Jamie Park Beauty

I don’t normally buy into the whole awards show hoopla – mainly because I get annoyed at the newscasters and prime time hosts asking celebrities inane questions on the red carpet. (You got George Clooney’s agent to stop by your microphone and all you wanted to know was whether he wore a similar looking suit to the LAST Emmys? Congratulations, you’re the world’s biggest idiot).

But this year I had no choice. NBC lured me in by getting one of my all time favorite comedians to host it. That’s right, y’all – I don’t care how many clips you send me of Jimmy Fallon ‘breaking character’ on SNL, I won’t budge because 1) his breaking character actually makes the skit doubly hilarious 2) he’s the sweetest most down-to-earth comedian out there. What? He’s not a good interviewer on Late Night, you say? Well that’s cuz homeboy gets stage fright – something surprisingly quite common among celebrities and various other people in performance-related fields. He’s gotten a lot better – yes, I’m Team Jimmy (and Coco) all the way. Any more jabs and we’re gonna have to take this outside, yo’s.

I mean, would you honestly want to hold a real conversation with someone like Will Ferrell? The dude is a comic genius, but he’d probably interrupt you and start deadpanning by trying to be some oddball character, and just be weird and awkward like a LOT of comedians are in real life. But not Jimmy – part of his charm is his undeniably approachable nature and ‘regular dude’-ness.

Oh and his legendary musical impressions – no one can do them like Jimmy can (check out his album The Bathroom Wall for some spot-on Dave Matthews and The 4 Non Blondes impressions). And last night, he did not disappoint: his amazing Elton John-Boyz-II-Men-Billy-Joe-Armstrong medley saying farewell to the epic trio of ended shows (Lost, 24, and Law and Order) was classic Jimmy – infectiously funny, hilariously accurate (complete with the characteristic Billy Joe head jerk), and undeniably celebratory. Jimmy’s imitations are never malicious – just pure admiration in theatrical, comedic form.

And yes, this is a makeup blog so I will say that my favorite look was Keri Russell – a gorgeous muted fuchsia cut quite modernly at the ankle. Her au naturale Boheme look was amazing – clean, and not in competition with the rest of her outfit.

Modern Family did beat 30 Rock’s streak though – hmm, I’m gonna have to see what the big fuss is about with this one.

After an unassuming swipe of Target’s eye makeup remover on the back of my hand to remove eyeliner-test-smudgies the other day, I glanced down 20 minutes later and gasped in horror (and if you’ve ever heard me gasp, you know exactly how serious I’m being right now): Chalky, leathery dryness on the exact spot where I unwittingly rubbed off the makeup. Literally pure white ash-ified flakes on an otherwise tan (not yellow – seriously, have you ever seen a YELLOW-skinned Asian? I mean c’mon…) hand.

And to think that I was massaging this lethal dose of God knows what little else besides pure rubbing alcohol – and no joke, maybe even some kind of undiluted acid – into my poor, already-dried-out peepers. Recession or not, I have always been loyal to Target’s low prices and luxury designer partnerships but I have to say that this is just appalling.

Shame on you, Target makeup clinicians! Well, what’s a makeup artist if s/he isn’t the one who takes one for the team, right? Steer clear of this one ladies and keep those under-eyes pampered! I personally rely on the Holy Trinity of eye makeup removers (depending on where I’m at geographically and financially): Neutrogena’s Gentle Eye Makeup Remover, Clinique’s Take the Day Off and, when my eyes need some major TLC, Lancome’s Bifacil – a super gentle formula that seriously takes EVERYTHING off. I’ve recently also tried Almay’s pre-moistened eye makeup remover pads and those work quite well with no irritation or drying. It’s convenient if you don’t like bothering with cotton balls/pads (those white fuzzies that get caught in your lashes are no fun).

Which eye makeup remover do you swear by?

Yes, you read that right. Back in the day, when all I had was one bottle of foundation (you’d be surprised at how far a neutral shade can go) and a janky blowdrier for cooling the Shelaq off bridesmaids’ eyelids, I used to scribble my email address on post-its. Okay, well since the gloves are off, what the hey, right? Post-its, the back of old receipts, the back of other makeup artists’ business cards (in retrospect, I can see how that one might have backfired)…heck sometimes I would sometimes jet without leaving anything in my wake save dirty used Q-tips. Weddings are I-N-S-A-N-I-T-Y. City hall, anyone? That Carrie Bradshaw is one smart cookie I gotta say.

It’s a rough gig when your credit is crap in this country (I recently learned that CHECKING your credit score actually lowers it…WTF?!) and your 1st generation Korean-American parents give you the cold shoulder – i.e. no financial love – for consciously deciding to forgo medical school (2nd generation Asian-Ams who chose to stay sane unite!). Well, you don’t get emotional support either but that doesn’t change no matter how high your GPA is (I don’t need to insert a disclaimer here that I love my parents dearly, now do I?)

Luckily, with the faithful support of talented friends (most of whom are artists in their own right…some with so much indie cred you probably won’t even be able to google them yet…ha! Take that Big Brother-net), you find that Gloria Gaynor was right: You will survive (yeah I thought it was Aretha Franklin too).

I think we can safely say that sexual inhibition is Samantha Jones’s archenemy – and the one thing this show consciously does away with in order to stage groundbreaking conversations about sex from the female point of view. And what better way to make it interesting than to have a wildly shameless, borderline nympho at the round table?

Kim Cattrall’s urbane and sophisticated version of a femme fatale is probably her most famous alter ego to boot: PR executive Samantha Jones. ‘Sam’, as she is sometimes affectionately called by the girls – a nickname fraught with double meaning as she is the one character who comes the closest to being able to “have sex like a man” – is also known as SATC’s pride and joy: the always hilarious, over-the-top anti-wallflower who has yet to be, in Carrie’s words following Samantha’s characteristically calm announcement of her would-be temporary lesbian status, “outsexed”. Samantha’s vociferous frankness about everything from (trying to) sleep with a gay couple to quite rationally considering a relationship with a ‘young seventy-three’ year-old in a May-to-December romance that would last all of three dates is proof that her mantra when it comes to sex is anything but lip service: “I’m a tri-sexual: I’ll try anything once.”

Regardless of where you stand on the Samantha’s-Crazy scale, if you’re a true SATC fan, you have to come to terms with the fact that her character is more than just the perennial line-crosser when it comes to what can and can’t be censored on national public television. All four women on the show embody the different impulses and desires ALL women have (in different permutations at different seasons in her life) and Samantha is simply the female libido incarnate. As much or as little as you may think you have in common with her, you most certainly cannot ignore the reality and undeniable existence of what she represents. It would be an understatement to say that the show would be missing something without Samantha. Indeed, an essential voice in the often cacophonous (ever watch The View? Damn guests can hardly get a word in edgewise) conversation that is the female experience. Behind closed doors, we all got a little Sam in us!

Underneath Samantha’s outrageous hilarity, though, is a deep-seated fear of getting too close and ultimately losing control – and getting hurt. As many jaw-dropping lines of shocking vulgarity Kim Cattrall’s character winds up delivering, it’s her humanity that keeps her character relatable, and ultimately more than just a raucous headboard-banging scene stealer. Her cancer-surviving, chemo-enduring status gives her ample street cred with real women everywhere, and Michael Patrick King was equally generous in giving Samantha an unshakable commitment to her girls that comes from a real place – she fights tooth and nail to protect the ones she loves, and above all, reminds the audience how important it is to value oneself. Like Miranda, Samantha’s character is a fellow female pioneer in the workplace – fighting and standing up for her self in a predominantly male-led industry, and unashamedly announcing her own value both to her colleagues and to the various men who come in and out of her life.

Samantha’s style most definitely announces itself before Kim Cattrall even utters a (curse) word. Bright, vibrant shades in various fabrics from silk to sheer to polyester, and audacious jewelry that you might pass off as ‘too much’ but for some reason, just looks inexplicably fabulous every time – you can tell Pat Fields just goes to town dressing this truly timeless character. Cattrall’s makeup ranges from sexy, nude-y understated looks to the ultra-glam and decidedly modern bright lip in fuchsia or bright cherry red. And Samantha’s full-faced 80′s makeup look was dead-on – especially the heavily contoured blush – my fave! Bravo to the SATC makeup artists!

The goregeousness just doesn’t stop! The woman puts us to shame, really.

Stay tuned for my final thoughts on Carrie, the voice and master storyteller of SATC!

If Charlotte embodies convention domesticity, then Miranda is the epitome of ‘unconventional’ maternity – i.e. the modern working mother – hardly unconventional these days, though. Many women today are refusing to quit their day jobs, and Miranda’s character beautifully represents the modern woman’s struggle to maintain a full-time career on top of being a full time mom. In a word? Kick-ass. Props to all our full-time and part-time working mommies out there! You multi-tasking ladies deserve a standing O every time.

Nixon’s hard-to-miss, straight-talking character Miranda Hobbes can always be counted on for a good, harsh dose of reality. And let’s face it, no matter how emotional us “women” are, it only takes ONE conversation with another woman just SLIGHTLY more emotive than we are to throw this side of our psyche into relief.

Think about it. Ever have a conversation with a girlfriend, and find yourself spouting really practical, and surprisingly rational advice? And then after the conversation is over, you find yourself asking, “Now how come I can’t do that for myself?” Well that’s easy peasy: because it’s nearly impossible to be completely objective when it comes to your own issues. It’s like trying to get a good look at your back side without a mirror.

Miranda’s character often serves as that mirror for the SATC posse on the show, deftly using her native legalese to express or explain the double standard women face for being stereotyped as illogical creatures relying solely on emotion to make decisions. The inimitable character of Miranda unabashedly announces to the audience that some of us ladies, even without that Y chromosome, exercise this side of the brain more than others because ALL women are so incredibly and beautifully different. Such is the beauty of Miranda. She is all woman, and fiercely logical (though she has had her share of emotional, “irrational” moments – remember when she confesses her love to Steve in the laundry room at Brady’s birthday party with her handsome doctor boyfriend in the next room?? Classic foot-in-the-mouth Miranda moment).

SATC’s Miranda is definitely not afraid of standing out of the crowd, or standing up for her beliefs – a prominent one being her insistence on being treated as an equal in a man’s world. It’s Miranda’s worldly success, and strong, confident voice Candace Bushnell uses to often express the frustration at being a woman who is trying to hold her own in the business/corporate world without being written off as emotional, incompetent or less-than.

There are some amazing scenes in SATC 2 that illustrate this dynamic between male and female co-workers – and Cynthia Nixon hits it out of the park yet again. The Greek word ‘catharsis’ can hardly do justice to the way so many women must have felt watching the thrillingly bold confrontation Miranda has with her male boss who continues to shush her during board meetings by lifting his index finger up to her face. Bravo, Ms. Nixon! One small step for stellar female thespian, one giant step for womankind-needing-a-voice-in-the-workplace everywhere.

Miranda’s makeup and style almost always reflect this kind of bold femininity. Eye-catching ethnic prints, unexpected color palettes and statement jewelry all look right at home on Miranda. Nixon’s deep-set eyes and wide double eyelid folds give ample room to showcase subtly deep, jewel-toned eye-shadows which visually communicate her refreshing audacity and unafraid-to-be-blunt personality. Gorgeous work here – and maybe the least believable thing about her character because honestly, with a full-time job AND a kid, who has time to perfect the smoky eye? But it is the movies after all – something’s gotta give, eh?

Escapism at its best, my fellow SATC diehards! Up next: Samantha’s sexy SATC style!

You really can’t talk about modern American beauty today without giving credit where it’s due: the iconic ladies of SATC.

And I promise this won’t be one of “those” entries. You know, where the writer (either a squealing twenty-something girl or an any-something gay) gushes about how justified this sequel is. I mean, is it just me or do filmmakers not try as hard on sequels? I hate it when people rest on their laurels like that. That’s 10 bones – and 2 hours of my life, yo’s! But seriously, I give you my word that I’m not gonna overuse exclamation marks and embed trailer clips and E! interviews in this entry so you can relax and let down your annoyingly-obnoxious-self-important-blogger defenses now. I mean, if you’re anything like me, you’re probably wondering if and when these self-appointed authorities on all things SATC will be able to unglue their lips from the asses of Darren Star and Michael Patrick King to actually see the damn thing. (No, I did not wait in line for this movie. I’m a fan but I’m also tired.)

So now that I’ve made sure you aren’t going to write me off as just another SJP-worshipping, Manolo-Blahnik-coveting wannabe-Feminist (in fact, I venture to guess that actual card-holding Feminists would loathe this show for a number of really academic reasons I’m not gonna pretend I know how to explicate), let me also say that I’m a HUGE fan of the show. A collaboration of smart writing and an amazingly talented group of artists of all kinds (the inimitable Pat Fields in costuming along with an equally talented crew of set designers, makeup artists, and cinematographers) always has classic entertainment value through and through.

What’s endlessly fascinating about film is its visual capacity to utilize so many different artistic mediums, within its own encompassing visuality, to communicate a story. Since this is a beauty blog of sorts, here’s my take on the makeup of Kristin Davis’s hilariously prim and proper character Charlotte. Amy Sohn, in her awesome hardback version of the first SATC movie (Yes I purchased this while sober. See? I told you I’m a fan), calls Charlotte’s style “Jackie O. Meets Upper East Side Mommy” and I couldn’t agree more.

Her makeup is always classic, clean and rarely over the top. Soft browns, mauves and light pink tones are her usual fare, with the occasional smoky eye (but done up subtly if at all). She’s a traditional stay-at-home mom who embraces a lot of conventional domestic standards, so her makeup reflects that. She often blends seamlessly into the color palette of her home.

Gorgeous and adorable all at the same time! Stay tuned for odes to the rest of the SATC ladies! Ladies, who’s your favorite SATC star?