June 13, 2019 at 04:00AM by CWC If anyone knows the importance of having a chill space, it’s Cyndi Ramirez. She’s the mastermind behind one of New York City’s buzziest beauty locales, Chillhouse, where you’re pretty much guaranteed to run into someone whose skin-care routine you’ve stalked on Instagram. The nail-salon-meets-healthy-cafe is the epitome if #goodvibesonly. So, when she offered to share some tips on how to create a chill AF apartment bathroom in honor of her partnership with dwell and Build.com, I had to pick her brain. I know, I know—hanging out in an apartment bathroom may not exactly have the same appeal as, say, a cool spa in Soho, but there’s something to be said about designing a space that you actually want to spend time in. After all, isn’t that where most of the magic (otherwise known as “self care“) happens? ad_intervals[‘387832_div-gpt-ad-5443410-3’] = setInterval(function () { if (ads_ready) { clearTimeout(ad_intervals[‘387832_div-gpt-ad-5443410-3’]); googletag.cmd.push(function(){googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-5443410-3’);}); } }, 100); Steal Ramirez’s bathroom organization tips, below, for a space that will actually make you want to un-plug during your PM routine—whether or not you have space for a beauty bar cart to store the products in. The perfect mirror: “My sacred nightly beauty routine occurs in the bathroom, so it’s important to have the right lighting in order to see my skin and the products I’m using,” says Ramirez, who opted for this pick as the mirror of her dreams. “I’m a sucker for LED lighting lately and this mirror has a cool, clean
Category: Relaxation
This waste-free “moisturizing stone” turned me into a twice-a-day lotion user
June 13, 2019 at 02:00AM by CWC A few weeks ago, a dermatologist filled me in on the fact that I was supposed to be moisturizing my body with lotion not once, but twice every single day. “Ha, fat chance,” I thought while politely smiling and nodding along. “That is just never going to happen.” In college, I had a friend who spent nearly a half an hour of her post-shower routine “applying her creams.” And I’m going to be honest: I never got it. What she considered to be the most luxurious part of her self-care routine to me seemed tedious, and honestly, just didn’t make a whole lot of sense. I’d always thought of putting on lotion as one of those things like flossing your teeth or brushing your hair—you’re supposed to do it regularly, but it’s so unappealing that I just… don’t. Not once, and most definitely not twice during a day. So when something called a “moisturizing stone” came across my desk, I honestly didn’t think very much of it. “Sure, I’ll try it,” I volunteered, before throwing it into my bag and forgetting about it for a better part of a week. When I finally did remember it existed (and that I was supposed to test it and write a story about it), I actually groaned out loud in annoyance at the prospect of having to use body lotion. For work. Being a beauty editor is weird, but I digress. ad_intervals[‘400261_div-gpt-ad-7520022-3’] = setInterval(function () { if
The easiest way to relax during a workout, according to fitness experts
June 12, 2019 at 07:00AM by CWC In the middle of a recent run, my instructor told the class to unclench our fists. Suddenly I realized that my hands were both actually balled into hard fists, as if I was ready to pick a fight with the treadmill or jump off and start working on my boxing skills. Supposedly, having unclenched—aka relaxed—hands takes away some of the stress of a workout, leaving you with more energy to do the hard work. When I consciously unfolded my hands, I did feel a subtle, newfound zest to run even faster. After asking some fitness pros, I learned that there is some biological magic that happens when you let go of stress via your hands in a workout. “Most long distance elite runners—marathoners or ultra marathoners—want to stay loose in the hands to not expend extra energy,” says Emily Kiberd, DC, chiropractic physician and founder of New York’s Urban Wellness Clinic. “Clenching in the fists works its way up the kinetic chain and creates tension in the arms, shoulders, and neck, which can throw a runner’s gait off. The goal for long distance is to not expend any additional energy that doesn’t need to be expended, like clenching your fists.” But even if you’re not a marathon runner, this tip helps in any run that you may be doing. ad_intervals[‘397697_div-gpt-ad-9261280-3’] = setInterval(function () { if (ads_ready) { clearTimeout(ad_intervals[‘397697_div-gpt-ad-9261280-3’]); googletag.cmd.push(function(){googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-9261280-3’);}); } }, 100); The thing about a clenched fist is that that tension works its
Every personality type has a “wing” because we’re all unique snowflakes
June 10, 2019 at 03:00AM by CWC According to the Enneagram inventory, every person has a distinct type among nine available options. Whether you’re a harmonious Nine, or a skeptical Five, you have a constellation of defining qualities. (Don’t know which of the nine Enneagram types fits you best? Check out an outline of the descriptions here.) But since people are highly nuanced, each type also has an Enneagram wing, which points to variability within each type, since we’re all highly individualized and unique. Your Enneagram wing tips the scale in one direction or another, connecting you to another type offering a few qualities of the adjacent type into your own. It’s kind of like being on the cusp of two zodiac signs, meaning you possess qualities of both. For example, perhaps you’re a Four on the Enneagram with a little bit of Three (4w3) or a Seven with a little bit of Six (7w6). Your Enneagram wing tips the scale in one direction or another, connecting you to another type offering a few qualities of the adjacent type into your own. Sort of like the influence your friends may have on you or the way your upbringing shapes who you become, the significance of your Enneagram wing is often felt without changing the core of who you are. All Twos are not the same, just as no two people are the same—and knowing your wing can provide you with a more textured view of your personality and why you
Live out your ‘Big Little Lies’ real estate dreams in these Monterey vacation cottages
June 09, 2019 at 06:00AM by CWC If you’re a fan of HBO’s Big Little Lies, it’s hard not to seethe with real-estate envy. Every episode of the show, set in the picturesque California town of Monterey, features some seriously stunning coastal estates. But you don’t have to spend a million bucks to spend a weekend like Madeline, Celeste, Jane, Bonnie, and Renata. Whether you want to swing by the Blue Blues Cafe (Paluca Trattoria IRL!) on Fisherman’s Wharf, jog along Del Monte Beach, or unwind in an oceanside Pacific Grove cottage, these affordable Monterey Airbnbs are just the ticket. Plan a Big Little Lies vacation at a Monterey Airbnb Photo: Airbnb 1. Oceanfront 6-bedroom masterpiece Location: Pacific Grove Cost: $1,000/night This oceanfront Airbnb definitely lets you take in the beauty of the area. The six-bedroom home can be split with a group of friends to cut down on costs. And while you’re there, you can enjoy whale-watching from the deck, hiking nearby trails, and cooking in the fully-stocked gourmet kitchen. Photo: Airbnb 2. Historic John Steinbeck’s writer’s studio Location: Pacific Grove Cost: $205/night Author John Steinbeck made Monterey wanderlust goals, and you can stay in a charming home that was once owned by him. The one-bedroom cottage is the perfect spot for a romantic getaway with a lush garden and peeks of the ocean. Photo: Airbnb 3. Peaceful cozy beach cottage Location: Pacific Grove Cost: $195/night This beach cottage is just two blocks away from the Pacific Ocean. While you’re
Science says sighing is involuntary self care—not your inner angsty teen being rude
June 07, 2019 at 04:00PM by CWC I’ve taken to sighing approximately, oh, 22,000 times a morning, and I’m worried that my co-workers thing I’m an uptight, bored, and rude. The meaning of sighing is, after all, murky at best and the connotations of it are mostly negative. Sure, you can sigh of relief when your college friend cancels those after-work dinner plans. Or you can sigh dreamily when you scroll past the most perfect trifecta of Harry Styles, Gucci, and piglets. But mostly sighing conjures that phase of your life when wearing liquid eyeliner was a moody personality trait. And I’m trying to escape my reputation as the token Goth Teenager in every room I inhabit. Is my sighing habit precluding me from such progress? If you have similar anxieties, brace yourself for one of those big relief sighs: Sighing is actually a incredibly benign reflex that we all do pretty much constantly. On average, a person sighs every five minutes, which is about 12 times an hour. And while that may seems excessive, it actually may be a factor that’s keeping us alive. One study from UCLA and Stanford points to how the purpose of sighing is to inflate the alveoli, balloon-like sacs where oxygen enters and carbon dioxide leaves the bloodstream. Sometimes the alveoli collapses, so sighing is engaged to bring in double the oxygen to pop it back up again. Otherwise, your oxygen-to-carbon-dioxide process is compromised, and—not to get catastrophic—your lungs will fail. That biological function aside,
Science says sighing is involuntary self care—not your inner angsty teen being rude
June 07, 2019 at 04:00PM by CWC I’ve taken to sighing approximately, oh, 22,000 times a morning, and I’m worried that my co-workers thing I’m an uptight, bored, and rude. The meaning of sighing is, after all, murky at best and the connotations of it are mostly negative. Sure, you can sigh of relief when your college friend cancels those after-work dinner plans. Or you can sigh dreamily when you scroll past the most perfect trifecta of Harry Styles, Gucci, and piglets. But mostly sighing conjures that phase of your life when wearing liquid eyeliner was a moody personality trait. And I’m trying to escape my reputation as the token Goth Teenager in every room I inhabit. Is my sighing habit precluding me from such progress? If you have similar anxieties, brace yourself for one of those big relief sighs: Sighing is actually a incredibly benign reflex that we all do pretty much constantly. On average, a person sighs every five minutes, which is about 12 times an hour. And while that may seems excessive, it actually may be a factor that’s keeping us alive. One study from UCLA and Stanford points to how the purpose of sighing is to inflate the alveoli, balloon-like sacs where oxygen enters and carbon dioxide leaves the bloodstream. Sometimes the alveoli collapses, so sighing is engaged to bring in double the oxygen to pop it back up again. Otherwise, your oxygen-to-carbon-dioxide process is compromised, and—not to get catastrophic—your lungs will fail. That biological function aside,
How to tap reflexology to give yourself a foot massage that’s worthy of belong in a spa
June 07, 2019 at 07:00AM by CWC When I’m walking around the streets of New York City, there are a lot of things I’ve come to expect on almost every block: a bodega, a food cart, and a massage place with a foot reflexology chart planted on the window. I’m always interested in all three, but it’s the foot reflexology that I’ve yet to actually try for myself (and everyone tells me I’m missing out). Here’s the deal: Foot reflexology is an old-school practice of touching certain points in your foot that correspond with other points in your body for all sorts of benefits. “Reflexology is pressure points on the foot which are energetically connected to other areas in the body” explains Juhi Singh, Chinese herbalist, acupuncturist, and founder of the Juhi Center. “Different points on the feet can help stimulate and pass energy to organs throughout the rest of the body. For example, points on the tip of the toes can stimulate the head, while the ball of your foot can reflect in your heart and chest.” All you’ve gotta do is stimulate these points, and it works as a sort of alt-therapy for a multitude of health perks. “Reflexology, also known as zone therapy, is an alternative therapy which involves applying pressure to the feet with the help of your thumb, fingers, and props without using oil or lotion,” says Naveen Sharma, naturopathy counselor at YO1 Wellness Center in the Catskills, New York. The benefits of doing this? “You can
Stop and smell the sulfur in Portugal’s Azores Islands
June 06, 2019 at 03:00PM by CWC There are two types of travelers in the world: those who mindfully pack, taking into account things like weather and planned activities, and those who haphazardly toss a pile of clothes into their suitcase, content to sort it out once they arrive at their final destination. I fall squarely in to the latter category. That’s why learning my laundromat lost my bag three hours before I’m supposed to board my flight for the Azores, a group of nine volcanic islands off the coast of Portugal, is about as distressing and unsurprising as discovering that the “last round” of burpees really wasn’t the last after all. I’m hopeful that the single pair of jeans, handful of T-shirts, and little black bathing suit left in my closet will be enough for a long Labor Day Weekend of island hopping around what’s quickly becoming a new healthy hot spot for active travelers looking for an affordable escape off the beaten path. (In other words, Tulum before the DJs and the seaweed started taking over its beaches.) Sitting at my gate, I go over my itinerary one more time: The plan is to take a five-hour red eye (there are now direct flights to the Azores from both New York City and Boston between Memorial Day Weekend and Labor Day) to Ponta Delgada, the capital of Sao Miguel, which is the largest link in the chain of Mid-Atlantic islands. From there, it’s a short flight to Terceira
Stop and smell the sulfur in Portugal’s Azores Islands
June 06, 2019 at 03:00PM by CWC There are two types of travelers in the world: those who mindfully pack, taking into account things like weather and planned activities, and those who haphazardly toss a pile of clothes into their suitcase, content to sort it out once they arrive at their final destination. I fall squarely in to the latter category. That’s why learning my laundromat lost my bag three hours before I’m supposed to board my flight for the Azores, a group of nine volcanic islands off the coast of Portugal, is about as distressing and unsurprising as discovering that the “last round” of burpees really wasn’t the last after all. I’m hopeful that the single pair of jeans, handful of T-shirts, and little black bathing suit left in my closet will be enough for a long Labor Day Weekend of island hopping around what’s quickly becoming a new healthy hot spot for active travelers looking for an affordable escape off the beaten path. (In other words, Tulum before the DJs and the seaweed started taking over its beaches.) Sitting at my gate, I go over my itinerary one more time: The plan is to take a five-hour red eye (there are now direct flights to the Azores from both New York City and Boston between Memorial Day Weekend and Labor Day) to Ponta Delgada, the capital of Sao Miguel, which is the largest link in the chain of Mid-Atlantic islands. From there, it’s a short flight to Terceira