On Our Radar: The Plaza Re-Opens

Back in the day when we were an intern before our senior year of college, we went to our very first grand event at the Plaza--an award show for the trade magazine we were working on at the time. We felt as if we were the epitome of glamour in the white spaghetti strap dress we had bought for the occasion. We still have the invitation in our scrapbook, along with some stirrers and matchbook with the original Plaza logo.

Since then, we've been fortunate enough to go to a handful of events and even had the opportunity to stay at the hotel. Unfortunately, this means we were also witness to the grande dame's demise: we were served out of chipped glasses and dealt with navigating around the tiny, outdated bathrooms that even had a speck of mold and no shelf for our toiletries.

Count us among the masses who will be lining up to visit the newly refurbished version, opening its doors tomorrow. The website promises that after the 2-year $400 million renovation, the hotel will keep all the fixtures we know and love (tea at the Palm Court, a lobby that duly impresses Eloise wannabes) along with some much needed improvements. We, for one, were excited to read about the 24-carat gold plated Sherle Wagner designed sinks and fixtures, which are certain to be mold free. Other highlights are a branch of the always fab Warren Tricomi salon and a the Oak Bar. But you'll find us at the Champagne Bar! Not only does it serve our favorite bubbly (anything served in a glass), the menu was created by Jean Georges' alum Dider Virot.

For reservations, click here.

A Place We Don't Want to Go: The Eastern Garbage Patch

You can't travel as much as we do without being in love with the planet and we mean in a big way. In fact one JSG member has a tattoo of the globe! We were stunned to read in the March issue of W magainze about the Eastern Garbage Patch, a giant mass of floating trash, in the Pacific. This "island" is reputedly twice the size of Texas! Debonair banking air, David de Rothschild will be journeying to it on a raft built out of water bottles later this year on his Plastiki project. David founded AdventureEcology, which is the sexiest green movement we have heard of to date. His site offers fun daily tips, that not only were new to us, but are things we actually plan to do. Take yesterday's tip: Pour the dregs from your bottle of wine (either colour) into an ice cube tray and freeze. Next time you feel like risotto, and some extra flavour with your ready-made stock cubes.

So think about this mound of trash next time you use a plastic bag, buy bottled water or run the water while you brush your teeth.

While we're on our soap box and speaking of ink, we hope you'll indulge us a little longer:

A Tasmanian Devil isn't just every frat boy's favorite cartoon character for a tattoo, it's also an animal that lives on Tasmania, an Australian island. We were dismayed while at a cocktail party recently to learn that the Tasmanian Devil is in danger of becoming extinct. The poor little guys are developing a deadly cancer which typically kills them in under 5 months. In areas of high density population areas, the disease has already wiped out 90 percent of the devils in only 10 years. No one knows what's causing the disease and the environment may not be to blame.

Researchers are hard at work trying to find a cause and a cure. For more information, go to Save the Tasmanian Devil.

Sexy V. Slutty

We’re still a bit perplexed about the differences between dressing sexy and slutty, so we checked in with our friend and fellow Jet Set Girl, Monica Diaz, expert and founder of Style Matters, for some advice. “Sexy is never loud it is more of a whisper,” says Monica. We're all ears!

Here’s Monica’s list for the top 10 sexy items every JSG must own:

1. Anything silk - the way it drapes and reflects light silk is very sexy and feels sexy. (JSG Note: Our S.O. actually prefers silk lingerie to lace)
2. Jeans - the right jeans look sexy on both sexes.
3. High Heels - They make your legs look amazing! Just make sure you can walk in them (JSG Note: So true! Our S.O. hates when he sees a woman who has a wobbly or duck-footed walk.)
4. Backless dresses or tops - I love the surprise factor of a top or dress that is completely covered in the front and then your back is completely exposed. Very sexy.
5. Low cut tops that show just enough to keep them guessing.
6. Red is very sexy and every woman should own a red dress.
7. Soft skin so a great body cream with a touch of shimmer is sexy. (JSG note: Our fave shimmer cream is Mario Badescu’s Summer Shine Body Lotion. It gives the perfect touch of shimmer—not to little and not so much that you look sweaty.)
8. Perfume worn so that the person needs to be next to you to get a whiff of your scent.

9. Earrings the right color and shape earrings can add life and sex appeal to your look
10. Dresses are so sexy, especially if they flow and move with you and especially when it has a slit. The slit when you walk or sit is like a game of peekaboo.

We think we got it now--Scarlett Johansson, not Paris Hilton.

Strong and Sexy

Gucci by Gucci: this is not a perfume for the weak at heart. Quite the opposite, it's bold and spicy, similar to our Narciso Rodriguez. We loved wearing it dancing with our girlfriends and also for a special night out with the significant other (who kept saying,"God you smell great!). It was perfect over the holidays and lasted all night. This may not be right for the office; but it turned heads when we wore it out. No doubt we'll have it on with our Jimmy's this weekend.

Available at Neiman's, Saks, and Gucci boutiques.

The Secrets to Being a Good Bridesmaid

We love planning bachelorette party getaways. So much so, that it inspired us to start this blog. We took everything we've learned from planning the perfect bachelorette party, with just the right mix of girl bonding and debauchery and made that the basis of The Jet Set Girls. (We've also taken 30th birthday trips, which morphed into taking annual trips, which morphed into taking trips whenever we can get away!)

Because we know we're good at planning bachelorette parties, we know we're also good bridesmaids. Between us, we've been in 16. We were stunned to read in yesterday's NY Post in "Brides Maid to Order" about a bride who makes her friends sign a bridesmaid's contracts that says they should not gain weight (we've been a pregnant bridesmaid); have no visible tan lines (granted, a suggestion Cameron Diaz could have used at last night's Oscars), and not drink at the reception until the bride says it's okay (total dealbreaker!). The kicker was this bride wanted to plan her own shower but still expected her 'maids to pick up the tab. Ugh!

We have our own, kinder, gentler set of rules which have served us well:

1. Never be a bridesmaid to an insane bridezilla.

2. Walk slowly and smile when you walk down the aisle. So many bridesmaids look at their feet as the hurry down the aisle. You may hate than you're in a coral strapless with a ginormous bow, but that doesn't change the fact that 100+ people are looking at you. Put on a smile and rock that frock!

3. Make sure the family of the bride are having a good time — they may not know as many people there, are going through familial stress associated with a wedding or are just shy. Trust us, if Uncle Fred is having a good time, everyone at the wedding is, too. We even went so far at our friend Shawna's wedding to have our date make sure her demanding mother had a drink in her hand at all times. It made everything easier for everyone involved.

4. Showers are inherently boring ("Oooooh, a toaster! A wine goblet!"). Try a co-ed cocktail party. Or if you must do a luncheon or tea, make sure the wine is flowing!

5. Planning a kick ass bachelorette party getaway? Not sure where to go? Email us your questions at jetsetgirls@gmail.com and we'll help you plan a party for the ages!