At just 16 years old, American gymnast Shawn Johnson has already made a huge splash in the worlds of sports and beauty. She won multiple medals during the Summer Olympics in Beijing and has also been busy outside of the gym as a spokesperson for Cover Girl and Crest. We had the amazing opportunity to meet her while she was in Chicago to work with Feeding America (formerly known as America’s Second Harvest). Shawn took time out of her busy schedule to chat with us about her charity work, beauty obsessions, and her future goals.

The Daily Obsession: Tell us a bit about what you’re working on with Crest and Feeding America here in Chicago.
Shawn Johnson: Crest actually just donated $1 million worth of toothpaste to Feeding America. Especially during times like these, a lot of families’ first priority is to put food on the table, and people forget about dental care. I’m going to be giving out food and toothpaste and hopefully raise awareness about food donation shortages and health. (more…)

The first time I met Kathleen (aka joie), she came strolling into brunch with a SpaceNK bag and her first box of Eve Lom Cleanser.  Although I’ve long heard of this cult fave, I’d never tried the product so I intently listened to her explain the changes she saw in her skin for the next few weeks.  We also jumped at the chance to interview Eve Lom and find out from the creator herself what makes that product so iconic.

The Daily Obsession: How did you formulate the cleanser and develop the idea of a cleanser designed around the lymphatic drainage system?
Eve Lom: Developing the cleanser did not happen overnight; it was a process. When I lived in LA, I met renowned skincare specialist Georgette Klinger, who inspired me to become a facialist. I became fascinated by the therapeutic side of beauty, studying lymphatic drainage, cranial osteopathy and nutrition. When I moved to London and started practicing my facial, I also started to develop a cleanser to be used during my facial. I mixed my own concoctions in yogurt cups using ingredients I remembered from my childhood growing up on a farm in Czechoslovakia: natural ingredient such as hops – a natural rinse aid, clove – antiseptic for clear skin, eucalyptus and chamomile – soothing, and cocoa butter. (more…)

It’s an exciting and very busy time for Nina Garcia right now - a new directorship at Marie Clarie, a new TV show, and a newly released second book.  Although we weren’t able to catch a face-to-face interview with Nina among all the Fashion Week frenzy, she was gracious enough to answer a few questions for TDO that we were dying to know…

The Daily Obsession: What are you looking forward to most about your new directorship at Marie Claire?
Nina Garcia: I am excited to work with the wonderful new group of people at Marie Claire. Everyone is super creative and intelligent and accesible! I am proud to be a part of their team. New beginnings are always energizing.

TDO: Who were your style icons growing up?
Nina: When I was very young, my style icons were my parents. My mother taught me to take pride in what I wore and how I presented myself. She never left the house without being perfectly put together. And my father taught me how to adopt a personal style and stick to it. (more…)

Ted Gibson has been on Oprah.  He counts Angelina Jolie and Anne Hathaway (Angie and Annie to him) as his regular clients, and at $950 a pop, he’s the most expensive haircut in America.  Someday, I do dream of the luxury of having Ted Gibson cut my hair, but for now, I’ll have to settle for the excitement of having Ted Gibson even touch my hair. (However, to date, I’ve had 2 stylists from the Ted Gibson Salon style my hair, Haley and Sade, and they are both wonderful!)

Last Tuesday, thanks to Total Beauty, I was fortunate enough to sit down with Ted for a good 30 minutes - to pick his brain about his professional and personal life, as well as snag a few tricks here and there.  Ted is sooo friendly and totally down to earth.  In fact, we Facebook message each other.  Jealous?  He doesn’t even consider himself a celebrity! (Ted, I saw how the cameras mobbed over you at Lela Rose pre-show so you’re not fooling me).

Hailing from Texas, Ted got his start at Aveda where he was for a long time.  Aveda took him to Minnesota for 6 years and then out here to New York where he started working with fashion models and celebrities.  At the time, Ted was everywhere: Milan, Paris, London, and New York. His first fashion show was Miu Miu (great choice!) and soon he was styling covers of Vogue and Marie Claire. (more…)

Monday evening, Total Beauty invited me to a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet the executives of the Estee Lauder company (more on that in an upcoming post), and one of my favorite makeup gurus, Bobbi Brown, was present!  Of course, I had to snag a quick interview with the legend herself and came out with my favorite quote of the night: “Barack Obama wears Bobbi Brown!” (more…)

Right after we saw the Tracy Reese show, Carolyn and I were excited to stumble upon James Aguiar, stylist and fashion expert extraordinaire, catching a break in between his busy schedule of shows. You may recognize him from “The Look for Less” on the Style channel, as the host of “Full Frontal Fashion,” or as the former fashion director of NYC department store institution, Bergdorf Goodman.

We couldn’t help but seize the opportunity to ask him a few questions about his favorites for Fall (because Spring 2009 is great and all, but we want to know what we should buy NOW) and his thoughts thus far about the Spring collections.

Fall Trends for Men: The return of the dressed up man.  James sees men beginning to fully embrace the suit, thanks to the proliferation of numerous menswear designers who are all designing fabulous suits. His favorite? Lanvin - for its perfect mix of trendy and classic. (more…)

Paige Adams-Geller is the founder of Paige Premium Denim, one of the most beloved denim brands by women worldwide.  Having been a fit model for numerous denim labels (many of which had male designers at its helm), Paige sought out to create classic styles, washes and fits - for real women, by a woman.  Now, the label also includes men’s, maternity and kids lines in addition to women’s.  And who’s worn her jeans?  Just about every celebrity you can think of - and most of the women we know.   Paige kindly took time out of her busy schedule to answer a few questions for us - dishing about her personal closet staples to her tips on finding the perfect jean (to make your butt look great - because that’s what really counts, right?).  Read on!

The Daily Obsession: You began as a fit model for top denim brands. How do you think that experience has shaped your brand, and helped differentiate you from other denim labels?
Paige Adams-Geller: I got to learn the ins and outs of the business by observing some of the most innovative and creative designers in the industry. I learned about seam placement, pocket structure and more. But more than anything I saw a hole! Most of the designers were men; they didn’t understand a women’s body, her curves and her desire for a classic jean. I was able to take what I learned from them and create a product that puts a women’s perspective on it.

TDO: You’re one of the very few premium denim designer to incorporate larger sizes into your line. How did it come about that you broke that 24-32 mold?
PAG: A lot of designers have an idea of their ideal customer – that was the mold I wanted to break. I wanted every girl to be able to wear my designs not just tall girls or slim girls, etc. I had grown up in the modeling industry and knew what kind of mentality it breeds, and I wanted to fight that kind of conformity. (more…)

Over the last few years, Hayden+Harnett has become one of the hottest new names in handbag design. They’ve developed an incredibly loyal following, and with good reason - HH bags have that magic blend of hip style and functionality that women are always after. The line has become so popular that HH has recently launched a fabulous ready-to-wear line as well - and that’s just the beginning. In anticipation of the release of their gorgeous fall line, we sat down to chat with founder Toni Hacker to talk about her background, her style, and her skills with a hula hoop.

The Daily Obsession: After reading a little bit about you, I get the feeling that handbag design was sort of an accidental calling for you. Can you tell us a little about how that happened?
Toni Hacker: Definitely an accident, but a very serendipitous and happy one. My formal education is in industrial design with a strong studio arts background in sculpture and metalsmithing. I’d always loved fashion, but had no intention of becoming a fashion designer. My first “real” job was in industrial design, but I didn’t feel super challenged there. I posted my resume online and a fashion accessory company approached me to join them as their design director. I learned so much there about developing accessories in all types of fabrications. This is where my interest in fashion really combined with my product design background and things just started to click. (more…)

We absolutely adore the bags from Andrea Brueckner’s line - and we were so excited when she agreed to do an interview with us! Launched in 2004, Andrea Brueckner is known for her stunning and innovative collection of handbags - from the famed Saddle Bag to the obsession-worthy Luxembourg Satchel. We asked Andrea everything - from her bag must-haves to her fashion icons. Let’s get started, shall we?

The Daily Obsession: Before starting your own line, you worked at Carolina Herrera, Jill Stuart and Craig Robinson. Did your experience at those brands influence your aesthetic today?
Andrea Brueckner: The designers I worked for before I started the company didn’t necessarily influence my aesthetic. They more gave me the experience and background I needed to start my own company. All of these companies were very small, so while working there, I was able to gain experience in all aspects of a small business, from design, to sales, and production. Craig Robinson probably influenced me the most, though, in terms of aesthetic. He was a bespoke menswear tailor, who taught me a lot about design and construction and form, which are typically what influence me the most when I begin to design.

TDO: When you started your line, what made you choose handbag design over clothing, shoes, or other accessories?
AB: I started my line while working for a clothing company. I began to design and sew little handbags on the side, for myself and for my friends. I pounded the pavement for awhile, and then the little ideas turned into bigger ones. (more…)

All Lacquered Up is one of the best resources for nail polish news and reviews online, so when we got the opportunity to interview its creator, fellow blogger Michelle, we jumped at the chance to talk to her about why she decided to start blogging, how much time her (very impressive!) polish swatches take to create, her all-time favorite nail colors, and much more. Check it out!

The Daily Obsession: Why did you decide to create All Lacquered Up?
Michelle Mismas: It all happened on a whim with very little planning, which is very much my style. I had been posting on the Makeup Alley nail board for a couple years and even though it is a great resource for polish information, the message boards are hard to search. I was an avid blog reader, especially Blogdorf Goodman, so I decided to start a place of my own to share info on new collections, colors I love and nail related news. It all just evolved from there.

TDO: You spend a lot of time swatching colors and photographing them for your site. How much time do you spend on this process? Tell us more about it.
MM: Sometimes I wonder if I’ve dug myself into a hole by focusing so much on sharing nail polish swatches. It’s very time consuming and there just isn’t enough time in the day to share all the colors people want to see. But ultimately I do what I do to help my readers, and I feel that without seeing the shade on the nail, it’s like shopping blind. In the bottle, nail polish can be very deceiving, so I hope I’m doing a service with my images. (more…)