Little Pink Blog

LatAM Gets First H&M Flagship Store With Mexico

Maria L — Mon, 07 May 2012 21:28:16 +0000

H&M Store: hm.com

I don’t know about you, but I am waiting very patiently for H&M to grace us with some online shopping action.

I am the reigning queen of online shopping, at least in my household, so H&M is a brand I’ve been salivating for to hit cyberspace for quite some time.

While I wait though, I can let you in on the fact that at least now Latin America is getting their first taste of the brand.

I guess I shouldn’t be so greedy!

H&M store Spain: hm.com

H&M, which stands for, Hennes & Mauritz – bet’cha didn’t know that, is now opening their first flagship store in Mexico later this year.

The location will be a full concept store in the shopping mall Centro Santa Fé in Mexico City, Mexico.

When asked, Karl Johan Presser, CEO for H&M had this to say:

“We look very much forward to opening the first H&M flagship store in Mexico. It will be the perfect first step for H&M into this fashion conscious region. We are excited to be able to offer fashion and quality at the best price to our customers in Mexico City starting autumn 2012.”

With approximately 2,500 stores in 44 markets, the addition of H&M in Mexico makes perfect sense.

The Latin American expansion seems to have been the next step for the brand.

When it first opened its doors in New York City on Fifth Avenue in 2000, it didn’t take long before 35 US states were granted this fashion privilege as they housed over 200 stores nation-wide.

Next to get the H&M seal of approval this year will be Latvia, Malaysia and Thailand.

Is H&M missing from your wardrobe? It will most likely be opening near you soon!

H&M is considered one of the most prestigious brands in fashion today.

H&M Fashion Show for Sonia Rykiel: hm.com

Designers like Lanvin, Marni, Roberto Cavalli, Matthew Williamson, Stella McCartney, Jimmy Choo, Viktor & Rolf, Sonia Rykiel and Versace are all huge H&M fans, so much so that they have designed special affordable lines for the brand.

Celebrities are also jumping to the chance to have their own collaboration with the retail giant.

Ahem. David Beckham. Underwear. Enough said.

David Beckham for H&M Ad Campaign: hm.com

Let’s roll that great video for some quick recent nostalgia:

So what makes H&M so special?

It’s not just the low prices that attract the masses.

There are plenty of low-cost fashion stores out there that I would never dream step foot in.

H&M has always had a sort of sophistication even with its affordable prices.

H&M Fashion Show for Viktor & Rolf: hm.com

They don’t brand themselves as a budget outlet like T.J. Maxx or Marshall’s have been doing for years, they are true fashion visionaries who designers are eager to collaborate with.

H&M has their own brands such as COS, Monki, Weekday and Cheap Monday as well as H&M Home.

T.J. Maxx and Marshall’s get their clothing and other product from virtually every other designer brand out there making them more inexpensive than in department stores, but not unattainable anywhere else.

H&M Store Belgium: hm.com

H&M has branded themselves as their own entity; they have an independence that allows for them to not have to rely on other brands in order to bring in the trends to the masses.

Mexico is just the beginning for the Latin American H&M explosion.

Bringing in the brand will not only make for more choices in fashionable attire and accessories for the Latin American customer, but also provide an untapped market for the brand.

Brace yourselves Mexico, you’ve got a great thing coming your way.

¡Que disfruten!

-
Maria Lago is the Owner & President of Three / Events & PR, an Event Planning and Public Relations boutique agency based out of Westchester, NY. Maria is the founder of Three Gets Furry, an event dedicated to raise funds and awareness for the SPCA of Westchester. She attended St. John’s University majoring in Communications Arts and minoring in Public Relations. She loves Twitter, and blogging about fashion, beauty, social media, events & PR chatter. Follow her:
Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr and on Instagram at @marialago.

Conflict of Pinterest: The Most Beautiful Country in the World

Maria L — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 19:35:39 +0000

What country do you deem to be the most beautiful in the world? If you were to ask me, I would have to be bias and scream out SPAIN!

Pinterest is the new social media outlet that is literally taking over the world with pins and repins of visually appealing photographs on anything from DIY projects, to fashion, weddings, travel and more!

For the purpose of determining which country is the most beautiful, First Choice, the UK’s leading travel company, has taken on a contest where Pinterest users create a board of what they think is the most beautiful country in the world to create more motivation to travel.

Source: flickr.com

Not only will you get bragging rights when your country of choice wins, you will also be entered to win an iPhone 4s if you vote via Twitter and a Nikon DSLR camera when voting through Pinterest.

First Choice created an interactive HTML5 info graphic, which allows Pinterest users to vote by clicking on a map.

At the time of writing this post, Latvia was ranking as the most beautiful country as Togo was steady as least beautiful.

Of course that varies every day.

The one thing that caught my attention was that First Choice opted out on including Facebook as a way to vote.

I know that Pinterest had incorporated Twitter right away, well at least when I joined.

Source: online-ako.blogspot.com

Pinterest, the now 3^rd most popular ranking social media site has had Twitter as a sharing portal from the beginning and now has incorporated Facebook as well, this change came this week.

So what do you think of First Choice’s strategy?

It sure is gaining exposure for their brand and by allowing all Pinterest users to create boards dedicated to their favorite countries, travel is definitely encouraged.

Not only will this create the awareness for travel to different places, but it is now breaking the mold to what some people see as a vacation.

When I see a commercial for a vacation on TV or an ad in a magazine, for the most part, travel is viewed as beautiful beaches and luxurious resorts.

While this truly does sound amazing, to this I say, where is the culture?

photo by Reiaz Mohammed

Yes an amazing resort is just that, but to me, you can place that resort anywhere in the world and it will be pretty much the same experience, except for the logical knowledge of knowing where you physically are geographically.

I’ve had this very discussion recently with my fiancé, he loves the resorts, the beaches and sitting poolside for seven days, and while that is also fun for me, the thought of the repetitive routine makes me unsettled.

When I travel, I want to go beyond the resort, I want to see how the locals live, I want to eat what they eat, I want to experience that specific country, I want to sight-see and experience the culture, I don’t believe this kind of experience is what you get from a resort.

This is what First Choice is trying to do with Conflict of Pinterest, they are creating a new innovative and interactive way of using the number one tool in the world; social media to get their message to the public.

Source: data.whicdn.com

Not to limit yourself to what is commercially advertised, why not see what actual people experienced in any given country and what they know and love.

Ad campaigns are great and when done right they will portray a sort of realism of what you will experience when using their product or service; First Choice is allowing you to hear it from the horse’s mouth.

Go ahead, peruse the many Pinterest boards dedicated to just that, see what the culture is, and what can be experienced.

Experience the little things like the candies, fashions and routines or the traditional sport of the country.

Bravo First Choice, Conflict of Pinterest is just what we needed to gain a little perspective on the world.

You can start by checking out my Pinterest board on Spain here.

Plus also see Little Pink Blog’s owner Sasha Muradali’s board on Trinidad and Tobago here.

–

Maria Lago is the Owner & President of Three / Events & PR, an Event Planning and Public Relations boutique agency based out of Westchester, NY. Maria is the founder of Three Gets Furry, an event dedicated to raise funds and awareness for the SPCA of Westchester. She attended St. John’s University majoring in Communications Arts and minoring in Public Relations. She loves Twitter, and blogging about fashion, beauty, social media, events & PR chatter. Follow her:
Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr and on Instagram at @marialago.

{ADbitious} Heineken and the UEFA Champions League Trophy Tour 2012

Sasha — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 15:21:09 +0000

Ah, we love good advertising.

It makes our little heart go *pitter-patter-thumpy-thump.*

You put together football and advertising and it is ballergasmic!

To celebrate the launch of Heineken’s first ever global UEFA Champions League trophy tour, United State of Fans and TBWA in the Netherlands created the “UEFA Champions League Trophy Tour.”

Set up as a stunt, the advert shows what happens when football fans get closer to the UEFA trophy than they ever imagined they would be.

On match day, fans checked-in to what they imagined was their hotel rooms, but was actually a room full of hidden cameras…and one silver, sparkly unexpected guest.

VIDEO:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVjKik2Y3CQ

Honestly, if it was us, we would have probably taken it home with us

~*~

Advertising Agency: United State of Fans\TBWA, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Creative Director: Kari Shaw
Creatives: Hubert Visser, Armand du Bois
Accounts: Guido Klomp, Aniek Ajanaku-Holland
Strategy: Antonie van Schendel
Producer: Melissa Lee
Production: Monodot / Verheyden
PR: Pitch London
Aired: March 2012

Sasha H. Muradali owns the Little Pink Blog (part of Little Pink Book PR, LLC.) Sasha holds a MA International Administration with a concentration in Intercultural Communication from the University of Miami and a BS Public Relations and Dance from the University of Florida. She has been featured in Forbes, CNN and Business Week. Sasha tweets fervidly (@SashaHalima), loves Harry Potter and the colour pink. Find her on LinkedIn, get a copy of the Little Pink Blog delivered to your Kindle and ‘LIKE’ us on Facebook.

Don’t Forget To K.I.T.! … BFFs?

Alexandra C — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 12:00:55 +0000

Image via weheartit.com

By: Alexandra Campuzano, guest blogger

For the past few months I’ve been adjusting to life in a new city.

Anyone who has made a change from a city they consider home to a city that is virtually the opposite of home will understand the transition is tougher than anyone might have warned you about.

Prior to the big move, friends who had made similar transitions tossed bouquets of advice my way.

“Don’t forget to keep a weekly and monthly budget”, “Make sure your place has a night guard”, “Have a few months of rent and utilities in your savings account, you know, just in case”,”Don’t be afraid to live off Cup-o-noodle—it’s a perfectly decent meal.”

Image via weheartit.com

All were great pieces of advice but no one gave me advice on how to keep in touch with friends.

Seems silly to think I’d need advice on how to do this considering I’m very much “connected”.

I’m on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Linkedin … well, you get the picture.

To be fair I hadn’t even considered how difficult it would be to remain present in the lives of my friends and vice-versa.

Don’t get me wrong, my friends haven’t discarded me or removed me from their contact list.

It’s simply that we don’t have that constant communication we used to.

So, what happened to our constant chatter?

Image via weheartit.com

What happened to the idea that social media was bringing the world closer together one post/tweet at a time?

Social media is still accomplishing this. People are still connecting and reconnecting on Facebook.

Tweets are still trending worldwide. Google+ popularity is slowly creeping up.

Twitter, especially, has made it easier for people to discuss one topic across all continents.

Two examples that speak clearly to this are the capture and death of Osama Bin Laden and the death of Michael Jackson. Both situations remained trending topics of a few days after the event.

Both topics garnered millions of tweets. Facebook too felt the impact of these events as they were part of posts, likes and comments for days to come.

Image via weheartit.com

So it seems the world is getting more in touch and is continuing to become ‘friends’.

To answer the question of what happened to the communication between my friends and I, I tried pinpointing where things dropped off.

I felt like a scientist; I examined major life changes, schedules, possible points of frictions, and my phone (in case it wasn’t working).

Everything remained virtually the same.

The main difference?

The distance.

After I analyzed things, I realized, we were still in constant contact.

What had changed was the how we were communicating.

Phone calls and text messages are on the rise.

Facebook posts, Google+ circle posts had dropped off.

Twitter remained constant.

Skype had skyrocketed!

Image via weheartit.com

As it turns out, the lengthy phone/video calls and never-ending (and entertaining) chain of text messages took care of everything we needed to catch up on.

Not only did they take care of everything but we felt instantly closer to each other because we could hear and, to an extent, feel, each other.

Listening to the good and bad being shared allowed for real-time emotive reactions.

That’s what it’s all about: real-time connections.

While, Twitter does provide real-time reactions, it’s sometimes difficult to capture the tone or depth of what is being conveyed.

With Facebook it may be easier to detect this, but the real-time factor is lacking as one needs to be logged on in order to see real-time updates.

An actual conversation will accomplish real-time reactions and allows you to accurately relay your message.

Image via weheartit.com

In reconnecting with my friends, and with followers, I’ve come to understand that mode of communication is as important as what is being said.

Sure, it seemed like we’d lost touch but the fact of the matter is that we’d opted for more personal connection.

The best part of this is that we all did it naturally.

That synchronicity speaks volumes of the value of personal connections.

–

Alexandra Campuzano is an Account Manager at Univision Interactive Media and a freelance writer. Admittedly, she’s a social/new media fan who enjoys seeing its evolution. In balance, she’s mildly infatuated with elephants and fashion; be it magazines, websites, blogs, or spotting new trends close to home. Writing and yoga twice keep her mind in a good place. Her background in PR and interactive media has helped her understand the impact social media, advertising and PR have on our society. She is a proud Golden Panther (Go FIU!) who drinks too much coffee and can be followed on Twitter (@Ale_Phant).

Skittles: Taste the Colour of a PR Crisis

Sasha — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 12:00:57 +0000

David Goldman | Associated Press

For the past few weeks I’ve been watching an atypical type of public relations crisis unravel — that of Skittles.

Skittles, you know, the taste the rainbow, fruity, sugary hard candy you chomped on endlessly until you hit university and gained the Freshmen 15.

Yes, that Skittles.

Why, you say?

Because of Trayvon Martin: the 17-year old teen who was carrying only a packet of Skittles and a drink when he was shot and killed on February 26, 2012 in Sanford, Florida by George Zimmerman.

The strangest part of the aftermath from the Trayvon Martin shooting is Skittles are flying off the shelves.

Trayvon Martin | ABC News Miami

With protests, calls for further investigation and accusations being thrown in all directions, nationally and internationally, it begs the conjecture — if hoodies can symbolize racial profiling, then Skittles must symbolize young innocence.

This symbolism has university student governments buying it in bulk and reselling it to raise money for Martin’s family (Spelman College being the primary example.)

The candy is showing up at rallies crammed into the pockets of those who attend in Martin’s name as well as are being piled into makeshift memorials.

In some cases, Skittles have been sent to the Sanford Police Department to protest the lack of an arrest for Zimmerman.

Needless to say, sales are soaring for Wrigley, the company who manufactures Skittles.

But what can be seen as an economic profit, is threatening to hurt the company, more than help them.

In fact, Wrigley has already been accused of profiting from Martin’s death.

While, publicly stating that they are “saddened” by the death of Martin and have nothing but respect for his family, Wrigley has said they feel it is,

“inappropriate to get involved or comment further as we would never wish for our actions to be perceived as an attempt of commercial gain following this tragedy.”

Wrigley is in an interesting position here: they don’t want to alienate existing and potential customers (#fail because with that statement they already have), but also Wrigley does not want to be seen as the big, bad capitalist corporation profiting from murder.

But it’s already happened.

Obviously, going down the path of profiting from an unexpected opportunity is not the right thing to do.

Is donating some of Wrigley’s new found profits the right thing to do?
Or is staying silent and watching how things turn out a better option?

According to the New York Times, people are calling for Wrigley to donate their new found funds and give something back to communities where “murder based on stereotypes is a reoccurring theme:”

“On social media sites like Twitter, people are suggesting that Wrigley is profiting greatly from the tragedy and should donate money made since Trayvon’s death to the family or causes that would help with racial reconciliation or underprivileged communities. Some African-Americans are even asking people to stop buying Skittles until the company gets more involved in the case and donates money.”

Frankly, I think Wrigley should take a stand to do and say something.

I like the idea of setting up youth centers in Florida or starting community groups that promote interracial harmony along the lines of what Russell Simmons has been preaching:

“Trayvon Martin didn’t die so we can create a race war he died so we can promote better understanding. We must start honest dialogue…”

- Russell Simmons on Twitter (@UncleRUSH), March 15, 2012 12:28 p.m.

What about starting a university scholarship for potential law students in Florida who specifically want to study criminal and civil rights laws?

I’m sure a partnership with the NAACP Legal Defense Fund would not be unwelcome.

Having worked with them as client while I was working at Burson-Marsteller (2010-2011), I know that this would be something John Payton would have appreciated.

As public relations practitioners, trained throughout our careers to deal with such instances in transparency, strategy and with saying the right thing, this is a situation where, “I’m sorry,” is not enough.

So what is enough?

Some think it’s more about the right to bear arms and gun control, like food critic Regina Schrambling.

This entire situation really bothers me.

Watching the tapes of Martin’s mother and seeing a public out cry for justice day after day makes me sad.

What

would

you

do?

Social Hosting: An Airbnb Experience

Alice B — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 10:00:23 +0000

Last weekend I test-drove one of the most talked-about travel accommodation websites out there: Airbnb.

I’m very pleased to report that

my first guests were not axe-yielding psychos
the house stands totally undamaged and as lovely as ever
my small furry one, Watson the dog, loved them and was loved back
the payment went through the very next day.

As you can probably guess by the list above, I was a little bit nervous about welcoming total strangers into my home.

My friend recommended it so heartily, however, that I thought it was worth a try.

My first booking consisted of a very nice young couple from Austria. She was a journalist currently finishing her second M.A. (sounds like someone who would feel at home writing for the Little Pink Blog ) and he was staying in London while working on a green energy project.

The strangest thing about them was that they actually went for a run on Sunday morning (*ahem* making coffee is about as much activity as I want on the weekend, thank you very much!)

But Watson looked accusingly at me, as if to say,“Mum, I hope you’re paying attention. I want to go running first thing in the morning!”

It might sound like a cliché, but the best thing about the experience was getting the chance to meet interesting new people I would not have come across otherwise.

I work for Badoo, a social network which is all about meeting new people, so Airbnb was an interesting and fun experiment in how to bring strangers together and actually give them a chance to socialize in-person.

My little family is in very in good company as over 5 million nights were booked through the site since its inception and it continues to boom.

The San Francisco company was established in 2008 and now has offices all over the world, including in Brazil and the United Kingdom.

These days it boasts over 100,000 listings in 192 countries.

In a nutshell, here’s how Airbnb works:

Create an account, verify your phone number and link your social networks.
Upload some pictures of yourself, your house and the room you’re renting out.

Write a description to go with them.

Set your price and stipulate whether you charge for extra guests or want a security deposit.

Setup your preferred method to receive payment.

Setup your calendar to show availability.

If someone wants to book your room, you will receive a request via Airbnb. You are then free to accept or refuse once you check out their profile.

If you accept the booking, Airbnb takes payment from the guest (they charge about 10% on top of your set price from them) and a security deposit if you stipulated one (which they hold on to for a few days after your guest leave).

24-hours after check-in you get paid (minus a 3% fee).

Should you all be happy with the experience (as we were) then you leave each other nice reviews, which makes it easier for guests to book beds and for hosts to rent theirs.

In areas where there are a lot of rooms available you might find it difficult to get bookings at first without any positive reviews to your name. If you have a Facebook friend who is also an Airbnb member, you should them for a personal reference.

Also, it might be worth renting out your room cheaply a few times in order to get a few good reviews under your belt.

So… if you fancy having a look around the world-famous university city of Cambridge (the one in England as opposed to Massachusetts, let’s just be extra clear on that!) and want to stay in the house of someone who writes for the world-famous Little Pink Blog, feel free to request a booking!

Happy Travels

Alice Bonasio is a Brazilian/American/Italian writer specializing in Digital Cultures. She has been published in Gamestm, Edge, The Escapist and 360. She has recently finished her MA in Creative and Media Enterprises at the University of Warwick with distinction. She lives in England and is a PR Executive for one of the world’s hottest social networks, Badoo. Contact her on LinkedIn and follow her on Twitter.

NYFW Fall/Winter 2012: Interview with Nick Irwin of TIGI at Vivienne Tam

Sasha — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 23:25:03 +0000

Check out my video interview with Nick Irwin, the Global Creative Head of TIGI, at Vivienne Tam about this creations for hair at the 2012 Fall/Winter Collection during New York Fashion Week:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-SaASulqP4

Video by: Nickelous Hector and Bruce Kushnick

A Little Pink Blog & Runway Press Production
_

NYFW Fall/Winter 2012: Interview with Vivienne Tam

Sasha — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 23:15:36 +0000

Check out my video interview with Vivienne Tam on her 2012 Fall/Winter Collection during New York Fashion Week:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=0t7_qaRKj5E

Video by: Nickelous Hector and Bruce Kushnick

A Little Pink Blog & Runway Press Production
_

NYFW Fall/Winter 2012: Interview with Kati Stern of Venexiana

Sasha — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 23:05:00 +0000

Check out my video interview with Kati Stern of Venexiana for her 2012 Fall/Winter Collection during New York Fashion Week:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N4ZCOia6BY

Video by: Nickelous Hector and Bruce Kushnick

A Little Pink Blog & Runway Press Production
_

Sasha H. Muradali owns the Little Pink Blog (part of Little Pink Book PR, LLC.) Sasha holds a MA International Administration with a concentration in Intercultural Communication from the University of Miami and a BS Public Relations and Dance from the University of Florida. She has been featured in Forbes, CNN and Business Week. Sasha tweets fervidly (@SashaHalima), loves Harry Potter and the colour pink. Find her on LinkedIn and get a copy of the Little Pink Blog delivered to your Kindle and ‘LIKE’ us on Facebook.

NYFW Fall/Winter 2012: Interview with Gucci Westman of Revlon

Sasha — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 23:00:27 +0000

Check out my video interview with Revlon’s Gucci Westman, Global Artistic Director, on the look she created for Vivienne Tam’s 2012 Fall/Winter Collection during New York Fashion Week:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=mS2TFCxJLlk

Video by: Nickelous Hector and Bruce Kushnick

A Little Pink Blog & Runway Press Production
_

Sasha H. Muradali owns the Little Pink Blog (part of Little Pink Book PR, LLC.) Sasha holds a MA International Administration with a concentration in Intercultural Communication from the University of Miami and a BS Public Relations and Dance from the University of Florida. She has been featured in Forbes, CNN and Business Week. Sasha tweets fervidly (@SashaHalima), loves Harry Potter and the colour pink. Find her on LinkedIn and get a copy of the Little Pink Blog delivered to your Kindle and ‘LIKE’ us on Facebook.

NYFW Fall/Winter 2012: Interview with Chris Cox of Nautica

Sasha — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 22:55:32 +0000

Check out my video interview with Nautica’s Chris Cox, Creative Director, on his vision for their 2012 Fall/Winter Collection during New York Fashion Week:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DlU1R-Gvqc

Video by: Nickelous Hector and Bruce Kushnick

A Little Pink Blog & Runway Press Production
_

Sasha H. Muradali owns the Little Pink Blog (part of Little Pink Book PR, LLC.) Sasha holds a MA International Administration with a concentration in Intercultural Communication from the University of Miami and a BS Public Relations and Dance from the University of Florida. She has been featured in Forbes, CNN and Business Week. Sasha tweets fervidly (@SashaHalima), loves Harry Potter and the colour pink. Find her on LinkedIn and get a copy of the Little Pink Blog delivered to your Kindle and ‘LIKE’ us on Facebook.

Hunger Games Mixology: DISTRICT 7,8,9,10,11 and 12 Cocktails

Sasha — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 01:00:34 +0000

By: Ashley Bryce, Liana Cole and Sasha Muradali

Each year the Hunger Games are held inside the Capitol, in the county of Panem.

Panem rose out of the rubble that once was North America and had thirteen districts that surround it, each having a unique purpose. Tired of servitude, the thirteen districts of Panem rebelled against the Capitol and the nation turned into a battle ground.

In the end, the Capitol held down the resistance and District 13, known of its nuclear power, was destroyed in a disaster.

The twelve remaining districts signed the Treaty of Treason and the Hunger Games were born as a punishment for the costly rebellion.

Each year the districts have to sacrifice one girl and one boy, known as tributes, to the games. These tributes engage in a battle to the death with
one survivor.

The victor who goes back to his or her district with fame and fortune.

In recognition of these yearly games, we present drinks for the remaining 6 districts of Panem.

Happy

Hunger Games!

District 7 – Lumber

District 7 provides the lumber for the Capitol. From a young age, children in this district work in the forest, giving tributes from 7 the advantage of wielding axes.

Pine trees and forests cover this district, leading the tributes to be dressed up as trees almost every year during opening games.

A leafy mojito is perfect for this lumber district.

Ingredients:

1 oz Rum
2 oz Coconut rum
6 fresh mint leaves
1 tsp shredded sweetened coconut
1 oz coconut milk
1 tsp lemon juice
½ oz club soda

Directions:

Muddle mint leaves and coconut into a chilled glass with lemon juice, and both rums.
Add ice and coconut milk to glass.
Stir.
Top with club soda.
Garnish with mint sprig and shredded coconut.

District 8 – Textiles

District 8’s principle industry is the production of textiles and clothing.

Filled with factories, at least one is dedicated to making uniforms for the peacekeepers.

Wages are low in this district with adults working two jobs and several shifts in a day and children working in factories before and after school.

A cold district in an urban industrial setting, people of this district live in run down tenements with little to no grass.

A spiked tea compliments this cold hard-working district.

Ingredients:

1 oz amaretto liqueur
1 oz orange liqueur
1 orange pekoe tea bag (or choice flavored tea)
5 oz soda water
Water
Lemon wedge garnish

Directions:

Add tea bag to a half-full glass of warm water.
Let steep for 5 minutes.
Add amaretto and orange liqueur and ice.
Top with soda water.

District 9 – Grain

District 9’s principle industry is grain but little is known other than that.

District 9 has numerous factories used to process grain for the Capitol.

A rye whiskey cocktail is ideal for this grain-producing industry.

Ingredients:

1 ½ oz rye whiskey
2 dashes maraschino liqueur
8 oz ginger ale
1 tbsp lemon juice
lemon wedge garnish
garnish maraschino cherries

Directions:

Combine ingredients into shaker with ice.
Shake.
Pour into chilled glass.
Garnish with maraschino cherries and lemon wedge.

District 10 – Livestock

District 10’s main industry is livestock, raising cattle and providing beef for the Capitol.

Not much is known other than the industry.

An adult milkshake fits this cow-raising district.

Ingredients:

1 oz raspberry vodka
1 oz Bailey’s Irish cream
½ oz raspberry liqueur
2 oz cream
1 splash grenadine syrup
8 ice cubes
Whipped Cream

Directions:

Add ingredients, minus whipped cream, into blender.
Blend until desired consistency.
Pour into glass.
Top with whipped cream.

District 11 – Agriculture

District 11 is one of the poorest districts despite its large size.

The principle industry is agriculture and everything they grow goes to the Capitol. This district is filled with orchards, fields of various crops, and cotton.

Specializing in all types of agriculture, the people of this district work long hours and school is closed during harvest.

Located in the area of North America that was once the “Deep South”, most people of district 11 have dark complexions and hair.

An exotic fruit drink highlights the harvest of this fruit-filled district.

Ingredients:

1 oz rum
1 oz pineapple juice
½ oz lychee liqueur
1 ½ oz pineapple juice
Lychees
Pineapple rings

Directions:

Add ingredients into shaker with ice.
Shake.
Pour into chilled martini glass.
Garnish with lychees and pineapple rings.

District 12 – Mining

District 12 is not only the most ridiculed, it is one of the poorest districts in Panem.

Located in the Appalachian Mountains, the principle industry is coal mining.

Never a huge contender in the games, only two victors have come from district 12 in the seventy-four years of the Hunger Games.

Divided into two sections: the Seam and the Merchant Section. Both have distinct looks.

The people of the Seam have olive skin, gray eyes, and dark hair while the merchants’ have blue eyes, fair complexions, and blonde hair.

The living conditions also set these two areas apart, with the people of the Seam living in poverty.

A black vodka drink matches the essence of this coal district.

Ingredients:

1 oz black vodka
½ oz cherry brandy
½ oz cranberry juice
2 oz cherry coke
Maraschino cherries (optional)

Directions:

Combine ingredients into shaker with ice.
Shake.
Pour into chilled martini glass.
Garnish with maraschino cherries.

MAY THE ODDS

BE EVER IN

YOUR FAVOR

CHECK BACK FOR PART 3 of 4!

**drink photos taken by Liana Rochelle Cole**

Sasha H. Muradali owns the Little Pink Blog and Little Pink Book PR, LLC. Sasha holds a MA International Administration with a concentration in Intercultural Communication from the University of Miami (’08) and a BS Public Relations and Dance from the University of Florida (’07). She has been featured in Forbes, CNN and Business Week. Sasha tweets fervidly (@SashaHalima), loves Harry Potter and the colour pink. Get a copy of the Little Pink Blog delivered to your Kindle and ‘LIKE’ us on Facebook.

Ashley Bryce holds a B.A. in Political Science with a minor in Classical Studies from the University of Florida (Go GATORS!) and is currently a graduate student studying Strategic Public Relations at The George Washington University . She is fluent in Latin and has a passion for translation. A Miami girl who loves politics, old movies, Doris Day, and all things Harry Potter related. Find her on Twitter (@ashleyellene) and LinkedIN.

Liana Cole has a Master’s of Science in Global Strategic Communications from Florida International University and a B.A. in Journalism and a minor in Fine Art from The University of Central Florida. In addition to being a Harry buff, Liana is a certified bartender by ABC Bartending. She has a love for culture, music and art of all kinds. Find Liana on Twitter (@Liana_Rochelle) and LinkedIN.

The Badoo Project (#BadooProject)

Sasha — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 19:17:07 +0000

“NYC was an easy choice as the place to first introduce Badoo to the U.S. It’s young, diverse, and social–a lot like Badoo!”

- Jessica Powell, Chief Marketing Office for Badoo worldwide

It’s no surprise we love Badoo.

We’ve been writing about them for quite sometime now and thereby, it still should not be a surprise that when heard about The Badoo Project, we took our happy little selves to SoHo for an evening to hang out with our favourites from Londontown.

What is the Badoo Project you ask?

“The Badoo Project is a quest to help New Yorkers say a very personal ‘Hello’ to their city. It kicks off with a 3 day photoshootathon, where 4 hot photographers will undertake the ambitious task of capturing 1000 portraits of New Yorkers.

Based on personality, energy and individuality, a final 24 will then get the chance to say ‘hello’ to the city. Every billboard, banner and media across New York will star one of their faces.”

And what is Badoo? (for those of you who don’t read us often enough)

“Badoo is the world’s largest and fastest growing social network for meeting new people. First launched in 2006, it has around 140 million registered users worldwide and more than 125,000 new users signing up every day. You can check it out at Badoo.com.”

Mind you it’s also the number one social network in Brasil, Spain, France and Italy.

So if you’re in New York City on March 24, 2012 take a stroll to 84 Mercer Street and join in on the festivities.

Check out our experience below:-

With our stylist, Carla.

Getting some Lust on our lips before we get photographed by Danielle Levitt.

The hair and makeup, “Glam” section.

When finished, Badoo leads users to a computer station where they pick their top 5 photos.

Some of our photographs:

Hanging out with our Badoo Boys, Niccolo and Ivan, afterwards.

(Alice, we missed you!)

…and don’t forget to vote for us to be one of the 24 winners for the Badoo Project!

HERE!

Hunger Games Mixology: DISTRICT 1,2,3,4,5 and 6 Cocktails

Sasha — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 14:00:23 +0000

By: Ashley Bryce, Liana Cole and Sasha Muradali

Each year the Hunger Games are held inside the Capitol, in the county of Panem.

In the end, the Capitol held down the resistance and District 13, known of its nuclear power, was destroyed in a disaster.

The twelve remaining districts signed the Treaty of Treason and the Hunger Games were born as a punishment for the costly rebellion.

Each year the districts have to sacrifice one girl and one boy, known as tributes, to the games. These tributes engage in a battle to the death with
one survivor.

The victor who goes back to his or her district with fame and fortune. In honor of the games we have dreamed up a drink for each district.

Happy

Hunger Games!

District 1 – Luxury

District 1 creates the luxury goods for the Capitol, making them a favorite of the Capitol’s as well as for the Hunger Games title each year.

This district’s tributes, along with District 2 and 4, make up the “Career Pack,” a group that because of favor from the Capitol, prior training and better living conditions, dominate the games almost always winning.

A sugar champagne cocktail is perfect for this jewelry-making district.

Ingredients:

¾ oz elderflower liqueur
Juice of ¼ lemon
Dash of sugar syrup
Champagne
Sugar

Directions:

Rim champagne flute with sugar.
Combine elderflower liqueur, lemon juice, and sugar syrup together in shaker with ice.
Shake.
Strain into champagne flute.
Top with champagne.

District 2 – Masonry

District 2 is presented as Panem’s stone quarries but provides most of the nation’s Peacekeepers.

Children here are raised with a warrior mind-set and are natural favorites in the games.

Making up one-third of the Career Pack, many of the tributes from District 2 see the games as a chance for recognition and glory. They always eagerly volunteer for the games.

A rocky road mudslide highlights the characters of this mountainous warrior district.

Ingredients:

3 cups of vanilla or chocolate ice cream
¼ cup chocolate syrup
½ cup milk
1 ounce Bourbon
½ cup mini marshmallows
3 tablespoons almonds
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)

Directions:

Combine ice cream, syrup, milk, and bourbon into blender.
Blend to desired consistency.
Add marshmallows, almonds, and chocolate chips.
Blend for five seconds.
Pour into glass.
Top with extra marshmallows and chocolate chips.

District 3 – Technology

District 3 makes electronics for the Capitol, particularly specializing in television and explosives.

The children are intelligent, learning how to make complicated electronics from a young age.

A drink with a little bit of a spark compliments this tech-savvy district.

Ingredients:

2 oz Whipped Vodka
Splash 151 Rum
Chocolate Ale
Whipped Cream
Cinnamon

Directions:

Add whipped vodka to shot glass.
Top with 151 rum.
Fill half beer glass with chocolate ale.
Top ale with whipped cream.
Light shot on fire.
Top with cinnamon to spark.
Blow out shot OR drop shot into beer glass.
Consume.

District 4 – Fishing

District 4 is one of the wealthiest districts in Panem and provides seafood for the Capitol.

Being by the ocean has been a benefit for the children many volunteering to be tributes.

From a young age they learn how to swim, make hooks for fishing and learn to use tridents, giving them an advantage over many other districts.

District 4 is the last member of the Career Pack.

An island drink is best suited for this wealthy fishing district.

Ingredients:

2 ¾ oz Coco Lopez cream of coconut (or coconut milk)
2 ¼ oz cachaça
½ oz dark spicy rum 151 (if you are unable to find cachaça, use all rum)
¼ oz pear juice (can be substituted with pineapple or mango juice, but not all three. Use pineapple if using all rum.)
1 oz seltzer water
2 tsp fresh sugarcane juice
1 wedge of sugarcane
Pinch of cinnamon
Pinch of nutmeg

Directions:

Combine coconut milk, cachaça, dark spicy rum 151 and fresh sugarcane juice into a shaker with
ice.
Put fresh ice into large highball glass.
Pinch of cinnamon atop fresh ice in glass.
Pinch of nutmeg atop fresh ice in glass.
Pour seltzer water into large highball glass slowly.
Shake contents in shaker.
Strain contents from shaker into large highball glass.
Garnish with sugarcane stick or cinnamon-dusted pear wedge.
Serve.

District 5 – Power

District 5 creates electricity for Panem.

A smaller district, District 5 is tasked with providing power for the entire nation of Panem. While not a member of the Career Pack, this district has a very low number of children signing up for tesserae, a extra food supply provided to families from the Capitol in exchange for an additional entries added into the pool for the Hunger Games.

A powerful electrifying energy drink is ideal for this power-making district.

Ingredients:

1 ½ oz Citrus Vodka
½ oz Blue Curacao
2 oz sour mix
1 can Red Bull or choice energy drink
lemon wedge garnish

Directions:

Fill glass with ice.
Pour in vodka, blue curacao and sour mix.
Fill to the top with Red Bull.
Garnish with lemon wedge.

District 6 – Transportation

District 6 provides the transportation for Panem.

Not much is known about this district besides for its principle industry and average number of Hunger Game victors.

A quick fuel-like shot is suitable for this transportation district.

Ingredients:

1 oz Jagermeister
1 oz flavored energy drink
Splash grenadine

Directions:

Combine ingredients into shaker with ice.
Shake.
Pour into shot glass.

MAY THE ODDS

BE EVER IN

YOUR FAVOR

Click Here for Post 2!

**drink photos taken by Liana Rochelle Cole**

{Beautirati} Butter London: Disco Biscuit [Swatches + Pics]

Sasha — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 02:02:13 +0000

Hello Spring! and Hello Summer!

This is “Disco Biscuit,” part of Butter London’s SS12 line of polishes, and it makes me want to say “Disco my biscuit.”

Don’t ask me why, but if I were Cher, and this was “Clueless,” I kind of feel like that would be something that would slip off of my tongue with ease.

Either way, according to Butter London, “Disco Biscuit” is a

Tropical hot pink with an undercurrent of tiny iridescent glitter particles

To us, however, it looks like this sheer blast of more pink-than-purple fuchsia, with blue iridescent glitter particles reminiscent of something Judy Jetson would wear.

Oh, yes, yes, how we love!

If you had to find a dupe for it — check out OPI’s “Pompeii Purple.”

It’s quite similar, minus the glitter and the sheer/jelly-esque factor.

“Pompeii Purple” is heavily pigmented and has a blue undertone.

It’s one of our favourite polishes and now this one, from Butter London, is too!

Our only issue with this polish, so be warned, is that if you’re a fan of heavily pigmented polishes, like us, you’ll need at least three to four coats of “Disco Biscuit” to achieve the look in all my photos.

On the flip-side, if you’re into jelly-esque polishes and are also looking for something lighter to overlap on top of a darker polish — this is perfect.

I’m contemplating, polishing my nails in “Pompeii Purple” (you only need two standard coats) and then adding a coat of “Disco Biscuit” on top of it to see how it comes out, since they are so similar.

If you’d be interested in seeing that, let me know!

So what is a “Disco Biscuit?”

Well, in British slang, it’s apparently the code word used in the 1980s to describe ecstasy (the drug,) and the term is still used today…in the English-speaking world.

Oh well, you learn something new everyday!

So say, “no” to drugs kiddos and polish thy nails instead!

Happy polishing

The 84th #Oscars is such a #FAIL because…

Sasha — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 06:20:40 +0000

“Ugh, Muggles.”

- Lord Voldemort

… Melissa McCarthy can get a Supporting Actress nomination for playing an obnoxious, disgusting, cringe-worthy piece of trash (yes, I said it! and no I’m not taking it back) named Megan Price in Bridesmaids, BUT Alan Rickman (aka international acting royalty) cannot get a nod for his role as Severus Snape, a character who has officially taken its regal place in literary history as a contemporary Byronic and tragic hero like Heathcliff, in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II.

Those are some fighting words, I know.

But in the words of Snape,

“Give me a reason, I beg you.”

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9B8JTTqZHBk

I fail to see how Bridesmaids, a film which lacks anything of value (besides an ample amount of pink and Rose Bryne,) can represent artistic integrity, incredible visual effects, outstanding makeup, bespoke-worthy costume design and/or good acting.

Much less I really fail to see how it warrants a nomination inside one of the planet’s most ~~pretentious~~ prestigious award ceremonies.

I’m not trying to single out Bridesmaids, but rather make a point: Jonah Hill got an Oscar nomination over Alan Rickman.

There is something wrong with that equation.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7vJKxLa8vY

He’s Alan Rickman.

Just like Meryl Streep is ~~Anna Wintour~~ ~~Miranda Priestly~~ Meryl Streep, Helen Mirren is ~~The Queen~~ Helen Mirren, Colin Firth is ~~Mr. Darcy~~ ~~King George~~ Colin Firth and Johnny Depp is ~~Jack Sparrow~~ Johnny Depp.

He’s bloody Alan Rickman!

No, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, not even Cirque du Soleil, Jennifer Lopez’s derriere and a gorgeous Emma Stone wearing Giambattista Valli in cherry accessorized in Louis Vuitton can help you here.

Why couldn’t Alan Rickman get a well-deserved nomination?

Why couldn’t the makeup Potter team win for Best Makeup (The Iron Lady won against creating goblins, removing Ralph Fiennes nose and uglying Helena Bonham-Carter, really)?

Why couldn’t Potter win for Best Visual Effects (need I point out, that for as beautiful as Hugo is, Team Potter made paper fly eight films ago and if you want to tie it back to Alan Rickram - Team Potter gave him a virtual facelift in the film)?

~~Snobs~~. Dunderheads.

I don’t understand this whole let’s-all-hate-on-Harry-Potter party and I’d be so inclined to say that it’s flat out snobbery.

But why should we be surprised?

Leonardo DiCaprio didn’t get nominated for his outstanding performance as Jack in Titanic.

I wish I could say it is geeky hatred, but Lord of the Rings did conquer the all mighty Oscar a few years ago.

If Lord of the Rings can grab and Oscar or ten, Alan Rickman should have gotten a nomination for his role as Severus Snape and I’m not the only one who thought so: one, two, three, four.

For you see, this is the issue with the Academy and the Oscar pool in general: they simply don’t get it and ample amounts of hypocrisy sweat from their pores in oversize droplets.

Surely these people must have realized that Transformers: The Dark Side of the Moon had multiple nods… or maybe that slipped their brains when they tripped on the pavement of stars and smacked their heads against some concrete.

Was Transformers well-deserved?

Yes.

Was it geek?

Heck, yes.

So what about Potter?

This means that in eight films, the series was unable to garner at least one Oscar win.

How rude.

Maybe I’d feel differently, if the snooze fest known as the 84th Annual Academy Awards, or a live version of No Country for Old Men as I lovingly nicknamed it, had been better.

But it was sorely lacking where A-list actors (I’m looking at you Gwyneth Paltrow and Robert Downy Jr.) enacted mediocre skits and the rest, save Emma Stone and spurts of Billy Crystal, were unwitty and droning anywhere they could stick it.

To top it all off, someone needs to explain to me why in the world Justin Bieber was there…

… at least Octavia Spencer won for Best Supporting Actress.

Let’s hope 20-years from now when they decide to remake the films and cast Tom Felton as Lucius Malfoy, a few people in the Academy pool grow some … integrity.

So let me put it to you this way, if the Academy was a student and this was a Potions test at Hogwarts, Professor Snape would have given them a giant T for ‘troll.’

Rant over.

Discuss.

Facebook IPO: Is a $100 Billion Valuation Cool?

Alice B — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 17:39:20 +0000

One of the most anticipated events in .com history is finally upon us: Facebook has filed for its Initial Public Offering (IPO) and everybody is speculating about how high the company’s valuation will go.

We asked a couple of experts to shed some light on the matter: Professor Mark T. Leary, of Olin Business School, believes that at IPO the firm will have a total market value in the $80 – $100 billion range:

“I don’t doubt that investors will be willing to pay that price for the shares, based on the valuations coming out of their past private issuances and recent online auctions for private shares,” he says.

But just because people are willing to pay that price, does it actually mean that Facebook is worth that much?

Leary stresses that both Google’s and specially Facebook’s valuations require pretty aggressive assumptions about future cash flow growth.

“From a simple cash-flow growth model, a $100 billion value would imply that investors expect Facebook’s cash flow to grow forever at just 1% less than their cost of capital, which is probably around 10%.

In the short run, they are sure to grow faster than that, but it’s hard to expect them to maintain that pace as the company grows and matures.”

Google holds the record for the largest U.S. Internet IPO by raising $1.9 billion at a valuation of $23 billion in 2004.

At that time, Google’s market value was about $50 billion, but their revenues and cash flow were lower than Facebook’s are now, by about 15% and 30%, respectively.

Google’s ratio of market value to free cash flow at the end of 2004 was about 87.

Applying that to Facebook today would give a value about $80 billion.

So $100 billion might still be a stretch, but $75 or $80 billion does not seem out of line given the way the market has valued Google.

Facebook says it hopes to raise as much as $10 billion when it begins selling shares this spring; Among U.S. companies, only Visa Inc., General Motors Co. and AT&T Wireless have held larger offerings.

Its success, according to Leary, will depend on how aggressively the investment bankers price the issue and how broadly they allocate shares.

The harder thing to predict, however is how the stock will do in the long term.

“Some of the key factors in that regard will be their ability to convince advertisers to spend more money trying to reach their large user base, and their ability to continue to provide innovative services in order to both attract new users and increase the amount of time each user spends on their site.”

“I think Facebook has a more sustainable competitive advantage,” says Leary.

“With social networking, there’s a big advantage to being the first one to attract a large user base; That is, a networking site is only attractive to use if others are also using it.”

Jessica Powell, formerly of Google and now Chief Marketing Officer at social network Badoo, agrees that it is important to achieve critical mass:

“Badoo is the largest social network in the world dedicated to meeting new people, and we currently have over 138 million registered users.

Once you get to that size the value of your network grows exponentially because in people have thousands of potential new friends online at any given time.”

Some people look at these sky-high valuations and wonder whether we are seeing a second Internet bubble, but Leary says there is more substance to companies like Facebook and their business model:

“The Internet itself is a more established advertising medium than it was in the late 1990s, and there is less uncertainty about the total size of the market, but I think this model is only viable for the ‘winners’ in capturing online share.

One key difference is that they are already profitable.

At the height of the Internet IPO craze in the late 90s, you couldn’t even talk about price-to-earnings ratios since most firms that never turned a profit.

So investors were buying on speculation both about the site’s ability to generate user growth as well as their ability to translate users into profits.”

But not all social networks choose to go down the advertising route: Like LinkedIn, Badoo thrives on a Freemium model which offers most services for free but sells greater functionality and visibility through premium accounts and micropayments.

“Advertising on mobile can be a real challenge for social networks given the screen size, and issues around format and engagement.

That’s in part why we opted for a freemium model, which allows users to get extra functionality through micropayments.

Over one million payments are made on Badoo every month, so it’s proving to be a successful model for us,” says Powell.

IPOs are often criticized for reducing innovation once the firm becomes public,” Leary points out.

“This is likely to be less of a concern for Facebook, since they’re actively guarding against it.

For example, their dual class structure ensures that current insiders, particularly Zuckerberg, will maintain the majority of the voting rights after the IPO.”

Alice Bonasio is a Brazilian/American/Italian writer specializing in Digital Cultures. She has been published in Games^tm, Edge, The Escapist and 360. She is currently finishing an MA in Creative and Media Enterprises at the University of Warwick. She lives in England and is a PR Executive for one of the UK’s hottest tech start-ups, The Filter. Contact her on LinkedIN and follow her on Twitter.

Precious Stones: An Evening with Hilary Park

Sasha — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 01:17:25 +0000

What do you get when you have a theoretical math major turned jewelry designer who has an affinity for the stars?

Park.

Hilary Park.

That’s who!

Brooklyn-based, specializing in limited edition and one of a kind pieces hand-crafted in silver and gold, Park often incorporates semi-precious and precious gems into her work.

This month, my cousin, Crystal, and I had the opportunity to stop by Hilary’s store as she opened her doors to debut her new location and show off her SS12 collection.

In speaking with Hilary she told me that she studies astrology, gemology and likes to feel at one with nature.

These things transcend to her jewelry.

A moden-day goldsmith, Park has pieces based on the four elements (earth, fire, wind and water), zodiac signs and custom pieces with precious and semi-precious stones that are aligned to a person’s personality, desires or struggles.

Hilary gifted us with an absolutely, positively beautiful piece made of citrine she made by hand.

We’re been wearing for the past 3-weeks.

So if you seen us recently, you’ve probably seen it and now you know where we got it!

One a side note, our favourite Hilary piece is of the orchid, our favourite flower:

For more on Hilary, click here.
_

Autumn/Winter 2012 Ready-To-Wear: Diane von Furstenberg

Sasha — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 03:07:17 +0000

Entitled ‘Rendezvous,’ Diane von Furstenberg explained backstage that her Autumn/Winter Collection for 2012 is,

“about loving to be a woman. It’s about seduction. It is bold. It is daring. It is strong, but it has humor. It’s all about liking your body, and at the same time with big coats, so it’s the yin and the yang.”

Thus, the result was a collection full of subtle sultriness, pencil skirts, DvF’s signature jersey dresses cut to hug the body, wrap jackets and a variety of plunging necklines.

There was also quite a bit of colour blocking gracing her runway: a aqua, cherry and black number in particular, which we loved, followed closely to our hearts by a lime and bordeaux ensemble.

As with all good designers, DvF knows what her customer likes and in each collection she makes it obvious that she remembers them.

As her program notes elaborated the collection is about being,

“Glamorous at a moment’s notice.”

This is something her design partner, Yvan Mispelaere and his “beautiful palette,” could attest to.

A few more images below:-

* Images via Getty*

Happy

Fashion

Week!

To see more backstage & runway photos, check out Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week FW12 From My Mobile Phone on Facebook!

Autumn/Winter 2012 Ready-To-Wear: Reem Acra

Sasha — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 02:14:39 +0000

Nothing says “feminine power” quite like Reem Acra’s Autumn/Winter 2012 collection shown at New York’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week.

If James Bond was a woman, she’d probably look like this.

Between the black leather and lace, embellishments, metallic tweet, pointy stilettos and high collars we were in awe when we saw this live.

Acra is our favourite wedding dress designer and we’ve always told ourselves that the day we get married, we’re going to Acra to have her make us look like her Wedding Barbie doll.

However, upon closer inspection (or rather upon sitting in on viewing this collection at the tents), we rather wish Acra was our personal stylist for every and all things.

This was our favourite collection of Fashion Week.

“Feminine power,” indeed, as that was the phrase that Acra said backstage where she explained that she wanted to create a sense of power through strong, second-skin silhouettes.

… and create she did.

We found the trompe-l’œil effect to be delightful and the pieces with major peakaboo cutouts that slashed across the body in zigzags were simply delicious.

Besides as one of our straight-male friends who also saw Acra said,

“this is how women should dress.”

We agree.

A few more images below:-

*Photos by: Photo: Marcus Tondo/GoRunway.com”

Happy

Fashion

Week!

To see more backstage & runway photos, check out Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week FW12 From My Mobile Phone on Facebook!

Little Pink Press: Social Media Week São Paulo

Sasha — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 23:12:04 +0000

We love it when our Little Pink family does really cool things.

It’s Social Media Week across the globe, and while in New York City, it’s overlapping with Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, down south it’s all the talk!

Check out our blogger Alice Bonasio, the European Consumer Public Relations Manager for Badoo, as she speaks about social media, trends and all things technology at Social Media Week São Paulo!

“So it’s really fitting that as Brazil – which is Badoo’s biggest market with over 10 million people using the site every month – gears up for next’ week’s extravaganza, Badoo pays a visit to the São Paulo edition of Social Media Week.”

VIDEO:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=LN0dCC_KFLU

We’re super proud of you!

Parabéns!

Autumn/Winter 2012 Ready-To-Wear: Carlos Miele

Sasha — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 22:33:45 +0000

A huge fan of Carlos Miele, it was a pleasure to watch his runway show for Autumn/Winter 2012 during New York’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week where he brought out the gaúchas of Rio Grande do Sul.

Miele has always drawn from his country’s rich cultural heritage for his collection and this one felt especially Brazilian.

Miele wanted to keep the gaúchas as an important reference point for his show for their eternal values and thus, opened with Kate King strutting down the runway as a contemporary gaúcha in a soft wool poncho with woven silk, sand crepe pants and black open toe booties with leather tiras and metal edged fringe.

Kate King opening for Carlos Miele

There was über-chic daywear, cocktail and evening dresses made of horizontal bands of thinly spaced silk and sexy got an extremely sophisticated boost from the exquisitely delicate beaded boleros.

The boleros were a sure highlight, as seen below on Mila Krasnoiarova in a tangerine (we loved this colour) silk charmeuse chemisier adorned with a red and orange woven gaúcha belt:

Miele wanted to capture a sense of freedom with his gaúchas and used the patterns of traditional gaúcho sashes and ponchos for his work.

There were numerous geometric prints (a pink set that reminded us of South Beach at the Delano on a Friday night — yes, please!), echos of golds, black and various natural shades.

Where jewel-toned turquoise was a standout shade, the metal embroidery and overlays of various fabrics had our eyes glazing over from the orgasm taking on our sight.

Mila Krasnoiarova wore our absolute favourite piece from the collection, a pampa print gown in silk chiffon with a white silk underlay:

Another one of our favourite pieces, worn by Aiste-Regina Kliveckaite, was this black wool poncho with woven silk tiras details and metal edged fringes:

Miele’s collection was second-to-none for what he was trying to accomplish.

It stood out on its own for its sheer uniqueness and emphasis on sleek silhouettes.

Our one qualm, if you could call it that, would be that perhaps rather than samba-esque trance (spun by Anthony and Sean Souza, sons of long-time Valentino PR man Carlos Souza,) maybe a little instrumental remix “Ai se eu te pego” by Michel Teló or a remixed sertaneja via “Não Precisa” by Paula Fernandes and Victor e Leo would have been a better fit.

Regardless, Miele’s collection must have felt like home this season and for us, it was a refreshing burst of tropical luxury.

A few more images below:-

*Images by Yannis Vlamos/GoRunway.com*

Happy

Fashion

Week!

To see more backstage & runway photos, check out Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week FW12 From My Mobile Phone on Facebook!

Autumn/Winter 2012 Ready-To-Wear: Christian Siriano

Sasha — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 17:45:23 +0000

Dressed with dark lips, icy tones and pointy stilettos the models at Christian Siriano’s Autumn/Winter 2012 runway show were a far cry from the big ruffles and bows he came onto the fashion scene with nearly four years ago.

More streamlined and subdued, the collection was inspired by the 1933 film, “Vampire Bat.”

He explained that while “Vampire Bat” is a quirky horror film, Fay Wray, who stars in the picture, was too stunning and glamorous that he wanted to bring her aura into his collection.

There were inverted widow’s peak necklines, very pretty caped sleeve on dresses (reminded me of Morgan de Toi circa 1998), numerous pieces in complete white and lots of satin.

This is also probably the first time that Siriano’s collection didn’t include one of his signature big, showstopping, audience-gasping gowns.

In fact, if you were to read a pre-Fashion Week editorial in the New York Times, the former reality television star has been making an effort as of late to show restraint with his designs.

In the piece he spoke of trying to seek the approval of the fashion industry and attempting to distance himself from being a “reality star.”

Siriano attended the Baltimore School for the Arts where he made fashion the topic for his senior thesis and then went to design school at American InterContinental University in London, interning with Alexander McQueen and Vivienne Westwood.

Yet, in the fashion industry he’s still that kid who said “fierce” a lot on “Project Runway.”

Siriano told the New York Times he’s looking to go the simpler route for acceptance, after being turned down for membership with the Council of Fashion Designers of America, the country’s most influential and prestigious trade organization.

So, while his restraint has done him well — this collection was flawless, well tailored with long, lean lines and a solid consistency, for me, it lacked a certain amount of “Christian.”

Big ruffles and ballgowns aren’t necessary to make a collection grand, but we would have liked to see a bit more of a balance between critical approval and the sugar that keeps his clientele coming back fore more.

We think Christian should just be himself.

A few more images below:

*Images by Filippo Fior/ GoRunway.com*

Happy

Fashion

Week!

To see more backstage & runway photos, check out Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week FW12 From My Mobile Phone on Facebook!
_

Autumn/Winter 2012 Ready-To-Wear: Lela Rose

Sasha — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 23:54:48 +0000

Lela Rose’s latest collection was inspired by a recent trip to Dallas, Texas where she said she became besotted with Santiago Calatrava’s Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge.

Her collection was aimed at translating Calatrava’s linear stability into lines of romanticism and functionality for the ready-to-wear woman.

Both an architect and engineer, Calatrava’s signature bridges and railway stations set the backdrop for long, angular silhouettes.

In true Rose fashion, the collection was exquisitely tailored and very pretty with many pieces boasting heavy embellishments and knitted handiwork.

We really loved the ballgown and tea dresses in darker magenta.

Floor length day time dresses in cable-stayed plaid and grid lace stove pipe sleeves effortlessly balancegeometry with a natural fluidity.

Brick fil coupe´, galvanized organza, and silk cloque´ are highlighted in colors such as rust, sulfurous amber, dark bronze and white silver.

A few more images below:-

*Images by Yannis Vlamos/ GoRunway.com*

Happy

Fashion

Week!

To see more backstage & runway photos, check out Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week FW12 From My Mobile Phone on Facebook!

Autumn/Winter 2012 Ready-To-Wear: Bebe BLACK

Sasha — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 23:31:04 +0000

We love Bebe and this season the femme fatale pin-up is in with leather gloves and all!

As he enters his second season at the womenswear retailer, Charles Benton created a homage to the power of women for the collection.

Less youthful with far less form-fitting pieces, this collection is something to take notice of as it makes an obvious sway from the typical low-cut, figure-hugging clothing that the brand has a reputation for.

For this collection, pieces that hugged the body were accompanied by trendy blazers, long overcoats and short shorts (Bob Gaudio would have been proud!)

We were also quite a fan of the very No-one-puts-Baby-in-a-corner, plaid cropped pants that made us wish a living, circa 1985 Patrick Swayze would magically appear sashaying down the runway to Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes.

Either way, take care, that the carefee, typical Bebe-girl was not lost in this new collection as the models walked down the runway in turquoise and red scalloped stilettos.

While, the handbags were all stunning in loud alligator and leopard prints.

By the way, we loved the tartan print blazer accompanied with the onyx, pipe-stemmed trousers.

It was our favourite look by far!

A few more images below:

*Images by Marcus Tondo / GoRunway.com*

Happy

Fashion

Week!

To see more backstage & runway photos, check out Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week FW12 From My Mobile Phone on Facebook!

Autumn/Winter 2012 Ready-To-Wear: Adrienne Vittadini

Sasha — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 22:39:53 +0000

In her first season with Adrienne Vittadini, Alicia Galitzin took a very trendy and contemporary approach to the label.

Using a few beautiful trompe l’oeil prints it was quite a beautiful sight to behold.

And needless to say, color blocking is in for fall.

It was refreshing to see black and white or the black and yellows in Vittadini, as opposed to the tangerine and royal blue or pink topaz and tangerine we’ve been seeing everywhere else across the runways.

A definite stand out piece for us, was the sable Mongolian lamb jacket over a signature leopard print merino sweater and matching leggings.

But our favourite piece had to be the sable mohair wrap with gardenia strip over a matching color block sweater with sable leggings.

A few more images below:

*Images courtesy of Adrienne Vittadini/Jennifer Graylock*

To see more backstage & runway photos, check out Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week FW12 From My Mobile Phone on Facebook!
_

Barbie Takes Over Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at FW12

Sasha — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 01:49:18 +0000

“I’m a Barbie Girl in a Barbie world!”

*squeee*

This Fashion Week, Barbie opened up her sparkly, pink doors for The Dream Closet, a fashionista’s dream come true — especially, if you’re me!

“Life is plastic, it’s fantastic!”

She hired a DJ who played everything from Pitbull to Madonna, served pink sugar-rimmed champagne flutes and had models dressed as her on balconies lining the walls of the David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center.

“OMG shoes!!!“

The venue was lit with soft pink lights and it felt like the Hogwarts of Barbie had come to life with augmented-reality mirrors in place that allowed Fashion Week goers to try on some of Barbie’s most famous outfits.

The food was delish and oh-so girlie with fig and gorgonzola cheese on a crostini with a walnut, mini-lobster rolls and strawberry milkshake shots with peanut-butter cookies flowing.

Even the napkins were branded for the event.

Our makeup and style for the evening:

~ Adele/Lana Del Rey-inspired makeup

Smashbox Photo Op palette, Lancome Doll lashes mascara, Hard Candy Walk the Line liquid glossy eyeliner, MAC Venetian lustreglass & MAC Ambering Rose blush

~ Pamela Love necklace from Steph
~ Butter London SS12 “Trout Pout” nails
~ Vintage-inspired dress from… *drum roll* George.com!

Whoever said all style had to be expensive was sadly mistaken.

Fashion is bought, style is something you have!

“You can brush my hair…”

By the way, did we mention we ran into Rose McGowan and Joe Zee?

Needless to say, this was our absolute favourite event from this season’s fashion week.

A Barbielicious girl is a happy girl

Happy

Fashion

Week

To see more backstage & runway photos, check out Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week FW12 From My Mobile Phone on Facebook!
_

Backstage at New York Fashion Week FW12: Style at Anna Sui

Sasha — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 23:08:21 +0000

Technicolor cat-eyes are in!

At least they were at Anna Sui’s Fall/Winter 2012 show at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week.

Pat McGrath dolled up the models in an azure blend backstage.

She used CoverGirl Liquiline Blast Eyeliner in Blue Boom and the Eye Enhancers 1-Kit Shadow in Indigo Impact.

McGrath wanted a true Bohemian 1960s feel to her work.

By tracing the inner rims of the eye with a white pencil to open up the eye, followed by a few coats of CoverGirl LashPerfection, she was able to do just that.

To finish the look off, McGrath placed hand-coloured, hand-cut circular stickers on the lower lash line.

“It adds a little extra interest,” she said to Style.com of the small detail, which was lined up exactly with models’ pupils.

The nails for the look were courtesy of Anna Sui’s own line of polishes in lacquer #103.

For the hair, keeping with the same sixties aura, Garren created a semi-deep side part (which we’ve seen at Marc Jacobs, Diane von Furstenberg and a few others across this season’s shows), sculpted into a low ponytail that was teased at the crown.

Adele would be proud!

*Photos by Juan Arredondo*

Happy

Fashion

Week

To see more backstage & runway photos, check out Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week FW12 From My Mobile Phone on Facebook!

Backstage at New York Fashion Week FW12: Style at Tracy Reese

Sasha — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 22:40:53 +0000

For Fall/Winter 2012 Tracy Reese’s collection oozed a natural street-inspired style with strong shoulders, bold tones and a variety of textures, embellishments and patterns.

A sponsor of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, TRESemmé was on hand with stylist Jeanie Syfu who created a textured bed-head look meant to compliment and mimic the style of the clothing.

“The hair is inspired by the mood of the collection – an accessible look that reflects a natural street style.

The clothes are meant to be worn by normal people and when the complete look comes together, it sends a head-to-toe message.”

- Tracy Reese

Hair: Jeanie Syfu for TRESemme
Makeup: Mally Roncal for Mally Beauty

GET THE LOOK:

Start by applying TRESemmé 24 Hour Body Root Boost Spray and TRESemmé 24 Hour Body Foaming Mousse (use TRESemmé Flawless Curls Spray Gel for curly hair) through out the hair and power dry with fingers for texture.
Back comb roots from below crown to top of head for texture, lightly spray with TRESemmé 24 Hour Body Finishing Spray.
Take random sections and create a reverse curl with a 1 1Ž4” barrel curling iron leaving ends straight. Spray lightly with TRESemmé Fresh Start Volumizing Dry Shampoo for a matte finish.
Take a tear drop section from part down to nape and fasten at nape into a low ponytail.
Loosely take remaining hair, twist both sides back and fasten with hairpins into a ponytail.
Wrap the base of the ponytail with hair.
Leave a few loose strands to frame the face, tucking hair loosely behind ears for a casual finish.

“I have to say, this might be my FAVORITE look that Tracy and I have ever created! It is fresh, modern, cool, and just as wearable and appropriate off the runway as it is on the runway,” said celebrity make up artist Mally Roncal.

“The beautiful Tracy Reese collection was full of the most incredible colors, and we were so excited to compliment the colorful clothes with a bright pop of color on the eyes!”

PRODUCTS USED:

Mally Beauty Evercolor Starlight Waterproof Eyeliner in:

Sailor
Caribbean Sea
Royal Plum
Golden

Mally Beauty Lip Magnifier in Cafe
Mally Beauty Effortless Airbrush Blush & Highlighter Duo

*Photos by Juan Arredondo*

Happy

Fashion

Week

To see more backstage & runway photos, check out Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week FW12 From My Mobile Phone on Facebook!
_

Backstage at New York Fashion Week FW12: Diane von Furstenberg

Sasha — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 22:21:27 +0000

Diane von Furstenberg is the epitome of trendy grace and eloquent style.

I adore her and this season is no different.

Von Furstenberg’s Fall/Winter 2012 collection was meant to be seductive, bold and daring.

To create a strong, confident and feminine look, Orlando Pita of PHYTO styled the hair shiny with a deep side part (something we’ve seen countless times this season on the runway,) tightly gathered in a low chignon.

Appropriately titled “Rendezvous,” the collection called for James Kaliardos of MAC to create deep smokey eyes, perfectly nude skin, well-defined brows and rosey lips (something else we’ve seen a lot of this season.)

Makeup Products Used (all by MAC Cosmetics):

Matchmaster Foundation
Pro Longwear Eye Shadow in Lingering Softly
MAC Clear Gloss (for eyelids)
Lip Pencil in Soar

Hair Products Used (all by PHYTO):

Phytolisse Ultra-Shine Smoothing Serum
Pro Wet Gel

*Photos by Juan Arredondo*

Happy

Fashion

Week

To see more backstage & runway photos, check out Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week FW12 From My Mobile Phone on Facebook!
_