Oprah became a fan of Hawaii when her personal trainer, Bob Greene suggested she buy land on one of the Hawaiian Islands. It seems as though Greene’s motives for inviting Oprah to one of his favorite regions wasn’t entirely altruistic as even Oprah noted that the was afraid that a developer would start a condo laden urban sprawl trend on the rocky hillside.

Oprah chose her interior decorator, Ellie, after having seen her Connecticut home in a magazine. The informal American country style is what most attracted her and it’s how her Hawaiian home is decorated. Or so they claim, but I would say the home is more eclectic flower shop and trinket shop than anything else.

Even from the exterior Oprah Winfrey’s Hawaiian home is just littered with junk, I’m sure its expensive junk, but when you put that much stuff together it just looks cluttered and everything loses its value and becomes one more crazy blob of activity. And what is with the big fake horse welcoming you as you approach the house? The abundance of plant life is a nice Hawaiian touch, but from the front, looking at the home it appears as if they plants take over the wraparound porches and leave almost no room for people. In addition, the repetition of so many little balusters in the railing is really distracting and busy. Did I mention the ridiculous fake horse?!

Now apparently there is a reason for the big old fake horse and that is because there are horses roaming the countryside around Oprah’s ranch. So this theme was brought inside the home and the living room is rife with antique horses. The problem with this room is, I believe, less the room itself than it is the photo used to represent it. At first glance you don’t know if you’re looking at someone’s living room or a florist’s gift shop. I see no less than nine vases with flowers in them. And the home’s interior is all but obscured by one of the horses front and center in the picture. So maybe Oprah’s living room looks nicer than it appears from first glance at this picture, but with this representation it’s just busy, cluttered, and uninspired.

Moving on to the bedroom. The white on white décor really helps tame down the cluttered and busy appearance of the room with its lattice like exposed ceiling beams, heavily grilled windows and the variety of patterns on the accessories, making it almost tolerable if you take out the flowers that litter the tops of every available surface. And again the picture of the incredible view of the ocean is all but obscured by the huge number of flower containers.

The dining room would be simply gorgeous if we hadn’t already been inundated by flowers and the main table was not loaded with huge bouquets. The vivid bright walls are beautiful, the yellow and white striped chairs are the perfect accompaniment, perfectly echoing the 12 pane windows and the striped appearance of the white window treatments and yellow walls. The square checked carpeting is a bit busy but the muted colors keep it tolerable and the large weather vane is a nice touch. So other than the overstatement of flowers for the picture, this room is beautiful and the views must be striking.

One image that is not visible in the large picture of the dining room is a Thomas Hart Benton painting which is partially lost because of the clutter of multicolored French Jaspe pottery pitchers resting below it. Thank god there are no flowers but I’m guessing that was only because they would have actually covered part of this painting, otherwise I’m sure the staging crew would have filled each and every pitcher with flowers.

The kitchen appears simple and elegant and a nice clean place to prepare food and cook, if you remove all of the clutter that was placed there by the staging crew for this picture.

The decorator, Ellie, says that everywhere she looks there’s something of interest and quality, which may be true, but this many items in a home is simply overkill and visually distracting. Perhaps it’s the fact that Oprah is used to much larger homes that can more adeptly hold and display her collections, but her Hawaiian home is too cluttered to feel comfy and cozy and the heady smell of all those floral arrangements must be almost sickening.

The following has been a guest post from Mike Caldwell Social Media Specilaist you can read more of his articles such as Shopping For Leather Furniture – from Bari Leather Furniture or Leather Furniture Styles – From Bari Leather Furniture. You can also follow the official Bari Leather Furniture profile on twitter

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Ever since Sex and the City went off the air, fashionistas have waited for a suitable replacement. Itching for high fashion drama and waiting for characters to look up to and emulate, we have been patient. For some, though, the wait was ended with 2008′s Lipstick Jungle, based on Candace Bushnell’s other best-selling novel.

Starring Brooke Shields, Kim Raver, and Lindsay Price, Lipstick Jungle brought fashion-forward New Yorker back to the small screen, this time in a package of three. Impeccably dressed and accessorized, these women have begun to evolve into the next generation of TV fashion icons, showing off looks that range from flawlessly office-appropriate to dangerously sexy.

Like with Sex and the City most of us cannot afford to emulate or small screen friends, spending $300 on a high-collar button-up top and $500 on Jimmy Choos. But thanks to much demand and the beauty of the internet, sites like SeenON allow us to break down the looks of our favorite characters and duplicate the best we can.

If you have the cash, you can purchase many of the women’s signature style right from SeenON, but if you’re on a budget-friendly adventure, find your favorite clothing pieces, check out the ladies’ makeup looks, and investigate their accessory secrets before heading out to your favorite stores to recreate these fashion-forward, beautiful styles on a budget tailored just for you.

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I worked for a summer at an investment bank in Manhattan that adopted a business casual dress code a couple of weeks before I started work.

Within a couple of days of working there, the memos started coming: One admonished employees for wearing see-through clothes. The next prohibited

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Happy Halloween!

As you frantically search your closet for something festive to wear today (assuming your boss did not K.O. a costume), just remember: The call of orange and black can be very strong, but you still must obey your fashion sense. You absolutely must.

Need a few ideas to get your through the day? Well, okay, here you go:

1. Since the monochromatic look is still very much “in”, deck yourself out in black from head to toe. But please be sure all your blacks are either exact or complimentary shades. No faded black with bright black allowed. Ever.
2. Add an orange accent piece to your outfit, such as a necklace, scarf or headband. Just a little punch of color goes along way when set against a black backdrop.
3. Ditch the black and pair an orange piece up with something from the brown family. An deep orange cardigan with chocolate brown pants is both festive and sophisticated.
4. An orange skirt, steely gray sweater, knee-high boots, and gray, cream, or white tights make for a fun and funky Halloween look.
5. Whatever you do, please – and we are begging here – DO NOT wear a themed sweater. You know what we’re talking about, don’t you? If you are guilty of sporting anything with bats, haunted houses, ghosts or black cats on it, slowly take off the clothing, place it gently on the nearest flat surface and back away. Now, please, go back and refer to the ideas above. Phew. Crisis averted.

Whatever you wear and however you wear it, have a safe, happy and fashionable Halloween!

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