A New You in 2016

A new year is approaching very quickly as we are ready to transform ourselves into what we envision, inside our minds. Yes, that dream, that goal, that ideal image that is hidden safely inside your thoughts, is the real you and it's time to transform into that person in 2016. 

Lift your glass, lift your spirits, as the new year is destined to bring you only happiness and contentment because it's right there inside of you right now. So get busy. Don't try to set a goal, don't try to lose those last pounds, don't try to meditate about a better year, just do it. Just thinking about it won't make it happen, just do it. 

Throw out those planners, those journals, those calendars, just do it. If you pick up interesting ideas along your journey, fine, no problem, keep a delightful small note pad in your tote bag, your pocket, your car, you will be surprised what ideas come along as you observe other people, pick up that magazine, or browse through those village shops. You always want that small note pad with you because you never know who you might meet, what light bulb will go on inside and you have a breakthrough, something will click, that will make your life better, instantly. 

Here's to a Happy New Year and a happy new YOU!

The Holiday Season

It's that holiday season again and the season of eating your heart out as you gather around your family and friends in their homes and at restaurants, indulging in your heart's desire. But this blog is about style, and not about following the crowd. Develop your own traditions and think about what is important to you as we approach the end of another year. The main purpose of the holidays is to get you to spend, expand, and indulge and then regret it the following year. You honestly do not have to keep that corporation in the black every year, that is not your concern or responsibility. You have your own life to think about and how you want to spend it and it's not buying tons of junk you either give away or throw away each season.

Thanksgiving can be very simple by decorating with beautiful flowers. Use your imagination to create a welcoming atmosphere in your home. 

Create a dessert table for guests with winter decorations as a diversion from the traditional and the hum-drum [ugly] red and green every year. I give you permission to create your own holiday style.

Tips? There is no need to buy that turkey in the grocery store that has been frozen since 2007 and then you have to slave in a kitchen for hours wasting your time trying to cook it and then you are stuck with tons of turkey leftovers that end up in the garbage. There are plenty of other options for a traditional dinner, however, why not just cook your favorite meal for friends or family? Playing hostess is fun and you don't have to follow national traditions, make your own that will create lasting memories for friends and family and, if you are stuck, I mean, privileged to have children in the home, it will create lasting fun memories for them that may not involve the slaughter of wildlife or having a tree in the middle of your living room [I mean come on, have we not gotten past that?] that gets dumped in the garbage. No I am not saying don't eat meat or don't have a small faux tree in a corner of the room or on a tabletop, but be conservative. Buy food from your local butcher or buy meatless options that are available anytime in the grocery that are not made up of products from animals that died years ago. 

Shopping? Well, a girl has to think about those bargains and deals yet, are they really? If you only buy what will add to your wardrobe, not junk it up, and what will be timeless, you won't keep wondering what to wear or how to accessorize an outfit. Do you need to shop for other people in your life? Planning ahead of time will avoid those crowds in the stores or wasting too much time on the Internet. People don't want junk gifts every year that they have to find a place for in their house. Alternative gift giving is always something that would work better, expanding your thought process and developing your own style. Perhaps, a special dinner or making a special dessert is your gift to your family. How about a day at the beauty parlor or a retreat at a spa. You can screen classic films to expand the minds of your children or steal away with that special someone in your life for a fun road trip to explore places you have never seen before.

Have fun this season and think about sharing some quality time with the important people in your life.

Star Style Focus: Alain Delon

November 8th was Alain Delon's birthday and he just turned 80 years old and is still a style icon having perfect looks and talent all in one incredible package. His talents and charm allowed him to take on the romantic leads as well as his well-known gangster roles while shining brightly in suspense and dramatic films such as the original French version of the Matt Damon film "The Talented Mr. Ripley", with the French movie called in English "Purple Noon" and Alain played the lead character Tom Ripley.

Pictured below could be a current photo, his perfect looks and simple style lasts through the decades as he is pictured in 1965 in San Francisco filming "Once a Thief", a wonderful film with Ann-Margret.

Alain was always a lover of horses and owned racing stock and it's really difficult to look away once Alain is in the room. I think he has found his match in this incredible photo of Alain riding the black horse, absolute perfection in one photo is just a bit difficult to absorb all at once. Perfect form in the saddle with Alain just achieving perfection in his looks, style, and ability on horseback. Feel free to take your time and gaze upon the image. I know I will.











Oh, no, we are not done gazing upon the perfect looks and style of Alain.

Looking for some suggestions for your own Alain Delon film fest? Any one of his films will delight you but here are a few of my suggestions as we head into the holiday season and you might have some time at home to sit by the fireplace and watch some classic films. Well, Alain is just a few clicks away as you slide his films into your favorite movie player and sit back and enjoy. You won't be disappointed.

His style is timeless and can be duplicated today with ease as we celebrate the talented Mr. Delon.

Fashion Houses

YSL, the greatest fashion designer of
all time created the iconic Tuxedo look for women
a style that still works today.

Even though there are plenty of new fashion houses throughout the globe, nothing can match the original classic fashion houses formed before the 1980's. In fact, any fashion designer or major fashion house can hardly compare with that time period in fashion, mainly the 1960's and 70's, with classic designs that have stood the test of time and have emerged as solid fashion houses of the current era. To this day, it is sketchy at best that any of the designers past 1980 did anything new, different, or innovative save for a few, like Dolce and Gabbana or Alexander McQueen.

Gucci [formed in 1921] still produces iconic fashion and made an impressive showing in Milan for Fashion Week this month, premiering their line for Spring/Summer 2016. Oh yes, the famous and very old fashion house still stands to this day and still does incredible designs and produce solid products that can in fact, be timeless, where the person doesn't really want to keep changing up their wardrobe each and every year, but has staples and styles that really can last a lifetime and not look out-dated and will be pieces you want to keep and not toss whenever the next designer comes along to tell us what to wear.

No one wants a dull stale closet, but we do want staples that look good and make us look for that all important first impression. Stick with the classic designers and you won't go wrong.

Lipstick, Ladies

I can't tell you how many times I see women trashing their looks because they have nothing on their lips. Even if you go out without anything on your face [heaven forbid] do not neglect the mouth. I know, good oral hygiene is first on your list. Do not avoid that poor guy or gal sitting in a room all day playing with their drills, called dentists. Your lips can make or break you and tells people immediately the type of person you are, as first impressions cannot be undone. Even if you don't work in an office and your only pressing appointment is with your manicurist, never go out in public without taking care of that most important thing on your face, the mouth, what you use to speak, to smile, with everything else on your face coming in second.

You don't need to coat your lips with heavy matte color, but you need something on your lips to complete your polished look, whether heading for the nearest cafe or to the nearest board room. Here are some examples so you can see how simple it is to maintain a healthy polished look without spending a lot of money or time in front of a mirror. Lipstick to go, baby, that's the ticket, and I am here to get you that ticket to success. Do not neglect those lips, ladies, lipstick is ageless, you won't regret it.

Everyday wear: Burt's Bees makes a variety of glosses and lip balms to condition your lips and provide nice color. Toss a bunch of colors in your makeup bag.

Interviews, business meetings, the board room: You can use a matte color or a satin finish for the work place; choose a color to compliment your skin tone. You can go with a dark color if you have clear skin and very white teeth, otherwise use a neutral color. Remember, if you are wearing more color or a heavier lipstick, dab before eating or drinking, then reapply later. A few good brands are Clinique, YSL, and Bobbi Brown.

For evening wear, you can just about do whatever you want. Experiment with bolder colors or deep pigments, it's your call. Careful of keeping the lipstick on your lips and not on your teeth or slipping off the lips. If you wear a lip liner, stick within the same color tone, none of that dark line around the lips with a lighter color on the lips; big mistake.

If you need inspiration, here's a good example of Margot Robbie. Notice the dark eye and light lip color on the left as opposed to the lighter eye and bright red lip color. Easy looks you can copy too and can go from day to night. Have fun with lipsticks and glosses, you are doing your lips a favor keeping them conditioned and the skin around them will stay younger and firmer much longer than the average girl who doesn't read this blog.

Celebrity Cosmetic Skin Care Products - Avoid?

Bottom line, the aged celebrities need to make money so they target the women out there who don't go to stores and rely on what they see on television and order the product on their computers. They don't read the latest fashion magazines and are bargain hunters, hunting in all the wrong places. Am I insulting anyone out there? Good, because it's called making stars rich while you stare at the same reflection in your mirror day after day.

There are dozens of topical skin creams, and as a rule of thumb, stay clear of any products with a celebrity's name stamped on them. Most are products packaged overseas and contain ingredients that do nothing at best, they don't want lawsuits if you react badly to an ingredient, they don't want negative attention, and it helps aging stars to pocket some dough because their careers are over.

Facelifts, fillers and wigs,
that is the secret to aged
celebs looking young on
a red carpet with bright
lights and airbrushed
photos. 

Christie Brinkley is the latest with a topical skin cream that the commercials say will provide firming and toning and a beautiful complexion. Well, of course it will, providing you already have great skin and have no bagging or sagging to begin with, let's say, a woman under 30 years old. if anyone has seen Christie lately, she is a specimen of many years of plastic surgery, nips and tucks, and fillers injected to freeze the face. You name it that woman has done it. Much like any wealthy celebrity heading for the shelf.

Cindy Crawford is in the same boat. Topical creams that are designed to pretend the woman has not been running to her plastic surgeon throughout her professional career. A nose job is only a portion of the work she has had done to perfect her face for the camera. Well, her modeling days are long gone, and she has to market some packaged stuff from overseas, puts her name on it and boom, she's got a a nice nest egg for herself for doing nothing but market do-nothing products on television and the Internet.

Cindy has the typical tight
and frozen forehead of any
aged celebrity and the swollen
cheeks from fillers and possibly
an implant.  The point? This face
 is a product of doctors and
not over-the-counter face creams.

Easy basic steps to maintaining youth and gorgeous skin? Don't age. Okay, not practical, but here are a few basic tips to live by no matter what your age: use sunblock everyday, avoid heavy foundation makeup especially when you are young, it will stretch and clog pores and you will have damage from many years of use. Avoid yo-yo dieting which causes bag and sag later in life. Use the topical cream or gel Retin-A. You might need a prescription for it depending on where you live. A tiny dot goes a long away no matter what your age. Dab it between the eyes, around the outer edges of the eye area, along jawline, and you can mix it with Nivea cream as a daily routine to avoid any major dryness or peeling. 

This blog site does mention products that are not celebrity endorsements, some brands I like: Natura Bisse, Amore Pacific, Nivea, Mario Badescu, as well as stressing the importance of a healthy diet primarily avoiding sugary snacks and desserts, avoid beef, lamb, pork and poultry food products, and go light on the dairy products.

Remember ladies and gents, when you are in your teens and twenties, focus on skin care, get yourself a good dermatologist and stick with that person throughout your life. Start reading, look up various products on the Internet, in magazines, sometimes trial and error work best until you find the products that can help you. If you are short on funds, no worries, even celebs can't fight the clock, time will make us all even in the end, it's how you feel along that path and your priorities. Basic creams like Nivea do not cost a lot of money, basic sunblocks can also be a part of anyone's budget. If you wear makeup foundation, choose one with a sunblock built in. 

Think about enriching yourself, and not dumping your hard earned money into celeb's pockets. And don't fret, avoid drama and tragedy, and you are on your way to an awesome outlook as you save your money for what's important in your life, and it's not making celebs richer than they already are and pretending that they don't have a private plastic surgeon in their hip pocket.

Remember to smile everyday and develop your own unique style and outlook on life. What do they say? Happiness is not found in a bottle, any bottle, cosmetic or otherwise.

Screen Style: Omar Sharif and Patrick Macnee

We lost two screen stars that were uniquely different yet both made an indelible impression in movies and on television, both iconic and we will never forget them.

Omar was handsome and memorable in Lawrence of Arabia, stylish and funny in Funny Girl, and was beautifully matched with Catherine Deneuve in Mayerling.

We loved the ever stylish and cool under fire, Patrick Macnee, from the television series The Avengers. No one can duplicate the wit and style of the show or its incredible stars. Patrick also played opposite Roger Moore, most notably as an agent working with James Bond in A View To A Kill.

Let's drink a toast to these stars that will forever remain in our memories.

Summer Style

Hitting the vacation spots this year doesn't mean you give up on style. Here are a few examples from top designers making great looking clothes that will keep you in style for months to come.

From designer Toton Comella: Awesome swimsuits if you've got the shape [yes, I have said it before, not all swimsuits are designed for every body type] and wish to actually do some swimming. The less the suit, the more it's designed for getting that perfect tan if you don't own a private beach or have the privacy of your yacht where clothes are optional. No free shows, ladies, you don't want to end up embarrassed in some tabloid.

Great outfits you can duplicate when you browse the shops or get that jolt of java.

Great casual looks for the guys from Hermes:

No need for heavy makeup on the beach or daytime strolling through the local shops. You need some color on your skin with a sun block, light mascara, and lip protection, nothing heavy.

From Bobbi Brown, I like the heavier eye with the rest of the face minimal and neutral. Remember to pick one area of the face to emphasize, the eyes or lips, not both, or you will look clownish. Always remember your flawless skin comes first. If you have less than perfect skin, keep the eye makeup and lips to a minimum, and work on perfecting the color and tone of the skin. 

Remember, beauty comes from within. No pizza, fries, or tons of dairy products. Fruit, vegetables, salads, with minimal bread [wheat can clog the pores and give you a dull complexion], and you're on your way to better looking skin.

Oh, and when relaxing, it's okay to let your pets have the couch.

Be Real

Being real means that you have to realize that no one can function at 100 percent at all times and might not look that great all the time. But it doesn't mean you get discouraged or beat yourself up, you deal with it and move on. I would never tell anyone to not doll up for the day, you have to be comfortable and feel confident as you face down your opposition all week in that battlefield of the work place or take on that special challenge in your life.

We all have our bad days, but it doesn't mean that you going around looking horrible. It is very auspicious to get yourself out of bed, fix yourself up, and leave the house. I know, most don't have a choice, gotta earn that living, but even if you don't necessarily have to appear at the office, being ready to receive whomever might show up at your door will only bring you luck.

There is a balance, and if you always feeling like you have to look perfect all the time then you are missing out on some fun times in life. Pets help you strike that balance as your animals come first. Make them happy and comfortable, then take care of yourself later. Animals can teach you priorities and to be candid and fun.

Sometimes even Marilyn Monroe didn't feel much like the glamour queen everyone was used to seeing. Beauty can be faked, but not you, not your spirit, your ambition or that positive outlook on life. Be real with yourself and don't apologize for not always being perfect.

Yes, movie stars know it, they go out without being glammed up, they are real with themselves, they have good days and bad. So, go out for that cup of coffee, go for that walk, put on a nice pair of jeans and a crisp white T-shirt or those black yoga pants for a walk around the park. Don't sit home, but hey, we all have those days and need a beauty break, so go for it, but don't indulge in it. Get out there folks, chance is waiting for you.