Tiza Prom Dress and Pageant Blog

The New Moon madness is for real now

2009-11-19T01:06:20Z

The other night was the premiere for The Twilight Saga: New Moon. What is that, you ask? Lol JK hilarious. Anyway, there was a star-studded premiere featuring (duh) Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, plus like, 50 Cent? And basically everyone else in the universe. I will be withholding judgment on the actual film until Sunday at 11:10pm, when, um, I will apparently be seeing it, according to my ticket.

Until then, let us please analyze the outfits/postures/body language/hand placement of all of our favorite Twilight friends. Yay!

First up: Kristen Stewart

Hey, look who got dressed up all fancy! I think that sometimes people forget that despite her surly demeanor, Kristen Stewart is just... really pretty. (Which is why we allow her to be so surly in the first place.) Yay for her. She looks nice.

Taylor Lautner
He almost creepily does not look like a 17-year-old. Especially when you see him as a THIRTEEN-year-old. Seriously, watch this video. It is amazing. Oh, but don't they look so cute here?

Robert Pattinson

I know that everyone, everywhere, is going to disagree with me on this, but I actually thought Robert Pattinson looked slightly strange. Like maybe an actual vampire? But what do I know, I have only read book one of this series.

Ashley Greene
This dress feels slightly too old for her, but Ashley Greene looks lovely anyway.

Dakota Fanning

This girl is perpetually age-appropriate. I approve of that quality. Also this outfit.

Jennifer Love Hewitt
Wait... what? Why is she here?

Taylor Swift: Still adorable, (allegedly) single

2009-11-17T01:51:33Z

Taylor Swift was on the cover of December's In Style magazine, and the teen country superstar (who recently racked up a crazy amount of awards at the CMAs) claims that she and Twilight's Taylor Lautner -- werewolf hunk and super-buff teen dream extraordinaire -- are totally not dating. She is happy to be single, she says, because it is by choice. And also because not having a boyfriend frees up her time for activities such as: writing in her diary, and lighting scented candles. O Swifty! That is too adorable. Excuse me while I go watch the totally Jane Austen-inspired video for Love Story.

Wes Anderson can make style icons out of tiny dolls

2009-11-17T00:59:27Z

Last Friday, Fantastic Mr. Fox -- Wes Anderson's long-awaited film adaptation of the beloved Roald Dahl book -- was released in theaters. The film, which Anderson wrote with The Squid and the Whale's Noah Baumbach, does not feature any live humans on camera (although Meryl Streep, George Clooney, Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray all supply voices) -- it is stop-motion animation, and the actors are tiny dolls -- and yet, Anderson has managed to create characters so lifelike and so distinct that they might as well exist in the same universe as Ritchie and Margot Tenenbaum. Except for that they exist in that of Roald Dahl. The story, which expands upon Dahl's slim original edition, tells the story of a charming, scheming, somewhat reckless father fox (Foxy, voiced by Clooney) who accidentally jeopardizes the lives of himself and everyone he loves. It is a witty, sometimes emotional, and fantastically beautiful film: every tiny detail is tended to with great care, right down to the thumbtacks on walls, or books on shelves. And, of course, there are the outfits. Foxy wears a suit cut from the same cloth (literally) as one of Anderson's custom-made corduroy numbers, but even those characters who spend the majority of the film in their pajamas have distinct -- and distinctly Andersonian -- identities. And perhaps you won't come out of the movie with new outfits in mind (unless you ave a thing for matronly frocks), but this one is a must-see regardless. Aren't style and fashion basically the same thing, after all?

Former Miss South Carolina Teen USA learns about redemption, the facts of life

2009-11-16T14:58:39Z

Former Miss South Carolina Teen USA Caitlin Upton may not know about many things -- like wars, or, uh, maps -- BUT, thanks to Jimmy Kimmel, she does at least now know about... how babies are made. The talk show host sent her on a mission to learn about the facts of life -- and it ended, naturally, with Nadya Suleman aka Octomom. Check out the clip here and here.

You gotta give Upton a little bit of credit: Unlike one C. Prejean, she has realized that the best way to endear herself to the American public following public disgrace was not to make a sex tape (shocker!), but to make fun of herself. She's good-humored enough in this clip, and presumably the humiliation of being nationally recognized as ignorant taught her something. (Otherwise, why would she bother with this demeaning little "adventure"?) And while I wouldn't say that she won me over, what I take issue with here is actually Jimmy Kimmel. Obviously, instead of sending Upton out to learn about, um, the things she obviously doesn't know (like foreign politics and geography) -- which by the way would have been equally amusing -- Kimmel feels compelled to send her to Babies R Us to learn about ... her body. Because she must be such an idiot that she doesn't know what to do with it! Perhaps a long-held distaste for Kimmel is influencing me here, but I must say I find the whole thing mean-spirited and distasteful. And that is my two cents for the moment!

Jolie-Pitt to design jewelry?

2009-11-16T13:57:27Z

This is a fashion-world development I hadn't expected: Apparently Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt will design a limited edition collection of high end jewelry for Asprey. The collection, inspired by snakes (I'm surprised the inspiration is not DAGGERS, frankly, but whatevs) will start at $525 -- for a silver baby spoon! -- will go on sale this week, and all proceeds will go to the Education Partnership for Children of Conflict, which was co-founded by Jolie in 2006, and which raises awareness and money toward the education of child victims of war, conflict, and natural disasters. Jolie released a statement over email about the cause:

"These are the children who most need a safe place to learn, a place to heal, a place to learn reconciliation, a place to build a better future and a place -- to just be children. Yet the education for these children is often forgotten. Tens of millions of children and adolescents in conflict are not in school."

I'm cool with all that, but don't you think that, in that case, selling a silver spoon to rich babies for $500+ sends sort of a weird message? Just saying.

Gossip Girl Recap: And then there were three!

2009-11-13T15:24:00Z

This week on Gossip Girl, there was a threesome, featuring Hillary Duff. There was also a Cotillion, featuring what I would consider to be a number of very un-debutante-like ball gowns. (Perhaps the ladies of Constance Billiard should have consulted with Sherri or Alisha Hill?) There were the usual Constance power politics, and the requisite ungodly volume of extensions as sported by Jenny Humphrey, and the standard wildly slutty habits of Serena Van Der Woodson. So! Business as usual! Now on to the threesome:

The whole scenario is set up under the premise that Hillary Duff, miraculously Dan's new girlfriend (that dude never eases in to things, huh?) has to leave school in order to shoot another of her awesomely Twilight-meets-Lord of the Rings-hybrid of a fake-o movie, which Vanessa is nerdily obsessed with in a way that I love. So, to give her as much of a "college experience" as possible -- and also to try to convince her to stay -- Dan and V go down one of those cheesy "15 things you have to do while in college,' lists. After having consumed many drinks, the trio gets to the last one, which is have a threesome, so they do it. (There's a little girl-on-girl make-out session, but otherwise it's pretty tame.) The weirdest thing about the situation is that, um, they all end up spooning in bed together? Which just seems really unlikely. But oh well. Of course, we find out while the trio are cozily tucked into bed that, um, Duff is actually not going anywhere and that the potential for future awkwardness/lesbian subplots is limitless.

Meanwhile, back Uptown, Jenny is alternating between soulless diva in pursuit of (Upper Manhattan) world domination, and "the Jenny we used to know," (for like a secondback in season one, before she made any friends). But that's standard fare around Gossip Girl -- I, for one, am mainly excited about next week's drama, in which we face: Threesome Aftermath!

Carrie Prejean: An example of how to stay in the news by doing confusing things

2009-11-10T00:56:30Z

Carrie Prejean continues to be all over the news these days. As if it wasn't enough to get stripped of her crown, or become enmeshed in various scandals over a) gay marriage b) the money she borrowed for breast implants c) her topless picture experiment or d) the alleged defamation of her character that was someone else's (California's?) fault (...?), now Carrie Prejean is making headlines by talking about how the scandalous topless pictures that she took are a product of, um, our culture. She writes:

"Unfortunately, pornography has become mainstreamed -- it rushes at us through big screens, portable screens; soft-core porn is on mainstream TV cable stations, hard-core porn is just a mouse click away on the internet, and the envelope of what seems acceptable seems to get pushed farther and farther as more and more people are exposed to this material.

The result is that girls grow up in a culture where it is hard to have an innocent, healthy, normal view of themselves, how they should behave, how they should act, and how they should dress."

"Our bodies are temples of the Lord. We should earn respect and admiration for our hearts, not for showing skin to look sexy ... I have since learned that your outer beauty can only get you so far in life."

It is possible that Carrie Prejean has learned a lesson throughout her various troubled experiences with the press. But, given the great lengths to which she has gone in order to keep her google search numbers high, I am presuming it is a different message than, say, that which mentors and nuns might have hoped for.

Taylor Swift does SNL, princessy dresses abound

2009-11-09T23:03:09Z

Last weekend, Taylor Swift hosted SNL, and in addition to every variety of sparkly dress imaginable (I can't find many stills but you can watch the episode here), there was also a lot of... you know, actual funniness, and the young Swift proved that she is a) endearing b) a really good singer whose ability to write catchy songs about very little is admirable, and c) a pretty decent actress! Swift started with an appropriately self-deprecating monologue, in which she sang a little song about boys (Taylor Lautner, douchebag exes, Kanye West) and her affinity for sparkles, and then proceeded to do harpy teen, herself, Kate Gosselin, deviant member of the law enforcement, and... Shakira -- her impression was spot on -- as the night went on. What more could one ask for in a 1 1/2 hour late-night television experience?

New Sherri Hill prom dress collection now available!

2009-11-09T21:29:07Z

Sherri Hill has just unveiled her 2010 Prom Dress Collection, and the looks, which involve all manners of florals, sheers, layers, and pastels, invoke a sort of Midsummer Night's Dream feeling: irreverent, but also romantic and a little bit dreamy. The dresses are flowy and tulle-laden, but also (most importantly) fun, and unique. Check them out here.

Breaking News: Entire world sick of talking about Kristen Stewart's dating life

2009-11-06T17:42:27Z

"There's no answer that's not going to tip you one way or the other. Think about every hypothetical situation: 'OK, we are. We aren't. I'm a lesbian.' I'm just trying to keep something. I'm not going to give the fiending an answer. I know that people are really funny about 'Well, you chose to be an actor, why don't you just f---ing give your whole life away?! Can I have your firstborn child?'"

-"New Moon" star Kristen Stewart, talking to Entertainment Weekly

Beauty Queens Throw Down: Miss England Vs. Miss Manchester

2009-11-06T17:15:37Z

Uh oh. Rachel Christie, otherwise known as Miss England, was forced to resign her post (and withdraw from the Miss World competition) this Friday after she reportedly got into a BRAWL -- at a nightclub! -- with another beauty queen. (Sara Jones, aka Miss Manchester.) The fight was apparently over a guy. Girls! Pageantry doesn't really need any more bad press these days. Carrie Prejean is providing plenty to go around.

On an equally fascinating note, Christie will now shift her focus to... training for the 2012 Olympics, were she hopes to compete in the heptathlon. Which I had never heard of until today.

Rihanna opens up about Chris Brown incident

2009-11-03T01:47:42Z

After nine months of near silence, Rihanna is finally speaking publicly about her incident with Chris Brown: this Thursday, when her interview with Diane Sawyer will air on Good Morning America (and on 20/20 the following day), and she has also been quoted by Glamour, which is honoring the singer at its annual Women of the Year event at Carnegie Hall.

"I went to sleep as Rihanna and woke up as Britney Spears," Rihanna told Glamour magazine. "I want to give as much insight as I can to young women, because I feel like I represent a voice that really isn't heard."

Stay tuned.

High school is totally unfair, predictable: Dakota Fanning crowned Homecoming Queen

2009-11-02T23:05:56Z

In totally unsurprising news of high school injustice, Dakota Fanning has been named the Homecoming Queen of her Hollywood private school, Campbell Hall Episcopal High. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing bad to say about the actress: despite some ill-advised shoe choices, the teenager seems smart and as down-to-earth as one can be in her position, and plus she is actually a pretty good actress. But, Homecoming Queen? As a Sophomore? The girl is IN TWILIGHT. It just seems unfair, is all. After all, she already got to see Robert Pattinson basically naked, and become besties with Kristen Stewart (obviously the postergirl for sullen adolescent coolness), and also be a cheerleader -- not to mention, um, a movie star?

But then again, it's high school -- any other way would just go against human nature. That is why they make so many amazing movies for discontent teenagers.

Transsexual beauty queen crowned in Thailand

2009-11-02T22:49:50Z

This Saturday in Thailand, 37-year-old Japanese television host Haruna Ai was crowned "Miss International Queen 2009 in Thailand, the fifth annual beauty pageant aimed at promoting the tolerance of transsexuals and transvestites. Haruna beat out 17 other contestants to win $10,000 in the competition's final round, which was held at the Tiffany's Show (billed as the world's largest transsexual cabaret) last Saturday. Apparently, the event is quite a big deal in Thailand -- a culture highly tolerant of transsexual culture -- and millions tuned in. Did anyone catch it? What did you think?

Michelle Obama mentors teens, continues to be awesome

2009-11-02T21:07:36Z

The White House recently revealed that Michelle Obama -- who is, by the way, coming up on her one-year anniversary of First Ladydom (or at least her election as such) -- is launching a mentorship program that will pair 20 local teenage girls with high-powered female leaders -- including not only a bunch of women on Obama's staff, but also the First Lady herself. Criticize the Obama administration all you want, but don't tell me that some 15- or 16-year-old girl is not going to be highly excited to find herself making her way over to... the White House to hang out with...Michelle Obama. Now all they need to do is pass the health care bill (with a public option, duh!) and I will be totally satisfied. For the moment.