FabSugar

Modeling Takes Beauty . . . and Mad Skills

FabSugar — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 15:00:22 PST

Who says models are all beauty and no brains? Okay, I can't vouch for their brains, but I can prove that they have some mad skills. Wearing what looks like a suffocating bag around your face and having to walk down a long runway takes precision. Many models trip, even without such an obstacle, so I give the models who walked the Junya Watanabe Fall '08 show in Paris some respect. It looks like Paris and London, namely the shows of Watanabe, Maison Martin Margiela, Rick Owens, and Gareth Pugh, proved to be the most taxing for the models. Then again, signing on to work with such avant-garde designers, they probably expected a bit (okay, a lot) of craziness. Could you do it?

To see some more freakish runway productions,

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(L-R: Antonio Berardi's heel-less platforms, Comme des Garcons Fall 2008, Rick Owens Fall 2008, Maison Martin Margiela Fall 2008, Gareth Pugh Fall 2008, Alexander McQueen Spring/Summer 2008)
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Skyler Shows Off His Walking Skills With a Hand From Rachel Zoe

Lauren Turner — Thu, 17 May 2012 01:26:51 PDT

Rachel Zoe held her son Skyler's hand as they walked in LA yesterday. The one-year-old is on the go after showing off his balancing skills during a shopping trip with Rachel in April. It's been an exciting month so far for the busy mom, who attended the Met Gala in NYC with model Karolina Kurkova last week. Rachel also celebrated Mother's Day on Sunday and tweeted that the holiday is "officially my favorite day of the year forever!" The fun continued last night at a charity event held at the Elyse Walker boutique, where Rachel's eponymous Spring collection was on display.

Why Christy Turlington Isn't Celebrating Mother's Day

Kate Stahl — Wed, 02 May 2012 13:17:15 PDT

Did you know that a woman dies every 90 seconds from pregnancy complications and 90 percent of those deaths are preventable? It's serious stuff, and an issue that's become Christy Turlington's life passion. Today Turlington, supermodel, wife to Edward Burns, mom to Grace and Finn, and founder of Every Mother Counts, an advocacy group that's working to reduce the global maternal mortality rate, launched a new campaign called No Mothers Day. For the video above, Turlington enlisted the help of famous moms including Jennifer Connelly, Debra Messing, Ann Curry, Kelly Rutherford, and Blythe Danner, along with a host of real moms, to support the cause, which asks moms to "disappear" on Mother's Day. "This Mothers Day I am honoring all moms by going silent," Turlington told us. "The . . . public service announcement features moms encouraging other moms to join in solidarity by disappearing May 13, Mother’s Day. No Mothers Day is a powerful social issue campaign designed to raise awareness about the hundreds of thousands of girls and women around the world who die each year from complications related to pregnancy or childbirth."

Keep reading for the rest of our interview with the simply amazing Turlington

Why Pixar's First Leading Lady Merida Is the Bravest Princess of Them All

Tara Block — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 12:44:25 PDT

I recently attended a Pixar event at the animation film company's HQ for its upcoming Summer flick Brave. I was able to watch the first 30 minutes of the film, interview the director Mark Andrews and producer Katherine Sarafian, learn all about Scottish traditions, and even channel my inner Merida with archery lessons. Not only am I hooked on archery (pretty proud of my bull's-eye), I'm also hooked on Brave's heroine Princess Merida - Pixar's first leading lady! But don't let Merida's royal title fool you. As an adventurous girl in ancient Scotland who'd rather shoot arrows than get married, she's far from a typical Disney princess. Katherine and Mark both shared the ways she's breaking the princess mold and what makes her a great role model for us all. And as you'll see in the clip from the film below, the last thing Princess Merida wants is a Prince Charming.

Brave producer Katherine Sarafian agrees that the studio's latest project is especially exciting because it stars a girl. She asked me, "Who among us wouldn't want to give our daughters or sons a great cinema role model?" And not only is Merida a "powerhouse of a girl" with "fire and gusto and vigor" as Katherine describes her, she's also relatable, as she doesn't come with any special superpowers. "She just has great skills and she practices them," Katherine explains, "and she earned her skills by working hard and practicing and playing archery and playing sword fighting with her dad."

What really makes Merida someone little girls and adult women alike can relate to is that she's not perfect. At one point Merida's mom, Elinor, who's trying desperately to persuade her daughter to conform to her traditional role as a lady, says, "A princess strives for perfection." As women, we're constantly feeling that pressure to meet impossible expectations and aspire to society's ideal of who we should be and what we should be doing. But we rarely hit the mark. Katherine tells me, "I find her very relatable as someone who's coming of age and struggling with that central question of how can I really be seen for who I am in a world where there's an expectation of me that is incongruous to who I am?"

So why is such a relatable female lead so rare? Katherine tells me she's never understood why we haven't seen more strong female characters onscreen. With Brave, the filmmakers weren't trying to produce a story with a leading lady; it was the story, that happened to be about a girl, that got the project made. "If more filmmakers are developing ideas with great females at the center of the story, we should be able to take the world by storm," Katherine says.

The good news is with hits like The Hunger Games that are incredibly popular with both sexes, perhaps Brave is a part of a trend toward more female-driven films. Katherine points out that the box office figures have proven that people want to see girls and women lead stories. She adds, "I'm hoping people are realizing and studios realize that there is an audience, that this is half the population."

I found it interesting that Pixar (a subsidiary of Disney) would have its first female lead in a feature film be a princess, meaning, technically, Merida is a Disney princess. It appears that for a girl to be the lead in an animated movie she has to be princess. But both Katherine and director Mark Andrews insist the princess decision had nothing to do with the classic Disney princess archetype, but rather it was about a more exciting plot. "If you're a teenager and you make a stupid decision, maybe you get grounded," Katherine explains. "If you're royalty, your bad decision can have consequences that could cause a war in your kingdom. It was important that her decisions be tied to something much bigger than herself and her immediate family."

11 Fun and Useful Photoshop Tips and Effects to Try

GeekSugar — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 01:31:34 PDT

Now that you've polished up your photography skills, it's time to take your photos to the next level by having some fun with Photoshop. Editing and tweaking your pics isn't considered cheating - it helps bring out the beauty in your images, and keeps things interesting. Here, I'll cover ten fun and useful Photoshop tips and effects that you can use every day, or when you want to add some pizzaz to your pics.

Get Photoshop for free - Don't have Photoshop? No prob! Get Photoshop Express for free!
Take in some free tutorials - Get the low down on Photoshop basics free of charge.
Get rid of blemishes - Who doesn't want clear skin? Make it a reality with this tip that ditches the zits.

See the rest of the tips, and learn about some sweet and simple effects you can add to your images after the break.

Miranda and Flynn Explore the Big Apple Together

Katie Henry — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 02:15:17 PDT

Miranda Kerr held Flynn Bloom in her arms as they returned to their NYC hotel yesterday. The model's been spotted all over Manhattan this week in trendy pieces from Celine, Dries Van Noten and Current/Elliott, though Flynn is often her cutest accessory. The little man has been showing off his walking skills recently but for their latest stroll around the Big Apple Flynn seemed happy to cozy up next to Miranda. Flynn's eco conscious mom is prepping for a major event at the end of the month. Miranda's been appointed the global ambassador for this year's Earth Hour, the 60 minute event taking place March 31 at 8:30 p.m.

Ian Somerhalder Dishes On His Grand Romantic Gestures in a Steamy Glamour Spread

Lindsay Miller — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 12:49:00 PST

Ian Somerhalder is featured in April's Glamour, putting his male modeling skills to use for the glossy's "Hot Night In" spread. The latest installment of the magazine features The Hunger Games star Jennifer Lawrence on the cover, but inside, Ian makes the most of his own moment in the spotlight. The Vampire Diaries actor cozies up with a model in bed, makes out with a mannequin, and reveals a sillier side in the pages of the publication. In the accompanying interview, he talks about why he believes in being a nice guy versus a macho man, his Ian Somerhalder Foundation - which supports green efforts - and the most romantic and spontaneous date he's ever devised. He didn't mention his costar and real-life girlfriend, Nina Dobrev, by name when sharing the latter story, but it sounds like she may have been the lucky lady who joined him for the impressive outing. Here are highlights from Ian's interview:

On once taking a date for lunch in Paris: "Flying across the ocean for one meal was pretty awesome . . . It paid off!"
On his approach to women: "If you are respectful and nice and charming to a woman, it's a better approach. And I don't know what women want. No one knows what women want!"
On his passion for the environment: "Kids are meeting in coffee shops and basements figuring out what's unsustainable in their communities. That's the future."

How Well Do You Know Your Fashion Week Catwalkers?

Brittney Stephens — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 12:15:22 PST

Fashion Week is on the horizon, and designers, celebrities, and models alike are scurrying to secure final details and schedules. We, on the other hand, are looking to test our skills when it comes to some of the more prominent runway stars - and we're inviting you to do the same. How well do you know your Fashion Week catwalkers? Take our quiz to find out now.

Question 1 of 8

Which model mom walked Balenciaga's Spring 2011 runway while five months pregnant?

18 Ways to Save (at Least) $1 a Day

SavvySugar — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:28 PST

It's true: the little things add up. As anyone who ever had a piggy bank knows, small everyday actions can help you save big. Hoping to create a financial cushion for yourself this season? Follow these 15 easy tricks to help you save at least a dollar a day:

Hold the milk. In your coffee, that is. If you regularly stop at the coffee shop on your way to work, order it black to avoid any extra costs.
Go generic. At the grocery store, pick the generic variety of different foods to save big on pantry staples.
Keep the change. Sure, sometimes it's annoying to have change littering your purse or jangling in your pocket, but you'd be surprised by how quickly those nickels add up.
Swap soda for water. If you can't give it up altogether, vow to sip water instead of soda during at least one meal each day.
Trade CDs with a friend. Hoping to add the latest Rihanna song to your workout playlist? Reach out to a friend and burn CDs for each other to gather new music for free.
Fuel up for less. Unless it's required for your specific car model, nix the premium gas habit and use gasbuddy.com to find the cheapest gas in the area.
Find free WiFi. Work in cafés or libraries with free WiFi. Not sure which spots offer Internet? Use the Free Wi-Fi app to scope out local places with wireless access.
Practice your sewing skills. Skip a trip to the tailor and learn to do the simple adjustments yourself, like shortening a hem or taking in a blouse.

Keep reading for more tips to save $1 a day.

House Tour: Fashion Designer Sheridan French's Elegantly Exotic Texas Abode

Angela Swinderman Elias — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:00:31 PST

Sheridan French's house reflects her love of layered prints, exuberant colors, and exotic travels. An adventurous pursuit of a fashion career led her to Europe, where she modeled and created her own collections while studying for her masters degree. After honing her skills at Prada's London Press Office and traveling across Europe, Sheridan finally returned to Fort Worth, TX. It wasn't until Sheridan settled in her hometown to raise a family that her lifelong dream of developing her own label, Sheridan French, came to fruition.

Living in a home that reminds her of her years in Europe, it's apparent that her fashion aesthetic translates seamlessly into interior design. It's no surprise that she will be expanding her fashion label to include home goods next month. And, judging by her successful clothing line and stunning home, I'm guessing it will be just as covet-worthy.