Gifting suites and the red carpet
award season is the busiest time of year for vendors to promote their products. It gives them a chance to present these products at an event called a gifting suite. These events are put on by a special planner, or publicists who solicit a select group of vendors to present their products to celebrities.   Sometimes publicists create themed gifting suites, such as the eco-friendly “Green Suite,” the health-conscious “Wellness suite,” or the dazzling “Liberace Suite.”
The Green Suites are always popular. They are gifting suites with all green products.  This is a term that has to do with socially responsible products that do not harm the Earth. They offer food and natural products that are biodegradable.  

Debie Durkin produces high end gifting suites for A list celebrities. She is actually doing a gifting suite at my house which should be really great.  By getting top photographers to shoot some celebrities and present the celebrity book Debie hopes to help raise money with the proceeds of the coffee table book that will go to help Haiticharity.  She explained to me that a book would be on going and hopefully supply money for a long time.

 Since she has a reputation for having really high end gifts many celebrities want to come.  She told me an interesting story that sometimes there are actors that she must turn down  that  may have been known at some point but have since gone to a lower point in life unfortunately and have actually been known to collect gifts that they could sell for about 10,000 to pay rent for a few months.  Debie said I try to stay clear of this because my vendors want to have high end celebrities that they can attach to the gifts to.  

The vendors supply a variety of items, from cosmetics and designer handbags (and, of course, my favorites: designer shoes) to the much lauded diamond-studded watches.  Celebrities can receive top-of-the-line clothes, food, and just about anything their hearts desire!  In addition, some gifting suites provide spa services. All of this is offered for free.

During this time of the year there are more celebrities in LA town getting ready for the red carpet events so the party planners set up some of the suites with massages, hair, and make-up and other relaxing spa treatments.  In addition, there is often fancy food and drinks so the atmosphere is relaxed and pleasant. 

Vendors offer their products to celebrities with hopes that the general public will see one of their favorite stars looking spectacular in a brand new pair of sunglasses and go out and purchase a pair for themselves. Consumer buying preferences are often influenced by the celebrities. Many people believe that if a certain celebrity uses a product, they like it, and take that as an endorsement of the products since they believe the product must be good because celebrities have very high standards and discriminating taste.

 Having a booth at a gifting suite during Oscar Week is the most sought after way to advertise with celebrities.  However, being the lucky few who are invited to attend is where the fun begins.

I have attended several gifting suites so I will tell you how it works. Sometimes gifting suites are held in hotels and sometimes in mansions or high-end residences.  There is usually a red carpet at the entrance so the gifting suite attendees can have their pictures by the paparazzi.  The sponsors have their logos on a backdrop (also called a ‘step and repeat’).  When the celebrity guests take pictures it is documented that they were at the event.  Photographers from Wire Image, Getty, Daily Celebrities and other newswire services come to take pictures. This type of publicity helps promote the vendors products and it’s good for celebrities who want to associate themselves with certain people or products and build their own ‘brand’ image.
One of the most popular gifting suites that’s held each year is at the former residence of Liberace in West Hollywood. It is located on the penthouse floor which has a pool and outdoor deck.  This gifting suite usually lasts for three days! They hand out free gift items and make sure you have a good time so you will remember their products with possibly a new brighter smile. They usually have a high end Vodka sponsor and serve martinis.  In between the mingling around the sparkling pool and tasting the delicious hors d’oeuvres always one in your hand cocktails while interviews are being conducted on comfy couches in other rooms. I truly love gifting suites!

Preparing for the Red Carpet

Preparing for the red carpet can be a long process especially when the public scrutinizes every flaw, so celebrities must go to great lengths to look their best.  This means that they must have the best hair, makeup and wardrobe stylists.  In addition, they must be fit or find ways to hide any flaws that they may have.

The celebrity must spend time and money to be prepared for the red carpet.  They must make sure their hair and makeup and body all look great when they get on the carpet as well as their wardrobe which should look fabulous to be presented as a complete package.  It often takes a team of people to accomplish this.

 Jerry Olivarez (event publicist)

The publicist profession pits you in the lions den of big name celebrities; often requiring celebrities to do things they do not want to do, or wouldn’t normally do. Celebrity egos and personalities are fragile and can be strained in a moment’s time. The last thing any publicist wants to do is embarrass or aggravate a celebrity.  The way to achieve this delicate balance is by maintaining a gracious attitude and never losing sight of who’s in control.  One must be aware of everything, from timing to what your big name likes to drink before he hits the carpet. Attention to detail, and follow through are the keys to a successful and flawless red carpet event.

“For example, I had an experience with a very ruff and abrupt publicist who was handling a very big name celebrity.” “The publicist insisted on taking her client directly onto the red carpet, even after I told her the media wasn’t ready.”  “As the event publicist in charge, I had the foresight to know the celebrity would have been embarrassed due to the fact the media wasn’t fully set, and in addition the impression it  would have left would have appeared rushed and sneaky.” “The protocol for this event had him arriving to the carpet with the hosts Johnny Brenden and George Maloof.” “Even though this publicist insisted on getting her client on the Red Carpet at that very moment, I immediately took control and said, We are going to the Brenden Celebrity suite first, then the red carpet.” “When we arrived upstairs both Johnny Brenden and George Maloof greeted the celebrity with open arms and everything worked out smoothly.”  “Regardless of what’s said or done, it’s always important to stay calm, gracious and in control.”   Jerry Olivarez

 BRITTAN TAYLOR on her Preparation

When I wake up the morning of the day of a red carpet event, I am filled with anticipation and excitement. It feels like a holiday. I usually set the whole day aside for my preparations which are as important and fun to me as the event itself. It is especially fun if I have coordinated the day so that I am getting ready with a friend, like Donna Spangler.

Actress Brittan Taylor

I start my red carpet day with a vigorous workout including cardio and weight training. Not only does the workout make me feel good emotionally, but my muscles respond to the last minute training, so I know my look will be as strong, lean and defined as possible. This is especially important because most fashions for the red carpet show a lot of skin!

Speaking of skin, I like to get a facial on the day of the red carpet, and a spray tan the day before. I never tan the day of an event, because the spray tan has an aroma and can also possibly get on my clothes.

I have my manicure and pedicure done the day of the event, because I have natural nails, and the only way to ensure that my nails will look perfect is to do them that day. The time waiting for the polish to dry would be aggravating, except for the fact that I get my hair and make up done as well. I usually have a few people doing the different beauty treatments at one time. For example, my nails and pedicure are being done as my hair is being curled.

I have usually chosen my outfit for the red carpet event days or even weeks in advance. I by chance I have not, then frenzied fashion show to determine the winning outfit occurs. This is tough to do if my hair and make up are already done, so it is not the best plan. Additionally, if I know what I am wearing prior to having my hair and makeup done, then the hair stylist and makeup artist can coordinate my hair and make up with my out fit.

When I actually get to the event, I make sure that I have some one there to assist me.  My assistant acts as my mirror, gives me the last look over, to ensure that I look the way she knows I want to look. She holds my coat, purse and any other belongings I may have, so that I am free to pose unencumbered on the carpet. Lights, camera, action! It feels great to be in front of the cameras, to hear the people cheering and see the lights flashing, knowing that I am looking my personal best.

 Hair

It is important to go to the proper stylist that will make you look your best.  I have a hairdresser that I know and trust.  I like that I can go into my salon UMBERTOS and get pampered.  There is a place onsite to get tasty food and drink. I can order anything and they will bring it up to me. I can get tea, coffee or other drinks served while I am getting my hair done, or waiting for my color.  There are also flat screen TVs to watch or I can chat with my hairdresser who always has good stories.  They treat all their clients well.
Celebrities know that they have to invest in their looks. Having a healthy-looking mane of hair is very important and great hair can improve a persons looks a lot. Celebrity stylists know all the tricks to looking great and show the celebrities what they can do to accomplish this. Most celebrities, at one time or another, have taken advantage of hair clip-ins, extensions, or wigs.  Clip-in hair makes hair appear thicker, longer or both.  Hair extensions are sewn, glued, or braided in to natural hair to create the effect of long, thick hair.

 Although I do not need extensions I have always had to pay strict attention to my hair because it is very curly hair, so it takes two people to blow dry it perfectly, my hairdresser and his assistant. If I do not do this it looks frizzy and unkempt. Once my hair dresser is done I always feel confident about being presented on the red carpet!

Fitness
If a celebrity is not in shape, it does not look good for them plus it is not healthy. So, if they need to get in shape fast, most celebrities will hire a personal trainer to whip them back into shape. The celebrity may have to go on a special diet so that they look good.

SPA.
Many celebrities like to go to the spa to prepare for the big events. Sometimes they are provided in gifting suites and sometimes they go to their favorite spa.  This will give them a chance to to relax before a big event.  When the Celebrity is relaxed and happy they look much better on the red carpet and if they are going to accept an award this is most important.

 Tanning
Some celebrities apply body make-up or self-tanner to hide flaws or make their legs look smooth.  It must however be put on in such a way that it does not streak.  Regular body make up is much easier to apply and can look more natural then certain tanners. Either way, there are professionals who can apply both types of makeup for these special events.  My favorite is MAC liquid foundation for body and face.

Eyelashes
The eyes and eyelashes are very important.  If you have bad lashes you can have false ones put on which look really great, or you can invest in a product that makes them grow long and healthy like “Latisse”.  This is a product that you must apply daily though, but I have seen great results from the friends who use it.  Like most things in life, you must be consistent with the product in order to maintain the lasting results.

Makeup

The next thing you must be aware of is your make up. If you are wearing a dress it may be necessary to have body makeup.  Also, having great makeup on the face will be the difference from looking great or possibly looking like there are flaws on your face so the celebrities usually get their makeup done by a professional for the important red carpet events.  This preparation for a red carpet can be like preparing for a wedding.  The whole process is a lot of work.  I remember one time I had body makeup and a white dress…big mistake.  I was not powdered enough so the makeup came off on my dress!

Working the Red Carpet

In order to find out what events are going on and to get invited to attend a red carpet event, it is important to have a publicist.  The publicist will know what is going on around town and will get you invited to events that are a good fit for your celebrity ‘brand’. There is also an announcement calendar inUSAcalled the “Hollywood News Calendar” which announces most of the events going on in town which many of the publicists subscribe to.   The publicist then puts together a short bio about the client that includes what work they have done and who they are and what projects they are currently doing and put in a recent  picture.  Depending on their credentials, the type of event, and the publicist’s relationship with the event planners and other publicists combined with the perceived value of the personality determines what events their client gets accepted to.

 Sometimes, an up-and-coming actress or person trying to be presented on the red carpet may be turned down for an event with big celebrities names, but when they go to smaller events to be presented  they will become more well-known will have an easier time getting invited to the more exclusive red carpet events. Sometimes a lesser celebrity name can get into more prestigious events if they have a strong publicity agent that has high profile clients.  The agent will just arrange a group of their clients to attend the event and the lesser celeb will be included.  Of course if the actor has a high profile project in the works the media will want to photograph them.

It is the publicist’s job to walk the celebrity onto the red carpet and announce them. Sometimes the celebrities have their driver alert their publicist that they are approaching the red carpet and they then go to meet them and them escort them to the red carpet.  There is a practice that some public relation representatives use where they have a pre-printed paper and business cards that provides the media with the name of the celebrity so their names are correctly spelled and their major credentials are included:

 
Example:      Donna Spangler
                     Actress, Producer, Author

The publicist holds up the paper and the paparazzi take a picture of the paper so they can keep track of the many celebrities names and not confuse anything when they upload the photos to the wire service that they work for. Some big celebrities we all know of coarse but there are many other celebrities that have TV shows or new movies or personalities that makes it impossible to recognize every personality. After a while the photographers get to know you and will start screaming your name to look their way.

 Once you are on it you must pose for all the photographers and look their way so that each of them can get good pictures to sell.   This way they will be happy with you as it is most important to be kind and accommodating to the paparazzi.  It is important to smile at each photographer and look their way so that they all can get good pictures.  It is also important to do different poses so that all the photos do not look the same.

The gifting suites gives paparazzi another chance to photograph the celebrities.

 Who does the paparazzi want to photograph?

Why do they want to do it?  The paparazzi want to get pictures that they can sell. Sometimes, if they get a tip off that there is someone who may not be as well known yet but they are set to be on a TV series or a big movie or perhaps dating a celebrity so they can sell the photos if a big story blows out….then, they can make money!

 DONNA SPANGLER

“I remember the thrill of my first red carpet experience.  I was doing a TV show and walked the carpet where a slew of photographers started taking my picture and screaming my name.  That was so exciting that it almost becomes addictive. “

 BRITTAN TAYOR (Actress)

The first time I went to a gifting suite was at the Cannes Film Festival in 2008. I was there with Donna Spangler and a few other girls, known in Germany as the Lux Ladies. We were at the festival for a short film, “Weather Girls,” that Donna and the Ladies were in, plus Taff show from Pro Sieben was filming our adventures for upcoming episodes. This taste of fame was relatively new to me, and I loved being invited to the gifting suite. The gifts are great, but the compliment of being invited is also wonderful to receive. What it says when you are invited to a gifting suite is that you are considered to be an influential person.  Gifting suite hosts invite people that they believe other people will want to emulate.

SIMONAS STORY (actress)

If the red carpet affair is a big one (Emmy, Oscar or Golden Globes) I will hire a professional hair and make up stylist and go shopping for a new dress because I cannot wear the same dress twice on the red carpet. I hire a driver for a nice entrance and have my publicist waiting out front for me to escort me down the red carpet.

My favorite gifting suite was one of the Emmy gifting suites held at a private estate. They gave me a gift for a facial at one of the best spas in town. I got a relaxing manicure and pedicure while they served me champagne and a plethora of various delicacies and desserts. After that, I was gifted several bags of the latest fashion in clothes.

Then, they styled my hair and did my make up from one of the high-end salons. On my way I received a goodie bag filled with creams and make up.

When I leave a gifting suite I feel like the princess that I am.

TRACY DALI (Actress)

I have been on lots and lots of red carpets and gone to many gifting suites but the most memorable time was when I I took my celebrity friends, the Farley brothers to at backstage of the Silver Spoon gift suite.  They had never been to a gifting sweet and thought it may be a waste of time. They were complaining but I said “ just try it , its fun!”

I had to practically drag Kevin and John Farley into the gifting suite.  Once we got in there they were thrilled, like kids in a candy store!  They were having so much fun that they did not even want to leave.  These comedian actors went around skipping and singing.  I could tell they were having lots of fun.  They got all the  goodies they could carry but then Kevin said “we’re not leaving till we get the darn bubble gum machine.” They giggled and then I had to drag them both out of there, it was really cute!

ALANNA CURRY (Actress)

Alana

“I feel most myself with a red carpet under my feet and a camera pointed in my face” ((lol is that silly or what.)) “Gifting suites, award shows, and premieres are my favorite.”   “I still remember the first time i stepped foot on a red carpet. it was a premiere in Hollywoodand I was blinded by the cameras. I was nervous and excited all at once.”

 ALLIE MOSS (Actress)

Actress Allie Moss

“No matter what…put your best face forward! I had just thrown out my back. It was swollen beyond recognition, and I could barely walk or stand up straight, but on the red carpet, I acted like I had never felt better…”

 LOREILLE NEW

“I  really  like  wearing  the  beautiful designer outfits I’ve been fortunate enough to be dressed in  on  the  red carpet–  but  still  often  feel  kinda  shy  &  awkward  when  im  out  there &  all the  lenses are  flashing and  they’re calling  my  name.”

Donna was born and raised in southern California and grew up in Hollywood.  Throughout the years Donna has had lots of animals including dog’s, cat’s, rat’s, fish, bunny’s, bird’s, squirrel’s, hamsters, and  pigs.

She started her career in modeling while she was at UCLA where a photographer discovered her and shot her for the cover of a local magazine.  Shortly thereafter she got into doing commercials, TV shows, and movies.  She is well-known for her appearances in Playboy magazine. In her lucrative career she has also been a model for posters, billboards campaigns, calendars, catalogues and commercials. The former pin-up model did not feel that her acting career was moving towards the exciting roles that she craved, and realizing that she wanted control over her career destiny, she decided to start creating her own shows.  Donna took a writing boot camp and studied production in all aspects.  She started out producing comedy videos and various other productions including “The Bubbleheads”, and “The California girl workout”.  Donna founded TVwebNetwork where she showcased webisodes of SCANDALS which Donna wrote, acted in, directed, shoot and edited her web show.  Re-runs of which can be seen on KNBSTV.

On top of Donna’s producing and acting credits, she also caught the eye of BBC producers who profiled her in a documentary; “Secret Map of Beverly Hills,” which aired in the United Kingdom and throughout the USA. She also did a show for VH1 where she was profiled for her producing and directing and as an author.  Most recently Donna was on ARDE, the biggest German TV Network in a documentary about her lifestyle as her current projects as a producer.