Work It Out Girl

Going to the same gym and doing the same routine, week after week, can get boring. Especially true in midsummer, one can find any number of temptations to skip the gym. Making the workout fresh and entertaining is key, plus switching it up can boost your body beyond the dreaded fitness plateau. We found a great list of somewhat unconventional gym alternatives from DailyCandy. Here are a few of our favorites:

Hoopnotica: Hula hoop-ing those hips and abs into shape. Held at Loews Beach Hotel, Santa Monica, hoopnotica.com.

Cirque School: Combines circus arts with pilates and cardio for a fun full-body workout, cirqueschoolla.com.

Aqua Surf School: Work on core strength while hanging ten with the pros, aquasurfschool.com.

Ojakian Cardio Tennis: Betters your backhand and your backside by combining aerobic exercises with traditional tennis moves, ojakiantennis.com.

Piloxing: Change it up and take out aggression with intervals of cardio, pilates moves and boxing jabs, piloxing.com.

Patriotic Day-trip

The USS Iowa is going to be a big summer attraction. The fully-restored 887-foot long WWII era battleship will become a floating naval museum docked at the Port of Los Angeles' harbor in San Pedro. The exhibit is far from just a boring walking tour of an old relic, with special features like an interactive video game room where patrons can participate in the historical action, man the gun turrets and virtually defend the ship from enemy fighter planes. It will open to the public on July 7th.

Save Your Skin

Summer fun in the sun calls for lots of sun screen. Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer, with a staggering 3.5 million cases diagnosed every year, and sun damage is the cause of up to 90% of all visible signs of aging. It's often hard to find a good quality facial product for daily protection that doesn't wreak havoc on your complexion. Look for oil-free formulas, with broad-spectrum protection and at least 30spf. Here are a few favorites: 

Hometown Pride

This summer, make time to marvel at the artistic talent of fellow Angelinos at Made in L.A. 2012. The exhibit represents the Hammer Museum’s first biennial survey of the work of up-and-coming Los Angeles-based artists. The project aims to support LA’s thriving arts community and features the work of 60 artists. The pieces were created specifically for the occasion and include abstract paintings, sculpture, video installations, photography, and public performances.
Runs all summer, June 2-September 2, 2012.

Shown at three locations across the city: the Hammer Museum in Westwood, LA><ART in the Culver City art district, and the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery in Los Feliz. For more info, visit: www.madeinla2012.org

Quality Over Quantity

In her new book, Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion, author Elizabeth L. Cline examines the negative economic and environmental effects of the mass production and consumerism of low-quality discount clothing. Americans own more clothes now than ever before, but we're buying cheaply made, imported products rather than higher quality pieces that we keep, value and mend. Trend-driven shopping and the success of cost cutting chains has turned clothing into a disposable good. This book traces the origins of the problem and provides tips on how to become a more sustainable, savvy shopper. Available on amazon.com June 14th.

LA's Hidden Gems

Ever feel like you don't break the routine or venture out of your neighborhood often enough? A company called Esotouric aims to help people, both tourists and residents alike, to rediscover some of LA's hidden gems and lesser known history. Founded by a family of Angelino's, the company offers well-informed tours that explore the historic locales of city headlines, stories of notable stars and intriguing cultural moments, and famous secret haunts. Tours range from reinvestigating the tales of the Black Dahlia crimes, to the architecture of Route 66, to seeing the iconic music venues of the 60's. Choose one, have a blast and brush up on your city's history! www.esotouric.com

Travel: Chihuly Garden and Glass

World-renowned glass artist Dale Chihuly can now add a permanent exhibition at the Seattle Center to his long list of prestigious shows, awards and honors. Chihuly studied, and subsequently taught, glass blowing at RISD and spent time in Venice learning traditional techniques through a Fulbright Fellowship. With this expertise and his impact as an educator in the field, he has almost single-handedly established glass as a fine art form. His pieces draw their forms and inspiration from nature, maintaining a cohesion with the organic world around them. The new Chihuly Garden and Glass exhibition features an impressive body of work, an outdoor garden, as well as a theatre with videos and interviews of the artist. Near the Space Needle in scenic Seattle, this exhibit is a perfect reason to plan a west coast summer weekend getaway.
For more information, visit www.chihulygardenandglass.com

Theatre: A Child Left Behind

Education is the key to our nation's future, and the current system has some serious downfalls. After being laid off for a second time from his teaching job at a low-performing LA school, Alan Aymie composed A Child Left Behind, a compelling narrative show in which he takes aim at the LAUSD and their administrative policies. Using his natural energy and sincerity, he effectively communicates his own personal struggles as well as those of teachers forced to focus less on educating poverty-stricken students and more on passing standardized tests, with shrinking budgets and lagging support. Come see it, get informed and maybe even get motivated. This is the show's final weekend.
Beverly Hills Playhouse, 254 S. Robertson Blvd. Friday and Saturday at 8pm. Web: ktctickets.com

Trend watch: Nail art

Quirky mani's and pedi's are a fun (and easily changeable) way to sample this seasons color trends and play with creative polish techniques. Artsy nails are everywhere. Zooey Deschanel's mani made news when she hit the red carpet at the Oscar's with mini tuxedos. Rihanna just rocked a pointy set of nails that perfectly matched her crocodile skin gown at last week's Met Ball. Whether you choose to mix and match neons, paint tiny canvasses or use a space-aged trick polish, its a fun way to dabble in a hot fad - but do it now, since this trend probably won't last much longer than it takes for the polish to dry.

Breaking Beauty News

Have you heard? The man famous for making women feel sexy with a stiletto will now extend his talents to a beauty line. Christian Louboutin announced the launch of a makeup collection that will hit stores late this year. He explained to WWD that, like his shoes, "beauty products also have to do with empowering women." Considering the always stunning, statement-making heels, we can only eagerly anticipate the dazzling collection, and perhaps hope for a signature scarlet red lipstick...magnifique!

For Kids in the Kitchen

Have a wee culinary prodigy or a young foodie in the making? We adore the soon-to-be released children's book by Jessie Hartland called Bon Appetit!: The Delicious Life of Julia Child. With quirky illustrations and lively stories, the book covers Julia Child's incredible life story, from growing up in Pasadena, to her time as a spy, with all kinds of zany tales of her kitchen adventures. The book is fun to read and perfectly conveys the humor and eccentricity of the chef herself. What better way to entertain the kiddos while you're making them dinner! Available for pre-order now on Amazon.com.

Let's start the conversation...

The New York Times recently published an article titled "The Flight From Conversation" by Sherry Turkle. As a psychologist, author and professor at M.I.T., Turkle has spent fifteen years studying the phenomenon of our culture's tendency to use social media and technology as a distraction from real life engagement. The piece discusses our increasing reliance on technology to maintain a distant connection to the world around us, allowing us to avoid emotions like loneliness and create an edited virtual persona. As a result, the art of conversation, the ability to actively listen to one another, and our connection to humanity and nature all continue to loose value in our daily lives. Take a minute, unplug, give it some thought...maybe discuss it with a friend.

Here's the link to the full article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/22/opinion/sunday/the-flight-from-conversation.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&emc=eta1

So Long, Car Talk

Beloved duo Click and Clack are calling it quits. Tom and Ray Magliozzi of NPR's hit show Car Talk are retiring in September after 35 years of taping episodes. The show started out as a weekly segment featuring the two MIT-educated brothers and was intended to drum up business for their Boston auto repair shop. The program, which provides honest auto advice peppered with comedy and social commentary, gradually grew into a national hit show with more than 30,000 callers a month. Fans of the show shouldn't fear, NPR plans to continue to re-cut and air past episodes long into the future.

 

It's Cinco de Mayo!

Want to get the kids out of the house and do something fun this weekend? Head to the Cinco de Mayo Fiesta and Carnival in Santa Monica. This Sunday, May 6th, Virginia Avenue Park will host one big family-friendly fiesta where you can see, taste, experience and celebrate the Mexican culture. The offerings include rides, authentic food, folklorico dancers and mariachis, vendors and more. This year marks the 150th anniversary of the celebration, commemorating the Mexican army's victory over France.

  

Easy Summer Hair Styles

Warmer months warrant fuss-free hair styles. Two current trends we love are braids and messy buns. Both are chic and very simple to pull off. And as for the best three light weight, perfect-for-summer products to help create these looks, try Bumble and Bumble Surf Spray, Blow Faux Dry dry shampoo and Aveda Air Control hair spray. So play around and find a fresh new look!

Earth Day Facts

This Sunday marks the 42nd Annual Earth Day celebration. The first Earth Day was held in 1970 after a massive oil spill off the west coast in 1969 had brought increased public awareness and stricter restrictions on environmental pollution.

Want to get an idea of your own ecological footprint? Take the quiz on the Earth Day Network's website. They offer lots of tips and you may even be inspired to pledge an "Act of Green" on their message board. The quiz: http://www.earthday.org/footprint-calculator

Easy eco-friendly changes:
Buy local products and use those with less packaging/post-consumer recycled packages to decrease pollution from the transportation process and packaging waste. Each pound of food you buy locally prevents a quarter pound of CO2 emissions.

Turn off lights when you leave a room. Also, plug electrical items and appliances into a surge protector and switch it off when they are not in use. This will eliminate the usage of "standby power."

Buy a programmable thermostat and save energy and money on heating and cooling.

Replace disposable products with reusable ones, like shopping bags and aluminum water bottles instead of plastic ones. Use cloth napkins instead of paper. They're cuter anyway!

Plant a native garden of plants indigenous to your geographic area.

Donate old items like cell phones, household items and clothes to charity rather than trashing them.

Herb Ritts: LA Style

 The Getty's latest photography exhibit, Herb Ritts: L.A. Style, is a must-see. The photographer's iconic, never-before-seen images show his skillful use of contrast and natural light to capture stunning images that embody the essence of  LA, celebrities and the high fashion world in the 1980's. The retrospective will run through August 26th. For more infomation: www.getty.edu.

  

Spring Cleaning

Spring is the perfect time to purge your closet, weeding out the unwanted items that are occupying valuable space. Besides creating room for fabulous new goodies, it's also a great opportunity to donate your items to charity. Have pieces you've decided to retire from wearing to the office? Think Dress for Success. This nationwide non-profit is devoted to providing career-wear and interview coaching to help underprivileged women find work. They are always in need of gently used suits and seperates, blouses, shoes, jewelry and handbags. It's truly touching to see how hand-me-downs can change a life. For more information: www.dressforsuccess.org

Art Scene: An evening at MoMA

This Wednesday, The Museum of Modern Art will present Eat, Drink, MoMA, an entertaining evening of art, socializing and Mexican cuisine and cocktails inspired by the exhibition Diego Rivera: Murals for The Museum of Modern Art. The exhibition features portable murals with bold images commemorating events in Mexican history and powerful scenes of New York City during the Great Depression. Sounds like a great time. If you can't make it for the dinner, the display will remain through May 14. 

$195 per person; $170 for members, including tax and gratuity. Seating is limited. Please call (212) 333-1220 for reservations. www.moma.org.

LA Marathon is this Sunday!

The Honda LA Marathon (formerly the City of Los Angeles Marathon) is an annual running event held each spring here in Los Angeles. The 26.219 mile foot race, inspired by the success of the 1984 Summer Olympic Games, has been contested every year since 1986. The 27th edition of the marathon is scheduled for March 18, 2012. It will be rainy, it will be fun and it most certainly will be reflected in traffic. We have provided you with a map of the route, which starts in downtown LA and ends at the Pier in Santa Monica. Plan ahead so you won't be in traffic forever! And for those of you who are running: best of luck!