Coming Soon to a Theater Near You

When in Rome. This trailer made me laugh out loud like a crazy person. The movie looks totally cute and full of fun. I can't wait for it to come out. Enjoy!



I'm also looking forward to Couple's Retreat. Let the good times roll! - Funny that Kristen Bell is in both of them, and she was in a recent movie I loved, Forgetting Sarah Marshall. She's doing really well. Good for her. I loved her in Veronica Mars, didn't you?



Law Abiding Citizen. This looks very, very good. Gerard Butler as the bad guy you can't help but love. Rrrr



Fame. I'm a sucker for a good dance/musical, so I am certainly going to be seeing this one on the big screen. Yeah. I see popcorn, laughs, oohs and aahs in my future.



And last, but so not least, The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day. What I want to know is, what in frick is wrong with Hollywood?! They wait 10 friggin' years to put out the sequel?? I mean, how is that lame, boring movies like The New World get made, but then an awesome, vigilante, kick-ass smash like this one takes years to see the light of day. Who is making the decisions and why are we letting them be so ghay? Well, I guess it's true what they say - better late than never. Without further ado, I give you the preview - favorite line in the trailer? "Let's do some gratuitous violence". Nice. Let's you know what it's all about.



This is a late entry, but this name is so wack I didn't think twice - until I saw the trailer! The Men Who Stare at Goats is going to be fantastic!!



Fun!

Bobbi Brown's Genius Tips

Have you ever wanted to ask a serious beauty expert something? Well, on Beauty Snob you can. Bobbi Brown is their beauty expert and the one reading over beauty questions and answering them. Her advice is helpful and easy to follow.

Read what she says here about getting flawless dewy skin during vacation time. We don't really want to wear too much makeup during our holidays because we're generally in a more casual setting. But that doesn't mean we can't wear something and look good. That carefully applied makeup that looks effortless and youthful is very cool. She doesn't stop there, she also has tips on how to best transform your day makeup into a something more appropriate for night. You know, there is such a thing and day and nigh makeup, right? One interesting nugget she mentions that I found cool was that for night she likes to apply a blush that's a bit brighter than her day one, and not the other way around...

I have a feeling none of you know this, but on Bobbi Brown's website you can find tips and how-tos, videos as well as articles, that are very helpful, very easy to follow, and very now. Here's one on how to cover dark circles properly, but if you want to read others, just click on the menu on the left hand side.

Enjoy!

Saturday To-Do

I'm a busy girl this weekend. Here's what's on my to-do list for Saturday:

Personal Stuff:

• Dye hair and deep condition
  
• Shape eyebrows
• Exfoliate and moisturize face and feet and lips
• Read book club book - Jane Eyre
  

General Stuff:

• Organize and clean HRH's office - Heaven help me!
  
• Go grocery shopping for the week
• Buy fresh violets in plant pots to decorate tea table
  
• Bake cupcakes and make snacks for afternoon tea with friends visiting from Chile
• Organize house, make it pretty and fragrant for receiving my dear friends

Still don't know what I'll be doing Sunday. I guess that depends on how Miojoboy feels (he's been under the weather), and if HRH has recovered from his brief stint with death (his tummy was feeling icky).

Dab, brush, pat, sponge or rub?

This is the from the Bobby Brown Chrome Holiday Collection. I think that if we could find a way to warm up the look just a tad, make it more summer friendly, it would be perfect for our holiday in this hemisphere. What do you think?

I was reading the Lancome Blog the other day (it's a fantastic daily read) and I came across an interesting comment by Kerry Diamond. She mentioned that as she was watching Lancome makeup artist Aaron De Mey put makeup on the girls backstage during NY fashion week, he would delicately layer product on. Most of us, like Kerry, spread a good amount of product on our face and then go back and tissue some of it off or correct it with a Q-tip. While this is just fine, you do not achieve the same transparency and color that you do when you place small amounts of product in layers until you reach your desired intensity. This also allows for more color play.

When I say color play, I mean that it allows us to mix colors and textures to get different colors, looks, feel and performance. Taking the time to delicately layer cream eyeshadow before applying powder color helps the eye color last longer, intensifies it and removes any possiblity of transparency. Layering bronzer and blush, then highlighter or shimmer makes all the difference when you want to pull off a perfectly sculptured and healthy cheek.

I was talking about this with my sister and we got to discussing when we use our fingers, brushes or sponges. Everyone has a specific way they apply makeup, and depending on how you do it you may need to wash or wipe your hands a few times before you're finished. This is why most makeup artists rely heavily on their brushes. Not only does it simplify the process, it helps keep most of the product off their hands.


I use all three, at different times for different things. When using foundation I don't like to sponge it on. I know that's weird, but I feel like I lose most of my product to the sponge. I like expensive foundation and I just can't bear to part with at least half every time I apply. At the same time, I feel like a brush is good for getting the product on my face, sometimes, but it leaves some streaks. The only way to be certain of the perfect application is to rub the foundation in with my fingers. This allows for control and a streakless, wasteless application. Sponges are good for pancake foundation, though.

I was watching a video of a makeup artist and he would "warm" the product up on his hand first, then apply it in light dabs with his finger. He would even wipe off part of the product from the mascara wand. I don't see that in my future, but I do love the end result. So, I guess the idea is, we have to find what's best for us, not be afraid to try something new, and remember: delicate layers of transparent color. Beautiful, luminous, delicate layers.

Here's a video with Lancome makeup artist Alex Sanchez that clearly shows the "warming up on the skin" techinique as well as the delicate layering. I felt it was important for me to post this because it is a good reminder to all of us (and by all of us I mean a certain couple of people I know - you know who you are) to keep in real, smooth, delicate and for Lancome's sake - stay away from the cakey, flakey, tranny mess!

Emmy Makeup How-Tos

Bella Sugar always has great How-Tos. Here's how to get some of the looks I talked about yesterday:

January Jones - subtle smokey eyes and beautiful nude lip.
Debra Messing - one of my favorites.

If you're not like me, and you loved Kim Kardashian's look, follow this link for a detailed how-to with the makeup artist.

Emmys 2009 Beauty

I feel like commenting on the faces of the Emmys 2009. First off, NPH was très cool and I totally approve. Secondly, it looked like it was really hot and everyone's face was melting. Another thing I wanted to mention is that red lips are so last year (well, not for me, but for the Emmy Queens it looks like it is). This year it's all about the nude lippie. So, I'm thinking we're all going to have to run out and get us some lovely nude lippies pronto. MAC Blankety is in my future. Yes, If I look into my crystal ball I see Blankety as well as some pretty, pretty gloss from YSL with sparkles. Magical fairy sparkles!

Here's what I think about Mila Kunis' makeup - so friggin' gorgeous! One of my faves of the evening! I love the eyeliner. It defines her eyes and makes them pop. The color of the eyeliner along with the color of the eyeshadow bring out the green in her hazel eyes and the combination is stunning!


Loved the dress (you can't see it here, but you can look it up on Just Jared). Her makeup and hair are also beautiful. This year it's all about less is more, at least with color. She is almost completely devoid of color on the eyes and cheeks, but the subtle red lip makes up for it. It's a classy look that can be done by anyone. The key is to work the skin to luminous perfection without making it look heavy or tranny. Then apply a pop of color on the lips. Make sure to line the upper lashes and use lots of mascara.


Love, love, love the look! She looks amazing! I congratulate whoever chose her dress and especially the hair and makeup team. This is an amazing look that was done to perfection and is a good lesson on how to wear a nude lip without looking washed out or sickly.


Love 13. I bet she would look beautiful in a garbage bag, but I'm glad she chose this lovely risque number instead. Once again, you can check out her whole look on Justjared.com. Her makeup is perfect and once again we see the nude lip at its best.


Her dress and necklace are so beautiful they take my breath away. I think her pretty blue eyeshadow is fun and flirty and perfect for the look and the weather. Nude lip again.


I hate, hate, hate her makeup. Her eyes look like a ridiculous spidery mess. What is with those eyelashes? Those are individual lashes that were applied by a blind man, it seems. This is one case where the makeup actually made her look bad. She would have done better by showing up sans color. You wouldn't know it by looking at the picture, but that's Kim Kardashian. She's actually a stunning beauty in real life and as a general rule her makeup artist is a perfectionist. Her looks are always fabulous - except on this very important, momentous occasion - if you will - where he missed the mark completely. Failed miserably. Quel horreur!


Subtle smokey eye that looks good in the daylight and doesn't disappear at night. Lovely. January Jones can do no wrong. I need to find out what she's wearing on her lips. Delish!


Heidi Klum is always amazing and this was no exception. Her makeup is flawless but what I really fell in love with were her earrings! I want!


The royal blue dress with her milk white skin and fire colored hair are a combination that will not go unnoticed. Her makeup is not distracting - which is something you have to watch out for when you're working with someone like her - just a hint of color on the lips, and eyes without ever screaming "I attacked my mother's makeup drawer".

I'm afraid this picture is not at all doing her justice. It's beautiful, but on screen she was even lovelier. Her makeup artist gave her a golden goddess look that was subtle and dreamy. Her skin was perfection itself and it glowed. There was a whisper of color that had no hard lines, no pops. Everything flowed with a seamless touch of bronze sparkle and shine. Everything is very well defined, lined and powdered, but not heavy, not cakey in the least. Very, very beautiful.

Weekend Update: Unexpectedly Pleasant

Prainha

This weekend I had a very detailed plan of things I wanted to do. I didn't do any of them. In the end my weekend was turned inside out and I really can't complain because it was excellent.

On Saturday I was going to go to the park to read in the morning, maybe drink some iced tea and go for a stroll. After that I was going to go to the market and buy some basic ingredients for a great cold pasta, then watch a movie, have tea and cake, and then the day would be over and movie night with the kids would begin. What I actually did was: turn my house into a clothing bazaar complete with suitcases of merchandise spread out all over my livingroom for friends to rummage through and buy. Children (a small 5yr old and a baby! were in my apartment as well - although I do have to say they were extremely well behaved) were running around and "participating" by slobbering all over the place. The baby was too cute for words though, so he was forgiven. The boys were going to spend the entire day at a friend's house, making my house a haven for refined ladies and peace. That fell through - Jesus take the wheel! Thing 1, Thing 2 and a friend all came back home (they spent the morning in school), and wouldn't you know it, the party/bazaar/mahem/Chinese marketplace was still going strong.

We had to run out and find some kind of lunch for everyone, make it, clean up, serve it, and OMG! what an adventure. After cleaning up and clearing everyone out (no small feat), we watched/slept through the movie, The Scarlet Pimpernel - the fun version from the 80's with Anthony Edwards and Jane Seymore. When I got up I felt refreshed and ready to: make dinner, clean up after dinner, make popcorn, clean up after popcorn, watch a movie with the kids and then finally, finally lay down in deep, sweet, sleep. Holy Santos! Despite all the hectic confusion and complete absence of sanity, it was a very fun day filled with laughter, shopping and good company.

Sunday was going to be a day of gourmet cooking and relaxation, but the plans changed only slightly. Instead we packed our caravan and headed for a paradisical beach. The boys and HRH went hiking and I sat at the beach, on a comfortable chair, reading and drinking ice cold Coke for hours until the boys came back. If I could only use one word to describe my time there it would be serenity. Pure serenity.


Then we all had a delish grilled cheese they only make on the beach here called queijo coalho. It grills up golden on the outside and is soft and almost bouncy on the inside. Yummy! We had ours coated in oregano first, then grilled with a creamy garlic sauce drizzled on top. Be still my heart! The guy told us the mayor wants to outlaw selling any type of food on a stick (this cheese is made and eaten on a stick - fun!)??!! It seems some morons eat it then - get this - throw it on the sand!!! Quel horreur! The sticks dirty up the beach and are dangerous. Seems to me that people need to be educated and told what to do (in certain beaches) as those of us who aren't useless pigs should not be penalized by having our precious cheesy goodness beach snack abruptly taken away from us!

The boys were all ravenous so we made a traditional weekend meal of: huge contra-file steaks, rice with corn, french fries, fresh tomatoes and loads of Coke. The only thing missing were black beans. I made chipotle mayo and ketchup for dipping and enjoying. It was a fantastic feast and well deserved! Desert was chocolate ice-cream - of course, what else?

Patrick Swayze, thank you!

I remember when I was 16 my Mom planned a special outing for my sisters and I. I put on my baggy jeans (you know, tight at the waist and then baggy all the way down, but then it comes together again at the ankles, lovely), a button down white shirt, a corduroy green jacket (I rolled up the sleeves and rolled up my shirt sleeves over it so that there was a white border). When I was done dressing I pulled my hair back in a tight ponytail, brushed my curls out so that the ponytail was frizzy, brushed my bangs back and then ran my fingers through them to bring them down to my face and feather them. I proceeded to apply green eye pencil, brown eyeshadow and absolutely nothing else. On my lips the only thing I wore was chapstick. I wore mascara, but not enough to make any kind of statement. The idea back in the day (at least for me) was all about color on the eyes and nothing much else. Sometimes I wore clear gloss or even better, vaseline.

I was set. I looked perfect. Now the only thing left was to dab on some of my favorite perfume of the moment, Dama da Noite from Companhia da Terra. This is a long discontinued scent, but I wore it religiously for a year. Before that, the only thing I wore was Le Jardin from Max Factor.


When we arrived at our destination I was in awe. There were crowds of people all standing in line for a movie that had a scary name, but not a scarry picture. In huge letters I saw the name Ghost starring Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore. Everyone was talking about it being an incredible romance story and I took their word for it. The actors were both unknowns (to me) and this was - to my recollection - the third time in my life that I had gone to the movie theatre. You don't believe me? Well, it's true. We lived a very sheltered life. Before this movie the only other movies I remember watching in the theater were ET and Wall Street.

I don't remember ever seeing anything that beautiful before. I also don't remember ever crying that hard before. It was amazing. A thrilling experience I will never forget. There wasn't a dry eye in the room. Everyone walked out of the movie wiping their faces, blowing their noses. I just watched it again last night, and it is still that good.


A little while later I moved to Argentina and there I saw another movie with Patrick Swayze, Dirty Dancing (yeah, I know this one came out first, but like I said, I lived a sheltered life). Wow! In my eyes, he could do no wrong. I mean, do you remember the dancing? Man, those were good times! He was amazingly sexy in that movie and for a sheltered teenage girl, well, let's just say, he rocked my world!

Patrick Swayze, I raise a symbolic glass and toast your memory. My teenage years would not be the same without you. You will live on in our hearts forever. Future generations will know your name. Because of you my awkward teenage years were just a bit better, a bit brighter. I'm not joking. True story:


I was at a dance in Argentina and I had been there for about 2 weeks and was still getting to know everyone. I was standing in the corner drinking fruit punch wearing a jean mini skirt, a burgundy T-shirt (with the sleeves rolled up), ankle socks and canvas white sneakers, my hair was (this is so embarrassing) pulled up in a barrette on one side only, I was wearing no makeup at all (we weren't allowed to wear makeup at our school), and of course I was wearing perfume, only this time it was Tamango. The song started, ("I've had the time of my life") with Swayze singing in his sexy voice. The crowd parted (I am not making this up) and from across the room a tall, dark, super handsome, amazingly confindent hunk of a man (teenager) walks up to me. He put his arm around my waist, and while he was leading me to the dance floor he leaned in and whispered in a husky voice in my ear, "Let's dance".

Thank you, Patrick Swayze! I did have the time of my life and not surprisingly, I owe that awesome memory to you!

From Dave: the TV and I

Something special has happened in my life, and it´s so amazing that I want the whole world to know!

The story begins on a living room couch, big enough for six, but only me, my girlfriend and our dog lying in front of our new 42” LCD, switching through the few dreadful channels the cheapest cable package had to offer.

That might not sound that bad if you like Big Fausto and gay Gugu, but I just can’t, so that left me with the weather channel in Italian.

We had just moved and our financial situation made it impossible to consider paying the overpriced premium packages - which don’t even offer all the channels - so I was practically being forced to start READING!! As you can see things were getting really serious.

The ads on TV were constantly showing the incredible channels that would be available if we were part of the elite one percent of the population that thought it was worth paying for, and I felt more and more like a poor kid standing in front of McDonald’s.

So I just snapped. I couldn’t take it anymore. I was ready to do anything. Life couldn’t be that cruel, so I called up my friend Fred.

Fred is a “where there’s a will there’s a way” kind of guy, so I knew he could help me. When he picked up the phone I immediately broke down in tears telling him how miserable my life was without Fun People TV and all I had was Poor Sad People TV.

There was only one answer I wanted to hear, and like a fat kid at a birthday party, I was gonna get what I wanted. Within minutes we were taking my decoder to the shabby side of town looking for our Poor Sad People TV problem solver.

The farther into the slums we went, the more nervous I got because this place was miles away. It was obvious we were on a black market quest, but the sheer possibility of a better tomorrow made my fears go away, besides - what would Jesus do?

So we finally arrived at a small dirt road in the middle of nowhere, it was dark and there were no street lights so it was difficult to relax.

We stopped in front of an old house and blew the horn a few times.

Someone peeked out the window, shut the curtains, and then opened a crack in the front door. He was obviously nervous about our unexpected visit, but Fred calmly handed the man the decoder and asked if there was any way he could fix it because it was broken and only had crappy channels.

The man, apparently in his fifties, said it was a serious problem, but he could fix it for around $150 dollars. Within minutes I was on my way home, my heart beating fast, decoder in hand, anxiously waiting to see if there was any miraculous change, or if I had just gotten ripped off.

At home I quickly connected the cables, took a deep breath, and turned on my TV. Twelve hours later and two kilos lighter, I found myself sitting in the very same position, my living room covered in a strobe light effect from the uncontrollable frenetic channel changing.

No, it wasn’t a dream. I had more channels than I had ever seen before: 24 hour violence, erotica, sports, sitcoms, Italian, Spanish, French and German weather channels, what more could anyone ask for? I now had a reason to live.

I had finally reached my bliss when my girlfriend tells me that she's fed up with me because I’m watching TV all day and not giving her enough attention.

She gave me an ultimatum. I had to choose between her and my TV channels.

My dog and I watch TV all weekend nowadays, and damn, I have a lot of channels!

Mad for Mad Men Makeup

I was just making my rounds through the different blogs and sites I read every day and I found something on BeautySnob about Mad Men, Makeup and MAC. You must click and read. Very intersting, very cool. There's pretty much the same information, but a bit more concise here. One of the things I love most about the series is its ability to grab and transport the viewer into another, more glamorous, era. Every time I watch it I feel like time stops and I'm totally absorbed and fascinated by the fashion, makeup, jewelry, hair - basically everything - about the series. The storyline, script, directing and filming are very interesting too and this is probably why it attracks everyone, men and women alike. I can't wait for the new season. Do you watch Mad Men? I love Betty Draper's style and I think January Jones lights up the screen every time she comes on. Then there's Joan "the body". She's stunning and while she's always uber sexy and va-va-voom, she's also very classy and stylish. I kind of say "eh" to Peggy's look. While I like her character, her hair and makeup are a bit "innocent" and too minimalistic for my taste. Makes her look a bit like a kid sometimes. I guess that's what they're going for. No sex appeal - at all. At least, that's my opinion.

Weekend Update:

So, how was your holiday weekend? I had originally planned to drink too much and eat way too much red meat (I hadn't so much planned it as wished it), but in the end I did something very different and very pleasant.

It all started on Thursday night, I guess, when I went to see my sister's show at Melt. Their band is called Beeliv and it was so cute. Totally fun and kind of a layed back, no violin, Coors style thing. Fun songs, upbeat, pleasant and really entertaing.

Friday night I went over to James and Greti's and had pizza a tons of gin and tonic - good times.


Saturday HRH had meetings and training all day with his staff so I catered the event -for real. I made pasta caprese (my own recipe) and garlic bread for lunch, and almond brownies for dessert. I read with the kids and make them some special dinner. I got my new set of flatware I ordered and it's so good. Now we're eating in style! I had ordered The Scarlet Pimpernell from Amazon.com and since that arrived the day before we all watched it together. What fun! Later in the evening I watched Taken with Liam Neeson and it was surprisingly good. I mean, really good. He's a friggin' action hero. I'm not joking. Very high impact, action packed and solid storyline. I recommend it.

Sunday I spent the morning reading Maximum Ride 3 with the kids and watching Robin Hood (the one with Errol Flynn). Later all the grandparents came over and we had the pasta caprese from the day before (even better), the kids had croque-monsieur, and for dessert we had cognac poached pears and ice-cream. Yum! We also played Taboo together and that's always great for laughs.


Monday I went over to my friend Tati's and 4 of us girls had a very pleasant spa day. We moisturized, plucked, masked, exfoliated, cleansed, heated, cooled, painted, powdered, buffed, polished, sanded, pealed, soaked, massaged, aired and scrubbed ourselves until there was nothing left to do. We watched old movies, ate quinoa mushroom burgers and avocado salad, drank wine and laughed. Quel fantastique! HRH took the boys to the beach and they basically spent all day playing in the water, the sand and eating sandwiches. They had a blast. All the girls fell in love with this face powder Tati has from Kryolan (review coming soon) and now I can't live without it. Smooth, super fine powder. Long lasting and very awesome. Made me look like a diva. With that in my arsenal I could face anything and go up against anyone. There would be no stopping me.

Perfume: YSL Paris Eau de Printemps

A dear friend just returned from traveling abroad (she went to Greece, and Italy) and she loves to bring me back something - usually a perfume because she knows how obsessed I am with it. Once she bought me an extremely rare perfume that can only be purchased in one place in Paris and later her bag was stolen. Isn't that awful. It's maybe the most heartbreaking story. Anyway, back to good things. She walked into Duty Free and there was a huge display for this year's YSL Paris flanker - Eau de Printemps.

The fragrance notes include May rose, violet, honeysuckle, peony, jasmine, sandalwood and musk. As you can see from the lineup it is a beautiful, delicate, baby ballet of a scent. This is something that will offend no one and will most likely impress some. Lasting power is not wonderful, but pretty standard for an EDT. It comes in a huge 125ml bottle, which I imagine will last me all summer. If it lasts any longer I'll be surprised. This is one of those perfumes you wear when you don't know what to wear, because it will probably hit the spot.

This would be a perfect picnic perfume. In my mind I see a beautiful English garden filled with roses. A table in the middle of the garden where tea sandwiches, tea and cakes are searved. I see myself and my friends wearing hats and laughing (politely and delicately). It inspires images of a the garden behind a British country cottage.


I like this scent a lot. I don't think I like it more than the original YSL Paris, but it comes very close. To me, the original Paris smells like freshly bruised rose petals - and there is nothing, nothing more beautiful than that. This one has none of the bruised note, or the stem, or any of that, but it's still worthy.

Thanks Cristina! I love it!