New York Women's Foundation Annual Breakfast Event

I had the privilege and honor of attending the annual New York Women's Foundation Annual Breakfast event. I was invited on behalf of my company's women resource group so I was excited to attend and learn more about the foundation. The NY Women's Foundation is a philanthropic organization that supports community-driven projects who help support the needs of women. After hearing the wonderful accomplishments that are supported through the foundation, it has made me very excited to learn more.

And where there is a fund-raising event, there are always politicians! There many deputy mayors, councilmen and even the junior senator of NY in attendance. But there were two big name politicians who stopped by to address the thousands of women at the breakfast.

Here is Mayor Bloomberg. His company, Bloomberg LLP, is a major sponsor of the New York Women's Foundation.


And Govenor Patterson who was proud of his gay rights bill that he's pushing through.

And lastly, (and the main draw for me), was seeing Queen Latifah! She was one of the honorees this year. And here she is receiving a wooden staff. There were more than a few "Moses" jokes this morning.

More Pictures from Lindsay Price's Degree Event

Here are some more pictures from the Degree Women's Fine Fragrance Collection event co-hosted with Lindsay Price.

Lindsay Price hosting the Degree Women Fine Fragrance event

Here are some pictures from Monday night's Degree Women Fine Fragrance beauty blogger event. The location was at the upstairs cafe at Dylan's Candy Bar in midtown Manhattan. For those of you who have never been there.....it's a little kid's dream come true! There are so many different types of candy and chocolates, I didn't know where to start. Some of my favorite parts of the store was a shelf where famous celebrities autographed their candy jar which depicted their favorite candies. Bill Clinton prefers a simple chocolate candy bar while Kim Kardashian likes to snack on red licorice. But I digress...

Here is Lindsay posing for some pictures with the body mist product.

Here she is picking out her flowers for her bouquet. All guests were invited to choose from a wide selection of beautiful flowers for their own bouquet to take home!

Yummy...a party event isn't complete without a chocolate fountain! My favorite were strawberries, bananas and pineapple dipped in chocolate!

Degree for Women Fine Fragrance Event

Tonight I went to a private beauty blogger event at Dylan's Candy Bar sponsored by Degree Women. They were promoting their Fine Fragrance collection which is supposed to be a blend of deodorant and exquisite scents. It was a wonderful opportunity to network with other bloggers and of course, with all types of promotion events, there were free cocktails, appetizers and giveaways! (My favorite appetizer was a lobster BLT!)

According to some of the other bloggers, this was one of the better promotion events and even though this was my first one, I had to agree that it was awesome. First of all, there was a unique flower bar where they made bouquets of flowers for everyone. Very cute! It was supposed to be reminscent of the floral bouquet in the deodorant. There was also a yummy chocolate fountain with different fruits as dippers. And since this event was held at the famous Dylan's Candy Bar, each attendee was given a plastic bucket at the end of the event to fill up with candy!!! Mine were filled with gummy bears and cola candies.

Last but not least of the highlights, was the opportunity to chat with the co-host Lindsay Price. I've been an avid follower of her acting career since her Beverly Hills 90210 days. She even mentioned that she still hasn't seen the entire last season of the show because she's been so busy. She was super duper nice and a total sweetie to talk to. Since this is a beauty blog, I had to take down some notes on her beauty tips. She is all for being smart and chic in her beauty products (and her shoes!). She loves lip stains and topping it off with plain ol' chapstick! She even remarked the benefits of turning a flaw into an asset - for example, her make-up artist covered up her zit and turned it into a beauty mole a la Cindy Crawford!

More pictures of the event to follow!

Audience Gifts at the Martha Stewart Show

As previously posted on this blog, I attended a taping of the Martha Stewart show last week. As a member of the studio audience, we received some awesome gifts in two of the show segments. The segment featured Stephen Kress, vice president for bird conservation for the Aubudon Society. He talked to us about creating the perfect bird environment including a bird feeder, the Clever Clean Removable-Base Sunflower Feeder.

According to the Martha Stewart website, the Onyx Clever Clean is the newest innovation in bird feeders. The base of the feeder easily twists off so that it can be cleaned with a brush to prevent gunk and mold toxin build up. Birds that use this feeder include: cardinals, chickadees, finches, flickers, goldfinches, grackles, grosbeaks, jays, juncos, kinglets, mockingbirds, nuthatches, redpolls, siskins, sparrows, starlings, titmice.

In addition, Martha gave us Wingscapes BirdCam to help capture digital bird photography and bird videos. This is a weatherproof, motion-activated to help monitor bird-watching experience. I am looking forward to using this in the spring and taking pictures of the birds (and animals) that visit my backyard! According to the stage manager at the show, it might also serve as a spy camera too, hehe.

Martha Stewart Show Taping

Today I spent the afternoon as a member of the studio audience in the Martha Stewart Show. I'm actually not a big fan of Martha which is surprising since I'm really into baking and crafts! Whenever I see her show on tv, I always flip the channel. I think its because of the dark lighting. But since I received tickets to attend the taping, I figured I would enjoy the experience. I'm all for celebrity-spotting and doing something that's not work related!

Here we are waiting outside the Chelsea studios. I arrived at 12:15pm. We were told to arrive at 12:30pm sharp otherwise we would be denied entrance. Since it was flurrying, it was a relief to wait underneath the awning. We slowly made it to the front of the line, and told them how many people were in our party. We checked in and walked through a security point. Finally, we got into the waiting area where we were able to check our coats, fill out a release form, and learn about today's schedule! Originally the website said that we would be watching a segment on carrots but that was for the morning's live taping. This afternoon was for a taped show for this Friday February 6th!

For those of you that have never been a part of a studio audience, it's actually quite fun. (I've been on the Montel Williams show and Who Wants to Be A Millionaire?). We learned how to do a loud clap, a crescendo clap, and of course, smile! We were entertained by the stage manager who kept us entertained with jokes and free goodies (toothpaste, mouthwash, books and magazines). The studio set was broken out into different parts, including the greenhouse, the kitchen, the crafts area, and the bedroom. And of course, there were tons of lights on the ceiling. I expected the studio to be warm but it was actually quite chilly.

Here's a summary of the segments covered (more details regarding each one): Valentine's Day cardboard boxes, bejeweled cookies, leather handbags, and bird-watching tips. And the best part of the day? Our free giftsssss! To be revealed in next post...

Captains of Industry: Magic Johnson - Part 2

Continued from yesterday's Part 1.

Magic Johnson's sense for business also stemmed from his family. When he was growing up, he was the youngest and always picked on by his brothers. Unfortunately he was also taller than his brothers so the "hand-me-down" clothes were always short on him! He also told a story about his first negotiating obstacle. Around the time he was a teenager, his mom decided that the family would change religion and become a Seventh Day Adventist. This required going to church on Saturdays. However his basketball games were always on Saturday so he would miss them. He talked to his mom about changing back to his old church which held services on Sunday. Of course his dad and brothers were in agreement because they didn't want to miss watching the games either. After a month of back and forth, his mom agreed to his terms.

I believe the main reason for his business entrepreneurship stemmed from his childhood years, growing up poor in a racially diverse town. He always wanted to help people and give them a chance to do something different with their lives. Throughout the interview, he spoke about his calling to help Urban America. After his diagnosis of HIV, he went through a depression period. His wife supported him but also helped him to snap out of his depression by kicking him out of the house (literally) and telling him not to come back home until he "became the man that she married." He always knew that business was in his blood and he also recognized that densely populated urban communities were ripe for commercial and residential development. He partnered with major brands like Starbucks (of which he's the only outside partner), 24 Hour Fitness Centers and T.G.I. Fridays to lead a major economic push in these urban communities. In his partnership with Starbucks, he talked about removing the scones from the baked goods and offering baked goods this the community would actually eat...eliminating the elevator music and playing Jazz. It wasn't the $4 cup of java that he felt that people were opposed to, but the lack of customization for the people he felt were customers in urban neighborhoods.

He also answered questions were taken from the audience. The most poignant one came from an 8 year old boy named Ian. He wanted to know if Magic preferred to be a basketball player or a businessman. The answer? A businessman because he has helped changed more people's lives. This is a man who wants no part of politics (dismissing the idea to run for mayor of Los Angeles). He also is perfectly content with his role in basketball which is part-owner of the LA Lakers. Although if asked to become the NBA Commissioner, he wouldn't say NO. But it is refreshing to listen to someone talk earnestly about his charitable work and who uses his talent to help other people in his community. Bravo!

Captains of Industry: Magic Johnson - Part 1

Last night, I attended the Captains of Industry series talk sponsored by Business Week and held at the 92nd Street Y. It was the first in the series for the season. Previous honorees included GE's Jeffrey Immelt, Sun's Scott McNealy, HP's Carly Fiorina and Amazon's Jeff Bezos. They are certainly "Captains" in their own right, but Magic Johnson???

Prior to the event, my only recognition of this man is of an athlete and HIV spokesperson. I knew little of him but can only bow in awe of his superstardom. The setting was intimate. The auditorium at the 92nd Street Y can seat several hundred people but many seats were sadly empty. Magic entered on stage after a brief introduction by Business Week's editor-in-chief Stephen Adler. Stephen told a brief story about Magic's first meeting with the LA Lakers. The management team took him out to a fancy dinner to negotiate his contract. They ordered a fish dish which Magic never even heard of...and proceeded to offer him $400,000 a year. He did not have a manager to negotiate on his behalf (I think he was only 19 at the time) but he was business-savy enough to know how to negotiate. He politely turned down the offer and also returned his fish order back to the kitchen. The LA Lakers were surprised by this young man's negotiating skills and continued to woo him with a higher salary - up to $500,000. Whoo hoo! In the late 1970's that was considered a large sum of money.

The interview went back and forth between Magic's basketball career and his business. I was impressed with the laid-back and honest answers that he provided in the hour long talk. While it is without question that he is a talented basketball player, he always had aspirations to become a business person. While growing up with 9 siblings in a small-town in Michigan, he was exposed to the hardships of life from an early age. He had to work different jobs as a young boy including one where he had to clean an office building of 7 floors. He would indulge in cleaning the top floor of the building which contained the offices of the CEO. Magic recounted how he would sit in the leather chair in the office (which was a little too small for his body) and play the role of the CEO by pressing the intercom button and calling for his secretary for coffee and newspaper. He would do this for two hours everyday. His advice to young people? "You have to imagine yourself in your dream job. Dream big."

....To be continued in tomorrow's Part 2.

I met Leslie of bareMinerals!

The TRY, BELIEVE, LOVE tour of bareMinerals is on the road from October 8 - 12th from Boston to Connecticut. Today was their pitstop in NYC's Time Square Sephora where Leslie Blodgett and her artistry team were dishing out their expert make-up advice. And to my great surprise, I was lucky enough to go up to her, get her autograph and picture! She looks wonderful in person and exactly as does in her infomercials!! In fact, my only regret is not asking her any questions about the future bareMinerals products because I am such a big fan!! I started out purchasing her starter kit with foundations, Warmth blush, Mineral veil finishing powder and their fabulous brushes....and have never looked back with purchasing additional eyeshadows and lipsticks.

Here she is posing with the staff members of Sephora in Times Square!

And this is her actual tour bus parked right off Times Square! We saw her get on the bus!

Looks a little like the advertisement, eh?

The Time I Met A Celebrity

One of my favorite chick flicks of all-time is "Sweet Home Alabama" starring Reese Witherspoon. She's so cute in that movie and what girl does not love having the entire Tiffany's store open to her?! C'mon!! Anyway, what else makes the movie so adorable is the two leading men, Patrick McDemsy (aka McDreamy, although he's actually too clean-cut in this movie for me) and Josh Lucas. Who is this Josh Lucas fella? After reading his bio on the Internet, I realized he was in all sorts of movies that I've seen before...Hulk, American Psycho, Beautiful Mind. But what does one say to a Josh Lucas in person? I didn't need to ponder too much because it all happened to me today.

Here was my conversation with my (officially) second favorite scruffiest guy on Earth (first, being Jander of course).

Josh: Hi, I'm Josh.
Me: Hi, I loved you in Sweet Home Alabama
Josh: Thank you very much.
Me: Can I take a picture with you?
Josh: Yes of course. (smile) (click click)
Me: Thank you (silly grin)


In case you wanted to know *how* I came about to meet the adorable blue eyed Josh Lucas, I will bore you with the details here. My coworkers and I decided to volunteer in our office for "Only Make Believe", a nonprofit organization that provides theatrical workshops to children living with chronic illnesses and disabilities. We spent our lunch hour gluing and bedazzling masks, caps, and necklaces for the children to wear while they put on the productions. It's a worthwhile cause and it was a lot of fun. Who knew that some glue, sparkles and feathers could be so fun? Halfway through making two necklaces from old CDs and a mask, I hear a shriek in the room. I turn to see HIM who just arrived and standing next to the door. I ask my friend Laura, who is he? He looked awfully familiar and honestly, I could not identify him right away. But then I remembered the same scruffy look in the movie "Sweet Home Alabama"! That's him!!!!! He was casually introduced to the crowd along with the second celebrity, Haley Mills. Now she was an older woman who I definitely did not recognize. But then I realized I know her as........(ahem, I'm dating myself here)....Ms. Bliss from Saved By The Bell!!! OMIGOD. MS BLISSSSSS.

Okay so I didn't take a picture with her and she's actually much shorter in person than I realized. She still has the long blonde hair that I remember. But back to Josh. I was still sitting in my chair waiting to decide if I should take a picture with him. I started removing the glue from my fingers (because I was not about to shake his hand with glue still stuck on me!). I turned to my other friend Yani, and said "let's go take a picture!" We walked past Ms. Bliss and vowed to take a picture with her as well (sadly, it did not happen). We waited in line and it seemed like a flock of other girls stood behind as as well. After he finished taking his picture with another woman, he turned to me and smiled. Sigh. Read conversation above. Oh why didn't I say my name when I introduced myself?

And then I took pictures of him with Yani and Laura, which they will happily post on their facebook profiles. Although they say it will be the only interesting item on their profile, I'm sure it will make their friends (and fiance) jealous. whoo hoo. Josh and Haley (yes, I can refer to them as friends now haha) did not stay very long probably because they had to stop at our other offices to say hello to the other volunteers. But that's it, my brush with a movie actor. (Although the very first one, is Keri Russell whom I still adore). If this was the only thing that happened to me this week, it would have made my *week*, nay *month*.

http://www.onlymakebelieve.org/