Armand de Brignac Champagne - "A Taste of Luxury"

Alex Garcia of Calle Ocho restaurant

Photos courtesy of Esther-Mireya Tejeda

On March 25th, I attended the "El Sabor de Lujo" event, celebrating Armand de Brignac Champagne's (also known as Ace of Spades) recent rating as the No. 1 Champagne in the world! Armand de Brignac beat out Cristal and Dom Perignon in a blind taste test of 1,000 brands.

"The Aces" have become the Champagne of choice for A-list celebrities - Jay-Z, P.Diddy, Beyonce and Alex Rodriguez.

Armand de Brignac is packaged in a flashy, high end hand-dipped metallized bottle with four hand-applied and polished pewter labels.

The event featured a champagne tasting of Gold Brut, Rose and Blanc de Blancs cuvees, with Latin chef Alex Garcia of Calle Ocho restaurant hosting the event.

I caught the tail end of this event, sampling the delectable desserts by Alex Garcia - mini pancakes topped with caviar and donut-like pastries filled with warm hot chocolate mousse, paired with the Rose.

- Kim Weling

Learn more about Armand de Brignac Champagne

Guess Soho Boutique Re-Launch Party

Lydia Hearst on the scene with a BYSOG clutch


Michelle Trachtenberg

Lydia Hearst and Michelle Trachtenberg

Amber Rose

Kelly Bensimon

Selita Banks

Phillip Bloch

On July 22nd, Marie Claire and Michelle Trachtenberg hosted the re-launch of the Guess flagship store on Broadway between Prince and Spring. A portion of the evening’s proceeds benefited Trachtenberg’s charity, Oxfam America, an international relief and development organization that creates lasting solutions to poverty, hunger and injustice.

With a $5 donation to Oxfam America, guests were entitled to 20% off their purchases. Even if guests didn’t make a purchase that evening, they received a gift bag with a $5 donation to Oxfam America. The gift bags were so worth it, containing Bumble and Bumble grooming crème, Buxom mascara, Demeter Fragrance Library bath and shower gel, Decleor moisturizer, philosophy cleanser, ESSIE nail polish, Marie Claire magazine, $20 Guess gift card, magnets, perfume samples, wristband and Loyalty Program card, Godiva chocoiste and completely bare gift card. Bare Escentuals was also supposed to be included but they must have run out since I didn’t get my bag until the end of the night.

Celebrity attendees included model-actress-socialite Lydia Hearst, models Amber Rose and Selita Ebanks, Real Housewives of New York's Kelly Bensimon and celebrity stylist Phillip Bloch. DJ Harley Viera-Newton was spinning the beats.

As I wandered around the store, I did see a charcoal heather cardigan that I liked with stud details at the wrist, and two pairs of jeans in particular, one with studded leather cross back pockets ($158) and the other with rhinestone cross back pockets ($108). Cute selection of shoes too! It’s been a long time since I’ve shopped anything by Guess. I think Phillip Bloch said it best when he said people should ‘stay true to their own style’. Guess may not be for everyone but I was able to find a few pieces there to add to my shopping list.

- Kim Weling