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Let the Beijing Olympic Games begin! Start time: 8-8-2008, at 08:08:08 p.m. China Standard Time in Beijing.

A stylish Beijing 2008 Lantern Pin
                                                     At The Bay stores in Canada

Anyone with Chinese friends knows how important the number 8 is to them. They vie for license plates and phone numbers that includes the digit, so strong is the belief in its good mojo. Thousands of weddings are planned for today. The Los Angeles Times reports that in Las Vegas an anticipated 1,000 marriage licenses will be issued, as compared to the usual 300 or so.

In China the number 8 is largely associated with prosperity. Classical numerology also links it to success, control, power and finances – for good or bad. Depending on how it is used, the number 8 can mean either big rewards or strong challenges.

Mind you, today is pretty darn powerful in numerology, when you use the life path method of adding all the digits and reducing to a single digit (8 + 8 + 2 + 0 + 0 + 8 = 26 = 8).

The astro outlook for today is not so balmy. Among them: We’re in the trough between eclipses, when extreme weather and behavior is more likely. The Moon is in Scorpio, sign of political maneuvering and power struggles, while the Sun (positive power, success) is weakly placed.

Saturn (restriction and limitation) opposes the ascendant and conjoining Venus, which should mean there will be little fun or glamor at these Olympics. Also, athletes may not enjoy the kind of open camaraderie that usually prevails at the Games, though the friendships they do form will last forever. Venus also indicates social occasions while Saturn rules government and leaders, and 80 of state leaders and royals were invited to the opening lunch!

As an astrologer (keeping in mind that’s my bias) I would say that basing a big decision on one number is over-simplifying things. Any big event, from the Olympics to your best friend’s wedding, needs careful planning. A better approach might be to use numerology and astrology together to get a better view of the Big Picture.

 

 

Astrology advice from Susan Kelly.  More at BeStarChic.com!


Can you feel it? For a couple of weeks the atmosphere has been increasingly more charged, intense and electric. All leading up to August 1^st and the solar eclipse in look-at-me Leo.

Attention must be paid.

These "eclipse periods" arrive twice every year every year and last roughly six weeks. (They begin two weeks before the first eclipse and ending about two weeks after the second, which this year is a lunar eclipse on August 16^th in Aquarius).

Added to that, this is a "Blue Moon" month, meaning there are two full moons! There’s no astrological significance, but can make you feel a cosmic conspiracy is afoot.

Eclipses always happen in pairs, and are basically super-charged new or full moons. No longer considered evil omens, we do know that events happening now seem to have a heightened quality.

Get dressed! Just like the right look can help you feel more confident in stressful situations such as a job interview, a few wardrobe changes can help you survive and thrive the eclipses:

• Celebrate the positive by wearing a top of frock in intense, sunny yellow. It’s a shade that will take you into fall, since it’s in the collections of such designers as Jean Paul Gaultier and Vera Wang.
• Reflect the Leo (the sign of the eclipse) need for drama, going bold and gold with your accessories. On trend for summer ‘08: over-sized cocktail rings and ethnic cuffs.
• Eclipses stir up turbulent weather patterns. Think protection, as in shopping summer sales for UV-fending gear, from hats to swimwear.
• Breathe! It’s a great stress reducer. And try wearing sheer and gauzy styles that are not only trendy but let your skin drink in some oxygen as well.
• Feeling swept up in the current? Ditch the tottering stilettos for some flat sandals. Wearing earthy beiges and browns in a trendy safari look from Stella McCartney or DKNY will also help you feel chicly grounded.

Accent the positive in a sunny look from the Escada summer collection
(photo courtesy Escada)

The blog of BeStarChic.com, your source for the astrology of fashion, beauty and life with style!

From Boho hippie chic to ladylike Jackie O looks, spring collections from New York to Milan were all about the Swinging Sixties. The love-in with the decade extends well into fall for many designers, such as John Galliano for Christian Dior.

As Vogue editor Anna Wintour once mused: ". . . fashion does not materialize spontaneously but . . . emerges from the fabric of our times." And I find by tracking the interweaving of the planets also provides insight into this great tapestry called life.

During the Sixties fashion – from the miniskirt to hippie love beads to torn jeans – reflected the revolution that was going on in society, as women burned bras and men resisted the draft. The planet Uranus (revolution) was conjunct Pluto (transformation and upheaval) in the sign of Virgo for much of the decade.

In 2008, Saturn touches off that Virgo dynamic, while rabble-rousing Uranus is in the opposite sign. And a leader emerges who is a child of the 1960s, Barrack Obama (August 4, 1961) and promises change and a return to 1960-ish idealism, this time from within the system.

But this may not be a gentle revolution, since November 4, Election Day, coincides with the exact opposition of Uranus (change, evolution) and Saturn (status quo, defensiveness).
 
A new "Summer of Love" 
From the summer 2008 collection of Paul Hardy

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Pop sensations the Jonas Brothers were slated to give an interview at MuchMusic studios in Toronto yesterday. 
By afternoon, a reported more than 2,000 teeny-bop fans had queued up to catch a glimpse of the boy band stars of Disney Channel's Camp Rock.

The three brothers – Nick, 15, Joe, 18, and Kevin, 20 – smiled and signed autographs as they passed young fans lining Queen Street, many of them bursting into tears, according to reports.

They also flashed their purity rings, which they told Details magazine earlier this year means they ihave pledged to remain virgins until they wed.

The planet Saturn is now in Virgo, the sign of the chaste.  Look for a return to more conservative sexual behaviour to become a bigger trend over the next two years, and not just with young people.

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Once the province of teenagers in poodle skirts, the charm bracelet now seems to dangle and jangle from wrists from Hollywood to Hong Kong. 

Style.comthis week highlights a summer-fresh version from Roger Vivier, a house best known for its shoes. Designer Bruno Frisoni has devised a "fabulously faux gold and ivory charm bracelet" to celebrate the 71-year-old brand. Notice the puckish stiletto heel charm!

Charms first because a major fashion statement in the early Victorian era. Which coincides with another time when the planet Uranus was in the sign of Pisces - as it is now - circa 1837. They were big on symbolism back then, wearing a wishbone meant hope, a crowned heart for love triumphant, butterfly the soul, and so forth. Each gemstone also had significance, sometimes used as a code to spell out secret sweet nothings between lovers.

With a continuing strong Leo influence in fashion throughout the summer, this trend will best keep its charm in pure gold – gleaming, tawny and at least 18k.

More fashon, beauty and life with style at BeStarChic.com!

More on the astrology of fashion, life and style at BeStarChic.com

ABC's Good Morning America recently reported a Wichita, Kansas company was trying to enforce a dress code that included mandatory pantyhose for women.

When the female portion of the workforce balked, the firm's president asked the Wall Street Journal to weigh in on the debate.  It responded with a report, "In casual workplaces, many toss out pantyhose"  http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/sfl-flzattire0608sbjun08,0,2293986.story

The planet Pluto rules our collective obsessions.  Also the areas in which we may feel passionately about, to the point of bucking the system. 

In the mid-nineties, Pluto entered the freewheeling sign of Sagittarius.  With it came an obsession and demand for casual, even sporty, fashion... and everywhere, including the workplace! According to the WSJ, pantyhose sales have dropped every year since that time, as companies in all fields continue to relax the dress code.
 
The latest this a.m.:  GMA anchor Diane Sawyer, a freedom-loving Sagittarian, showed what resulted when she challenged three men to wear pantyhose for a day.  http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Springtime/story?id=5175302

 But don't empty the hose drawer just yet:  This month Pluto backslides into Sag, but will go back into ultra-conservative Capricorn (this time staying there until 2025!!) which just might bring a pantyhose renaissance.  Stay tuned....

The New Moon in Gemini on June 3rd kicked off a cycle that saw us all yearning for the lightness!

Good timing, as the weeks leading up to the summer solstice (June 20) bring extended hours of daylight.

Until then, vivacious Venus has also slipped into something Gemini, adding beauty and graciousness to the mix.  All relationships, personal and professional, take on a lively vibrancy, and those with artistic impulses should indulge them.

Mars in dramatic Leo plays a supporting role, adding a playful tone. If ever there were a time to flirt this is it!

 
A breezy, flirty look from the summer '08 collection of Montreal designer Andy The Anh
(photo: Marek Wlazlo)

Green packaging is about to become more prevalent -- and in more ways than one.

According to an article in Packaging Digest magazine, green and other earth-inspired colors will grace the packages of consumer goods hitting shelves over the next two years.  "Under the umbrella of packaging delivering a green message, . . . carbon as 'today's currency,' with earthy, natural, organic shades."

The color green is associated with nature-loving Virgo.  And with Saturn now in that sign, it means eco-consciousness is now mainstream.

And it seems like it happened overnight.  for decades environmentalists were on the fringe, desperately trying to get us all to recycle.

The second half of 2006 saw a shift in global mind set when the Moon's South Node went into Virgo, denoting a deep subconscious urge to get with the eco program.  Then in September 2007, Saturn took up the cause, which it will further until the end of 2009.

A green fashion look for spring
from the ethical fashion show, Montreal Fashion Week
Photo: Jimmy Hamelin

Star Attraction

Showing some zodiac style this Valentine’s Day just might bring more love your way

As told in my feature for Montreal's THE GAZETTE newspaper!

There’s no mistaking (or possibly resisting) the lure of allure.

Whether on the prowl for a new flame or to rekindle an old spark, feeling more attractive can help attract the kind of love you want and need. But so many trends, so many styles – how do you know which are for you?

Your zodiac sign can help you resolve those nagging what-to-wear dilemmas. And pinpoint in which of the coming season’s trends (just hitting stores) you’ll sizzle. We’ve also included the names of some celebrities of each sign who have mastered star attraction, proving the stylish lady gets (and keeps) the guy.

Read all about it here:

Charting Your Style - The Gazette (Montreal)

One of the big Sagittarian-inspired trends that will soon be on the way out: Pirates!

Sagittarius rules freewheeling types who like to make their own rules. And who can get away with things the rest of us can’t.

Beyond glamorizing and/or lusting after Johnny Depp and crew in the Pirates of the Caribbean series, music and video piracy still runs rampant. Jupiter shifted from Sagittarius to Capricorn in December. Pluto will dip a toe into that sign from January until mid-June, retreating back into Sagittarius until November. After that, it will stay in Capricorn for over a decade.

For some insight into what Jupiter in Capricorn holds, I recommend this article from About.com’s astrology guide, here.

These big shifts mean trends ruled by Sagittarius are in for one last hurrah. Jupiter has jumped ship, and Pluto will soon follow suit after more than a decade of shaping our obsessions.

Skull themes are still big in fashion heading into spring ‘08.  Few do it as fashionably as Montreal designer Renata Morales.  Here's a look from her Spring '08 collection.

Photo: Marek Wlazlo