Woman Around Town’s Editor Charlene Giannetti and writers for the website talk with the women and men making news in New York, Washington, D.C., and other cities around the world. Thanks to Ian Herman for his wonderful piano introduction.
With the holidays coming up, it’s a good time to freshen up our makeup and skin care routines. Even if we can’t afford that new designer outfit, we can still splurge on beauty products. And at the top of ur list are those from Estée Lauder. Here are our picks. Click on the photo or name for more information and to purchase.
For the best start, a great moisturizer is a must. And this one protects from the sun and the elements. It also has anti-aging ingredients to give you a fresh, youthful look.
Don’t forget the nighttime when your skin has the best chance to recover from all the environmental assaults of the day. This one not only moisturizes but firms.
This lip color resists bleeding, feathering, and creasing. And it comes in so many colors, you will want o buy more than one – for daywear and evening and everything in between.
Estée Lauder was known as the queen of fragrance. The latest from the company, Beautiful Magnolia, is perfect for those who love a light, floral scent. The perfume also comes in a small perfume spray, perfect for travel.
When it’s time to take it all off, this foaming cleanser does the job gently. It also helps to minimize pores.
Our editors have independently identified these products as something our readers may like. As an Amazon Associate Woman Around Town earns from qualifying purchases.Thank you for supporting Woman Around Town.
According to the “State of fashion 2024,” reported last November 29, 2023, by McKinsey & Company, an international management consultancy firm serving the world’s largest companies, as well as non-profit organizations on strategy, corporate finance, digitalization, advanced analytics, marketing and operational improvement, the fashion industry is still dealing with uncertainty.
Multiple factors – Covid, technological innovation, sustainability, and the transformation of consumptions patterns – have harmed the fashion system and held back growth.
Carlo Capasa , chairmain of the CNMI (the National Chamber for Italian fashion), interviewed by D – La Repubblica delle donne (a magazine attached to the leading newspaper La Repubblica), cited the higher value of Milan Fashion Week as not just a place where market demands are met but“…where we create dreams…. It’s time to claim the importance of Made in Italy….The economic crisis is hard but it will pass in the second half of year 2025…”
Italian fashion has attempted to adjust to changing patters with such moves as creating the CNMI Sustainable Fashion Awards 2024 and the “Keqiao the Excellence Exhibition,” an initiative led by Mario Boselli, president of the Italy China Council Foundation and Honorary President of the Italian Chamber for fashion.
As reported on the CNMI Official site, the Sustainable Fashion Awards “ ..acclaim personalities and organizations that have stood out for their vision, innovation, devotion to craft, recognition of differences, circular economy, human rights, environmental justice and biodiversity….”. The international event, organized by CNMI in collaboration with other institutions such as the Ethical Fashion Initiative (EFI) of the United Nations ITC Agency and supported by the city of Milan, acknowledges achievements by ten prominent prominent players – Brunello Cucinelli, Gucci, Moncler, Diesel, Arizona Muse, Zazi Vintage, Golden Goose & Satay B, Mehdi Benabadij CEO of Brioni, The Lenzing Group – who, combining craftsmanship, environmental friendly procedures, and innivation, are making an industry that refines the concept of luxury.
“Keqiao the Excellence Exhibition” from one of the largest Chinese textile districts was part of the official calendar of the Milan Fashion Week that took place last September. The show is meant to reinforce the strategic three- year partnership between CNMI and China, meant to build opportunities and cultural exchanges.
This particular event showcased four Chinese talents and will be followed by the Kequiao Fashion week this October, where a selection of Italian emerging designers will be included as well.
CNMI is vigorously reacting to the crisis with strategic move, but the sky is the limit and Milan, considered as THE international fashion capital that an entire industry looks up to, could take the risk of much bolder moves.
It’s true that fashion in general and Italian fashion primarily sell DREAMS and dreams are made of something that can’t be seen, touched and tasted, but the energy that they create can be so much tangible!
How beautiful would it be to create a dream where an army of sizeless, ageless, genderless, citizens of the world come together, not just to gain a piece of art or to stare from behind the scenes at the red carpet, but to be an active part of a collective empowerment? A place where all of us share the dream to be more than a fashion army in a much more inclusive way?
Equality in all its meanings, biodiversity and sustainability are noble yet essential themes that make us stand together as one but, somehow, are still felt beyond the reach of ordinary people.
We have seen styles come and go over the years. We love to express ourselves using the art of fashion to embody our souls, but it’s time to give people a bigger dream to live from the front row seats, especially in these times of uncertainty.
We don’t buy a garment just for its style, we don’t even need an influencer to tell us what to wear: those times are long gone. Our wardrobes are fully equipped already. What we want is to wear values that can help us to sail the sea of life gracefully, knowing that we are part of a squad ready to celebrate, to support our needs and to turn our whispers into a strong voice without losing the light hearted approach that only fashion can gift us.
Italians own the raw material, the “Made in Italy” trademark, the creativity, the human capital. This is the right time to set the crowds on fire with bolder moves.
Milan, are you ready for the challenge?
Top Bigstock Photo: Detail of bag outside Cristiano Burani fashion show building for Milan Women’s Fashion Week on February 26, 2015 in Milan.
Jenna Bernstein founded a biotech company, Ponce de León Restorative Technology (PLRT), whose revolutionary product, LINK, had the potential to cure deadly diseases and regenerate failing organs. One problem: LINK didn’t work. And when a whistle blower within the company, Erik Wei, the company’s chief scientist, was found dead, Jenna was charged with his murder. Patsy Duggan a legend in Seattle’s defense bar, having won some tough cases, represented Jenna and managed to get her off. Now, however, Sirus Kohl, PLRT’s CEO, is murdered and since he was about to take a plea and cooperate with the U.S. attorney pursuing charges of corporate fraud, Jenna has every reason to want him dead.
This time around, Patsy won’t be able to take the case. An alcoholic, Patsy has been sober for a while, but after several meltdowns in court, his reputation has taken a hit. His daughter, Keera, spent years as a prosecutor in Seattle, before switching sides to save her father’s failing law firm. With Patsy on the sidelines, Keera is Jenna’s only alternative.
The two women have a complicate history. As teens, Jenna and Keera were high achievers and competitive. Keera recognized early on that Jenna was a sociopath who would lie, cheat, and hurt others to come out on top. Keera isn’t sure Jenna is innocent, but knows her client is entitled to the best defense possible. Her goal is to create enough reasonable doubt to convince a jury.
While Elizabeth Holmes, convicted of fraud with her blood-testing company, Theranos, was never charged with murder, Jenna could be her doppelgänger. Like Holmes, Jenna is tall, blonde, and driven. Holmes wasn’t a scientist, neither is Jenna. Their talent was charming investors to fork over huge amounts of money to fund their startups. Like Theranos, PLRT tapped into the public’s enthusiasm for a process that would revolutionize medical procedures. Neither, however, worked and as the walls began to close in, Jenna, like Holmes, doubled down, doing everything possible to avoid being charged with a crime.
Robert Dugoni’s Her Deadly Game, introduced Keera Duggan, and based on this second outing, she will have many more cases in her future. The lead detective on the case, Frank Rossi, has always had a soft spot for Keera, although never acted on his feelings. Watching how she approaches Jenna’s defense, only increases his admiration for her talents and tenacity.
Jenna is not making Keera’s job easy. The morning Sirus’ body was found, Jenna left her apartment, leaving her cellphone behind. Because she has become so well known, Jenna said she often wears a disguise when leaving her apartment to avoid confrontations. On that fateful morning, she wore oversized clothes, a baseball cap, and sunglasses. She walked to Seattle’s Volunteer Park and stopped at a taco wagon. CCTV footage captured images of her along that route and even eating the snack. While there’s no CCTV showing she entered Sirus’ home on Capitol Hill, the prosecution alleges that she could have entered through a rear door.
Another complication: Sirus was shot with a Glock nine millimeter, the same gun used to kill Erik Wei. The gun, however, has disappeared, last seen in Sirus’ safe. Because Jenna was cleared of that crime, the prosecution is prohibited from introducing anything related to that previous trial. Keera suspects that the two murders are linked. Did Patsy manage to free a murderer? And has she killed again?
Keera uses a tried and true strategy, shifting blame onto someone else who might have had a reason to kill Sirus. At the top of the list is Sirus’ daughter, Adria, an attorney who was PLRT’s comptroller. She had planned to meet with her father that morning, hours before he was scheduled to meet with the U.S. attorney. Instead, she found him dead. It was no secret that she disapproved of Jenna’s relationship with her father. But did she have a reason to kill him?
Once again Dugoni, an attorney and journalist, makes good use of what happens in the courtroom and the press. The only thing missing is some romance, but with an ending that brings Keera and Frank together, maybe that will change in the third mystery in the series.
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