Web Snob October 30th

55 Secret Street weighs in on Newsweek’s Zahara Jolie Pitt hair controversy and wants to know, “Are We All Really “Team Zahara?”.

Stiletto Jungle thinks a wrap sweater you can wear 6 ways is perfect for fall.

All Lacquered Up takes you backstage at Carolina Herrera where made its runway debut.

Heidi & Spencer dress as Jon & Kate for Halloween – Allie is Wired has the pictures.

Bag Bliss loves the latest arm candy by Felix Rey.

If you are looking for just one all around great piece for the season or for the year, Bag Snob has it!

There is so much talk about lash enhancers, but what about the brows? Beauty Snob has the product.

The Daily Obsession shares a never published before beauty tip.

Fashion Pulse Daily has teamed up with Manhattanite to give away a Nip & Tuck Hollywood Basket, full of Foot Petals, Miss Oops, and Hollywood products!

The Jet Set Girls pick the best black nail polish for Vegas.

KRISTOPHER DUKES is wanting, wearing, and hating the Salvador Dali “Bird In Hand” compact.

Second City Style takes a look at Where The Wild Things Are on the runway and the real way.

From ankle height to over the knee, SheFinds has all the best flat boots to let you walk, run, and skip through fall in style and comfort.

Shopping and Info found the best black cashmere cowl neck sweater.

The StyleBakery.com editors share their Top 10 Picks for Fall, totaling over 100 must-buys for every budget

Stylehive is thinking the basic little black dress has been a bit too nice lately, and is loving black leather dresses for fall…

The Beauty Stop dishes about Reese Witherspoon’s beauty secrets.

The Shoe Goddess has fallen in love with this pair of amazing Azzedine Alaia Buckle Boots!

V-Style Loves Thakoon’s Mirror Mosaic Booties for fall.

Kate Winslet's Hair and Makeup at the Oscars

We're constantly in awe of Kate Winslet's style and beauty. For the Oscars on Sunday night, Frederic Fekkai's Renato Camporo gave Kate "a modern day Grace Kelly" look.

To recreate her hair: Start by applying Fekkai More All Day Density Styling Whip on wet hair. Blow-dry smooth with the Fekkai Extra Large Round Brush to create some volume. Then use a one inch curling iron and let it set for 20 minutes. Brush it through and use the Fekkai Coiff Magnifique Ultra Light Finishing Creme at the ends to help roll hair under. Finish with Fekkai Sheer Hold Hairspray.

Products are available at Frederic Fekkai.

Her makeup: Jillian Dempsey used Lancome and Jillian Dempsey for Avon Pro products to create a classic, natural look. First she used Lancome La Base Pro Primer, then brushed Lancome Brow Expert in Naturel on her brows. She used Jillian Dempsey for Avon Pro Eyeshadow Trio in Ice Shimmer on her eyes and Jillian Dempsey for Avon Pro Mascara in Black on her lashes. She finished by using Lancome Color Fever Lipstick in Old Flame for a soft, matte finish.

Beating Frizz in Summer's Heat and Humidity

Yesterday we stopped by Ted Gibson's salon in NYC for a blowout before our SATC screening and Anne's birthday extravaganza.  I had an appointment with Devin Toth who is featured in June's Allure magazine.  I asked him the best way to control frizz as the summer starts to heat up.

First use a product on damp hair with an anti-humectant like Ted Gibson's Build It then blow dry and style.  When hair is dry, layer on light coats of hairspray to create a barrier from humidity. At home I use Ted's Beautiful Hold hairspray.

It was hot and humid last night and my hair held up well.  That's Heidi and I above at Abe & Arthur's for our after party.  To find Ted Gibson salon products or to make an appointment with Devin Toth, visit tedgibsonbeauty.com.

Two New Products~ Two Totally Different Looks

Both Clinique and MAC introduced new foundation products this month. Clinique's gives you a polished, matte finish, while MAC's gives you a dewy, iridescent glow.

Clinique's new Almost Powder Makeup comes in the standard light green compact (remember the one you had in high school?). It goes on like a light foundation with good coverage and truly does dry like a powder. If you want an even sheerer look, they recommend using their new foundation brush. We can imagine keeping this in our purse this summer for quick touch ups or for a steamy night in the tropics when the glow is getting out of hand. It also has SPF 15, very important for the months ahead. Almost Powder retails for $22.50.

On the flip side, MAC's new Strobe Liquid, which is a thinner, lighter version of the popular Strobe Cream, goes on smoothly and gives a natural looking glow. We were sceptical at first, since we lean to the shiny side anyhow; but we were impressed even hours after using it. Our skin looked fresh and younger (oh yeah) and not greasy at all. It didn't provide opaque coverage for trouble spots; but even using it on the tops of your cheekbones over your regular foundation would give you a healthy glow. Strobe Liquid retails for $29.50.

You can find both at department stores nationwide this month or visit http://www.clinique.com/ and http://www.maccosmetics.com/.

Penelope Cruz in Balmain from Lily et Cie

When watching the Oscars the other night, all our twitter friends were aghast when Penelope Cruz said, not only that she was wearing a 60-year old Pierre Balmain dress, but she had first spied it in a store 8 years ago! LizaJane411 tweeted: 8 years and that dress was still there, where in a museum? and how did she still fit into it I mean she deserves an award for that! JSG, too, was solidly in the camp of doubters on that story, until now.

Thanks to the investigative work of Sxy Fashion Queen, we understand the history of both the stunning Balmain dress and Lily et Cie, a store we are putting on our itinerary of our next west coast jaunt. Yet even though we now get the history of Penelope Cruz's frock, it doesn't change our opinion of it (which several of our Twitter friends shared): It looked like a wedding dress, but we give Penelope major props for the eco-friendly dress.

Web Snob Roundup October 23rd

55 Secret Street is high-end, but never above great Drugstore Beauty!

Stiletto Jungle talks fame and fall fashion with The City's Roxy Olin.

All Lacquered Up is raising funds for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation through its Think Pink - Donate & Win Giveaway.

Allie is Wired fashion face off: Leighton Meester vs. Victoria Beckham.

Bag Snob has the Jimmy Choo Ramona Pyramid for those into studded bags.

If you're looking for the perfect moisturizer for combination skin, Beauty Snob has it!

Coquette is stocking up on must-have patterned tights!

Fashion Pulse Daily gives a sneak peak at the soon-to-launch Carlos Falchi for Target Collection!

I'm Not Obsessed wants to know how you feel about Fall's newest trend - the Slouchy Hat?

The Jet Set Girls share a video recap of Anne's bachelorette party in Vegas.

KRISTOPHER DUKES is wanting, wearing, and hating Giuseppe Zanotti mules.

Second City Style says luckily, many designers turned out a selection of Flat Over-the-Knee Boots that boast a more comfortable version of the trend without sacrificing any of the chic.

As the weather cools down, SheFinds is warming up with the best of the best puffy coats and jackets.

Shopping and Info is giving away a $500 Carolina Herrera gift card.

StyleBakery.com has some stylish Halloween costume ideas using items you already have in your closet

Stylehive is finding Amelia Earhart's story and style so inspiring, and has devoted an entire slideshow to the aviatrix.

The Beauty Stop asks, "what are you willing to pay for moisturizer?"

The Shoe Goddess falls in love at the Pierre Hardy Boutique in Paris!

V-Style Has the stunning photos from Eva Longoria and Tony Parker's London Fog Campaign .

eye4style experiences the most stylish tea in London - Prêt-à-Portea at The Berkeley!

New Rep, New Lipglass, Free Music!

Fergie is MAC's newest Viva Glam spokesperson and she's introducing the latest VG VI Lipglass. Visit the special section on their website (www.maccosmetics.com/fergie) to see behind the scenes coverage of the ad campaign, view ecards from Fergie, and most importantly download her new remix of Glamorous (called "Viva Glamorous")-the first 15,000 downloads are free! While you're there pick up the latest VG Lipglass, every dollar spent goes to the MAC AIDS Fund which has raised $100 Million to date!

Web Snob May 21st, 2010

Our best bets from the Web this week:

Stiletto Jungle found a perfect slouchy white tee shirt for summer.

Who's the "least sexy" Sex and the City character? Allie is Wired reports the surprising results.

Bag Bliss: Our picks of the Purple Purse Trend!

Bag Snob has a great piece of summer arm candy!

Hey germ-o-phobes - Beauty Snob has the Violight Toothbrush Sanitizer.

Coquette loves the crafty glam look of Freida & Nellie's rhinestone friendship bracelets.

Fashion Pulse Daily gives Sally Hansen's latest products a test spin.

Just in time for Memorial Day, theJet Set Girls have a roundup of the best fashion, cosmetics and reads for summer.

KRISTOPHER DUKES is wearing Josie Maran 100% argan oil.

Manolo the Shoeblogger says, it is raining, and yet, you have need of shoes. You cannot go to the farmers market to look for hunky farm boys barefeeted.

Second City Style can't decide which celebs looked the best at the Cannes Film Festival. We loved so many!

Shopping and Info loves the nude Jimmy Choo sandals that Blake Lively of Gossip Girl wore in the black on the show.

Whether you're pear shaped, plus sized or large busted, StyleBakery found the best swimsuits for your body

The Beauty Stop swears by Kiehl’s Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado.

The Shoe Goddess was thrilled to have the opportunity to participate in The Cinderella Project!

Lippmann Collection Start Me Up Set

From JSG's Hope: It's hard to believe that I haven't had my nails done since Christmas. Between the two of us, I'm the one who loves to have a weekly mani/pedi (Anne's the one who gets the blowouts). But in an effort to be more economical I've been doing my own nails. Let's just say, it's pretty obvious to anyone who's seen them. That's why I was so excited to get my hands on this all-in-one Lippman Collection Start Me Up Set. It features everything you need for a do-it-yourself manicure. I start with the 4 sided Smooth Operator Nail Buffer, then the Cuticle Remover, the 2 Second Nail Primer (which rids the nails of oils that might sabotage a good paint job), the Rehydrating Base Coat, the easy to wear but light-for-me Baby Love Nail Lacquer, and the super shiny On a Clear Day Top Coat. I finish with the Cuticle Oil which is out of the recommended order; but it works for me and I love the tropical smell from the jojoba oil.

I just learned Kate Winslet was wearing Baby Love at the Oscars. There's one more reason to covet the set.

I'll definitely be bringing this along on our next girls' trip. The entire kit including the buffer is housed in a cute light blue striped bag and the small bottles fall under TSA volume requirements.

At $39, roughly the cost of a budget salon's mani/pedi, or a manicure alone at a fine salon, you get all of these products. Considering how many times I've used the set, I think I've saved up at least enough for a new pair of boots, no?

You can find the Start Me Up Set at Nordstroms or Lippmann Collection.

Be a Star

We've always thought the downside to being a celeb must be dealing with the paparazzi. Who wants to go out for the morning Starbucks in sweats, sans makeup and get photographed? But we must admit we're intrigued by the Celeb 4 a Day personal paparazzi service.

Basically you hire your own paparazzi for an hour ($250) or an evening (up to $1,500) and a pack of photographers follow you around, shouting out questions (you supply them with appropriate dirt, like crushes, jobs, vacations, etc.). We imagine this must give you an edge when it comes to getting in a club. (Though following our guidelines accomplishes the same and you don't have to spend $250.)

Our SO would definitely get a kick out of this--he was just joking around with his friend the other day that he would make better fodder for US and Life & Style than most of the celebs. (He would!) We considered surprising our friend Heidi with the service on her upcoming birthday, but unfortunately the service is only available in Austin, LA and San Francisco at the moment. Fame will just have to wait!

Hair Color Doesn't Have to do Harm

Contributed by Daily Makeover's Megan McIntyre

Hair color used to mean bleaching your way to dry worn out hair; but it doesn't have to be that way. Jason Hueman, colorist to the stars and mainstay at Ted Gibson salon's in D.C. and N.Y., dishes to Daily Makeover about the new L'Oreal salon color and the at home Garnier HerbaShine product that'll give you great color without damaging your hair. Stars like Ashley Tisdale change their color on a whim and do so with healthy results and you can too! Read on the see the full story.

Related articles:
How to get Audrina Patridge's braid
Do men like short hair?
Budget Haircuts

Celebrity iPods for Sale

As anyone who went to New Orleans for Mardi Gras earlier this week knows--the city is recovering, but still has a long way to go. That's why we love the Tonic's iPod Auction series to benefit Music Rising, a non-profit that supports the musical culture of the Gulf Coast. The group has partnered up with an impressive list of designers, rock stars, actors, supermodels and dignitaries to autograph an iPod and upload a personalized playlist. New iPods will be up for auction each week, now through August. A few of the many A-listers participating are: Marc Jacobs, Donna Karan, Madonna, the Edge, Scarlett Johansson, Ben Affleck, Bill Clinton and Warren Buffet.

Here's what's on Marc Jacob's Playlist. The auction on his iPod (shown above) ends next week and bidding is already past $300. Can't wait to see where it ends!:

1. Poker Face (Lady Gaga)
2. Circus (Britney Spears)
3. Bounce (Timbaland)
4. Smells Like Teen Spirit (Nirvana)
5. Borderline (Madonna)
6. Goo (Sonic Youth)
7. Tears Dry On Their Own (Amy Winehouse)
8. Suzanne (Leonard Cohen)
9. Kool Thing (Sonic Youth)
10. No Scrubs (TLC)
11. Big Pimpin (Jay Z)
12. Fell In Love With A Girl (White Stripes)

Try This Sun-Kissed Red Carpet Look

Contributed by Daily Makeover's Megan McIntyre

Carol Shaw is the creator of Lorac cosmetics and a sought-after celebrity makeup artist.  She recommends using Lorac's TANtalizer Baked Matte Satin Bronzer on your cheeks, forehead and chin to get a sunny glow without the harmful effects of sunbathing.  Read on for more details on Rachel Bilson's gorgeous runway look.

Related articles:
How to get Audrina Patridge's braid
Do men like short hair?
Budget Haircuts

Two New Reasons to Love Cusp

We're lucky enough in D.C. to have two outposts of Cusp, a Neiman Marcus spin off. They've edited out all the filler and frumpy clothes, and hand picked gorgeous, stylish tops, dresses, and jeans. They've even laid out their favorite handbags, shoes, perfume, and makeup. It's a great place to score good deals when they're having sales too-- we just bought a gorgeous alice & olivia top and a Marc Jacobs dress!

This weekend Cusp opened their on-line shopping site (previously just a blog-but a fave of ours for their great fashion advice) and they've just announced that Lauren Merkin will be at the Cusp in Georgetown (3030 M St. NW) on Thursday, April 3rd from 6:00 to 8:00. She makes the best clutches from denim to leather to sequin. (We've featured them on JSG!) We would love to meet her and to sweeten the deal, Cusp is throwing in a free gift with purchase.

For more information on Lauren's visit, go to http://www.blogonthecusp.com/. To shop, go straight to http://www.cusp.com/.

Gwyneth Paltrow's GOOP

Poor Gwyneth Paltrow. She just can't seem to catch a break with her GOOP blog. The NYTimes is the latest to join the list of detractors for her blog. As for JSG, we're on the fence. Gwyneth is undoubtedly a style icon: We're both still fawning over her sequined dress at the Grammy's and the boyfriend sweater she paired it with and we need to know where/how she got that fabulous tan in the most recent Tod's ad that's running in W and other magazines this month. Not to mention that we're envious over her marriage to the increasingly good looking Chris Martin (Let's hope the rumours of trouble in paradise aren't true....On second thought, let's!)

But back to GOOP. While we do appreciate some of her travel advice, her pick of cashmere socks for a Christmas gift was a little lame, and we're still not going to try the master cleanse no matter what Gwynie says.



We think Julia Roberts in the March issue of Allure got it right. She expressed interest when the reporter told her about Gwyneth's blog, but said dispensing that kind of advice "Would be my last instinct on the planet." That's right Julia, leave blogging to the regular people!

Free Wi-Fi for the Holidays

Here's a holiday present for all of you flying home or somewhere exotic for the holidays. Virgin America and Google are offering free WiFi on all flights from November 10- January 15. The service typically costs $5.95 and up.

We have yet to fly WiFi ourselves, but our most recent flight on Continental didn't even have personal TVs, which left us longing for a more tech-friendly plane. Enjoy!

Essie Summer Collection

We already fell for the Essie Resort Collection and they've turned out another beautiful collection of nail polish. The Summer Collection is anchored by "Demure Vixen," an iridescent cocoa mauve.  There are six colors altogether.  The best way to sample them is with the four piece mini set which costs $17 and includes Pretty Edgy (a bright green), Knockout Pout (a hot pink), Haute as Hello (a punchy coral) and Demure Vixen.  We're looking forward to a few months of bright, sexy nails.

Pamela Anderson and Richie Rich

We had a request for more shots of Pamela Anderson at the Richie Rich show. Here's the only other one we got of Pam sporting that gold sequined bathing suit. For a few more, look at NY magazine's recap of the Richie Rich Show.

Kim Kardashian's Birthday Party

While in Vegas, JSG helped Kim Kardashian celebrate her 29th birthday at Tao on October 16. The closest we got to Kim was outside of Tao while we were waiting for our table to be ready and she was taking a heavily-guarded breather (above). We love her 6" long lashes, faux hawk ponytail and sequins.

For the rest of the night, Kim danced and surveyed the crowd from her private balcony. (We don't blame her. We spent most of the night at our private table.)

Michelle Obama Goes Sleeveless

We love the Narciso Rodriguez dress Michelle Obama wore on Tuesday night, it's our favorite color afterall; but she's gotten criticism for going sleeveless in D.C. in February. Yes, Michelle Obama was at the Congressional Address and yes, most everyone there was in a boring Washington power suit (kudos to Nancy Pelosi for choosing that cool shade of green); but she's doing a great job of picking what looks great on her. Ladies, we all know that means showing off your best assets and she has great arms. Better yet, we hear they come after hard work and sessions with a trainer, not good genes alone. Let's face it if she were showing too much cleavage or too much leg like Jill Biden at the Inauguration there would be a lot more uproar. Let's not forget Mrs. Obama got tons of slack for wearing a sweater over another Narciso Rodriguez dress on election night and she was outside in Chicago in November. She's got it hard trying to please everyone.

Photo courtesy of Instyle.

You'll find us going sleeveless in ridiculously cold weather, after all, that's why we wear coats and on really cold nights, layered underneath with a cardi we take off once we arrive at our destination. And our arms don't come close to Michelle Obama's either. Check her out wearing Tracy Reese on the cover of People. It's another great shot of her guns.