Monthly Archives: August 2013

Makeup & Beauty

The Beauty All-Star Team

August 20, 2013

I try out a lot of products.

Between about a decade and a half spent on sets (that's the InStyle/Nine West video shoot, above) and the reviews that I do both here and for places like Makeup.com, a lot of potions have made their way across my vanity. But the very last thing I am is a clutterbug - I hate having too much stuff, and am constantly clearing out my drawers, closets and shelves to keep everything as streamlined and easy-to-see as possible - so if a product makes it into my long-term daily rotation that means it's really something special.

In fact, there are really only a handful of products that I keep coming back to over and over and over.

These are my all-stars:

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Eat

Peanut Butter & Granola Apple Rings

August 19, 2013

The highlight of the breakfast the crew served at last week's shoot: Granny Apple rings covered in peanut butter and granola. They were so good, in fact, that I've been making them myself nearly every day since.

These apple rings are a great addition to a lunchbox, and the options are endless: all you really need are apples, peanut butter and granola, but I've been adding things like flaxseed (for a health boost), dried fruit and mini chocolate chips to mix it up.

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Makeup & Beauty

Get Your Own Great Hair Day Every Day

August 19, 2013

I used to be fairly fickle when it came to my hair-care products: if I was in need of shampoo or conditioner and saw a bottle that looked pretty (or smelled good) on a drugstore shelf, chances are it was coming home with me. I think it’s safe to say that over the years I tried nearly every major brand on the market…and, honestly? I was rarely crazy about the results; my hair was always on my list of least-favorite attributes. But I figured, you know…it was probably my hair that was the issue, not the products I was using. How big of a difference could a shampoo make?

A big one. Using a shampoo and conditioner that you chose because it’s the right one for your hair type – not because the bottle is purple and you’re into purple that day – is a major way to get your locks under control and looking great.

At the beginning of the summer Dove sent over some Daily Moisture Shampoo  and Conditioner*, and now that we’re smack in the middle of August I can officially say that never in my life has my hair been as manageable and healthy-looking as it is these days. (My bangs are still weird when it’s especially humid out, but you can chalk that up to my insistence on maintaining an extremely non-monsoon-weather-friendly hairstyle.)

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Style

Nine West + InStyle: The Collaboration

August 16, 2013

InStyle is hands-down my favorite fashion magazine, mostly because they do an amazing job of blending fantasy with the real world, and show you actually what to buy and actually how to wear it. As the authority on what real women wear, it makes a ton of sense for the magazine to get involved in the process of creating pieces themselves...but did you know that InStyle has never ventured into the world of retail? Never ever ever?

Likewise, there's Nine West: well-priced, stylish, and wearable in real life (I'd say about 50% of my shoe wardrobe comes from the store). The brand has done some amazing collaborations in the past - Kirna Zabete, Pamela Love, Sophie Theallet - but never before has it collaborated with a major media outlet. Never ever ever.

So this collaboration is very first-of-its-kind.

Very exciting.

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Style

Behind The Scenes: T.J.Maxx Fall Shoot

August 15, 2013

Yesterday was a long one: the team from T.J.Maxx (we're talking two enormous trucks, three vans, two craft service tables, a videographer, a photographer, and about twenty additional people) arrived at my place at 7:30AM and stayed until nearly sunset...but we got so much great stuff shot.

The breakfast table set up on my front porch was pretty spectacular (especially those green things - we'll talk about those in a bit).

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Eat

Something Went Into My Kitchen And Emerged Deep-Fried, And That Is A Miracle

August 14, 2013

Deep frying freaks. Me. Out.

First of all, I never had any idea how it worked. I pictured enormous bubbling vats filled with million-degree oil-bombs, and if there's one thing I should stay very far away from it's bubbling vats filled with million-degree oil-bombs. I just didn't get it: you put your meat, fish or vegetable in...and then...what? Does it...float? Or do you have to brave the oil-bomb with a set of (heat-conductive) tongs? How do you know when things are hot enough, or when they're cooked through?

How do you not set the kitchen on fire?!

Anyway, shocker: it's easy. And not nearly as terrifying as I pictured.

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Style

Combat Boots For Now And Later

August 14, 2013

I really love combat boots.

Mostly because they remind me of seventh grade, when I switched from a uniform-requiring private school on the Upper West Side to a non-uniform-requiring one on the Upper East Side, and got very, very excited about the concept that I was allowed to wear whatever I wanted.

I remember my old combat boots vividly: my friend Harley and I bought matching pairs (along with matching baby-doll tees and matching mini-backpacks, of course) at a discount store in the East 70s, and I wore them just about every day right up until the point when the laces frayed and the soles started to separate. Which wasn't long after I bought them, because they were extremely cheap. But that was OK, because once My So-Called Life went off the air the expiration date on combat boots arrived pretty quickly.

I am so excited that they're back. And I think they may be back to stay this time around, because they've moved beyond a trend into the world of classics...and also, they're just so fun to wear. They're great with pretty much everything for fall -  I especially like them with '90s-ish floral dresses, skinny jeans and muscle tees, and shorts with lightweight sweaters or long-sleeved tees (for balance).

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