Just a few days to July 4th and time to look through your closet for all things red, white, and blue!

Indoor Fireworks

Did you click on the video? The perfect soundtrack for this section. What would be more romantic than presenting your soul mate with some diamonds during the fireworks? Make sure you are cuddled up on a deck or in a hotel room with a view of the display in the night sky. Guaranteed that you will create some of your own indoor fireworks.

Diamond earrings are always a good choice – they make a great commitment-free gift for a girlfriend and they are also are a special treat for your wife. Remember, jewelry shouldn’t always commemorate a special milestone or occasion – the best gifts come as a complete surprise. You can buy a very nice set of diamond earrings for less than $80 or you can go get some real celebrity-style icing and get earrings for several thousand dollars.

Happy Birthday

Gina Lollobrigida was born on July 4, 1927. She is actually Italian but was engaged to New York real estate heir George Kaufman for a brief period in 1969 and also was a Hollywood actress, starring in movies with Humphrey Bogart, Burt Lancaster, and Rock Hudson. At one point she was known as ‘the world’s most beautiful woman.’

She is wearing the perfect outfit for a July 4th picnic.

Add some celebrity icing to your style:

Check out this cute dress is from Tokyo Pink.

Accessorize with a vespa coin purse from etsy.com if you don’t drive the real thing. Also note, if you think a red, white, and blue color theme is too much you can try a light blue, pink, and white coordination like this one for your July 4th style instead.

And don’t forget the most important July 4th accessory of all, a picnic blanket!

American Sweetheart

Do you see fireworks when you kiss your American sweetheart? Propose on Independence Day and you will! Here is the perfect engagement ring for the day you give up your independence and start living the American dream – a house, a dog, some kids… okay, let’s just start with the ring, shall we?

The heart-shaped diamond and vintage-looking scroll pattern evoke old-fashioned romance. The cathedral style setting makes the most of the diamond and shows you are serious.

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What Season Are You?

This week we continue our flashback to the 80’s – when everyone was getting their colors done. Last December I featured the method of determining which colors work for you in an article, “The 1980′s Called and Asked: What Season Are You?“  This concept originates from a book called “Color Me Beautiful” by Carole Jackson - which spent 4 years on the NY Times bestseller list. All fun aside, Jackson’s style advice is a blessing for anyone out there who is color-challenged. You can wear the most expensive make up, the hottest clothing, and the best jewelry – but if you are wearing the wrong colors you will still look horrible (and sometimes, even ill). For more information straight from the source, you should visit her website at carolejackson.com – she provides samples of color swatches that you can refer to once you identify which season suits you.

Wondering if you are a Winter? Then please read our article called “Get Your Colors Done Part 1: Is Winter Cool For You?“

Wondering if you are a Spring? Then please read our article called “Get Your Colors Done Part 2: Is Spring A Fresh Idea?“

Are You A Summer?

Photo: Olivia-NewtonJohn.com

In the last article featuring this topic, we explained that “Spring” people look better in warm tones like peach and coral, and yellow gold jewelry flatters their complexion. It makes sense that Summers also look great in warm colors – it is the warmest season after all. However, Summers actually fall into the “cool” category. Examples of cool colors are: green, blue, and violet. Imagine pinks and greens with a blue undertone, and you are on the right track.

Take the Test

Summers are the least common color – it seems like all Summers have naturally blond hair color, which is also rare. To be even more specific, we’re talking cool blonds, not yellow blonds… If you’re a summer your face will reflect a blue tone rather than a yellow tone onto a white piece of paper.

You will look best in subtle color combinations and should avoid contrasts. Summers can still be bold, but it is best to stick to one bright color – like the red Christina is wearing below (note that this red has a blue undertone, making it work for a Summer).

Summer Ice

White gold and diamonds are perfect for the girls (and boys) of Summer.

The simple elegant design of this white gold solitaire engagement ring would be perfect.

This highly polished sterling silver collar necklace is also a great way to frame that beautiful summer complexion and blond hair!

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Controversial court cases, gossip, and plastic surgery aside – certain adjectives come to mind when I think of Michael Jackson.

Sparkly

Those glittery socks, the glove  and the shiny red jacket with all those zippers. Michael Jackson definitely knew how to catch our eye.

You wouldn’t know it from watching his performances, but he actually DID have more than one glove…

According to luxist.com, the glove from his Victory tour will go up for auction in early October and is estimated at a value up to $80,000 (somehow that seems low to me, but I guess we’ll see). The glove was designed by Ted Shell and is covered with beads, Austrian crystals and 50 tiny lights (a 9 volt battery in his cuff powered them).

The ‘Billie Jean’ glove was different – shiny all over with jewels and sequins and worn during almost every performance of the song and during many other public appearances. Samanthamo.com claims to offer the closest replica on the market – the glove is custom tailored to your hand size and the jewels are sewn on by hand for around $200.00 US.

Costumed

Just like a little boy who never quite grew up – Michael Jackson also seemed to find a lot of pleasure in playing ‘dress up’. Remember his military style phase? The jacket below, along with many other possessions were to be put up for auction in April but then Michael Jackson had a change of heart and cancelled.

Influential design house Balmain offered a similar jacket for its Spring 2009 collection which means that there are plenty of Balmain-inspired coats on the racks of the more price-accessible stores if you’d like to wear one as a farewell salute to MJ.

The King

Elvis was the King until he came along – thanks to Elizabeth Taylor, Elvis has been relegated to ‘The King of Rock N Roll’ and Michael Jackson is ‘The King of Pop’. Elvis has Graceland, Michael has Neverland. I wonder if they will sell all sorts of monogrammed and portraited bling at his gift shop? And,  instead of Elvis glasses, they will probably sell gloves?

In the meantime, you can buy this matching set from Etsy seller PopBangles so you can be a little bit pop and a little bit rock n roll…

Too Much? Instead you can just wear a ring as a reminder of his passing, perhaps one like this that recalls a quote from one of his songs – that it ‘doesn’t matter if you are black or white‘…

Loyal Friend

It’s kind of unclear whether Michael Jackson was a loyal friend or whether he just inspired loyalty from those around  him, but he definitely had several long-lasting friendships that survived the different struggles and transformations he faced along the way. Elizabeth Taylor, Liza Minelli, Diana Ross are some famous examples I can think of at the moment…

Many of us grew up with him, and feel a loyalty and special nostalgia for his earlier days… It’s been said over and over that his passing is one of those remarkable days where everyone will remember exactly where they were when they heard the news.

You may not have danced outside the Apollo Theatre and you may not have tickets to the Memorial today.  Perhaps like me, you pulled  a bunch of old Jackson 5 videos up on YouTube and had a dance party in your living room as you introduced the songs to your children… Or perhaps you just spent some time feeling grateful for your own family, your good health, and your ability to walk around this world freely and enjoy the sunshine.

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The best accessory at the Oscars is one of those gold statues (only if you actually won it at the show, don’t try to sneak in an old one…). However, if you weren’t nominated, or you were up against Slumdog Millionaire in a category, hopefully you went with one of these winners instead:

Big and Bold

Angelina Jolie’s large green earrings and matching ring were a great match to her simple, elegant black dress. Rumors spread that she was wearing Kryptonite but actually the gemstones were Jealousoff. Even more rare, this gem prevents Jolie from being overwhelmed and possibly injured by mass jealousy when she enters crowds.

Even if you don’t need Jealousoff,  big and bold accessories with a simple dress can never hurt. On the other hand, if you are wearing a big crazy froufrou dress (think Sophia Loren) or a dress with distractingly unfortunate details (Jessica Biel or Reese Witherspoon) then you will want to keep your jewelry simple.

Vintage

Penelope Cruz wore an off-white dress with a fitted bodice and full skirt that she said she had purchased used several years ago. No details about who the previous owner was, but I’m guessing it may have been a wedding dress. Cruz looked amazing and her inextravagant and practical choice (she just pulled it out of her closet) is refreshing and makes us like her even more. It’s nice when the super rich don’t flaunt their excessive wealth in the average persons face during difficult times.

Whoopi Goldberg apparently wore antique jewelry which was also a nice touch.

Here is some affordable antique and vintage jewelry that we like:

Butterflies

Both Miley Cyrus and Sarah Jessica Parker felt butterflies on their stomachs last night… You can accessorize a bug-less dress with these vintage 50′s butterfly baubles instead for a similar look:

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Hockey Player Pavel Bure coined the term ‘cougar’ when he was playing for the Canucks in Vancouver, BC Canada. He used it to decribe the older women who would hit on the hockey players at the local bars. There are lots of definitions of the word out there and varying age thresholds (from 30 to 40). Basically, the term ‘cougar’ is used to describe a mature woman who is out on the prowl for younger men. In some definitions, she needs to be a particular age; in others she needs to be divorced and rich. Some descriptions paint cougars as desperate, old barflies who are easy to pick up; others paint them as attractive, experienced hunters who quickly go for the kill when they detect ‘fresh meat’.

What I find annoying is often all women over 35 who are enjoying a drink at a bar with a girl friend are labeled ‘cougars’ when this is just not true. Many of us are happily married, in relationships, or single by choice.

As a musician in a local band, I tend to find myself out late at night and so here are some tips about how you can avoid being called a cougar if you aren’t one:

5 Things to Avoid If You Don’t Want to be called a Cougar

1. Cat Images

All cat images evoke the cougar. You could be wearing a panther pin on your sweater or have a kitty cat on your purse, either way people will make the jump to cougar if you are even close to cougar age and if you are spotted in a potential cougar hunting ground.

Here is all the cougar you need and it comes in its very own jewelry box! Earrings, a pin, and a necklace – cougarrific!

2. Animal Print

The road to cougardom is paved with leopard print. Actually, any animal print falls in to this category. Beware of zebra and the dreaded cow prints – you’d think these would because they are not cat-related but I’m sorry to say they are not. While we’re on the subject of animalia: think twice about wearing leather pants (particularly if they come with a matching jacket), feathers, or fake fur.

3. Fancy Drinks

If you’re in a fancy cocktail bar or restaurant then this doesn’t apply – but you’re not likely to be called a cougar if you are surrounded by other people your own age, are you?

If you find yourself in a much younger crowd, drink what everyone else is drinking unless you want to annoy the bartender or just stand out. Nothing says ‘newly divorced on a boyhunt’ than the liquid courage of a margarita, glass of white wine, or martini in a standing room only sports bar full of college boys playing foozball and drinking pitchers of beer.

Of course, when I say this I’m not implying that you should enter any chugging contests or beer pong tournaments, either. Unless you want to, of course…

4. Cleavage

If your ladies are pushed up to the point that your chin hits them when you talk, you might want to accept the fact that they are not anyone’s secret any more, let alone Victoria’s!

5. Big, Clunky Jewelry

Leave your diamonds at home, especially if you bought them from the Home Shopping Channel. Another good tip: if you can imagine Peggy Bundy putting it on, it’s probably wise to take it off! Actually that applies to all accessories and clothing…

Of course, there are actually cougars out there – and there’s nothing wrong with that, either; but…

Cougars be proud!

Take over the term and wear it as a badge of honor so that it can’t be used as an insult anymore! You can use the list above to pump up the volume on your cougar mating call.

Wear Whatever You Want

And, if you’re not a cougar but the above list describes you perfectly? You can just let everyone think you’re on the prowl and let them wonder why you never make a move. Let the boys who like to use the term as an insult go home with some insecurities for a change…

PS: I regularly break every rule above (except the leather pants rule) and I’ve been called a cougar twice (to my face).

What about you?

Do you consider yourself a cougar? Do you think of the term as an insult or a compliment? Have you ever been called a cougar? Did I miss anything off the list? Let me know!

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Maybe Diamonds are EVERYONE’s best friend? 

According to an article published on Health.InfoNIAC.com today, “The researchers at Northwestern University developed a patch made of nanodiamonds, tiny bits of diamonds consisting of few groups of carbon atoms that will be used to deliver chemotherapy drugs more effectively.” These miniscule diamond pieces help to release the drugs “slowly and evenly”.

Celebrity Icing wants to know, will only the rich and famous be able to afford this treatment? 

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