Shop This: DKNY Sample Sale

New York Fashion Week Beauty: Wella Professionals for DKNY

The hair look at the S/S ’13 DKNY show this weekend was youthful and natural looking but with a definite sense of direction. “The DKNY S/S ’13 collection was based on the ultimate DKNY girl’s lifestyle, with every aspect of her day catered for, from swimwear to outer-wear, so it stands to reason that the hair reflects this direction. I wanted to create a hairstyle that gave a sense of unity to the look and give a relaxed, lifestyle feeling. I felt it important to give a sense of life and movement to the hair and play on how the light reflects on textures, so I created a subtle multi textured effect on the hair” said Eugene Souleiman, Global Creative Director, Care & Styling, Wella Professionals.

These subtle different textures were brought to life with a smooth clean fresh finish to the front of the hair which was swept low from a side parting and was tucked behind the ear, to a more textured ‘Californian sunned’ look to the back and lower part of the hair. The overall result was of a young, relaxed feeling which was not forced or contrived yet was definitely done with deliberate intention.

To get the Look:

• Start with clean freshly washed and conditioned hair, using Wella Professionals Enrich Shampoo and Conditioner, to ensure hair is in perfect condition.
• Roughly dry the hair using your hands. Then create a low side parting and section off the hair from the parting to the crown.
• Section off hair and blow dry each section perfectly straight using a round brush to create a smooth sleek finish. Apply tension with the brush at the roots and loosen the tension as you dry to the ends of the hair.
• Once this section is dry and smooth, sweep the hair down low over the forehead and secure behind the ear with a hair grip.
• Pull some of the hair forward over the ear to give a less polished feel to the look.
• Pull the hair on both sides towards the back of the head and twist in to a rope – spray with Wella Professionals Ocean Spritz Beach Texture Spray, then while holding the hair in a tight twisted rope apply heat with a diffuser till the hair is bone dry.
• For extra effect, pin the rope up until you are ready to reveal the hair. Once the rope of hair is released, the hair will have a natural tousled effect to it.
• Finally, for added texture, once the hair is loose push the hair upwards against the natural grain around the crown of the head to give a textured fly away feel to the hair.

Making a Spectacle: Lenscrafters Semi-Annual Lens Event

While I'm a contact lens girl through and through, I've found myself reaching for glasses on a daily basis a bit more often these days. While guys may not make passes at girls who wear glasses, they're a fun little style statement to make...on cloudy days, at the very least. SO, when the kind folks at Lenscrafters invited me in for a complimentary eye exam and glasses fitting, I couldn't resist responding with just three little letters (YES) and one giant exclamation point (!).

At Lenscrafters, I had the pleasure of experiencing their nifty Accufit Digital Measurement System. It's super high-tech, and I'm thereby ill-equipped to describe it, but essentially it makes shopping for glasses (and ensuring that those glasses fit perfectly) close to effortless.

After you've narrowed down your top frame choices, you're snapped in each pair (seen above) and the uber-efficient Accufit system takes your lens specialist through an appropriately special digital fit process. Best of all, MOST glasses from Lenscrafters are ready in about an hour - though, admittedly, my special order thin lenses (I'm BLIND, what can I say) took a week or so to arrive.

And lest I forget (how could I?), let me also just say that Lenscrafters boasts an almost-surprising assortment of delicious designer specs, including the Ray-Ban, Prada and DKNY frames seen above (they were my top three choices).  For the record, I went TRULY nerd chic this go-around and took home the Ray-Bans on the top left.

If you're in the market for new glasses, or heck, just a style refresh, hit up Lenscrafters.  Their Semi-Annual Lens Event, which offers 50% off lenses with any frame purchase, runs through September 12.

Holiday, To Give and To Receive: The DKNY Cozy

While I clearly love to receive gifts, there's one gift that I really have no desire to see under my tree - this year or any year. CLOTHING.  Yes, I know it's surprising, but the reality is that style is so personal, and fit can be so fussy; clothing is close to impossible to give and receive.

The one imaginable exception in the free world is the DKNY Cozy. This miraculous sweater ACTUALLY does what most pieces of clothing only PURPORT to do - it suits any woman's style and can be dressed up (as seen here on the DKNY Facebook page...hit the "Like" button for my look while you're there!) or down (as seen above) in a snap. Head to toe, here's how I styled my Cozy on a recent Friday:

• Ray Ban Wayfarers
• Alexis Bittar earrings
• DKNY Cozy (gift)
• Hermes Medor watch
• Miraclebody Denim Leggings (gift)
• Rosegold Malo Bootie

 

If you've already got a DKNY Cozy, don't forget to download the iPhone app - it's chock full of magical styling tips!

Making a Spectacle: New Glasses at Lenscrafters

While I'm a contacts girl through and through, glasses are a great way to add some style to your everyday look.  My go-to pair are interestingly shaped tortoiseshell frames from Booth & Bruce but when Lenscrafters invited me in for an update, I was excited to try out a new look.

The flagship store on 5th Ave was recently revamped and a full assortment of designer frames and sunglasses abound. The store manager asked me several questions about what I was looking for (something fun - and a rectangular shape to balance out my round face) and once she had that info in hand,was able to narrow down the huge selection of frames available to a handful of great designer styles (including Burberry, DKNY and Versace) for me to try on. It was tough to choose just one but I eventually settled on some great bold red frames from Versace to take home with me.

For a glimpse at the glasses I selected as my finalists (and the red Versaces), take a look through the gallery...and if you're in the market for new glasses, be sure to check out Lenscrafters - glasses start at just $99.95 and come with a 30-Day Unconditional Guarantee!

p.s. It was snowy, so please excuse my flat hair and lack of makeup:)