Link Likes: A beauty interview, a fashion line, two blogs and a recipe

First, an interview with the fabulous Tracee Ellis Ross.  She is the celebrity with whom I have the most physical traits in common, so it was great to see this interview. The product that I most want to try is Bumble + Bumble Quenching Complex.
http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/19/face-time-tracee-ellis-ross/

photo: Tina Turnbow

 The Stolen Girlfriends Club was featured on Fly Girls, and I am in total lust with this T-Shirt dress below.  The more vibrant prints that Andrea featured are to die for also.
http://www.stolengirlfriendsclub.com/collections/womens

photo: stolengirlfriendsclub.com

If I remember correctly, a commenter on Jezebel linked to this next blog.  Esme and the Laneway features enviable vintage style and great photographs:
http://esmeandthelaneway.blogspot.com/

photo: esmeandthelaneway.blogspot.com

I am looking for home decorating inspirations and stumbled on this post of vintage vanities and dressing rooms.  It is amazing to see how important perfumes and a handheld mirror were to a glamorous woman's arsenal! (warning: this site plays music automatically)
http://loveyourplace.blogspot.com/2009/09/vintage-vanities-old-hollywood-glamour.html

photo: precodecinema.blogspot.com (I think)

And finally, I went to Whole Foods the other night hoping to find  Valrhona cocoa powder, but I had no such luck.  I ended up with Ghiardelli, which is still great of course.  I also had to think about how to properly sweeten the bitter cocoa powder and remembered that Angelina's hot chocolate was dark, sweet, and perfect.  Here is a recipe:
http://www.savory.tv/2009/12/12/paris-hot-chocolate-recipe/

Detox and Designers

The weekend is the time I catch up on blogs, and you know I love the blogs from style.com and vogue.co.uk, so the Beauty Counter blog on style.com turned me on to Conversations with the designer Norma Kamali.  She is very into personal wellness and wanted to bring inspiration to really anyone who has an internet connection. 

Check out this feature with dermatologist Dr. David Colbert.  He's not selling a product that he will make a profit on: "What makes you look good is fresh food."

So today I am not eating processed foods.  My goal is to do this once a week, and then we will see from there.  Maybe next Saturday I will pull all my money out of savings and  hit up the farmer's market! My skin has been acting up and I haven't been sleeping well.  I already know I haven't been exercising like I should, so this is something I can control.  For breakfast I had scrambled eggs and those tiny oranges (mandarin?).  And so far I haven't died yet, lol. 

By the way, I've heard her name before, but I never checked out Ms. Kamali's clothes.  I love the mesh and modal lines! I also like how the shopping site is set up and the sizing chart and I have a feeling the brand strives for great customer service.  I will have to save my pennies to get some of her clothes...


Back in July I bookmarked this "DIY Detox" post from Vogue.co.uk's Beauty Blog but never did anything about it.   Here are some sensible tips they offered after reading Jane Scrivner's book:

Detox is changing a few things for a while to learn how it feels to feel amazing.
Detox isn't 'can't have', 'not allowed' or 'giving up', its trying amazing new tastes and discovering new meals.
Don't do a month, do 4 x 7 days with a reward of a facial, pedicure or massage at the end of each week
Prepare, prepare, prepare - fill your home with Detox foods and then snack to your hearts content.
Recruit a Detox buddy; sharing recipes, moans and successes will keep you going

Haute Cuisine in Spain

I caught a part of an episode of the Made in Spain series on PBS, and I had to go straight to google to find out about this restaurant in Roses called elBulli.   José Andrés is not only the host of the series, but he has quite a few restaurants in the Washington, DC area.  I liked Jaleo, I LOVED Café Atlántico, and I can't wait to go (sooner or later) to minibar.  The restaurants  he owns have the most exciting menus in the area.   Andrés studied under elBulli's chef Ferran Adrià, and the dishes he tried on the show looked absolutely amazing.   From what I gather, minibar is sort of an ode to elBulli's multiple bites that experiment with texture.  If you are a real foodie, you need to go directly to elBulli's general catalogue, which spans 1983-2005 and check out all of the pictures!   The post picture I chose was a Fresh Snack from 2003 and is the "deep-fried red mullet fishbone with its soup."  Other past dishes include monkfish with garlic, winkles and black trumpet mushrooms; scrambled egg with black truffle jus; popcorn cloud; fennel flower in tempura; crisp raviolo of soursop with coffee and lime; lamb’s brains with sea urchins and sea grape; baby monkfish with lemon-scented egg yolk, daisy buds, pine nut oil and hazelnut butter.  The list goes on.   I am the worst foodie in the world ( I hate soup, tomatoes, most cooked vegetables) but I do not find Olive Garden to be exotic and the concept of food as art is quite fascinating!  I think I will enjoy a trip to this once-in-a-lifetime restaurant.  One day...

In the mean time, check out a course-by-course review at amateurgormet.com.