Weekend Picturebook: Chicago
S A T U R D A Y
[lunch at portillo’s + catching up with my favorite walmartian-arkansan-chicagoans!]
[contemporary art museum]
[pre-dinner drinks at Pop’s Champagne (not pictured) then pizza at the famous Lou Malnati’s! it was amaaaazing]
[post-dinner walk along the beach with beautiful views of the skyline]
[the drake! my beautiful, old hotel in a perfect location]
S U N D A Y
[early morning walk on the beach – it was cold, but totally worth it]
[after the cold, long walk, I deserved this, right?? vanilla bean + chocolate old fashioned from glazed and infused]
[art institute of chicago was incredible – saw some of my favorites from renoir + monet. I could have spent all day in here!]
[cliche bean picture + walk through millennium park – then more walking, eating, and shopping before …]
[the big event – oscars war room! we were certainly exhausted by the end of it, but very proud of a successful campaign]
If you didn’t see the Oscars and are interested in learning more about how we played a part in the night, check out these videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLs6zAwIMDe3MCfYpFAi2PYe9TtUJC3Ig9
xo xo
Oscars 2014: 5 Best + Worst Dressed
B E S T D R E S S E D
{Cate Blanchett, Armani // This dress and those applique details are just a dream. She looks like a goddess, just floating along without a care in the world. The nude could easily wash her out, but somehow it complements her skin and hair perfectly.}
{Lupita Nyong’o, Prada // Oh my goodness, breathtaking. She set the bar pretty high as she’s been killing it all awards season, but this “Nairobi” blue instantly set her apart from her peers. Only change in my opinion – lose the headband. It makes her look too young.}
{Angelina Jolie, Elie Saab // Angelina Jolie (and Brad Pitt) are practically royalty in the movie star realm, and she totally brought it. This is the definition of confidence and age-appropriate sexy.}
{Charlize Theron, Dior // Talk about a simple stunner. The fit of this dress could not be more perfect and I absolutely love the nude straps. Top it off with perfect hair, makeup and accessories and you’ve got a winner.}
{Kate Hudson, Versace // I really have no words except, just look at her. The plunging v-neck accentuates her fit figure flawlessly and that cape takes it from beautiful to outstanding.}
Honorable Mentions: Jennifer Lawrence, Olivia Wilde
W O R S T D R E S S E D
Okay, to be fair, there really wasn’t any look on the red carpet I thought was just awful. Overall, the gowns were beautiful, but the five below were just some of my least favorites.
{Jennifer Garner, Oscar de la Renta // I just don’t love this for the Oscars. She looks too much like a high-end flapper and the neckline is too grade school. Spice it up a little bit, Jen.}
{Kristen Bell, Cavalli // I ADORE Kristen Bell, so I hate to put her on this list. Again, it’s not horrible, but it’s not great either. The dress is fine, but the entire look is a little boring and safe. Also, the middle part hair? No.}
{Anne Hathaway, Gucci // This just looks strange. I can’t really put my finger on it, but it kind of looks like she’s wearing an armor breastplate on top of a gown. Sorry, Anne.}
{Sally Hawkins, Valentino// Sally, this was your moment! You were nominated for the first time! You could have killed it and you totally lost it. As we saw, the nude and applique were huge trends, but she did not pull it off properly. It looks like this dress was not fitted for her at all and she just threw it on last minute.}
{Amy Adams, Gucci // I was so excited to see what Amy was going to wear after her amazing dress at the Golden Globes … and this was totally underwhelming. It’s a beautiful dress, but the look is just so-so. I would have completely changed the hair and accessories to make this look more sexy.}
xo xo
Pop, Fizz, Clink!
This will be one of the first years in recent memory I have not hosted my annual Oscars viewing party. Awards season is one of my favorite things ever and it all leads up to the Academy Awards. A good watch party includes friends, ballots, champagne and red carpet critiquing.
Below are a few photos from my first ever viewing party in high school. The attire was sweats (which back then meant we were all wearing Victoria’s Secret PINK), we traced our hands on a fake red carpet and we drank sparkling cider.
Last year I rented out the theater at our apartment complex and had a special cake made just for the event. You can see photos and read my post here. Unfortunately this year I decided not to host an event. As it turned out, mother nature affirmed my decision, as we’re currently in a thunder-sleet-pocalypse and I’m not sure how many people would have been able to attend anyway.
While of course I’ll still be watching (ballot and champagne in hand) I wanted to share some fun viewing party ideas I’ve seen around the web.
Enjoy your evening with the stars! xo xo
{Oscar nominated actor straws via}
{popcorn bar via}
{easy gold decor via}
{movie quote cupcakes – TDF via}
{custom labels via}
{confetti poppers via}
You might also enjoy: 10 Facts You Should Know About the Oscars, Oscar Noms Reviews: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
Oscar Noms Reviews: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
This snowy weather (again!) makes me want to stay in all day and watch movies. Alas, that is not an option, but I wish it were. I could sit and watch movies for days on end. If made correctly, they’re so beautiful and give you a peek into another world, sometimes so different from you that you could have never imagined on your own.
With the Academy Awards less than a month away, I’m on a mission to see as many nominated movies as I can. You can see the full list of nominations here. While I still have a few to go, below are reviews of the movies I’ve seen lately. As I always say, take reviews with a grain of salt. If you want to see something, go see it. No matter what anyone says.
Wolf of Wall Street: B+
Here’s the short of it – the acting was phenomenal, but everything else was excessive. Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill absolutely deserve an award for their work, but it was overdone with sex and drugs. I understand why Martin Scorsese did what he did, but I just don’t agree with it. It also could have easily been cut by an hour at least.
American Hustle: A-
You want to talk about beauty, this was a beautiful film. The clothes, the music, the hair, the music – it was all absolutely perfect for the era. (I was born in the wrong decade!!) This acting was also top-notch. Every single performance was terrific, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Jeremy Renner, Christian Bale and of course, my love, Jennifer Lawrence.
Gravity: A+
I can’t remember when I’ve enjoyed a film so much. Scratch that – enjoyed and been on the edge of my seat so much. The entire film was just breathtaking and Sandra Bullock was perfect. George Clooney was good for some eye-candy and comic relief (per usual). Alfonso Cuaron needs to win Best Director.
Her: A-
I give this one a minus simply because parts of it were just too odd. While we are in the day and age where this could legitimately happen, we’re not quite ready to embrace it. That being said, the film was wonderfully made, retro and modern at the same time. Scarlett Johansson was brilliant. She made you feel and believe simply by her voice. That’s true talent right there.
Blue Jasmine: B+
The story was interesting enough, but as a whole it just wasn’t quite there. The movie’s one redeeming quality was Cate Blanchett, who seems to shine in any role she plays. However, when you don’t have the supporting actors and the plot to hold you up, there’s only so much you can do.
August: Osage County: C+
This movie was just sad. And I mean that in several ways. Sad as in super depressing and sad as in, I was really looking forward to this movie and it did not live up to expectations. Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts were INCREDIBLE. Streep’s monologues were remarkable and reminiscent of a stage play, but the story was just too depressing to justify the performances.
On the top of the list to watch before March 2: Captain Phillips, Dallas Buyers Club, Nebraska, 12 Years a Slave, Frozen
What do you think of the Oscar nominations?
xo xo
And the Oscar for best party goes to …
Theme: Simple with a touch of glam
Attire: Casual comfy with bling accessories
Food/Drink: Pizza + Champagne
Location: Ranch at Pinnacle Point Clubhouse/Theatre
Enjoy some pictures of a few of the night’s details + honored guests.
xo xo
{the invite}
{Kira}
{Shawn + Rhagen}
{Amanda + Ryan}
{Tayler + Luis}
{Jessica + Jonathan}
{Jon + Ashley}
{Lauren + Alex}
{girls}
{no papparazzi allowed}
{Seth McFarlane = hilarious}
{our very own Oscar}
{ballots}
Love, your hosts M + K
You might also enjoy: 10 Facts You Should Know About The Oscars, My Top 10 Movies of 2012
10 Facts You Should Know About The Oscars
One of my favorite times of the year is red carpet season. I love to see who takes home the big awards (including Best Dressed of course!)
I’ll be back tomorrow with my Oscar party recap, but until then, happy Sunday and enjoy!
xo xo
1. Only once in 80 years has a film (Driving Miss Daisy) won Best Picture without getting nominated for Best Director.
2. Amour is only the 9th foreign language film ever nominated for Best Picture.
3. Silver Linings Playbook got four acting nominations, the first time in more than 30 years that’s happened and only the 14th film to ever get all four nominations. No film has ever won all four acting awards. A Streetcar Named Desire won three of its four nominations back in the 1951 race, the only film in history to do so.
4. No film has won Best Picture in the last 30+ years without a Film Editing nomination.
5. In the past 25 years, only three films have won Best Picture without being nominated for any acting awards.
6. Only two Best Picture winners from 2000 onward had productions budgets exceeding $100 million.
7. This year in the Best Actress category includes the youngest person ever to be nominated (Quvenzhane Wallis, 9) and the oldest person (Emmanuelle Riva, 86) ever to be nominated.
8. The most nominated films in Oscar history are Titanic and All About Eve with 14 noms each.
9. The only sequel to have won Best Picture is The Godfather: Part II.
10. Meryl Streep has had the most Best Actress nominations (14) but Katharine Hepburn holds the title for winning the most in the category (4).
You might also enjoy: My Top 10 Movies of 2012, The Evolution of Movie-Going
m.davis xoxo 