Watching Rachael Ray

Oh! Another hit for the style team, this season’s group is doing well, Rachael looks good, happy and healthy. Yay! The first guest today is Valerie Bertinelli - it’s Gal Pal Val day!

They agree that getting pictures taken is the worst, they both hate the thought of all the posing and how nerve wracking it is. Val, though, decided to let us go along for the ride, to show what really happens behind the scene. The photos? Not what she looks like, that’s what she wants us to know, this is the real her - little makeup, and no 2 hours in hair and makeup! Rachael shows us Valerie’s first cover photo on Dynomite magazine, a shoot Val says she doesn’t even remember. Of her Good Housekeeping cover, she remembers someone writing her a note saying he could fix her discolored tooth. Awww! She jokes about her TV guide one that someone who’s no longer a friend, of course, said “Don’t you ever smile un-crooked?!” Some of the pictures are awesome! Mullet hair, even!

Rachael laughs and asks if there’s any covers she’s seen where she knows the people and the reaction is “Oh come AWN…” because they know they don’t look at that. Rachael brings up the FHM magazine, she says they broke the airbrush machine on her to do that - but her hubby liked it! Val says when the fitness magazine called her she was like Me? are you SURE? They wanted her so bad they let her do the shoot and not show her belly. “It’s a 48 year old belly, you don’t want to see that.” Val let everyone tag along to enjoy the shoot, and see “what I reaaaaaally look like without the makeup!”

After all the work, including a spray tan in her drive way, did she like the final picture? Says Val “I’m uncharacteristically happy!”

They have a quick update on Joey, who gave up his independence to raise his nephews when they were taken from his twin sister, adopting them. They gave him $50k to spend on himself last year, helping him make Christmas fantastic for the boys, so they check in to see how he’s doing. He used 10k as a down payment on a new house, they payed off the car, and he put the rest into accounts for the kids college and emergency fund - the boys are happy and healthy, and thriving, all four of them.

(More with Val backstage!)

Next up, its KCs next challenge - 5 days, and empty room, tht wants to be a Hollywood Style hangout, swanky music style for Hollywood Life. Her favorite part of the room? recycled car leather that went into the leather flooring. Then KC shows some quick do it yourself tips for your own home!

So what’s for dinner? Cran-Rice Pilaf and Ham Steak with Buttered Rum Gravy.