Splendora Newsletter, March 15 2002

What to wear: Patent Leather Tennis Shoes
What to hair: Au natural
What to listen to: Air's, Everybody Hertz - 10,000 HZ Legend Remixes
What to see: Kissing Jessica Stein
What to rent: The Heist
What to make-up: Blue eye shadow
What to covet: 40 carat Canary diamond
What to make: Daily personal goal list
What to read: The Nanny Diaries
Who to lust after: Peter Krause from Six Feet Under
What to plan: How to wear white pumps (ironically of course!)
What to drink: Fernet
What to eat: Polenta with fresh herbs

"Dreaming of the time when I can don my white wares is what's getting me through these last few months of winter."

Amy Diller
Rye, NY

It has been reported that Benjamin Bratt has been spotted all over San Francisco. We hear he's been shopping at Cala Foods in the Haight, dining at the Slanted Door on Valencia, and noshing on a burger in the Lower Haight with gal pal Talisa Soto at Burger Joint. It's so fun to have a star to spice up this otherwise celeb-free city. Anywho, Ben's brazen display of normalcy makes us gals go ga-ga. He is a delicious little treat and if we saw him sauntering about we would stare, stutter, but never approach...after all, isn't that why Ben-babe escaped hell-ay?

SAN FRANCISCO
You are invited to join Splendora and Reflect for and evening at Reflect's ultra-hip Union Square store. All pampering and festivities are complimentary, but bring your pocketbooks because we know you will fall in love with Reflect's custom made cosmetics and fragrances. To RSVP email info@splendora.com or call (415) 495-6600.

On Wednesday March 19th The Bubble Lounge is hosting a wine seminar and tasting. For $25 you can enjoy light hors d'oeuvres while learning all about what you're drinking (impress your friends). RSVP at (415) 434-4204 x 17.

The Spa Nob Hill is introducing a extraordinary new service called the Scen Tao Hot Stone Treatment. Scen Tao is a two-hour journey that combines a shiatsu massage and an acupressure facial to awaken the body and mind. Treat yourself...and when you make that appointment don't forget to tell them that Splendora sent you!

LOS ANGELES
Now here is a show you will not want to miss...Sonic Youth is putting on their All Tomorrow's Parties experimental music fest this weekend. The stellar lineup includes indie rock faves Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks, Peaches, Stereolab, Eddie Vedder, Sleater-Kinney, Television and Sonic Youth. Go to www.wayahead.com/atp/ check out the full line-up and all the other pertinent details (tix, schedule, venues).

NEW YORK
Those in the know folks at Shecky's are hosting a "Girls Night Out" shopping party on March 20th. Click on the link below for more info.

The last few days in Paris have been an absolute whirlwind--fashion shows, VIP parties, afternoon-long lunches at sidewalk cafes--but perhaps the most thrilling part of my trip was attending a small dinner at the Parisian apartment of a world famous architect-designer-innovator and his lovely wife. It wasn't just thrilling because I am a big fan of his work but also because it was amazing to see the man behind the monuments.

What first struck me about their residence was the lack of symmetry. I had imagined his place to be steely, angular, cold, and starkly white. Much to my surprise it was whimsical, almost messy with its Venetian candelabras, African statues, faux mink throws, and glossy grand piano covered with what looked like remnants from a Mexican flea market. Except for the mindblowing views of just about every landmark in Paris, it looked the kind of place where your richest college with the best taste would live. As I am not the kind of gal to match her shoes to her handbag, I was immensely inspired by this bold haphazard-ness--there was order to the chaos and besides it looked originally cool!

I sat in the living room and drank delicious champagne biologique, available only from the couple's private cellars, and chatted with a metal sculptor and English hat designer. When it came time for dinner we were ushered into a narrow, typical French kitchen and had to squeeze in around a tiny table. What was amazing about the whole experience was that this clever couple had taken something as mundane as pasta in the kitchen and had made it chic. The 8 of us sat elbow-to-elbow carefully passing prosciutto, parmesan, and trying not to spill wine from our egg shaped glasses (they weeble and they wobble but they don't fall down). At one point someone (probably me) brought up the topic of Britney, Madonna, and Marketing (always a good icebreaker). As usual, everybody had an opinion except at this table there were several people who actually knew the two pop divas. "Cherie, Madonna eez not just a seen-ger, she eez also a genius. And also she eez a nice girl."

Like a visitor from another planet I listened to tales about summer houses, trips to Gstaad, disobedient nannies, talented psychics, scandalous interior decorators, etc.. and while I politely nodded my head and agressively refilled my glass I found my mind returning to my back-breaking work at Splendora HQ. As a comparatively small town pampering official, I realized that I am just not cut out to be a full-time socialite and while rubbing elbows is exciting it just doesn't compare to scouring the city like a superhero for the best.

It's good to be home.

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