Blended Archives - MomStart

Getting The Hollywood Look With Salon Benjamin

May 21, 2014 by Beeb 8 Comments

Travel and event consideration provided by Warner Bros. Pictures.

During last week’s Blended press event, there were a number of fun activities happening prior to our Q&A with Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore. There were makeup artists available during our luncheon to get us ready, and once we were done with makeup, we also had a full hair styling team on hand to finish up the look. The hair crew consisted of stylists from Salon Benjamin along with friends from Number 4 Hair and Twistband who were providing all the supplies to seal our looks in place.

Photo credit: Alfredo Ochoa

The styling theme was braids, buns and curls, with each guest getting a variation on this look to suit them.

Photo credit: Alfredo Ochoa

When I took a seat in the styling chair, the stylist asked me what I would like done. As I had said earlier in makeup, I replied, “Anything!!”. Hair stylists always get excited when I give them carte blanche – it’s pretty obvious that I’m adventurous, since I’m showing up with pink hair, so they know they can have some fun. Salon Benjamin whizzed into action, whirling me around in the styling chair in a cloud of hairspray. I could feel my hair being teased sky-high, with the curling iron going on one side and what felt like a braid happening on the other. There was no mirror, so I was really excited anticipating what my big reveal would be – I knew it was going to be good when every person who walked by me saw what was happening and giggled, “That’s awesome.”

Photo credit: Alfredo Ochoa

While the stylist worked her magic, I took the opportunity once again to glean and tricks of the trade and take notes from the hair team. My notebook from the event is filled with my interview questions…and tips on how to get just the right ratio of pink hair dye. 😉

Then, it was time for my finished style to be unveiled:

Photo credit: Alfredo Ochoa

They did such an amazing job! It was fun, bold and right up my alley. I got so many compliments on the style – Jayda said that she liked how I had this punk rock hair and makeup on top and a business suit on the bottom, which I of course loved too! 😉

I took quite a few photos of the style later that night so I could try to remember how they did it! They style wore so well that I just slept in it and boarded the plane the next morning with the same look.

Locking my style in place were the Number 4 Hair styling products which Salon Benjamin utilized while creating the look. I was thrilled later that afternoon to win a big bag of Number 4 Hair Products in a raffle – whoo-hoo!! The bag included Clarifying Shampoo, Reconstructing Masque, Super Comb Prep & Protect, Styling Foam, Support Solution, Texture Styling Crème, Non Aerosol Hair Spray and Mighty Hair Spray. Quality products are one of the few things that I, “Super Coupon Girl”, think is worth the investment, so I was very excited to win these and have a chance to try them out at home! Totally worth checking a bag for. I’ve been experimenting with the styling aids and trying different products each day since coming home, which has been totally fun. I also received a goodie bag with a package of TwistBands included, so my hair is thanking me for making this trip!

Group Photo With Drew Barrymore & Adam Sandler

With Adam Sandler & Drew Barrymore – photo credit: Alfredo Ochoa

With my Hollywood makeover complete, I was ready for my close-up with Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler!

My Makeover With Flower Beauty Cosmetics

May 20, 2014 by Beeb 8 Comments

Travel and event consideration courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures.

I had a lot of fun in Hollywood last week. I got to do some sight-seeing, hang out with family that live in LA, and spend an afternoon at the most relaxing press junket ever for Blended. We started the day off with an advance screening of the film at TCL Chinese Theater, then headed to Loews Hollywood Hotel to interview Drew Barrymore, Adam Sandler and Wendi McLendon-Covey. Before the interviews started, we had time for a nice luncheon where there was also a full team of makeup artists on hand to get us ready for the Q&A.

Photo credit: Alfredo Ochoa

I love all things makeup, so I made a beeline straight to the makeup artists – the lunch buffet could wait!

The cosmetics provided for our makeovers were from the Flower Beauty line by Drew Barrymore. The goal of Flower Beauty is to provide quality cosmetics at affordable prices, with products sold exclusively at Walmart. Because of Drew Barrymore’s high profile, her role in promoting her brand frees up their advertising budget to be spent on the cosmetic formulas and outer packaging instead. You know I’m all about budget-friendly beauty, so I was definitely interested to see how these products would perform! Flower Beauty cosmetics are also made in the US and not tested on animals.

Photo credit: Meredith at Sanity in Suburbia

I had a seat in the makeup chair and met makeup artist Kimberly, who asked me what I wanted done. My response was “Anything” – as anyone who knows me can vouch, I’m always changing my look, and there’s nothing I like more than seeing a beauty expert try out what they think would suit me. Kimberly got to work with her brush and decided to define my brows and do a dark smokey eye over the pale brown shadow I had on. I loved this – I wear very neutral makeup for press events, but in my personal life I like very dramatic cats-eye makeup. I also find smokey eyes to be challenging, so I picked Kimberly’s brains while she worked on my makeup, typing notes in my iPhone so I wouldn’t forget her suggestions. I’m always trying to get better at makeup, so I enjoyed getting hints from the pros as much as I did getting pampered with the makeover!

Relevant makeup tip: Appropriately enough, one key tip for makeup is blending. Blend, blend, blend that eyeshadow!

My makeover looked fabulous – it was so much fun, and I felt great! In fact, it looked so good that later that night, I actually just propped my head up on a few pillows and slept in the makeup. I had a very early departure and knew I wouldn’t have time for much sleep before my flight, so I decided to save time and just leave my makeup as it was. It had worn so well that all I had to do was give it a little touch-up and it was good to go the next morning!

We also received goodie bags to take home which included several Flower Beauty products. I’ve been having a great time trying these out at home as I refer back to all my iPhone notes about makeup application! 😀

My completed makeover!

For more on Drew Barrymore’s makeup line, visit FlowerBeauty.com. And once you’ve gotten your own Hollywood makeover, go see Blended in theaters on May 23rd!

Blended Movie Screening at TCL Chinese Theater

May 19, 2014 by Beeb 9 Comments

All travel for the Blended movie event was provided by Warner Bros. Pictures.

Last week, I paid a visit to Hollywood to watch an advance screening of Blended and interview the cast. Our sneak peek at the movie took place at the legendary TCL Chinese Theater (Formerly known as Grauman’s). I’d seen the outside of this theater before but never actually stopped to watch a movie there, so it was a fun location!

Of course, this theater is most famous for its celebrity handprints. There are classic prints, like the world-renowned Marilyn Monroe handprints that are stained because of so many people sticking their hands in them every year; plus more recent additions, like prints from the cast of Harry Potter.

The theater had a very special display out front: In honor of the Godzilla premiere, a giant Godzilla statue stood in front of the theater, stomping over some of the handprints. Raaarrr!

Godzilla in front of TCL Chinese Theater

The inside of the theater itself is fully modern and equipped with IMAX, but still retains that glamorous “Old Hollywood” feel with a thick red curtain covering the screen prior to the movie’s start.

My friends and I settled down with some popcorn and got ready to watch the movie. I’d watched the trailer beforehand and was interested to see what the film was going to be like:

Blended is a romantic comedy starring Drew Barrymore, Adam Sandler and Wendi McLendon-Covey. The film starts with newly-single parents Jim (Sandler) and Lauren (Barrymore) who meet for the first time on the most awkward blind date in history. After everything that could go wrong does go wrong, they part ways fuming and have no intention of ever seeing each other again. But avoiding each other proves more difficult than anticipated, as Jim and Lauren keep running into each other at the worst possible time. They can’t even escape each other when they leave the country: When Lauren’s best friend (McLendon-Covey) gets cold feet and backs out of a family trip to South Africa planned by her boyfriend, a twist of fate has Jim and Lauren both taking her place without realizing it…until they arrive and end up forced to share the same hotel suite.

I thought that Blended was a really cute movie that was surprisingly touching – it had me crying as well as laughing. The main characters are more well-rounded than I expected from a lighthearted comedy. As you get to know Lauren and Jim through the course of the film, you start to understand their motivations, which makes them believable and relatable; although some of the backing characters are less nuanced and rely more on stereotypical gender/cultural tropes for laughs. But in all, I enjoyed Blended and found it to be a feel-good, fun comedy with a heart.

I always have a good time in Hollywood, and it was fun screening a movie in such a historic landmark!

Blended is rated PG-13 and hits theaters this Friday, May 23rd – so if you want a laugh this holiday weekend, be sure to check it out!

Blended Movie Q&A With Wendi McLendon-Covey

May 16, 2014 by Beeb 14 Comments

Group photo with Wendi McLendon-Covey – click to view full-size. Photo credit: Alfredo Ochoa

Travel and other consideration provided by Warner Bros. Pictures.

Yesterday, I told you about the beginning of my adventures in LA when I interviewed Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler about their new film, Blended, which hits theaters on May 23rd. I also had the opportunity to speak with Wendi McLendon-Covey, who plays Barrymore’s hilarious BFF in the movie. McLendon-Covey is warm and entertaining, making it a delight to chat with her. For my question, I asked about her experiences as a comedienne:

Ms. Wendi McLendon-Covey: Hi, everybody. How’s it going? Shall we dive right in? All right. Pinky.

Beeb: Hi.

Ms. Wendi McLendon-Covey: Hi.

Beeb: I just wanted to know how you keep a straight face while filming comedies like these?

Ms. Wendi McLendon-Covey: Who’s to say I did? There are plenty of times when I would–because when I get the giggles, I can’t stop. Okay. Full disclosure, I can’t stop, and then everything shuts down.

So, there were times when Adam and I were trading insults, and I just couldn’t stop myself. I just couldn’t stop, and then I cried my make-up off, and then we had to do it again. I always think, oh, I’m going to get fired if I don’t stop it, so I pull it together. That keeps me from losing it totally, but yes, I can’t keep a straight face. Believe me. In the DVD extras, you’ll see.

I’ll be sharing additional blogger questions from this interview session next week, so watch this space!

Blended Movie Interview With Drew Barrymore & Adam Sandler

May 15, 2014 by Beeb 16 Comments

Group photo with Drew Barrymore & Adam Sandler – click the image to view full-size. Photo credit: Alfredo Ochoa

All travel and related consideration provided by Warner Bros. Pictures.

Earlier this week, I flew to Hollywood to attend a press day for Blended, the upcoming romantic comedy starring Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler. I’ll be sharing my adventures with you over the course of the next week, including my makeover courtesy of a great hair and makeup team using Flower Beauty Makeup & Cosmetics, plus my experience watching an advance screening of the film at the famous TCL Chinese Theater, where I had the chance to stick my hand in Marilyn’s handprint and see what R2D2’s feet look like.

But today, I’d like to start off with one of the highlights of the event, when we sat down for a Q&A session with Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore to chat about their experiences making Blended. It was a pleasure speaking to them – they truly are as charming and funny in person as they are on screen, with down-to-earth, relaxed attitudes. There were 25 bloggers in attendance, and I had the chance to ask one question during the discussion:

Beeb: So, all of your characters had a lot of big adventures in this movie, and I was wondering if you guys got to have any adventures off camera while you were on location?

Ms. Drew Barrymore: Yes, totally.

Mr. Adam Sandler: Oh, yes.

Ms. Drew Barrymore: In Africa, it’s hard not to.

Mr. Adam Sandler: Every weekend was pretty awesome. And when we weren’t working, we went somewhere neat, and there were always animals involved. And the kids got to see everything. It’s just neat. Going out to eat there was cool.

Ms. Drew Barrymore: There were signs on the glass of the windows, not even on the door. They were right on the glass of the windows so you wouldn’t miss it. I mean, it’s written on your window. And it was, like, do not open these windows, or monkeys will ransack your room, we’re not kidding. And, of course, everybody would forget and leave their windows opened. I’m sure some people like me were sort of, like, bring it. I want to see this. And they really would ransack the room. It looked like one of those scenes in a movie where you’d walk in, and you’re like, somebody’s been here. It was crazy. It was so cool.

There were lots of great questions from the other bloggers in attendance, so I’ll be sharing other highlights from our Q&A next week – stay tuned!

Blended opens in theaters next Friday, May 23rd!