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Veteran editor and writer covering the luxury lifestyle, including food, travel, business, cannabis, fashion, health care and entertainment in print and online. Multi-tasking communications professional also adept in marketing, content creation and photography editing.
Fashion Journalism
An international array of trendsetting celebrities from the worlds of fashion, entertainment and business honored controversial fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld at the Met Gala in New York on Monday, heralding the May 5 opening of the exhibition "Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty" at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute.
Judging from the arrivals at the 95th Academy Awards in Hollywood, the days of playing it safe on the red carpet are history - and so too is the redness of the carpet. Stars embraced the maximalist themes that have been coursing through high-fashion houses, bringing vivid color, rich embellishment and a touch of fantasy to a pathway now carpeted in a faint beige called champagne.
What does one wear when the fate of the infinite multiverse is at stake? If you're "Everything Everywhere All at Once" costume designer Shirley Kurata, you prepare for everything and make a wardrobe that's a battle-ready homage to cartoony couture, the king of rock 'n' roll, anime and also the practical, no-nonsense garb favored by Asian grandmas and IRS workers alike.
It should be easy to summon the look of Marilyn Monroe with little more than a blond wig, black eyeliner and a choice of replica costumes, but as countless celebrities such as Madonna ("Material Girl"), Michelle Williams ("My Week With Marilyn") and Mira Sorvino ("Norma Jean and Marilyn") have learned, there's a vast divide between surface resemblance and uncanny reproduction.
The first season of the HBO drama "The Gilded Age" re-creates an era of American fashion extravagance and excess that even 140 years later remains unequaled, partly because the skills and materials to make the clothes are becoming increasingly rare.
He's dressed Lin-Manuel Miranda, Oprah Winfrey and even Jesus Christ in a way, but Paul Tazewell took on his largest ever project when he signed on as costume designer for director Steven Spielberg's massive movie remake of "West Side Story."
Costume designer Mark Bridges earned his third Oscar nomination last month for his work on "Phantom Thread," the Paul Thomas Anderson film that explores the strict and intricate dynamics of a 1950s couture fashion house and its inhabitants.
Everything you need to know about the lead characters of "Grace and Frankie" can be learned from a glance inside the wardrobe trailer for the Netflix show. For series stars Jane Fonda as Grace Hanson and Lily Tomlin as Frankie Bergstein, costume designer Allyson B.
Fedora-sporting stars such as Justin Timberlake wear their chapeaus with a dose of retro swagger.
A model wearing a T-shirt that reads "Believe in Yourself"--the "be" and "you" in red letters--embodies just one of new premium denim line SLINK's body-positive messages. As significant, the model is wearing a pair of the new line's fashionable, fitted jeans made especially for plus-size figures.
When you're creating a movie about telling the truth, every element needs to feel exactly right. In "The Post," Steven Spielberg's recounting of the Pentagon Papers leak, the level of period detail, particularly in the sets and costumes, tells yet another story - how journalism got done in 1971.
Business Journalism
One of the most epic mix-ups in the history of the Academy Awards could have been the result of a faulty envelope design as much as bad backstage distribution. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway were there to present the last award of the night, the Oscar for best picture.
The backyard barbecue is moving upstairs. And so is the garden, dog run and a whole lot more as rooftops evolve into a new urban playground. As denser development fills city lots with multi-family town houses and apartments, architects and builders are utilizing rooftops in place of scarce outdoor space.
That chicken-is it local? Fans of Portlandia will recall the sketch from the show's first season, where two absurdly earnest diners badger their waitress on the provenance of their dinner. To reassure them of the chicken's humane and organic bona fides, their server delivers a dossier detailing the bird's diet, weight, parents, birthday, and even his name-Colin.
Borrowing from the playbook of upscale grocers such as Whole Foods Market and the East Coast's Wegmans, Target is aiming to serve alcohol right in the store. Angie Thompson, a Target spokesperson, confirmed that the Minneapolis-based retailer applied in August for liquor licenses to sell and serve alcohol at a planned store in near Chicago's Navy Pier.
A treacherous 200-foot driveway, a $750,000 garage and one too many busted rearview mirrors drove John Thomson into major problem-solving mode. Back in 2004, Thomson was a successful bond trader in Los Angeles when he built a lavish combination garage, guest house, wine cellar and media room.
Learn about the different United States Federal and International Laws & Regulations that apply to cannabis & marijuana.
Cannabis-derived products, including CBD, were legalized for eligible Arizona medical marijuana patients in 2010. Adult-use cannabis remains illegal following a failed initiative in 2016. While the guidelines for the cultivation and production of industrial hemp in Arizona were outlined in 2018 Senate Bill 1098, the...
At his new Brooklyn restaurant, chef Sean Telo is cooking up dishes that make diners see treasure where others see trash. Telo's menu includes the Ugly Vegetable Snack, an appetizer of crudités cut from lower-cost produce that most restaurants reject as aesthetically unacceptable.
Health and Wellness
Could wellness vacations be the latest status symbol? Perhaps. More than 60% of travelers considered a balanced sense of well-being a status symbol of success, an international survey by Westin Hotels & Resorts found.
Vacations that boost your physical and mental well-being with a novel combination of adventure experiences, fitness training, no-guilt gourmet meals and stress-busting classes are finding favor with travelers who want to return home better than they left. But wellness can be hard to define, and it may combine several elements.
It was supposed to be a girlfriend getaway, but a weekend trip to a desert yoga festival transformed my mind, body and skepticism about the benefits of the ancient practice, of which I knew virtually nothing. Naive but limber, I joined two yoga teacher college friends at last September's Bhakti Fest, a unique yoga and music festival at the Joshua Tree Retreat Center.
In a recent Royal Philips survey of nearly 8,000 people in 10 countries, 96% said that sleep is valuable to them, and 57% admitted their sleep could be better but they hadn't taken action to improve sleep. "We really don't prioritize sleep the same way we do exercise and diet," said Dr. Jeffrey Durmer, a sleep medicine expert at Atlanta's FusionHealth.
In countless spa treatment rooms, therapists knead muscles and array rocks on chakras to the sound of tinkling chimes, muffled chants and meandering guitars. The person lying under the sheets likely will emerge from the treatment calm and relaxed, still smelling the scented massage lotions, but with virtually no recollection of the music wafting through the room.
Virtually every prescription for good health and mental wellness emphasizes the importance of sleep, the consistent, deep, restful kind. If only, you say. Many of us settle into bed with our smartphones, tablets and laptops - the latest enemies of sleep.
In Los Angeles' ethnic communities, there are practically as many ways to unwind as there are languages. It wasn't so long ago that aromatherapy was associated with extreme New Age practitioners, and "massage" conjured thoughts of illicit activity and visits from the vice squad.
IT'S Friday night and the techno beats are bouncing around the dimly lighted room. Perfectly groomed men and gaggles of smartly dressed young women are kicking back with wine, hors d'oeuvres and some pretty intense touching. No one is complaining about the very public interactions, especially not Leonard Lanzi.
Travel Journalism
In March, the peak dry season in Costa Rica offers travelers bigger surf, better chances to spot wildlife as trees drop their leaves, and sparse rain-particularly in the more arid province of Guanacaste. The large, northwestern area surrounding the city of Liberia is a rapidly developing destination for active, nature-loving travelers who can hike through rainforests, snorkel in calm bays, and soak in thermal springs.
In June, Mark Werksman and his wife, Leslie, bicycled with their adult children throughout Italy's Tuscany for a week and loved the experience so much they signed up for a Canadian trip three months later. This summer, the Werksman family is set for another trip, this one through Provence in southeastern France.
In a globalized world, it can be hard to find a restaurant, coffee shop or even a hotel room that doesn't remind you of back home. For a growing number of travelers, though, the sameness is a bit of a turn off. They crave "authentic" experiences and want a taste of local culture.
A mighty darkness is about to descend upon the land, and sky watchers couldn't be more thrilled. On Aug. 21 the Earth, sun and moon will blow our minds during a total solar eclipse that will last a little more than an hour and 33 minutes, coast to coast.
Larry Field's $7 million condominium set within the Montage Beverly Hills
The Casino on Avalon Bay on Catalina Island is as historic as it is beautiful. Take a tour and get to know this off-shore icon.
Sure, it's the place where all-night parties, gambling, and overindulgence can spark really regrettable behavior. Yet the city that's launched a billion hangovers also is in the cure business. Hotels including the Mandarin Oriental, the Trump Hotel, Vdara, The Signature at MGM Grand, and the Las Vegas Marriott forbid smoking.
With February comes the pressure to celebrate-or the freedom to ignore-Valentine's Day. Whether you're blissfully paired, or happily flying solo, journey to the city that celebrates the lives and works of a romantic couple for all-Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera.
The Cosmopolitan targets the young and tech-savvy.
Food Journalism
A vivid red food truck summoned children from the playground at a Santa Ana after-school program with a loud burst of its distinctive horn: Aah-oooh-gah. A burly, bearded guy with a clean-shaven head steered Betsy, his 1986 truck, into a nearby parking lot where portable tables were set for dinner under pop-up tents.
In a toasted, locally baked bun, a braised carrot topped with tamarind chutney slaw, cilantro, and avocado stands in for a conventional hot dog in the prepared foods section of the new grocery store format 365 by Whole Foods. The $6 vegan sandwich ordered via a digital touch screen is a symbol of things to come in the grocery business.
Except for a small, horizontal, black-and-white sign that reads "Create Your Taste," you wouldn't know that on a fairly bleak corner of downtown Los Angeles, McDonald's has stealthily opened the only L.A. outlet that offers a new, automated program to customize burgers. The Create Your Taste program arrived this spring at the McDonald's at 201 W.
Wander down the hallway of the Langham Huntington, Pasadena, past the thick brocades and the crystal chandeliers and suddenly, you're confronted with the glowing black and glass door frame that is the new entrance to the new restaurant, The Royce. The former Dining Room at the former Pasadena Ritz-Carlton is...
Performing, it seems, is great preparation for cooking under pressure. Dweezil Zappa and Lisa Loeb are the coolest of cooks. Neither is the least bit flummoxed that smoke rises from the roasting asparagus or that the new macaroon recipe creates what Zappa calls "alien macaroons."
Lifestyle Journalism
It's drag queen bingo night at Hamburger Mary's Bar & Grille, and a sold-out crowd has gathered in the West Hollywood restaurant to have fun while raising money for the evening's designated nonprofit beneficiary, Pug Nation Rescue L.A. Before Porsha, mistress of ceremonies, begins calling out numbers, the pug fans share cellphone photos of their flat-faced dogs.
In his long and decorated career, John Lithgow has learned never to underestimate the power of creative anxiety and a good melon baller. Playing against type, the beloved comedic actor has earned raves for his portrayal of Winston Churchill on Netflix's "The Crown."
January, 2015 Known as the creator of Flavia de Luce, a precocious, preteen sleuth with deductive skills beyond her years, mystery writer Alan Bradley has enjoyed a publishing success story that incongruously suggests that wisdom comes with age. Retired in his mid-fifties, the former radio and television engineer set to work reinventing himself as a writer.
Public Relations and Website Projects
Prestigious bakeries nationwide competed to create the ultimate Nestle Crunch birthday treat.
A new, dedicated winery lets craftsmanship and quality reach new heights
Surprising Foods Are Good For Your Teeth and Gums