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

Nars Pure Matte Lipstick

"A matte lip is very modern, whether in nude or deeply pigmented"
So said celebrity favorite makeup designer Francois Nars at the launch of his first new lipstick line in 15 years, Nars Pure Matte Lipstick.

I've written about these before, but am so enjoying wearing and working with them at the moment that I figured they are well worth another mention.

The key to wearing a matte lipstick is to always choose a very hydrating formula so that the lip is well conditioned and doesn't dry out and flake. Nars collection has ingredients such as acai oil, wild mango butter and Vitamin E to keep your kisser  moisturized and soft.

The collection features fall perfect shades of aubergine, rose, red, nude and plum, with glamour filled jet set names such as Vesuvio, Bangkok, Volga Terre de Feu and Tashkent.

The launch of Nars Pure Matte Lipstick Collection included this fabulous mini movie featuring model Heather Marks wearing the bold, red Vesuvio.

Perfect!

Hot Reds!

If you only buy one item of makeup this season, it needs to be red lipstick.

And not just any old red.

Stay away from the deeper, moodier reds, avoid burgundy reds, brown reds and dark reds. This season is all about a bright, vibrant, fiery red. An uplifting, exciting explosion of red.

The brighter the better!

Everyone is asking me for my favorite reds, so in no specific order, 

here is my list of the best reds for fall 2010

Nars Jungle Red.

Bright, bold and incredibly beautiful.

The name alone evokes a fun time!

Australian transplant Poppy King has her fabulous Lipstick Queen line

with two formulations, the sheer Saints and the all pigment, no shimmer Sinners

of which she says" its positively naughty to get lipstick this opaque, rich and creamy, with a matte, silky finish"

She had me at "positively naughty"!

Check out her Red Sinner

UK brand Illamasqua has two to absolutely die for

Maneater, which is a classic matte red, with a movie star quality to it.

and Tramp, which is a true red, but with a soft warmth to it. 

Very pigmented, but not thick or heavy.

At Dolce and Gabbana Pat McGrath designed two killer reds

Iconic is an opaque, bright, long wearing, very bold, very classic red.

Not for the faint of heart

 and Ruby Classic Cream (not to be confused with Ruby Lipstick)

which has a subtle blue base to it.

Lorac Leading Lady is a creamy, slightly orange red

with a bright sheen as opposed to a high gloss.

It is both moisturizing and wears very evenly.

Tom Ford's Private Blend lipsticks are super expensive at $45 each,

but contain exotic ingredients such as soja seed extract, Brazilian murmuru butter

and chamomilla flower oil, which not only give an extremely creamy finish

to the lip, eliminating any dryness, but also help the lipstick to stay on,

cancelling out excessive reapplying.

And nothing gets his name on it without being truly amazing!

YSL Rouge Pur Couture lipsticks are both high fashion,

and luminous. Check out Shade No 1 le Rouge

And what really great story doesn't have a high heel connection?

At Jonathan Saunders makeup artist Lucia Pieroni matched the model's lips to 

the soles of their Louboutins, giving MAC's Ruby Woo the moniker

"Louboutin Red"

Love it.

Ombre Magnetique

I don't get into Lancome products too often,

but this one I love.

Ombre Magnetique is a mousse like cream eye shadow

with a sheer, buildable color,

so you can have the softest hue on your lids,

or build it to some vibrant intensity.

It wears well and is really quite lovely.

Ombre Magnetique comes in three shades:

Urban Silver, Black Macadam and Cherry Cherie

While at the Lancome counter check out a couple of items

from designer L'Wren Scott.

Angelina Joile in L'Wren Scott at Benjamin Button premiere

NIcole Kidman in L'Wren Scott December 2008

Le Vernis L'Wren nail polishes are quite fabulous.

le Gris L'Wren was originally developed as the finishing touch

to her Fall/Winter 2010/2011 show,

but is now available to us all

le Rouge L'Wren is quite gorgeous too

Chanel Cruise Collection, Venice Runway Show

Sometimes some of the most sensational moments in fashion are so fleeting they are missed or forgotten too quickly, even when their artistic merit can be seen and felt for seasons to come.
I still can't stop looking at this amazing and inspirational show.


Last year Karl Lagerfeld unveiled his 2009/2010 Chanel Cruise Collection at dusk at the legendary Grand Hotel Excelsior Venice Lido Resort.

In the 1920's every refined member of international aristocracy could be found  lounging on Lido beach. Coco Chanel arrived in 1920 and was not only inspired by this artistic and magnificent city, but drawn to the fashionable people who frequented it.

A combination of Coco's love of Venice, and her annual trip to this particular stretch of Italian beach made this the perfect location for the retro-glam resort wear collection.

Man Ray's iconic portrait of the wildly eccentric Italian heiress Marchesa Luisa Casati became the inspiration for the makeup.

The dark decadence of Venice high society in the 20's and 30's, the melancholy magic of this moody city, and the dusty colors of her crumbling facades all contributed to an incredible makeup look that is still relevant to this season, albeit slightly softened.

The exaggerated smoky eye, with thick eye gloss, the immaculate satin-matte pallor with muted soft lips and cheeks, all work beautifully for fall 2010.

At dusk in Venice you feel, taste and breathe the looming magic as it steals your senses and cloaks you in drama and anticipation

I love the sheer madness and beauty of this image.

And now of course, I am dying to get back to Venice...

Fabulous Taurus!

I'm always in the mood for a great pair of boots.

Right now I'm looking for a killer pair to wear with jeans etc

that have height, but that are also super comfortable to stand in all day.

Because when I'm on a shoot, I am typically standing all day.

Check these out.

Jimmy Choo Taurus, suede shearling boot.

Probably the most comfortable high heeled boot I have ever tried on.

(unfortunately at $1295, they haven't made it past the frequent trying on stage. Yet.)

Taurus comes in two shades, khaki and tan.

The tan is to die for.

The 115mm/4.6" stacked heel is counter-balanced with an inner platform

so the height is super easy to walk in.

The lug sole not only looks cool, but also gives extra support and grip.

Empowering!

Ankles are well supported too.

This boot is not only great with pants, but looks fabulous with skirts and dresses.

Love it!

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

8 Steps To Magnificent Lashes!

Nothing enhances your eyes more than really sensational lashes, but getting them isn't always as easy as it would seem. Here's a little 8 step guide to building lashes a girl can bat alluringly!

8 Tips To The Longest Lashes Ever

1. Use a primer

DiorshowMaximizer Lash Primer

Applying a coat of primer first will help create the illusion of thicker fuller lashes and will give your mascara something extra to grab hold of.

2. Choose Your Wand
A small fine wand is ideal to help build longer lashes. It is easier to get to the base of the lash and pull through and extend the lash

Avon Super Magnify Mascara

A fat, fluffy wand is for fuller, fluffier lashes. If you're going for a fuller lash look, put on several coats to really build the lashes.

Cargo Texas Lash Mascara

3. Throw out old mascara.
You'll never get full, lush looking lashes with an old dried out mascara

4. Work your technique.
Starting at the base of the lash, pull your mascara wand through the lash using a side to side motion. Go back through the lashes this time rolling the wand to create more intensity.

5. Don't pump the wand!
Don't pump the wand in and out of the tube! This won't put any extra product onto the wand, but instead will push air into the tube and dry your mascara out much more quickly.

6. Line the upper inner rim or the eye.

Makeup Forever Aqualiner

For a fuller, bolder looking lash line apply a waterproof liner to the upper lid's inner rim before applying mascara. 

Makeup Forever Aqua Eyes

Then smudge a thin line of liner into the base of the lashes and lash line. This will create the illusion of thicker lashes.

7. Create a fan of lashes on the upper lid.
Direct the outer third of your lashes toward you temple, the center third up and forward, the inner third toward your nose. This trick will make your lashes look drastically fuller and longer!

8. Ingredients to look for:
Some key ingredients to look for in your mascara are
Soy Protein to build volume
Acrylates Copolymer to enhance lash length
Panthenol, Pantethine and Pro Vitamin B5 (all of which are found in hair products)  are conditioners used to make lashes longer and stronger