Photo: giafrese

I was at Fashion Week this season when a woman named Shauna Miller introduced herself to me, told me she liked my site and handed me a dress that she said would change my life. I thanked her, took the dress and went home. I recently rediscovered this dress and she was absolutely right: this dress is absolutely amazing.

Photo: Giafrese

The woman’s name is Shauna Miller and her blog, Penny Chic, has inspired a clothing line of the same name, sold at your local Wal-Mart. These dresses are super-soft, clearly fit extraordinarily well, and of incredible quality for the money.

Photo: giafrese

The dress I’m wearing here is for those of us with dangerous curves. I think the dress handles them well. It’s built in such a manner that it sucks things in around the waist without having to add shapewear. The 3/4-length sleeves also help slimming your upper arms. In short, you get a LOT for the price. Also, let’s face it: the dress looks like it costs a lot more.

Photo: giafrese

Here’s a roundup of the other items I’m wearing with this awesome $20 dress you can grab at your local Wal-Mart:

Penny Chic by Shauna Miller Women’s Curvy Little Black Dress, Juicy Couture Pave Teardrop Orbital Earring, Nine West Love Fury pumps, Laura Merkin Eve Clutch

Photo: Giafrese

There’s something that still makes me a tad scared of skinny jeans, particularly when they’re in a bright color. I’ve worked my way from jeans that are as dark as they can get to maybe a lighter blue, then to primary colors. But when I got my hands on these jeans from Joe’s Jeans, I realized it was time to re-embrace my inner 80′s nerd and go for it.

Photo: giafrese

This whole love of bright colors is a very recent thing for me. I think it’s a revolt from childhood and having a lemon yellow bedroom the whole time I was growing up. The minute I was able to paint the walls, they were deep grey (they would have been black, but Mom Booker would not get down with the whole my-teen-angst-must-be-expressed thing) and my wardrobe took a similar turn.

Photo: giafrese

I have always embraced black, navy blue and deep noir, moody colors. For years, I considered red and white too bright for me. But, I guess as I get older and my attitude toward life gets more optimistic, so does the color palette of my wardrobe.

Photo: giafrese

Since shooting this crazy Miami Vice-inspired look, I’ve since worn these bright jeans with a heather grey v-neck t-shirt and a black jacket with heels and it was stunning.

Photo: giafrese

Together or separate, all of these pieces are some of my new favorite wardrobe additions, and all/most of them are reasonably-priced impact pieces for the season. Check it out:

What I’m Wearing: Coldwater Creek Pleated Chiffon Shell, Joe’s Jeans The High Water Ultra Waxy Jeans in Lemon Lime, Shoedazzle Yasi by Madison in Orange, Juicy Couture Texture Cateye Sunglasses and Juicy Couture Pave Teardrop Orbital Earrings, Timex Easy Reader Watch with White Patent Leather Strap.

Click to watch the Skinceuticals Melanoma Awareness video.

So, May is Melanoma Awareness Month. Today is Melanoma Monday.

Sunscreen is one of those products that sort of transcends “beauty” when it comes to writing about it. I mean, I love the Hell out of some eyeliner, but it isn’t going to save your life. Lipstick isn’t going to help you survive another day (well, let me not go that far…sometimes lipstick is the only way to get through the day.) But, in all seriousness, the daily use of sunscreen is the number one protection factor against the harmful rays of the sun, the effects of which are getting more and more serious all the time.

It doesn’t matter what your ethnic background is, it doesn’t matter how good you look with a tan: if you’re not rocking broad-spectrum sunscreen every single time you leave the house and/or come into contact with the sun’s rays (and that includes building and car windows), you’re at risk for developing skin cancer. It’s preventable and treatable with early detection. Without early detection, it’s an incredibly serious way to suffer…and quite possibly die.

Skinceuticals passed along this video with some of their favorite celebs to help spread the message. By clicking on it, they’ll donate $1 to the Melanoma Research Alliance. You may recognize some of the celebs they wrangled to help with the message, from Top Chef’s Padma Lakshmi to fashion designer Rebecca Minkoff and man-about-all-things-fabulous Derek Blasberg (there’s even a spot from my fellow beauty blogging brethren, Jeannine Morris.)

Click on the spot and then go take advantage of the FREE skin checks that Skinceuticals is hosting around the country at select Board Certified dermatologist offices across the country. It’s a lifesaving service, free of charge. Click here to find a screening in your area.

One of my dearest friends lost a parent to melanoma. I watched her suffering and I promised her that I would do whatever I could to help make the awareness of this horrible disease prevalent on the site. I intend to keep that promise. Get checked. Wear a broad-spectrum sunscreen of at LEAST SPF 15. Stay safe. Spread the message.

While I was out of town at my college reunion, Jenn Morales attended a rather swanky launch of the new Opening Ceremony collection with co-owner and co-designer Carol Lim.

With champagne flowing and light bites from cute waiters being passed and a DJplaying great music, I perused the new collection from Opening Ceremony with our contest winner, Maia Alejandro, courtesy of American Express. I found myself drooling over cases of jewelry, particularly a gorgeous assortment of items from Pamela Love. In my opinion, Opening Ceremony does accessories the best.

As spring appears to have finally sprung and the leaves are finally in bloom, a girl’s mind turn to many things, among them what we’ll be wearing during the season. When Diet Pepsi contacted me to give them my list of the items that I’m more than a little mad for in celebration of their limited edition mini-can designed by Vern Yip as part of their Love Every Sip campaign, I jumped at the chance. I mean, I already had the list started…might as well share the love, right? Plus it’s in Pantone’s hot color for spring, dust blue, which is flattering on pretty much everyone and very 70′s in my opinion. Give me all things 70′s, people. I love the nightlife, got to boogie.

The items above, embraced by the delightful new can in the corner of the photo, are my way of sharing my love for all things spring rocker style this season. They include, in clockwise order from the top left: KORS Michael Kors Jordyn sandals, Diane Von Furstenberg Andi Leather Shorts,  Judith Jack Linear Marquise Earrings, Rebecca Minkoff Lasercut M.A.C. Crossbody Clutch, and the Nanette Lepore Bombastic Silk Blazer. Wear them all together or separately, but these are my essentials for a stylish, super fabulous spring.

What’s on YOUR sassy spring love list? Do tell in the comments below, or tweet your thoughts to me at @fashionstbeauty and @dietpepsi using the hashtag #loveeverysip

FTC Full Disclosure: This is a compensated post, paid for by Diet Pepsi, but the opinions within are strictly my own.

Ta-da! This is what I wore to my college reunion this past weekend.

Let me first stress that I’ve not attended a reunion of any kind of my own before outside of concert festivals where I’m going because I’m afraid one of the band members is going to die and I won’t have seen them live (I keep spending whole paychecks on The Rolling Stones for this very reason, although at this point, Keith Richards will outlive us all.) But when the number “20″ was associated with “class reunion,” I bought a ticket and booked a hotel room.  We all look great for our age, but we lost three classmates last year and time is moving fast. Attention must be paid. So, it was off to Charlotte, NC, I went to see my alma mater, Queens University of Charlotte.

The question always comes up as to what do you wear to such things. For me, I didn’t want to go the old route. I didn’t want to borrow a dress or make it a big huge deal. But I did have this pair of leather shorts that were just itching to get worn, a pair for which I had run suicides in Equinox ETC and raced and raced for miles in SoulCycle and spent so many days in Core Fusion at exhale mind body spa that I became the mayor of pretty much all their locations (I’m a Brand Ambassador for exhale, btw.) No, these shorts needed to get worn and the reunion dinner was the perfect time to pull them out.

The photo above is the one shot we managed to get of the outfit before I took off and started snapping photos of all my classmates. I’ll show you more snaps tomorrow in my roundup of the reunion itself, but here’s a breakdown of the look itself. Personally, I felt really good in it and got a lot of compliments on my legs (which were covered in Jergens Natural Glow Moisturizer to make sure you couldn’t see them from space.)

What I’m wearing: Helmut Lang Flash Drape Blazer, T by Alexander Wang muscle T, Topshop faux leather shorts, Nine West Reaves pumps, vintage necklaces, Juicy Couture Pave Teardrop earrings

As many of you who follow the site may know, I’m in the process of losing a lot of weight. I’m at 82 lbs and have somewhere in the 12 lbs-ish range to go. I was obese for almost a decade, so I took my time taking the weight off so it would stay off (I don’t want to be afraid of pizza or butter, to be honest.) So, at the tail end of this journey to get my belly button where it used to be, I’ve also realized that I have something around my waist that most people don’t ever talk about in polite company: excess skin. Oh yeah, kids: it’s there. Because when you stretch your skin out and then there’s nothing underneath it, it can lose it’s elasticity and, well, stay loose.

Only for you would I talk about what’s happening underneath my clothes. Like, for serious.

This is when it’s really helpful to have these problems as a beauty editor, because I can be a guinea pig for creams and treatments that claim to cure such ills, which is what I signed on for about a month ago when leading skincare company Skinceuticals came to me with a solution: their new Body Tightening Concentrate with six sessions with the Tri-Pollar Apollo machine. The combination of the two should essentially help tighten and tone the skin so there wouldn’t be dimples and sagging.

Skinceuticals Body Tightening Concentrate. Click for more information.

Skinceuticals Body Tightening Concentrate is essentially a cream that helps target and tighten sagging loose skin in areas where gravity kind of has its way with you: abdomen, thighs, batwings, etc. What it does is it cools the skin and stimulates collagen as well as the molecules that essentially hold water to help re-inflate the skin from the inside, which in turn gives it a tighter, smoother appearance for long-term effect. It’s not just there to mask the problem, it’s there to actually go into your skin and aid in fixing the issue. The technical advances of what makes it amazing are included in the link, but a great mixture of tripeptide, yeast extract, hydrolyzed rice protein and LHA (Lipo Hydroxy Acid) is what makes it run.

This is the Tri-Pollar Apollo machine, aka The Big Guns for Skin Tightening.

The Tri-Pollar Apollo machine is a machine that essentially uses radio frequency massage to go deep into the dermis and help it essentially tighten. It can reduce the appearance of a double chin, it can tighten skin, reduce wrinkles and help with the appearance of fat. Note that it can’t get rid of fat, though. You’d need liposuction for that, or you’d have to go my route, which is good old fashioned exercise.

I agreed immediately because, in my experience, if you’re going to go with clinical skincare solutions that honestly do everything they say they’re going to do, Skinceuticals is the company you work with. A box of the cream was given to me and it was off to Skin Laser and Surgery Specialists in Midtown Manhattan I went, where the amazing Dr. David Goldberg and lovely Gabriela worked on my wobbly tummy bits .

The lovely Gabriela minutes after Session One with the Apollo machine.

We’re five of the six sessions into it and I wanted to show you the results. So, let’s get a read on what my stomach looked like before. See the photo above and below:

This is as honest as it gets: my stomach with the uneven skin and lack of definition, prior to treatment.

And this photo below is after Session Five.

TA-DA! Check ME OUT. This is after Session Five of the Apollo and using the Skinceuticals Body Tightening Concentrate like it was my job.

Do I have a Victoria’s Secret supermodel stomach? NO. Is the dimpling gone, do I have better definition and is the skin smoother and tighter? Clearly, the answer is YES.

I want to stress that I used this Body Tightening Concentrate twice a day on my stomach without fail. As in, I never skipped a day, I never missed an application. Clearly, I had the Apollo machine to essentially help to shrinkwrap my tummy, but the skin tightening concentrate REALLY amped the results. If you’re looking for a skin tightening cream that really makes it happen, I mean, look at my stomach up here. If you can get a smoothing action from using it regularly and it helps give you confidence, why not do it?

Now, let’s be honest here: I’m in an image business and putting photos of my less-than-flat stomach, particularly pre-treatment, scared me to death. But then I thought about it and, honestly, we’re ALL in this boat out there. I may never have a washboard stomach again, but the smoothness of the skin and the definition I’ve gotten through hard work (and a little cream and tightening treatment for the excess skin) has helped boost me quite a bit. Check it out if you’re so inclined. Skinceuticals is sold through an amazing dermatologist near you.

Opening Ceremony Fall 2013 Collection presentation. Image courtesy of Opening Ceremony.

Ah, I know, it’s been a while since I’ve done a giveaway, right?!? Well, I wanted to make sure that it was a GOOD giveaway for you (nothing but the best, right?) and this one landed in my inbox while I was headed out on vacation, so let’s get to the goods, shall we?

If you’re familiar with the cult favorite shopping destination Opening Ceremony, you’ll know exactly why this is such a great giveaway and so much fun. It’s where I get a lot of my Pieces that Pop (aka fantastic fashion-forward items that make your female friends green with envy, your gay friends cheer and your boyfriend say “WTF?!?”) that just make my heart sing along with some wardrobe essentials for which I save and save and save (like my budding collection of T by Alexander Wang t-shirts, which is growing at an exponential rate.

Chloe Sevigny for Opening Ceremony Fall 2013 Collection. Image courtesy of Opening Ceremony.

There’s a lot of buzz building around Opening Ceremony’s signature collection (they’ve done their own collection previously, along with a special collection with Chloe Sevigny) and they’re throwing a little VIP shopping party this week. I have been given the opportunity to host two readers for a spectacular evening of shopping.

TWO winners, selected at random, will accompany my editor, Jenn, this Thursday evening, April 25th, 2013, from 7-9 pm at a swanky shopping soiree at the Opening Ceremony store in Soho and will receive a $50 AMEX gift card each to go toward their spending that evening. I would definitely say that this will be a fun evening and a) who turns down a free $50 to shop at b) a badass collection launch party?

Side note: you must live in the New York City area to claim this prize. Again, you need to be local to win.

Leave a comment below and tell me what you’d do with your $50 if you win and I will announce the winners (again, there will be two of you) on Thursday at 12 pm ET.

American Express Legal Terms for Contest 

Official Rules for American Express
Opening Ceremony Blogger Giveaway
No Purchase Necessary to Enter or Win. A Purchase will not Increase Your Chances of
Winning.
1. Eligibility: The American Express Opening Ceremony Blogger Giveaway (the
“Sweepstakes”) is open only to individuals who (a) are legal residents of the fifty (50)
United States and District of Columbia (b) are at least 21 years of age and (c) have a
Twitter account. Employees of American Express Travel Related Services Company,
Inc. (“Sponsor”) or other companies associated with the Sweepstakes (including any
advertising and promotion agencies), and their respective parent companies, affiliates
and subsidiaries as well as the immediate family (spouse, parents, siblings, and
children) and household members of each such employee, whether or not related, are
not eligible to enter. The Sweepstakes is subject to all applicable laws and regulations
and is void where prohibited.
2. Sponsor: The Sweepstakes is sponsored by American Express Travel Related
Services Company, Inc., 200 Vesey Street, New York, NY 10285 (“Sponsor”) and
administered by Fashion Style Beauty (“Partner”). Twitter is not affiliated with this
Sweepstakes.
3. Agreement to Official Rules: By entering the Sweepstakes, entrant indicates his/her
full and unconditional agreement to, and acceptance of, (a) these Official Rules and (b)
Sponsor’s decisions, which are final and binding. Winning the prize is contingent upon
fulfilling all requirements set forth herein.
4. Entry Period: The Sweepstakes will take place on April 22nd
, 2013 beginning at 12:00
PM. Eastern Time (“ET”) and ending at April 25th, 2013 at 12:00 PM ET (“Sweepstakes
Period”). Sponsor and/or Partner’s computer is the official time-keeping device for the
Sweepstakes.
5. How to Enter: If you don’t already follow Partner on Twitter and American Express on
Twitter, visit Partner’s Twitter Page http://twitter.com/fashionstbeauty and click on the
icon to follow Partner and visit http://twitter.com/americanexpress and click on the icon to
follow American Express. Once you have signed up to follow Partner and American
Express, to enter, read the official Sweepstakes tweet (containing official hashtag
#amexmakemyday) posted during the Sweepstakes Period and respond accordingly.
Entrant must satisfy the requirements and/or any questions contained within the official
Sweepstakes tweet and follow the response instructions. The entrant must then reply to
@fashionstbeauty via their personal and/or chosen twitter account to enter. Sponsor and
Partner reserve the right to require and/or request additional personal information to
validate eligibility of any and all applicants. Limit one (1) entry per person/Twitter account
for the Sweepstakes Period. Entries in excess of the stated limitation will be void. If you
complete the entry process via your wireless phone, your wireless service provider may
charge you for additional data usage. Please consult your wireless service provider for
more information. Sponsor and Partner are not responsible for any charges wireless
service provider may charge entrant. All terms and conditions of Twitter.com apply.
Multiple entrants are not permitted to share the same Twitter account or required
information upon entry. Any attempt by any entrant to obtain more than the stated
number of entries by using multiple/different Twitter accounts, identities, registrations, or FKKS: 481691.v2 15892.100 2
logins, or through any other methods, may void all of that entrant’s entries and that
entrant may be disqualified. The use of any automated system to enter or subvert the
entry process the Sweepstakes is prohibited and may result in disqualification.
6. Winner Selection: Following the conclusion of the Sweepstakes Period, Partner will
randomly select two (2) potential winners from among all eligible entries received for the
entire Sweepstakes. Partner reserves the right to decline any entry deemed incomplete
or ineligible during the entry process. The odds of winning depend on the number of
eligible entries received for the Sweepstakes.
7. Notification and Requirements of Potential Winners: Potential winners will be
announced within 24 hours of the drawing. An individual is not deemed the winner
unless and until he/she has complied with these Official Rules regardless of whether
he/she has been announced as the winner on Twitter or in any other forum. The Partner
will send each potential winner a message from @fashionstbeauty to the potential
winner’s Twitter account used to enter the Sweepstakes with instructions on how to
claim the prize. Chosen winners will be eligible to bring one (1) guest Upon entry and/or
fulfillment, Sponsor will contact a potential winner via Twitter, but may also contact the
potential winner via telephone or electronic email (if information is provided by or
requested from entrant) in order to confirm the receipt and acceptance of the prize. In
order to receive a message from Sponsor, Entrant must (a) be following
@fashionstbeauty and @americanexpress and (b) have his or her account settings set
to “unprotected” and/or “public.” If a potential winner does not respond and comply with
the instructions in the message within one (1) day after Sponsor sent the message or is
not in compliance with these Official Rules, he/she will forfeit the prize and Sponsor may
select an alternate potential winner in his/her place in a random drawing of all eligible
entries received, if time permits. Except where prohibited, each potential winner may be
required to complete and return an affidavit of eligibility and liability/publicity release (the
“Affidavit/Release”). If a potential winner fails to sign and return the Affidavit/Release
within the required time period, an alternate entrant will be selected in his/her place in a
random drawing of all remaining eligible entries received. By participating, each winner,
except where legally prohibited, grants permission for Sponsor, the Partner and their
respective designees to announce his/her name on Twitter as the winner and to use
his/her name, address (city and state), photograph, voice and/or other likeness and prize
information for advertising, trade and promotional purposes without further
compensation, in all media now known or hereafter discovered, in any manner,
worldwide in perpetuity, without notice or review or approval.
8. Prizes and Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”) (2): Each winner will receive number
two (2) tickets (one (1) for winner and one (1) for guest) to the Opening Ceremony
Shopping and Styling Experience, scheduled to take place at Opening Ceremony – 33 &
35 Howard Street, New York, NY 10013 on Thursday, April 25th, 2013 from 7:00-9:00
PM ET (ARV: $350). Transportation to/from NYC or event is not provided as part of
prize. Exact details will be provided to winner at time of prize notification. Tickets are
subject to terms and conditions set forth therein. Winner must have valid ID in order to
confirm and reserve tickets. Winner must be present to receive tickets from Sponsor
representative 30 minutes prior to event start time at disclosed address. Winner and
guest must comply with all venue rules and regulations. Failure to do so may result in
forfeiture of prize. Winner and Guest must each be at least 21 years of age and will be
required to present valid identification at event per Sponsor and/or Organizer request. If,
for whatever reason, the event is cancelled or postponed, Sponsor and Partner will have FKKS: 481691.v2 15892.100 3
no further obligation to winner. Sponsor reserves the right to not award the prize if, in its
sole discretion, it does not receive any eligible entries. Winners are responsible for all
federal, state and local taxes, if any, as well as any costs and expenses associated with
prize acceptance use not specified herein as being provided, including without limitation,
travel and accommodations. Prizes are awarded “as is” with no warranty or guarantee,
either express or implied. Prizes are not transferable and must be accepted as
awarded. Winner may not request cash or other substitution; however, the Sponsor
reserves the right to substitute a prize with another prize of comparable or greater value,
in its sole discretion. All prize details will be determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion.
9. General Conditions: Sponsor and Partner reserve the right, in their sole discretion, to
suspend, modify or terminate the Sweepstakes in the event that the operation, security,
or administration of the Sweepstakes is impaired in any way, including, but not limited to
by fraud, virus, unauthorized human intervention or other technical problem. If
terminated, Sponsor and Partner may, at their discretion, award the prizes at random
from among all non-suspect, eligible entries received up to the time of the impairment.
Sponsor and Partner reserve the right in their sole discretion to disqualify any individual
it finds to be tampering with the entry process or the operation of the Sweepstakes or to
be acting in violation of these Official Rules or in an unsportsmanlike or disruptive
manner and void all associated entries. Any attempt by any person to undermine the
legitimate operation of the Sweepstakes may be a violation of criminal and civil law, and,
should such an attempt be made, Sponsor and Partner reserve the right to seek
damages and other remedies (including attorneys’ fees) from any such person to the
fullest extent permitted by law. Failure by Sponsor and/or Partner to enforce any term of
these Official Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that provision. In the event of a
dispute regarding entries received from multiple users having the same e-mail account,
the authorized subscriber of the e-mail account at the time of entry will be deemed to be
the entrant and must comply with these rules. Authorized account subscriber is the
natural person who is assigned the e-mail address by the Internet Service Provider
(ISP), on-line service provider, or other organization responsible for assigning e-mail
addresses.
10. Release and Limitations of Liability: By participating in the Sweepstakes, entrant
agrees to release and hold harmless Sponsor, Partner, Twitter, and their respective
parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, and advertising and promotion agencies and each of
their respective officers, directors, employees, and agents (collectively, the “Released
Parties”) from and against any claim or cause of action arising, in whole or in part,
directly or indirectly, out of participation in the Sweepstakes or receipt or use of a prize.
Released Parties are not responsible for lost, late, incomplete, inaccurate, stolen,
delayed, misdirected, undelivered, or garbled Tweets or messages; or for lost,
interrupted or unavailable network, server, Internet Service Provider (ISP), website, or
other connections, availability or accessibility or miscommunications or failed computer,
satellite, telephone or cable transmissions, lines, or technical failure or jumbled,
scrambled, delayed, or misdirected transmissions or computer hardware or software
malfunctions, failures or difficulties, or other errors or difficulties of any kind whether
human, mechanical, electronic, computer, network, typographical, printing or otherwise
relating to or in connection with the Sweepstakes, including, without limitation, errors or
difficulties which may occur in connection with the administration of the Sweepstakes,
the processing of Tweets, the announcement of the prizes, or in any Sweepstakesrelated materials. Released Parties are also not responsible for any incorrect or
inaccurate information, whether caused by site users, tampering, hacking, or by any FKKS: 481691.v2 15892.100 4
equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Sweepstakes. Released
Parties are not responsible for injury or damage to participants’ or to any other person’s
computer related to or resulting from participating in this Sweepstakes or downloading
materials from or use of the website. Entrant agrees that in any cause of action, the
Released Parties’ liability will be limited to the cost of entering and participating in the
Sweepstakes, and in no event shall the Released Parties be liable for attorney’s fees or
other legal costs. Entrant waives the right to claim any damages whatsoever, including,
but not limited to, punitive, consequential, direct, or indirect damages.
11. Disputes: This Sweepstakes shall be governed by and interpreted under the laws of
the State of New York, U.S.A. without regard to its conflicts of laws provisions. Entrants
hereby agree that any and all disputes, claims, causes of action, or controversies
(“Claims”) arising out of or in connection with this Sweepstakes or these Official Rules
shall be resolved, upon the election by entrant or Sponsor, by arbitration pursuant to this
provision and the code of procedures of either the Judicial Arbitration and Mediation
Services, Inc. (“JAMS”) or the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”), as selected by
the entrant. In addition to JAMS or AAA, Claims may be referred to any other arbitration
organization that is mutually agreed upon in writing by entrant and Sponsor, or to an
arbitration organization or arbitrator(s) appointed pursuant to Section 5 of the Federal
Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. Sections 1-16, provided that any such arbitration organization
and arbitrator(s) will enforce the terms of the restrictions on arbitration provision set forth
below. IF ARBITRATION IS CHOSEN BY ANY PARTY WITH RESPECT TO A CLAIM,
NEITHER PARTY WILL HAVE THE RIGHT TO LITIGATE THAT CLAIM IN COURT OR
HAVE A JURY TRIAL ON THAT CLAIM. FURTHER, NEITHER SPONSOR NOR
ENTRANT WILL HAVE THE RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE IN A REPRESENTATIVE
CAPACITY ON BEHALF OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC OR OTHER PERSONS
SIMILARLY SITUATED, OR AS A MEMBER OF ANY CLASS OF CLAIMANTS
PERTAINING TO ANY CLAIM SUBJECT TO ARBITRATION. EXCEPT AS SET FORTH
BELOW, THE ARBITRATOR’S DECISION WILL BE FINAL AND BINDING. NOTE
THAT OTHER RIGHTS THAT ENTRANT WOULD HAVE IF ENTRANT WENT TO
COURT ALSO MAY NOT BE AVAILABLE IN ARBITRATION. The arbitrator’s authority
to resolve Claims is limited to Claims between Sponsor and entrant alone, and the
arbitrator’s authority to make awards is limited to awards to Sponsor and entrant alone.
Furthermore, claims brought by either party against the other may not be joined or
consolidated in arbitration with Claims brought by or against any third party, unless
agreed to in writing by all parties. No arbitration award or decision will have any
preclusive effect as to issues or claims in any dispute with anyone who is not a named
party to the arbitration. Notwithstanding any other provision in these Official Rules and
without waiving either party’s right to appeal such decision, should any portion of this
provision be deemed invalid or unenforceable, then the entire provision (other than this
sentence) shall not apply.
12. Winners List: For the names of the winners (available after April 26th
, 2013), send a
self-addressed stamped envelope to: American Express Opening Ceremony Giveaway;
200 Vesey St. New York, NY 10285, for receipt no later than April 30th
, 2013.

Photo: Giafrese

This week is the Coachella Music Festival in Indio, CA, and while I’m not going this time, I do have a soft spot in my heart for music festivals. You know, since I was around for the creation of Lollapalooza

Photo: giafrese

The fact that I’m slightly older doesn’t mean that I don’t go to music festivals. As a matter of fact, I am obsessed with concert going. But when I kept getting pitches about Coachella style, I kept thinking of how I used to dress for music festivals way back when, which has influenced the way I dress now. There’s something that still makes me nostalgic for throwing on a cute printed dress and boots a la early 90′s, but then there’s a little voice that screams that it might be look “dated.”

Photo: giafrese

The key – at least I think this is the key – to having personal style is to let yourself become influenced by your life experiences. There’s nothing wrong with a love of 90′s fashion (or, evidenced by the sheer volume of neon and friendship bracelets from last season, the 80′s.) You just frame it with items that make it current, modern and fitted. While I wouldn’t run to a business meeting in overalls and Festival Feet (dirty bare feet for those who weren’t as avid of a concertgoer as some of us), I have gone to meetings in this particularly cute look. Which, for most of you would be business casual or a cute brunch or date look.

Photo: giafrese

I don’t know if there will ever be a time when music and the concerts and festivals that support the like won’t stir my soul and cause me to adopt a few fashion items from what I experience. It’s part of the patchwork of life, the building of a closet filled with old friends that have seen us twirling in the grass to some odd band from yesterday framed with incredible assets that we use to earn money to build new memories.

Photo: giafrese

So, this would be my take on a Coachella look. Or, if you like, this would be what I wore on Wednesday.

What I’m wearing: vintage printed dress scored from Beacon’s Closet, Helmut Lang Flash Drape Blazer, vintage gold choker and long gold chains, Ray-Ban aviators, Brera Orologi Grey Eterno Chrono Tonal Watch, Cat Footwear Women’s Marin Boot in Chili (the most comfortable boot on the planet Earth,) Lauren Ralph Lauren Chandler Belted Satchel.

This is the stretching post-workout. You see how sweaty everyone is? Yep, it’s no joke in there.

Yesterday was one of those days where I got up feeling nervous. Wednesday was one of those days that feels like someone asking you to do one more thing is like packing another pair of shoes into an overstuffed suitcase: not impossible but it brings about the lamenting and whining that usually ensues. But a workout was part of the day’s schedule, so it was off to Equinox Training Camp (ETC) I went. Because 15 lbs waits for no one, especially when I’m going to be traveling for the next few weeks.

The second session seemed to go MUCH faster than the first. My sassy, cocky side would like to say it’s because I’m just that much stronger from the first session, but I think it’s just the mental conditioning that you’re there and you might as well go with it. The pace was quick and more drills were done. We infused more Animal Flow (a workout at Equinox based on animal movements that build muscle, agility and stamina) and then we broke into teams where we ran suicides (for those who don’t know, they’re running drills where you go for certain distances at a time as fast as you can, then repeat) while our partners slammed gigantic medicine balls, then we switched. We then ran across the floor and one partner rowed while the other held plank pose for a solid minute. We used weights, we did burpees (again, I hate burpees), we did more push-ups that evolved into side planks…it was fast, it was frantic, it was tough.

At the end of it, which is when these photos were taken, we ended in a delicious few minutes of stretching, which I was thrilled to do. You’re incredibly aware of how your energy has been expended. It’s a workout where you know you got a great workout in. At the end of the class, I have to report that I wasn’t as winded as the first time. I believe this is partly because I ate better (I went in on coffee and hope the first class…and I KNOW BETTER) and the other part is – and I mean this sincerely – I’m really much physically stronger than I thought. I hate push-ups, but I can do them. I think the cardio endurance I’m going to build will really help.

I’m excited about the instructors, who are just as excited and caring as you’d want them to be (my ex-Marine friend Flex co-taught the class with Danielle this time) and it was a high-energy experience. But I do have to say that it brings out the over-achiever in everyone. I was next to a guy who was so into running the suicides he kept swinging his arms wildly so he would be in front of the other runners because we were nervous he’d hit us. Keep it up, Jack. Karma’s a bitch.

Tomorrow is session three, so I’m resting up again before I go in for more. What lies in store for me tomorrow? I have no idea but I’m throwing down grilled chicken salad tonight in anticipation. The person who was crying on her couch 78 + pounds ago is ready for this part of the journey to be over. I’m back for more. Let’s do this.