Your Hair Will Shine with These Savings

I’m a hair snob. Some people like wine, and are wine snobs, some people are really into shoes, and are shoe snobs. But me, my snobbery involves hair and hair care products. I got lucky in hair snobbery. I tutored a local salon owner’s daughter in mathamatics, and was paid in the best Kerestase, Nexxus, and Therepy-G products. Not bad for a 16 year old. When my pupil’s grades climbed from failing to a respectable A-, we both were treated to Brazilian Chocolate treatments. That’s when you begin to realize the difference the right product can make. But now that my tutoring days are over, and the economy’s a bit smaller, it’s tough to maintain my hair snobbery with a smart budget.

So I was very pleased to write about Folica, the self-proclaimed hair junkies (it’s a

JOBY: Adaptable Accessories at Affordable Prices

Phones are cameras. Phones are televisions. Phones are GPS systems. These days our smart phones have evolved beyond the single use mobile phone to a multi-purpose media, entertainment, and utility conglomerate. We can now play Angry Birds on the same gadget we snap videos of a puppy chasing her tail. While doing everything with these megatools, we want to go everywhere. Hiking through trials. Biking through downtown. Driving through narrow streets. Or sitting on the train, browsing blogs for coupon savings. With such cool phones, it’s only right to have cool accessories that accentuate this versatility. Accessories that make our phones and our lives better, wherever we may be.

Enter JOBY. JOBY changed the photography industry when it came out with the best-selling GorillaPod

Cleopatra’s Choice - Fun Fall Giveaway

Autumn is a time for changes, when most people feel ready for a fresh start. Maybe this feeling is left over from when we were kids, and each September ushered in a brand new school year. Whatever the reason, I always find myself looking for ways to freshen up my life in the fall, a sentiment I share with most people I know. Perhaps I’ll reorganize my closet, finally wash my car, take up a new sport, or decide once and for all to make good on my vow to actually use my planner. Maybe you, too, are getting ready for a new school year, starting a new job, or just looking for ways to freshen up your old routines this fall. Sometimes I find that short of any more organizing, a good bath and a fresh look can really make me feel brand new.

If you’re also looking for new ways to feel

Finding a Haven from the Heat

As I draft this blog, I’m surrounded by palm trees, visible shadows of heat waves, and a plethora of (faux-)adobe buildings. I’m entertaining the idea that I’m on vacation, navigating through some exotic locale as I strive to mask my glaringly pallid skin with some semblance of color. Of course, in reality, I’m just visiting my parents. In any case, I’m about 80 miles inland of where I live, and I can feel the 20-degree temperature difference (as you can imagine, it’s an increase). Since I’ve grown accustomed to the temperate coastal climate that characterizes what I now call home, I invariably have to undergo some adjustment. There is, however, one saving grace: their pool. This kidney-bean-shaped, toothpaste-colored oasis is my key to refreshment—and the willingness to stay

Getting Organized? Keep Your Space Current

A couple of weeks ago, I moved into a new place. Rummaging through my apartment to find any semblance of a cardboard box, I knew I was a little behind on my organizational goals. I eschewed the concept of categorization, finding it worlds easier to simply throw my clothes, books, and toiletries into the same container. After hours of transporting a series of boxes, plastic bins, and paper bags, I found myself in an empty room, surrounded by a sea of blank geometric shapes. I wondered where my favorite necklace was and how carefully I’d stored it. I searched for my v-neck green sweater for at least 20 minutes, puzzled as to why it wasn’t combined with my other cold-weather outerwear. Simply put, I was utterly unorganized. By the time everything had been unpacked, I realized