May 02, 2019 at 11:20AM by CWC [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-rbHBgpqKQ] As pretty much any millennial will tell you, the concept of work-life balance is total bullsh*t. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the idea that you have to kill it at work, and be the best significant other and friend in the world, and regularly drop off your dry-cleaning, and spend quality time with your children (hello, burnout), not to worry: Rebecca Minkoff wants you to know that it is totally fine. In our latest installment of The Avocado Show (Like! Subscribe! Share!), the world-renowned fashion designer chats about everything from her dream to her involvement in the Female Founder Collective, all while chowing on her favorite avocado dish at Egg Shop in Brooklyn. And as much as she loves a good breakfast bowl and the idea of women supporting other women (and really, who doesn’t?), if there’s one thing she hates it’s people expecting work, life, or anything in-between to be “balanced.” “That’s a dirty word,” she says. “I think balance is a word that was made up by a man, or a mean woman, to make us feel like failures. So I like to say ‘hustle.’” She continues: “A friend of mine coined that term, ‘It’s a beautiful hustle,’ and I really feel that for me, it’s like this bank account of time that I always am trying to compensate. So if I work extra late, I always try to make up for it on the back end with my kids. Maybe if
Category: Fashion
If a sneaker and a ballet flat had a baby, it’d be Allbirds’ new Tree Breezer style
May 02, 2019 at 10:57AM by CWC Now that sneakers have been embraced by the fashion powers-that-be, they’re fair game pretty much everywhere. (I mean, just saw an Insta pic of a very cool woman wearing high-top Vans to a wedding. Not all heroes wear heels.) But there are still a few places where trainers aren’t welcome, like offices with a more straight-laced dress code. Leave it to Allbirds to solve that problem. Today, the cult-fave brand is launching a new style called the Tree Breezer ($95), which is essentially the ballet-flat version of its much-loved sneakers. After years of hearing women ask for a more dressed-up version of their favorite kicks, Allbirds responded with its most office-appropriate style yet—one that blends a classic slip-on silhouette with the breathable materials and comfy insoles for which Allbirds is best known. “The request for flats has been one of our most consistent pieces of feedback…[because] not everyone could wear our Runners or other styles every day,” says Allbirds’ chief marketing officer Julie Channing. “I love this quote from one of our customers named Laura from Ohio: ‘I get bummed when I have to go to work on Monday and put my Allbirds away again until the weekend.’ Our aim with the Tree Breezers is to offer customers a product that is appropriate for a wider variety of settings, while still providing the style and comfort they love.” The Tree Breezer delivers on that goal. They’re made with the same mesh knit eucalyptus-tree
How the keyhole became the swimsuit’s most functional feature
May 01, 2019 at 06:00AM by CWC Swimming laps in the wrong type of bathing suit is the swimwear equivalent of playing with fire. Sure, bikinis look great in Instagram pictures, but the minute you attempt to wear one while performing the butterfly, you run the risk of flashing your top half, bottom half, or in the case of my eighth grade pool party, both at the same time. One pieces are problematic in an entirely different way, because they fill up with water and slow down your strokes. And don’t even get me started on tankinis, which deserve their own place in the 10th circle of hell. So what’s a burgeoning Katie Ledecky to do? Invest in a keyhole swimsuit, which I hereby declare to be the holy grail of all the fashions that are actually meant for swimming. You know the ones I’m talking about—those ultra-chic, yet functional, one pieces that have a circular-shaped cutout right below the boobs. We love ’em because aside from giving the girls a little bit of understated airtime, the artfully placed hole allows for water to move in and out of the suit so it won’t get stuck and make you feel like a waterlogged—albeit well dressed—pufferfish. “We’ve used a keyhole construction on the front of our Peak Suit as a way to allow water to easily flow out below the bustline, says Shannon Savage, co-founder of Left on Friday. The brand also offers a suit with a keyhole in the back, which helps
The easiest way to get that new-shoe feeling (without spending $$$) is to snazz up the laces
April 30, 2019 at 12:38PM by CWC Now that sneakers are part of the dress code for pretty much every occasion—first dates included—I rarely wear anything without a cushy rubber sole anymore. The only downside to this, IMO, is that when I’m alternating between the same Nike Air Force Ones and Huaraches on repeat, I get bored with my footwear options a lot faster. Thankfully, just as I was about to drop a paycheck to freshen up my collection, one of my co-workers suggested a brilliant (and cheap!) hack for beating sneaker ennui: Invest in some new laces. “Laces are a fun and easy way to customize your own kicks,” confirms Kirta Carroll, vice president of marketing at women’s activewear retailer Six:02. “They’re a quick way to add some color or embellishment to an everyday pair.” Lucky for us, it’s a good time to veer away from basic black or white laces: Colored, patterned, and textured styles are pretty much everywhere right now, so you’ve got no shortage of options. (Etsy is a particularly rich gold mine for sneaker shoelaces, FYI.) For less than $10, in most cases, you can completely change up the look of your kicks—and it’s a no-risk makeover, because you can just swap the laces back if you don’t like the end result. “There are no rules for picking laces—just pick the ones you feel like best express your style,” says Carroll. “If you’re willing to change them out often, grab a few. But if the
Use the 5 love languages to boost the most important relationship in your life: the one with yourself
April 30, 2019 at 07:49AM by CWC People receive love differently, so knowing your love language and communicating it can help you and your S.O. get on the same page and also give your friendships a hearty dose of meaningfulness. And, guess what? It can also improve the most important relationship in your life—the one you have with yourself. Self-love is central to living a joyful life and attracting the love we deserve—so knowing what fulfills you and being able to use that intel to actually fulfill yourself is an invaluable skill. “Many of us look for happiness outside of ourselves,” says therapist Joyce Marter, LCPC. “We’re looking for the perfect job, or the perfect relationship, or the bank account, or we’re focused on the externals. And really, joy and happiness can be found inside of us.” Marter says that if you know the ways you prefer to receive love—using Gary Chapman’s love-language concept from his book, The 5 Love Languages—you can do those things for yourself and be less reliant on others to meet those needs. (If you haven’t already, take the official love-language quiz. We’ll be here when you get back). How to us your love language on yourself (and reap the happiness-boosting rewards). Words of affirmation Affirmations can be something you say to yourself, either out loud or in your head, or that you write down in a journal. You can create these self-love mantras yourself, or they can come from others (Marter recommends daily affirmations from
What’s the deal with that post-drinking red face flush?
April 30, 2019 at 07:18AM by CWC There are times when I feel naturally confident and sexy, like when I’m totally blissed out in the middle of a long run. Or when I’m wearing the pair of Loeffler Randall heels my best friend bought me that make my posture that much better. But there are other times when I need a little boost in the feeling sexy department, like on a first date or at a cocktail party where I don’t know anyone. And that’s often when I rely on a glass of wine (or two) to loosen up. (Hey, some people turn to CBD, I turn to wine. Okay?) A few glasses in, I’m feeling good—and I’m thinking I look good, too. Then, I catch a glimpse of myself in a mirror somewhere and see that my face is redder than a bushel of schisandra berries. Talk about feeling red hot! Why exactly does this happen? “Alcohol-related facial flushing happens most commonly in two populations: those with deficiency in an enzyme called alcohol dehydrogenase, frequently found in Asian populations, and those who suffer from rosacea, frequently found in lighter-skinned people of Northern European background,” explains Pooja Amy Shah, MD. “This enzyme’s ability to break down acetaldehyde in alcohol causes the red face reaction,” adds registered dietitian Kelly Springer, RD. Alcohol dehydrogenase helps break down alcohol in the liver quickly, so if you have a deficiency alcohol isn’t broken down as quickly. “Alcohol makes blood vessels dilate to some extent
It took doctors 20 years to diagnose my Lyme disease—here’s what I wish I knew during that time
April 30, 2019 at 02:00AM by CWC I used to brag that I was the only person in my family who’d never had Lyme disease. Turns out I should have been bragging that I was the only one never diagnosed with it. Because I had Lyme disease, alright. Symptoms like pain and tingling, digestive problems, anxiety and fatigue followed me like a shadow for 20 years before I got a proper diagnosis. Even as a 5-year-old, I knew something wasn’t right. After spending the summer romping around in my favorite brambly woods, I experienced leg pain that left me unable to walk. My pediatrician tested me for a number of ailments, including Lyme, and all the results came back negative.The diagnosis was growing pains, and two weeks later, as suddenly as it arrived, the pain disappeared as suddenly as it arrived. Throughout the next two decades, I’d undergo this same song and dance a handful more times: blood test, negative results, rinse, repeat. When I was 9, something was wrong again, and I visited specialists for chronic headaches, vertigo, and motion sickness only to be told, again, that nothing’s wrong. By the time I was a teenager, regularly sick to my stomach, anxious, and weighed down by chronic fatigue, I was lost the zeal to advocate for myself to a doctor who considered me a hypochondriac. Whatever was wrong with me could only be my fault, and it was my job to muscle through it. And since no one outside
Break a sweat with 24 fitness essentials you should always buy at Costco
April 29, 2019 at 05:00PM by CWC Workout routines are either really cheap or really expensive, but the sweat is all the same. While you can most definitely get your heart pounding at no cost by lacing up your running shoes and hitting the pavement, the cost of boutique fitness classes, gym memberships, and home equipment adds up quickly. In an effort make sure your don’t break the bank with your fitness habits, you might want to check out Costco exercise equipment and fitness essentials. You’re probably well aware that the buy-in-bulk store is hot-spot for healthy food finds and discounted beauty products, but it’s also a one-stop shop for all your fitness needs. While making sure your supply of organic cauliflower tater tots stay stocked, you can also get a cheaper gym membership, upgrade your fitness tracker, and achieve your dreams of having an at-home Pilates studio. The best fitness finds at Costco Buy Now 24 Hour Fitness 2-year ALL-CLUB SPORT Membership Buy Now Body Glove Oasis Inflatable Paddleboard Yoga & Fitness Package $430 Buy Now ProForm Premier 500 Treadmill- Assembly Required $600 Buy Now Personal Power Plate Vibrating Platform $1000 Buy Now ProForm Coachlink E9.0 Elliptical – Assembly Required $900 Buy Now Golds Gym 7-in-1 Body Building System $35 Buy Now Total Gym X-Force $300 Buy Now JumpSport 350i Fitness Trampoline $300 Buy Now SPX Reformer Athletic Conditioning Package $2,700 Buy Now ProForm Body Blitz Lift System $300 Buy Now ProForm Cardio HIIT Trainer Buy Now Fitbit Versa Bundle,
How astrology has made me more self-aware, reflective, and accountable in my relationships
April 29, 2019 at 04:00PM by CWC My newfound obsession with astrology started, as most things do nowadays, with an Instagram post. Last year, Co-Star, the personalized astrology app, shared an illustration of a Pisces bingo board, which looked exactly as it sounds: a card where you mark off Pisces traits you exhibit, like “using fantasies as an escape” or “giving good advice but can’t apply it to yourself.” Lo and behold, I ended up checking off most squares, and thought to myself how the traits felt different than a typical, one-dimensional horoscope reading. I got hooked—fast—and I have yet to look back. At that point, I didn’t even know what a moon sign was; now I can tell you that I’m a Pisces sun, Capricorn moon, Sagittarius rising with her Venus in Aries, and then some. Many are hopping on the astro bandwagon (or, er, spaceship), and with increasingly numbers of people knowing much more than their sun signs (determined by the sign the sun was in when you were born, it’s what you commonly look to when you read your horoscope), readings have grown to be more holistic and complex—and the result is a lot more celestial-sourced wisdom to glean. “We have so many great resources available that go beyond sun-sign astrology. So, astrology in the mainstream has changed,” astrologer Rachel Lang tells me. “I think this is indicative of an overall shift—astrology has evolved to meet our ever-changing needs,” she says. I’ve always understood that astrology can
Platform sneakers are making a comeback—to which I say, stop right now, thank you very much
April 29, 2019 at 11:37AM by CWC At this point, it’s become relatively cliche to be snarky about Coachella, so let’s skip the part where I say that I’m so glad my Instagram feed is practically back to normal after being overwhelmed by that annoying Ferris Wheel for the past couple of weeks. Instead, let’s go right to the part where I say that it seemed like everyone at the festival was wearing platform sneakers. Perplexed, I took to the bigger Internet (Google on my computer) to see if platform sneakers were, indeed, a thing that was coming back in style. They are, according to multiple fashion sites, and high-end brands like Prada and Versace are creating their own iterations. It was during the aforementioned Google session that I came across a recent Vogue article telling me that platform sneakers are “just the boost my spring wardrobe needs.” The search description for said article says that they’ve found the best platform sneakers to wear to work or the club. Or the club? I have questions. Namely, do people still go to “the club” and if they do, are they really wearing platform sneakers there? View this post on Instagram Day 2 💘🦄💅🏽 Brb just taking a call🌴🎡💕 seriously pulling these outfits out my ginorm booty haha 😂 🙌🏾 #coachella #notprepared 📱Edited/shot on iPhone with @teganandnedpresets SELFIE GAME #teganandnedpresets A post shared by ✖️t e g a n p h i l l i p a✖️ (@teganphillipa) on Apr 14, 2019 at 4:32pm