“Bi-Method” magazine on sale now!!

I wrote this post in the beginning of the month in June, but couldn’t post it until the magazine was published.

The magazine will explain an exercise system my personal trainer, Kristina,  teaches. It’s called “Body Coordination.”

It is on shelves now, so please go to a book store near you and check it out!

 

Written on June 3rd:

Yesterday I did a record of non-stop 6 hours photo shoot and TV interview.

I collaborated with Kristina, my personal fitness trainer, for the release of her own book about exercise and fitness. This was unbelievably hard as it was straight from a red eye flight from Singapore to Tokyo!

 

And oh wait… it did not finished there… then I went to a magazine interview which started at 9 pm!!!! Until 10 pm. I reached my bed at almost 11 pm, in agony!

 

But the pictures are great. My photographer was Matsuki Kohei with whom I worked a few times in the past. I loved it because I totally directed my own shoot yesterday. It is fun to have total freedom in a shoot.

 

Sunao from T&G Harajuku did my hair and Aki Oowada did my make-up (as almost always). I was so happy to be with my dear team again! (Shige, Emiko, I love being in Tokyo and working 24 hours. It is an incredible energizing city. I love you guys.

http://www.vogue.co.uk/news/2011/06/23/alaia-criticises-karl-lagerfeld-and-anna-wintour

 

I AM A BIG FAN OF ALAIA, I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN. I MET HIM AT A CHRISTIAN DIOR FASHION SHOW IN PAEIS. HE IS ONE OF THE SMALLEST MAN AND EXTREMELY SHY. BUT A VERY SINCERE PERSON. A REAL TREASURE IN FASHION.

 

I TOTALLY AGREE WITH HIM REGARDING LAGERFELD AND ANNA WINTOUR. I AM GLAD SOMEONE SPEAKS OUT….

Erica, Thank you very much for the photos. I used those on my blog,  http://ameblo.jp/mimahiroko/

I’m sorry that everything is in Japanese only, but please check it up.

Looking forward seeing you all soon. Let’s do Otsukaresamakai!!

Lots of Love,

xxx Hiroko

1. Is “high jewelry” a necessity for women?

Yes it is important. It marks stages in life, life from youth to mature ages. It is like a personal treasure.

2. What type of woman looks good with “high jewelry”?

Women who know how to make the jewelry looks elegant. I do not like to see women at black tie diners wearing to many pieces together, they look like Christmas trees! I like women wearing very limited jewelery with a long evening gown and their hair down and silky, without any stocking.

3. For women, is “high jewelry” something that is special? What does it mean for women?

The most important is the ring that my husband gave me when my sons were born. It is something which marks important event in our life together. Not a trophy but a treasure.

4. Is there any difference between “high jewelry” and regular jewelry when wearing?

Of course there is. I wear huge accessories always, I buy a lot of Swarovski in Tokyo, Paris or New York and make it a fashion statement. When I wear high jewelry, I wear it as a proof of love.

5. How do women change when wearing “high jewelry”? Inside and outside. Do you have any examples from the Miss universe girls?

I believe it is a step into maturity, establishment and their first step towards feeling “expensive” and special.

6. Do you like “high jewelry”? If you were going to receive a present, what do you want to get, from whom, and in what type of situation?

I am not a fan of jewelry in a classic way. Also I barely never buy high jewelery to myself except one time in New Delhi for the wedding of my dear friend. Also, a few years ago I received as a gift, an amazing evening gown with 3 diamonds embed into the fabric. my evening gown. It was a gift from a fashion house because I had arrange a very famous model to walk the catwalk at his show during the fashion week, and it was a thank you from the designer. I still have this amazing diamond-gown by Barney Chang (Hong Kong famous designer). I insured it!

Dear Green,

Hello, this is Natsuko, a MUJ finalist from 2005.  Ines contacted me a few days ago and asked me to give advice to you in response to your message.  
First of all, are you healthy now?
Do you wake up every morning by 7am and go to bed before midnight?  
And are you able to love yourself?

When I was a finalist I was skinny, at 171 cm tall and 46kg.  Hardly a world class glamour.  But I would eat a lot.  I didn’t really worry about it since I had always skinny ever since I was little.  After being chosen as a finalist, Ines would tell me over and over again, like a chant “gain weight, gain weight…” but I couldn’t.  The stress would make me loose weight.  The advice I got at that time was to do weight training and eat a well balanced diet (see Erica’s book) at set times during the day (while I was a finalist it was 5 times a day).  The weight training I started at 20 minutes a day, every other day.  I got a personal trainer and started the weight training.  I didn’t do much in the way of cardio exercise.  It takes at least 3 months for you to see a difference in your body yourself.  This is how I made my body more well balanced and healthy looking.  I advise you to got a personal trainer when you first start.  

However, for me, the most important thing was to be positive happy and love myself.  Even if I couldn’t gain weight while I was a finalist, I didn’t beat myself up over it.  Because I was able to stay positive, I was able to gain 5 kg in 4 months.  
If you are at a healthy place right now, then I don’t think you have to worry.  
Although as Ines says in her message, there may be a hidden cause for not being able to gain weight such as an over active thyroid gland, a psychosomatic issue, or depression.  You should get tested for these just in case.  If this is not an issue, I think for women like us who have trouble gaining weigh have a very sensitive body where our psychological state and the rhythm of our daily lives are very closely connected.  

I think some people would say that this is a lucky problem to have, but if you are too skinny you don’t have much energy.  Even if you are not up to average weight, if you can gain a little weight, your body will feel better, your skin healthier and your smile brighter.  

Don’t over think it and live a happy daily life.
I actually gained 20kg when I was pregnant.  When you gain weight, you gain weight….

Natsuko Saito, 2005 MUJ finalist

Works at 済生会宇都宮病院 ;

Studied at 帝京大学

Lives in Utsunomiya-shi, Tochigi, Japan

In response to my previous post:

http://inesligron.com/blogroll/answering-my-comments-i-cannot-gain-weight-help.html

 

 

Dear Green,

はじめまして。2005muj finalistのNatsukoです。先程、Inesより連絡があり『あなたのmessageについてアドバイスを』とのことでした。

まず、いまGreenさんは健康ですか？
朝7時には起床して夜0時頃には就寝するという規則正しい生活を送れていますか？
そして自分を愛せていますか？

私がfinalistのころは171cm 46kgというとても世界基準のGlamorousとはいえないやせっぽちでした。けれど、本当によく食べるんです。幼いころからのことなので気にしてい ませんでした。finalistに選ばれてからInesに散々gain weight,gain weightと呪文のように唱えられ（笑）、でも唱えられても無理なんです。ストレスで痩せてしまう。そこで得たアドバイスは筋力トレーニングをしながら バランスのとれた食事（see Erica’s book）を規則正しい時間に（といってもfinalist中は1日5食）食べること。筋トレは1日20分から始めて1日置きでいいんです。私はパーソナ ルトレーナーをつけて筋トレを始めました。マラソンなどの有酸素運動は控えました。身体に変化が目に見えて分かってくるのは最短でも3ヵ月かかります。こ れで均整のとれた体型を作って、健康的に見えるようになりました。始めるときはパーソナルトレーナーをつけることをお勧めします。
しかし私の場合は食べることと筋トレよりも効果があったのは自分を愛して前向きに、happyでいることでした。finalistの期間中に太れなくても自分を責めることはありませんでした。おかげで4ヵ月で5kg増えました。
Greenさんが今の状態でも健康にすごしていらっしゃるなら、さほど悩まなくてもいいと思います。
Inesのmessageのように太れないような内分泌代謝系の疾患や心身症、うつなど治療の適応がある精神疾患が隠れていないどうかは調べた方がよいかとは思います。
それがないならば私たちのような食べても太れない女性は日々の精神状態、生活リズムと身体のバランスが密接に関係していると思うんです。

なにを贅沢な悩みを・・・と思う人たちがたくさんいますが、痩せすぎていると体力が持ちません。標準までいかなくても少し脂肪をつけることで身体もすこし楽になりますし、肌もきれいに、健康的な笑顔になりますよ。

あまり考え込まずにhappyな毎日を送ってくださいね。
私は妊娠中20kg増えました。増えるときは増えるんです・・・・。

Natsuko Saito, 2005 muj finalist

 

Natsuko was a top-10 finalist in 2005, and was already studying to become a medical doctor. She then graduated and is now specialized in breast cancer for women in a major hospital in Japan. She said that being a finalist and working with me, has opened her interest in specializing in breast cancer. I am very happy about it, as it is a cause i always introduced to the finalists during my 13 years in Japan, and because of a total lack of information among Japanese women.

Natusko definitely represents Miss Universe Japan at its best, she has the brain, the looks, the heart and the personality all together, she is a super women!

I will post the English translation soon after it is done. Thank you Natsuko! I love you sweetheart.

 

It is the first time in history that the winner gets elected 100% by the public vote only, and not by the judges….. good thing!

Alyssa Campanella is the new Miss USA — and she’s probably been dreaming of this day forever.
But Paula Shugart, president of the Miss Universe Organization (and Donald Trump ’s right-hand pageant deputy), knows Campanella has no idea what she’s in for.

“It’s a really weird day,” Shugart told The Wire by phone (a few days before the pageant, when Campanella hadn’t yet been crowned but was crushing the odds).

“It’s definitely not my favorite,” Shugart continued. “The winner is in a state of shock, and we just try not to overwhelm her.”

Right — Campanella looked pretty bowled over on stage. But that’s not what Shugart means.

It’s the immediate aftermath of the crowning that makes the winner’s head spin.

“When the camera goes off, it’s this ‘now what?’ moment,” said Shugart. “The girls pack their bags before the pageant, so someone goes and gets the winner’s. She never goes back to her room. She’s dropped in this suite, a whole new place.

“Her voicemail is totally full. We take away her cell phone — she’s not using that number anymore. She does a day of media [in Vegas], then it’s off to New York.

“All of a sudden everyone’s staring at her. Tons of people are approaching her, trying to get her to sign onto events, commercials, deals.

“She just has to nod and hand the business cards to us — she can’t book anything she does herself. And over the next several months, things get weirder.

“Around the middle of the year, she’s often tired and frustrated,” said Shugart. “At any given time, she’s answering to about twenty different people. With Rima [Fakih, 2010's Miss USA], we had the sneaking out thing. I told her recently, ‘Monday will be the first day in the year I haven’t emailed you your schedule for the day.’ It’s bizarre.”

“Every single waking hour of Miss USA’s life, someone knows where she is. Because everything they do affects all of us as an organization. But here’s the good news for Campanella — the year goes fast. And just as she settles in, it will be time to give up the crown.

“At the end of the year, it’s another huge adjustment,” Shugart said. “Suddenly, Rima’s not flying first class everywhere, she doesn’t have security. It’s a reality check, but we try to help, especially with career opportunities. We don’t leave. We’re still there.”

(As you read this, Fakih is clearing out her Trump Place Manhattan apartment in preparation to turn it over to Campanella.)

And by the way, today isn’t the most enjoyable day at the office for Shugart, either. “First of all, we’re all exhausted from the night before,” she said. “And we’re always very nervous about the brand. We’re saying goodbye to someone we’ve worked with for a year — and we’re scared to death that this twentysomething girl we know nothing about is now our brand.

“We start from scratch with our brand every year — and we have no say in what it is.”

 

Watch the video of the winning moment HERE!

 

Stylish socialite and ex-McQueen muse, Daphne Guinness will exhibit 80 to 100 pieces from her clothing collection at F.I.T.’s museum from September 2011 through January 2012. The exhibit will include pieces by Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Comme des Garçons, Dolce & Gabbana, and Azzedine Alaïa.

F.I.T.’s chief museum curator will work with Guinness on the exhibit, and plans to highlight Guinness’s particular fashion interests, ranging from sleeves and neck ruffles to accessories including hats, veils, and ribbons. Sounds like the Met’s Costume Institute has some serious competition.

I really want to attend, this woman has one of the very best closets in the world. Many people have asked me if I was Guiness when I travel… I don’t think we look familiar at all, but I love her style that’s for sure.

Good news…. Actually I found out that FIT’s museum is FREE for the public. http://www.fitnyc.edu/3662.as

Got see it!

 

More about Daphne:

This woman is a gem. Yet another person I never knew I never knew about. Daphne Suzannah Diana Joan Guinness is the heiress to the Guinness fortune who also married the son of a Greek shipping billionaire, who she divorced in 1999 and came out with a reported £20 million. Daphne is a model, film producer, journalist, collector of Haute Couture and style icon. I want her hair, her clothes, her friends and her life.

Daphne Guinness exemplifies beauty in a middle-aged women; she is not concealing or fighting her age. That’s what I like about her, she thinks like I do…. we are almost the same age and with the same attitude.

 

Sharing The superstar Beyonce’s video, it’s wild and kinda crazy, it’s every bit as hot as you’d expected.

And, naturally, it’s as fashion-filled as day one at fashion week.

Starting in an Alexander McQueen gown from the label’s last Lee-designed collection, she makes no less than five changes, including Givenchy Couture, Jean Paul Gaultier Couture, Gareth Pugh and a double dose of Emilio Pucci, in the almost-five minute film.

Well, her and her lady army are ruling the world.
Watch the video below. And a 1-2-3: shoulder pop, swing that hair…

Ok, hands up who else is already half way to knowing the dance moves to Beyonce’s Run the World?

After recently posing naked and being sprayed silver for the cover of W magazine, American reality star Kim Kardashian hasn’t kept her feelings quiet about the shoot – she’s claiming that too much (read: her nipple) is on show, and she’s not happy about it.

Kim wrote:

“I’ve definitely learned my lesson. I’m never taking my clothes off again, even if it’s for Vogue,” she said.

Wanting to uphold their reputation, a W magazine spokesperson responded in an e-mail statement:

“In keeping in line with the theme of W Magazine’s November Art Issue, Kim Kardashian’s cover was conceived as an artistic collaboration with well-known artist Barbara Kruger, and was a meditation on the influence that reality TV has on contemporary culture.

“The inside portfolio documented the career and power of Kim Kardashian as a work of art, using the language of artists like Jeff Koons (see Rabbit) and Gilbert & George (see The Singing Sculpture).”

Hey, Kim, maybe next time you take your kit off for a shoot you should read the small print first…