Well travelled music A-listers road-test cool lifestyle goods

WHILE THERE WERE many Grammy suites and parties popping up all over town like a Justin Bieber sighting, Lash Fary and his Distinctive Assets crew once again managed to execute the week’s most must-go event next to the actual awards show itself, appealing to everybody from this year’s crew of youth-pop upstarts to industry and Hollywood veterans such as Cyndi Lauper, Angela Bassett, Herbie Hancock, Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Nicole Ari Parker, Michael Chiklis, Ceelo, Bobby Brown, Leanne Rhimes, Donnie Wahlberg, Mya and Jay Bentley from Bad Religion.

This year, Fary (perhaps quite wisely, given the current economy) passed on the over-the-top bling and, instead, hand-selected vendors whose goods focus on making life on the road and on the go a little more luxurious. Sure, there were a few exceptions for top-tier music stars used to travelling in high style—a $10,000 Delta Airlines private jet gift card and J-Pop-gone-Luxe fine jewellery from Grosse Japan and its hip bridge line Glace—a Lash Fary event also has to have some sort of gaming element.

This year, DJ Hero 2 and Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock video games fit the bill. There is also always a musical instrument available for those so inclined, and the DA crew delivered this year with Epiphone ‘Inspired by John Lennon’ guitars.

However, most of the returning and new “presenters” at DA’s party central sang the praises of items offering comfort and chic practicality. Bench, an active lifestyle sportswear staple in the UK, South Africa and Canada, chose the event to make its US debut, offering VIPs sleek togs for the slopes, hiking trails and yoga studios. What sets Bench apart are their sleek silhouettes, featherweight fabrics and bold graphic treatments that don’t look like test patterns thanks to adept tailoring.

The beauty offerings, including Moroccanoil (back this year with brand new products and hair tools, the Body Shop Nutriganics Skin Care for men and women, MyPurMist soothing sinus and respiratory treatment apparatus and skin-firming face rollers and superb manicure kits from Japan’s ReFa-Pro, all shared the appeal of natural, organic approaches to beauty and health.

Likewise, the handbag and carry-all line-up merged eco-friendly manufacture with classic styling and affordability. Brandina the Original, made from reclaimed deck chair fabrics, offer ’50s Riviera chic and 21st-century resilience, while a fresh crop of Ful laptop messenger bags and backpacks brought nice modern twists to utilitarian computer carriage. Isolá footwear, the new upscale offering from the makers of Sofft Shoes, offered haute heels one would never guess could be comfortable. Case-Mate offered the gee-whiz tech factor with its new line of customize-it-yourself cases for iPhones and iPads via an amazing computer design program through its website. Of course, you could also always count on Solstice Sunglasses to provide thousands of ways to protect one’s eyes from the ageing effects of the sun (including ’80s inspired looks from Marc by Marc Jacobs, Kate Spade, Coach and Juicy). Big frames are still big in fashion, based on the VIP line-up.

Diet Pepsi showed off its sleek new can design and Smirnoff took a page out of Pepsi’s 1970s marketing playbook with its own ‘People’s Challenge’ (sending correct guessers home with Martini sets instead of oversized badges). These indulgences were offset with healthy alternatives: Votre Vu’s SnapDragon Beauty Beverage and Ten Gauge Health Shots (surprisingly delicious), Trident Vitality care packages, Cold Stone Creamery’s travelling yoghurt bar. With “skinny” cocktails coming into season, VIP guests (or their personal bartenders) could mix things up without guilt with Bonita’s five-calorie mixers, or work off their favourite winter liqueurs and other indulgences with customized packages from Live in Fitness Enterprise’s custom workout programmes.

However, the winner of DA’s “best new artist” category was Mobo Cruiser’s high-tech recumbent bicycles, not only for their cool futuristic design, but ease of use. •

Elyse Glickman is US west coast editor of Lucire.

Burnished gold
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