01.02.2013
Working Out and Why I Won’t Do It with Good Hair

Just like everyone else in America, I’ve vowed to spend more time working on my fitness in 2013.  Has this been my New Year resolution for the past several years?  Yes.  Have I always kept it up?  Absolutely not, don’t be crazy, but it’s for this exact reason that I literally laughed out loud when I saw this story on Allure.com.  The piece reveals a survey of more than a hundred women, where 40 percent admitted to skipping exercise because they didn’t want to mess up their hair; they are about three times less likely to meet the recommend exercise standards than women who don’t fear being unkempt.  

Guys, I really thought that I was the only one who sometimes avoids physical exercise due to the fact that I happen to be having a good hair day and don’t want to F it up.  So, I guess I’m not alone, which is awesome.  A potential solution: Edward Tricomi, of Warren-Tricomi Salons shared a really awesome tip for maintaining your blowout after a workout. He told me to cut up a pair of black, opaque stockings and turn them into a make-shift headband and then use the remaining pieces to tie my hair into a ponytail. It is genius since the material doesn’t leave indentation marks and absorbs perspiration at the hairline.  Let’s see how this goes…cheers to a fit 2013.

Photo: My last birthday (Devon, me, Sharon). There was no way I was going to the gym with that hair.

04.13.2012
Beauty Rebellions! (and why I’ll never bleach my eyebrows, hate eyelash curlers and why I wear makeup to the gym)

Everyone has them…they’re your dark little beauty secrets that you don’t share with anyone.  There are certain things that a woman has to stick to, even when society (or a highly acclaimed stylist/makeup artist) tells you differently, and guys, I’ve somehow convinced some of the top beauty and style bloggers to share their dark secrets right here on my blog.

As for me?  Well, I absolutely REFUSE to bleach my eyebrows or use an eyelash curler…oh, and I wear makeup to the gym.  Yeah, I said it.  Let’s start with eyebrow bleaching.  I’m not a natural blonde (and it is NO SECRET) but, for some reason, certain colorists become obsessed with trying to convince me that my brows need to match my hair color.  NO, just no.  Back in my formative blonde years, I let myself get convinced once or twice and every time, you know what I got?  Orange eyebrows.  So now, whenever some celeb colorist tried to change my mind I just simply ask “have you ever heard of a little rock star/fashion icon named Gwen Stefani?  Thank you and, yes, I’ll take another glass of champagne.”  Eyelash curlers – I consider them modern day torture devices.  I always thought that I just didn’t really know how to use one or the one I had wasn’t good quality — NO.  I bought the Shu Uemura version that everyone raves about and you know…I still hate curling my eyelashes.  Granted, I am blessed with naturally long, dark lashes (poor me, I know) so perhaps I would deem it necessary to curl them if I was in a different sitch BUT, for now, I’m down on eyelash curling.  Lastly, I look my derm straight in the face when I tell him that I wear makeup to the gym.  Countless derms and beauty editors will tell you not to do it.  “It will clog your pores!”  “You will break out!”  Well you know what?  I have rosacea and post-acne marks (aka hyperpigmentation) and there are hot dudes at the gym.  So what if I wear a little mineral foundation or a tiny bit of tinted moisturizer (with SPF!)?  Last night’s eyeliner is only included by default, mind you.  In the famous words of Deena from Jersey Shore, “Get off me.”

Aly Walansky, MyGloss.com:

I have a million cleansers I could/should use, but two or three nights a week, I come home tired/drunk/lazy and don’t wash my face before going to bed. (Shameful, I know!)

Amber Katz, BeautyBloggingJunkie.com:

I RARELY wear body lotion. Only when I know I’m making out or on the weekends when I have time to let it fully absorb before putting on clothes. Jeans over damp lotion makes me want to DIE.

Andrea Arterbery, GlamazonsBlog.com:

I refuse to wear blush. I hate it. I will highlight the shit out of my cheeks with bronzer and illuminating powder but that’s about it. I feel like that’s all I need in life anyways. Blush just makes me look clownish. Ew.

Andrea Lavinthal, UsMagazine.com:

I wash off everything but my eye makeup when I have a sleepover with my (newish) boyfriend. I don’t know if seeing me without my eyelashes curled and whatnot is a dealbreaker for him, but I’m not taking any chances. #freshandsexy

Anne Fritz, TheJetSetGirls.com:

I hate conditioner. My hair is fine and without a little texture and damage, it can’t hold a style. I have relented a bit and use it on my ends, but woe to the person who comes near me with a hair mask.

Annie Tomlin, BellaSugar.com:

I get manicures only when I really have to. I just don’t have the time or inclination. L-A-Z-Y, I ain’t got no alibi.

Dina Fierro, Eye4Style.com:

I’m admittedly blessed with hair that just sort of does what it does, if you know what I mean. That said, I DO use a flat iron on my bangs daily, and god forbid I ever a) use a heat protectant or hey, b) wait for them to dry. Patience is not a virtue in my world.

Jeannine Morris, BeautySweetSpot.com:

I rarely ever wash my makeup brushes (ew, I know).

Kaitlyn Dreyling, BeautyBlitz.com:

I never use hand cream. I’ve self-diagnosed myself with hyperhidrosis, so I fear adding any hydration to my already clammy palms, thus my cuticles suffer, but acetone is the best.

Kristen Turner, GlitterNGlue.com:

Sometimes I get lazy and instead of removing my nail polish, I just paint over it. By the time I get to the salon the manicurist is shooting me major side-eye as she’s removing layer upon layer upon layer of different nail polish colors.

Kristin Booker, FashionStyleBeauty.com:

I will never get laser hair removal on anything but my face – Someone told me that Kim Kardashian gets her whole body lasered. YIKES. No, the chin and jaw line are enough for me, thanks. I cannot image the pain. You’d have to dip me in aloe vera from my armpits afterwards. NO THANKS.

Nadine Jolie, NadineJolie.com:

I haven’t used shaving cream since college. Back when I was younger and more precious about my skin, I’d run a hot shower, let the steam and water do its thing, use a fresh razor every 2 or 3 shaves… Now, I swipe the razor (inevitably a month and, like, 20 uses past its prime) all over in about 8 seconds and then call it a day. My thighs, meanwhile, have not been shaved since I was 16 (thank God for blonde hair). I haven’t downgraded to shaving in the sink yet, but it’s probably the ghost of Christmas future.

Rachel Adler, BeautyHigh.com:

Even though it’s a major faux paus, I always leave my apartment with my hair wet. Hardly ever sopping, but always a tiny bit wet. I have curly hair and spending time diffusing it in the morning is just time I don’t want to waste.

Sydne Summer, SydneStyle.com:

I refuse to use eye makeup remover. I don’t even own any! I secretly love waking up with night-before-makeup. I just wipe the smudges under my eyes away and bam! It’s a Kate Moss smoky eye without trying.

Tell me and the girls, what are YOUR beauty rebellions?

01.21.2010
Look cute, get motivated to work out

So it’s already mid January and I’m sure that I’m not the only one that hasn’t fulfilled their New Years resolution to work out more, right?  I felt really inspired when I saw this pic of Kim and Khloe Kardashian leaving the gym in LA last week.  They’re both wearing head-to-toe PH8 and are looking comfortable enough to work out but also still super cute…what better way to multi-task and maybe, just maybe, pick up a dude? Anyway, this is my new strategy- look cute at the gym, tone up and maybe get some dates out of it.  Boom.