Man – Classy and fabulous way of living

Brunello Cucinelli, the success story behind the philanthropist ‘Lord’ of Umbria

Georgia Papadon — Sat, 17 Apr 2021 11:12:35 +0000

An inspirational story to remember…

Brunello Cucinelli was born 3 September 1953 in Castel Rigone. He is the Italian luxury creative director and the chief executive of his eponymous made in Italy brand, Brunello Cucinelli. He donates 20% of his profits through the Brunello Cucinelli Foundation. He has been described as a “philosopher-designer”.

Cucinelli grew up in a rural agricultural community outside of Perugia. His childhood home had no electricity or running water. Cucinelli dropped out of engineering school at age 24, choosing instead to read philosophical texts on his own.

Cucinelli, the Italian fashion designer and purveyor of a minimalistic, carefully co-ordinated, international super-lux aesthetic — from ever-so-tasteful crown to cosy cashmere socks — may have built a business that puts his personal worth in the region of €750 million, but he knows what it is to scrape by; he was raised in a dirt-poor peasant farming family but his insistence on setting the dinner table just so and ironing his one pair of good trousers won him the nickname of ‘The Lord’. His sartorial role models were the landlords who, periodically, came to collect their money. Indeed, his memories of those times have cut deep.

Cucinelli’s first product was cashmere wool sweaters in bright colors. In 1977 he started making dyed cashmere in a small workshop. He founded Brunello Cucinelli SpA in 1978 with the Italian lira equivalent of about $550, after the initial public offering of Brunello Cucinelli SpA his personal net worth exceeded $1 billion.

In 2018 Cucinelli decided to sell 6% of his shares to donate 100 million to charity. His company gives about 20% of the profits to charity, with which he restored many works of art throughout Umbria, and he bought many lands around Solomeo, the town where he lives and where his company is based.

Cucinelli is married to his hometown sweetheart Federica, and the couple have two daughters: Camilla and Carolina.

“Seeing my father suffer in his work, how every day offered up some kind of humiliation, how he was living in a contemporary form of slavery, all that leaves a stamp on you for the rest of your life,” says Cucinelli, with genuine conviction. “I knew I wanted a company that gave employees dignity, not just in working conditions but in being part of something bigger.”

Working conditions, sustainability, land management, fair pay to and support of the 2,500 or so small-scale artisanal craftspeople across Umbria and Tuscany to whom the manufacture of many of his products is farmed out — all this is something Cucinelli says he’s big on, not least, he argues, because a better working environment makes for greater creativity. His position is easier given the kind of product he sells, and the prices he sells at, but he’s adamant that it’s “why I’m not impressed when other businesspeople tell me about how they’ve given money away to charity”, he says. “I’m much more interested in how they made the money in the first place. Tell me that, then we can talk.”

But it’s also why the designer’s philanthropic efforts have been focused on the very surroundings many of his employees live in. His business started small: it was 40 years ago this year that he spotted a gap in the market for more colourful cashmere sweaters, started dyeing them, and predicted an upward projection in demand for ever-higher clothing quality. From that small insight, season by season, a monolith was formed, a blend of the corporate (the company now produces huge seasonal collections and operates dozens of shops worldwide, an expansion powered by an IPO in 2012) and the intimate (both of Cucinelli’s daughters and his son-in-law hold senior positions in the business).

But over those decades he has also, piece by piece, been transforming Solomeo — the town where his company is based and where his wife was born — building, so far, a Forum for the Arts; a Square of Peace; a theatre; library; school; agricultural park; and public stadium. But latterly he has been casting his cash net further afield. In 2011 he paid for the restoration of Perugia’s Etruscan Arch. And this year he has been quietly having Norcia’s Torre Civica re-built — the 18th century heart of the Italian town that was devastated by an earthquake last year.

“Of course, everyone feels better after doing something good,” concedes Cucinelli. “And yes, it makes me feel good to do all this, although there’s no real correlation between the feeling and the size of the donation. But while I respect, say, the work of Bill Gates in fighting disease, for me it’s about saving the arts. That, so to speak, is a donation to mankind. It’s a different way of thinking.”

It is, perhaps, a typically Italian way of thinking too: several big Italian fashion brands have, over recent years, put their money into saving or restoring landmarks. “It’s clear that to be Italian is to be in love with the land one was born on,” Cucinelli jokes. But his are less glamorous, more heartfelt and, one suspects, less-calculated choices. Sure, he admits, philanthropy is good for business. After all, he argues, a new consumer sensibility is developing in which a brand’s actions increasingly count for as much as the quality of its wares. But if PR was his main concern, there are far more obvious causes to which he could give his money.

Rather, and one has to take Cucinelli at his word, he sees philanthropy not as something society expects of him so much as a duty. “When I was a young person I always imagined that I’d someday have the ability to give back. To me what I donate is simply what is due,” he says. “Philanthropy should be a very important theme in a life. You have to find the right balance between profit and donation.

“My grandfather, a farmer, would look to the sky and ask for the right amount of water and sunlight; just what he needed, not too little, not too much,” Cucinelli adds. “I want a correct profit, generated ethically. As for the rest of the money, I think we’re just custodians of the land and, at the end of my life, to leave it in a better condition than I found it would make me extremely happy. My father still lives in the country and doesn’t really grasp my financial position but he did once say that he hopes I don’t want to be the richest man in the graveyard. And I don’t.”

All products are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Brunello Cucinelli Dress

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$1.404

Straw Bag With Monili Brunello Cucinelli

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Brunello Cucinelli Sweater

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All products are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission.

By Georgia Papadon & team

5 Men’s Watches for a perfect Holiday Gift

Georgia Papadon — Wed, 20 Dec 2017 16:28:29 +0000

A timeless gift for any man and an eternal high-yield style trick for any woman wishing to temper an ultra-feminine party look, many men’s watches sit just as comfortably on either wrist. With that in mind, we tick off the best watches you can buy your male soulmate (but will want to borrow back).

Hermès

Whilst the Slim is certainly not a men-only model, picking those with a more generous diameter of dial, usually reserved for the gents, are a perfect touch to elongate and accentuate a wrist.

Slim d’Hermès GM 39.5mm in steel, 5,880 euros at Hermès.

Cartier

Let’s be frank, the Tank is a genderless classic and always will be. However for those looking for something a little more architectural, the Ballon Bleu (especially with a crisp steel link bracelet) brings a bit more mettle whilst retaining all of its counterpart’s refinement.

Ballon Bleu de Cartier 36mm Steel, 5,540 euros at Cartier.

Rolex

In white gold with a deep blue dial, the larger 40mm Submariner makes a standout accompaniment for black tie and nestles just as comfortably under a white shirt for day.

Submariner Date 40mm, 28.323 euros at Rolex.

Patek Philippe

With an immensely pleasing elliptical case and minimalist dial, this purist design derives from the divine proportions of the Golden Ratio but is best shown off (as here) in platinum.

Golden Ellipse, from 15.830 euros at Patek Philippe.

Bulgari

The harmony between pink gold and black leather allows for something bolder in shape. That triumvirate is expressed excellently here where solid numerals and lettering snake around the dial to chime pleasingly together.

Solotempo, 18.880 euros at Bulgari.

Michael Kors , Autumn – Winter 2016-17, Ready to Wear

Georgia Papadon — Thu, 18 Feb 2016 06:53:37 +0000

From New York Fashion Week,

See the incredible collection in full, here:

Via British Vogue

Big Thanks !

CHANEL, Spring – Summer 2016, Ready to Wear

Georgia Papadon — Tue, 06 Oct 2015 15:09:08 +0000

From the catwalk to the accessories, bags and details , see the best looks of CHANEL ss 2016 Collection here:

Karl Lagerfeld set his sights on the sky for Chanel’s Spring 2016 show, staged in a Chanel-themed airport terminal. Get the lowdown on the show and eye-catching accessories here.

1. For the occasion, Lagerfeld and co. transformed the Grand Palais into a mock airport terminal complete with baggage check, numbered gates, a departures and arrivals board (listing past Chanel destination show locales), and baggage carts stamped with double-C logos.

2. The front row included Chanel muses Lily-Rose Depp, Vanessa Paradis, Cara Delevingne, and St. Vincent.

3. Edie Campbell opened the show in a multicolored tweed jumpsuit with silver sandals and a silvery headband, toting a black Chanel rolling suitcase and carryall.

4. The airplane motif carried from the set onto the clothing and accessories, with one dress patterned like an arrivals board, and a sweater and pair of knit pants set in a repeating airplane intarsia. The red, white, and blue airplane pins that adorned some looks will make it possible for any ensemble to be ready for travel from the Chanel terminal.

5. Many looks featured backward baseball caps. When they didn’t, the models’ hair was worn with several headbands and pulled back into two low pigtails at the nape of the neck.

6. Amidst the flowing dresses and loose casualwear came a section of proper ladies, ready to take to the sky in style. With sharply tailored tweed suits and iconic flap bags, these looks harkened back to a time when dressing up for travel was de rigueur.

7. Lagerfeld sent out an array of silvery sandals and lace-up boots, but the footwear that really caught the eye of guests were the light-up Velcro sandals.

9. You don’t need a rolling suitcase to travel—just try out Chanel’s new micro-size luggage bag.

10. For his bow, Lagerfeld picked up two of his frequent collaborators from the front row, Delevingne and Hudson Kroenig (who was dressed as a pilot), and walked with them around the set.

Details…

Front Row

Via British Vogue

Big Thanks !

Givenchy Spring 2016 via New York Fashion Week

Georgia Papadon — Sun, 13 Sep 2015 11:34:43 +0000

As more than a thousand people traversed the rush hour–choked West Side Highway and flooded onto Pier 26—all dressed to the nines (or maybe the threes or twos, given the skimpiness of a few notable looks)—it’s fair to say that one of the very last things they were expecting was to be immersed in a contemplative experience. Yet this is what they got from Riccardo Tisci on the night he brought his Givenchyshow to New York City, coinciding with the 14th anniversary of 9/11.

With the aid of his coconspirator, the artist Marina Abramovic, and the cooperation of a staggering sunset across the Hudson, Tisci made his show into a meditation on the losses of 9/11, and on slowing things down in our heads, perhaps to mourn, but also to remember how lucky we are to be alive. The audience—the seated professionals and celebrities, and the standing public—were made to wait and watch for a good hour, absorbing the spectacle of blue sky and white and pink-tinted clouds as Abramovic’s slow-moving performers, dressed in white shirts and black pants, acted out simple, strenuous, and repetitive rituals—one with a ladder, another with a tree, a third with a faucet gushing water. Stop!Abramovic seemed to be saying. Slow down and feel something! And meanwhile, in the foreground, the nonstop parade of personalities kept coming, and kept on being photographed and Instagrammed.

Kendall Jenner

Model: Gaby Loader

Model: Lineisy Montero

Model: Iris Strubegger

As far as style is concerned, this was also Tisci’s opportunity to revisit and refine the ideas he’s been working through for his whole career. This year—in which a Givenchy store opens in New York City—is Riccardo Tisci’s tenth at the house, and there was a serene sense of celebration and coming of age amongst the clothes. It was a collection which spelled out and repeated almost-calligraphic black and white variations of the same sentences: Ivory slip dresses and rouleau-strapped camisoles with lace edges, worn over excellently tailored black pants cut to taper gently over pointed shoes. Supple crepe tuxedo jackets with tails, soft kimono coats, and transparent organdy trenches glimmering with jet embroidery. Many, many body-skimming sparkly silver shifts.

Model: Anthony Alcaraz

Model: Frederik Muka

Model: Joan Smalls

Model: Magdalena Frackowiak

Aficionados of Tisci’s track record in Paris would also have re-applauded the most spectacular of his couture dresses—one with a degrade feather effect, and another with leather patches applied on tulle in the shape of alligator skin—which had never before been shown on live models (as opposed to showroom dummies). And then there was the face decoration, taken to the nth degree of freakishly beautiful elaboration, in studded golden jewelry, tulle frills, and lace.

Model: Imaan Hammam

Model: Candice Swanepoel

Riccardo Tisci

_ Since the blog is personal, some images maybe omitted because of the fact that they maybe not meet the blogger’s personal taste , or the aesthetics is not compattible with the blog.

Via Vogue

Big Thanks !

12 amazing books for summer reading !

Georgia Papadon — Wed, 12 Aug 2015 16:55:06 +0000

Wherever you go this summer, whatever you choose for your summer holidays, don’t forget to pick up a book with you. Summer reading is definitely a lifetime friend with experiences and meanings that we hold for a long period. So the smarter choise we make , the better for our memories. Here is my summer list for summer 2015. There are books that I read and I really found interesting and of course I’ d love to share with you…!

Enjoy…!

#GIRLBOSS by Sophia Amoruso

THE RUNAWAY NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

The first thing Sophia Amoruso sold online wasn’t fashion—it was a stolen book. She spent her teens hitchhiking, committing petty theft, and dumpster diving. By twenty-two, she had resigned herself to employment, but was still broke, directionless, and working a mediocre day job she’d taken for the health insurance.

It was there that Sophia decided to start selling vintage clothes on eBay. Eight years later, she is the founder, CEO, and creative director of Nasty Gal, a $100 million plus online fashion retailer with more than 350 employees. Sophia’s never been a typical CEO, or a typical anything, and she’s written #GIRLBOSS for outsiders (and insiders) seeking a unique path to success, even when that path is winding as all hell and lined with naysayers.

#GIRLBOSS includes Sophia’s story, yet is infinitely bigger than Sophia. It’s deeply personal yet universal. Filled with brazen wake-up calls (“You are not a special snowflake”), cunning and frank observations (“Failure is your invention”), and behind-the-scenes stories from Nasty Gal’s meteoric rise, #GIRLBOSS covers a lot of ground. It proves that being successful isn’t about how popular you were in high school or where you went to college (if you went to college). Rather, success is about trusting your instincts and following your gut, knowing which rules to follow and which to break.

A #GIRLBOSS takes her life seriously without taking herself too seriously. She takes chances and takes responsibility on her own terms. . She knows when to throw punches and when to roll with them. When to button up and when to let her freak flag fly.

As Sophia writes, “I have three pieces of advice I want you to remember: Don’t ever grow up. Don’t become a bore. Don’t let The Man get to you. OK? Cool. Then let’s do this.”

The Woman I Wanted to Be

One of the most influential, admired, and innovative women of our time: fashion designer, philanthropist, wife, mother, and grandmother, Diane von Furstenberg offers a book about becoming the woman she wanted to be.

Diane von Furstenberg started out with a suitcase full of jersey dresses and an idea of who she wanted to be—in her words, “the kind of woman who is independent and who doesn’t rely on a man to pay her bills.” She has since become that woman, establishing herself as a global brand and a major force in the fashion industry, all the while raising a family and maintaining “my children are my greatest creation.”

In The Woman I Wanted to Be, von Furstenberg reflects on her extraordinary life—from childhood in Brussels to her days as a young, jet-set princess, to creating the dress that came to symbolize independence and power for an entire generation of women. With remarkable honesty and wisdom, von Furstenberg mines the rich territory of what it means to be a woman. She opens up about her family and career, overcoming cancer, building a global brand, and devoting herself to empowering other women, writing, “I want every woman to know that she can be the woman she wants to be.”

The Champagne Diet: Eat, Drink, and Celebrate Your

Way to a Healthy Mind and Body!

by Cara Alwill Leyba

This book is for the woman who wants to feel good about herself and her body, and learn how to start incorporating healthy habits into her life. It’s for the woman who doesn’t want to trade in her champagne for skinny jeans. It’s for the woman who is done with dieting, and ready to start paying attention to her health before that number on the scale. It’s for the woman who is ready to stop letting her weight define her, and is ready to understand why it always did. This is not a diet book. This is a lifestyle guide. This book will change the way you view your weight and yourself forever. You will walk away feeling empowered, inspired, and downright sexy (and probably craving a glass of bubbly). You will learn how to celebrate yourself and your body. You will learn to make your health a priority, always. And most importantly – you will learn to love yourself, exactly as you are. So get ready to embark on a complete dieting and lifestyle overhaul, sister. You are now on The Champagne Diet! “The Champagne Diet will resonate with every woman with it’s realistic and simple approach to dieting. Alwill delivers a personal, relatable, and funny guide to shedding pounds without deprivation.” – Kim Barnouin Co-Author, Skinny Bitch

ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE

by Anthony Doerr

WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE

From the highly acclaimed, multiple award-winning Anthony Doerr, the beautiful, stunningly ambitious instant New York Times bestseller about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II.

Marie-Laure lives with her father in Paris near the Museum of Natural History, where he works as the master of its thousands of locks. When she is six, Marie-Laure goes blind and her father builds a perfect miniature of their neighborhood so she can memorize it by touch and navigate her way home. When she is twelve, the Nazis occupy Paris and father and daughter flee to the walled citadel of Saint-Malo, where Marie-Laure’s reclusive great-uncle lives in a tall house by the sea. With them they carry what might be the museum’s most valuable and dangerous jewel.

In a mining town in Germany, the orphan Werner grows up with his younger sister, enchanted by a crude radio they find. Werner becomes an expert at building and fixing these crucial new instruments, a talent that wins him a place at a brutal academy for Hitler Youth, then a special assignment to track the resistance. More and more aware of the human cost of his intelligence, Werner travels through the heart of the war and, finally, into Saint-Malo, where his story and Marie-Laure’s converge.

Doerr’s “stunning sense of physical detail and gorgeous metaphors” (San Francisco Chronicle) are dazzling. Deftly interweaving the lives of Marie-Laure and Werner, he illuminates the ways, against all odds, people try to be good to one another. Ten years in the writing, a National Book Award finalist, All the Light We Cannot See is a magnificent, deeply moving novel from a writer “whose sentences never fail to thrill” (Los Angeles Times).

A book that Sophia Vergara and Kate Hudson chose for this summer.

Whatever…Love Is Love: Questioning the Labels We Give Ourselves

by Maria Bello

Best Books of the Year So Far according to Amazon

The acclaimed actress and dedicated activist shares her personal journey of discovery, and destroys outdated ideas about partnership, love and family that will resonate with anyone in an unconventional life situation.

Actress and activist Maria Bello made waves with her essay, “Coming Out as a Modern Family,” in the New York Times popular “Modern Love” column, in which she recalled telling her son that she had fallen in love with her best friend, a woman—and her relief at his easy and immediate acceptance with the phrase “Whatever Mom, love is love.” She made a compelling argument about the fluidity of partnerships, and how families today come in a myriad of designs.

In her first book, Bello broadens her insights as she examines the idea of partnership in every woman’s life, and her own. She examines the myths that so many of us believe about partnership—that the partnership begins when the sex begins, that partnerships are static, that you have to love yourself before you can be loved, and turns them on their heads. Bello explores how many different relationships—romantic, platonic, spiritual, familial, educational—helped define her life. She encourages women to realize that the only labels we have are the ones we put on ourselves, and the best, happiest partnerships are the ones that make your life better, even if they don’t fit the mold of “typical.”

Throughout this powerful and engaging read, Bello shares intimate stories and lessons on how she has come to discover her happiest self, accept who she is, and live honestly and freely, and tells the stories of those who came to her after her Times’ columns, grateful that someone gave voice to their life choices.

Whatever…Love Is Love is not a memoir about an actress. It is a frank, raw, and honest book about the way every woman questions the roles she plays in love, work, and life, filled with wisdom, questions, and insights relevant to us all.

A book that Gwyneth Paltrow chose for this summer.

Transcendence: Healing and Transformation Through Transcendental Meditation

Norman E. Rosenthal, MD, a twenty-year researcher at the National Institute of Mental Health and the celebrated psychiatrist who pioneered the study and treatment of Season Affective Disorder (SAD), brings us the most important work on Transcendental Meditation since the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s Science of Being and Art of Living – and one of our generation’s most significant books on achieving greater physical and mental health and wellness.

Transcendence demystifies the practice and benefits of Transcendental Meditation for a general audience who may have heard about the method but do not necessarily know what it is, how it is learned, or what they stand to gain, physically and emotionally, from achieving transcendence. Dr Rosenthal clearly and practically explains the basic ideas behind Transcendental Meditation: It is a nonreligious practice that involves sitting comfortably for twenty minutes twice a day while using a silent mantra, or nonverbal sound, to attain a profound state of aware relaxation.

Alongside exclusive celebrity interviews-where figures like Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Martin Scorsese, Russell Brand, Laura Dern, Moby and David Lynch openly discuss their meditation – Dr Rosenthal draws upon experience from the lives of his patients and a wealth of clinical research amassed on TM over the past generation (340 peer-reviewed published articles). He provides the fullest and most accessible book ever on the broad range of benefits of this remarkably simple practice, from relief of anxiety, stress and depression to new hope for those experiencing addiction, attention-deficit disorder, or post-traumatic stress disorder.

Get the Glow: Delicious and Easy Recipes That Will Nourish You from the Inside Out

by Madeleine Shaw

In GET THE GLOW nutritional health coach to the stars Madeleine Shaw shows you that eating well can easily become a way of life, resulting in the hottest, healthiest and happiest you. Healthy eating shouldn’t be about fad diets, starvation or deprivation. Instead, Madeleine’s philosophy is simple: ditch the junk and eat foods that heal your gut so you can shine from head to toe and really get the glow. Lavishly illustrated with sumptuous photography, GET THE GLOW is a cookbook to be savoured. Madeleine shares 100 delicious, wheat- and sugar-free recipes bursting with flavour and nutritional value leaving you feeling full and nourished. Every mouth-watering dish is easy to make, contains ingredients that can be found in your local supermarket and won’t break the budget. You’ll lose weight, feel healthier and will glow on the inside and out. Including a six-week plan and advice on kitchen cupboard essentials and eating out, Madeleine’s down-to-earth and practical guidance will help you to embrace GET THE GLOW as a lifestyle for good. This book will inspire you to fall back in love with food, life, and yourself.

How to Be Parisian Wherever You Are: Love, Style, and Bad Habits

by Anne Berest

From four stunning and accomplished French women — at last — a fresh and spirited take on what it really means to be a Parisienne: how they dress, entertain, have fun and attempt to behave themselves.

In short, frisky sections, these Parisian women give you their very original views on style, beauty, culture, attitude and men. The authors–Anne Berest, Audrey Diwan, Caroline de Maigret, and Sophie Mas — unmarried but attached, with children — have been friends for years. Talented bohemian iconoclasts with careers in the worlds of music, film, fashion and publishing, they are untypically frank and outspoken as they debunk the myths about what it means to be a French woman today. Letting you in on their secrets and flaws, they also make fun of their complicated, often contradictory feelings and behavior. They admit to being snobs, a bit self-centered, unpredictable but not unreliable. Bossy and opinionated, they are also tender and romantic.

You will be taken on a first date, to a party, to some favorite haunts in Paris, to the countryside, and to one of their dinners at home with recipes even you could do — but to be out with them is to be in for some mischief and surprises. They will tell you how to be mysterious and sensual, look natural, make your boyfriend jealous, and how they feel about children, weddings and going to the gym. And they will share their address book in Paris for where to go: At the End of the Night, for A Birthday, for a Smart Date, A Hangover, for Vintage Finds and much more.

Gospel According to Coco Chanel: Life Lessons From The World’s Most Elegant Woman

by Karen Karbo

A modern look at the life of a fashion icon―with practical life lessons for women of all ages

Delving into the extraordinary life of renowned French fashion designer Coco Chanel, Karen Karbo has written a new kind of self-help book, exploring Chanel’s philosophy on a range of universal themes―from style to passion, from money and success to femininity and living life on your own terms.

Awaken the Giant within: How to Take Immediate Control of Your Mental, Emotional, Physical and Financial Life

by Antony Robbins

Are you in charge of your life? Or are you being swept away by things that are seemingly out of your control? In AWAKEN THE GIANT WITHIN, Anthony Robbins, the bestselling author of UNLIMITED POWER, shows the reader how to take immediate control of their mental, emotional, physical and financial destiny.

Think and Grow Rich!

by Napoleon Hill

Napoleon Hill’s best-selling THINK AND GROW RICH! is the most widely acclaimed, influential book on success ever published. This unique edition is the only fully annotated, indexed version and is copyright-protected by the U. S. Copyright Office. Unlike most other versions, this edition restores Napoleon Hill’s masterpiece to its original form and intent. It includes essential material on how to thrive in challenging economic times that was taken out of later versions but is incredibly relevant today.

THINK AND GROW RICH! explains entrepreneur Andrew Carnegie’s secret to success, revealed to Napoleon Hill during private interviews with Carnegie, the richest man of his time and during more than 20 years of research into the lives and philosophies of more than 500 of the most successful people in America. This timeless classic presents a systematic nuts-and-bolts approach to developing the skills and mindset required to achieve exceptional success in any field or endeavour, personal or professional. Hill explains in detail 13 steps required to achieve those goals. The book contains numerous self-tests and checklists. In addition, it provides key details about Dr. Hill’s life and times, his life-long research and the leaders of business and industry he studied to glean the invaluable principles of success you’ll discover here.

Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Happier Life – 1 Jan 2015

by Arianna Huffington

In Thrive, Arianna Huffington, the co-founder and editor-in-chief of the Huffington Post and one of the most influential women in the world, has written a passionate call to arms, looking to redefine what it means to be successful in today’s world.

She likens our drive for money and power to two legs of a three-legged stool. It may hold us up temporarily, but sooner or later we’re going to topple over. We need a third leg – a Third Metric for defining success – in order to live a healthy, productive, and meaningful life.

In this deeply personal book, Arianna talks candidly about her own challenges with managing time and prioritising the demands of a career and two daughters. Drawing on the latest groundbreaking research and scientific findings in the fields of psychology, sports, sleep and physiology that show the profound and transformative effects of meditation, mindfulness, unplugging and giving, Arianna shows us the way to a revolution in our culture, our thinking, our workplaces, and our lives.

Tony Awards 2015

Georgia Papadon — Mon, 08 Jun 2015 14:40:19 +0000

The 69th Annual Tony Awards were held on June 7, 2015, to recognize achievement in Broadway productions during the 2014–15 season. The ceremony was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City and broadcast live by CBS. Kristin Chenoweth and Alan Cumming hosted this year’s ceremony.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and Fun Home each won five Tonys in the play and musical categories, respectively.

A good night for Brits on Broadway, Dame Helen Mirren was named best actress for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in The Audience,

Helen Mirren wore a Badgley Mischka gown.

while Alex Sharp was named best actor for The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time – a play that started life in London’s West End, and also bagged the awards for best directing and best play.

Winners & Performances

“Fun Home” won for best musical.
“The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” won for best play.
Kelli O’Hara broke her losing streak winning best leading actress in a musical in “The King And I.”
Michael Cerveris won for best leading actor in a musical for his role in “Fun Home.”
Alex Sharp won best leading actor in a play for “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.”
Helen Mirren won best leading actress in a play for “The Audience.”

Carey Mulligan wore a Balenciaga gown.

Ruth Wilson wore a bespoke Ralph Lauren Collection gown.

Kendall Jenner wore a dress by Calvin Klein Collection.

Elisabeth Moss wore an Oscar de la Renta pre-spring/summer 2016 gown.

Jennifer Lopez in Valentino Couture.

Joan Smalls wears Givenchy by Riccardo Tisci autumn/winter 2015 gown.

Bella Hadid wore a Prabal Gurung autumn/w inter 2015 gown.

Emily Ratajkowski wore a Marc Jacobs gown.

Hilary Rhoda wore a custom-made Michael Kors gown.

Taylor Schilling in a Michael Kors dress.

Joe Manganiello in an Ermenegildo Zegna tuxedo.

Laura Bell Bundy

Tommy Tune

Rita Wilson in Tom Ford

Anna Wintour

Ashley Greene in Jason Wu

Ivanka Trump

Bill Gates’s Summer Reading List

Georgia Papadon — Sun, 24 May 2015 01:10:36 +0000

From the editors of Vanity Fair

Each year, Bill Gates picks a handful of books that he enjoyed reading, reviews them, and suggests you do the same. This year, the philanthropist tried to stay away from financial tomes and historical narratives (last year’s list includedStress Test by Timothy Geithner and Doris Kearns Goodwin’s examination of presidential power) in favor of lighter fare.

VF.com and Gates Notes, the Microsoft co-founder’s blog, teamed up to exclusively debut this year’s list. While Gates may have opted for more seasonal reading material this time around, rest assured that this year’s books are still engaging.

“Last year, there was only one book on my summer reading list that you could reasonably call a beach read,” Gates writes. “This year I tried to pick a few more things that are on the lighter side. Each of these books made me think or laugh or, in some cases, do both. I hope you find something to your liking here.”

The seven books on Gates’s list are as follows. More information and Gates’s reviews are available on Gates Notes:

Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things that Happened, by Allie Brosh

“The book, based on Brosh’s wildly popular Web site, consists of brief vignettes and comic drawings about her young life,” Gates writes. “You will rip through it in three hours, tops. But you’ll wish it went on longer, because it’s funny and smart as hell.”

The Magic of Reality: How We Know What’s Really True, by Richard Dawkins

“Dawkins, an evolutionary biologist at Oxford, has a gift for making science enjoyable,” Gates writes. “Dawkins’s antagonistic (and, to me, overzealous) view of religion has earned him a lot of angry critics, but I consider him to be one of the great scientific writer/explainers of all time.”

What If?, by Randall Munroe

“People write Munroe with questions that range over all fields of science: physics, chemistry, biology,” writes Gates. “Questions like, ‘From what height would you need to drop a steak for it to be cooked when it hit the ground?’ (The answer, it turns out, is ‘high enough that it would disintegrate before it hit the ground.’) Munroe’s explanations are funny, but the science underpinning his answers is very accurate.”

XKCD, by Randall Munroe

“It’s that kind of humor, which not everybody loves, but I do,” Gates writes of Munroe’s sometimes macabre view of the world.

How to Lie with Statistics, by Darrell Huff

“I enjoyed [this book] so much that it was one of a handful of books I recommended to everyone at TED this year,” Gates writes. “It was first published in 1954, but aside from a few anachronistic examples (it has been a long time since bread cost 5 cents a loaf in the United States), it doesn’t feel dated.”

Should We Eat Meat?, by Vaclav Smil

“Smil takes his usual clear-eyed view of the whole landscape, from meat’s role in human evolution to hard questions about animal cruelty,” Gates writes. “While it would be great if people wanted to eat less meat, I don’t think we can expect large numbers of people to make drastic reductions. I’m betting on innovation, including higher agricultural productivity and the development of meat substitutes, to help the world meet its need for meat.”

On Immunity, by Eula Biss

“When I stumbled across this book on the Internet, I thought it might be a worthwhile read,” Gates writes. “I had no idea what a pleasure reading it would be. Biss, an essayist and university lecturer, examines what lies behind people’s fears of vaccinating their children.”

In-depth reviews of a number of the books and more information can be found on Gates Notes.

Courtesy of Gates Notes

The House Of Harry Winston Opens A New Salon In Miami Design District

Georgia Papadon — Fri, 15 May 2015 20:13:56 +0000

The House of Harry Winston, the legendary “King of Diamonds,” announces the opening of a new retail salon in the Miami Design District, a historic part of the city known for its innovative art, architecture, and design. Located at 166 NE 39th Street, the impressive 7,168 square foot salon will house Harry Winston’s exquisite jewelry and timepiece collections, including the finest diamonds and rarest gemstones available today.

Mary Cunsolo: Salon Director, Harry Winston Miami Design District; Craig Robins: CEO & President, Dacra; Laurie Adorno: US Vice President of Retail, Harry Winston (PRNewsFoto/The House of Harry Winston)

Founded in New York City, in 1932, The House of Harry Winston continues to set the standard for the ultimate in fine jewelry and high-end watch making. From the acquisition of some of the world’s most famous gemstones, including the Jonker, Hope and Winston Legacy Diamonds, to adorning Hollywood’s leading ladies on the red carpet, for over eight decades, Harry Winston has been a symbol of the best there is. Headquartered in New York, the company operates retail salons worldwide, in locations including: New York, Beverly Hills, London, Paris, Genève, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Shanghai.

Designed to capture the elegance and intimacy of a private estate, the new two-story salon reflects a contemporary variation on the traditional Winston style, drawing references from the eloquence and architecture of the brand’s iconic Fifth Avenue Flagship. A soft taupe and grey color palette complements the custom designed black lacquer and antique bronze furniture, with bespoke chandeliers, hand-beaded silk walls and antique accents. Dedicated areas for Harry Winston’s high jewelry, bridal, timepiece and fine jewelry collections, ensure clients receive the discreet and highly personalized shopping experience that the House is known for, while private selling rooms provide a luxurious space for the ultimate in exclusivity.

Glamour is continued in Cannes…

Georgia Papadon — Fri, 15 May 2015 15:15:13 +0000

THERE’S little to rival the glamour and spectacle of the Cannes Film Festival. Responsible for some of the most memorable red carpet moments, it’s also one of the biggest dates in the international film calendar. As the great and the good of Hollywood once again descend on the French Riviera and with actors Sienna Miller and Jake Gyllenhaal among the famous faces on this year’s judging panel, but in my opinion, this is Charlize Theron that makes all the difference…! Make sure you don’t miss a moment of the action of the Croisette.

Nicholas Hoult, Charlize Theron, Tom Hardy and Zoe Kravitz.

Irrational Man photocall – May 15 2015

Parker Posey, Woody Allen and Emma Stone at the photocall for Irrational Man.

Rachel Weisz wore a Narciso Rodriguez jumpsuit to promote The Lobster on Friday morning.

Colin Farrell.

Charlize Theron is more than amazing in Dior Couture.

Zoe Kravitz, wearing Valentino Couture.

Julianne Moore, wearing Givenchy Couture.

Naomi Watts wore a strapless Ralph Lauren gown from the autumn/winter 2015 collection, with jewels by Bulgari.

Michelle Rodriguez, in a gown from Zuhair Murad.

Magnum Pink & Black party – May 14 2015

Miranda Kerr, dressed in an Emanuel Ungaro gown.

At the Mad Max: Fury Road premiere, Charlize Theron wore her hair in a pretty up-do with a curled fringe, whilst her eyes were defined in subtle metallics and her lips painted a glossy pink.

Julianne Moore wore her hair straight and centre-parted, whilst red lips were the focus of her make-up.

Glamorous set curls and subtle make-up gave Naomi Watts’s look a Hollywood elegance.

Fresh skin, kohl-lined eyes and neutral tones kept Liya Kebede’s make-up simple and pretty in comparison to her detail-heavy Proenza Schouler dress, whilst her hair was worn sleek and straight.

Sophie Marceau, who chose a Alexandre Vauthier Couture dress from the spring/summer 2015 collection.

Sophie Marceau wore her hair in a messy up-do with a fringe, whilst her make-up was pared-back and fresh.

Charlize Theron paired her side-parted ponytail with a subtle beauty look to promote Mad Max: Fury Road.

At the Cannes Opening Ceremony, Sienna Miller wore her hair swept back into an up-do, offset by bold cherry-red lipstick.

Natalie Portman kept her look simple and classic, with set waves, bronzed skin and subtle definition on the eyes, lips and brows.

Karlie Kloss wore her hair in loose waves, whilst her make-up focused upon nude and blush tones.

Magnum event – May 14 2015

Miranda Kerr, wearing David Koma.

Max Max: Fury Road photocall – May 14 2015

Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron and Nicholas Hoult.

Max Max: Fury Road photocall – May 14 2015

Charlize Theron, wearing Valentino autumn/winter 2015.

Via British Vogue

Big Thanks !