4 Exciting New Makeup Trends For Spring 2015

We normally think of spring makeup being about glowy, bronzey skin, soft glossy lips and pastel eyes. 
Not so for spring 2015! This year they are shaking it up with trends not ususally associated with spring. Check out four of my favorites below:

4  New Makeup Trends For Spring 2015

winged eyeliner at Oscar de la Renta

Winged eye liner is in for spring, in all it's modifications from a pretty flick seen here at Oscar de la Renta to heavy liner at Saint Laurent.

Lips strayed from the usual soft pinks to deeply bitten berries at Dolce and Gabbana (check out the quintessential winged liner. It literally does not get better than this!)

exquisite berry lips at Dolce and Gabbana

and bold, flaming orange-reds at Zac Posen.

flaming lips at Zac Posen

Brown eye shadow is in this spring, 

brown eye shadow at Gucci

but rather than heavy, dull browns they were copper and gold based browns that lit up pale eyes.

brown eyeshadow at Paul and Joe

Also unusual for spring, smokey eyes are in. Sexy, sultry, bad girl smokey eyes at Tom Ford

smokey eyes at Tom Ford

and boho chic at Sonia Rykiel

smokey eyes for spring 2015 at Sonia Rykiel

10 Bridal Beauty Tips

The spring/summer wedding season is about to take off, so if you are getting ready for your wedding in the next few months here are 
10 bridal beauty tips to have you glowing and gorgeous on your big day.

1. Hydrate.

Even if you are months away from your wedding day start drinking extra water. Every cell in your body will love you for it and your skin will start to glow and look super vibrant!

2. Book your makeup artist.
The good ones book up fast so make sure you secure one as quickly as possible.

3. Book your trial makeup
I'm a big believer in getting this done as quickly as possible. You need to be certain that she is the right artist for you, and if she isn't then you want tht extra time to find someone else.
Your artist may have some fabulous ideas for your look that take some time - maybe she wants you to grow your brows in, or maybe she wants you to get a series of facials. The sooner you can get started the better!

4. Find a really great facialist.
Whatever your budget, find someone to work with you on facial treatments to get your skin in super good shape. The better your skin looks, the better your makeup will look.
Your makeup artist can probably give you some great referrals if you don't already have someone.

5. Book a trial airbrush tan.

Instead of planning on UV hours on a cancer bed, opt for an airbrush tan. Have a trial so you can see that you like the color and see how many days its good for. I like to count out how many days it is til perfect. For me day 3 is the best color. Once you know which day is the prettiest you can schedule it that many days prior to you wedding day.

6. Get a trial eyebrow session.
Everyone looks better with well groomed brows, but you don't want to make any drastic changes, or have any drastic errors happen right before your wedding! Find a great brow girl and have a trial with her a few months out. If you love the look she gives you its easy to keep it maintained until your wedding day.

7. Plan your body treatments.
Start losing the rough skin of winter, and get some glow into your skin. Making the skin on your body glow can take a little work, so start early with exfoliation treatments and luxuriant lotions. Whatever skin is showing in your dress needs to be smooth, supple and radiant.

8. Cool Sculpt.
If you have problem areas that no amount of working out is helping, such as over the bra fat that wants to roll over the top of your strapless dress (even slim girls get this!), and if you have at last 3 months before your wedding day, look into Coolsculpting.
This is the miracle cure to literally melt away (well, freeze away) the problem folds and have you both looking and feeling sensational. I send my brides to Sandra at the Blume Skin Centre (click HERE for info). The results are nothing short of spectacular!

9. Treat your hands to some TLC

Every bride has photos taken of her hand with the ring, her hands holding the flowers, her hand slicing cake - her hand gets a ton of attention on her wedding day! Getting some hand treatments along the way helps to keep the skin smooth and luscious. If you have sun damage you can get photofacials on your hands. If the skin is just dried out and tired a few parafin treatments will make it look and feel like a million dollars!

10. Love your lips.
Soft, supple lips take work to achieve. Invest in a gentle exfoliant and a super lip balm and use them religiously in the months and weeks leading up to your big day.
Your lipstick will glide on and hold better, and your lips will look fantastic. Chapped, scaly lips never look good!

Coveted ~ The Perfect Nude Sandal

I just got back from the Oscars. As always, it was so much fun!
And as always coming back here feels weird. I lived in LA for many years, and somehow it still feels like home to me...

Kate Middleton steps out of her limo in her Jimmy Choo Vamp sandal

As spring approaches, and fueled by some serious shoe gazing in Hollywood, I am obsessed with finding the perfect nude sandal for the new season. The most valuable shoe in your closet is a nude shoe. It goes with everything, makes the leg look longer and thinner, and gives you a full body compliment.
(I'd love to claim this as my own wisdom, but it was taught to me by Vanna White when I first moved to Los Angeles a lifetime ago.)

My favorite shoes always seem to be my Choos. While on the hunt for the perfect nude sandal these keep popping up as my most coveted.

Jimmy Choo Vamp

Jimmy Choo Kayak

Jimmy Choo Nude Matte Linda Snakeskin

Jimmy Choo Kayden

Saint Laurent Tribute Leather Platform Sandal

The Red Carpet Ready Handbag

I'm on my way back to L.A for the greatest red carpet of them all. 

I think this is my 10th time, but it may be the 11th. 
If I'm not going to be backstage with her keeping her makeup maintained I pack a little bag of goodies for my actress to touch up with throughout the night.

She will be in makeup hours before she hits the red carpet, and then probably until at least 3 or 4 in the morning at the Oscar's after parties, so she needs some good items to keep her fabulous makeup maintained and photo immaculate until she gets back home again.

Some of the items I pack her are perfect for you too to keep in your handbag on a big night out. Let's have a look at a few so that you too can keep your handbag red carpet ready.

1. I'm crazy about these super color saturated Temptu lipsticks at the moment. They give you rich color that holds.

2 and 3. When makeup is starting to feel a bit worn in you can add an instant refresh by lightening and brightening under the eyes with YSL's Touche Elcat and the patting a little life back into your cheeks with The Multiple by Nars. (I slice a piece off and put it in a little plastic container)

4. I don't like a powdery look - I prefer the skin to glow, so instead of pressed powder I pack Tatcha blotting papers. They are fabulous and being Tatcha they make everything feel more luxurious!

5. Even seasoned A listers get nervous on the red carpet, and get a dry mouth, which in turn means raunchy breath. I tell my ladies to pop in a Listerine breath strip every so often just for good measure.

6. Even if a matte lip is the biggest thing in fashion I still pack a Chanel lipgloss in her handbag. Matte lips can look dry and cracked after a while, and even if it's just placed in the center of the lip a little gloss can keep the lips looking supple and kissable.

David Beckham and Harper

Becks always makes it look like his kids are his greatest joy.

family selfie front row at Voctoria Beckham A/W 2015

He is always loving up on them, spending time with them - he really does seem to be a perfect dad.
Which only makes him more perfect, as if that were even possible.

Seeing him with daughter H7 (Harper) always makes my day.
The world needs more fathers like Becks.

The Beckham clan front row at Victoria Beckham A/W 15

Planning Your International Trip ~ Renting Cars In Europe

I recently had a blog reader contact me about her upcoming trip to Venice, and the ins and outs of renting a car to drive to Croatia. Which brings up a great travel blog subject ~ should I rent a car when traveling in Europe?

this little pink Fiat was parked down the street from me in Rome for days

In the last few years I have only been renting cars in Italy, so my information is more Italy-centric, but the concepts really do apply to all of Europe (although if I were planning to drive on the autobahn I would rent something sleek and fast.)

Before you commit to renting cars look at where you are planning on going. Europe has the most brilliant train systems, with a network of fast trains that run from country to country and city to city, and then smaller trains that run within the cities and their out lying areas. If you are planning on just hitting big cities I wouldn't even think about renting a car.
On last year's Corinna B's World Glam Italia Tour we rented cars in Sicily,  the Amalfi Coast and for a couple of days of running around in Tuscany. Otherwise it was all trains.

Driving in Italy is great fun, so long as you don't have to drive inside Rome or Naples! I have literally driven the length and breadth of Italy many times over in the past few years, and as such have made a list

Re: question about Veni

* I definitely always recommend picking up your rental car at the airport. You have easier access to the freeways, and the non airport locations often close for the day if they don't have many bookings, which can leave you stranded! (which happened to us once in Florence)

My rental Fiat 500 in San Gimignano

 * Rent a diesel - they cost so much less to run! Cars over there get far better gas mileage too.

tiny rental car in Sorrento

* Rent a small vehicle, not a U.S. sized bigger one. Cities, towns and villages over there have smaller, narrower roads and tiny parking spaces. On my last trip we rented Fiat 500 XLs, Fiat 500s and little Citroens which were so fun to drive and you can park them anywhere! The year before I had an Alpha Romeo that was faster than the devil.

I loved this Alpha Romeo I rented in 2013

* Buy the maximum insurance. I've read about people having their passports withheld until they come up with €3000 deductibles! The locals aren't necessarily likely to crash into you, but other travelers are!

* Don't rely on Siri for GPS. She is relatively good, but misses some big stuff. The highway exits over there are miles apart, so missing your exit can take an hour out of your trip.

If you do use Siri read the next instruction ahead of time - they have shorter distances and more cars, so you need to know which direction you are turning a while before you get there, or it can be a mess!

* Keep lots of coins on hand. You go through many toll booths on the highways there, and they sometimes only take change not cards. Also the exchange rate fees and international fees on your credit cards make it totally not worth while.

* If you want to rent scooters make sure you have them indicated on your international drivers liscence. If it doesn't specify that you have a scooter permit many places won't rent you one.

make sure you know the rules for renting scooters in  Europe

* Driving over there is great fun! I always rent a stick shift, just because it's fun :))

Is He Cheating On You??

The very best piece of advice I have ever received from a man (actually from anyone) was given to me by the head of the largest private security firm in Los Angeles, shortly after I arrived there from London many years ago.
 He said: always trust your intuition. Always.

image via superawesomecoolclub.wordpress.com

Admittedly he was talking more about being attacked or followed, but it also applies to the study of people. And I have never forgotten that advice.

I have always been an inveterate studier of people. I find people completely fascinating. I work with some of the most intriguing people in the world. I also work with some of the greatest philanderers on the planet and get to watch them in action. I watch the dad's at the park (with their kids) in action too - it's all the same.

This past weekend my phone was literally blowing up with 2 friends going through the "I think he's cheating" routine. Which in turn made me bring this post forward - It was originally scheduled for March.

So if you are wondering if he is cheating on you or not, here is the advice I give and have given for years to girlfriends all over the world. (and being that most of you reading this blog are girls, you have no doubt participated in this same conversation hundreds of times too)

image via Seunsblog

1. Trust your intuition.
If you suspect he is cheating on you then he probably is.

2. If you are snooping through his emails, his social media, his phone and aren't finding anything, but your intuition is telling you there's something not right, then he probably is. 
Plenty of men have secret social media profiles and email addresses, even secret phones. 
** It should be noted though that if you are indeed snooping through his devices you either need to work on your self esteem or move on. There is nothing healthy about feeling that you need to spy on your partner.


3. The relationship re-evaluation.
How much of it is about really enjoying each others company and wanting to find quality time together? Does he choose to spend his spare time with you, or are you forcing him to? I have an aquaintance who keeps her boyfriend on the shortest, tightest leash you can imagine. She controls where he is at all times and he isn't allowed any friends that aren't her friends. But he still finds ways to cheat.

4. He changes his weight or his appearance.
I don't think the constant cheater necessarily changes his appearance, but the guy who has recently found a side interest frequently will trim down, take more interest in his appearance, make an effort to look good for no apparent reason.

5. His memories are wrong
He refers to movies that you saw together, but that you didn't see with him. Or maybe wine bars you've never been to. As he spends more time with her his memories blur into one another and he can't quite remember who he did something with.

6. He suddenly gets defensive.
If you question something and he gets defensive instead of mildly annoyed there's a good chance something is up.
Although I have watched serial cheaters in action over the years, and their absolute cool when under fire is borderline scary.

image via idealmagazine.co.uk

7. He needs a lot of privacy, especially with his devices.
If your guy suddenly needs privacy when he's texting or typing away on his devices, chances are something's up.
I have a few clients though who sit there texting their side pieces while their wife is in the room, completely oblivious. They know that I know, but the wife is either in major denial or completely unaware. #awkward.

8. Pay close attention to detail.
One of the most successful cheaters I have ever known told me that the trick to successful lying is in the details. He said that what trips most men up is that they haven't fleshed out a good, detail specific story ahead of time, and if they have done then they forget it a couple of days later.
Rather than go through his phone, randomly pick your guy's brain. If he was actually where he says he was he will naturally remember things about it, who he was with, random little things.
If he gets evasive or irritated there is a strong chance he's lying. 

9. His provenance.
I know you can't generalize, but there are certain nationalities for whom cheating is a national pastime. Especially the frenchies and the italians! I recently sat next to the most glorious Parisienne on a flight home from France. She told me that Parisian women aren't thin because of any diet - she said it's the endless stress of wondering who of your friends are sleeping with your husband! She also told me she's never met an Italian who isn't a cheater, but I like to think I know at least a couple.

10. Body language.
People give their game away with their body language. Even just learning the basics will serve you well in business, in life, and in telling whether or not he's cheating. Unless he is a pure sociopath his eye movements alone will tell you when he's lying.


The perilous terrain known as Cougarland
I know a few women in their 50s dating boys in their 30s. In every case she is the one with the money, and in some cases there is a green card in it for him. I feel like beating my head against a brick wall when they start questioning if I think he's maybe cheating on her. Um.. yes. He is!!
I'm sure there are cougar relationships that work well, but back to my first point, if your intuition is telling you something's not right, it's not right.
I know one young fellow in a relationship with an older woman who told me he cheats on her all the time because she emasculates him. She always talks down to and about him, which also makes it uncomfortable to everyone else in the room. He was showing us his holiday photos the other day (she pays for great vacations) and one of the guys said it looked like our young friend was at an AARP convention. 
I'm not anti cougar by any means, I just have never seen a cougar based relationship work for particularly long, unless she's really not much older than he, and he is the primary bread winner.

 Don't blame the side action.
The female reflex seems to always be to blame the side-girl that he's involved with, instead of blaming him. If he's not loyal to you then he is the problem, not her.
And if you are the side girl always remember if you do manage to oust the wife/girlfriend and become his number one, the side girl position is now open...