HOT ASECK: June 2009

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Sneaker Lessons

So do you argue with people over which new shoe releases look better, and basically give a persuasive speech on why you chose the colorway you did for a particular sneaker? You can end all that non-sense and shut people up by saying that you're obviously right because you have a college credited course to back you up!How cool would that be??? Well the pic you're looking at is a picture of (from left to right) Elliot Curtis, Octavio Lubrano, and Jesse Chorng. The two on the end are the creators of Sneakerology 101 for Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA , and Lubrano is the designer behind the ever-so popular Air Jordan 6 Rings. Sneakerology 101 is a college credited course which explores the history of sneakers and they appeal. Curtis and Chorng created the course for Canegie Mellon University from the pure love of sneakers and wanting others to go deeper into the design and logic behind them.

Recently Lubrano paid the Sneakerologists a visit and was a guest speaker during the course. (Ha! I can see half of you addicts trying to register as we speak!). Through Chorng's blog he gave a very brief summary of Octavio's lecture:

"For the most part, he talked about the legacy and design philosophies behind Jordan. Being such a high end performance shoe, Jordans have a really unique process from concept to manufacturing and involve a tight knit team dedicated to upholding Michael Jordan's high standards of what he personally believes an athletic shoe should be."

Chorng and Curtis have both fulfilled sought after internships with Vice Magazine and Reebok, which I'm sure opens the door for their most studious scholars to network their way to sole heaven.

Can't go another day without the class??? Click here

-Doni W.

Another Legend Dies...

If you haven't heard by now, I hate to be the barer of bad news, but Vibe Magazine is shutting down shop. The publication founded in 1993 by Quincy Jones (Thee Quincy Jones) has concluded that the economic situation we are in has strained the magazine to the point of no return. One of the few hip hop/urban focused magazines, you could ask any new hip hop or r & b artists and I can guarantee one of their dreams was to grace the cover of Vibe Magazine. Well those dreams will have to be altered and the entire Vibe staff will now be added to the overgrowing unemployment pool. I'm shaking my head as I write because it's more than a shame that this economy is not only effecting everyone personally, but taking down companies that people have grown so attached to.

Vibe's last cover will feature the love birds Christina Milian and The Dream, which I had mixed feelings about. It's such a sad thing to see this magazine go, and for The Dream's career to just be really reaching were it should be and Christina to have had such a luke warm career, I'd rather see some heavy hitters take Vibe out with a bang. Jay and Bey??? Now that would've been dope! And Vibe might've sold enough copies to stay in business!

My buddy JT made a good point earlier today on the subject. He said for Vibe to be so important to the hip hop community, why won't these flashy and big-spending artists pool some money together to ensure that the magazine stays running?? It would only be showing appreciation for the magazine that practically MADE their careers right??? Right.

Hopefully the phoenix will rise from the ashes. R.I.P Vibe

-Doni W.

Tank Ya Very Much

Y-3- $120

As I sit here with my sweater on in JUNE I long for the days of... last week, when I was searching high and low for the perfect tank top to celebrate the long awaited warm weather. Well I guess I'll just be longing, and admiring tanks from afar but keeping in the back of my head which tanks will soon be mine the minute the temperature inches over 76 maybe 77 degrees. Here's some good tanks you may want to scoop up, hopefully you're enjoying normal summer weather from wherever you are.

Obey- $34(mens)

James Perse $55

Heritage $14.90 (mens)

Charlotte Russe

-Doni W.

Monday, June 29, 2009

Fantasmic

TEACUPS!!!

You have received new photos from Jim Kehl.

-- Email sent with the "Multi-Photo Email" iPhone application --

Avon by the Sea...

Have I told you how great my life is? As they say, a picture's worth a thousand words. Here are a few from our anniversary weekend in beautiful Avon by the Sea "down the shore" in NJ, not far from Asbury Park where Bruce Springsteen grew up.

I promise all these photos are G-rated. I'm saving the X-rated ones for a later post! (You're welcome or I'm sorry, depending on your preference.)

The first night we were there a wicked storm blew through. I love a good storm, and this one was a doozie! There were cloud formations like we'd never seen, rain pouring down in sheets, and thunder and lightening so bright and frequent that it felt like a prelude to the upcoming 4th of July fireworks.

That night we were seated at table 27. This number is significant to us because it's the day we got married, and it's our favorite number. In fact, before we called our musical selves Karma Chain, we were known as 27 Dreams.

Also, while we were there, we drove by a party in a VERY upscale neighborhood and nearly traded paint with a black Bentley - that's how close we were. The guy driving the mansion of a car looked down upon us in our Lexus SUV like it was a beat-up Dodge Dart and we'd just escaped from the local prison.

IN OTHER NEWS...
I finished my edit on MURDER

ON TWILIGHT CIRCLE a few hours ago and am getting ready to send it to the agent who requested the full. There's also an agent who has the first six chapters. (They're both INCREDIBLE agents. I'm beyond blessed to have them read my work.) In addition, I'll be writing the query and will start marketing MTC as the first in a cozy mystery

series later this week.

It was a great weekend. Wish you were there. (Have I mentioned I don't always tell the truth on my blog?) I hope you enjoy the

pics

Being Naked Has Never Been Sweeter

The Naked Honey collection by MAC is going to keep the bee's buzzing until the very last day of the summer. The base of the collection is to embrace bronzed skin and the sweet scent of honeycomb.

The Run Down...

Eye Shadow
Buckwheat-$14.50
Pollinator-$14.50

Creme de Miel-$14.50

Lips
She's a star-$14.00

Queen Bee-$14.00

Buzz-$14.00

High Light Powder
Honey Light-$24.50

Golden Nectar-$24.50

EXTRAS
Naked Honey Skin Salve-$18.50

Naked Honey Body and Hand Cream-$22.50

Naked Honey Body Wash-$19.50

Creation Hue (Naked Honey)-$25.00

Creation Hue (Africanimal)-$25.00

I'm not so sure that I would consider buying all of the extras, because that I might be over doing it just tad bit. But the makeup used in the photo is a sure thing!!!

-Shaeveon La'Trey

LA Girls Love Red Bottoms

This idea is genius, I just love it!! Its more than one way to get inspired by your Christian Louboutin's. Jet black on top and perfect shade of Louboutin red on the nail underside, and Bam! You're making two hot statements at once. And the best thing of all, you could do this at home.

-Shaeveon La'Trey

BET Awards 2009

The 2009 BET Awards made sure to honor the man who they owe much to, Michael Jackson. Learning of his death only days before the show, Debra Lee made sure we knew how feverishly the staff worked to rearrange the show according to the tragic and untimely death. So bravo BET for that! When Janet came out I'm sure everyone got the same feeling of heaviness on their heart like I did, because we all know how close these two were. I also applaud her for speaking for the family.

Ok, but honestly the BET Awards would've been nothing without all my funny folks on twitter (make sure you follow us @livluxmag, and @christophernic...shameless plug). The most memorable tweets of the night:

"Somebody tell Monica to pull her pants up in the middle"
"Yeah Beyonce did call them some hoodrats" (referring to Keisha and Monica)
"Ne-yo head look like a fat fat elbow"
"...so Amber Rose is giving all the strippers across the world HOPE. See - MJ touched everything including poles."

I didn't tweet them! I just laughed ok people, lol.

Some parts of the show were really good, like when Travis Barker came out and rocked it (literally), when Maxwell performed (and won my heart) and when Alicia accepted her Humanitarian Award with such grace and elegance (despite the blemish meanies).

Other parts were average. A lot of people thought Beyonce could've came a little harder, but I think she sang beautifully, and she performed like a legend in her own right. (Hated the boa lined dress though). And Ciara gave a mediocre performance seeing that she can dance much better than Ne-yo or Jamie, she should've played a bigger role in the MJ tribute.

Other parts were not so good...AT ALL! Like when Drake and Wayne performed every girl with LITTLE GIRLS on the stage! Come on now, no one in their entourage had the nerve to say..."Maybe you shouldn't bring your kids out this time Wayne". It was very pedophile creepy-ish. Or when Keri (sorry girl I still love you!) stopped singing in the middle of her performance because she was winded. And the abundance of Jamie and Ne-yo performances were just uncalled for, where was Usher? Who died and made Jay-z ruler of the universe to where he could ban Chris Brown from showing up? And could Justin not perform because he's white???

Other than the obvious but excusable messiness because of time constraints, The BET Awards were pretty entertaining for a Sunday night. But as a whole, the network still has some work to do.

"They was dancing and sh#+" ...(lol don't act like you didn't die laughing at that slip up)

-Doni W.

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Paris Hilton's My New BFF S02E04

http://rapidshare.com/files/249499195/bff2o4.part1.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/249696080/bff2o4.part2.rar

Saturday, June 27, 2009

Milan Fashion Show

This Tuesday was the exquisite 2010 menswear show, or Milan for short - overall consisting of sophistication with a dressed down style, some of which evoked a travel look. To keep you up to date with some of your favorite designers I have here a summary of what exactly went on.

Because this was a Spring/Summer collection, top names took advantage of men’s bodies, from the vests by Cavalli to the open tops and tight swimming trunks by D&G, there is and was plenty of skin to be shown! But who got a standing ovation from the crowd?None other then Emporio Armani, Giorgio showed off his olive skinned models in suits in light hues of grey, with a tailored look and defined shoulders, overall giving off a “city smart” yet “comfortable” look. For this same approach he has techno mesh with bright orange that gave it that perfect flair, needed for those urban nights with your cadre. Suits were checkered or stripped, shirts have loud and often times, obnoxious patterns, but it all came together for a very unified look.

Men are looking for excitement in fashion, Versace and Gucci know this, they went with a disposition that was “resolutely optimistic,” starting shows with pale creams.

Latter in the show we see hot reds coming with Gucci evening suits, this mixed in with a black line, also accompanied with Bottega Veneta. The tops and trousers went well with tie-dye pattern.

Versace and Gucci, whose mood was "resolutely optimistic", started their shows with men dressed in white or pale creams.

For accessorizes, designers played with plastics.

With much love,

-Z

Friday, June 26, 2009

June 25th...The Darkest Day In Music

Yesterday my twitter and facebook pages went ballistic when the King of Pop passed. I can't lie the news was alarming to me as well. Initially I felt that people's reactions were a little extreme, until I sat down and really thought about how much he's added to not only the music industry but fashion, dance, and heck even hair. MJ introduced in a new wave of entertaining just as Elvis did before him, and Miles Davis did before Elvis. I thought about how artists like Ne-yo and Chris Brown wouldn't be who they are if they didn't take a page from MJ's notebook. The sound and style of his music is still ever present today and people even felt the need to move and dance like Mike. How many people til this day can still do the Thriller dance?

On twitter stars poured their hearts out about how they felt about Michael. I believe Naomi from Electrik Red said it best...

"Michael was one of the few people in the world that has been under so much pressure from such a young age. He's Free now..."

Jackson's entire life was comprised of media scrutiny, family troubles, and pressure to be great, and such things can way on a person's heart. It's undeniable that anything Micheal did is now engraved in history...the white glove, the red leather jacket, the white socks, the moon walk, heck Bubbles is even famous. So for me, I needed step away from the social sites and see how I really felt about it. And although I could never feel as strongly about it as I would if it were someone close to me, but I do recognize that music has lost one of its.... no THEE most biggest influence it had.

R.I.P Michael

-Doni W.

MJ - Artist, Performer, and Songwriter Extraordinaire

I don't normally do this, but it's not every day we lose a musical icon. I'm linking to my short tribute to Michael Jackson in the Philadelphia Examiner. Enjoy and do yourself a favor - listen to a little Michael this weekend.

IN OTHER NEWS...

Chuck and I are heading "down the shore" for some R&R at a B&B to celebrate our anniversary. I'll report back on at least some of our weekend's activities on Monday.;-)

Thursday, June 25, 2009

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Download

VOB Videos

La Cucarachiña

http://rapidshare.com/files/248674214/Ax__Bahia_-_La_Cucarachi_a.vob

Mueve La Pompa

http://rapidshare.com/files/248683654/Ax__Bahia_-_Mueve_La_Pompa.vob

Pusha Pusha (Beach Version)

http://rapidshare.com/files/248692203/Ax__Bahia_-_Pusha_Pusha__Beach_Version_.vob

Pusha Pusha

http://rapidshare.com/files/248700687/Ax__Bahia_-_Pusha_Pusha.vob

Filete

http://rapidshare.com/files/248715994/Ax__Bahia_-_Filete.vob

La Cucarachiña Beach Version

http://rapidshare.com/files/248709270/Ax__Bahia_-_La_Cucarachi_a__Beach_Version_.vob

I ♥ me

The brand me was launched in 2001 in Japan with the aim of "creating T-shirts of the 21st century". Revolving around tops developed with our company's innovative pleating techniques it has expanded its range season by season while advancing overseas and today grown to be a full-fledged brand available to offer a whole wardrobe. This time, from the Spring/Summer 2008 collection, the brand enters a new stage. Renamed me ISSEY MIYAKE in Asia or CAULIFLOWER in Europe and the U.S., which is named after the brand's main staple, it will seek a further innovative way of making things of quality.

Click here to see the collection.

-Christopher Nic.

She's Back!

I dont know about the "and better than ever" part. We'll have to wait and see.

But Grammy award winning artist, Whitney Houston has released the name of her upcoming cd, "I Look To You". It's set to hit stands September 1, 2009. Get in line now!

-Christopher Nic.

God's Newest 'Angel'

After a long and strenuous battle with anal cancer, Hollywood Legend and Charlies most flirtatious angel Farrah Fawcett was taken away from us this morning. She had an awesome life and was such an impact to Hollywood and the entertainment industry. God Bless her family and friends.

-Christopher Nic.