emmy fashion review leads back high school days

Last night’s 2010 Emmy show opened with Jimmy Fallon, Tina Fey, Jon Hamm, Jorge Garcia, and the Glee brigade,  dancing and singing “Born to Run.” The nostalgic music is not what lead me back to my very own high school experience. My journey back in time started when I sat down this morning to write about the fashions at  last night’s Emmy Show.  As The Red Lipstick Reporter, it’s part of my journalistic responsibility, commenting and covering current events and fashion. “Of course, you need to review the fashions from last night’s show,” the little voice in my head nags.  I feel completely compelled to write a blog post about “Red Carpet Beauty.” But, I just can’t bring myself to do it. Something inside of me was questioning the paradox of beauty. It’s every where I look, in the media and in Hollywood.

I can feel  a huge shift occurring, not only in myself, but in the world. Last night’s award show was about honoring the creative people, who have worked tirelessly, passionately, and soulfully in the arts and entertainment field. George Clooney received the Bob Hope  Humanitarian Award for helping organize celebrities in the face of disaster, catastrophe, and hardship.  He reminded us that five years later, we forget the heartache and we go on to the next thing in the media — who is messing up and who’s wearing which designer.

I just  can’t imagine writing about fashion and beauty today.

I’m questioning my career of more than 25 years. I sit in front of my computer and I ponder, “What was I thinking when I was younger? What did I want to do?”  I head to my little stash of 30 + years of  journal writings. I put my hand into the broken cardboard box, the worn, but loved box that my  journals call home. I pulled out a small fabric covered  book. It’s navy with tiny white flowers dotted with red and yellow accents. I slipped on my reading glasses, gently open my private little memories to the first lined page and noticed the date.

August 30, 1980.

It was exactly 30 years ago today, that I made the first entry in this particular journal!

I made a mental note about the coincidence. And continue to look back through old journals, reading thoughts from days long ago. To my surprise,  I find a gem and a new perspective on my current situation.

The first thing I notice my handwriting. The bubbly font of young girl sharing her most intimate thoughts. I laughed to myself. Wasn’t it just yesterday that a friend said to me, “Can you read that?” My handwriting today is barely legible. I had been so  exhilarated when it came time to putting pen to paper. Oh, the feeling of the perfect pen gliding across the page! I had a passion for the art of writing.

When you sit down to read an old  journal, you have to read between the lines; between the entry dates. I was excited about the first entry, looking forward to my Senior year of high school, because it meant I’d be out of High School soon enough. A family wedding was the next day and I was looking forward to seeing all my cousins. I talked about the kind of wedding I wanted when I grew up and that there had to be a chocolate wedding cake, a special request of one of my favorite cousins. Family trips, events, getting ready for college. But, the theme of the entire journal was written by a teenager plagued with insecurity and doubt.

As I flipped through the pages, I thought, “Is this Bridget Jones’s Diary?” Unfortunately, my journal didn’t have the same jocular vibe the movie possessed. And, Hugh Grant was not playing the object of my many desires. Yet,  journal entries always began with a number; my current weight.  I was always on, or off a diet. Mostly off…and beating myself up over it. I was totally and completely boy crazy! ( Please insert Hugh Grant here.) I was uncertain of myself and my future.  Nothing new.  I wrote poetry. Who knew. I contemplated life and rode my bike everywhere. Really? No one who knows me today would believe this. I mention in one entry that I was receiving a gold award for my art, but didn’t want to go to the event, because I thought my work was “lousy” and I was too “fat.” How sad.

There was even a quote from Abraham Lincoln, “Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.”  Well, my mind was completely focused on my so- called relationships with boy friends and my outward appearance, that I didn’t have time to focus on what made me happy. At the end of this particular journal, one entry read, “I feel like I’ve become so self-centered. I’m bored with me! I love myself and I’m glad I’m me, but…there’s more to life than beauty. How do others survive? I know I’m not gorgeous. Beautiful – I don’t even know the true meaning of the word.”

I spent much of my time  focused on what, I perceived were my flaws. I continually thought about what others thought of me, how I looked. I believed that if I were thin enough, I would be noticed and recognized.

Last night when I was watching the Emmy’s the creator, Steve Levitan, one of the executive producers of Modern Family, said, “ I’d like to thank the Academy for recognizing us.” That’s it!  People just want a little recognition. It makes us feel validated. It makes us feel like we have a purpose, that what we are “doing” is important and it makes a difference.

They’ll go to great lengths to get ready for the Emmy’s. Day’s and weeks spent preparing their outfits, getting in shape, facials, nails, accessories. The pressure must be daunting! Here they are at an award show,  honoring them for their talents, the contribution they are making to the arts, and the media is focusing on… which designer they are wearing.

This morning, on the Today Show, they did a recap of who looked great and who missed the mark completely. I felt a tiny shot to my heart. How would it feel to have the whole world commenting on the outfit You (or your stylist) chose to wear to an important event?  Instead, of talking about your talent, or your contribution, but instead, focusing on  the style and the height of your shoes?

No wonder I was having a problem writing a blog post about the “hot color” of the moment!

Looking back at my journal made me realize that there is so much more to life. Sure, it’s fun to dress up for a big event. Yet there is a fine line between what is important and what is truly beautiful.  On that note, my pick for best dressed last night was Temple Grandin .

Now that’s one woman who embodies the true meaning of beautiful.

maximize the maxi dress

do you know what these celebrities have in

common?

Yes. They’re all sporting long maxi dresses, but they are also on the more petite side of the vertical scale. You may have heard that you can’t wear a long dress if your under 5’4″. Not so. It’s all about proportion, scale of pattern and fit. Read more about maxi dresses on one of my favorite sites. WhoWhatWear.

Creating Celebrity Style the Kristen Bell Way

Style Inside Out

Okay, not only is she beautiful, but the girl has style! Real style. And, a Stylist helping her step into her chic and sophisticated persona.  Kristen Bell, is the girl next door who grew up and became a movie star. One with classic movie star style. She shops vintage, looks for labels and clothing that express who she is and what she loves at her core.

Read more about this fascinating beauty and talented actress.

via Bell Epoque: Kristen Bell – Fashion and Design News and Trends – WWD.com.

Curves Ahead

Kim Kardashian knows how to work it

The Cast of ‘Sex in the City 2′ chat with RLR Reporter, Cindy Pearlman

Sex And the City 2
By Cindy Pearlman for the Red Lipstick Report

NEW YORK – There they were: The bedazzled crystal mesh spiked Manolo Blahniks shoe-boots in all of their glory. Naturally, those come accompanied with an accessory known as Sarah Jessica Parker. There were also the classic black Christian Louboutin stilettos. Of course, Kim Cattrall channeling Samantha. Sky high beige patent leather pumps. How un-matronly of Kirsten Davis a.k.a. earth mama Charlotte. Two-inch beige brushed suede city gal pumps? Those are worn by Cynthia Nixon and suitable for the always-sensible Miranda.

On a sunny spring morning in the Big Apple, there was no business like shoe business for the stars of “Sex and the City 2.” You can’t help but glance at their feet before you even look at their faces.  The ladies who launch so many fashion trends are launching their new movie. They glide into the shoe salon at the swanky Berghoff Goodman department store ready to pump you up.

Sarah Jessica is in a sparkling silver Anna Sui suit jacket and matching meshy skirt with a bright pink tank underneath. Her legs are like two toothpicks, her face a sliver, but her smile the one that is so familiar.  She arrives first for her interview and all you see peeking around a corner is a mass of big, wavy Carrie Bradshaw hair. “We’re not all here yet,” she whispers. “We’re incomplete.” But it’s not Cattrall who is doing last minute preening in the bathroom, but Nixon who needs an extra minute. The other ladies hardly disappoint. Cattrall looks slinky in an off the shoulder bright blue silk dress. Davis is more demure (sort of) in a leopard print hoop skirt and matching top and Nixon wear a white sheath dress covered in flowers. You’ve got shoes. You’ve got the gals. You even have the guys including Mr. Big himself in a black suit, tie and white shirt and “Sex and the City” writer/director Michael Patrick King who insists, “No one cares what I’m wearing.”

It was time to talk “Sex 2.”

RLR: Can Carrie handle being married? Or is she the perennial single gal?

Parker: “That is the Big question – no pun intended. There was a wedding. Now there has to be a marriage. Where Carrie finds herself is she’s asking questions about the environment she currently lives in, which is now as a married woman. The big theme of the movie is tradition. Why do we run towards it and then want to push it away. We so willingly commit to conventions like marriage, but then find ourselves squirming and asking questions including how do our friends redefine tradition. And what better way to define tradition than in the Middle East! Kidding!”

RLR: Why do you think women struggle with the issue of what it means to be married?

Parker: “I think we are woman of a certain generation are very conscious and we’re asking ourselves many questions. We ask because we’re re-defining our roles all of the time. This is the great gift our mothers gave us, which is the ability to rethink the roles in very conventional institutions like a partnership. It’s a privilege to talk about these topics in the movie in a way that feels so relevant without being preachy.”

RLR: The new movie asks all of you to define traditional values. Now, let’s get to the male point of view. Can Mr. Big deal with being married to Carrie without cheating? He did cheat on the Idiot Stick Figure with No Soul – his second wife Natasha. In fact, there is a scene in the new movie where Mr. Big asks Carrie for two days off to live in an apartment alone. Should guys get two days off from marriage?

Chris Noth: “The movie is an interesting journey because we talk about how to define what a marriage means to two people who have a long, intimate relationship. When it comes to Big and Carrie, the relationship changes once they’re married. He wants to stay in; she likes to go out. He wants to cuddle by the TV; she thinks they’re losing their sparkle. They get annoyed and they miss each other in the movie – what they’ve always had together. But they’re asking what that tradition is and what it should be according to what’s in your head. There is a difference between what’s real and what’s in your head. Did I relate to that when it comes to my own personal relationship? YES! I related personally. I’m all for the house and the apartment occasionally.”

RLR: Kim, any thing to say about Samantha going through menopause. In the film, she’s all about the creams and hormones and feeling the “za za zu” for cute men.  Did you relate?

Cattrall: “What did I relate to in this movie? Menopause. Menopause. Menopause. I didn’t need to do any research for that part of the film.  I don’t need to say any more! The truth is Samantha wants to be the old Samantha and she will do anything to keep that feeling. But the message is you never have to lose it.”

RLR: Miranda deals with the issue of a bad boss at work. She has worked so hard all these years and now she’s at a career stone wall because the managing partner at her firm hates her. Did you identify?

Nixon: “The real issue is what do you do when you have a really terrific job. You’re well paid and have worked for decades. All of sudden, you’re just miserable in that job. I can totally relate to that one! (Everyone laughs). No, I’m just kidding! Just kidding!  I love these people around me! Honestly, the part I can relate to is as you get older and get more of a sense of yourself you really do learn to value yourself. You know when someone is treating your badly and even though it’s in your best interest to maybe keep your mouth shut, you will need to speak up. Miranda defines herself as a lawyer, but in this new movie comes to terms with the idea that if she’s a miserable lawyer, it might be better not to be one at all.”

RLR: Now, let’s get to Charlotte. She’s going nuts as a young mother of these two girls. The irony is she wanted to have a baby for so long, but motherhood is no piece of cake. The question is what happens when you get what you want – and then you can’t handle it.  Did you identify?

Davis: “Obviously, Charlotte has always been very traditional and she has high expectations of herself in those traditions. She wants to control life and is faced with a lack of a perfect picture. But she can’t be honest with herself in the movie about the stress involved in trying to be perfect. One of my favorite things is that Charlotte’s good friend Miranda can see through her façade. And she can see herself through Miranda. She needs to go away to the Middle East and have freedom. I could relate to wanting that feeling, but not the children part.”

RLR: The theme of the movie is you can be a fun and fearless female at any age. Has that been the biggest gift of the series and now the movies?

Davis: “I love how the movie shows women shows that women who are very different in their lives are very together as friends and soul mates. Yes, our characters disagree and Charlotte can be very judgmental, but somehow they come together at the end of the day. They’re powerful women and can still be together. I love that about us and I think it’s the most powerful thing about the whole experience.”

Cattrall: “The show and these movies have encouraged women to be fearless and change the way they feel about cancer, being alone, being lonely, being deserted and everything else that happens to you in life. We encourage women to come together and that’s a powerful thing in this era of post-feminism. This movie discusses what it’s like to be successful, smart and feminine.”

Parker: “In an era where there are all of these women being so unkind to each other and calling each other horrible names that I find really objectionable, I really love how these women from ‘Sex and the City,’ really love each other and how decent and honorable the respectful they are to each other. When I see on TV how women treat each other, it’s stunning to me. On ‘Sex and the City,’ these women were never made to be friends, but they came together. Their DNA is really different, but they found that this friendship changed the way I feel about my friendships and how I respond to my choices. I love that there is a place where we can illustrate how women can be allies rather than adversaries.”

Nixon: “I loved the time on the show when Miranda and Charlotte had a big fight about Charlotte deciding to stop working. Miranda really called her on it and said that isn’t what the feminist movement is all about. But that was wrong. It’s about choices. These four women are so different and made different life choices. They’re not shy about offering their opinions and advice, I think we’re a feminist choice it doesn’t mean you have to have a career, you have to be married.”

RLR: Quick fashion question. There’s an ‘80s montage with the big hair and “Flashdance” off the shoulder shirt. What was your worst ‘80s fashion statement?

Parker: “The clothes I’m wearing in that scene were my ‘80s fashion statement…exactly! Those were my clothes.”

RLR: You shot most of the movie in Morocco, which doubled for Abu Dhabi in the Middle East. What was it like to shoot there? Was it different from the thousands who gathered to watch you on the streets of the Big Apple?

Parker: “It was laborious and Herculean to shoot in the desert of the Morocco. It was one of the great experiences of my professional life. I got to live with this wonderful cast and crew and see the sun rise and set over our locations in the most far-flung places. I got to lie in bed with these women at the end of the day. It’s not everyday I get to be on a camel with Kim Cattrall.

Cattrall: “Not many people can say they’ve done that with me. It was indescribable.”

Parker: “We were in the dunes for days and we smelled things and ate things that were so new. It was hard, but we couldn’t have done it any way else. We couldn’t even find a bathroom on many of these locations. Kristen got sick on a Friday, which was her day off. She did it to be nice and so she couldn’t interrupt shooting.”

RLR: So it was a green Charlotte? That isn’t exactly a fashion statement!

Davis: “I called Sarah Jessica Parker’s brother who was with us in the desert and said, ‘Erin, can you call the doctor. I can’t get out of bed!’”

Parker: “Apparently, in Morocco if you’re very sick the cure is just warm milk. Isn’t that what you were prescribed and how did that work?”

Davis: “I can’t talk about this anymore! But I can say that my favorite memory was our fantastic English caterers made this wonderful Thanksgiving meal, but ran out of stuffing and apple pie. Cynthia and Sarah’s son came to visit and we had another Thanksgiving. We had snake charmers come for the boys.

Parker: “We made marshmallow smurfs over the fire. They called them smurfs.”

RLR: There are so many rumors of catfights on the set. Are you really going to say everyone got along?

Cattrall: “Boring, but so true.”

Parker: “Our relationships are what I cherish the most. I got to live with this cast during a shoot that was out of the country. We really got to know each other. In New York, we go home to our family, kids and animals. Being away changed everything. I came to love them more than I ever had and in a new way. I had to really rely on these women and I was so challenged by them. They’re also thoroughbreds. Nothing could get us down. Hour 18 and we have to go to the bathroom, day 58, we were sticking it out that was kind of tone that was impressive and inspiring.”