Photo courtesy Ann Kagawa Lee

A few months ago I put a notice of a toilet-paper wedding gown contest in the paper and it’s paying off for finalist Ann Kagawa Lee, who already won a trip to New York for final judging of her creation at the Ripley’s Believe it or Not! museum.

That’s so great! It was an oddball kind of item, but having been inspired by a T-paper gown game at The Wedding Cafe and The Bridal Boutique at the time, I figured that creating toilet-paper wedding gowns is just one more of our citizenry’s many talents.

Putting things in the paper involves some guesswork as to what people will want to read/what they should read, but it’s worthwhile if an item does get the right person to respond.

Go Ann!

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Russell Tanoue is putting out the call to vote for dancer Mark Kanemura.

Speaking of talent, a more traditional kind involves the Fox reality competition, “So You Think You Can Dance?” Photographer Russell Tanoue has launched the campaign to vote for local dancer Mark Kanemura, who’s made it into the top 18 so far.

The program airs at 7 p.m. today, the 18th, with the voting period following the show, and elimination tomorrow at 8 p.m. It’s one of my favorite shows because the dancers are so talented and the choreography is amazing.

The girls have taken a back seat to the guys in past years, but look really strong this year. The guys are more technically trained than ever, but better watch out!

Photos by Nadine Kam

The window at the new bebe boutique in the Royal Hawaiian Center reads “bebe loves Hawaii” and apparently Hawaii loves bebe coz a whole lotta people turned up at the private grand opening celebration June 5.

The room was packed and it was pretty hot the first hour or two. Nevertheless, the bebe addicts found a way to juggle drinks and pupu with dressing rooms as 5 percent of purchases made that night, and through this weekend, will benefit the YWCA’s Dress for Success program.

Bebe CEO Greg Scott surrounds himself with beauty. From left, Giselle Pineda, Crystal Pancipanci, Shana Peete, Greg, Jessica Hoffman and Yasmin Dar.

Rain just gave birth in March and is already back to her modeling form, in bebe, of course. (more…)

Jay McCarroll with his illustrations for “Transport,” his Spring 2007 collection, based on the work of Archigram, a group of 1960s architects who envisioned living spaces full of hot-air balloons, flying cars and moving streets and other contemporary cityscapes.

“Eleven Minutes”
Part of the HGLCF Honolulu Rainbow Film Festival
Screening 2 p.m. Saturday, May 24 at the Doris Duke Theatre at Honolulu Academy of Arts.
Admission is $12

If you get a chance to see “Eleven Minutes,” part of the Honolulu Gay and Lesbian Cultural Foundation’s Rainbow Film Festival Saturday, go.

The documentary film by Michael Selditch and Rob Tate tracks Jay McCarroll’s journey from “reality to real-life designer” as he tries to live up to the “Project Runway” premise of becoming the “next great American designer.” The tone of the piece is bittersweet as he scoffs at the title, yet it’s made so clear he has bought into the idea. Considering the amount of wit, confidence and bravado he presented on the show, he’s only human and the criticism he received after the show in failing to become an overnight sensation, takes its toll on his psyche.

Considering his desire to parlay his 15 minutes of fame into a career, they could have called it “15 Minutes,” but I believe the title, reflecting the length of a fashion show that takes six months to a year to plan, might have been inspired by “Onze Minutos, “a 2003 novel by Paulo Coelho based on a young Brazilian prostitute who seeks a better life in Switzerland, only to find that reality is harsher than expected.

For anyone in the creative arts, it is mesmerizing to watch, but in the end rather depressing to see so little payoff, in spite of McCarroll’s very real talent. It’s tragic, to me, when celebs lacking any fashion cred can suddenly call themselves “designers” by capitalizing on the work of hundreds of people like McCarroll, who don’t have the finances to break out of their sweat-shop roles.

Images of hot-air balloons cover this outfit.

My feeling is that McCarroll has been the most talented and original of the parade of designers in all four seasons of the Bravo series. But, as the first season winner, he was the one most closely scrutinized and reviled after failing to produce. He famously rejected the program’s prize of $100,000, reporting that acceptance would have meant 10 percent of his brand would be forever owned by the Weinstein Co.

He’s grateful for the opportunity that “Project Runway” presented, saying, “I can’t imagine having no notoriety and trying to do what I’m doing,” but faces the realization that talent is 10 percent of the success equation. What’s also needed is business acumen, good advice, sweat equity, luck and money. It’s the reason stars with no design skills, taste or originality whatsovever are able to produce and market their own lines, while many individuals like McCarroll, who can design, make a pattern and sew, are forced to toil behind the scenes, with no recognition of their own.

Although people assumed he had help from the show’s producers, that is not their focus. Their job is to entertain. Period. If anything, they tend to exploit talent to increase their own market share. After the show stopped airing, like McCarroll says, “The cord was cut and it was done. Ten percent of it is opportunity, 90 percent was mt hard work and that was unnoticed, until now.”

The feeling conveyed is that this runway show and documentary are his last hope of making it on his own.

He won “Project Runway” in Feb. 2004 and filming started in February 2006 in advance of preparation for a Sept. 2006 New York Fashion Week presentation for the Spring 2007 season. In his view, it was his last shot at being recognized for his talent. “I’ve been trying for … two seasons now to get this show on the road. I have a shelf life so if I don’t show this coming season, people aren’t going to care anymore … If I f*** this one up, I may have to reconsider some things.”

He didn’t mess up, but the quest continues.

More info:
www.jaymccarrolldocumentary.com
www.jaymccarroll.com

U.K.’s Daily Mail is reporting that Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld wants Frances Bean Cobain to appear in his next ad campaign.

Given that Cobain pulled more of her mom Courtney Love’s genes, she’s an unlikely choice, though anything the girl ends up doing is bound to make news.

I really loved, loved her dad Kurt Cobain, what he stood for and his music. After he died I went to Seattle to be at Ground Zero, found his house, shot video, all the usual stalkerazzi stuff. I somehow hoped Frances would grow up to be a rock star and pick up where Kurt left off. I miss all the music he didn’t get to make.

You can check out the Daily Mail’s story here:

http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/pages/live/articles

/showbiz/showbiznews.html?

in_article_id=562309&in_page_id=1773

M.A.C illustration

Just did a story on M.A.C and they have struck again with a new limited-edition Heatherette collection with pink-cased lipstick and lipglass, plus two eyeshadow trios—one with peach and turquoise colors plus a darker liner color, and one in shades of pink and purple. You can finish with any of M.A.C’s glitter or pigments for a look that says “Superstar” and living up to Richie’s and Traver’s rep as 24-hour party people.

Alliway photo

Meanwhile, if you’re looking for something to do this Good Friday, you might head over to Ward Warehouse to check out Alliway’s 3-2-1 Easter sale. That is, 30 percent off Alliway jewelry, 20 percent off handbags, 10 percent off other merchandise. The sale is on through tomorrow.

Alliway, along with Ginger 13, are among the local designers selected to be showcased in the second-floor jewelry section at Nordstrom. Congratulations Alli and Cindy!

Have all five winners for the M.A. C contest. Thanks for entering. I’ll be in touch with you all.

Memorabilia and Frisco.

To go along with today’s color cosmetic story in the paper, I’m giving away some lip and eye color from M.A.C, some from the Originals line.

Five people will get one of the following, with the first to come up with the right answers to get first pick, and so forth:

>> Frisco, soft pastel peachy pink eyeshadow

>> Memorabilia mauve/dusty purple eyeshadow

>> Sinnamon peachy bronze shimmer Lustreglass lipgloss

>> Sandy B, a light peachy shell pink frost lipstick

>> Twig Twig, a neutral brown plum Lustre lipstick

To win one, answer the following questions based on a past blog entry:

1. What is the name of the M.A.C head artist I interviewed about the spring color collection at New York Fashion Week last September?

2. Whose fashion show was she working on at the time?

Thanks for trying. Please note that responses will not appear immediately unless you’ve posted before.

Nadine Kam photo
The Fafinettes—Eriko (orange hair), Ermine (platinum) and Monoka posed with fans at DFS Sunday night.

The Fafinettes come to life at the M.A.C counters at DFS in Waikiki, giving Japanese fans a thrill, with many a photo and video op.

The event was the introduction of the Fafi line for Spring 2008, with its bright lime, citrusy and neon colors inspired by the characters—Eriko, Ermine and Monoka—created by the French artist Fafi. The boutique was dressed with Fafi flooring as well as M.A.C posters featuring their makeup artists’ interpretations of the Fafi look, as well as hot pink and bright orange bean-bag chairs, all adding to the fun vibe.

Try the colors from 7 to 9 p.m. March 3 and 4 at DFS. It’s kind of a maze on the second floor, so don’t give up looking for the cosmetics section. Just when you think you’ve run into a wall at Coach, turn another corner and you’ll be headed in the right direction.

The original Fafinettes.

If you can’t make it to Waikiki, you can check out the collection at the M.A.C boutique at Ala Moana Center, where there will be an in-store event from noon to 7 p.m. March 8, plus a demonstration at 6 p.m. the same day on CenterStage. The Fafi line is also prominently featured on the second floor of Nordstrom, set to open Friday at 9:30 a.m. The highly inquisitive and/or anxious will be there at 7:30 a.m. for the Cosmetic Tailgate Party preceding the opening.

American Idol
Jason Castro photographed looking much more polished than laidback as he did two nights ago during the men’s night of competition.

After a two-day marathon of watching the “American Idol” top 24, to me they could narrow the field to about 8 already. I hope Jason Castro stays a long time.

There’s been news stories run about the unfair advantage of some of the singers who have worked as pros, who have done tours and recordings, but I don’t think that will have any bearing on the final result. They didn’t make it “in the real world” the first time for the same reasons they won’t make it to the end on “AI,” whether it’s wrong material or sound or lack of charisma.

Top girls for me are Alexandrea Lushington and Syesha Mercado, but Jason’s a breath of fresh air, like Blake Lewis last season.

A lot of Jason’s fans are saying he looks like John Travolta. I don’t see it, unless they’re talking about his goofy wide smile.

Along with clothing trends, New York’s fall shows hint at color trends in makeup as well. Makeup artists work with designers as the collections are being created and try to communicate the designers’ vision through makeup colors, textures and application techniques.

M.A.C created looks for 70 designers this season and the company uses the word “dramatic” to define Fall 2008’s aesthetic, with color emphasis on the lips. Here are a few of the looks from M.A.C’s Autumn/Winter 2008 Trend Report:

Illustrations courtesy of M.A.C

Luca Luca: If there’s one lesson that never changes in beauty it’s this: Pick one feature to emphasize and underplay the others. Tom Pecheux put gold and eyelids, with lips done in transparent coral. To balance the shiny eye, she has matte skin. (more…)