Ringing in the New Year with Style

There are endless ensembles out there to rock on New Year's Eve 2012. From black tie, to house party, to casual night out, I pulled together some basic outfit ideas that you can build upon. Happy New Year's Feather-istas!

Editor's Letter: Happy New Year!

It literally hit me this morning that it's almost a new year. The last one seriously flew by and so many things happened in my life. I went to Paris (and seriously considered not coming back), graduated from the University of Florida (Go Gators!) and I started Feather Magazine. I didn't really have any resolutions last year, but I wonder how much  more I could've accomplished if I did.

Here's what I've got so far:

Go on a cruise. My friends and I have been talking about this for like two years. At this point, I'll go alone if I have to. They'll all be jealous when they see photos of me eating all the free food and lounging on a beach.

Be less messy. Nobody is allowed in my room. Seriously. Company stays in the living room and if they have to use the bathroom, there's a gas station down the street. My clothes are all over the floor most of the time and as soon as I pick them up, they find their way back. It's so embarrassing and I really need to work on it.

Be less of a workaholic. I pretty much work all the time, except for like an hour before I go to sleep because I like to watch Family Guy on Adult Swim. Otherwise, I'm working on the magazine, at my job, doing freelance writing or thinking up things that will make more work for me. Anytime I go out of town with my friends, they're always nagging me about answering emails when I should be enjoying my vacation.

Go to church more. I was at church at least three days a week growing up, but I haven't been that involved since I moved out on my own. I'm going to try and do better this year. I've been really blessed in life and I should be showing my appreciation more. Since the church I went to growing up streams services online now, I don't really have any excuses.

Move to NYC. I like my current job, but I'm not a fan of the location. There aren't exactly a lot of magazine career possibilities in the part of Florida I live in. My life plan has always been to move to New York and it's time to make it happen this year. By December, I'll be editing from NYC, which means way more opportunities for my career and it would be easier to do certain features for the magazine. 

What are your New Year's resolutions?

Watch + Listen: 'Domino' by Jessie J

It's almost New Year's weekend and all we want to do is dance! Luckily, Jessie J came to our rescue.

"Domino" is an upbeat and fun track. If this doesn't make you want to bust a move then something is seriously wrong with you. Plus, the video is super cute.

We adore Jessie's daring style choices and the ever-changing colorful backgrounds. Time to hit the club!

Sara In The City: A New Year, A New Me

So it is that time of year again. A time where we kiss the year goodbye and look ahead to next one with cheerful optimism.

I have to say 2011 was an interesting year for me. I graduated college and got a real job as some people would say. It was also a trying year filled with illness and strife. It's safe to say I am ready to kick 2011 to the curb.

I often think New Year's resolutions are silly but this year I have made a long list of them. I am determined to learn from the mistakes of 2011 and make 2012 the best year yet.

First, I will get healthy. Now, I know the most popular New Year's resolution is to lose weight. While I wouldn't miss a few pounds, that is not what I am after. I don't want to be super model or anything close to that. I want to start taking care of myself. It is time to start treating my body the way it deserves to be treated. Maybe put down the soda and start eating some salad.

That leads me to my second resolution. I not only want to be healthy physically but mentally and emotionally as well. I want to start taking part in the activities I have been wanting to do for sometime. This past year I have been thinking something has been missing in my life and I finally realized that I have been wanting to get closer to my faith. I joined a Bible study group with an old childhood friend that begins the first week of January. I couldn't be more excited.

Finally, write, write and write. As a professional journalist, you would think this would be easy. I don't just want to write for a paycheck but also write for my soul. I want to write that story that has been digging deep inside me for some time now.

While I am always hopeful around this time of year, there is more of a skip to my step these days. I am ready to take on 2012.

What are your New Year's resolutions?

Positive Attitude, Beautiful You

Beauty truly is on the inside.

Take, for instance, my self-esteem. I have complained more than I should about my recent way-too-short haircut that my low self-esteem has been a turn-off more than any one physical flaw on my face or body. Sure, I’d like to parade around town wearing MAC and an LBD, but what fun is looking like a red-carpet babe if you feel like you should be rolling out the red carpet instead?

After getting my long hair cut a little more than a month ago – think a pixie cut with a hint of a short bob – I became hesitant when it came to going out with family and with friends. I’d ask my friends if they liked my new look everywhere I went with them, just so I could get reassurance that I was still pretty. Regardless of my friends who said they liked me better with short hair – a little more than half of my friends – I still felt ugly on the outside, and my confidence was at an all-time low. My conversations with girlfriends shifted from cute guys and the latest celeb news to my short ‘do, and whenever I hung out with guys, I was feeding on compliments for a good time.

After a week or two of hating my short cut, I decided I needed an attitude adjustment. After all, I am stuck with this length for a while, so why not just rock it like my fellow hot short-haired celebs. You know, Halle Berry and Michelle Williams. It dawned on me that I had cut my hair for a reason, and I wasn’t going to let it bring me down any longer.

Me with long hair

For me, at least, a woman’s hair tells a story. My long hair was there with me through the heartbreaks and stressful classes, so when I made the decision in November to change my hair, I wasn’t just cutting it. I was also cutting the negative stuff out of my life. When I came to terms with this, I smiled and stepped outside my house as a more confident me. Better yet, I didn’t have my long hair sticking to my glossed lips on that windy day, so I smiled even bigger for that tiny, yet significant realization.

I met up with a friend shortly after, and I didn’t even bring up my short hair to her in conversation. But in all fairness, the first thing that came out of her mouth when she saw me was, “OMG, you have short hair! I love it!” I just said “thank you” and smiled, and not because she complimented me, but because it was the first time that I had agreed that my hair wasn’t half as bad as I made it out to be. She even told me that I looked edgier and seemed more confident than ever before. Yes, it’s been noted that guys do like longer hair on women. And in Miami, which is where I live, long hair is considered a sexy, beautiful physical trait.

So, let me get this right – just because I have short hair, I’m going to be single for life and I’m going to be looked down upon in the city of bare bikinis and Latin beauties? No, beauty doesn’t work that way. Beauty is rocking whatever look you have, and you can mask many physical flaws, but you can’t hide low self-esteem.

Nobody says it better than the ladies of TLC, who in the song “Unpretty,” sing, “You can buy your hair if it won’t grow. You can fix your nose if you say so. You can buy all the makeup that man can make. But, if you can’t look inside you, find out ‘Who am I to be in the position to make me feel so damn unpretty?’” Sure, makeup enhances your features and to have long hair is feminine, but confidence and a high self-esteem overpower MAC makeup and long locks. Confidence is the sexiest quality in a woman, and it’ll show when you wake up next to your man makeup-free.

At the end of the day, not everyone will like my short hair. And I may not like it either. But who’s to say that my hair is the only feature that defines me. With a little bit of powder and a whole lot of confidence, I start and end my days with a smile. And if this length made me realize that beauty comes from within, then cutting my hair this short was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

Editorials We Love: Roise Huntington Whiteley in Harper's Bazaar UK

Rosie Huntington Whiteley pays homage 1960's chic in an editorial by Tom Munro for the January issue of Harper's Bazaar UK. Whiteley is transformed into a sexy house wife who enjoys a stiff cocktail or two. We personally love the hair in this editorial and desperately want someone to teach us how to pull that look off!

 

 

 

images via Fashion Gone Rogue

Girl Crush: Naya Rivera

Glee may all be about Rachel Berry but we love bad girl Santana Lopez. Actress Naya Rivera brilliantly portrays the the troubled cheerleader every Tuesday night, bringing some much needed heat and the sass to the show. She also deserves kudos for her groundbreaking portrayal of a teenage lesbian coming to grips with her sexuality.

Not only is Rivera beautiful but she also has a beautiful singing voice. Hopefully, we will to hear her sing more often on Glee. Rumor has it that she is currently working on her first solo album. If so, we will be the first in line to buy it!

Image via Yahoo Images

Editors' Picks: Holiday Party Must-Haves

Happy Holidays, Feather girls! With holiday party invitations circulating and seasonal snow flurries swirling, we think you might be off to a festive soiree. Bring these items to your next holiday party—or be sure to keep them in mind when hosting!

1. Kirsten [Christmas cookies, A Christmas Story, sophisticated Santa outfit] 2. Jeni [red nail polish, sequin blazer, Kate Spade Curling Ribbon Ring] 3. Brianti [lace party dress, egg nog, Mariah Carey Christmas album] 4. Catrina [mulled wine, a sequin party dress and a christmas tree ornament (for the host)]

Social Media: The Career Killer

I tweet a few times a day from my personal account (@brianti) and now I'm also tweeting from @rufflings. I also get to see a lot of tweets from people I follow on both accounts.

When I'm not editing Feather, I work at a news wire service. We have a policy on social media that helps me figure out what I can and cannot say, while still keeping my job.

If your profile is private and you know everyone who follows you, then you may not have to watch what you say as much, but be careful. People can retweet things from private accounts and employers can find it. You can still be yourself, but just a toned-down version. Save the awesome and uncensored version for your friends and family.

Because not every workplace has a social media policy, here are a few tips:

Keep your sex life to yourself. I cannot count how many sexual tweets and retweets I see coming across my feed. It's pretty much never acceptable, but if you want to go into detail about the last time you hooked up with a guy, make sure your profile is private or you will never get a job with a company that looks up social media profiles. Unless you aspire to work for an adult entertainment company, in which case your tweets are completely appropriate.

Remember your audience. My boss follows me on Twitter. On Facebook, I'm connected with co-workers and former professors. I have to stay mindful of this whenever I write a status update or share something controversial. I also have followers who read Feather, so I have to keep our code of conduct in mind, as well. You're a representation of the people you work for, so make sure you're not hurting their image.

Don't talk about your co-workers. People will make you mad at work sometimes, but text or call a friend and vent, don't use social media. You'll end up making it even easier for the supervisor who has it in for you to get your fired if she has proof you've been bad-mouthing her because it makes the company look bad when you do.

What are some rules you follow to make sure you don't lose your job over social media?

4 Signs Your Guy is in a Violent Motorcycle Club

Clay (Ron Perlman) and Jackson (Charlie Hunnam)
dispatch motorcycle justice on "Sons of Anarchy."
(image via TV Super Guia) 

I wasn't feeling too well over the weekend, so I spent most of my time in bed watching Sons of Anarchy on Netflix. I'm pretty much obsessed right now because the writing is good, the acting is great and Charlie Hunnam's abs make repeat appearances. The show's about a motorcycle club that owns an auto shop and runs guns illegally on the side.

The oddest thing to me is that the lead character, Jackson, has a girlfriend who's a doctor and she seems OK with the fact that he murders people by day as long as he doesn't kill her in her sleep or anything. Which his motorcycle club would probably do if she ever ratted them out. But bad boys are extremely hot, so she takes the risk.

For those of us who don't want to get shot in the back of the head at a stoplight as a form of retaliation, make sure your boyfriend doesn't start exhibiting any of these signs. If he does, that innocent little club he's in, is probably doing a little murdering and gun running on the side. At the very least, they're in the pornographic film business.

He wears a gun holster EVERYWHERE. If he has to take his guns with him when he's going to the corner store or even just to take out the garbage, someone's after him. Don't worry too much. It's probably just a rival gang who's armed to the teeth and have been following you just in case they need to kidnap you to get to him. No big deal.

He comes home from meetings or work at the shop with blood on his clothes. If he's not a doctor or an athlete, there aren't a lot of logical explanations as to why he'd have blood on his clothes. There's a good chance he spent the day torturing members of rival clubs, or killing them. Whichever he needed to do. Just to be sure, check his knuckles. If they're bruised, he probably taught someone a lesson today.

People are always coming to your house with fresh bullet wounds. It's one thing if he has a friend or two who have been shot in the past, but if he's always carrying them into your house with open bullet wounds and asking for a needle and thread to do some amateur stitching, that's a little sketchy. How many hunting accidents can his friends get in? Especially, if you've never even seen them with hunting gear.

Your guy friends are too afraid of him to hang out with you. All of your guy friends are refusing to see your sexy new man. In fact, they've stopped answering your calls, texts and Facebook messages. You can even get a tweet from any of them. You can pass it off as jealousy or possibly violent intimidation. Quick test: has your boyfriend beat up strangers who look at him the wrong way in public? If you answered yes, you now know why your guy friends have all disappeared.

For fun, what would be a few other signs that your guy is involved in a violent motorcycle club?

Editor's Letter: Evolutionary Rufflings

I feel like Feather has come so far in the past two months and we're continuing to evolve. When I was throwing around this magazine as a tiny idea last summer, I didn't expect to find so many supportive people to join the staff and be happy to do whatever helped the brand grow. But I did and that's helped us continue to give our readers a better experience every month.

Some of you may have noticed that for the past two weeks or so Ruffled Feathers has been updating five days a week. Our Blog Editor Sara, has been sharing her favorite magazine editorials, girl crushes, hot topics, music videos and her weekly "Sara in the City" column. Of course, the editors are still writing on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The Feather Notes will also keep coming, but we'll have even more starting in February. You won't always have time to read the site or maybe you've already devoured all the content (in which case, I love you!), so we want to give you little nuggets through Ruffled Feathers.

Starting this week, I took over the @rufflings Twitter account. I hope I haven't been too uncool so far. We also just created a Facebook page for Ruffled Feathers. Be sure to "like" us! 

We've got plans to add even more in the future because we want to be able to share even more with you to brighten your day a little.When you comment on posts, it also helps us tailor content toward what you like because we're here to help you navigate your twenties. We can't do that if we don't know what's important to you.

By the way, you should definitely be paying attention to the fashion section in January. I will tell you more about that next week. In the mean time, enjoy the continuation of holiday stories and much more that we posted on the website this week.

A Play on Pastels for SS 2012

The year is quickly coming to an end and Spring is right around the corner. Instead of last year's bright and brighter ultraviolet hues, designers have shifted back to the soft pastel colors we know so well. 

Philip Lim SS 2012

Calvin Klein SS 2012

These Easter egg shades translate as clean and youthful paired back to basic neutrals and presented in simple silhouettes. Gather a few pastel pieces to begin updating your wardrobe for 2012. 

JCrew SS 2012

DVF SS 2012

The industry has not visited a "feel good" trend of this kind for quite sometime, enjoy it while it lasts. 

Editors' Picks: Christmas Wish List

We swear, we all made Santa's nice list this year. In light of the approaching holiday, we're sharing what we'd love to find under the Christmas tree this year:

1. Catrina [iPad 2, J.Crew Bond Street Bag, Miu Miu Glitter and Suede Peep Toe Ankle Boots] 2. Jeni [Kate Spade All Wrapped Up Large Bow Ring, Urban Decay NAKED2 Palette, Michael Kors Malone Suede Wedges] 3. Jenny [Dior Backstage Velvet Eyes, Creed Love in White Perfume, Tiffany & Company LOVE Bangle in Gold] 4. Brianti [Kate Spade No Sleep Till Brooklyn Bracelet, Betsey Johnson Leopard Face Watch, J. Crew Schoolboy Blazer in Houndstooth] 5. Kirsten [iPod Touch, Coach Thin Op Art Rhinestone Bangle, Harry Potter 8-Film Collection]

Watch + Listen: 'Stronger' by Kelly Clarkson

Kelly Clarkson is back and better than ever. "Stronger" is the second single off her new album of the same title. While "Mr. Know It All" was alright, this song is by far the star of the album. It is vintage Kelly doing what she does best—singing about a guy who has done her wrong. What girl can't relate to that?

The original American Idol actually channels the popularity of flash mobs by using real video clips from her fans, who came up with their own dance moves for the catchy song. 

"I'd like everyone to join me in my global flash mob," she said.

Hot Topic: TIME's Person of the Year

(image via Yahoo News)

Time Magazine recently revealed their 2011's "Person of the Year" and the honor goes to "The Protester."

Time is referring to the protests in the Middle East that spread to Europe and The United States and helped "redefining people power."

Previous Stengel selections were Mark Zuckerberg (2010), Ben Bernanke (2009), Barack Obama (2008), Vladimir Putin (2007) and You (2006). The latter was chosen to reflect the rise in popularity of social media.

What do you think of the choice? Who do you think the person of the year is?

Sara in the City: Life & Relationships

A year ago this week, I was graduating college. My past year of post-college life has been a crazy one, to say the least. I learned a lot about myself, relationships and life.

Since we're all about sharing our twenty-something wisdom at Feather, I thought I'd share what the past year has taught me.

Friends come and go. I thought once I graduated college, I would still be just as close to my college friends as I was when we were in school. Wrong. Things happen and people drift apart. Sometimes it's as simple as drifting apart or other times you realize you never really had much in common to begin with other than the same classes or extra curricular activities. However, you also begin to notice that some friendships will grow stronger, even though you don't see each everyday. Treasure these friendships. These are the people you will call when you need a shoulder to cry on.

Life is short. It's almost cliché to say, but it is true. Life is short and tomorrow is not promised. Over the past year, so many people my age or younger have passed away. Some were close friends and others were acquaintances. It makes you think: If this was your last day on earth, have you done everything you wanted? Do your loved ones know you love them? If not, then it is time to reevaluate your life.

Work. Work. Work. All through college you're gearing up for the moment when you are ready for the real world and your first big girl job. In these tough economic times, it can be hard to find a job. Relax. You will find a job. It will just take some time, so freaking out about the fact that you're poor and will have to live with your mom and dad forever is probably not for the best. The challenges don't stop once you land a job. You'll learn a lot in your first job and most of it will be discoveries about yourself. You'll also probably cry a lot. However, nobody admits this, so don't fret when you feel like the only one stressed out.

Mom knows best. Your mother is always right. It sucks but it is the simple truth of the universe.

This is an interesting time in every one's life. The safety net is gone and now we're all are on are own. It has been an interesting ride for me and it will continue to be.

Girl Crush: Jenna Marbles

(image via We Heart It)

Before, Wednesdays were just a day to remind me half the work week was almost over. Now, I look forward to every it because of this girl. Jenna Marbles has become an Internet sensation with her weekly YouTube videos.

Not only is Jenna beautiful but she also has a razor sharp wit, which makes her a deadly combination in my eyes. Her videos have me rolling around on the floor laughing. She is so funny because of her dead on observations on life.

Have you seen her video about white girls in the club? To quote Dane Cook, "It is funny because it is true."

Editorials We Love: Scarlett Johansson in Interview Magazine

Actress Scarlett Johansson is looking fierce in the December/January issue of Interview Magazine. The blonde bombshell rocks bondage-inspired clothing from Dolce & Gabbana, Miu Miu and Bottega Veneta. 

If you're looking for the Iron Man 2 actress on Twitter, you won't find her. In the interview, Johansson says, “I don’t have a Facebook or a Twitter account. I can’t think of anything I’d rather do less than have to continuously share details of my everyday life."

(images via Interview Magazine)

Interactive Fitness Gadget

Every girl needs gadgets. We have a tool to curl our eyelashes, accessories for our phones and a kitchen drawer full of corkscrews and cutlery. Some of us have fitness gadgets such as dumbbells (boring), a pedometer (a little less boring) and now, the Switch2Health REPLAY (so not boring!). The S2H REPLAY is "an activity tracker that generates a Reward Code for every 60 minutes of accumulated activity."

Available in a rainbow of colors, the watch-like band tracks your movement, whether you're dancing,  running or engaging in daily physical activity. When you're inactive, an unhappy face appears on the REPLAY, so turn that frown upside down by moving around! After 60 minutes of physical activity (split into 15-minute segments), the REPLAY displays a 12-digit code that you can use to redeem on S2H.com. Current rewards include $5-$10 gift cards from Best Buy, Macy's, GNC, GameStop, Amazon.com and Dick's Sporting Goods, but more and more health-conscious businesses are partnering with S2H each day. 

Seriously, how cool is this?

And if walking is your preferred form of exercise, why not try out the S2H STEP? You get rewards every 10,000 steps.

Both the REPLAY and the STEP are available at S2H.com for $24.95. Last-minute Christmas gift, anyone?

Please note: this is a completely unbiased and unsponsored blog post. It is my personal opinion. I think these products are a genius way to motivate people and provide incentive to stay on top of their workouts. Don't you!?

Processed Desserts vs. Whole Food Alternatives

Processed foods might be convenient and tempting, but they can mean trouble for your health. When you consume processed foods, you’re filtering food additives—such as artificial coloring and preservatives—through your body. Skip the health risks and try these simple and naturally flavorful recipes using unprocessed whole foods.

Chocolate Cake

• processed: 360 mg sodium
• whole food: 214 mg sodium

Cranberry Sauce

• processed: 21.6 g sugar
• whole food: no added sugar

Brownies

• processed: 100 mg sodium
• whole food: 1 pinch sea salt

Chocolate Chip Cookies

• processed: 11g sugar
• whole food: 9g sugar

Chocolate Pudding

• processed: 190 mg sodium
• whole food: 127 mg sodium

Compiled by Lindsey Afton Dufoe

(image sources: 1 2 3 4 5)

Editor's Letter: Here Comes Winter

Winter has always been my favorite season, but that's probably because I've never had a real one. I've been up north in the winter, but never long enough to be miserable in the cold. I was born and raised in Florida, so what we call winter most people laugh at. Canadians actually come here in the winter and wear shorts, while we're all freezing in coats!

It's finally getting cold in Florida, which means it must be winter! Well, it's actually 70 degrees today, but that's a drastic improvement from the usual 90+ degrees.

I've definitely seen the influence of the season I love (but can't really experience) in our December stories. For shopping purposes, we're showing you how to do gift giving in style and great beauty items based on personality. If you want to give, while giving back, purchase a gift that helps those in need. When it's time to make your high school ex-boyfriend regret that "We're better off friends" speech he gave you before college at a holiday party, we've got the perfect outfit choices. For those cold winter nights, try one of our spicy recipes to turn up the heat.

Editors' Picks: Cold Weather Comfort

While a few of the Feather Magazine editors are making good use of cozy wool socks, others are happily enjoying more tepid temperatures. Wherever we live, we all have our cold weather comforts when the forecast gets frigid. What do you turn to when temperatures drop?

1. Kirsten [hot chocolate with marshmallows and Elf] 2. Jenny [hot water with lemon and her brother's oversized cashmere cardigan] 3. Catrina [tomato soup and a scarf snood] 4. Brianti [hot cocoa and Edward Scissorhands] 5. Jeni [homemade chai latte and Pinterest]

Hot Topic: Walters sits down with Bashar al-Assad

(image via ABC News)

Journalism legend Barbara Walters recently interviewed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. It was his first interview with western television.

In the interview, Assad denied ordering the widespread killings and torture of protesters of his country. “There was no command to kill or be brutal,” he said. When Walters asked about the torture of children, Assad calmly responded with “I don't believe you.” The UN claims he has taken 4,000 lives with his orders.

Assad in the interview appears to be calm and collected to the point where he comes off cold. Walters described him as being “disconnected.”

For more information check out ABC News.

What do you think about the recent interview?

Sara in the City

“Maybe our girlfriends are our soul mates and guys are just people to have fun with.”

-Sex and the City

The more and more I check Facebook the more I see my friends getting engaged and married.

Woah, when did we become adults? I still feel like a 15 year old!

While I am happy for my friends for finding their soul mates, it does remind me that I am single...like really single.

That's when the neurotic thoughts kick in. Why am I still single? Will I ever meet the one? What if I become a crazy lonely cat lady? I hate cats!

However, as of late my idea of what a soul mate actually is has been changing. We all consider a soul mate someone we are romantically linked to but what about our friends? Maybe our friends are our real soul mates.

Three years ago, I met my best friend Gillian. I was in college and at a Halloween party and acting like a fool because I may or may not have drank vodka like it was going out of style. It just happened to be Gillian's dorm room where that infamous party took place. We met and instantly clicked.

Since then we have been inseparable. We see life the same way. She knows everything about me. I can come to her with everything and know she won't judge me. I would be lost without her.

Last weekend, We were in New York City for Gillian's birthday and somewhere in between running down the busy New York streets and laughing like hyenas, it hit me. This is what it is like to have another half.

Perhaps a soul mate isn't just a boyfriend or a girlfriend. Maybe a soul mate is just someone who understands our heart and helps us grow into the best that we can be.

In that case, I have no worries about turning into a cat lady.

ONE NIGHT ONLY: Adriana Lima's Pre-Show Regimen

(image source)

Remember last week when I pledged to start focusing more on self-esteem in Feather? It was all because of the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. The thin models always cause a few self-image problems for the women watching.

What did you eat for Thanksgiving? I had a huge meal cooked by my grandmother and sister that makes me full just thinking about it. And then I had seconds. 

What did Victoria's Secret Angel Adriana Lima have? A protein shake.

She told the Daily Telegraph that she's been working with a personal trainer every day since August to prepare for the show and doesn't eat solid food for nine days before the show! Her nutritionist prescribes protein shakes that include powdered egg (uh, yum?) to keep her energy up while she's starving herself and simultaneously working out.

I don't know about you, but I enjoy food. I also enjoy not going to the gym every day of my life.

I love Adriana (she's one of my favorite Angels), but there's really no way more than 5 percent of the population can have that body. And by now she doesn't even have that body anymore because I bet she picked up a plate of food on the way home from the show. I'm betting she's not the only one who's packed on a few pounds post-show. There's nothing wrong with working out, but the level these women go to lets you know they're not happy with their bodies either.

Next year, after you've just had a blast with your family and then come home and had the time to hang out with your friends, turn on the Victoria's Secret Show and think about all the stuff they gave up just to have the perfect body for one night. And then think about how they have the same image problems as you, even if you can't tell on the runway.

The perfect body is your body. If you don't accept it for what it is, you can't be happy with it at any size. I know from experience.

Looking for more body image commentary on this topic? Read Leslie Goldman's article "Victoria's Secret? She Simply Doesn't Eat" at The Huffington Post site.

Girl Crush: Khloe Kardashian

(image via Love Kardashian)

Khloe is the only family member from the Kardashian clan that we would actually want to hang out with. She is witty, irreverent and fun. She is fiercely loyal and will defend the people she loves to the death. Most importantly, she knows how ridiculous her family is and it's like she's in on the joke with us.

So, cheers to you Khloe! Thanks for being the one Kardashian we don’t think could be a complete fabrication.

Editorial We Love: The Kardashians in Glamour

 

It's fitting that our Blog Editor, Sara, chose to have Khloe as our girl crush because our favorite editorial right now is of the Kardashians. Sure, Kim may have pranked us all with her whirlwind marriage (I still think it was real), Kourtney would be irrelevant if Scott didn't used to be crazy and Khloe gets treated like an unwanted stepchild sometimes, but they look like normal sisters in these photos for Glamour's January 2012 cover shoot. It's easy to forget that 200 paparazzi were probably camped outside to snap photos of them leaving this photo shoot.

You can say what you want about the Kardashians, but you can't deny that they keep you talking about them. You also can't deny how fun these photos are.

 

(images via Glamour)

A Sticky Pumpkin Treat

My grandmother always made (and still makes) sweet potato pie on holidays. One of my sisters always makes sure it's all gone by the next day. Before last year, I'd never had anything made with pumpkin. My supervisor's significant other brought in pumpkin gooey butter cake and I was hooked.


My 13-year-old sister is a baking prodigy, so we're going to try to recreate the recipe when I go home for Christmas. Despite what Anthony Bourdain thinks, I love Paula Deen and I have since before she was famous. The best food is the kind that could possibly kill you. I just don't recommend eating it too much.


If you're in the mood for a gooey pumkin treat, try Paula's recipe:

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cakes (serves 6 to 8)
(via Food Network)

Ingredients

Cake:

• 1 (18 1/4-ounce) package yellow cake mix
• 1 egg
• 8 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling:

• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 8 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 13 by 9-inch baking pan.

To make the filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter, and beat together. Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well. Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Make sure not to overbake as the center should be a little gooey.

Serve with fresh whipped cream.

Variations: For a Pineapple Gooey Cake: Instead of the pumpkin, add a drained 20-ounce can of crushed pineapple to the cream cheese filling. Proceed as directed above.

For a Banana Gooey Cake: Prepare cream cheese filling as directed, beating in 2 ripe bananas instead of the pumpkin. Proceed as directed above.

For a Peanut Butter Gooey Cake: Use a chocolate cake mix. Add 1 cup creamy peanut butter to the cream cheese filling instead of the pumpkin. Proceed as directed above.