Debby Sunshine Stars On The Rachael Ray Show (With Gwyneth Paltrow)

Okay, you caught me! I didn’t actually star on the show, but I did get to ask Gwyneth a question. The truth of the matter is that I was picked by the producers of the Rachael Ray Show to appear on this morning’s segment featuring Ms. Paltrow. They found my blog and thought that I would be perfect to have a discussion with her about the ups and downs of moms who are passionate about feeding their family healthy foods.

Having been given less than 24 hours notice, I frantically shopped for the right color blouse, prepared my dialogue for the show and thought about the best possible words I could use to be a strong voice for veganism. Truth be told, I was also thinking about ways to tactfully plug my blog (as bloggers often do, so don’t judge!).

I eagerly showed up bright and early at Rachael’s studio with my husband, Jeff, wearing my new blue blouse and my favorite Beyond Skin vegan high-heeled shoes (as if anyone would be looking at my feet). While sitting in Hair and Makeup, I rehearsed my anticipated dialogue over and over again in my head to be certain that I wouldn’t stumble over my words in front of 50 million television viewers.

And then my dream was shattered! After careful preparation for my big debut, the producers told me that the premise of my appearance had changed. Now, I was simply required to ask Gwyneth just one question. Yes, you heard me correctly! My rehearsed dialogue had turned into just one little question! And to make matters worse, the camera crew guy crouching on the aisle next to my chair told me several times to stay seated when Rachael called my name. This totally contradicted the producer’s prior instructions to stand for my question. What was a girl to do under these circumstances? Stand or sit? Well, if you saw this morning’s show, I was the 3rd person in the studio audience to ask Gwynnie a question…the only one sitting during the questioning! My dream of advocating for a plant-based diet on national television instantaneously vanished into thin air. And my hair style didn’t make me happy either! Way too much forehead!

For your information, my question to Gwyneth was…drum roll… “Can you give me any cooking tips to enhance my vegan dishes?”

As they say, that’s show biz! Click here to see my big question, if you wish. You can skip to 2:15 minutes into the video to find me.

Despite my Rachael Ray fiasco which I can only compare to an old “I Love Lucy” episode, there were quite a few positive things which came out of my appearance…

1. During the commercial break, someone in the audience asked if she could try one of Gwyneth’s vegan “Sweet Potato & Five-Spice Muffins” which were prepared for the show. Rachael yelled to her staff “Give one to the vegan lady!” So, I got a muffin. It was good too!

Click here to read my review of Gwyneth’s new cookbook “It’s All Good.”

2. The show’s make-up artist commented that I had “great skin.” Of course, I replied that it was because of my wholesome vegan diet.

3. I discovered a fabulous new vegan and cruelty-free cosmetic line called “alison raffaele” cosmetics. The Rachael Ray make-up artist used alison raffaele’s “reality base foundation” on me which is an oil-free formula. My skin really did look flawless! This vegan cosmetic line is also free of parabens, mineral oil, talc, gluten and fragrance. The foundations come in 7 different shades, and you can find the perfect shade for your complexion (as well as other products in this line) on alison raffaele’s website.

*Please note that the famous model “Emme” was on the Dr. Oz Show last year with Alison raving about Alison’s transparent finish powder which comes in a jar with a “to-go” brush.

You can purchase alison raffaele products on their website, at various on-line stores such as Amazon or Beauty.com, or at various Duane Reade and Walgreen stores which have a “Look Boutique.”

alison raffaele

4. Lastly, I got a great new idea for putting together a new cool outfit for myself by observing what Gwyneth wore to the show. She looked really great in a casual light blue denim shirt, cool chains around her neck, white jeans and brown leather boots. She divulged to the audience during the commercial break that her boots were from the brand “Rag & Bone.” I intend to copy Gwyneth’s outfit substituting the leather boots for an awesome pair of vegan faux leather boots from Jeffrey Campbell’s new vegan footwear collection which can be purchased on-line at convertstyle.

Jeffrey Campbell Vegan Boots

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading about my interesting experience at the Rachael Ray Show. As they say, live and learn!

Debby

xoxox