Belle’s Weekly Reading: February 28, 2014

Feb 28, 2014

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This Sunday is the Oscar’s ceremony.  I’ll be hosting my Red Carpet liveblog on Sunday beginning at 5:30PM EST.  We’ll be watching E! (ugh, Seacrest) and critiquing the fashions as they walk down the carpet.  I’m so excited to Lupita N’yongo.  I can barely stand it.

Until then, enjoy the infographic above cataloguing the dresses of the best actress winners from 1929 til the present.

***

1) A Cleveland professional started a very successful job bank to help people in the PR/Communications industry find employment.  Unfortunately, when job seekers e-mailed her to be granted access to the message board, some of her responses were quite unprofessional and rude.  The newspaper called her responses “snarky”, but her replies might be better classified as verbal harassment of people she felt were beneath her.

2) I’m obsessed with these Belargo earrings that mix black metal with clear stones.

3) I love Taco Bell more than any person should, but I’m not sure how I feel about their new breakfast menu.  And speaking of fast food, Thrillist has a list of the best items for sale at the nation’s popular fast food chains.

4) Nordstrom has some lovely shoes for sale in the under-$100 price point.  Sole Society is offering both a stellar pair of pumps and a pair of light leopard flats with black toe-caps.  These black and white Ivanka Trump heels are great for spring dresses.  I also like these Vince Camuto snakeskin flats.  But my favorite shoes on the Nordstrom site are these hot red ankle straps at $109.

5) You do.not want to miss this article about a 4-year-old girl who designs dresses made out of construction paper and wrapping paper.  She’s truly adorable.

6) Anthropologie has some incredible jewelry pieces right now. I own this cuff in labradorite and it is so versatile, I snapped up the lapis one immediately.  I also love this green agate necklace.

7) The new issue of O Magazine discusses tips for decluttering your life.  The article was inspired by Oprah’s decision to auction off many of her most-expensive possessions to raise money for her girl’s school in South Africa.  While I won’t be giving away anything as pricey as her items, I’ve decided it might be time to start simplifying my life as well.

8) Jimmy Choo Exotic in the pink bottle has been my fragrance of choice for months. I love the spicy fruitiness with just a hint of floral.  For the warmer months, they’ve launched a fruitier, brighter scent with grapefruit and black currant that I’m dying to try.  I wasn’t much of a perfume wearer until I found Exotic (most fragrances gave me a headache), but I love these.

9) I’m deeply interested in the scandals surrounding Scientology.  Vanity Fair has done some excellent reporting on the subject, including their latest piece on the disappearance of Shelly Miscavige, the wife of the church’s leader.

10) Into the Gloss has a report on the must-have beauty products from NYFW.  The contraband being snuck backstage and concealed with black tape? Tigi Bed Head Superstar Thickening Mousse. It is now on my shopping list.

11) A young woman wrote an open letter to Nordstrom complaining about the lighting and mirrors in their dressing rooms.  She reports that the changing areas are confidence killers that decimate her feelings about her body and diminish her self-esteem.

I’m sure we’ve all had frustrating moments while trying on clothing, but I don’t think you can blame the dressing room for that.  Our insecurities live in our heads.  I don’t think we can blame a department store for not bringing in mirrors and lighting designed to soothe our bruised self-images.  That’s damage we do, or undo, ourselves.

12) Zac Posen today. Zac Posen tomorrow. Zac Posen til the end of time.

Workday Reading

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  1. Ginger says:

    I think the dressing room gal has “issues.” The dressing rooms in the DC area Nordstrom’s I’ve been in have been fine – big enough to turn around in, doors that close, not packed with whatever six people tried on before. If you don’t want to see yourself in all your glory in a mirror then don’t go there. I like to know how something I might spend my hard-earned cash on looks from the backside.

  2. LGF says:

    Of course everyone is responsible for their own body love – I don’t expect stores to boost my self esteem.

    However, the stores that do make the effort to create dressing rooms with optimal lighting and layout understand this important truth: if the lighting is right and the mirrors are well hung, my cellulite disappears, I look leaner and toner, my skin looks better – and thanks to this confidence boost, I BUY MORE!

  3. CH says:

    I do think it’s a squandered business opportunity when dressing rooms miss the mark – whether it’s unflattering light, not enough space/hooks, no place to set your purse or folded clothes, and a mirror where you can’t see the full outfit. (For the record, I think the J.Crew in Pentagon City has some of the worst dressing rooms!) If part of your brand is a high-end shopping experience, that should extend to the dressing room as well.

  4. Jennifer D says:

    There is an alternative to Seacrest! Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski are broadcasting from the Oscars red carpet for Access Hollywood this Sunday. Unfortunately, I can’t find the Access Hollywood listing anywhere on cable. Which is a shame because they will probably be so much more interesting than the Oscars themselves! Any insights on “accessing” the Johnny and Tara show is appreciated 🙂

  5. LaReesa says:

    I use the regular Jimmy Choo fragrance and LOVE IT. I alternate between that and a Victoria Beckham fragrance that my sister got me hooked on. I’ve never sniffed the Exotic version, I just have the normal one in the light pink bottle. I’ll have to try yours!

  6. Hannah says:

    “I love Taco Bell more than any person should”

    I love your blog and admire you as a professional but this has to be my favorite statement you’ve ever made on here.

    • Belle says:

      My adoration for the Mexican Pizza is coded into my DNA. In college, I didn’t have a meal plan because there was a Taco Bell on the corner (not kidding).

      • My husband loves that Mexican pizza. I have plenty of strange foods or combinations of food that I love, but that appeals to me not. at. all.

        Also, on the perfume front. I say just pick one scent and stick with it. I hate nothing more than the remnants of an old perfume with a different sent on top of it (which is unavoidable, I think, unless you ant to pay exorbitant dry cleaning bills).

  7. Christine says:

    Hmm. I’m not sure which Nordstrom she has been shopping in (or which department in Nordstrom). I am a regular Nordstrom shopper and have shopped at their locations in Los Angeles, San Diego, Chicago and King of Prussia. Based on my experiences over several years, I would say they have some of the best dressing rooms. They are typically well-lit, spacious, have plenty of mirrors and enough room for the tailor to take measurements/pin your garment.

    I realize that she’s trying to be funny but perhaps she should have aimed her pen at Macy’s. Talk about dreadful changing rooms. Oh, well at least she got the store’s name correct. I get irrationally irritated when people incorrectly refer to it as “Nordstrom’s”.

    • Anna says:

      The lighting is the least of the problem’s in the Macy’s fitting rooms. The ones at Target…in Columbia Heights…are better. The one’s in Macy’s are often smelly, messy, have wallpaper pealing off the walls. Such a shame for what used to be a higher end place to shop.

  8. Anna says:

    I would rather have dressing room mirrors be less flattering than not. I hate trying something on, thinking I look awesome, and then getting home to find what I just spent good money on really unflattering. At the very least, it’ll help curtail impulse buys.

    • Anna says:

      than more*

    • Belle says:

      CO-SIGN.

    • Cynthia W says:

      NO KIDDING – I loathe stores that have “skinny mirrors”. I don’t want to get home and find out that I actually look 10 – 20 pounds heavier in an outfit because the mirror cheated. I also want true lighting – not some soft-focus stuff that hides what I really look like. And I’m sorry that she doesn’t like her butt – but I DO want to know what an outfit looks like from every angle. I have tried on many a pair of pants that I thought were going to be winners only to have them go back on the rack when I saw what atrocities they were performing on my rear-end.

      • Julie says:

        I work in retail and I always try to be honest despite what the mirrors (and my sales goal) says. Always find an honest sales person

  9. DEE says:

    The author of the Nordstrom post followed up with the store’s reply – https://thoughtcatalog.com/emma-golden/2014/02/i-complained-about-nordstroms-dressing-rooms-in-a-viral-post-and-this-is-how-they-responded-to-me/.

    Thanks for the Jimmy Choo recommendation as well. I also rarely wear perfume because of the headaches I get, but I’m excited to try it out!

    • Belle says:

      Thanks!

    • Belle says:

      I find applying it to my wrists and knees exclusively helps with the headaches. I think when it’s not right on my neck it improves.

      • Emily says:

        I also get headaches from wearing scents – but my boyfriend loves them. Will try doing only knees and wrists – thanks for the tip. Also, please keep writing your discussion posts. You have insight into a world few of us know, and your thoughts on the topics you discuss are always well written and smart. I often feel like the news industry isn’t providing the full story, but your input always helps.

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