February 2010

Home Alone: Cat Edition

February 26, 2010 at 10:09 pm, by Rachel Shippy

Today I am escaping snow-covered New York and heading to Florida for a mini vacation. As usual, I’m feeling anxious about leaving two curious kitties to their own devices for the next four days. Sure, a friend will stop by a few times and check on them, but when I’m hundreds of miles away imagining worst case scenarios, this drop-in is only marginally comforting. Do other pet owners out there share my neuroses? I think it’s easy to forget that although they’re domesticated, cats are still animals that can fend for themselves (they can even survive without food or water for more than a week.) And considering that cats sleep up to 16 hours a day, mine may not even notice I’m gone. Still, I’m glad I stumbled upon this travel-prep checklist for pet owners that eased most of my concerns—it’s worth keeping on hand for your next trip!

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Steal Alice In Wonderland’s Look

February 26, 2010 at 11:55 am, by Mandy Hendrix

I’m really excited about the new Alice In Wonderland movie coming out next weekend. For one thing, Tim Burton is a visual effects master and I’m wild about the over-the-top surrealist look.

I can only imagine the talent of the hair and makeup team for the movie. Which got me thinking…how would Alice get ready to start her day? Her look is pretty natural—she’s young—but she’s traveling through a topsy-turvy world, so I can imagine that she’d be open to a little experimentation after awhile.

First, Alice would start with a sweet, girly shampoo, like this Cherry Blossom Ginseng, $7, from Organix. (Good to know: The brand has a sweepstakes starting March 10th for a vacation to London. Click here or find more info on their Alice-themed bottles.)

Urban Decay’s Alice In Wonderland Book of Shadows, $52 is packed with 16 eyeshadows that range from easy-to-wear nudes to bolder, vibrant colors. My favorite is the earthy, not-quite-brown, not-quite-gray, Mushroom shade. I think Alice would love the warm purple Queen.

And because a look is never complete without a great manicure, Alice has a fabulous polish job with OPI’s Off With Her Red, $8.50. Although I’m pretty sure by the end of her adventure, she’d be sporting her signature, Absolutely Alice, a sparkly blue.

For more on the movie, check out our March issue, on newsstands now.

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Throw-Pillow Talk

February 25, 2010 at 3:54 pm, by cdewet

I recently added some bright punches of color to my living room (a hot pink mirror and an oversize orange canvas) and it felt like there was nothing to tie these crazy hues together—until I found the perfect throw pillows for my sofa!

The Summer Kimono pillow from Pier One instantly grabbed my attention when I found it online, and I just knew a couple of them would tie all of my color schemes together perfectly. The pillow gods must have been smiling upon me because they were also on sale, and that almost NEVER happens to me. In fact, it’s usually just the opposite and the pillow I want costs as much as a flight back home to Southern California.

For great prices on fabulous pillows check out pier1.com, costplus.com and the new home decor lines from Tracy Hutson and Genevieve Gorder on qvc.com. Happy shopping!

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Learning About LBL

February 25, 2010 at 11:52 am, by Emily Chau

Meet our guest blogger (and intern) Shara Hikmet!

As I arrived in New York from my native England to begin work as an editorial intern at Ladies’ Home Journal, I was excited for the glitz and glamour that a magazine had to offer. Would I get to attend fabulous fashion parties, would I be whisked away to South Beach to help out at a photo shoot, would George Clooney finally realize his true feelings for me during an interview?

So imagine my excitement when I was asked to attend an event hosted by none other than Miss Whoopi Goldberg. I have admired her ever since I watched Sister Act and felt inspired to become a gospel-singing nun. I didn’t mind that the topic of the event (um, light bladder leakage, or LBL), and sponsored by Poise, was slightly less than glam. Undaunted by the raging snowstorm, I got there only to learn that Goldberg was MIA due to the weather. Still, I was pleasantly surprised to enter a room adorned with pink décor and entertaining photo booths. I had fun sipping on my pink grapefruit juice and posing in Statue of Liberty garb.

It was apparent that Poise is trying to bring lightness and humor to this unspoken subject. Goldberg has teamed up with the brand to help remove the stigma and embarrassment connected with LBL. She created hilarious webisodes, starring as eight famous women in history who confide their personal stories and regrets of not talking about their LBL.

As Goldberg joined us via Skype, I was surprised to discover that LBL is common, affecting one in every three women. It also affects women of all ages and life stages. Weak pelvic floor muscles often cause LBL, usually due to obesity, pregnancy, childbirth or hysterectomy. The event was quite an eye-opener, and despite not getting to meet Goldberg, I had a lovely time talking to women facing this issue. I also left with a goodie bag filled with Poise products specifically designed for LBL. Hmmm…maybe I should give those kegel exercises a try!

Photo (left to right): Shara Hikmet, Sara Kay and Alyssa Bleiberg

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Is It Okay To Be Fat?

February 24, 2010 at 2:49 pm, by Emily Chau

Is it OK to be fat?

It’s not a trick question. The answer isn’t as obvious as it seems.

A couple of weeks ago, I got to watch a taping of a Nightline Face-Off that tackled this very issue. Moderated by Good Morning America news anchor Juju Chang, the debate pitted Marianne Kirby, blogger and advocate for the fat acceptance movement, and Crystal Renn, the highest-paid plus-size model, against Meme Roth, president of the National Action Against Obesity and Kim Bensen, author of Finally Thin. It was a heated discussion, to say the least, and their conversation touched on everything from fat-phobia to anorexia, and from genetics to yo-yo dieting. Watch the show here.

But back to the question at hand: Is it OK to be fat? I think we have to first look at what do we mean by “OK”? (Is it healthy to be fat? Is it somehow morally or socially wrong to be fat, and therefore okay to discriminate against those who are?) Second, how are we defining “fat”? (Waist size? Percentage body fat? BMI?)

However, let’s put semantics aside and look at the science. On the one hand: People who are overweight tend to live longer than their skinnier counterparts, according to McGill researchers. On the other hand: Living longer isn’t much of an advantage if your quality of life is compromised. We also know that being overweight or obese (as defined by BMI) increases your odds for diabetes, heart disease, high cholesterol, arthritis, sleep apnea and more. On the one hand: You can be fit and fat. Half of overweight people and one-third of obese people still have healthy cholesterol and blood pressure levels, says a 2008 study in the Archives of Internal Medicine. Meanwhile, a quarter of normal-weight individuals were found to have two risk factors for heart disease. On the other hand: It’s better to be fit and trim than fit and fat. Active women with normal BMI have a lower risk of developing coronary heart disease than those who exercise and are overweight, says another study in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

So what do you think? Are Americans fat-phobic? Is it okay to be fat?

Photo (left to right): Emily Chau, Marianne Kirby, Juju Chang, Kim Bensen, Meme Roth

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Ladies We Love: Cathy Erway

February 24, 2010 at 2:09 pm, by Sonia Harmon

How would you feel about not eating out for a month? Or six months? Brooklyn-based blogger and amateur cook Cathy Erway decided to do just that—for two years. She was tired of takeout and overpriced dinners, but it wouldn’t an easy feat in New York city, where eating out is the norm. She documented her venture on her blog, Not Eating Out in New York, and it quickly gained a following.

Her blog became the basis of her new book, The Art of Eating In: How I Learned to Stop Spending and Love the Stove, but it’s about more than avoiding restaurants. You follow along with her as she faces a social life without dining out, cooking successes (and some disasters) and realizing the importance of knowing where your food comes from. It also includes Cathy’s original recipes for you to try at home, so give it a look—it may inspire you to eat in tonight.

What makes me a lady: Listening to others and trying to do what I do best for them. (Usually, cooking something good!)

Favorite guilty pleasure: Eating a huge meal at midnight.

Three things on my life list: To grow more food or work on a farm, help efforts to improve school lunch food, and maybe, write a novel.

If I could have a superpower, it would be: Perfect balance. Not in a literal sense, but to stay focused and keep centered while playing a lot of roles and juggling a lot of pieces.

Ladies I admire: Alice Waters, Michelle Obama, Frances Moore Lappe and Anna Lappe, and heroes of my local food community like Annie Novak, Paula Crossfield, Kerry Trueman. All the ladies at Just Food, a nonprofit. And my mom.

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Travel Bargains

February 24, 2010 at 1:15 pm, by Margot Gilman

Some women do remarkable things with coupons. You’ve seen them profiled on TV: the ones who assiduously clip and file those little cents-off slips and then fill multiple supermarket carts to overflowing with groceries for something like $3.48. Personally, I think these women need to find something else to do with their time, but I understand the instinct. I’m driven by it too, but instead of food, I like my freebies to come in another form of sustenance: vacations.

In the last several years, my husband, two daughters and I have gone skiing in Steamboat Springs, Colorado; we’ve visited Paris and Disney World and have spent winter breaks on white-sand beaches in Anguilla and Mexico. And not once have we paid for accommodations or airfare.  We’ve stayed in very nice places—usually condos or private homes or apartments. In Paris, we had a large one-bedroom flat with full hotel services near l’Opera. In Steamboat, a ski-on, ski-off two bedroom condo with an outdoor hot tub. In Disney, a 1600-square foot spread at a resort with 5 pools and two golf courses.  In Anguilla, an ocean-front, five-bedroom, five-bath villa that was magazine-beautiful. Jealous yet? This coming March we are going skiing in Squaw Valley, CA, where a very nice two-bedroom condo right at the base is waiting for us.

Read more

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