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“The company has such an incredible creative legacy”, Ms. Mendes has affirmed. “I’m honored to be associated with such an iconic, world-class brand like Calvin Klein Underwear.”, she adds.

The launch of Seductive Comfort, which is the latest offering from Calvin Klein Underwear, includes a new line of bras with the unique combination of the Calvin Klein aesthetic with a new level of fit, support, and superior comfort.

Mendes maintains a close and lasting relationship with the house of Calvin Klein and has been wardrobed by Calvin Klein Collection in several occasions. Also, she has collaborated with the award-winning creative director Francisco Costa for events like the CFDA Fashion Awards, The Whitney Art Party, Fashion Rocks and, last month, the 2008 Film Independent’s Spirit Awards, as well as other personal appearances and premieres.

“We’re very pleased to have a beautiful and talented actress like Eva Mendes working with us this season. Eva’s look and personality truly embody the essence of the Calvin Klein Underwear brand and we think that our creative team did an excellent job bringing that through in the creative”, commented Tom Murry, president & COO of Calvin Klein.

Click here to see photos of the ads

Shopping directory: Intimates

* Clothes. A white cotton T-shirt offers a UPF (Ultraviolet Protection Factor) rating of  6, and it can rise up to 10 for a  dark T-shirt. However, if the T-shirt is wet, then the UPF rating falls down to about 3. The best fabric to protect us from the sun is nothing less than the jean fabric, although undoubtedly it can be a little warm in the middle of summer… 

* Hats. Keep in mind that the more dense the material is, the more protection they offer. And logically, the more large the hat brim is, the better. The important thing is that the shade covers the largest possible area, paying special attention to the ears, nose and shoulders.

* Sunglasses. It is indispensable that the lenses are made of  high-quality material. For example, if your lenses have the CE mark (Conformite Europeenne) then they are good enough. Don’t use replicas that are made by unknown manufacturers: the visual health is the important thing.

* Shade. Be careful about being exposed to full sun, especially on surfaces or things that reflect the rays, like white sand or crystalline water. It is much more sensible to opt for a gradual tan in the shade.

Read more tips

Shopping directory: Hats

Too many times, the short hair offers versatility, since we can change our style completely by using a simple accessory. Obviously, there is less diversity of style than if you have a long hair, but the trick is to know how to choose.

The diadems, which are in fashion nowadays, are a perfect complement to give an elegant touch to even the most casual look, in brilliant colors for the day or black for the night, made of rigid or elastic materials. There are a lot of models we can adapt to our needs. You can find them in stores like H&M.

Also, there are fancy hair forks, which are made of materials such as felt, fake pearls, strass, colored beads, patent leather… the possibilities are endless, and for all the budgets. The small ones are good to take the fringe (bangs) out of your face during the summer. The big ones are useful to mark the difference. You can check out some beautiful (hippy-style) hair forks on this website. Or maybe you prefer handmade hair accessories, made with a lot of love.

There are also many different options for the important events: accessories with an avant-garde style, or more classic accessories including those of ASOS, a very British website. You can find a lot of websites offering hair accessories on Internet. Also, you can visit our shopping section with some recommended stores: Hair Accessories

Up to now, it was necessary to take the laptop out of the bag every time it was checked in an X-ray inspection at the airport. But no longer.

The Transportation Security Administration (United States) has authorized the use of new handbags designed to make laptop easy to scan in an X-ray detector, even if it is into the handbag.

Nowadays, two problems with the laptop cases are that security officers have difficulties to scan them with X-rays, and many of these cases are so full with extra gear -like power cords, mouse or similar things- that the computer is obscured.

The new bags can be readily viewed through the X-ray scanner. There are several approved models. Some models have different compartments which are used to  insert the laptop in order to pass the X-ray inspection and other models have additional sections that can  be removed from the main body of the bag.

Related article

Shopping directory: Handbags

Wear gloves even under the sun. Maybe you are not cold, but for those that ride a scooter or motorcycle, the gloves are important accessories. It is necessary to choose them carefully, so you can have functionality, protection and even a touch of style.

This year a short cut model with snap fastener closures on the cuffs is added to the Pighétt collection (Tucano Urbano - Code 901, Female style: 902); they are very cool with an elegant and urban look. The palm is made of leather and the back of cool, breathable cotton pique with foam inserts on knuckles; there are two versions available: all black or beige and brown (5 sizes S / XXL for him; 4 sizes XS / L for her).

For the sportsmen and sportswomen, the spring-summer 2008 collection includes the all black MRK (903), which are gloves with palm in synthetic suede fabric, mesh back for maximum ventilation, ABS hard inserts on knuckles, elasticized fingers for extra comfort and cuffs in neoprene with adjustable wrist strap (6 sizes XS / XXL).

The Lady Morgan line (938) has been conceived for women who ride a scooter or motorcycle and want to be up-to-date. They are made of leather with cool perforated back, available in several tones: fuchsia, pink, purple, red, black, and this year the line also includes white and brown (4 sizes XS / L; 49,50 euros, including taxes). Also, brown and black gloves are available for men in the Morgan line (957; 5 sizes S / XXL).

For more information, visit the Tucano Urbano site

Shopping directory: Glove, Mittens

* Some famous people spend a lot of money when they want to surprise their loved ones or a friend. Among those who receive gifts, Jennifer Lopez is very lucky because she has received many expensive gifts from Ben Affleck and Marc Anthony.

* Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s daughter Shiloh received a very special gift when she was born: a solid white gold pacifier with 279 diamonds. The cost of the gift was $17,000!

* Eric Winter gave a present to his fiancee Roselyn Sanchez to celebrate their marriage commitment. It is a luxurious apartment in the Nikki Beach Hotel, one of the most expensive hotels on the beach in Panama. But it was not enough for him, so he also added a big diamond for her.

* Tommy Mottola knows very well how to demonstrate the dimensions of his love by giving a present. The executive gave his wife (Thalia) the most expensive property in the Colorado state (USA). It is a $47 million ranch. It has a private lake and a main house of about 12,000 square feet with four bedrooms and four bathrooms, among other luxurious features.

Shopping directory: Gifts

On Wednesday, the European Union (EU) requested to its member states to ban the import of seal fur to protest against the repugnant practices that are carried out in Canada and other places where the seals are killed.

According to EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas and several press reports,  the main objective of this proposal is to ban the cruel hunting methods, starting from the next season.

The measure is directed mainly against Canada, where the hunters were authorized to kill 275,000 baby harp seals on the Atlantic coast of the country this spring. That is to say, about two thirds of the young seals killed each year, out of a population of about 16 million.

The Canadian Government had warned that some measures would be implemented if the European Commission insists on this matter.

More info

Shopping directory: Fur

It has been rumored that Jennifer Lopez insists on dressing her twins in new designer clothes every day.

The 38 year-old star, who is married to singer Marc Anthony, doesn’t like that her daughter Emme and her son Max (five-months-old) wear the same thing twice.

A source told Britain’s Daily Mirror newspaper: “Jennifer was approached by a charity and asked to donate some dresses for a celebrity auction. She agreed and donated a gorgeous $10,000 frock”.

“She also offered some of Max and Emme’s clothes, telling organizers that she never lets them ‘repeat’ outfits. But the auction deals only in adult clothes. Jennifer told them it was a shame, as some items cost over $1,000 each”.

Visit The Official Jennifer Lopez Site

Shopping directory: French Apparel

Beijing Olympics organizers unveiled the costumes that hostesses will use during the medal ceremonies. Those costumes reflect entirely the traditional style of the Chinese fashion.

They are made up of 16 different styles and include formal clothes for flag raisers. 5 costumes series will be used by the hostesses during a total of 302 Olympic victory ceremonies of the August 8-24 games. Each series has been designed for different sport events.

The “Blue and White Porcelain” series makes use of famous Chinese crafts, which are characterized by its colors. This series will be worn during the aquatic events. One of the main attractions is the “Sapphire blue” series with beautiful belts, which are designed with traditional embroidery. Those dresses will be worn during ceremonies related to gymnastics, fencing and indoor ball games.

The Chinese pagoda tree’s green series corresponds to the fact that the Beijing Olympics was marked as a “Green Olympics” and this serie will be worn for  cycling, shooting and modern pentathlon events.

Related article

Shopping directory: Formal Wear

The Paris based fashion house Louis Vuitton has several handbags that were designed by the Japanese artist Takashi Murakami. Those handbags are a combination of art and fashion.

The experiment was a retrospective called “Murakami”. The work was exhibited at New York’s Brooklyn Museum. The exhibition, in which people bought Louis Vuitton handbags by Murakami,  closed on July 13.

The company’s flagship store on Paris’s Champs-Elysées shows everyone in the blink of an eye what they are selling, and it includes works by James Turrell and Olafur Eliasson, and has an art space.

Each handbag is special and has writing all over it. One of them reads: “Every time I meet a girl who can cook like my Mother… She looks like my Father”.  Other brands also seem to be interested in mixing art and fashion.

Louis Vuitton official website

Shopping directory: Fine Art