It’s awards season and one of our favorite times here at XOJohn.com as we love giving you insider access to all the star watching and best brands on the scene.
Kicking off the start to Oscars weekend on February 24-25, 2017, we had the opportunity go inside GBK’s Pre-Oscar Luxury Lounge held at a private residence in Beverly Hills. As the doors opened, flanked by GBK’s signature logo made out of roses, we serendipitously ascended the stairs the same time as the incredibly talented Randy Jackson. While inside, the lounge was set up outside the front area and a side lawn of the private residence, making the entire experience very exclusive, yet still laid back with the sounds of The Rich Group, pumping out the proper grooves to complement the ambiance and atmosphere.
We were pleased to see some of our favorite brands from the Pre-Grammy lounge including Luseta Beauty, American Hat Makers, Aly Daly and Guilty Soles on hand.
Some of our other favorite brands?
Karma Salon: Karma is Beverly Hills’ first ever piercing and tattoo shop on Rodeo Drive (a.k.a. a big deal) offering an array of services including body piercings, tattoos, permanent makeup, hair styling, eyelash extensions and more. One of their signature, trending piercings on the market currently is a daith piercing in the ear which is known to provide relief from migraines and frequent headaches. I just got mine pierced as well as got styled in this incredible, impeccable salon, so please stay tuned in here for a follow-up post on my experience! This salon was started by a kick butt team of women from the Midwest and their hard work paid off by being able to bring their incredible artistry, craftsmanship and Midwest hospitality that makes you feel right at home and comfortable in their clean, modern salon in one of LA’s trendiest locations.
Maria Shireen: Maria Shireen (a.k.a. the hair tie bracelet) offers fashion and functionality and blew our minds with the simple, yet brilliant concept of keeping track of those pesky hair ties we often wear around the wrist, which also leave dent marks in ones’ wrist, not to mention are somewhat unsightly if you’re getting those glam shots on the red carpet. Shireen’s husband, an ever-observant engineer, saw Maria (like many of us) with the habit of wearing elastic bands around the wrist and instead, create something that was functional and stylish that still allows you to wear your hair tie around your wrist but in a more elegant way that doesn’t leave marks on the arm, and can take you from the gym to the red carpet in seconds. The brand offers styles ranging from its Classic collection with gold, silver, rose gold and more, to a collection for kids/teens as well as a specific athleisure collection. In addition, Maria Shireen’s Charity Ties (#BandofStrength) is the brand’s social good platform in which they partner with health, wellness and other non-profits, NGOs, community-based and national charitable organizations to honor those organizations, the work they do, and the people they serve, which we especially love.
Snarky Tea: We can’t help ourselves from laughing every time we see the labels on Snarky Tea’s fun branding and also very effective teas for no matter your mood or the outcome you’re looking to achieve, whether that’s waking up in the morning (“Wake the F**& Up”) an invigorating cinnamon black tea, conquering your day (“Fierce B*&#^) a bold and rosy black tea, winding down from the day (“Namaste MotherF***ker”), managing to get to bed on time (“Get Your A** in Bed”), or waking up and doing it all over again even if you’d had that late night afterparty where you didn’t quite get enough sleep the night before (“Get Your S*#! Together’) a lemongrass and ginger snap pea green tea. The teas are not only guaranteed to bring a smile to your face, but you’ll also feel invigorated, calm down or ready to do whatever you need to do with that busy Awards season schedule or your everyday tasks.
Il Palato: As a foodie, Il Palato speaks to the heart and stomach, as a genuine, Italian brand and exclusive, international club of food lovers engaged in the discovery and appreciation of authentic Italian cuisine. Il Palato prides itself on raising awareness and preserving the Italian culinary arts through experiential, cultural activities including exclusive lunches and dinners, tastings, symposiums and access to selected Italian food and wine specialties at home. Chef Fillippo Sinisgalli gets to know all of the products well before introducing them including daily use in the kitchen, preparation of recipes to enhance the product (including seasonal, local and through other careful curation and qualitative criteria), to bring the best food so the basket (and table). The lounge served up a variety of Chef’s signature recipes including a liquid melt-in-your-mouth drinkable chocolate and a signature Panettone cake with a drizzle of delicious sauce. We had to keep moving around the lounge before getting too much of a sweet tooth!
Pixels.com: Pixels is a global marketplace for artists, photographers, graphic designers, illustrators and the creative community at large offering print-on-demand technology. Pixels.com helps artists sell their prints, home decor, apparel and other lifestyle items (since 2006) and also takes the guesswork out of selling their art as the artists featured on Pixels.com can easily upload their artwork and images, set their own prices for various print-on-demand products, and instantly sell to a global audience of buyers. In addition to providing the audience for the artists and great, creative merchandise for buyers, Pixels.com also supports its artists with sales and marketing tools including branded web stores, social media, and newsletters to accelerate and grow their businesses quickly. We were gifted a beautiful beach tote and one of the signature branded lifestyle items, the round beach towel (which also doubles as a beautiful rug!).
Pure Seduction: Pure Seduction is a premium line of underwear for men from Berlin. The brand’s distinctive styles include a variety of prints, beach pants, shorts, beach briefs, mini pants, leggings, strings, and swimwear, as well as V-Necks, T-Shirts, Tank Tops and Undershirts for the man looking for quality and distinction. The brand operates out of New York, with its flagship store in West Village.
Earthwater: Earthwater isn’t what it appears as black water; the color is derived from 70 trace minerals. The company won’t even reveal its secret location where it’s extracted, but the water provides essential minerals the human body requires but is deprived in our daily diet and also to aid the body in maintaining the proper pH levels for good health. EarthWater’s mission is to “provide products that infuse valuable micronutrients into your body with our healthy, holistic, natural ingredients.” We’ll take the extra hydration running between awards parties!
Charitable partners for the lounge included Reach Up, Reach Out Ministries dedicated to engaging people in worship and outreach and holistically caring for orphans and windows in developing nations, one community at a time; and the Sugar Ray Leonard Foundation, committed to funding research and creating awareness for childhood Type 1 & Type 2 diabetes and to help children lead healthier lives through diet and exercise.
Special thanks to GBK for hosting!
-Alyson Campbell