For the Most Prosperous New Year Ever, Be Sure to Clear Out Some Space

Drawing on an aspect of feng shui known as space clearing, expert Christan Hummel says that clearing away clutter around the house or office can produce major improvements by unblocking the flow of the invisible life energy - or Ch'i - through the space. It may sound woo-woo, but the anecdotal evidence proves otherwise: "When a group of us did a space clearing in the downtown area of San Paulo, Brazil, the traffic cleared up the very next day. All 77 people in the workshop arrived a full hour earlier as a result!" exclaims Hummel, noting that in cities where communities have done space clearing:

- the crime rate dropped 30-50% in a single month
- drug-related deaths fell by 25% (Frankfurt)
- three properties long languishing on the market unsold were snapped up for the asking price within a week (Sonoma, California)
- the polluted Salton Sea (at the time, North America's most polluted body of water) improved so dramatically within months, that it was eventually found to be free of toxins (California)

"How you behave when you get home and how you arrange your home and office spaces can make a tremendous difference in the flow of energy," explains Hummel, offering these tips on Do-It Yourself space clearing:

Plan to Get Skinny in 2011? Happily, it's All in Your Head!

Eating right, visiting the gym religiously, triumphing over the mid-afternoon sugar (or Venti fat+sugar+caffeine) attack, quitting smoking, saving money...wouldn't it be nice to make 2011 the year when your resolutions actually stick? "The fact that people make New Year's Resolutions in the first place—whether they're about fitness or kicking addictions or getting out of debt—shows that many, many of us are dissatisfied with our lives," notes Patt Lind-Kyle, author of Heal Your Mind, Rewire Your Brain: Applying the Exciting New Science of Brain Synchrony for Creativity, Peace and Presence (Energy Psychology Press) and whose voice appears on the book's companion CDs.

But before you sign up for a new gym membership, buy any new gadgets, or join a support group, you need to put the odds of success in your favor by focusing on the right problem. "The key to changing your life is to consciously rewire your brain." In other words, to achieve physical (or financial) fitness, you first need to develop mental fitness. "That applies to getting fit or quitting smoking or strengthening your marriage, or whatever," continues Lind-Kyle. "You can change your life in any way you want to change it. But first you have to understand what's at the root of your problems: your mind and the way it directs your brain to function—basically, where you place your attention."

Shopbop & Sephora Present their Color Play 5-in-1 First Fashion Edition Makeup Palette

The stylish new SEPHORA COLLECTION Palette Color Play 5 in 1 limited-edition palette was inspired by Shopbop's just-launched Faces of Fashion editorial look book, and includes five distinct color palettes, each with ten eye shadows, two lip colors, and one blush in color stories that correspond to five iconic figures in fashion. It even comes with a portable mirror compact - simply select which of the five different looks (palettes) you're feeling at the moment & pop it in - making it perfect for busy girls on the go. "Fashion and beauty are inextricably connected, so it seemed fitting to bring them together in an editorial feature. Our customer loves Sephora, so we're thrilled to partner with them on this project," says Shopbop Fashion Director Kate Ciepluch. "Sephora is thrilled to partner with Shopbop on this limited edition palette," agrees Catherine Gore, Director of Merchandising for SEPHORA COLLECTION. "What is an iconic fashion look without the coordinating beauty? By partnering with Shopbop, it allows women to complete these statement fashion looks with the perfect accessory, a high quality, multi-purpose palette from SEPHORA COLLECTION."

The interchangeable color palettes include:

- A Nod to Mod (bright blues, greens, pink, purples)
- Angelic Boudoir (nudes, sands, with a touch of bright blue and fuchsia)
- Black is the New Black (black smoky eyes)
- Boho Bombshell (dark blues, warm taupes, warm golds)
- Classics Never Die (brown smoky eyes)

To celebrate this chic collaboration, Sephora & Shopbop are co-sponsoring a Faces of Fashion sweepstakes ending February 2, 2011 with a chance to win a year's supply of makeup from Sephora and a $2500 shopping spree at Shopbop! The Color Play 5 in 1 palette is now available at Sephora.com, while "Faces of Fashion" can be snagged at Shopbop.com.

To put your new palette through its colorful paces, here are some makeup tips from Sephora PRO Artist, Julie Taing:

A Chance to Win a Super-Exclusive Pirelli Calendar & Do Some Good

  Departures Magazine (published for select American Express cardholders) was selected to receive the Karl Lagerfeld photographed Pirelli Calendar, and decided to donate it to benefit the United Nations Foundation's Nothing But Nets, a global grassroots campaign to raise awareness and funding to combat malaria. The 2011 Calendar, “Mythology,” reflects one of Lagerfeld’s deepest passions, Greek & Roman mythology, as depicted in 36 black and white photos portraying 24 different subjects, including gods, heroes and myths. And all that's required of you to enter for a chance to win is to donate at least $25. More info at CrowdRise.com.

- Lesley Scott

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Artist Isabelle de Borchgrave's Fab Historical Fashion Gowns & Costumes Made From...Paper

For more than fifteen years, the Belgian artist has been producing a completely original body of work that is easy to explain but difficult to categorize: exquisite re-creations of life-size historical costumes made entirely from...paper. Based on the rich depictions in early European paintings, iconic costumes in museum collections, photographs, sketches and even literary descriptions, de Borchgrave achieves the look of textiles by skillfully crumpling, pleating, braiding, feathering and painting paper. A painter by training, she now collaborates with costume historians and young fashion designers to explore the minds of the artists who created - or depicted - historical gowns, as well as the psyche of the women who wore them. "Although my inspiration springs from the period dresses in the great museum collections, this is just a wink at history," notes the artist who applies an encyclopedic knowledge of textile traditions to interpreting costume history with trompe l'oeil creations which both explore her imaginary world and create their own illusions. "My work is a confluence of influences—paper, painting, sculptor, textiles, costume, illusion and trompe l’oeil."

A new exhibition of her work opens February 5 - June 5, 2011 at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco, presenting 60 trompe l'oeil pieces that span many highlights from the history of fashion including the elaborate velvets, needlework lace, ropes of pearls and intricate coiffures of the Renaissance period - in particular, costumes worn by the Medici family & Elizabeth I - gowns worn by Madame de Pompadour, Empress Eugénie and Marie-Antoinette, and designs of grand couturiers such as Fredrick Worth, Paul Poiret, Christian Dior and Coco Chanel.  Special attention will also be paid to the creations and studio of Mariano Fortuny (he of the inspired Grecian pleating) presenting the eccentric early 20th-century artist in an immersive environment under a feather-light tent.

"Pulp Fashion: The Art of Isabelle de Borchgrave" also features nine dresses entirely devoid of color in order to showcase their craftsmanship, as well as a re-creation of the artist's studio to provide insight into her creative process.

Bad Santa Wishes You Decidedly Drunken, Mostly Miserable Holidays

I've been to prison once.
I've been married twice.
I was once drafted by Lyndon Johnson and had to live in shit-ass Mexico for two and a half years for no reason.
I've had my eye socket punched in, a kidney taken out, and I got a bone chip in my ankle that's never gonna heal.
I've seen some pretty shitty situations in my life.
But nothing has ever sucked more ass than this.

This soliloquy by Billy Bob Thornton as Willie, the Bad Santa, is pretty much the best start to a completely child-unsuitable holiday movie...ever...which is why it continues to top the list of our favorite holiday traditions. (Even better, there's now an unrated version - Badder Santa - to add to your collection!) As a drunken miserable safecracker, Billy Bob Thornton and his diminutive partner in crime - the hilariously foul-mouthed Tony Cox - pose as a department store Santa and his elf for a heartwarming tale of what happens when the Holiday Spirit has a few too many.

The cast also includes:

A Heartwarming Tale of Xmas Terror

"Christmas crept into Pine Cove like a creeping Christ thing: dragging garland, ribbon, and sleigh bells oozing eggnog, reeking of pine, and threatening festive doom like a cold sore under the mistletoe."

So begins Christopher Moore's madcap tale of the possible death of a beloved holiday icon by shovel, and a Christmas "miracle" gone dreadfully awry - as the town's dead come back to life and feast on the living. As Publisher's Weekly put it, Moore's "little slice of perverse Christmas cheer is enough to make a cynical Scrooge guffaw."  

The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror is available at Amazon.com.

- Lesley Scott

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A Demented Clark Griswold Xmas to You

In honor of National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, one of my fave heartwarming holiday movie traditions ( Bad Santa being the other) & its 25,000 colored-light ode to ridiculous Christmas **B-L-I-N-G**, here are some of Chevy-Chase-as-Clark's best lines:

Happy Festivus for the Rest of Us!

Thanks to Seinfeld's Frank Contanza, there is a tinsel-free, pro-aggression way to enjoy the holidays. However, in order to celebrate Festivus in all its every-man glory, it's important to get a few things right: the aluminium pole, physical contact, and an extended gripe session. (If you need to bone up, maybe it's time to pick up Seinfeld: The Complete Series DVD.)

For the happiest Festivus yet, here's what you need to know:

 

A Fancy Handmade Lee Alexander McQueen Couture Visionaire 58 Spirit

 

Inspired by one of McQueen's final designs, this special "Couture" edition of Visionaire 58 features an ivory-toned Italian leather case with gold-foil custom detailing & hand-embroidered metalized brocade covering the entire top and spine.  Reminscent of a small old-school religious altar, it's simultaneously fabulous and - stratospherically-priced at $1750 - ridiculous....which of course means we're massively coveting one. Oh, you too? Better act fast as they're only on sale through December 31 at VisionaireWorld.com and very few remain.

- Lesley Scott

...still can't get enough McQueen? Then be sure to check our own heartfelt homage to this much-missed designer.