My Secret to an Awesome New Year's Eve

We were having so much fun at Michelle & Sean's no one could even see my shoes!

The secret, like many, is counter-intuitive. The most hyped up night of the year requires the exact opposite from you. No planning. No special hair-dos, no new dresses, and definitely no expensive New Years Eve tickets (unless you are attending with a group of 10 or more - then it'll be fun)! After years of trial and error, anticipation and let down, I've finally figured out the formula - don't make a big deal of it. Someone will invite you to a party - maybe many parties - even if it's at the last minute. And - if you're like me, your closet is already full of broken-in high heels and chic little cocktail outfits, so really, there's no reason to go shopping. Someone is just going to spill a drink on you anyways and you can either laugh about it and have fun, or be pissed because your new frock is ruined.

Not making a fuss of the hair thing is important too - I've noticed an inverse correlation to the amount of fun I have and how much time and effort I put into my hair. Do it a few days before, so all you have to do is take a bath, put on any old sparkly thing and apply lots of eye make-up  and accessories. That's where you shouldn't hold back, it is New Years Eve, after all.

 

A white shirt, shiny black pants and lots of make-up did the trick in 2009!

New Year's Eve by the Christmas Tree?

Still going strong!

Ok, so I'm not staying home by the Christmas Tree celebrating New Year's Eve (I'll be at a party at a Casa Novella if you must know) but I think the tree is an essential component to the finish of the holiday season. Unlike one Miami blogger (I'm calling you out Electric Blogarella!), I feel that trees should definitely not be taken down the day after Christmas. I think January 1st or 2nd is perfectly acceptable but not before. Consideration of this matter touched me when I saw my neighbor's perfectly green and healthy tree curbside on December 26th. They hadn't even bothered to take off the lights! Which, from the window, seemed to be working perfectly fine to me. I guess that way they are sure to have to buy new ones next year, but I digress. Imagine if the city took down all their beautiful lights the day after Christmas. It would be too sad! No, I will hold firm and keep my tree as long as their are more needles on it than the floor. And judging by how robust and supple this tree seems to be staying, that could be mid-February, in which case, I'll take off these ornaments and put up some hearts. Happy New Year!

New Year, New Colors

 

I am an avid painter and repainter. After having an orange family room for years,  I repainted it white about a year ago. (When my husband was out of town on business ;)) But it was never the right white. It was too blue, not creamy enough. So I went out to find the perfect white, and in the process got to thinking that it was a lot of work just to change the hue of white so I settled on a blue-green color. The color of the ocean on Miami Beach, or the color of glass when you look at it form the side. The problem was, I couldn't get the right hue - one was too dark, the other too light. So I mixed my own and made a swatch, which I had color matched by the nice fellow at Ace Hardware. If you go this route, make sure to save at least a half gallon of paint (keep the lid well-sealed), and make yourself a swatch on a piece of cardboard as I did here. This is between Raindrop and Reflecting Pool by Benjamin Moore. Don't ask what I was doing with the red swatch. It was a momentary lapse of reason.

The Fox (by artist Shawn Smith) is Out of the Bag

Ok, so I can finally spill the beans. My mom (and I) totally became obsessed with San Francisco-based artist Shawn Smith after seeing "Skulk", his Balsa Wood Fox sculpture at Cain Schulte's booth at Aqua Art Fair during Basel. Of course, this being one of the centerpieces of the fair, it was sold at the opening (vernisage in Baselspeak.) But after listening to my mom carrying on about the fox for a couple of days, my crafty second daddy (read: Stepfather) decided to commission one as a very awesome Christmas gift. Of course, it isn't ready yet - but a thrice wrapped photo of the sculpture produced the desired response and we're all excited for it's arrival. Stay tuned.

Christmas Eve Day in South Beach

Ok, so I know it's not very Christmas-y, but this was the scene on Christmas Eve at 28th Street beach. I furtively snapped this shot hopping to capture the oiled-up older gent wearing the hot pink Speedo. His body is actually pretty good for his age, so why shouldn't he? A few blocks north, the paparazzi was stocking a celebrity at Soho House. With six photogs waiting around almost all day, I figured it had to be someone big - after all TomKat were there for an entire week this year. So imagine my disappointment when I found out it was just Rachel Zoe. I mean, I love her style, and she's got her own show and all, but with that kind of heat I was sort of expecting a star of the Hollywood variety. But you know, that's Miami, bitch.

temp: 78 degrees and sunny

Pearl, Interrupted

Coming back to Pearl a decade only to find everything exactly the same, still new and shiny was a bit of a mind-bending time warp. The last time I was there was in 2000 for a bubbly-filled date night with another inebriated couple, before the restaurant closed in 2006. Now, six years later it's reopened. During my three hour dinner there, everyone looked great in the pink glow of the light, the waitresses wore Courreges-inspired Mod cut-out dresses with white go-go boots, service was slow but attentive, the food was tasty but priced steeply. In other words, nothing has changed at all. Newbies will love a taste of the heady, pre-crash Miami Beach and older folk can feel a multi-sensory blast from the past.

1 Ocean Dr  Miami Beach 786-515-1150

Famous for being Famous: Angelyne

Do you remember that billboard from 1980's L.A. that featured a busty blonde woman named Angelyne? Well, now Miami has one of their own, which appeared during Basel right across from the Ice Palace. Since this woman wrote the book on being famous for no reason - other than having her own billboard, and subsequently a few movie roles, it seems apropos that she make a come back in the reality-soaked here and now. Unlike these other media whores, however, Angelyne is very secretive, does not give interviews and maintains an aura of old-Hollywood mystery.  The only recent info I can find on her is that she recently sold her Barbie-pink condo, no really, you have to see this. Angelyne's condo

Best of Pulse 2011

 Diane Vreeland by Andy Warhol

 A wall of original Polaroids by Andy Warhol - Gianni Versace, Deborah Harry, Jerry Hall et al

 The Queen at Rest

 From the new talent wing - hidden in a dark closet

 That's a video playing in the grass
 by Nici Jost

Video playing in sole of pump - Nici Jost

Cartier's Giant Jewels

The Cartier party was one of the social highlights of Basel, but those going and expecting to see loads of jewels (a la the Cartier Dome from year's past) may have been a little let down. Instead there was a one giant installation amidst a grey concrete and white walled space where the once-so-expensively built out Vino E Olio once stood. The party's highlight? Some SERIOUS jewels around the necks of party goers. One necklace worn by an acquaintance, was estimated (by a friend who knows about such things) to be $500,000! Oh, and the presence of a jovial Christian Slater -- who has a pad on Miami Beach and is dating a local girl.

Design Miami's $100,000 Chandelier

I love chandeliers, but I have to admit, even I am getting a little tired of seeing them everywhere. So this amazingly unique 100k version at Design Miami really rocked me. The pieces are porcelain, created to remind of bone. Yes, it's really, really expensive, but keep in mind that includes the artist/designer coming into your home and doing a custom installation that may take days. Just sayin'

My Next Car - The New Range Rover Evoque

I finally got to drive the brand new Range Rover Evoque. And I have to say it was very, very worth the wait.  My husband and I have been following this model since it debuted in 2008 as a concept dubbed the LRX. In fact, Mr. Henriette was so enraptured, he told me that if they ever made it, he'd buy one. Now they finally have.

I wasn't so sure about the silhouette, but I was eager check it out. I had a chance to do just that at the Kampong in Coconut Grove for an exciting off-road driving event for an exclusive bunch of auto-centric journalists such as myself... and I fell in love. Lighter, and shorter than it's larger cousins, it drove like my beloved BMW X3, only better. It turned on a dime, off-roaded like a champ, and is luxe in all the right places (namely, the interior). They have a wide assortment of beautiful leathers, and fun exterior colors that were specifically designed to attract the fairer sex to Range Rover and it worked like a charm!

When I got home, the conversation went something like this:
Me: "Honey, I love it! The four door is really awesome."
Him: "No, I'm getting the two door."
Me: "But the two door is impractical, and it looks funny, the roof slopes more than the four door."
Him: "I like the two door."
Me: "Strangely, they told me the four door is actually cheaper."
Him: "Really? Well then, I guess you can get your own."

all you need to know:
 $43,995
240 hp turbocharged
28/18 MPG
very torquey
inventory sold out till March 2012

Two Door

Four Door

Interior

http://www.landrover.com/gb/en/rr/range-rover-evoque/

Feeling a little Gilt-y today

I stopped by the Gilt Group Warehouse Sale last night and couldn't help myself - the deals were too good. Sure, I may not exactly need blue snakeskin Pour la Victoire slouchy boots - but at $100 (reg. $500) it was tough to walk away. Even DJ Johnny the Boy told me they were sick, but maybe a bit tough to match up.  But did I listen? No. I bought them... and an armload of other discount goodies like a Nina Ricci gown, Adrienne Landau fur vest, and a few cute Alice & Olivia dresses.

Sure, the checked purses, crowds and group dressing rooms are a pain in the ass, but the discounts are well worth it. Besides getting half naked with acquaintances, strangers and friends you've never seen in their skivvies is kind of fun - just remember to wear your good ones. The sale is a one-day affair (Saturday November 11), so I suggest you get on it. As I write this there are still tickets for the two of the four time slots left ($10 a piece) on Giltcity.com.