Twilight Drama! The Re-Casting of Victoria

I'm still in shock that Summit suddenly decided to re-cast Victoria right before production is supposed to begin.

After reading all the press releases / statements regarding this huge change, I can sort of understand both sides... it's all a huge bummer, though.

I know there are some petition efforts going on to bring back Rachelle Lefevre but it sounds like Summit is PISSED so I doubt she'll be re-hired.

And to be honest, I wasn't all that impressed with her performance in Twilight. When I first saw the movie, she was one of the main casting choices that I wasn't crazy about. I didn't find her as scary or intimidating like I did with Cam Gigandet (James).

But from what I can tell from interviews and Twitter, she seems like a really sweet person that is very dedicated to the Twilight fans and to the films. And now not only was she booted from this role, now she has to deal with this big old mess.

Of course, I also feel bad for Bryce Dallas Howard (the new Victoria). She's probably thinking, "What the &*( did I get myself into?" I don't think I've seen any of her films but hopefully she will do a great job in Eclipse.

Anyway, just my random thoughts... were you guys as shocked as I was?

Foodie Report: Citizen Cake Patisserie and Bouchon Bakery

If you follow my blogs, you know I'm a big fan of TV, makeup, and running. You know what else I love? Baked goods! I am a sweet tooth freak. Cookies are my favorite with cupcakes being a close second.

So I'm going to do a slightly different post this time with my very first Foodie Report.

While my friend Pam (remember her from the smokey eye look?) was in town, we visited some amazing bakeries and they were both delicious experiences!

First stop:


Citizen Cake Patisserie
San Francisco, CA
Chef Elizabeth Falkner

We were both familiar with this place from Chef Faulkner's appearances on the foodie shows. Most recently, Pam and I caught her on an episode of Top Chef Master's.

On a side note, the first time I visited Citizen Cake was with my friend Kirby where we had cupcakes and coffee at the bar. Chef Faulkner made an appearance while we were there - with a camera crew! I think they may have been shooting background footage for the Top Chef show. Just a guess. Alas, we did not make the final cut.

Anyway, check out our feast! We shared two delicious cupcakes with our Cafe Au Laits.



Signature cupcake:


Rocky Road cupcake:


Both were very yummy but I think we agreed that the chocolate cake in the Signature Cupcake was better - more rich and moist, I think. Although the marshmallows in the Rocky Road cupcake were heavenly, as well.


Later that weekend, we found ourselves in wine country and through Pam's clever research, we discovered this place.



Bouchon Bakery
Yountville, CA (near Napa)
Chef Thomas Keller

Now I won't pretend to have known who Thomas Keller is, however I had heard of his fancy schmancy restaurant, The French Laundry. So naturally we were excited to go to one of his places that we could actually get into - haha.



It's a cute place however no seating area inside. I felt like a kid in the candy store though... everything looked so wonderful and I just couldn't choose. I just randomly started picking out things when it was my turn to order.

Some of my goodies: Hazelnut Macaron, Madeleine, TKO (which I think stands for Thomas Keller Oreo)


And an eclair!


The TKO seemed to be a popular treat as I overheard a lot of other customers order it as well. I thought it was just OK. It was kind of dry, which I suppose is like an Oreo. The Madeleine was also good but I think I actually prefer the much lighter kinds you get in those 3-packs from Starbucks. (Is that blasphemy?) The hazelnut macaron and the eclair were my favorites - just perfect!

I loved both places - check them out if you are in the area!

My thoughts SYTYCD's 100th episode (inc Katie Holmes performance)

Like many others, I was left with sort of an "eh?" reaction after seeing the long-awaited Katie Holmes performance. I mean, she looked fabulous BUT compared to the dancing we are used to seeing on the show, her performance was just OK in my book. But I blame a lot of the "Katie backlash" on the show because they teased her performance way too much. I actually wasn't expecting much anyway because when I heard she was doing Judy Garland's "Get Happy" routine, I looked it up to see what it was like.

You can see it below, but basically Katie's rendition was pretty faithful to it. Judy's version also featured her doing a lot of prancing around with most of the real dancing being done by the dudes.



So actually when compared to the original, Katie's version is a bit more flashier.



But yeah, I guess most of the fans were quick to diss her and Nigel himself finally got fed up and reprimanded them via Twitter (@dizzyfeet).



In general, I think they teased this show too much overall. I was expecting it to almost be like the Idol Gives Back special. Yes, I loved seeing that Ramalama routine - especially with Wade Robson joining them (how amazing was he!!!) - but it left me wishing for more. I wished they did one of the Ivan and Allison routines or one of the Benji and Donyelle routines. I also would have loved if they interviewed past contestants so we could learn what they've done since the show and stuff.

What did you guys think about the show?

Kelly's New Video

Kelly Clarkson looks so beautiful in her new video for "Already Gone"! Love the glamour/retro beauty look she is sporting here. I actually just downloaded this song recently. I was watching the SYTYCD results show and I really like the song they use for the eliminated girl's goodbye song and I was so surprised to learn it was a song from my girl Kelly!



Update: OK, I just read the article about how "Already Gone" and Beyonce's "Halo" use the same track. I had downloaded both recently and never even picked up on that! They do sound very similar but it's interesting how the overall songs have such different feels. Weird!

Sooo excited for New Moon now!

After seeing the two new clips for New Moon, I am super excited for the film to come out in November. Ok, I always have been but I was left with kind of an "eh" reaction when I first saw the teaser trailer. These two new clips were really well done and I think the film is going to be amazing!

I added clip descriptions courtest of Rotten Tomatoes. What do you guys think? Chris obviously knew what clips would get the fans most excited since we got a Jacob ab shot in one and an Edward ab shot in the other. (Of course, one might be more airbrushed than the other, but whatever!)

Clip 1

Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner) and Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) are bent over an antique light blue motorcycle. Jacob wears jeans, a brown t-shirt, and his hair is long. As Bella sits on the motorcycle, Jacob guides her hands (touching!) over the handles. "Brake. Clutch. Gas," he reminds her. Bella revs the engine. "Slowly release the clutch," says Jacob.

Suddenly, Bella sees the translucent apparition of Edward, a concerned look on his face, standing in front of her. We can see him, but also see through him. Bella takes off on the bike.

As she zooms down the road, Bella gains speed. She zooms by another apparition of Edward, standing in her path. She speeds by another. Losing focus, Bella swerves and falls from the bike, hitting her head on a rock.

Jacob speeds over to Bella on his own bike, coming to a stop with a flourish. He hops off the bike and rushes to Bella's side. She is bewildered, and blood gushes from a gash on her forehead.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed?" Jacob asks. Bella apologizes for the blood, but it doesn't bother Jacob.

He takes a step back, the camera following his every move. Jacob strips off his shirt, revealing a six-pack, and bends down to dab Bella's wound with it. Their faces come very close.

"You're so (sorta?) beautiful," she tells him. Emotion flashes across his face.




Clip 2


Alice and Bella are winding through the streets of Volterra, slowed by massive crowds of townspeople in red robes, celebrating the festival. Bella jumps out of the car.

"You're the only one he can't see. He'll be under the clock tower. Go!" says Alice.

Bella races through the crowded city. We see her at times in slow motion.

She fights her way through the crowd, stopping at the fountain in the middle of the square. In slow motion, she looks up to see Edward, slowly unbuttoning his shirt just moments away from revealing himself in the sunlight. He opens his shirt to expose his pale chest.

Bella screams out to Edward. "Stop! Stop! No Edward, don't!"

He takes a step forward.




Aren't you guys dying for November already???

New Moon Comic-Con Panel: If you can't be in SD...

Although I would have loved to have been in San Diego today, this will have to do...













(This is all that was posted at the time of this blog entry, you can check their YouTube channel page for any updates.)

Although no obvious "Robsten" sparks, there were still a lot of cute moments. I particularly liked how warm and witty Chris appeared to be which goes along with what has been said about him by the cast. He seems to be somewhat of a "father figure" with these young actors and it was quite endearing. I also liked that he played along with Rob's heartthrob appeal, for example when he discussed all the challenging stunt work that Taylor had to do and then adding at the end that Rob also did a good job of standing there looking good.

Let me know what you thought about all of the CC coverage. It made for quite an entertaining Thursday!

Also, what do you think about the random tie-ins? i.e. the Nordstrom clothing line, the Hallmark paper products (i.e. New Moon-themed paper plates and napkins), the Burger King Team Edward and Team Jacob crowns, etc.

Friend Makeover Time: Smokey Eye Look

My good friend Pam has been in town this weekend and she mentioned that she loves the smokey eye look that Gwyneth Paltrow wears. She agreed to play guinea pig and let me try to recreate the look on her!

Here's the inspiration pic:


And here's my interpretation with "before" and "after" pics:


Doesn't she look fab? I tried to keep the smokey/smudginess to a minimum so I didn't scare her. (heehee) Pam also said she preferred a nude lip vs the pinkish one that Gwyneth wears.

Here's what I used:

EYES
MAC Blackground paintpot
MAC Gorgeous e/s (from 2008 Smokey Eye Holiday palette) - lid
MAC Carbon e/s - crease
MAC Shroom e/s - highlight and inner tear duct
MAC Smolder eye kohl - lower lash line
Bobbi Brown Black Ink gel eyeliner - upper lash line
MAC Cork e/s - brows
Loreal Voluminous mascara

FACE
Mary Kay medium coverage foundation in Ivory 104
MAC Stark Naked blush

LIPS
MAC Love Nectar lustreglass

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for letting me play, Pam! :)

Hopefully I will be posting more makeover looks soon...

All About Eyeliners

Eyeliners... I personally think it's the trickiest thing to apply when it comes to makeup but also makes the biggest dramatic impact from looking dull and bleh to polished and well, awake! :P

If you're looking for some helpful tips, here's a great video by YouTuber MakeupbyTiffanyD that breaks it all down for you from using pencil eyeliners to liquid liners to gel and cream-based liners. (In general, I'm a big fan of all of her make-up videos so if you like this, you can see more on her YouTube channel.)



For my upper lashline, I personally like using the gel and cream-based liners and I bounce around between ones from Bobbi Brown, MAC, and Clinique. I think I like the ones from Bobbi Brown the best because they seem to glide on easier and are rich in color. (They're also the most expensive, too, unfortunately.) As for brushes, I used to use the MAC 266 angled eyeliner brush but am now using a teardrop paint brush I got from Michael's for $3-4. I haven't tried the bent brush like the one used in the video so I may give that a try as well.

For my lower lashline, I always use a pencil eyeliner, typically one of the MAC Powerpoint pencils but I like the ones from Urban Decay as well.

What are your favorite eyeliner techniques?