While the planners of the GBK
2011 Golden Globes’ Gifting Lounge made a fresh choice with
the London Hotel
for the shindig, the format was classic GBKa
NeimanMarcus department store catalogue coming to life. It
was big, sprawling, and slightly over the top in many places. In
other words, the fantasy shopping spree with charitable beneficiaries
(St Bernard Project, the Lopez Foundation) set-up that drew the
A-list likes of movie music great Diane Warren, Katey Sagal, George
Lopez, veteran comedian and gifting suite newbie Martin Short, Bill
and Giuliana Rancic, 2010 Oscar nominee Gabourey Sidibe, Oscar winner
Adrien Brody, Lorraine Bracco, Kimberley Elise, Ariel Winter, Rico
Rodriguez, Naveen Andrews, Joe Mantegna, Catherine O’Hara,
Melissa Joan Heart, Jesse McCartney, Eric Stonestreet, Carrie Preston,
Michael Clarke Duncan, Michael Rucco, Kimberley Locke, Greg Itzin
and Alan Thicke.
Canadian style and lifestyle was also well represented
at this suite, with featured products ranging from Toronto-based
Ron White’s foot-friendly
couture designs for men and women and Diane Lai’s botanical
skincare to Essence Bracelets from Calgary, which we were told were
designed with “healing” combinations of semi-precious
stones and silver. (Healing or not, we simply thought the bracelets
were very attractive).
The celebrities were lavished with such enviable booty
as a seven-night stay at Africa’s Zamani Retreat Kempinski,
a seven-night all inclusive Health Package in Africa’s Prime
Holistic Health Retreat and Miracle Details’ only-in-LA
VIP “miracle touch auto detailing”, featuring
eco-friendly cleaning systems and on-site car detailing in one’s
own driveway. The selection of beauty and health aides was also
above average: 3Lab’s technologically advanced skin care;
celebrity-favourite RevitaLash; goodies from the Jessica Nail Clinic,
Jane Cosmetics’ improved line of affordable make-up and (back
by popular demand) luxurious, Asian-inspired hair, skin and body-care
from Peter Lamas.
While Élysée
Scientific Cosmetics is a relative newcomer to celebrity award
season product placement, it is a literal veteran beauty company.
Élysée has been providing high-quality special treatment
products for over 80 years. Founded by Dr Elizabeth Blumenthal in
1923, her skin care technology was so revolutionary that the US
Government commissioned her to assist medical doctors in the Pacific
to treat soldiers’ skin problems in World War II. Royal jelly,
grape seed, wine extract, AHAs, olive
oil, botanicals, and vitamins A, D and E-staples in contemporary
beauty lines, were essential ingredients of Élysée’s
products as early as 1940.
In typical GBK style,
the covetable mingled with the practical. High-tech and gadget highlights
included Looxcie (an easy-to-use
wearable camcorder which enables continuous hands-free recording
that can be clipped, saved, viewed, and instantly shared), Isotoner’s
new SmarTouch gloves for smart phone users and social network addicts,
Psyclops iPhone covers, high-end fashion watches from Eleven
Eleven, moderately priced, beach-friendly watches by Rumba Time,
and futuristic Circolo coffee machines from Nescafé Dolce
Gusto. One of our favourite forms of modern technology, in the form
of body shapers, were once again offered by TC
Fine Intimates. Thankfully, there was also a touch of old school
glamour, through Menbur’s evening clutches.
GBKs event, like
Nathalie’s, still managed to find our hearts by way of our
stomachs. We were particularly impressed with ChocAlive! Truffles,
made from raw, organic and vegan but as decadently rich as diet
busting morsels from a fine chocolatier. Nulo, meanwhile, sent us
home with health food for our cats. That said, we stumbled onto
other ways to indulge: Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Co., Kaldi’s
Coffee Roasting Co., WineChateau.com,
Marquez de Valencia’s
limited production tequila, alcohol-infused Cream by Kingfish
Spirits and Svedka vodka.
Unless you were a celebrity (and some big names took
advantage of their status, but with dignity, including Jane Lynch,
Jennifer Love Hewitt, Julie Bowen, Sean Astin and Neil Patrick Harris),
Access Hollywood’s Stuff You Must suite at the Sofitel
was for the reporters more like a trade show, with interesting demos
and inspired lifestyle products. We admired Vintage Revolution (the
newest designer jean line on the block), coveted Pretty Ballerina
flats, sampled calorie conscious treats from SlimFast, fawned over
the Fancy Feast Cat while learning about the Barnes & Noble
NOOKcolor, and checked out the latest
collections from Marchon Eyewear and Jorg Gray watches.
The literal heart and soul of the suite was US
Pharmacy CVS’s Beauty Club lounge-within-a-lounge.
Even with the suite’s familiar ultra-exclusive vibe, this
friendly island of pampering drove home a reassuring reality that
anybody can look and feel red carpet ready on any budget, with choice
products from Maybelline New York, Nexxus Salon Care, essie nail
products and more. We got a whiff of the Stuff You MustVIP
treatment when we were offered the opportunity to have a fragrance
custom-made for us. The demo reminded us a lot of mixology, but
with the final cocktail served up in an atomizer bottle instead
of a martini glass.
While Anne Hathaway and James Franco serving as this
year’s Oscar co-hosts ensures the award season’s grand
finalé will be a little more (dare we say it) civilized and
a tad less irreverent, though still going against the current of
tradition, it will be interesting to see how and if the theme of
reality-based products continues through the Grammys and pre-Oscar
events.
While the planners of the GBK 2011 Golden Globes’
Gifting Lounge made a fresh choice with the
London Hotel for the shindig, the format was classic GBKa
NeimanMarcus department store catalogue coming to life
Taylor Armstrong
Gilles Marini
Lisa Vanderpump and Taylor Armstrong
Nexxus Salon Care
TC Fine Intimates at GBK
Elyse Glickman is US west coast editor of Lucire.Leyla Messian is a senior writer for Lucire.
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