Anne Hathaway

I have always liked Anne Hathaway's look - her smooth, porcelain skin, rich brunette hair and deep rown eyes - she can pull off so many styles and looks incredible in a variety of colours.  She is definitely a 'deep' colour type! After seeing Anne host the Oscars and wearing all those incredible dresses, I decided to read up more about her look and style - she has that classy yet modern appeal that I really admire.  Here is a little tribute to Anne Hathaway:

I really admire how Anne Hathaway can pull off the rich and vivid lip colours - Red is one of her staples and favouites and she looks amazing in almost every red-toned shade, be it a brownish red to a richer brick red to a deep berry red - I absolutely 'Love' the rich toned highlights in her hair in this photo!

'The Devil Wears Prada' is one of my favourite movies.  I love how Anne's character gets made over from the girl next door to he utimate fashionista -  I think Anne looks amazing with bangs - this look really suits her!

Anne Hawathay showed off her true Fashionista ways at the Oscars. The red gown she wore on the red carpet was breath-taking.  You could really sense that this dress made her feel sexy, confident and feminine!  Red is definitely Anne's power colour!!!

Here are some of the other dresses that Anne wore throughout the evening at the Oscars - I love the royal blue fitted dress - the colour is so rich and suits her complexion so well! 

Aside from hosting the Oscars, Anne Hathaway is also the face for Lancome's new fragrance 'Magnifique' - she looks absolutely amazing in the ads -  love her natural yet seductive makeup!  This is the type of makeup I'm always looking to achieve - its not overdone, but its oozing with sophistication!

I think that Anne's long, flowing hair is one of her most striking features, but I have to say that she can also really work the shorter 'do' just as well!  I especially like Anne's hair in this photograph - its wavy and classic and her bold red lips and elegant black dress really add to the sophistiction of her look.  I have to admit that I prefer Anne in long hair, but I wanted to post this picture to show that a woman always has options when it comes to hair length and a 'shorter' change is always nice and refreshing!!!

While on the topic of hair, I wanted to show that Anne Hathaway looks stunning with a lot of warmth added to her hair - in these photos, Anne has a real rich, reddish brown hair colour and it really suits her.  Her look changes from 'Deep' to "Warm' and I have to say that she can really pull it off well.  I think Anne looks more striking as a 'Deep' but going warmer is a great option for her, especially as she matures!

Last but not least, I wanted to post my favourite photo of Anne - I am in 'Love' with her look in this picture - Her rich, deep, chestnut highlighted locks are amazing!  Her makeup is the perfect balance of sharp, defined eyes and a neutral warm rose-peach lipcolour.  She looks stunning!!!!

I really admire Anne Hathaways look, especially after seeing how well she carried herself at the Oscars - she has that confident yet elegant grace about her and she knows how to work her best features.  I have to say that I'm a tad bit jealous of her long deep-chestnut hair - its  absolutely fantastic and her hair always looks in great condition!  Cheers to you Anne Hathaway!!!

Shades of Plum

Plum is such a great makeup colour - be it for eyes, lips, blush - plum flatters a variety of skintones!  When it comes to makeup, plums can be cool-toned (and compliment cool berry shades,hints of burgundy, wine and jewel purple).  Plums can also work with warmer skintones (especially if it has a golden/bronze undertone and compliments warm burgundy-brown and various shades of gold and eggplant).  Here is my little tribute to 'Plum':

Breath of Plum Blush by MAC is one of my all time favourite blushes.  It is the perfect balance between plum and a beige-pink and works really well with a range of lip colours: berries, pinky-plums, raspberry, soft fuchsia and soft burgundy shades.  If you're looking for a more neutral plum blush shade without going for the 'purple streak across the cheek' look, try 'Breath of Plum' - its subtle and very pretty!!!

Julia Roberts and this model look stunning with plum toned eyemakeup.  Plum shadows look amazing on almost all eye-colours - they bring out blue and green eyes, but they also make brown eyes 'pop' - If you're going for a richer more jewel like plum-purple shade, I recommend keeping your lipcolour more natural.  However, if you want to go with a more neutral brownish-plum look, then wear a more plum, fuchsia or burgundy shade on the lips to compliment the neutral plums on the eyes.

Prunella eyeliner by MAC has always been a staple in my makeup-bag - its not a plum colour per se, but it compliments a lot of plum and plum-brown shadows.  I absolutely love this liner!!!

If you're looking for more of a true plum shade, I recommend that you try 'Perma Plum' eyeliner by MAC!!!

I tried to create a subtle plum-look for this picture - I'm wearing a neural greyish brown shadow called 'Charcoal Brown' by MAC on the lid and into the crease and lined my eyes with 'Prunella'.  I used the same cool brown shade to smudge the top liner (I wanted to create a plum-brown shade).  I'm wearing 'Breath of Plum' on my cheeks and my favourite 'Baroque' lipstick by Chanel (which has plum-brown and red undertones).  For evening, I would totally play up this look by adding a more jewel like plum-purple shade to the crease/outer corners and adding a fuchsia gloss to my lips.  I found an older picture of myself with plum toned makeup and my haircolour even had a 'subtle' plum tone to it - check it out:

I wish I could remember what lipstick that was!  But I wanted you to notice the plum undertones in my hair - I love adding the cooler red burgundy/plum shades to my hair - I think the next time I go to see my hair dresser I'm going to ask her to put the plum tones back into my hair!

Plums and purples can be very sexy for evening - don't be afraid to use purple, icy pink and blue colours to compliment the cooler plum tones.  In this picture I used the eyeshadow 'Swish' - an icy blue pink on my eyes, lips and cheeks.  For my eyes, I used a sheer light pink base, scene (a bluish grey colour) on my lid and into the crease and blended 'swish' into the shadow - this created a very pretty 'violet plum' shade (I'll have to work with that combination again).  I then lined my eyes with 'Blooz' - a royal navy shade and again smudged 'swish' into the upper lash line, creating a very pretty plum shade.  On my cheeks, I used 'Breath of Plum' and added Swish again to the centre of my cheeks.  I mixed Media and Brave on my lips and topped it with (yes, you guessed it) swish - the end result was an icy violet like soft plum/mauve shade!  I love playing around with different colours and mixing shades,  Sometimes if you're after a certain colour and you can't find it at the store, you need to create it yourself!
I hope you enjoyed my little tribute to plum toned makeup.  I just posted a few products that I like to use - but there are a ton of plum toned colours out on the market - I just think its such a pretty colour and you can find some variation of it that will suit your coloring and skintone - Out of curiosity - what are some of your favourite plum toned makeup products?

Euro Chic

We have all heard about a woman possessing the power to be fully feminine and alluring.  We very often attribute this to European women - its all about the 'je ne sais quoi' (or the 'I don't know what')!  I wish there was an answer to the question: What is it?  What makes these women so appealing - is it the clothes, the look, the style, the way they wear their hair - is it a makeup thing? a natural look thing?  What is it????  I guess 'je e said quois' best fits as an explanation - because it truly is: "I don't know what"!!!  Regardless of what makes a woman alluring, here is my tribute to the 'Euro Chic' woman - you know the one, shes the one we all inspire to become - the one we see in magazines and wish we were 'her' or had her look' - the one who oozes with femininity and makes us wonder, how did she think to put that look together? 

This woman is the personification of 'seductive' - I love everything about her look - from the clothes to the purse to the sunglasses to her hair - this is how a woman should dress!  When I look at this woman, I think 'Italian goddess' - she has that Monica Belluci meets a young Sophia Loren appeal about her - this woman inspires me to put on a pair of heels and be my best 'euro chic' self!

This look has a much more casual feel about it, but its very alluring - I think that a nice pair of heels is a woman's best friend - and wearing heels with jeans takes them from 'comfort pants' to 'sexy asset pants'.  I love the jacket this woman is wearing, it reminds me of a jacket I picked up when I was in Milan - you can dress it up for evening or use it for a day look to add some serious allure!

I just adore hats - they  can be such an elegant accessory and completely take a look from 'okay' to 'amazing' - I have talked to so many women who are afraid of wearing hats - they feel that hats just don't work for them and so they give up on finding one that may be perfect for them.  My grandmother owned many hats and she was known for having exquisite, colourful and elegant hats.  She was a true 'Euro Chic' woman in her day:

Here is one picture that I found of her from the 1940's - I think that this picture can be used as proof that allure is timeless, be it 1940's or 2011 - its all about how you carry yourself!

This woman 'has it' - I love her black dress and knee high boots and that purse is amazing!  I think this is a classic example of a woman who can take a timeless wardrobe essential (the black dress) and make it her own (notice how the detail of the sleeve give this dress that avant garde look while still retaining the timeless allure of the LBD) - This woman is stunning and you can tell by her pose that she owns this look - she understands style!!!

The scarf, the neutral palette, the black purse, the big sunglasses - this is what 'euro chic' i all about!!!  I love channeling this type of look - its actually a very simple look, but its in that simplicity that one gains that 'european' allure - When you begin with a neutral coloured wardrobe (greys, white, black, soft white, taupe, pewter etc) you give yourself the opportunity to build on a look - you get the essentials and go from there - this is a big key in acheiving that alluring mystery - you always look put together and people notice and remember 'you'

The next time you go shopping or want to embrace that inner 'euro chic' woman, remember that this style is about being your best self - its about being fashionable, not trendy - its about creating your own allure, not trying to be someone else -  I guess that in the end, simplicity is elegance because you give yourself the possibility to 'shine' versus 'hiding' in your clothes,  Clothes and style should bring you to life, not weigh you down!  So embrace life ladies and love who you are - because you 'have it'!!!

Timeless Style

I adore wardrobe essentials that are timeless and classic.  There is something to be said about a particular item of clothing that looks just as stylish today as it did 50+ years ago.  Part of the allure of style is that a woman can make it completely her own, using inspiration from the past and making it work for her today, regarless of where she lives or what she does!  I wanted to write a little post about some essentials that I see as timeless:

The belted trench coat with a neutral toned scarf is so timeless and classic!  I think that every woman should have this coat in her closet and wear it with pride, elegance and charm - accessorize it with jackie O sunglasses or a chic pair of gloves - this look will 'never' go out style and will 'always' be tres chic!!!

The simple black pencil skirt with matching black pumps is so feminine and classy - this is another look that has remained an important wardrobe essential to the sophisticated and alluring woman.  The pencil skirt has a way of flattering a womans form and I especially love this look when its worn with a crisp white shirt (Jessica Alba has the right idea when it comes to dressing with timeless elegance)!

Pearl, diamond and silver ball studs are so elegant and simple for both day and evening!  These earings add just enough glitz to enhance an outfit without being overpoweing.  Sometimes when the look is simple and classic, the accessories need to match and balance that - this is why stud earings made it on my list for timeless style!

When it comes to sleepwear mixed with comfort, nothing beats a pair of silk or flannel pajamas - I think the slightly oversized silk pajamas are timeless because they envoke a sort of tom boyish sexiness that both men and women find alluring - I think men love the idea of a woman wearing only her pajama top - it can be just as sexy as lace lingerie!

Pearls will forever be timeless - you can wear them with the little black dress for evening or play up a crisp white shirt.  Pearls create a vibe of elegance that oozes class and sophistication.  I love to wear a simple and short pearl necklace with pearl drop or stud earings and a pencil skirt with a white shirt - this is my #1 favourite outfit for work or a classy dinner date - long live the elegant pearl!!!

The soft white monocromatic look that Audrey Hepburn is wearing is fabulous!  This is such a timeless look because it brings together key 'classic' wardrobe peices in a harmonious way - the scarf, the gloves, the trench - this look should be an inspiration for all women who want to channel class and elegance - I just adore Audrey Hepburn - she had impecible style!!!

If there is one wardrobe essential I simply can't live without - its the crisp white shirt - worn with a pencil skirt, jeans, layered under a v-neck or tucked into a pair of dress pants with a detailed wide belt, nothing is more inspiring and timeless than the white shirt!

Finally, as endless magazine articles and fashion books have stipulated, no wardrobe should be without the 'Little Black Dress' (LBD) - the key to making the LBD timeless, is that you need to find a dress with good quality material and that is taylored to fit your body like a glove - once you have that perfect, form fitting dress, the world will be putty in your hands and you can finally relax because you've just attained 'timeless style' status!!!


The key to style is making it your own - its not about following trends, its about finding out what works for you and what makes you feel your best.  Timeless style is about knowing that what you're wearing today still be in style years from now - its about knowing you are admired because you're classy, elegant and sophisticated and you bring this to life with the clothes you choose to wear!!!

Sassy Scarves

Scarves can really add flair to any outfit!  Regardless if you wear a scarf as an accessory, to keep warm or protect your head from the sun, the scarf is a timeless and classy wardrobe essential.  Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Jackie O have all helped to give the scarf that 'classy' and 'elegant' appeal.  French women know how to work the scarf, tying it and wrapping it in such effortless, yet classic ways!  I personally love to wear a scarf with a trench coat and pair of jackie O sunglasses!!!  Here is my little tribute to the 'Sassy Scarf':

Grace Kelly had such a soft, feminine look and she knew how to wear a scarf to compliment her elegant look.  She looked particularily feminine with a head scarf - it became a look she was remembered for and a look many women have channeled since!

This women looks fantastic in her head scarf - I love how the colours in the scarf compliment the grey toned suit she is wearing - I also admire how sexy her hair looks, with soft, long peices caressing her face - it looks so feminine and timeless!

I 'Love' how this white scarf is tied around this models hair! Its a variation of the head scarf, but its a whole other look - its very elegant, yet at the same time it carries an element of drama and sophistication.  I also love how this model is wearing a low cut. almost backless top - it really accentuates the look of the scarf and makes her earings a central focus!  I just love this look!

What a chic way to tie a scarf! - This is a great example of using a scarf as an accessory - it relaces the need to wear a necklace - it adds such flair and I love the pattern of this scarf!!!

Katie Holmes really knows how to use a scarf to add flair to her outfits - she often uses them to accessorize a more casual jeans and sweater look.  I've been paying attention to Katie's 'look' recently and she has that balance between Euro-chic and Urban New York flair - I love how she can channel elegance and comfort both at the same time!!!

I just adore this grey, ruffled scarf!  I love how some scarves are casual, while others (like this one) are more dramatic and elegant.  This scarf would look amazing over a feminine dress or flowing skirt.  I could also see it working with a pair of flaired black dress pants and a crisp white shirt with pearl drop earings.  I want this scarf!!!

Last but not least, I needed to pay tribute to how classic a scarf can look on a man!  I love how Brad Pitt works this scarf - he looks so handsome and so sophisticated in an old Hollywood kind of way - it reminds me of that Carey Grant, Gregory Peck look!  I think more men should be sporting and wearing scarves - its a very appealing accessory and its totally sexy!!!

I hope that you enjoyed my little tribute to scarves - Scarves are not just for a cold, winter day, they should be celebrated and worn often - tied simply or wrapped elegantly around the shoulders!  The best part is, there are so many different patterns and prints for a scarf and you can really compliment any look with a scarf.  You can play up a casual look or enhance an already dramatic look, adding that extra bit of sophistication!  Regardless of the look you are trying to achieve, give the 'sassy scarf' a chance to transform your wardrobe!!!

Project Lipstick Declutter - Part 2

There is nothing more seductive on a woman than a classic red lipstick - add a string of pearls and a pair of knee high boots and you have sensuality personified!  Decluttering my makeup case has been very liberating and today I decided on my favourite evening and glam lip shades.  Each of the three shades I picked is some variation of red - the first is a soft, almost pinky-based red.  The second, a classic 'true' red and the third, a deeper, more dramatic burgundy red lip!  I recently went to Sephora and got this fantastic makeup bag - its super-cute and I love the fact that all the makeup I have chosen to keep fits so neatly into the case - I love that I am simplifying my life and my routine.  I especially love the fact that I'm creating a look for myself vs purchasing colour after colour after colour.  I love the idea of neutral lips for day and red for evening! 

Chanel makes a beautiful soft, pink-red shade named 'sexy' and thats exactly what the lipcolour is ' sexy' - it gives you that look that you've just bitten your lips, but with a hint more drama:

'Russian Red' by MAC is my all time favourite go-to red lipstick.  I love how classic, timeless and glamorous it looks and I always feel sultry and sassy when I wear it.  If I could only have one evening lipstick, this would be it:

And finally, every woman needs that ultra-glam, vixen, deep burgundy shade.  For me, that colour is 'Media' by MAC - this colour evokes high drama and elegance - I love wearing this colour when I'm going to a restaurant or lounge type place and I know the lighting is going to be soft and dimmed - it makes me feel sultry and sexy:

I hope that you've enjoyed my journey into decluttering my 'lipsticks' - I now have 5 tried, tested and true shades that I'm sticking with: Baroque-Chanel and Cinnamon-Laura Mercier for day and Sexy-Chanel, Russian Red and Media (both MAC) for evening!  I love these shades - they are so timeless and classic and you can never go wrong with neutrals for day and sexy reds for evening!!!

Project Lipstick Declutter

The past few days I've spent decluttering my apartment - getting rid of clothes I don't wear/need, throwing away old magazines, donating items I no longer use etc.  The entire process felt sooo good - I realized I had so much 'stuff' that I didn't need or use and getting rid of all that 'stuff' was very liberating!  As I was cleaning and decluttering my bathroom accessories I realized that my makeup bag needed a good cleaning too - I took everything out and sorted things by categories: liners, shadows, lipsticks etc.  I honestly couldn't believe how many lip products I had and how much money over the past few months I've spend on these products (many of which were impulse buys and were only worn once).  I decided right then and there that I no longer need dozens of lipcolours and I figure that I could save a whole lot of money if I just stick to a few tried, tested and true colours.  So here it goes, I'm decluttering my makeup bag once and for all - I have yet to decide on my favourite evening shades, but here are my 2, never fail day lipcolours - I'm going to challenge myself to stick with these two!!!

One colour that I keep on coming back to is 'Baroque' lipstick by Chanel - I always get compliments when I wear this colour!  Its the perfect combination of brown, plum and red and it morphs with my clothes - when I'm wearing red, the red tones in th lipstick come to life, when I wear something purple or pink, the plum tones shine through - its a fantastic colour and its a keeper - here's a recent picture of me wearing Baroque:

My second, tried, tested and true lipcolour is 'Cinnamon' by Laura Mercier.  Its my all time favourite neutral toned lipstick.  Its a classic colour for day - I feel very elegant wearing it because it goes with everything and creates a very fresh and polished look:

I can honestly say that the 'search' for the ultimate, perfect, holy grail lipstick is over!!!  I'm saying 'goodbye' to the world of makeup marketing and I'm sticking with what works.  I've always been a makeup fanatic, but its time for me to move away from trends and create a signature look for myself - I want to look polished, graceful and elegant and I think these two neutral shades achieve that look for day.  Now the hard part is going to be deciding what colours to keep for evening/glam looks - I can tell you now that 'red' will definitely be one of them - its such a classic shade for evening!  Stay tuned for my evening pics!!!