Kristin van Ogtrop's Blog, page 404

Me&Ro and Kara Ross for LOFT

 

Your wrist, heart AND wallet are going to be very happy this month, thanks to LOFT!

 

The always fashionable and affordable store has teamed up with two amazing designers—Me&Ro and Kara Ross—who have created bracelets that not only spicy up any ensemble but are also supporting the Breast Cancer Research Fund. And normally the pieces from these talented lines go for hundreds if not thousands of dollars. So this is definitely cause for some excitement and definitely some shopping!

 

So don't waste any time purchasing one of their LOFT collaboration bracelets, which retail for under $40 each. And with every purchase a $5 donation will go directly to the BCR fund. Now doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside...AND simply dazzle on the outside? 

 

The bracelets are available exclusively at LOFT retail stores and on LOFT.com while supplies last...so HURRY!

Me&Ro, $34.50

 

 

Kara Ross, $39.50

 

And right now you can take 25% off your purchase by typing in SAVE25 at checkout. 

 

Happy Saving $ and Lives!

Study Says We Have the Power to Boost Happiness

Intriguing new research challenges a long-held assumption about happiness: That everyone has a happiness "set point" to which they return, regardless of their life circumstances. Among a group of 150,000 Germans studied over 25 years, nearly 40 percent reported a significant shift in their well-being. The study, published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, also identified crucial factors to boosting happiness.

 

The set point theory argues that as much as half of our well-being is determined by genes and personality. Its major proponent was the late behavioral geneticist David Lykken, who studied twins raised apart. The theory suggests that whether we have euphoric or crushing life experiences, we tend to return to our happiness set point.

 

The new study by Gert Wagner, a researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Germany, is based on a survey of the same German adults from 1984 to 2008. Every year participants answered questions on life satisfaction, goals and other measures, such as how much they exercise and socialize. 

 

Researchers averaged life-satisfaction responses to smooth out short-term effects, then ranked happiness by percentiles. Someone in the 99th percentile, for example, would be happier than 99 percent of the study participants. Some 38 percent of participants changed their position in the distribution by 25 percentiles or more during the study period. About one-quarter changed by 33 percentiles or more, and nearly 12 percent changed by 50 percentiles.

 

Aside from offering the hope of change for the naturally grouchy among us, the study identified key factors in boosting long-term happiness:

 

-Choice of spouse or romantic partner: People involved in a relationship with someone who tended toward anxiety, emotional instability and depression were less happy than other respondents.

 

-Emphasis on the family and helping others: Participants who strongly valued family and altruistic goals were happier. Women were also happier when their male partners ranked family goals high.

 

-Religious participation: People who attended church more often were happier. Researchers didn't know if it was the spiritual or social aspect of the experience.

 

-Balance in working hours: Happier people felt they worked an ideal number of hours. Those who worked more or fewer hours than they preferred were less happy. Being unemployed or underemployed made a bigger dent in well-being than working too much, presumably because of the financial stress. (Other studies have found a sense of financial control boosts happiness.)

 

-Friendship and exercise: Socializing and exercising were both correlated with happiness. People who worked out were happier regardless of their physical shape. (Underweight men and obese women were more likely to be unhappy.)

 

Finally, the researchers weighed in on the money and happiness debate: "People with a lot of money are more satisfied with their lives... but mainly due to the more interesting and challenging jobs they have," study author Wagner told the Web site LiveScience. "Money is simply a byproduct of good and satisfying jobs. If you want to be satisfied with your life, you must spend time with your friends and your family."

 

If you're looking for more scientifically proven ways to boost happiness, check out The How of Happiness by Sonja Lyubomirsky, a research psychologist at the University of California.

 

Do you think you have a happiness set point? What boosts your happiness –- both short-term and long-term?

''When You Reach Me'': Part One

Hi, everyone!

Thanks so much for your great young adult reading suggestions. Coincidentally, I considered selecting The Book Thief as an option but I promised to read it with my daughter! (At a slower pace.) So I'm saving it—and excited to hear how terrific everyone thinks it is. And who doesn't love Harry Potter or, as you mentioned, Kristi, Judy Blume's classic Are You There God, It's Me, Margaret? (For some reason, I've always especially loved the lesser-known Blume books, like the aforementioned Deenie and Then Again, Maybe I Won't. But they're all fabulous.)

Now on to When You Reach Me. First of all, as a child of the 1970s myself, the book was wildly nostalgic for me. And not just because of the cultural references, like The $20,000 Pyramid or Bit-O-Honey candies (the kind of candies, where, if you somehow come across them in 2010, you think, Jeez, have these been sitting around for 30 years?). There's a nearly perfect '70s aura that is almost palpable when you read the book. But there are also numerous coming-of-age moments that would powerfully resonate with readers who didn't grow up in that era (and never had a metal Charlie's Angels lunch box, say—poor things).

One of the key plot points is the sudden dissolution of Miranda's best friendship with Sal. Isn't that a childhood turning point that we've all been through? Did you ever have a pal that you hung out with constantly and then, for reasons you can't quite put your finger on, just stopped talking to? The friendship just melted away. And like Miranda, maybe you started questioning yourself about the reasons. Did something about you change? Or was it the other girl (or guy)? And just as in the book, those doubts are only exacerbated if/when the new friends you make are very different from the one you lost.

The book is, in many ways, a mystery. And I love the way the author seems to be leaving clues for you, just as Miranda's mystery-note writer is leaving clues for her. The formatting of the chapter titles ("Things that...") mimic the categories used on $20,000 Pyramid, a game in which one person gives the other vague hints that lead them toward an ultimate conclusion. That's one way in which the entire book seems to be mimicking a game of Pyramid. But besides the chapter titles, what else might hold clues for us, the readers? I wonder about Miranda's name. Early in the book, she questions her mother as to the origin of her name and decides it was inspired by the concept of protecting people's rights (as in "Miranda rights"). Is that a clue to Miranda's character or to the ultimate mystery of who's leaving those notes for her? And, of course, though she doesn't bring up the title, her favorite book, the one she ends up discussing with Marcus the bully, is Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time. Absolutely a clue, I'm sure. I'd be curious to see which details made an impression on all of you.

—Noelle

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Day 5: Steak with Roasted Carrots and Onions

To round out our first week, we have our food assistant Lindsay Funston (who is also a new blogger in our Food & Recipes channel on Simply Stated!). Lindsay works on the food road tests, writes the food daily finds, and on top of all that contributes to the Simple Solutions section of the magazine.

 

A Life-Changing (and Simple!) White Wine Sauce

 

For a meal I'm preparing myself, I wouldn't typically opt for red meat; I've been trying to cut down on my intake. But I am a sucker for mustard-wine sauces so I was excited to make this recipe. Now, you should understand that I am in the food department, so I'm lucky enough to taste all of the recipes we run in our test kitchen before they go to print. Since this story had so many tasty options, it was a tough decision on which to actually make!

 

 

The beauty of Steak with Roasted Carrots and Onions is how easy and impressive the sauce is, but we'll get to that later. The recipe first calls for roasting carrots and onions, which made me realize that I do not prepare vegetables this way often enough. They were so tender and delicious.

 

 

While the vegetables are roasting, you pan-fry the steak. And then the sauce happens: You simmer dry white wine (I used Sauvignon Blanc) and Dijon in the skillet with the pan juices. Once the mixture thickens after a couple minutes, you stir in tarragon, one of my favorite herbs—it tastes like licoricy basil—and you're already done! I made the dinner for one of my girlfriends and we both couldn't get enough of the sauce. We poured it all over not just the steak, but also the vegetables, and I kept thinking how I wished I had a hunk of crusty bread or even couscous to soak up every last bit. This is going to be my go-to sauce for chicken, pork, and steak!

 

 

Have you tried this recipe? Let us know how you liked it in the comments, and share your photos by following @RealSimpleFood on Twitter and using the hashtag #OctDinner.

Slipcovers For IKEA Furniture - Yes or No?

I have an IKEA sofa that I want to move into our guest room -- but it needs a bit of a facelift so I'm thinking of ordering a Bemz slipcover. Are you familiar with them? They are based in Sweden but ship worldwide and they have slipcovers for almost everything IKEA stocks that is upholstered - and they carry a bevy of colors, fabrics and patterns to choose from. My favorite is their loosefit collection shown below. I just love that they use gorgeous Belgium linen because I find it among some of the best linens in the world - it's so comfortable and wears well but also drapes beautifully.

 

Would you order a slipcover for a chair or sofa in your home? Have you ever ordered from Bemz before? What do you think about slipcovers on furniture? If done right, meaning the cover fits well and the fabric is nice, then you can refresh your furniture easily if the overall piece is still in good shape (frame, cushions, etc.). You can even keep a spare slipcover around in case you like the idea of changing them from time to time. Perhaps in the winter you want your sofa to be in a deep grey velvet but in the summer, a loosefit beige linen. I think the flexibility is nice. What do you think?

(images: bemz)

Asos.com Launches In The USA...Get Excited!

 

I can't tell you how excited I am about Asos.com's US launch! I have been green with envy of all my friends living in their unique affordable fashions over in the UK.

 

Asos.com is UK's largest independent online fashion and beauty retailer--and for good reason. You can find top brands like French Connection, Karen Walker, Calvin Klein, DKNY and many more---along with the Asos private label, which the retail prices average about the same amount I spend on lunch everyday. Amazing and sad all at the same time!

 

Think: H&M meets the convenience of web-shopping. That's right, at the moment you can't even indulge in H&M's offerings due to the fact they don't have an e-commerce supported site. To that I say: "Welcome Asos.com!"

 

Checkout these fab finds:

Asos Reclaimed Italian parka, $26.96

One-Shoulder chiffon Hitch dress, $33.70

 

 

 

Asos Theola platform bootie, $64.03

Asos Short Linked Leaf Necklace, $10.11

 

 

Happy shopping!

 

Let's Eat (More Vegetables)!

Hello, RS fans! I'm Maggie Shi, a fairly new addition to the RealSimple.com team and one of the new Simply Stated bloggers. While I cover a variety of things for the website, my main love—obsession, really--is food. And while I do love cooking (though I admit, I don't cook nearly as often as I should), I confess, I love eating even more. I adore restaurants, ingredients, food markets, chefs, food TV shows (my favorite is Top Chef), recipes (I have a folder titled "Recipes to Try" that keeps getting bigger and bigger), food trends and issues, and pretty much anything having to do with the edible. So, I'll be talking about all of that here every week. Is that general enough for you?

What's on my mind right now is an article from the New York Times about how—despite lots of marketing campaigns, Michelle Obama's influence, endless health studies, and the abundance of ready-to-eat options out there—Americans aren't consuming more vegetables than they were 10 years ago. Are you surprised? I was. According to the article, only 26 percent of adults have three or more servings of vegetables per day (a serving being a half cup of cooked veggies or a full cup of fresh greens). I knew we still weren't eating enough vegetables, but I certainly thought we were eating more than we were a decade ago.

Of course, I was reading this article at my work computer while eating lunch at my desk. Today, my lunch happened to be a vegetable "stew" of tomatoes, onions, eggplant, yellow squash, and celery root with whole wheat couscous (by the way, here's a neat trick—after all my veggies had simmered on the stove and the tomatoes had released their juices, I dumped some couscous directly into the pot and then covered it for a few minutes. The couscous cooked up nice and fluffy and had great flavor because it soaked up all those luscious tomato juices, plus I didn't need to dirty another bowl). I eat lots of vegetables these days because I'm part of a CSA (community-supported agriculture), so I get a weekly assortment of amazingly fresh, ripe produce directly from a local farm. And I hate to see any of that produce go to waste.

But no, I don't always eat like this. I have plenty of pork pig-outs, I can consume enormous steak dinners, it's hard to resist a burger and fries, and then of course, there are my desert island staples—I'm pretty sure I could live solely on bread, cheese, and red wine for quite a long time. So I think if you average everything out, I probably get just enough servings of vegetables on a regular basis, with plenty of peaks and dips along the way. What about you?

Do you think you're getting the recommended daily 4-5 servings of vegetables a day? How do you incorporate veggies into your daily diet, and what prevents you from eating your greens?

Organizing Tools

Are tools strewn about your home, cluttering up surfaces in your basement, garage, or on your dining table? Here are some non-traditional organizing options you may not have considered for tool storage and portability:



The Arsenal 5870 Tool Roll-Up, which allows you to easily transport all of your tools to your worksite in one convenient, soft cover, carrying case. It's perfect for apartment dwellers:





The LeatherCraft Tool Backpack, which is similar to the Roll-Up but even easier to carry:





The Bucket Boss 25005 Tool Organizer, which is an organized bucket made just for tools:





Finally, the Stanley Mobile Workstation for Tools and Parts, which makes transporting your tools as simple as wheeling a cart. This option is perfect for home owners with garages:

Do You Have an Etiquette Question?

Next week Michelle Slatalla a former columnist for the New York Times and a professor at the Columbia University School of Journalism will be joining Simply Stated as our new Modern Manners blogger. You'll also be able to read her advice in the print version of Real Simple starting with our November issue.

One of the things she'll be doing on the blog is helping you solve your etiquette dilemmas. So, before we welcome her aboard next week, we'd love to hear from you about a recent etiquette conundrum that you could use some help with, and Michelle might answer it here on the blog.

Day 4: Pork Cutlets with Spicy Noodles

Our recipe today comes from an aspiring foodie in our fashion department, assistant editor Elinor Smith. Elinor does market work, helps with photo shoots, and writes fashion stories including some of the fashion daily finds on RealSimple.com.

Since I consider myself somewhat of a foodie (at the risk of offending "real" foodies), it was a no-brainer for me to jump on any opportunity having to do with eating and writing, like this one. The actual cooking part, though, was a bit more daunting since I still have a lot to learn when it comes to navigating my tiny Manhattan kitchen with ease and confidence. Luckily this recipe for Pork Cutlets with Spicy Noodles, like all of Real Simple's, makes food preparation, well, real simple—even for this 26-year-old NYC resident. 



I made a quick trip to Whole Foods to gather the goods needed for my Pork Cutlets With Spicy Noodles recipe with two exceptions. The butcher didn't have pork cutlets (sigh), so he substituted them with the closest thing there—boneless pork chops. I also had to buy whole wheat udon since they didn't have regular. I lugged my grocery bags about eight blocks back to my apartment (probably the toughest part of the night) to start playing chef for my hungry roommate and her fiance.

Everything was coming together nicely, and I was impressing myself with how fast I was motoring through the slicing and measuring until...my eye started to itch. And naturally, I scratched it. Something you do not want to do after cutting and seeding a red jalapeno pepper. (Note: If you're as thoughtless as I am and happen to make the same mistake, douse your eye in milk. It does wonders to relieve the irritation—really!) 



Despite my minor (ok, majorly painful) setback, the meal turned out to be delicious. The spicy noodles were indeed spicy, but not overwhelmingly so for our palates. The salty, flavorful pork also helped cut and complement the heat. If you do happen to be sensitive to fiery flavor, then I'd dial back the amount of jalapeno used. And a word about the pork itself: sensational. So much so that I would prepare it this way to eat with other sides, like cabbage and roasted potatoes. Other standouts included the meaty shiitake mushrooms that, to me, made the dish come together to be a well-balanced bowl of goodness.

All in all, this was a satisfying meal that gave me a sense of comfort, too—something that all cooks in any kitchen (tiny or not) need every once in a while. 


Have you tried this recipe? Let us know how you liked it in the comments, and share your photos by following @RealSimpleFood on Twitter and using the hashtag #OctDinner.