Photographer Angelo Merendino Poignantly Chronicles Wife's Breast Cancer Battle In photos

The first time photographer Angelo Merendino met Jennifer, he knew she was the one. They fell in love and got married in New York’s Central Park, surrounded by family, friends, and loved ones.

Five months later Jen was analyzed with breast cancer. From Angelo’s blog: “I remember the meticulous moment…Jen’s voice and the numb feeling that enveloped me. That feeling has never left. I’ll also never forget how we looked into each other’s eyes and held each other’s hands. ‘We are together, we’ll be ok.’”

 Throughout her battle, Angelo decided to photograph it. He wanted to humanize the face of cancer on the face of his wife. The photos speak for themselves.

Read More

Introducing Ukraine’s Newest Real-Life Doll - Alina Kovaleskaya

 

It’s official, Ukraine is the land of real-life Barbie dolls. After the now-famous Valeria Lukyanova and Anastasiya Shpagina, it’s now time for another Ukrainian real-life doll to take center stage – meet 20-year-old Alina Kovaleskaya.

Hailing from Odessa, the same city as the above mentioned internet stars, Alina Kovaleskaya has managed to attract a decent online following after uploading a series of photos of herself in doll form. That means laying on several layers of makeup, particularly around the eyes, to make them look abnormally large and posing as a lifeless toy. It’s now a well-known recipe used by all of the seven (yes, seven) human barbie dolls in Odessa who all use the same tricks, hold photo-shoots at the same locations around the city and sometimes even appear in each other’s photos. Although accused of being yet another clone of the internationally-famous Valeria Lukyanova, Alina, however, claims to be different from all other Barbie followers. She says she resembles the popular doll naturally, with her big eyes; small nose and small plump her lips. And yet it’s clear she uses tons of makeup to enhance her features, just like every other human doll we’ve ever features, from KotaKoti to Vanilla Chamu. Although no self-respecting barbie wannabe would ever admit to it, there are some who accuse her of also using photo manipulation software like Photoshop.

Read More

Miss Venezuela Gabriela Isler Crowned Miss Universe 2013

A 25-year-old Venezuelan television presenter, Gabriela Isler, was crowned Miss Universe in Moscow in a scintillating ceremony on Saturday.

Judges, including rock star Steven Tyler from Aerosmith, picked the winner from a total of 86 contestants at the show, watched by millions of viewers around the world.

Last year's winner Olivia Culpo of the United States placed a diamond crown on the head of Isler, who wore a silver rhine-stone speckled evening dress.

Isler's triumph was the seventh Miss Universe win for Venezuela, where beauty pageants are a major source of national pride.

After the show, she beamed and waved to journalists, wearing the Miss Universe sash and standing next to the show's owner, US tycoon Donald Trump.

 "I feel a lot of emotions," she said."I'm still in shock. I feel so blessed, so happy to be here." "It's been a lot of fun and a great success," said Trump.

Watch the crowning moment of  Miss Venezuela Gabriela Isler

Read More

Singapore Artist May Sum Sculpts Celebrity Portraits In Expensive Lipstick

Ever dreamed of having your face memorialized in expensive lipstick? A Singapore-based artist May Sum, who has made a name for himself by carving expensive lipsticks from top brands in the makeup industry into detailed busts of various celebrities, from Lady Gaga to Audrey Hepburn.

Some women would kill for a stick of lipstick from established brands such as Yves Saint Laurent or Estee Lauder, but artist May Sum doesn’t think twice before slaughtering them into oily busts of popular fashion icons. It’s not clear what kind of tools he uses during the carving process, but considering the size of his medium, they must be pretty tiny and accurate. Although his lipstick busts aren’t exact replicas of the characters he aims to depict, the Singaporean somehow manages to always nail he details that define his muses. For example, Lady Gaga is easily identifiable by her unmistakable hairdo and large glasses, while Coco Channel can be distinguished by her signature hat and pearls. May Sum can carve sticks of lipsticks into anything from animals to sceneries and customs portraits, but she is most famous for her “Strong Women” series.

Obviously, high-end lipsticks are not cheap, so you may find May Sum’s exclusive sculptures a bit on the expensive side as well. Prices start at $600, but the artist will give you the option to choose the lipstick brand, the model and the color. Pretty steep, but if you don’t like the finished product you can always just use the lipstick for its intended purpose, and your investment wouldn’t be totally wasted.

Read More

Aishwarya Rai Celebrated Her 40th Birthday With Media And Fans In Mumbai!

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, the name that spells class, beauty, elegance and success, held a press conference on occasion of her 40th birthday in Mumbai.

Aishwarya looked stunning and radiant wearing a red Abu-Sandeep salwar kameez, which was not a new outfit that she purchased for the occasion, she maintained!

Aishwarya Rai told her fans that daughter even sang a birthday song for her. "Since last evening she (Aaradhya) is wishing me happy birthday mama. Even at midnight she sang birthday song but with her name. It was sweet of her," she said.

When asked about her birthday celebrations, Aishwarya imminently said, “This year, birthday celebrations are Diwali celebrations and that’s the big party at home, that’s the way we are celebrating my birthday.” The actress also donated cash for cancer patients. Aishwarya said that this year it will be a quiet birthday for her with family – husband Abhishek and daughter Aaradhya – and close friends.

Aishwarya thanked all her fans for the best wishes: “Heartfelt thank you to everyone for the wishes. It's a good coincidence that my birthday comes with Diwali... It's a celebration time. I am thankful to God for this life... Thankful to my parents for this gift of life. It means a lot to me. I embrace everything that life gives me," Aishwarya said.

Read More

Dubai Opens World's Largest Airport

The Gulf emirate of Dubai unveiled passenger operations at its Al-Maktoum International airport, which is hyped to be the world's largest airport once completed.

Al-Maktoum is built next to Dubai Jebel Ali Free Zone and its port in Dubai World Central, an economic zone the government hopes to turn into what it calls an 'aerotropolis'.

The airport was opened only for cargo in June 2010, while passenger operations were constantly delayed and once completed it will feature five runways that will be able to handle an annual capacity of 160 million passengers and 12 million tons of cargo, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.

Chief executive officer of Dubai Airports, Paul Griffiths said that 36 cargo carriers presently operate out of the new airport, compared to only two in 2010.

In comparison, Dubai International handled 57 million passengers in 2012, as it has become a major stop for air traffic between the West, Asia and Australasia.

Chairman of Dubai Airports, Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al-Maktoum said that the airport will play a vital role in the future development of Dubai as a centre for trade, commerce, transport, logistics and tourism.

Griffiths pointed that Al-Maktoum is not aimed at replacing Dubai International, where expansion work is continuing. A Wizz Air plane from Budapest was the first passenger aircraft to land at the sprawling new ability and Jazeeera Airways would follow suit on Thursday while Gulf Air will begin operations on December 8 and no other airline has announced operations for the new airport.

Read More