MAC wants to introduce you to a few of their new friends…Monoka, Ermine and Eriko are the three muses behind the MAC Fafi line. Bursting with color, life and edgy energy, these grafitti queens are the inspiration for this colorful new line. Check it out!

MAC Fafi’s packaging is emblazoned with images from the amazing artist Fafi for a cute and fun take on their classic black cases. These highly pigmented colors are available in paint pots (liquid to powder eye shadows), lip glosses, lip sticks, nail polishes and blush. MAC Fafi’s girly pearlescent hues, Easter egg blues and lots and lots of pinks are also just in time for spring.

Been dying to get your hands on some of the new goodies from the MAC Fafi collection? Read my MAC Fafi review to see why these spritely compacts and pretty pots need to grace your vanity:

My MAC-over with the MAC Fafi Collection

1) First, I started with the MAC Fafi lipstick in Utterly Frivolous, then topped it off with MAC Fafi lipglass in Totally It. As any makeup maven knows, a good lip gloss is hard to come by, and this one is one of the best. It stayed put without being sticky for hours and kept it’s bright hue.

2) Next, I brushed the apples of my cheeks with the MAC Fafi powder blush in Fashion Frenzy. This is the perfect blush for spring and is subtle and girly.

3) Finally, I used my beloved paint MAC Fafi paint pots (highly pigmented eye color) in Perky (pink) and Rollickin’ (turquoise) to shade my eyes. I’ve never used these two colors together on my lids and they truly made my hazel eyes pop!

4) Also great for spring is their pinky-pearlescent nail lacquer (I tried Girls will be Girls).

The greatest thing about the MAC Fafi line is that you can use the paint pots, lip glass and other goodies at the level of intensity that you want. I prefer a more subtle look, so for me, less was more; but I could have easily amped it up harajuko girl-style with a little help from MAC Fafi’s Eye Kohl eye pencils in white and black and a few more swipes of blush.

Snag these spring must haves from MAC Fafi here before your favorite colors sell out. And many already have…lucky for you, Couture in the City is hosting a fab MAC Fafi Giveaway!

Enter HERE to Win our MAC Fafi Giveaway!

One lucky winner will receive:

Powder Blush – Fashion Frenzy
129 SE Powder /Blush Brush and Fafi travel pouch
LipGlass – Cult Fave
Lipstick – Flash-N-Dash
Eyes 1
Fluidline – Blacktrack
Paint Pot: Layin’ Low
210 Precise Eye Liner Brush
Rectangle MAC Small Clearly Fafi

MAC Fafi Giveaway valued at $189.00

Don’t forget to ENTER our MAC Fafi Giveaway for your chance to win! Deadline is March 17, 2008 at midnight…good luck!

A quick update regarding running shoe manufacturers and the apparently very uncomfortable issue of evidence.

Number of major running shoe manufacturers contacted= 18
Number who have responded= 11
Number who have provided evidence that their running shoes decrease injury rates= 0
(Number of legal threats= 0)

This is all very laissez-faire (let the buyer beware), but I think we can do better.

I think it is time to harness the power of numbers. I will post an online poll on this blog. If you want to see a straight answer from your cherished shoe brand posted on this blog then vote now!

I am so very sorry about the break! I didn’t have Internet connection for a while so i couldn’t post and now I’m in Boston and only have just gotten accesses to a computer.I’m back Sunday but then on Monday I’m going away on an adventure week with my school so normal blogging should commence Monday week or so.

But I will be back soon with lots of posts so do come back. Also anonymous who was wondering when I’d be back you rock! I can’t believe I actually have a readership!

Its snowing here by the way! Whenever I see snow I get giddy with exitment, as you can see by the amount of exlamation marks in this post! I would put an straticially placed picture of snow here but for soom reason it’s not working..

I have been busily contacting all the major shoe companies asking them to direct me to the evidence that their distance running shoes either prevent injuries or improve performance.
The most entertaining responses so far have been from Mizuno and Puma who both claimed that whether or not their running shoes prevent injuries or improve performance was a trade secret.

Refusing to tell consumers whether or not your product works is certainly a unique marketing ploy!

They are not alone. I have received a similar response from ASICS in the past.

I received a preliminary reply from Brooks in which it was clear that they did not appreciate the question. Hopefully their next installment is a little more enlightening.

New Balance referred me to a website where the use of their shoes is justified on the basis of the opinion of their podiatrists.

Saucony were a breath of fresh air, their representative laying out it clearly that there is no direct evidence that their shoes either prevent injury or improve performance.

I will keep you updated as more replies come to hand!

I Haunt Wizards are an up and coming band hailing from Brighton,England.They are ridiculously young,two 17 year old boys and one 16 year old female singer.They formed in october 2007 and are already getting a lot of press attention.Their music is of the electronica/Nintendo/disco music genre that is steadily getting bigger.Their music is scheduled to be released through i-tunes and they were just picked for one of the songs of the week on loud and quiet.
So as they are one of my favourite bands at the moment and I foresee them becoming massive soon ,I decided to interview them.Just a quick warning though their answers aren’t the run of the mill ones you would get from any band,they reflect their age and personalty which I think is refreshing as you read a lot of interviews where every band sounds the same!

I’ll start with a classic..What’s your favorite breakfast cereal?

Lucky Charms, Sugar-oh’s, Choco Drops, Frosted Sugar Treats, Helens lactose intollerant, so we give her dry toast. what do you taste like tuts? ;]

You all have such amazing hair, especially Dexter how do you do it and how long does it take?

my mum cuts our hair and styles it and everything. bitch got style. i really like your hair hot-rod, spunky

Why I haunt wizards?

we love hocus pocus, for the PC. its kind of a reference to that. also wizard sleeves are pretty cool … what?

As this is a fashion blog I should ask you something fashion related,any favorite designers?

Babycakes are gooood. your clothes are neat .. but i think they’d look better on my bedroom floor

So the music question, inspiration and influences?

Duran Duran, Willy-S, The Cribs, Crystal Castles, Justice, Armand Van Helden, Lady Sov. Anime helps as an influence, as well as horror films. sexy SEXY ladies such as your self always help us to get it up … from the drawing board … what?

Describe your style

female fronted / 80′s / disco / wierd indie style I guess?

Saved by the bell or fresh prince of Bel-Air?

Oh, Fresh Prince .. BIG WILLAAAYYYYYYY

How did I haunt wizards come about, the rumour is you formed in October and now you have a record deal and are releasing songs through i-tunes?

sounds like someone did their homework. we just got bored of guitars and metal music. DIY techno is where its at you hot babe ;]

Anything you can’t stop listening to at the moment?

the sweet sound of your voice.

What’s in store for I haunt wizards in 2008? Playing in Dublin any time soon?

we dont know to be honest, our management will decide all that soon enough. we want to really get playing live a lot more once we have recorded after March

so babe, what you doing this weekend? ….

me?

When I was younger I was obsessed with the tv show of the comic sailor moon. I had lots of the merchandise like notebooks but never dolls as I never came across any.When I moved back home to Ireland there wasn’t any sailor moon anywhere and I guess it juts never reached here which is a shame because its one of the best kids cartoons.I was reminded of this girl i saw in Tokyo last year when I came across a Tuxedo mask doll online. Tuxedo mask was Sailor Moon’s love interest.He was a mild mannered student by day but at night he became Tuxedo Mask and his weapon of choice was roses.


I didn’t get a very good picture of her because i was too afraid to ask but you get an idea of what she looked like from these. It might just be me and she might be dressing up as something completely different but she reminds me a lot of Tuxedo Mask. It was hilarious seeing this tiny figure( she was about 4 foot something and looked very young) wandering around the crowed streets of Harajuku dressed in a cape and top hat. Despite her being about a foot smaller then everyone else she defiantly stood out

I’ll leave you with the Japanese titles as I couldn’t find any good quality English dubbed ones and the English translation to the theme song.Even the credits are amazing!

Fighting evil by moonlight
Winning love by daylight
Never running from a real fight
She is the one named Sailor Moon

She will…never turn her back on a friend
She is… always there to defend
She is…the one on whom we can depend
She is the one named Sailor…..

…. Sailor Venus
…. Sailor Mercury
…. Sailor Mars
….. Sailor Jupiter

With secret powers
All so new to her
She is the one named Sailor Moon

Fighting evil by moonlight
Winning love by daylight
With her Sailor Scouts to help fight
She is the one named Sailor Moon
She is the one named Sailor Moon

She is the one . . . Sailor Moon

Style.com makes spring shopping easy by bringing you all of the hottest styles early! Check out their awesome and highly covetable Spring Style Guide HERE and be prepared to drool!

Unfortunately for us workin’ gals, Style.com’s Spring Style Guide features some of the best designers like D&G, Diane von Furstenburg and even super cute boutique pieces from Petit-Bateau and Les Garconnes. While most of these bags and dresses cost as much as your car payment or mortgage, LeFashionista has these same great designer styles at a fraction of the high-end price!

Check out this must-have list courtesy of Style.com and stock up on these goods at LeFashionista:

1) Bright Graphic Jackets

Kahri Pop Rock Jacket $304.00

2) Knit Dresses

Kahri Rose Tank Dress, $74

3) Pendant Necklaces

Juju Leroux Tela Pendant Drop Necklace, $96

Be sure to scan through Style.com’s Spring Style Guide and if something catches your eye, don’t blow the rent; just look at LeFashionista for designer styles at working girl prices.

yay
so many of my favourite bands are finally releasing albums soon! it sucks when a band doesn’t have an album because I don’t like singles so I wait to buy the whole album!

the teenagers deput is on sale in march but its on download now.I love the teenagers so much they are defiantly one of my favourite bands! I’ve seen them twice once in Paris once here and they so good. they are the essence of cool and I met them after their gig here and they were really nice as well! I’m also on their flikr because I’m that cool…jealous much? anyway this is there myspace where they have a couple songs up. they had the whole album up for a couple days and I gave it a listen and its top notch

Another band whose album is out now I believe is lightspeed champions.
remember test icicles?

they had that hit circle square triangle which I love so much and they are thought to have been the pioneers of the nu rave/metal scene but they never got much commercial success.They look so cool I’d say if they were around now they would be big,they were too ahead of their time hahaha

well anyway
Devonte Hynes of test icicles has a new band and its dramatically different to test icicles its very mellow and teenage angsty. When you think about it its funny just how different the bands are. he has a cute blog
where he details his life in a very emo way which is quite endearing actually. Anyway you should check his band out if you don’t know them at their myspace

Ham sandwich is an Irish band from kells( but lets just ignore that!) I have seen them twice and both times they have blown me away. They are one of those bands who even f you don’t like them that much on record you will love them live. When my father first heard them he said they sounded like joy division but I don’t get that comparison.All I know is that they are amazing and their album is probably the one I’m looking forward to the most.The lead singer Niamh has great style and amazing stage clothes,its embarrassing to admit this but I really admire her because she’s cool and you never see cool Irish people so its nice to know that there are some out there.The videos of them on the late late show and you get some sense of what their like live
gotta love Pat Kenny as well! Ham sandwich’s album is on sale from the 15 of feburary

The last band I can remember that is releasing an album soon is Foals.I saw Foals supporting bloc party and they were really good on stage. Unfortunately since they were support no one really payed attention to them and I had really annoying smelly people beside me( who actually smelt so bad I don’t know what it was) who kept shouting words from hummer over and over again even when the band wasn’t even playing hummer! Seriously if you only know one song,don’t advertise it.Since then I’ve wanted to see them play live again and they are coming to Dublin on the 6th of march in Whelan’s but of course its over 18s! I was uber upset( a bit of alliteration for you) when I heard. There album is on sale in march,no date yet.I’ve seen them on all of the big in 2008 lists so I’ve a feeling they will make it this year.www.myspace.com/foals

I’m going to have to start saving up to get all of these!

People get awfully fired up about when talking about whether heel striking or a mid-foot strike is a better running technique. Foot strike is obviously important, but there is a danger is being too prescriptive how it should occur.

What is more important is that each runner find the running style which is most beneficial for them. There is never one formula which can be universally applied to all body types, running shoes, speeds and surfaces.

How do you find your ideal running style? Your body is preprogrammed to find the most efficient way of doing things. Running is no different. If you focus on the training task rather than your form, you will naturally adapt your gait pattern to that which is most efficient for you.

So why do so many people run so badly? And why do we have to teach people how to run?

I suspect that a major component will turn out to be that modern running shoes not only disrupt our biomechanics, but also stop us from learning how to run efficiently. By blocking the precise sesnory information usually gathered by the foot, they appear to give us a kind of running dyslexia. If you can’t feel your feet properly, how can you learn to run efficiently? Running in a pair of Nike Air Max is surely akin to trying to play piano with astronaught gloves on.

When viewed from this perspective, the solution is not to teach runners how to run, it is remove those factors which are preventing them from learning this for themselves. Coaches need to get their athletes either into bare feet for part of their training or to find them a shoe which does not block their capacity to learn. Once this is achieved, then the coach can stand back and focus on distance and intensity whilst style takes care of itself.

So what is the end result of this unimpaired learning process? Everyone is different, but most distance runners will end up landing on the mid foot or with the foot flat to the ground. I am yet to see a natural heel striker whilst running in bare feet, but have heard of a few people who maintain that this is their natural gait.

So get out there and find your style! You don’t need a coach and you don’t need a fancy pair of shoes. Just find a grass track and introduce it to your bare feet. If you take it slowly and give yourself plenty of time to adapt you will find it very rewarding.

So what do you do if you then want to go back to running in shoes? The challenge is to find a pair of shoes which allow you to maintain your barefoot style. Unfortunately, you will find that most shoes will dramatically change the way you run and many have been deliberately designed this way. To avoid this, a shoe with a thin, flat, highly flexible sole is a good start. Think Dunlop Volleys, think track shoes with waffle soles.

Unfortunately, even these shoes alter gait. It was this frustration that led Dr Scott Nightingale and I to begin developing barefoot running shoes for our own use. Our current favourite is the “Barefoot on Grass”. As well as minimising mechanical disruption to the foot, we also specifically designed it to optimise sensory feedback. To achieve this, we constructed the sole from a series of overlapping scales. Each scale is independently mobile, thus allowing your foot to detect precisely localised changes in pressure.

I wear this shoe when I am not training barefoot and it is the only shoe I have tried in which I still feel ‘barefoot’ and don’t have to consciously work to maintain my natural barefoot gait. Check it out at http://www.barefootongrass.com/.

Firstly, a very Happy New Year to you all!

In the spirit of this new beginning I am going to be bold.

I am not aware of any controlled clinical trials that have tested the efficacy and safety of heel strike running shoes (ie elevated cushioned heel and motion control systems). That is to say, there is no evidence that these running shoes either decrease injury rates or improve performance.

If this is the case, what are you paying for? If you examine the product descriptions for these shoes, manufacturers such as ASICS and Nike make no claim that their products will do anything other than provide a particular running experience.

Given the cost of shoe manufacture in China these days, anyone paying more than $50 for a pair of running shoes should be expecting much more than just a pleasant “ride”.

Am I being unfair? Lets put it out there-

Is any running shoe company prepared to claim that wearing their distance running shoes will decrease your risk of suffering musculoskeletal running injuries?

Is any shoe manufacturer prepared to claim that wearing their running shoes will improve your distance running performance?

If you are prepared to make these claims, where is your peer reviewed data to back it up?

Stay tuned…I have my legal team standing by!