A Tail Of Two Headbands

Just in case you've been somewhere and just got back, allow me bring you up to speed. Braids are all the rage. Anybody who's anybody has been spied sporting milkmaid plaits, cornrows, and microbraids.

Wanna join the braid brigade, but got two left hands? Or don't have the time to brush your hair, let alone braid it? Don't be discouraged. It's Tonytail to the rescue.

The Tonytail Company has these great braided headbands, made of soft, synthetic hair. For a chunkier look, try Thick Braidies (1/2 inch). Thin Braidies (1/4 inch) are for stylistas going for a more subtle interpretation of the trend.

I wore both Braidies all over NYC for Fashion Week. The dark brown color was such a perfect match to my own hair that I received countless compliments - from friends and strangers.

Check me out (accompanied by the lovely Amber and Marina) rocking the Thick Braidies headband at a Fashion Week dinner, sponsored by MAC. It's all about the braided hair, baby!

New York Fashion Week: Bellissima, Massimo and Molton Brown!

On the second day of Fashion Week, representatives from Molton Brown set up shop in Total Beauty’s suite at the Bryant Park Hotel.

I got the skinny on some new and soon-to-be-released products…and hairstylist extraordinaire Massimo gave me a blowout that took my limp hair from flat to phat.

My hair miraculously held up through Hurricane Hanna, thanks to Molton Brown’s Volumising Brahmi Hair Straight & Curl and Smoothing Lila Leaf Hair-Gloss. I kid you not...it looked the same at 1am, when my head finally hit the pillow, as it did at 3pm when Massimo finished his masterpiece.

New York Fashion Week: Sebastian Reinvented, and Hanging Wit Cory Kennedy

Last Saturday, after show hopping at the tents, I headed on over to the Bryant Park Hotel's Cellar Bar for a Total Beauty cocktail soiree sponsored by Sebastian. As we were popping bottles and noshing on mouthwatering muchies, we were schooled on the fearless and fashionable reinvention of Sebastian Professional.

After more than three decades of churning out cult hairstyling classics, Sebastian launched an investigation to figure out how they could take the company to the next level and bring it into the new millenium. This resulted in over two years of product testing and over 10,000 conversations with stylists and consumers to identify where the brand could fill a void. The product testing and feedback convinced Sebastian that the brand was in need of a complete overhaul.

The new Sebastian Professional is "a focused and powerful collection of over 30 products that combines Sebastian heritage heroes with new and exciting innovation." Designed to offer versatility in use and application, the products are arranged into three categories:

Foundation: three essential shampoo and conditioner regimens (Light, Drench and Penetraitt)with tailored levels of conditioning, designed to restore a multitude of hair types to the same healthy level.

Form: eight fierce styling products designed to hold, mold and sculpt (Re-Shaper, Shaper Fierce, Shaper Zero Gravity, Liquid Steel, Gel Forte, Mousse Forte, Craft Clay and Molding Mud).

Flow: six essential treatment-stylers for creating touchable, soft and flowing hair (Thickefy Foam, Taming Elixir, Whipped Crème, Stylixir, Potion 9 & Potion 9 Lite).

The standout of the new class is the Whipped Crème Light Conditioning Style Whip. This protein-rich, ultra-light product actually resembles whipped cream, so keep it away from the kiddies and keep out of the mouths of babes. But your hair is going to love lapping it up.

Don't be fooled...this is not a mousse. It is a leave-in conditioner that increases volume, nourishes curls and waves, helps achieve a polished blowout, helps to achieve sleek strands when used in conjunction with a flat iron, but won't leave your hair sticky or stiff.

Sebastian's new face (and cult blogger/trendsetter/hipster muse), Cory Kennedy, was on-hand to testify. She was looking like million and sporting the most delicious aqua Alexandre Herchcovitch booties. The cheveux chameleon likes to experiment with different looks, and she told me that Whipped Crème can be used to achieve any style imaginable.

When I asked her how she uses the product on an average day, she said she schrunches it into her wet waves and lets it air dry. See below for the fabulous result.

So. Not. Fair!


Amber, Cory, and yours truly


Amber, Marina, Cory Kennedy and Mark "The Cobrasnake" Hunter

The Internet Gods Hate Me

As you know, I have been blogging from New York Fashion Week. But of all misfortunes to befall me at such a fortunate time, my laptop decided to up and quit on me. Geek Squad isn't proving so geeky after all...and they offered no solutions to my computer conundrum.

I have been working myself into a tizzy trying to figure out a way to work around the problem...but my schedule is just so damned busy - and I'm in an unfamiliar land - so, as you can imagine, it is quite difficult. Damned near impossible (and vexing), if I can be perfectly frank.

I so want to tell you about my trip to Estee Lauder headquarters. Or the convo I had with Bobbi Brown about Michelle Obama's eyebrows. Or the tete-a-tete I had with the mane maestro, Mr. Ted Gibson. Or last night at this Macy's where I interviewed Tommy Hilfiger and the face of new cologne, Tommy Dunn. Or the ultra-exclusive event (nine bloggers, including yours truly) at the Chanel showroom that I left early, so that I could go retrieve my tore-up computer before catching Amtrack back to Philadelphia.

I really wish I had the time and the means to dish right this second, but I'm gonna figure this out - if it's the last thing I do. So bear with me. You know what they say about patience being a virtue, and good things coming to those who wait. Keep checking back...I'm gonna give you the delicious deets just as soon as I can.

Hopefully, the Internet gods will stop messing with me and cut me some slack once I get back home.

Love ya, and we'll chat again soon!

OMFG: Gossip Girl Winners Revealed!

Spotted: D leaving her laptop with the Geek Squad after the hard drive crashes. Looks like Spoiled Pretty has rotten luck. Oh, the humanity!

Sorry, my pretties. I meant to post the names of the Gossip Girl winners earlier, but my computer died and, for the last 12 hours, I've been a blogger with no means of blogging. My laptop is still out of commission, but I've procured another computer for the time being. In the midst of Fashion Week, my first concern is my readers. You know you love me.

So without further ado, the winners of the Gossip Girl Giveaway are Aleksandra Burshteyn and Heidi Little! They have both won the Grosgrain Edie Headband and the Linen Open Work Headband from Colette Malouf. Aleksandra and Heidi will also receive Gossip Girl: The Complete First Season on DVD!

Congratulations on your prizes, ladies. Special thanks to Colette Malouf and Warner Home Video for sponsoring this giveaway. And thanks to the many Gossip Girl fans who participated.

On Spoiled Pretty, giveaways are always in fashion. So stayed tuned for the next contest, inspired by my whirlwind trip to New York Fashion Week.

You know you're intrigued...

xoxo,
Spoiled Pretty

New York Fashion Week: Erin Fetherston, Spring 2009

On Friday afternoon, I was chilling in the Total Beauty suite at Bryant Park hotel - unwinding from the day and gearing up for a fantastic first night of New York Fashion Week – when I got a Twitter message from Anne. The message instructed me to hightail it over to the tents because I was on the press list at Erin Fetherston. What was ironic about this was that I’m hardly ever on Twitter, because my life is typically too busy or boring for me to sit down and provide the world with lifestyle updates. But since I arrived in NYC, I have been Twittering like it’s my J-O-B because I can’t believe how fabulously fab my world is right now.

So as soon as I received Anne’s message, I made a bee-line for Bryant Park and checked in at the table backstage at the Promenade. I was feeling a little bit out of sorts because I wasn’t in my backstage frame of mind. I must have missed my access confirmation, and figured that I couldn’t be accommodated backstage. But the area was cramped and uber chaotic, so there was no time for being dazed and confused. Just as I psyched myself up to interview the Key Makeup Artist, the sea of models, hair stylists, makeup artists, journalists and photogs part…and then I see her. Bobbi Brown. Can you even believe it? Bobbi Brown. Yes…the Bobbi Brown.

I coolly approached her and asked her how Erin Fetherston’s Spring 2009 collection inspired the makeup look, trying not to let on how in awe of her awesomeness I actually was. It’s a good thing that I had my tape recorder on me, because I was trembling so much that transcribing the interview would have been out of the question.

“I definitely see her clothes as beautiful and very fairytale. But she wanted a sophisticated angel,” Bobbi said. “We did that with a lot of the new metallic colors, which is a combination of shimmer and glitter that is really suitable for regular women. I've been doing the shows for so many years that I started back to using the glitters and shimmers a couple of years ago and so I would go buy all of this cheap stuff and it was so hard to make it look pretty. So I created this way to look pretty…because it can look really bad with the wrong texture.”

Though Bobbi loves the look of shimmer against the skin, she warned against going overboard. “Right now, I’ve got it on the girls’ eyes as well as the cheeks, and above the eye. That doesn’t work on everybody. So for regular women, maybe wear it on the eyes and maybe a little high on the cheekbone, over blush. And if you’re wearing gloss, I think it looks nice with shimmer. But we’re doing gloss in a much cooler, more modern way. There’s nothing gooey going on. You put it on, you blot them together, and then you use your finger.”

The following Bobbi Brown products were used to achieve the look:

Face: Dewy Finish Foundation*.

Eyes: Gold Dust Metallic Eye Shadow and Lavender Metallic Eye Shadow (as a base), Velvet Plum Metallic Eye Shadow and Glitz Metallic Eye Shadow* (in the crease), Gold Celestial Eye Shadow* (all over), Violet Ink Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner and Lash Glamour Lengthening Mascara in Smoke.

Cheeks: Illuminating Bronzer* and Gold Sparkle Pot Rouge*.

Lips: Nugget Lip Gloss.*

*These shades are not yet available.

Stay tuned for more New York Fashion Week - Spring/Summer 2009 coverage!

Photo source: style.com

New York Fashion Week: Celeb Spotting

Today, I was hanging out with Jamie at the tents before the Terexov show - and we literally saw six stars in six minutes.

1) Brandy
2) Miss Jay Alexander (above)
3) Fern Mallis
4) Nigel Barker
5) Lloyd Boston
6) Jay McCarroll

I ran into Julia later on, and she told me she was chatting with Molly Sims in the lobby of the Bryant Park Hotel. Also spotted in the lobby was Zoe Saldana!

Gotta love New York Fashion Week!

Stay tuned for more New York Fashion Week - Spring/Summer 2009 coverage!

New York Fashion Week: Julie Rocks The Haus

Backstage was bustling Friday at Julie Haus. Dwight O’Neal, Key Makeup Artist for theBalm, gave me the skinny on the makeup inspired by Haus’ NYFW debut…

A model hurriedly does her makeup in a cab on the way to a go-see. She dots a lip stain on the center of her pout and blends outward with her fingers, then applies a few hasty swipes of mascara to her lashes. When she arrives at the casting, she stands out in the crowd…she’s shining through. She’s wearing the makeup. It’s not wearing her.

To create the look, Dwight (who is fabulously personable, by the by) started by creating a flawless foundation, literally, by mixing Balm Shelter Tinted Moisturizer SPF 18 with timeBalm Anti-Wrinkle Concealer. “It gives a great dewy glow and provides medium to full coverage without looking like a mask,” he says. “The mixture of these two products creates an anti-aging foundation. It’s concealing and healing!”

On the eyes, Dwight used timeBalm Anti-Wrinkle Concealer in Lighter than Light, as a primer. Then he set the concealer with Sexy Mama Translucent Powder, followed by Caught in the Act Courtney Shady Lady Eye Shadow lightly in the crease and along the lash line. He lightly dusted Luscious Lani Shady Lady Eye Shadow on the brow bone, then applied Sexy Stacy Shady Lady Eye Shadow with a wet brush as an eyeliner. After applying FIVE coats of Two Timer Mascara in Black to top lashes only, Dwight finished the eye look by shaping brows with Pick Up Liner. Bahama Mama Bronzer was applied beneath the cheekbones to contour the face.

To achieve the effortlessly sexy lip, Dwight starts with Staniac in Prom Queen (applied to the center of the lips and blended out), Read My Lips Lipstick (to moisturize), and Plump Your Pucker in Cocoa My Coconut (to plump, plump, plump, plump it up).

I also had an opportunity to chat up Marissa Shipman, the Founder & CEO of theBalm. After I went on and on about the genius of BalmsAway Eye Makeup Remover, she told me that it was inspired by her grandma. She also hinted that theBalm has an amazing new product in the works – and Julia got her to divulge that it is a lip product. I'll keep you posted as details unfold…

Oscar Blandi was the mastermind behind the masterfully beachy waves. He told me that the Julie Haus hair look embraces natural texture rather than fighting it. To replicate, start with wet hair with Proteine di Jasmine Protein Mist. Apply Volume to roots, Acqua Marina to the ends to the ends for hold, and blow dry hair to a smooth finish. Using a straightening iron, curl sections of hair in different directions to create an edgy look. Then take a few sections and braid them – then curl the braid around the flat iron. Finish the look by teasing the ends with flat brush to open up the curls. Use Tocco Finale for hold and definition and Lacca for additional volume.

Stay tuned for more New York Fashion Week - Spring/Summer 2009 coverage!

Arlenis Sosa Is Lancome's Newest Spokesperson

Talk about a Cinderella story...

Model Arlenis Sosa was just discovered earlier this year and immediately began booking jobs with American Vogue, Harper's Bazaar and other top fashion publications. Sosa recently appeared in Italian Vogue's "Black issue," and will be walking in more than a dozen shows this Fashion Week - from Proenza Schouler to Peter Som. And now comes the announcement that Arlenis has joined the Lancome family and will be their newest spokesperson.

"Arlenis possesses beauty, intelligence, charm and compassion," says Lancome President Odile Roujol. "All of our brand ambassadors share these attributes, so we knew she would be a wonderful addition. We are very proud to welcome her to the Lancome family."

Lancome's other brand spokepersons reads like a who's who list; ambassadors include Anne Hathaway, Kate Winslet, Juliette Binoche, Clive Owen, Daria Werbowy and Selena Breed. Ads featuring Arlenis Sosa will appear in 2009.