10 Tips To Help You Make Those Tight Airport Connections

Short airport layovers can be fantastic.

If everything goes just right. 

As in if your first flight arrives on time, and if your connecting flight departs from a nearby gate.

A quick connection can also be a total nightmare. After having to run through airports in high heels, (more often than I care to admit to), just trying to make my next flight, I have come up with
 some strategies to help you make those tight airport connections, and make sure you don't miss your next flight.

10 Tips To Make Tight Airport Connections

1. The Gate Guru App
As soon as we land I fire up my Gate Guru app and see which gate my connecting flight is departing from, and where in the terminal it is in relation to my arrival gate. Gate Guru updates faster than anything else, and has never steered me wrong.

2. Get an Aisle Seat Up Front
When you know ahead of time that your connection will be tight its well worth the extra few dollars to book an aisle seat at the front of the plane, or as close to the front as you can get. The time it takes for everyone else to disembark when you are at the back of the plane can cost you the minutes you need to make that connection. It can also cost you your sanity...

3. Check In At The Gate
If you can't reserve a seat up front, take the time to check in at the kiosk. If you are polite and friendly and can explain your situation calmly you will often find that the gate crew will move things around for you and get your seat swapped for a forward seat.

4. Talk To Your Flight Attendant
If you can't get your seat changed, try talking to your flight attendant. Sometimes they can either get another passenger to swap with you towards the end of the flight, or if you are lucky they may even keep everyone seated until you deplane.
The key is to always be really pleasant and not get irritated if you are not getting what you want.

5. Observe The 45 Rule
When booking your flights give yourself a minimum of 45 minutes between the connection. I try to have at least an hour. If your first flight arrives late or if there is a delay waiting for a gate to open that 45 minutes can get eaten up quickly.

6. Avoid O'Hare.
I try to never fly through Chicago O'Hare. Basically because I have never, ever had an unfettered connection out of O'Hare. Last year I missed my son's concert at Interlochen, in the middle of summer, due to O'Hare's nonsense. This year I am flying to Detroit and then driving 5 hours rather than having to go anywhere near the dreaded O'Hare. Some airports are just notorious for delays and missed connections, so the best plan is to avoid them.

7. Travel Light.
Ideally you will check your bags through to your final destination, and not have to go to baggage claim and recheck your bags. That just leaves you with you cabin bag (s). The fewer items you have to coordinate and run through the terminal with, the better. The entire exercise gets really stressful when you have extra hats and scarves and coats and bags and water bottles etc to drag around. Think your game out ahead of time, have a cabin bag on wheels and have all the extra pieces packed into it so that you can move quickly and efficiently.
 8. Map The Airport Ahead Of Time
Sometimes your connecting flight is just a few gates away from the flight you are arriving on, othertimes you have to get to an entirely different terminal, maybe on foot or maybe by train. It's helpful to know what you are dealing with when you first book your flight, or at least before you land. The Gate Guru app on your phone has airport maps, so if you have a gate change you can quickly see where you have to go.

9. Pack Food, Use Restroom Before You Land.
The two biggest time vampires on the ground are the lines waiting for the restrooms and the lines waiting for food. Most domestic terminals here in the US have completely craptastic food anyway - high dollar, high fat, high sodium, so you're not missing out on anything if you pack food to bring with you. I try to have fresh fruit and healthy snacks in my bag every time I fly.
If you know you only have a short time to make your connecting flight use the restroom on the plane before you land.

10. Don't Waste Time On The Ground.
Disembark the plane as quickly as possible and then hightail it to your connecting flight's gate. Don't make phone-calls, check email, or update social media etc until you have reached your next gate. In other words don't lollygag. Missing your connection can be really expensive, so get to your gate quickly, then figure the rest out.

Happy travels!

Midweek Wisdom #10 ~ It's The Little Things...

photogrpher Franco Rubartelli takes a selfie with Veruschka, January 1968

"It's the little things that make the big things possible. Only close attention to the fine details of any operation makes the operation first class."

-- J. Willard Marriot

Bridal Beauty # 10 Wedding Makeup Tips For Green Eyes

Did you know that only 2% of the world's population have green eyes? I love being part of that tiny percentage! 

Angelina Jolie gorgeous green eyes

I also love it when I get to do wedding makeup for a bride with green eyes - it is so easy to make a green eyed girl's makeup look simply stunning, and with very little makeup.

If you look at this picture of Angelina Jolie (who has green eyes) you will see that her eyes captivate you, not her eye makeup. In fact she doesn't look overly made up at all. She just looks beautiful.


When you are approaching makeup, and especially approaching bridal makeup, the key is to create the illusion that there is very little makeup going on. You want to bring out the best features, make the eyes spark, and see gorgeous girl rather than piles of makeup.
When he sees you we want your groom to get lost in your eyes instead of trying to find you under layers of makeup.


With green eyes they key is to play up the eye color so that they become the focus on the face. The way to do this is by using basic color theory. Choose eye shadow colors that are opposite green on the color wheel.

You can see here that the shades opposite to green are made up of reds, purples and pinks, edging their way into oranges. I translate the orange end into beautiful copper bronzes and melon tones.
Although I am crazy about red eye shadow, it's not a shade we normally associate with wedding makeup looks. Instead of red eye shadow, think about red based brown.  
The best eye shadow shades for brides with green eyes are pinks and plums, reddish browns and copper bronzes.

Here are 7 Celebrities With Green Eyes
Each of these are beautiful wedding makeup looks.
  

Angelina Joile

Kate Winslet

Kristen Stewart

Kate Hudson

Amanda Seyfried

Adele

Emma Stone

Beauty Tip of The Week #9 ~ How To Choose The Perfect Blush

Choosing the right blush for your skin can be challenging. Just standing in front of a giant display of amazing blush shades can be totally overwhelming, especially when they all look so beautiful!
It's not only about which color is perfect for you, but also which texture is ideal for your specific skin type.
If you find shopping for blush a little confusing, or if you have a makeup drawer full of blushes you don't wear, then this one's for you!

HowTo Choose The Perfect Blush

image of Katie Bunn by Eric Cassee, hair by Will Zecco, makeup by Corinna Cooke

1. Know your undertone

The first step to choosing the perfect shade of blush is to know the undertone of your skin. Not a color theory expert? No problem: if you wear foundation that falls into the porcelain/ivory/beige grouping then chances are you have a cool undertone to your skin. If your foundation is a bronze,olive or ebony shade you are probably a warm tone. (Ebony skin can wear cool tones too).

2. Know the undertone of your blush.

If you have a cool toned skin then you want a cool toned blush (or a neutral). If you have a warm complexion then you will look best in a warm blush. If the cool/warm thing is confusing to you, think of your blue based pinks as being cool colors and your orange/nutmeg/copper/bronze based shades as being warm.

Apricot looks lovely and refreshing on everyone, and there are some blushes that look good on most skins, but understanding warm and cool colors is key.

3. Don't fall off the deep end.

Once you have the undertone down its time to figure out how deep of a color to choose. My rule is don't go darker than the shade you naturally flush to. If you go deeper your cheeks will look heavy and muddy. Our goal with blush is to lighten and brighten the complexion, not weigh it down.

4. Choose your texture.

I love cream blushes. On normal to dry skins they are just glorious.

But if you get shiny through the T zone, tend to be a little oily, or just live somewhere super humid a cream blush can make you look super shiny. 

If you are a powder blush girl, opt for one that has a fine texture and lays smoothly on the skin.

5. Finish it up.

Once you have your shade and texture sorted out don't forget to check out the finish of your blush.

I avoid anything with big, sparkly particles as they can make the face look horribly glittery. A blush that is too matte can make your complexion look flat, dull and lifeless.

I like blushes that have a soft sheen to them so that light can pop off the cheek, lifting and brightening the face.

Here are my 4 favorite blushes from my pro makeup kit

My favorite blushes

Clockwise from the left: 

Nars Multiple in Portofino

Inglot AMC Liquid Blush in 85

Nars Blush in Orgasm

MAC blush in Melba

Coveted, March 2015

I'm always planning another international trip, and as such am always looking for perfect travel items.

This month's coveted list make up the perfect travel pieces. They are gorgeous, modern, and some of them are timeless...

The Coveted List March 2015

Clockwise from left:

Rag and Bone Classic Tee. Perfect to travel in, chic with white pants, maybe the most perfect tee I have ever found. 

Available at Nordstrom.com

Chantecaille Rose De Mai Face Oil. I'm obsessed with face oils, and this one is sensational. Super hydrating and nourishing it leaves a luxurious texture to the skin. Rich in vitamin C it is also anti aging and has healing properties. Available at Nordstrom.

Ellis Faas Hot Lips. I always travel with Ellis Faas products. Their unique bullet packaging is ideal for your handbag or your travel bag, and the products themselves are amazing pro makeup artist quality. Hot Lips are super pigmented, so a little goes a long way. They are non greasy, long wearing, and don't dry out your lips. I adore fuchsia lips so am coveting their L403 Bright Fuchsia shade.

Dolce and Gabbana Sunglasses. I've been wearing aviators the past couple of years and want to change it up. I love these animal print glasses, and also their floral sunglasses. 

Prada Backpack. I am a Prada girl through and through. I normally shop at the Prada outlet in Montevarchi where prices are 75% off, just as the items are arriving in the stores here. It's brilliant! This Prada soft calf leather backpack is a timeless piece that is perfect to travel with and will also look chic running around town. I would love it paired with the Rag and Bone Classic Tee, a pair of white linen pants and a nude wedge or platform shoe. In a perfect world that would be my spring/summer uniform this year :))

10 Fantastic Bitcoin Travel Tips

I am fascinated with the concept of traveling internationally with bitcoin and with a bitcoin debit card, so I have been researching everything I can find on the subject. 

I downloaded the Xapo.com app on my iPhone (they have an android app too) so now all I need to do is get a trip booked! I will be in Australia at the end of summer, but I want to take a euro-trip before then.

If you have already traveled with Xapo.com Bitcoin wallet and or debit card, please tell us about it in the comment section below.

screenshot from my xapo app

Meanwhile check out these Bitcoin Travel Tips, and watch the video below: 

This article is taken in its entirety from letstalkbitcoin.com

Bitcoin Travel Tips:

1. Plan ahead. This one is important. In plenty of cases, you won’t be able to go downstairs to a corner store to grab a snack or a bottle of water – use Coinmap, Cointerest, and Bitcoin Restaurants to find merchants which accept bitcoin or Coin ATM Radar to locate ATM’s that allow exchange into local currency.
2. Don’t be afraid to ask. If someone doesn’t accept bitcoin, it doesn’t mean that you can’t change their mind. The competition in places with plenty of tourists is huge, so business owners will usually do everything to entice you to choose them over their rivals. More often than not, you can use that to your advantage.
3. Approach the community. There are plenty of close-knit Bitcoin communities all over the world. More often than not, the locals will get out of their way to help a fellow Bitcoiner. So if you need advice before setting off to a certain destination or run out of road once you’re already there, be sure to Google for local forums or check out Bitcoin Talk and LocalBitcoins.
4. Capitalize on the savings. Paying with bitcoin directly will pretty much always be cheaper than exchanging it into local currency. Some purchases (such as airline tickets) from specialized websites can even be less expensive than buying them from a traditional provider.
5. Don’t give up. If you can’t find any merchants that accept bitcoin on Coinmap or other similar websites, it doesn’t mean you should skip the place altogether. Sometimes all you have to do is take a walk around the neighborhood and look for the bitcoin sign. For instance, you can use the cryptocurrency in more than 5,000 convenience stores in Taiwan, but they don’t seem to appear anywhere on the available bitcoin maps.
6. Be ready to make exceptions. Unless you made a pledge to spend no fiat currency on your trip, it’s necessary to understand that you probably won’t be able to pay with bitcoin in each and every instance. So if you really want that scarf from the souk in Marrakech, there are no reasons to limit yourself!
7. Get ready to educate. Sometimes, the only difference between a successful bitcoin transaction and you having to go to bed hungry is your ability to introduce all the benefits of bitcoin to a merchant who’s never used it before. You won’t need killer presentation skills for that, since the advantages of accepting bitcoin are listed by BitPay and Coinbase.
8. Check the exchange rate. You don’t need to pay more than you owe, even if you’re paying in bitcoin. Therefore, you should consider both the fluctuating exchange rate and the possibility of a conversion error – it can happen to both you and the merchant.
9. Have a budget in mind. While setting a clear bitcoin budget for your trip might be difficult because of the currency’s volatility, it would still be great to have a ballpark figure in your mind. Overspending is as easy on bitcoin as it is on a fiat currency – if not easier.

Midweek Wisdom #9 ~ Black And White Chanel

Don't you just love hats?

I think they add such glamour,

especially to black and white images.

Here are some gorgeous black and whites, with hats, and a quote for your midweek wisdom:

There are some things that

money cannot buy.

Like manners, morals,

intelligence and class.

one of the women I most admire in the world, Carine Roitfeld