Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Featured Guest Blogger: The Kitchen Shrink


Hello beauties! Please read my first guest blog post!
xo,
Christy

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Beauty and the Beets – Turn Back Time with these Fountain of Youth Foods

The Kitchen Shrink
Catharine L.  Kaufman



Let’s face it, darlings, with all the stresses in life, we’re all getting older by the day.  That doesn’t mean we have to look older. Remember the portrait of Dorian Gray – oops, am I aging myself? Here’s my A-(nti-aging) List for foods that will erase some years from your real physical age.  It’s my birthday present to you.

Nature’s Collagen

The tropical guava is a Vitamin C powerhouse, having four times the amount as oranges. Like a collagen factory guava helps build and plump up cells for a glowing, more youthful complexion. Try a guava smoothie, guava salsa with jicama, fresh lemon juice and cilantro served with grilled fish or topping for a seafood cocktail, or eat it straight up for your daily dose of anti-aging.


Brazilian Bombshell

Two a day will keep the plastic surgeon away. This hard-shelled nut loaded with the trace mineral selenium is responsible for replenishing damaged cells ravaged by free radicals. Munch them whole, or crush them and blend in your oatmeal or sprinkle on your breakfast cereal or yogurt. But they’re high in fat content, so make the cut-off two.


Almond Joy

This versatile nut has a triple boon – for healthy hair, skin and nails thanks to the load of vitamin E it packs warding off free radical damage by the everyday bad guys, such as UV rays and environmental toxins. A handful will provide half the daily-recommended dose.  Spread some almond butter on a slice of cracked whole-wheat toast with jelly or toss them in an Asian chicken, shrimp or veggie stir-fry or salad.


A Germ of an Idea

 Wholesome wheat germ loaded with zinc has a reputation for healing wounds, repairing cells, and helping other skin disorders like eczema and acne. Blend in your smoothies, muffins and other baked goods or sprinkle on a mixed green salad.



As Cool as a Cucumber

Whether you place those refreshing slices on your tired and puffy eyelids or eat this cooling food, your skin will be treated to an anti-aging boost thanks to the high water and silica content for a glabrous, glowing complexion.  Try cucumber in Greek, Persian or sweet and sour salads, as a sandwich topping or a salsa dialing-up the flavor of grilled fish or chicken.


A Raisin in the Sun

It’s ironic that these dried out, wrinkled little grapes will help make your skin blossom with a youthful radiance, add a sparkle to your eyes and prevent squinting. Packed with vitamins and minerals including iron, potassium, magnesium and phosphorus, raisins have been found to maintain balance or homeostasis, and act as an anti-viral and bacterial agent to cleanse and clear the kooties from your system.


Lead a Horse to Water

To keep your skin hydrated and flush impurities from your body drink plenty of H2O, about six to eight glasses a day. For a more palatable swig, add a splash of pomegranate juice, a squeeze of lemon or lime, or float some citrus slices, pomegranate seeds or berries on top.  Also, eat water-packed foods like watermelon, cantaloupe and honeydew melons to plump up those shriveled cells.





Hail Caesar!

Romaine lettuce, the Vitamin A king of leafy greens will rev up skin cell turn over to rejuvenate your skin and give you a glowing complexion. Also rich in Vitamin K, these luscious leaves will reduce bone loss to help keep your jaw and chin line youthful. Romaine can replace any lettuce for salads, but is most divine in a classic Caesar.

        A Caesar salad is a multi-tasking dish that can nicely complement an assortment of entrees to please the most discriminating carnivore or pescavore, or can be converted into a meal by adding chunks of organic chicken or grilled wild-caught shrimp or salmon.  The best part is, you’ll look younger after each serving.



The Classic “Benjamin Button” Caesar Salad (where possible, use organics, especially the egg)

3 romaine hearts, torn in bite-size pieces
 Sea salt and cayenne pepper to taste
1 garlic clove, peeled
1 teaspoon of dry mustard powder
3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon of fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 can of anchovies, drained
1 tablespoon of fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg, coddled (boiled in the shell, gently for a minute or 2)
½ cup of croutons (good quality store-bought, or bread lightly toasted, rubbed with garlic and olive oil, cut in bite-size squares)

Take a large wooden salad bowl; rub the bottom with the garlic clove and sprinkle liberally with sea salt. Add lemon, mustard and cayenne and stir until salt is dissolved. Blend in oil, then add lettuce and anchovies, sprinkle with cheese, break the egg, and gently toss. Sprinkle in croutons. Enjoy immediately.


About the Author:

Catharine is a nationally syndicated food columnist, blogger, author, magazine writer and TV chef. She credits her growing expertise in good nutrition for her survival and recovery from breast cancer and shares that expertise to help keep her family, friends and fans in good health.
Writing her columns under the moniker “The Kitchen Shrink,” Catharine dispenses advice on topics that include smart grocery shopping, food facts and folklore,  unforgettable dinners on a shoestring, solving cooking disasters and putting the skids on colds, flu and other ailments with healing ‘food chemistry.’
As a founder and partner of www.FreeRangeClub.com, the healthy gourmet cooking and food safety blog, Catharine has been garnering kudos from foodies around the world for her featured columns on that long-established site.

For additional anti-aging recipes (oldies but goodies, pardon the pun) email kitchenshrink@san.rr.com,

Friday, April 13, 2012

Coachella and Stagecoach Hair Styles!


Fun easy sexy hairstyles for Coachella and Stagecoach!

Curly hair that’s got a touch of hippie chic dread.

  1. Spritz hair with a heat protectant styler (I like Redken Spray Starch with a 15 hold).
  2. Wrap 1” section around a 1” curling iron away from the face.
  3. Wrap 1” section towards the face (switching directions helps create volume).
  4. Repeat throughout hair.
  5. To give it the messy dread look, grab 1” sections of hair and spritz Woolshake by Redken for texture. Then, using your thumb and index finger, slide up and rouche the hair to give it the “undone” look.

You will look ready for the fun and not worried if hair gets out of place.

Double Pony

  1. Section the hair in half in an inverted V starting from the center of each ear.
  2. Take the top section and place with an elastic to make a high ponytail. Clip it up out of the way.
  3. Take the remaining hair on the bottom and pull into a smaller ponytail right below. This is simple and works well with straight or curly hair. If you need added texture, use Powder Grip 03 by Redken at the scalp area before sectioning.
  4. Release the clip at the top. You now have two ponytails.

So simple but so eye-catching and flirty!

Simple Braids into an Updo

1. Take a circle section at the crown of the head. Section it into 3 parts and braid.

2. Wrap it around one side towards the face and secure with bobby pins.

3. Take the bottom section and repeat braid when complete wrap around the opposite direction from the first braid and secure with bobby pins.

4. Take any leftover hair and braid and wrap around the head, securing with bobby pins.

5. Optional: Add flowers. Finish with Redken Hairspray 12.

Have fun, stay cool, and look HOT at Coachella and Stagecoach 2012!

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Rockstar Wine Tasting Party

Now that it's getting warmer and sunnier out, wine tasting should be on everyone's activity list. We recently celebrated my friend's birthday by going to Temecula for wine tasting. To spice things up, we decided to make it a themed wine tasting party. I never mind being silly as long as my friends are right by my side!

So happy to be living in the best city in the world!





Of course, I got to play hair and makeup artist during the limo ride :)



We were having so much fun, Zoey begged us to let her join the party.


Have a lovely weekend!

With love,
Christy

Monday, March 5, 2012

With Spring around the corner...bring Spring in the hair :)

You don't always need to take drastic measures in order to have drastically fabulous hair makeovers. One of my regulars came in today for some touching up. I gave her a highlight touch up with color gloss and a Redken chemistry treatment customized for her specific hair needs  





Leaving the salon happy and beautiful :)


With love,
Christy

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

21 Day Cleanse: My Diary


Hello! I know this is a hair/beauty blog and you guys are here for tutorials. I recently completed a 21 day cleanse in celebration of 2012. Why cleanse? Because I want to start the new year right and clean myself of all the impurities of 2011. It's not just about weightloss; it's about finding serenity and balance, feeling lifted and motivated. 

My friends and clients have all been asking me how the cleanse is going, so I have decided to share my personal journal written during my cleanse. Pardon the angry moments – the cleanse makes you cranky! I hope you guys enjoy reading this and get inspired to do a cleanse. Feel free to ask any questions! I had an amazing support group during my cleanse and am more than happy to give you support!






Day I Decided to Cleanse

December 31, 2011

It's New Year’s Eve and what better time than now to start a cleanse?  I have done a few cleanses in the past but never one longer than a week, I have been on a super healthy eating plan but that usually only lasts for two weeks before I end up cheating and have a drink or two along with a couple tasty treats at some type of social event ;-)

It’s sad to admit, I'm pretty sure I've never gone 21 days without at least a glass of wine or dessert of some kind. Is that bad?!


My goal for 2012 is to form new a new healthy lifestyle! Cut those cravings!

I was recommended this cleanse by my nutritionist.  It consists of a 21 day program filled with fruits and vegetables (organic whenever possible) and no meat or fish until day 11. There are no eggs, no dairy and no nuts!

This will be tough considering the fact that I'm really not a vegetable person. I only eat mashed potatoes (query whether that’s even a real “vegetable”) which are definitely NOT allowed.

During the program, you go in once a week for a colonic. They send you a daily email for motivation and how you should be feeling.

I am EXCITED and ready for this challenge!!!


Day Before the Cleanse

Goal: eat as much bad food as possible. I have 21 days of rabbit food ahead of me and I'm on a mission to get all of the guilty food (and alcohol) pleasures in!

This will be the fun part…I will be in LA with friends the day before I start the cleanse so my goal is to have lots of DRINKS! Don't be shy, Mr. Hot Bartender…keep ‘em coming! Lots of fried food, breads, desserts, more chocolate please and greasy fast food!!! My plan is to make myself so sick that I only crave healthy vegetables! 

Mission accomplished!  Ready for tomorrow.


Day 1

I wake up and I'm excited to start this healthy journey. I have to take at least 1-3 of these shakes that have fiber and nutrients a lot of pills consisting of the "detox pills". I'm allowed as many vegetables and half the amount of fruit. There is a list of approved and not approved fruits and veggies with the portion amount for each day. E.g. only half a banana a day and or half a sweet potato a day, 15 cherries max.

I make the shake, I would hardly call it a shake it's the consistency of dirt,
Shake tastes like dirt and looks like vomit, I can’t stop gagging? I had a very hard time with this. It's going to be a long 21 days!

As the day goes on I am staying strong. The salon I was facilitating so kindly offered me bagels with cream cheese approx five times. I was a-ok. My baby carrots and half a banana are good! The crazy food cravings haven't kicked in yet, but that might be because I made s’mores yesterday with my friends and had taco bell late night :-) !??! I had to get my last nasty food fix in. 

After teaching, I went to the grocery store tonight and spent FOREVER reading labels. I can't eat anything unless I make it myself.

Day one a success. Off to bed early.


Day 2

Woke up feeling okay, slight headache and really tired. Exhausted, actually.

I had visions of warm soft pretzels with nacho cheese in my dreams last night. I wake up and start the routine, pack my lunch box and stare at that nasty shake, I think if I slam it, it won't be so bad. Nope. Worse, it almost came back up (sorry, TMI). Only a minimum of 40 more shakes to go on this lovely program, I sarcastically say to myself.

I packed my lunch. My printer won't print the documents I need for work then get into my car and my gps voice command (Bubbles is what I named her) is not getting the address right, I've repeated myself 20 times in all different tones of my voice and want to punch my gps screen! Agggh! I think the detox rage is kicking in now? You think as I'm screaming in my car & the person at the light next to me is looking at me like I'm a crazy person! I started cracking up. Yep, the detoxification process had begun :-) Just be warned, you may turn into a slightly crazy person during your cleanse.

Today at work, I felt okay, but irritable and a bit unsatisfied with my snacks. Besides feeling tired, the rest of the day was fine and I was in good spirits. Bam. That evening, on my drive back home, my stomach started to hurt really bad, my palms got sweaty, and my mouths started to water like I was going to be sick. I was panicking, I couldn't call my doctor because it was after hours. Is this normal? Is this part of the detox or did I catch the flu?? Just my luck!

The sick feeling goes in waves my entire hour and a half drive home. If you know me then you know that throwing up is a horrifying experience for me and I will fight it and hold it back for as long as I can!

Phew, I make it home, drink some water and almost immediately have to run to the bathroom. I proceed to throw up FIVE times. My precious boxer Zoey was sitting next to me with her head practically in the toilet watching me like WTF mom.
I can't stop getting sick....
Whoa! That was not fun.
Passed out.


 







Day 3

Same awful feeling this morning. I’m nervous for the day ahead of me. Am I going to be sick again?
I finally got ahold of my nutritionist. She says it’s because my body went into “rush detox”....I probably shouldn't have eaten taco bell the night before starting the cleanse because things definitely went south of the border.
I was told not to quit the cleanse yet, but just cut my detox pills in half for the next day or so. Those things must have been really toxic for me. Again, probably wasn't a good idea to eat as much bad food as possible before starting :-/

Another possibility: during the first few days, I really didn't have a large appetite and so I was eating under 1,000 calories. Taking the pills on a half empty stomach may have been too much on my system.

Finally decided to not take the shake this morning because there is a good chance I would be sick afterwards.  I had to pull over the side of the road while driving to work because of nausea.

I'm feeling much better the rest of the day but my stomach is a tad queasy and I still have this subtle lingering of a headache above my eyebrows.

My classes are great and off to bed early.


Day 4

Much better still very lethargic but I'm back to taking the required amount of detox pills. It's not that it's necessarily hard to eat vegetables they just aren't as satisfying & don't taste so good.

You don't realize how much food is on TV or even in movies until you can't eat anymore, I was watching the Kardashians (guilty pleasure!  I needed to see what happened with their 8 week short marriage)...back to the food and every 30 seconds those girls are eating either candy, chips, cupcakes (pumpkin mmmm my fav.) Or they eat out somewhere.  If only I could be as blessed to have it all go straight to my ass, boobs and lips and keep my waist tiny like those girls!

Day 5
 
I seriously pondered taking my broken laptop and smashing it in the ground and then throwing it out the window, I wasn't even outraged on the outside I was calm cool and collective it was all internal like a psycho killer. So I guess the irritability has kicked in, again. Starting to get cramps. Fantastic. I wonder how much of this anger comes from the cleanse.

According to my daily cleanse support emails, I should be feeling much better, have more energy and should start to like the taste of the shakes. NONE of this is true for me yet.

Counting down the days. 2 more weeks left. And the weekend hasn't come yet
:(



Day 6

Went for my Costco run (yes, cleanses are expensive and require regular trips to the store to buy fresh foods).  My sister and I stopped by this fruit stand that made sun dried carrot, green bean and beet chips that were made with only olive oil and sea salt. I called our nutritionist and asked if we're allowed to have them and she replied, “Yes, yum!”  So excited!! It was like Christmas morning getting the "ok" from your mom to open your presents…only ours were dried vegetables :-) We ate these veggie chips and it was as if my taste buds were in heaven!!! You really start appreciating the small things in life during the cleanse!

My sister and I could not stop smiling. All we kept saying was how good those beet chips tasted!
If you've ever been to Costco on a weekend you know it's madness, everyone driving up and down the aisles fighting for a parking spot. You saw my blinker!! (usually what I'm yelling). Today, we were not even concerned.

I was letting everyone cut in front of me. I was smiling and just eating away at our veggie chips. My sister and I were CRACKING UP at how excited we were. This just took our new eating plan to the next level. We were just a nibbling away at those veggie chips like they were chocolates it was like I had been given a happy pill, letting everyone cut before me. We were happy Days having a happy day  :-)

Later, I bought my dog these all natural doggie treats made with real peanut butter and oatmeal. When I opened up that container and smelled the sweet deliciousness, it was heaven to my nose and made my mouth water :-( I was doing so well up until that point but I felt such an urge…probably much like an addict of any type of drug addict needing his fix.  My addiction just happens to be sweets!

I immediately thought of freshly baked peanut butter cookies I have never smelled a dog treat so utterly fantastic as these :-( Zoey sure is enjoying them. Meanwhile, I will be trying to enjoying my broccoli…such a disappointment to my taste buds.

I should just go to bed so I stop thinking about food, two more weeks to go!

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Happy Valentine's Day!


It's been 36 hours since I launched my blog, and I am thrilled with the responses and views! I am in Florida for the week for a hair conference but constantly thinking of ideas and inspiration for the next few blog posts. Leave me a comment below if you have something you want me to do a tutorial on!

Thanks everyone!

With love,
Christy