks pretty sensational too.

Wouldn't you buy this mag?

Beach Time Anyone?

Already August is upon us,

and for some of us the last beach excursions

are looming like a lover about to leave.

So whats a girl to pack?

Don't worry, I came up with some ideas for you...

Jantzen has been the purveyor of all kinds of fun this season.

I love this maillot and cover up

perfect to BBQ in, non?

Next you need to accessorize:

Tres chic hat from Helen Kaminski

and a Helen Kaminski beach tote

I love this whole raffia thing. And the bag is big enough to hold a chilled bottle of wine and a good book.

Tory Burch brings the perfect sandal

 Now some earrings to brighten your look

Big, bold and turquoise

Speaking of bold, lets do a bright pink glossy lip

Feeling bloated? I found these in a magazine.

Haven't tried them, but they look intriguing

They're called Tummy Tuck Sticks.

And a little SPF that will leave you smelling lovely

Perfect n'est ce pas?