By Nadine Kam

Nadine Kam photo
Valerie Ragaza-Miao, who’ll be competing as Mrs. Honolulu in the Mrs. Hawaii USA pageant on May 23, draws numbers for dozens of prizes during an advance screening of “Confessions of a Shopaholic” last Thursday at the Consolidated Theatres, Ward Entertainment Center.

As expected, “Confessions of a Shopaholic” offered lots of eye candy, and I’m not just talking clothes. Actor Hugh Dancy was also great to look at, and after catching a preview with my friends we all agreed later that his character was the equivalent of the perfect man: smart, good looking, nice smile, ambitious, rich but not snobby, confident enough to ignore the notion of the obvious trophy girlfriend/wife, understands fashion but again, not snobby or obsessed about it.

Dream shopping from the movie.

Mr. Dancy

Sigh. If you fit the bill, I know at least a dozen women who would love to meet you! You don’t even have to be rich. Money is just the icing on top of all other fine traits.

The preview was also a party for friends and fans of Valerie Joseph’s Valerie Ragaza Miao, who, before the film began, offered dozens of door prizes for those who made Foodbank donations. Some, who didn’t know about the drive, wrote checks on the spot.

In spite of the frivolity at the film’s surface, it offers a starting point to talk about the intersection of desire and ability to pay. The National Endowment of Financial Education has a site Spendster.org that lets visitors confess their own shopaholic tendencies, believing the admissions actually do help people face their weaknesses.

You may have a problem if you have a tendency to:
>> Buy things you want without thinking about whether you can afford them at the moment.
>> Buy things often to cheer yourself up or reward yourself.
>> Struggle paying your bills because you always seem to be living on the financial edge.
>> Tend to keep buying more of your favorite things even if you don’t have a specific need for them.
>> Feel intensely deprived, angry or upset if you have to put off buying something you really want.
>> Turn excessively to credit cards to buy wanted items.

Here are some suggested cures from Spendster:

>> DO prioritize: Often, we fall prey to retailer’s persuasive displays and instead of buying only what we need, we end up with a cart full of all kinds of other stuff. Before you head out to the store, make a list and keep to it.
>> DON’T remove the tags: They’re itchy and scratchy and poke you in weird places, but resist the urge to rip off the tags until you’re sure you are going to keep the item.
>> DO wait 30 minutes before making a purchase. Sometimes if you leave it, you might not want to go back to buy it.
>> DON’T make it easy: Take only the cash you need for the day. Leave your credit cards at home and freeze them if you must. Tell a friend about your situation and empower him or her to tell you “no” when you feel the urge to spend needlessly.
>> DO return it: If it’s a recent offense, dig out your receipt (tip: keep all receipts in a designated pocket of your purse or checkbook for easy recovery) and head straight back to the store. If you feel that you’re unable to return to the “scene of the crime” without either spending more or exchanging for a lower-priced item, ask a spouse or friend to run the errand for you.
>> DON’T pretend it never happened. Denial is a powerful tool, but admitting your spending mistakes allows you the insight to not repeat them. Visit a Web site like Spendster.org for some cathartic reflection. While you’re there, learn from other people that have posted their splurges.
>> DO look to prevent future binges. Plenty of nonprofit organizations have been established to help consumers get a better grip of their finances and budgeting.

Get more advice at www.SmartAboutMoney.org with a search for “compulsive shopping.”

By Nadine Kam

Every tribe has its markers, and those addicted to the garrulous universe of Twitter.com can show their affiliation with T-shirts from Aiea designer Valentino Valdez (@valdezign) and acrylic jewelry from London-based Twitterer @CouchObjects.

This twitterati nameplate, $20, is available through @CouchObject’s Etsy site. Below, prototypes for a nameplate bearing my blog and Twitter name.

I don’t often wear words or logos because they can be bloated with unintended meaning and would make me feel like a walking advertisement, but I’ll make an exception for my own Twitter name fashiontribe. The @ in front allows other tweeps to direct their comments straight at you so you can bypass the thousands of messages that flood the site every minute.

OK, geeky I know, but I think everyone on Twitter is proud to be part of the international geekdom.

If you want to learn more about Twitter, you might want to check out the HI Twestival coming up Feb. 12 at Oceans 808 at Restaurant Row, one of 160 events being held in cities all around the globe that night, allowing the Twitter/social media community to come together to benefit Charity:Water, a non-profit organization bringing clean, safe drinking water to people in developing nations.

Tickets are $20 for a pupu buffet, two drinks (plus $3 drink specials), a night of music and a chance to win prizes through a charity raffle. A $5 raffle ticket could get you:
>> A two-night stay at Wyland Waikiki
>> One of two 30-minute Ocean Massages from Spa Pure at The Wyland Waikiki
>> One of two two-night stays at any hotel from the Aqua Boutique Collection from Aqua Resorts
>> A 23-piece round tray from Happy Hearts Mochi
>> One complimentary tuition to Hawaii Bartending Academy
>> Admission for four to the Waikiki Aquarium
>> $500 closing cost credit on a loan from Innovative Mortgage Solutions

Plus more to come!

BTW, feel free to:

By admin

Nadine Kam photos
elle Couture Jewellery’s creative director Lance Ishibashi and KCC’s Carol Sakihara at the opening of her students’ exhibition Friday night.

By Nadine Kam

elle Couture Jewellery creative director Lance Ishibashi made room in the new 909 Kapiolani jewelry boutique to share the floor with some talented young designers from Kapiolani Community College over the weekend, with the opening of an exhibition that will be on view through Jan. 29.

Lisa Shiroma’s copper “Star” necklace with satin ribbon.

I enjoyed looking at the pieces and entertained the thought of owning some of them because they are so different from what’s in the marketplace, which tends to follow big trends. Unfortunately, only a handful are actually available for sale, at a maximum of about $330. Given the class project nature of the work, many of them have sentimental attachment to the pieces they created, and you can’t put a price on that.

I loved Mia Takara’s brushed silver “Bear Fuzz,” but unfortunately, she’s not parting with it. It started as a ring with claws that wrap around the finger, but she found it difficult to attach the two pieces.

The students have access to limited tools and materials, but the show just proves how these are not handicaps when imagination is at work.

Since my story ran in the paper Thursday, some generous souls in the community have already offered donations of jewelry findings to the KCC program headed by artist Carol Sakihara. I’m sure more assistance would be welcome.

Jeremiah Skurtu with an “Industrial” ring he created. It was so large, they had to develop a special casting method for it. Below, he also wore a skull ring he created while attending high school in Texas.

(more…)

By Nadine Kam

Sorry I haven’t added to my blog in a week but the new year has been off to a fast start. Adding to the regular January mix of stories is the added “bonus” of inauguration activities surrounding the change Jan. 20. This is the first time Hawaii has shared some of the presidential limelight and it could provide a bit of a boost to businesses as several events are being held to celebrate Barack Obama’s presidency and all the hope it brings.

I’ve been super busy finishing up four stories for sister publication HI Luxury magazine, including another fashion spread. They keep getting bigger and more ambitious, requiring more elaborate sets, more props and storyboarding that has more in common with filmmaking than our typical newspaper photo sessions. Which is all I could think about over the holidays as we essentially brainstormed a mini feature film.

I had many a “Rachel Zoe Project” moment where I was thinking, “I need options, I need more options,” and went through much hand-wringing while praying clothing we requested from Gucci in New York and Cosabella in Miami would arrive on time. All this while people were on vacation or leaving offices early in celebration of Christmas and New Year holidays, and in Hawaii we’re at a distinct disadvantage due to the time differences.

Unfortunately, you’ll have to wait until February to see the spread.

By Nadine Kam

Touchstone Pictures
Isla Fisher, as shopaholic Rebecca Bloomwood, attempts to take charge of her closet. Click on the photo for the trailer.

I got a chance to interview Patricia Field yesterday in advance of the opening of “Confessions of a Shopaholic,” though we won’t be running the story until closer to the film’s opening in February.

Who can wait that long?

What was most interesting to me was that the boutique-owning stylist for “Sex and the City” and now, “Ugly Betty,” says she’s NOT a shopaholic. I mean, you’d assume a person who shops for a living might be, right? But the -holic part would suggest a form of mental illness, and she’s firmly in control of her finances and material desires.

While she loves clothing and accessories across the board, high and low, new and worn, she’s very practical about it all, saying that she probably owns less clothing than her fans would imagine, to the point where she says she basically wears the same thing over and over, changing things up with accessories. But that’s where her styling skills come into play and not everyone is so blessed.

Even so, her advice for shopaholics who want to gain control over their spending habits is to stop buying clothes because a T-shirt is a T-shirt is a T-shirt, and focus on learning how to accessorize those basic pieces to update your wardrobe for the most impact and least expenditure.

The film’s timing is good, balancing lots of eye candy with the idea that there is a bigger price to pay for overshopping than what’s on the price tag.

I sent a post off to Twitter about the interview, and fans of Field were quick to respond, including someone I know locally who asked, “OMG, did you die?”

Well, yeah. That happens sometimes when you get a chance to speak with some of the people you idolize. In fact, I’m just lucky she had a good sense of time because she wanted to give me the full 20 minutes allotted to individual journalists across the country in her marathon day of phone calls. Otherwise, I was like, “Hi, uh, um, OK, bye,” which doesn’t happen too often.

The other memorable time I was on nervous mode was talking with the film director Ang Lee, post “Brokeback Mountain” and in advance of “Lust, Caution.” When the man has time to speak, you have to take the call, and unfortunately, it happened on a day I had a five-hour photo shoot for HI Luxury magazine. The session was scheduled to end about 3 p.m., the same time he wanted to call after getting off a plane from LA to New York. With any luck, my shoot would end early and his plane would be delayed to give me time to return about $50,000 worth of clothing to boutiques and get back to my desk.

Didn’t happen. His agent called just as I left the Halekulani and I had to explain I was in my car and could we reschedule in about a half hour. They granted an extra 15 minutes, the point being that once the director arrived home, that was his sanctuary away from work. That gave me enough time to make it to Ala Moana Center and park. But while waiting in the car, I got impatient, and figured I could make a run with the bags to the shops. I had just dropped off the last bags when he called, and there I was with cell phone, trying to balance my notepad on a planter outside Dior, trying to sound intelligent and stress-free.

I don’t think I fooled him, but he is the nicest man.

By Nadine Kam

Nadine Kam photos
The golden one, designer Blayne Walsh, with his manager Nadia Yun at Skyline.

The Blayne Walsh “Girlicious” weekend continued at Skyline at Twist at Hanohano Saturday night, with the “Project Runway” alum presenting his own Richard Blayne collection, fresh from its debut in his current hometown of Seattle on Dec. 1.

Those who read this blog already know that I was a big fan of Leanne Marshall’s, who ultimately won the competition, but I feel we’re so lucky to have had the second opportunity to see the collection Blayne might have presented at New York Fashion Week if he had made the top five, which he narrowly missed. It’s one his TV fans would have loved to see on the small tube, and here, we were seeing it live!

A Richard Blayne mini dress.

Having met him and seen first hand what he’s all about, I’m now a fan of Richard Blayne and definitely saw some pieces in the collection I’d like to wear. It’s also great that he designs for both men and women, because, as he said at Pearl on Friday night, “Men need better clothes.”

Of course, the show started stylishly late at 11:30 p.m., so I had ample time to take photos of fashion enthusiasts in the crowd while enjoying some of the restaurant’s fabulous martinis or a chair massage courtesy of CMC Medi-spa in Aiea.

It was fun seeing some of the models as I’ve never seen them, like it was the first time I saw Raena Cassidy so punked out. Not to mention the hosts with the mosts, Flash and Matty Boy, taking their turn on the runway! (more…)

By Nadine Kam

Nadine Kam photos
The Island Living table was marked by natural wood, seashells and Hawaii flora combined with Hosta stainless steel, Atticus ceramic ware, Tadeusz Wrzesniak cut-swirl goblets and Krosno amber balloon stemware from Neiman Marcus.

C.S. Wo and Neiman Marcus have teamed up once again to share ideas for dressing the holiday table during “At Home for the Holidays,” with five tables on display through Sunday.

Click on the photo of Kellie and Bradley Wo to see video of the holiday displays.

The showcase opened with a morning celebration on Nov. 23, with guests treated to music by the Holiday String Quartet, Kellie and Bradley Wo, Christmas caroling with Diamond Head Theatre’s Shooting Stars and dessert tables, including a chocolate fountain, provided by Diamond Head Market & Grill and chef Kelvin Ro.

Early duing the event, there was a long line for a dip in the chocolate fountain. Party-goers could feel righteous, choosing lots of fresh fruit, including pineapple, cantaloupe and strawberries to go with their chocolate.

Gold dot china by Dibbern was the inspiration for a table with the Midas touch.

Wendell Wo, right, greeted guests Michael and Kristen Chan.

Bob Wo, left, with newlyweds Candes Gentry and Milan Drager, Joey Caldarone and Neiman Marcus’ Doug Jago.

By Nadine Kam

History was made when Barack Obama was elected president —the first we know of to hit the waves as a surfer and body boarder.

To commemmorate the moment, Crazy Shirts is honoring the Hawaii-born President elect with the release of its “Obama Surfs” white crew-neck T-shirt, available at select retail stores in Hawaii, Laguna Beach and San Diego, as well as online at crazyshirts.com.

“We think it’s really cool that our next President is a kama‘aina and wanted to commemorate this moment in history with a special design,” said Crazy Shirts CEO Mark Hollander. “People around the world saw photos of President-elect Obama showing off his body surfing skills when he was back in Hawaii this summer. Now, we have a shirt that lets everyone know that our next President knows how to live the Crazy Shirts lifestyle, too.”

The front new “Obama Surfs” T-shirt reads “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness, President Obama 2009,” alongside a wave-riding bodysurfer and the Hawaiian Island chain, while “Obama Surfs” over a barreling wave graces the back. The shirts are available in adult sizes and retail for $25.

By Nadine Kam

Nadine Kam photos
Mesh costume bracelet, $5 at the Vintage Collectibles & Hawaiiana Show.

“What can you buy for $5?A Nokia research team is asking people around the globe to take pictures and submit them to http://fivedollarcomparison.org

Submissions so far have ranged from a woman’s blouse in Bangkok to the price of admission to a movie in Lima, Peru. The campaign is a fun, clever little marketing exercise to start people thinking about a future of global connectivity that will be possible when the price of a mobile phone is dramatically lower than today.

Their campaign gives the rest of us something to think about, as to the way we value objects and services. A makeup artist friend was just complaining that, having set up a table at a shopping event, she discounted her usual brow-shaping rate from $35 to $5 as a courtesy to attendees, which caused one woman to dismiss her outright, as if a $5 job would not be as good as a $35 job, even though this was not the case.

I was also interviewing presentation coach Pam Chambers for a story on how she makes recession dressing work for her, to run in Thursday’s paper. Although she’s been a lifelong thrift-store enthusiast, mixing her wardrobe of recycled clothing with new retail purchases, she’s able to sense others’ distaste for secondhand apparel and compares it to blind taste-testing. That is, if their taste buds can’t detect a difference between bargain brand coffee and upscale coffee, they don’t think, “Gee, I think I’ll switch to the cheaper brand.” Instead, many people have a tendency to feel tricked and get angry.

In front of one of her three highly organized closets, Pam Chambers shows a mini skirt repurposed as a fall capelet for chilly offices.

I’ve gotten the same reaction when people ask me about something I’m wearing. Like Chambers, I often think I’m being helpful by saying something like, “Swap meet, $2,” so they can go get their own. But boy you can see their faces change, to the point where one of my friends who was with me on one such occasion said, “Don’t tell them anything. Just smile and say, ‘Thank you.’ ”

I try, but I feel somewhat non-forthcoming. It goes against journalist instinct to offer up less than the full story. It just demonstrates how people assume a high price equals quality, but smart shoppers know that good value can be found at every price point if you’re willing to keep your eyes and mind open.

As for the $5 comparison, I’ll be on the lookout for more. Oh, and if you find local thrift shops limiting, you can also try shopgoodwill.com

By Nadine Kam

Well, I said I wouldn’t be posting for a while, but here I am at Podcamp Hawaii at the Hawai’i Convention Center, with free Wifi, and how could I resist not commenting on Sarah Palin’s new $150,000 wardrobe. I’m sure a lot of fashionistas will now be contemplating a new career in politics. I thought Jon Stewart got it right when he said theirs is a family of professional grifters. Not good.

Last night, I was thinking what I could do with $150,000 and after figuring I could dress myself for a campaign for a mere $5,000, started wondering where does one even begin to spend that much. Say a designer suit off the rack is $5,000, and that’s generous, even for Neiman and Saks, if you pick up 10, that’s only $50,000! Throw in 10 pairs of $500 shoes, $5,000. What the heck did she buy? Well, I guess some money went to the kids.

For ideas on how to dress for $2,500, check out the Budget Fashionista.

Palin makes Hawaii politics look good.