Los Angeles – My Love

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My love for Los Angeles started a long time ago when I went to a summer college there. The sunshine, the easy lifestyle, the friendly people, have fascinated me from the early start. The prejudices concerning the Californian city are multifarious, of course you have many people working in “the industry” and the plastic surgeries are higher per capita there than anywhere else. Yes, and the traffic is horrendous and I am scared of earthquakes.

However, there’s so much more to this metropolis that people don’t understand unless they immerse themselves in it. In summer 2010, I rented a house in Beverly Hills and spent two months there, long-time readers of Sandras’ Closet might remember. When the day came to fly back to Europe, I didn’t want to leave. Los Angeles has a mix of people, trends, fashion, nationalities, and industries that you can’t find anywhere else.

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Therefore I was so happy when Montblanc invited me to come to Los Angeles to live the Oscar experience and to attend their “Signature for Good” 2013 charity brunch. When I landed at LAX, my heart started already jumping for joy. But enough of my love letter. So, what follows is my list of a few of my favorite things to do and see in Los Angeles.

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Me in front of the Montblanc boutique on the famous Rodeo Drive.

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At Opening Ceremony, one of my favourite shops.

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Fred Segal‘s perfume store is gigantic.

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Shopping like the locals on Robertson Boulevard. (For a detailed Los Angeles shopping guide, please click here).

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Also home to my favourite restaurant for lunch: The well-known Ivy, a hot spot to see many celebrities.

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Have an Ivy Sunday, so yummy!

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Great for dinner: Cecconi’s

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Girls just wanna have fun: Tea time at American Girl Place.

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A must-see: Disneyland

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The famous star handprints in front of Grauman’s Chinese Theatre have to be on your sightseeing list…

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… along with Hollywood’s iconic Walk of Fame.

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At Venice Beach, you can enjoy the lively boardwalk with a crazy and colorful crowd. From rollerscaters, artists, palm readers and street dancers, to performers and vendors of any sort. It is also home to the iconic “Muscle Club” – an outdoor gym where bodybuilders shape their bodies under the sun. Arnold Schwarzenegger used to go there.

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My list could go on and on… my favourite hotel is by the way the Shutters on the Beach in Santa Monica.

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If I had a wish granted from the fairy…? I would love to live in such a fabulous Beverly Hills mansion. It doesn’t hurt to dream.

Thank you, Montblanc, for having me brought back to this fab city!
Bye-bye L.A., I will surely be back soon…

LoL, Sandra

Los_Angeles_SkylinePhotos: © Sandra Bauknecht

Montblanc, Sandra Berry and a Surprise

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While you are reading this post, I am on my way to Los Angeles to live the ultimate Oscar experience with Montblanc. Stay tuned for many upcoming posts from my favourite city in the world. In the meantime, you can enjoy those exclusive behind the scenes photos of how my Montblanc Limited Edition Bespoke Ink SANDRA BERRY was born.

It all started with a trip to the headquarters in Hamburg… do you remember?

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After the concept of “Sandra Berry” had been visualized in spring 2012, I had many sleepless nights, dreaming about the color for my personalized ink. Funnily enough, I mixed tons of nail polishes together to come up with that one hue I was thinking of. In Hamburg, the lovely and extremely professional Montblanc team helped me to finalize the perfect shade.

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A few weeks later, I received the bottles with three slightly different colors. Now, it was up to me to choose. Sample number 3 became SANDRA BERRY.

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The next step was the design of the bottle. In Zurich, I met with the ladies from Montblanc at one of my favourite restaurants in town, Bindella, for a very fun arts and crafts session. After a yummy lunch complemented by a tiramisu, the shape of the bottle, the bows, the colours and tags were finally determined.

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In December right before the big launch event, we met at the Montblanc offices in Zurich to finish the product by hand. While enjoying champagne and chocolate truffles, we brought the packaging to perfection.

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Those of you who were lucky to get one of the 100 limited edition bottles, know now, how much work and passion went into SANDRA BERRY. I truly hope that you will like it.

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For my Swiss based readers: If you like to know more about the colour pink, have a look at my column in the recent March edition of the SI Style magazine in which I am telling you all about it. There is a reason why you “look in the pink”

Talk to you soon from Los Angeles!

LoL, Sandra

Kolumne_SI_Style_PinkPhoto Sandra Berry: © Etienne Schwank. All other photos: © Sandra Bauknecht

Oscar’s Hottest Trends

Oscar's Hottest Trends

Red-hot and purple gowns, sequined body-conscious dresses along with screen-siren hair and beautiful high jewelry pieces. The 83rd Academy Awards 2011 last night in Los Angeles were once more all about glamour and drama.

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See the styles and trends that celebrities like Cate Blanchett, Gwyneth Paltrow, Sandra Bullock and more wore on Hollywood’s ultimate night.

 

My favourite dress last night: Cate Blanchett in Givenchy Haute Couture S/S 2011

My Fashion Oscar: Cate Blanchett in Givenchy Haute Couture S/S 2011

The winning actress in a leading role was highly pregnant Natalie Portman who looked so radiant in her burgundy Rodarte gown in „Black Swan“.
The winning actor in a leading role was Colin Firth in „The King’s Speech“ that also won in the categories „Directing“ and „Best Picture“.

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Enjoy the photos from last night!

LoL, Sandra

Oscar's Berry Tones

Oscar's Sparkling Dresses