I channeled my inner surfer girl at a recent preview for Quicksilver Women. In a warehouse loft space on the edge of Chinatown, bloggers got interactive and customized skateboards with neon spray paint and transformed torn t-shirts into beach bags.
The California brand's casual, cool women's wear collection for Spring/Summer 2010 features trendy tees and tops, shorts, dresses, and of course a bevy of sporty swimsuits.
Better yet, all pieces are generally under $100.
Me with my D.I.Y. bag made from a Quiksilver t-shirt.
I love this flowery "McCall" one-piece ($98).
You'll keep feeling good vibrations in this cute Quik Women skirt or dress.
Writing a beauty and style blog gives me an excuse to try out new products. During my recent retreat I treated myself to a cleansing facial with Dr. Hauschka products. Several months ago, I received Dr. Hauschka's Holistic Aromatherapy Baths essential oil travel kit (Lemon, Lavender, Rosemary, Spruce, and Sage), so I was familiar with the product line.
After my soothing facial, my aesthetician Mary recommended a couple products for me to take home. The Normalizing Day Oil, infused with Apricot Kernel Oil, St. John's Wort, Carrot Extract, and Jojoba Oil among other natural ingredients, is good for oily, blemished, and acne-prone skin. I've written about the wonders the Clarisonic Plus has done in exfoliating my skin. Now let's see if this day oil will help eradicate those pesky breakouts and blemishes.
To further assist in exfoliation, Mary suggested I make my own cleanser with baking soda powder and water. She also recommended I pick up a loose clay powder at the health food store or use Dr. Hauschka's Cleansing Clay Mask
for fifteen minutes a few times a week to help absorb excess oil, soothe inflammation, and reduce blemishes.
My toes were in drastic need of a chipped polish removal; I had to give them a makeover before unleashing them during afternoon yoga and dance classes. And Dazzle Drycame to the rescue.
Although the remover didn't sound strong enough to tackle the two coats of dark polish caked on my nails, it did the trick faster than most generic drugstore brands I've tried.
Better yet, essential oils of lemongrass and clove give Dazzle Dry a fresh, non-chemical scent and leave your cuticles and nails with a healthy, moisturized glow.
Collecting cool, quirky, funky, and simply pretty jewelry is one of my shopping passions. So I made a bee-line for Chime London jewelry at a recent summer accessories press preview.
Crafted by London-based designer Karen McGuire (photo to the right), Chime's pieces are inspired by her affection for beads and materials from Hong Kong and Southeast Asia.
Upon graduating from the Royal College of Art with a degree in Textiles and Accessory design, McGuire worked at Donna Karan in New York in the knitwear division.
She then moved back to Hong Kong -- where she was raised and educated as a child -- and worked at Shanghai Tang before developing her own Chime London line. That entrepreneurial move grew out of friends and family asking her to make them trinkets similar to the ones she made for herself.
"It's great to do what you love," McGuire says.
The Spring/Summer 2010 line showcases a Goddess Collection of ornate beaded bib and statement necklaces and one-of-a-kind charm bracelets and necklaces accented with Koi fish, owls, birds, butterflies, tiger tooth, and Chime's signature cloisonne bead charms.
McGuire plans to bring Chime London to select U.S. boutiques, but for now you can pick up her unique pieces online.
In Norma Kamali's world, wellness and fashion go hand-in-hand. But Kamali has always been ahead of the curve.
She rose to fame in the '80s and her glam swimsuits, classic evening and sportswear, and signature sleeping bag coats are still must-haves for any uptown girl's wardrobe. Budget fashionistas everywhere can also shop her affordable Norma Kamali for Walmart line (stylish swimsuits are $20 and under).
The designer (above photo), known for her trademark sunglasses, recently re-launched her Wellness Cafe where she sells her favorite olive oils from Italy, Spain, and France; olive-oil based skincare products and massage oils; Intelligent Nutrients anti-aging products by Horst; and fitness videos by Physique 57.
I spent an afternoon at the inviting, stark cafe, which offers visitors a chance to nosh on healthy snacks including yummy kale chips and tasty, fresh fruit and vegetable juices at the Organic Avenue juice bar.
"Organic Avenue is 85% of my daily diet," says Kamali. "It's a great way to be trim, fit, and healthy."
Kamali originally opened the cafe in 2007 out of a desire to provide a healthier place for she and her neighboring retailers to eat. Since she's given up her daily morning bagel for a diet free of non-processed food and rich in plant based products and olive oil, she's reached her desired weight and looks half her age.
Check out Ms. Kamali's blog and stop by the Wellness Cafe at her multi-level flagship store:
OMO Norma Kamali 11 W. 56th Street near Fifth Ave. (212) 957- 9797
I'm not a perfume-nista, but I've developed a nose for fresh scents with spicy, floral notes. Here are a few of my favorite perfumes for the spring/summer season:
One of the new scents from the typically New York-centric Bond No. 9 brand is Harrods for Her, an homage to the famous London department store. The exotic scent has notes of leather, amber, mandarin, sage, and nutmeg. Insider tip: If you're in New York, stop by one of the Bond No. 9 stores and ask for a sample.
Halle by Halle Berry Pure Orchid Perfume would make a great gift for Mom. It includes notes of jungle cactus flower, lemon, blackberry creme, star anise, orchid, and patchouli.
You'll want to collect all of these limited-edition, beach-ready Harijuku LoversSunshine Cuties. I was given a bottle of the Love girl wearing a striped one-piece bathing suit and white sunglasses. Besides being super-cute, the perfume smells good too. Love's fragrance is fruity and floral with notes of lemon blossom, nectarine, and passion fruit, rose petals, plumeria, coconut water, and sandalwood.
"You know who you look like?" a woman once asked me while I was getting my hair pressed. I shook my head "No."
"Grace Jones," the woman replied.
The musky smell of hot hair and Afro-Sheen lingered. My tweleve-year-old face sullened.
"She thinks I look like that scary lady?" I thought to myself.
Detecting my dismay, she offered, "I mean that as a compliment." I feigned a smile.
When the woman left, my hairdresser Shirley reassured me, "You don't look like Grace Jones. You're prettier than that."
You see, at that adolescent age I didn't want to be associated with anyone darker than I already was. Growing up and to this day, the beauty of darker skinned black women is often prefaced with the footnote, "You're pretty for a dark-skinned girl" or the curious cat-call "Hey dark and lovely." I still don't understand what skin color has to do with your degree of beauty.
Yet decades since I was offended that someone thought I looked like Grace Jones (the only real similarity is that we've both been blessed with high cheekbones and deep brown skin), I've re-discovered and embraced that mad icon of brazen sexuality and avant-garde style.
For years I combed vintage stores for a t-shirt emblazoned with her androygynous image, and finally found one at Zara of all places. At a Brooklyn Salvation Army, I dug in the $1 record crates and found copies of her 1982 Living My Life LP and the 12" single of the rhythmically intoxicating single "Slave to the Rhythm."
The Sally Army sales clerk gave me and the album covers a puzzled double-take. "Isn't that the girl from Conan [the Barbarian]?" he asked.
I loved Grace as a nocturnal seductress in the campy vampire flick Vamp, as the crazed Amazonian villain opposite James Bond in A View to a Kill, and as the comical diva Strangee in Boomerang, but I didn't immediately recall her from Conan. An older man standing in line remembered and proudly told the clerk, "Yes, that's Grace Jones."
Weeks later, I was sitting in the Musee' d'art contemporain de Montreal (the Contemporary Museum of Art in Montreal) watching the uncensored version of Grace's stereotype-riddled-redefining (black face, pickinnies, Venus Hotentot), gender-bending, high-art-meets-couture fashion video for "Slave to the Rhythm."
I was mesmerized. Grace is unashamedly black, bold and beautiful. I strive to be as fearless in my skin as she is in hers. From her '80s heyday to now at age 62, Ms. Jones is a muse for black girls and self-empowered women everywhere.
The cheekbones. The accent. The rock star husband. I've met a lot of famous folks. My latest celebrity meet-and-greet, however, was perhaps my most star-struck fashion world encounter.
The line launched in select drugstores nationwide and online at drugstore.com this month, and joins the brand's two other mineral makeup lines -- Second to None Cover Cream Enriched with Minerals ($13) and Second to None Semi-Loose Powder Enriched with Minerals ($15).
Iman's Luxury Radiance Liquid Mineral Makeup offers women of color an eight-shade range of sheer-to-medium, natural-looking coverage. The shades come in three categories -- Sand, Clay, and Earth -- and are enriched with natural plant extracts Acai and Magnolia and Vitamin E to hydrate and enhance skin tone.
"This is the kind of foundation I like to wear. It covers blemishes and conceals," says Iman, still stunning at 55. "Women of color don't want to look shiny. We have oily skin to begin with, God bless us. That's why we look like this [she says referring to herself] and age so well."
Although IMAN Cosmetics is a top brand for black women, the company's focus has always been on skin tone and type and not one specific ethnicity.
"I didn't just want to do a black line. I wanted to do a brown line for black, Latin, and Asian women," the Somalian beauty explains. "It's a new language, a new world. Don't put everyone in the same category of black and white."
She adds: "The brand translates worldwide. At the end of the day, every [woman] wants to be beautiful in [her] own skin tone."
Supermodel Makeup Tips:
"Less is better, especially when you get older," says Iman, whose makeup bag consists of press powder with a brush, lip gloss, and bronzer. "Dark and red lipstick looks harsh when you're [a woman of a certain age]."
"A little bronzer goes a long way," she adds. "Jennifer Lopez didn't become J. Lo without the bronzer."
IMAN Cosmetics Creative Director and makeup expert Byron Barnes says it's important to balance your makeup. "Don't wage a color war," he says. "If you do a smoky eye, do a nude lip."
When it comes to applying foundation, Barnes says to use your fingers for maximum coverage; a sponge for less coverage; and a makeup brush for medium coverage.
And Iman reminds us that every woman should wear SPF regardless of her skin color.
Unlike other shapewear brands, Yummie Tummie is so cute you won't want to cover it up. Designed by Heather Thomson, a former stylist and creative director for Beyonce, P. Diddy, and J. Lo, Yummie Tummie is a hybrid of fashion meets function. Alicia Keys is a fan too.
A couple years ago, I was introduced to the line when I was sent samples of a long-sleeve black shirt and a white tank from the Seasonless Collection. Those samples are still going strong, perhaps because they're made with a patented dual fabric. The secret weapon comes from the same-tone, firm control midsection panel which secretly smoothes and shapes your tummie and hips.
In addition to a sexy Intimates Collection you won't be shy to show off, for Fall 2010 Yummie Tummie has launched a fashion-forward Ready-To-Wear Collection (available in mid-June/July) full of funky tops and leggings. I love the black top to the right with shoulder pads and embellished, sequined sleeves.
Yummie Tummie is available online and at select retailers including Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus.
None of us looks forward to getting our period. For me, that's a time for double pad-and-panty duty. I know, TMI. But thanks to Necessit-Ease ($14), there's a stylish panty that provides more coverage.
I was sent a pair of the period undies to...um...test drive, and they're cute and comfy. The panties were designed by Grace SooHoo after a conversation with her girlfriends about their menstrual woes sparked the idea.
They're made with a breathable poly-coated fabric and meant to provide an effective layer of protection even during the heaviest days of your cycle. I still prefer to double up, but for max coverage now I can wear two pair of Necessit-Ease -- a simple solution to a common problem.
Necessit-Ease is available online and coming soon to a retailer near you. You know you want a pair.
Thanks to everyone who entered the Everything She Wants OKA b. giveaway! It was my most successful contest yet (but then again I've only had two).
And the winner is... Amy Lynn from Illinois. She followed my contest rules to the letter (she's following the blog, following me on Twitter, and she ReTweeted). Her winning answer is:
"I want/NEED a paid of OKA b. shoes because my feet have finally come out of their dark cave (winter shoes). New sandals are the most perfect thing to have in the spring and summer. And if they are comfortable, that just makes them WAY better."
Even if you didn't win, you too can pick up a pair of OKA b. sandals and save 20%! Go to shoesthatloveyou.com and before you check out enter the promo code, INSIDER20.
Five years after she battled Santino Rice and Daniel Vosovic to win the coveted title of top designer on the second season of “Project Runway,” Chloe Dao is still building her fashion empire. Since May 2008, the designing woman has been selling her popular Simply Chloe Dao line on QVC, and in 2009 she launched a line of slim laptop cases and luggage, Dao Chloe Dao for Nuo.
The industrious designer recently took a break from her hectic schedule to chat with me, and I was delighted to find out the Houston, Texas resident is a lot funnier than she led on during her TV stint.
“I couldn’t compete with those gay guys from my season” she says.
How did being on “Project Runway” change your life and your career?
Chloe: My life is crazier than ever -- I have my store [Lot 8], QVC, and the Nuo line. So my design repertoire has expanded. I travel every two weeks to New York and to Philly [QVC is based in West Chester Pennsylvania]. I have a fan base and I’m still doing interviews after all these years. It’s amazing that people still care since season two was so long ago.
What do you think of your “Project Runway” cast mate Santino being a judge on RuPaul’s “Drag Race.”
Chloe: I love the show. This season the drag queens are even prettier. I hope JuJuBee wins. I love her. More power to Santino. It takes a lot to be a successful designer, [so] it’s good to be on a show that’s about fashion in its own right. He’s a perfect fit for the show.
What do you think of this season’s “Project Runway?”
Chloe: I was watching up until Ping, the crazy Asian girl, got eliminated. They let 10 designers show at Fashion Week. It’s insulting to past seasons. What’s the point if [almost] every designer gets to show at Fashion Week? They could have waited and let three designers show. I was turned off and disgusted. I feel bad for both seasons [6 and 7], especially [sixth season winner] Irina [Shabayeva]. She didn’t have the experience of walking out with the crowd.
Did you ever consider moving to New York to open a boutique?
Chloe: I lived in New York for eight years before Houston. It’s tough to survive and Houston has been amazing to me. [In New York), it’s hard to stand out and I didn’t want to be one of many. I don’t think I had the finances. The prize for winning “Project Runway” was $100,000; then taxes takes about $30,000. So you have $65,000 left over. That’s fabric and one collection. And if you show in New York Fashion Week, that’s $30,000. You have to be thrifty, and $65,000 is not a lot in New York.
Chloe: It’s sportswear for all ages and sizes, from extra small to 3X. It’s contemporary; not a lot of short sleeves because every woman has an issue with her arms. It’s like J. Crew meets Anthropologie, with a lot of details and textures that give bang for the buck. The customer is aged 35 to 65. My mother is 64. I’m turning 39 this year, Lord have mercy! I’ve been preparing for 40 by telling everyone I’m already a year older.
How does your Dao Chloe Dao collection for your Lot 8 boutique in Houston differ from your OVC line?
Chloe: My design philosophy is to design for everyone. My high-end collection at my boutique [only] goes up to size 10. I’m my own size 6. I used to be my own size 2. But QVC is for everyone. It’s rewarding when you get live phone calls. A woman who was a size 3X said my clothes make her feel beautiful. I never try to hide the figure. I try to enhance it. I know because I have issues with mine all the time. My [Lot 8] ready-to-wear line is for women who are already for risk takers and who understand fashion. But I get to educate the QVC customer on how to wear [clothes] for your body and age.
Chloe: It’s very cool to carry your own luggage. You never lose it cause your name is on it. I saw a woman carrying my laptop case in the airport and asked her where she got it. She said Office Max. At first she was like, “Who is this little Asian girl harassing me?” Then she realized who I was.
All designers want to design everything. Any time I’m given an opportunity to branch out from just clothes, I jump at it. Who doesn’t want to be a lifestyle brand? We all aim to be Ralph Lauren.
What’s next for Chloe Dao?
Chloe: On April 17 I’m showing my spring collection in a charity fashion show in Houston. Once I show [the clothes], they’re available. That works better than waiting for six months [like at Fashion Week].
To purchase tickets for Chloe's upcoming "Lightness" 2010 Spring Fashion Show, go to www.warehouselive.com.
During Spa Week, you can enjoy luxurious treatments (facials, massages, body wraps, etc.) for only $50 at spas in New York City and across the country. Appointments are booking up fast, so don't miss your chance to get your pamper on! For the full Spa Week Directory, go to spaweek.com.
One...er...intriguing treatment that's sure to start a conversation or two is Vajazzling. Let's just say it's a waxing treatment that leaves your Vjaja sparkly! Fellow blogger and beauty gal about town Bryce Gruber of The Luxury Spot got Vajazzled a few months ago and documented the experience for Spa Week Blog.
Watch the You Tube video and see the results for yourself.
You too can get Vajazzled and win a session at four freaky spas across the Northwest. Click here for more info on the contest and participating spas.
Tulle’s amazing online sale begins tomorrow, April 6 at 12 am PST (that's 3 am EST) for one day only!
Scoop up the hottest Spring trends, including trenches starting at only $9.99 and jewelry as low as $2.99. I want these pretty Filigree Earrings ($10).
OKA b. shoes and sandals are affordably priced at $40 or less. And one lucky Everything She Wants reader will win a pair of the trendy, uber-comfy shoes.
The Summer 2010 collection not only includes cute flip-flops and thongs -- it also features an array of colorful slides and sandals with fashionable and girly details like studs, bows, and flowers.
The revolutionary comfort footwear brand is founded on the idea that fashion and comfort should never be mutually exclusive. But OKA b. (Shoes That Love You) isn't just any comfort shoe. The shoe integrates the properties of reflexology through a massaging foot bed. As if you needed even more incentive to want a pair, OKA b. are also odor-resistant, non-slip, and machine washable.
Here's how you can enter to win a pair (you need a Twitter account):
1) Retweet this post so all of your Twitter friends will know about this cool giveaway 2) Follow me on Twitter @tracyehopkins 3) Respond to this post with your first name and email address and tell me why you want/need a pair of OKA b. shoes (creativity goes a long way)
The contest will end Friday, April 9th at 10 a.m. Good luck!
In between taking my hair out of double-strand twists and getting it re-twisted, I've always wanted to get it colored, blown out, and flat-ironed. Yesterday I went to the Aveda Institute in Manhattan and did just that.
At the Institute, students cut, color, and style for a fraction of what those services would cost in a NYC salon. Unlike a regular salon, however, you can't make an appointment for a particular stylist. So I went in hoping to get a woman of color to work on my tightly coiled natural hair. Instead, I got a young Asian man named Daniel.
I was a bit skeptical, especially after I asked him if he'd ever worked on my hair type and he said he had...once. But during the course of my four-hour visit, Daniel put in work. The only sign I saw he was flustered was when he tried to beat my hair out of his brush (it clings to everything). He really earned his certificate after my visit. Plus he got a second education in how important anti-humectant products and protecting our "edges" are to African-American women.
Daniel's bubbly instructor helped him out too ("I ain't scared," he said), especially during the rigorous process of blowing out my shrinkage. My hair became sort of a group project and at least three more instructors plus a fellow student -- a woman named Massa from West Africa -- helped Daniel navigate his first flat-iron.
Overall, I was pleased with the end result. It's nice to know that my tresses can be straightened without getting a perm. Although I plan to get my hair re-twisted (above photo to the right) this weekend, I like having styling options. For now, my hair is pulled back into a Tyra-style pony (above photo to the left). In a few months, I'll take my hair out again and have it cut in a Rihanna-esque style bob.
(Lemon, Lavender, Rosemary, Spruce, and Sage), so I was familiar with the product line. 
, infused with Apricot Kernel Oil, St. John's Wort, Carrot Extract, and Jojoba Oil among other natural ingredients, is good for oily, blemished, and acne-prone skin. I've written about the wonders the Clarisonic Plus
has done in exfoliating my skin. Now let's see if this day oil will help eradicate those pesky breakouts and blemishes.
charms.
anti-aging products by Horst; and fitness videos by Physique 57.
brand is Harrods for Her
would make a great gift for Mom. It includes notes of jungle cactus flower, lemon, blackberry creme, star anise, orchid, and patchouli.
Sunshine Cuties. I was given a bottle of the Love girl wearing a striped one-piece bathing suit and white sunglasses. Besides being super-cute, the perfume smells good too. Love's fragrance is fruity and floral with notes of lemon blossom, nectarine, and passion fruit, rose petals, plumeria, coconut water, and sandalwood.
I found on Essence.com prompted me to republish a love letter of sorts that I wrote to Grace Jones
on my former blog, Tracy's Pop & Shop. She is my hero. I'm sure Lady Gaga
and Rihanna
feel the same way.
LP and the 12" single of the rhythmically intoxicating single "Slave to the Rhythm
."
I loved Grace as a nocturnal seductress in the campy vampire flick Vamp
, as the crazed Amazonian villain opposite James Bond in A View to a Kill
, and as the comical diva Strangee in Boomerang
, but I didn't immediately recall her from Conan
. An older man standing in line remembered and proudly told the clerk, "Yes, that's Grace Jones."
A couple years ago, I was introduced to the line when I was sent samples of a long-sleeve black shirt and a white tank from the Seasonless Collection. Those samples are still going strong, perhaps because they're made with a patented dual fabric. The secret weapon comes from the same-tone, firm control midsection panel which secretly smoothes and shapes your tummie and hips.
TULLE - tulle : accessories : Filigree Earring
