Look at our new First Lady, y'all! She is resplendent in a fabulous yellow dress with jeweled collar and matching coat, by Cuban American designer, Isabel Toledo. And check out how she coordinated with deep forest green pumps! To die! This chick is so damn fabulous. Here's looking forward to this intelligent and fierce Black woman as the standard of American beauty and fashion. I can't wait to see what she wears to the balls!
This is our new first family, America. Just let that sink in ...
I am so proud of you, do you know that? I am so proud of all of you who stood in long lines and made the effort to do your civic duty. Was it good for you? Because it was fabulous for me.
It was an historic moment for America, one for the ages. But, I'm not really going to delve too much into my personal feelings about the nature of this win ... at least, not on this blog. If you want to read that, feel free to skip over to Makeda. Instead, I want to talk about our new image of American beauty ... Michelle Obama.
Take a look at this chick. She is all kinds of awesome, no? I am so flabbergasted and grateful and awed that the new female face of America is this flawless Black woman. Not since Jackie Kennedy has this country had a First Lady with such taste and style. I'm wondering if as many people will want to rock her style as wanted to rock Jackie's. They better recognize!
If you're one of the smart women out there who want to emulate Mrs. Obama's style, just slightly, here are my tips.
This is a new time in American beauty. I am so happy to see it and I can't wait to see how y'all rock it!
MAC has an upcoming collection - a creative effort pairing MAC with Esteban Cortazar of Ungaro.
Cortazar told MAC's artist, Sharon Dowsett, that there most be something "unexpected" about the Ungaro woman. Therefore, Dowsett went on a search for a natural look that wasn't boring or predictable. She was very influenced by Monet's paintings of trees that look brown from far away, but up close are a collage of different colors.
I am so looking forward to this limited edition collaboration! It's on counters October 9th! (My lemmings will be bolded.)
Lipstick
Pure Rose: pastel pink with white pearl
Freckletone: neutral yellow-toned beige
Lipglass
Pastel Emotion: pastel pink with white pearl
See-Thru Lip Color
Not So Shy!: jewel-tone berry stain
Eyeshadow
Soft Flower: clean, mid-tone coral
Lilac Touch: dry mid-tone violet
Mineral: deep cool brown
Phloof!: frosted off-white
Cream Colour Base
Crushed Bougainvillea: jewel-tone berry stain
Fresh Morning: soft muted pastel pink
Beauty Powder
Flower Mist Dew: clean brightening pink
Technakohl Liner
Auto-de-blu: Amethyst
Zoom Lash
Lofty Brown: ultra-rich blackened cocoa brown
Brow Set
Mink: dirty brown
Well, the unofficial end of summer has come and gone and all our thoughts are turning toward cooler weather and what we'll wear and what makeup we'll sport. But before we move on entirely, I'd like to know: What were you rocking on the regular this summer? What clothes/shoes/accessories did you find yourself reaching for over and over again?
For me, this summer was the "summer of strapless." I found myself loving strapless tops and dresses. They are wonderful in the blazing heat; you don't get tan lines from your bra straps/sleeves; and they're unassumingly sexy. I find the shoulders and collarbone really sexy parts of hte body to bare without looking hoochified. For shoes, I always found myself turning to a pair of open-toed gold high-heeled sandals. They were the perfect neutral to go with any color (BTW - my favorite colors this summer were yellow, green, red, orange and brown - quite autumnal-sounding, but in bright and vibrant shades) and very, very comfortable. And, for accessories, nothing beats large hoop earrings and a cuff bracelet.
So, what were you in love with stylewise this summer? Share in the comments!
Last night's skincare:
This morning's skincare:
Today's makeup:
Today's fragrance:
Philosophy Falling in Love
Today's outfit:
Today's makeup:
Today's fragrance:
Fresh Sugar Lychee
Today's outfit:
Dude - I'm wearing more makeup than I am clothes! HA!
Seriously ... have I told y'all how much I love MAC Paint Pots? Have I??? Because I do. I love 'em, y'all. They are the best. Swipe it on with your finger, add liner and mascara and go. A polished, slightly shimmery eye in seconds. Yummylicious!
Today's skincare:
Today's makeup:
Today's outfit:
Today's fragrance: Fresh Sugar Lychee eau de parfum
Today's hair: sprayed with my homemade leave-in (water, leave-in conditioner, pomegranate seed oil, olive oil) and pulled up in a Tomoka's Twist with silver beads
ETA: I'm adding a couple pics that I managed to get on my cell phone. Admittedly, they're not the greatest, but I guess they're better than nothing!
This morning's skincare:
Today's make-up:
Today's fragrance: Fresh Hesperides eau de parfum
Today's outfit:
Okay, so truthfully, though awards season is usually my second favorite time of year, I wasn't as excited about the Oscars this year as I have been every other year. Perhaps it's because of the writers' strike - I think I'm still trying to get myself geared back up into caring about television.
The overwhelming colors of the night were red and black. The most common make-up seen was very fresh and very, very light - rosy cheeks and stained, bitten lips. Very few women with over-the-top or glamorous make-up. Most looked pretty, but not at all glam, facewise.
Anne Hathaway. I loved this! She looks like a statue of Venus - very goddess-like in the folds and draping. I love the flower detail on the shoulder. As you can see, she's one of the women sporting the very simple make-up with red stained lips.
Patrick and Jillian (Fink) Dempsey. Damn him for being married! He is some hotness, do you not agree? And look at Jillian! So pretty - I love the color, which came across onscreen as a vibrant coral. I love her loose hair and sophisticated make-up. Bravo to the Dempseys!
Ruby Dee. In a ruby red dress, befitting her name! She looks sleek and elegant in this gown. I love that, as an older lady, she's still able to show the young chicks how it's done. Go 'head, Ms. Ruby!
Amy Adams. Veronica Lake revisited. Love the hair and the emerald gown. I hated that little gold mesh bag. I thought it was hysterical that Ryan Seacrest pointed out that the bag is totally impractical and that there isn't even anything in it.
Daniel Day-Lewis and Rebecca Miller. Dude. I think D D-L actually believes he lives in an Edith Wharton novel. I mean, check out the shoes - seriously??? Why is he wearing those shoes??? His wife is wearing an 80s prom gown that she's reconfigured for the Oscars - we appreciate it, Ms. Miller. Good Lord. I mean, it looks like she has tree ornaments stuck to the front of it. And seriously, is that velvet?!?
Miley Cyrus and mom. I love that she looks young and appropriate. Again with the tomato red.
Jessica Alba. I think she looks lovely in this eggplant gown.
Kristen Chenowith. I feel like I've seen this on someone else before.
Jennifer Garner. I feel like I should hate this because it's black and strapless, but I find the ruffling and whatnot on the bottom to be quite interesting. I also love that she went with the subtle cat eye and nude lip, rather than the rosy cheeks and lips that everyone else did.
Marion Cotillard. Another gown I think I should hate - but I love it! It looks like it's covered in fish scales, doesn't it? She's a modern day mermaid! Love the long, wavy hair. She is a fave.
Helen Mirren. She is always one of my favorites. The sexiest old chick out there!
Cameron Diaz. Why do I even discuss her? I almost always hate what she's wearing. She's such a disappointment. The dress is a huge, ugly, wrinkly mess. It looks like she woke up that morning, wrapped her sheets around her and went on out to the red carpet. A hot buttered mess.
Jennifer Hudson. Oh, Jen, so much better! Yay! I love the shape on her and that white looks great against her brown skin.
Tilda Swinton. She looks like a vampire - and not the fly ones who hang out with the Lestat. The loser ones, the dorks - the ones who stay inside eating rats rather than venturing out into the world. I read that the dress was made of washed silk, but it looks like crushed velvet. Gah.
Ellen Page. She's really starting to chafe. I get it, chick. You're not "Hollywood". You're a "serious actress." But that's no reason for you to wear a garment bag to the Oscars. Lord. She looks like an old woman.
Spike Lee and Wesley Snipes. Seriously. Who invited Wesley Snipes? I mean, is he Spike Lee's date? He looks like 1989 from top to bottom. Of course, 1989 is probably the last time he was relevant. I'm not even going to comment on Spike, since he always looks like a beetle dressed in a pimp suit.
Cate Blanchett. Always a fave - she makes very interesting choices. I like this a lot, though it's not the best thing she's ever worn. She's hugely pregnant, so she gets a bit of a pass.
Nicole Kidman. I get the idea of the necklace, but the execution was bad. I love the necklace, but it doesn't go with the dress at all and it slid around all night long. Bad idea, Nicole - your new pregnant breasts can't accommodate that. If you were flatter-chested it would have rested nicely and not been flying all around.
In other news, her face looks like it's made of wax. Scary.
Penelope Cruz. Reminiscent of Jennifer Garner's gown, yet this one is hideous.
Diablo Cody. That's not her real name, right? Diablo Cody is totally her stripper name, no? Mine would be Sheba Lauretta. Moving on ... I kind of like this. I'm a big leopard-print fan and I like that it looks kind of loose and casual, but a bit glammed up. The problem is that when she walked, she almost flashed her chocha. Not good, hon.
So, here's the breakdown:
Best-dressed: Anne Hathaway, Helen Mirren, Marion Cotillard
Worst-dressed: Cameron Diaz, Rebecca Miller, Daniel Day-Lewis, Wesley Snipes
Most improved: Jennifer Hudson
Can't wait 'til next year!
All photos courtesy of Oscars.com.
Last night's skincare:
This morning's skincare:
Today's make-up:
Today's outfit:
Today's fragrance:
The Body Shop Peach Body Butter, Fresh Fig Apricot eau de parfum
