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A Trip to Marrakesh: Design Tips, Stories, and Inspiration From Maryam Montague and Her Phenomenal New Book

Elka Karl — Fri, 25 May 2012 09:00:33 PDT

Moroccan design and decor may be a popular decorating trend, but for Maryam Montague, the woman behind the beautiful and popular blog My Marrakesh and the new book Marrakesh by Design, it's much more than that: it's a way of life. When Maryam isn't working at her main occupation as a human rights and democracy specialist, she's writing and photographing for her blog; managing her shop, Red Thread Souk; and hosting visitors at Peacock Pavilions, her home and a boutique hotel in a Marrakesh olive grove (which she and her husband designed, built, and decorated).

Maryam recently traveled back to the United States as part of her book tour, and we were happy to catch up with her in LA, where she was presenting at the Legends of La Cienega event at the La Cienega Design Quarter. Keep reading for some of Maryam's thoughts on decorating with Moroccan inspirations in mind, details on her book's genesis, and other fabulous quotes from this always-inspiring woman.

Sugar Inc. Is Looking For 34 Awesome People!

PopSugar — Wed, 23 May 2012 16:30:58 PDT

Sugar Inc. is thriving and growing every day, and we're seeking brilliant minds like yours to join us! We are looking for 34 talented and passionate people to join our 215-person commerce, original content, and global media company in our brand-new NYC office on Park Avenue, our giant new Los Angeles PopSugar Studios in Culver City, and our bustling headquarters in San Francisco.

Are you an Art Director ready to help make our brand even more stunning?
A beauty-obsessed editor ready to join our team as the BellaSugar Editor?
Or maybe you're an energetic Operations Engineer jazzed to help us scale our production platform?

Check out all our open positions on our Careers page, and drop us a line describing why you think you'd be the perfect fit for Sugar Inc.!

4 Steps to Achieving Better Brows in a Flash

Jessica Cruel — Tue, 22 May 2012 05:00:00 PDT

The eyebrows are the frames for beautiful eyes (that means they are important). And now that full, bold brows are in style, having the right moves for filling them in is essential. Makeup artist Floriane David of Make Up For Ever Academy reveals her expert secrets to achieving your best brows.

Form an outline: Start by using an angled brow brush to draw one long stroke underneath and above the eyebrow, advises David. This will help highlight your arch and create boundaries to color within.
Make high arches: Because the arch is the most important part of your brow look, it's where you should begin applying filler. This way, the arch will get the bulk of the product from your angled brush, making it a point of intensity.
Fill it in: Next, sweep your brush from the arch to the outer corner, keeping in mind that the last two-thirds of your brow should be the darkest. Then, move from the inner corner to the arch to blend, keeping in mind that this area of the brow should be filled in the lightest for the most natural look. When your brush is devoid of product, blend the end of your brow so that it tapers off at the tail.
Brighten up: As a final step, use a shimmering highlighter underneath the arch, on the cheekbone right below the eyes, and at the bridge of the nose. Hello, bright eyes.

Fit Philosophy: Ginnifer Goodwin

Michele Foley — Tue, 22 May 2012 00:02:27 PDT

Happy birthday, Ginnifer Goodwin! The Once Upon a Time star turns 34 today, and to celebrate we're taking a look at how Ginnifer stays active and fit in her daily life.

Always on the go: Ginnifer often credits living in health-conscious LA for her active lifestyle. Whether she's going to Ballet Body or The Bar Method, her workouts gravitate toward leotards, the barre, and pliés. She also turns everyday excursions into an excuse to power walk, "I'll speed-walk a couple of miles, get a cup of coffee, speed-walk back. It’s so easy. Just break a sweat for 30 minutes and you’re fine."

It's a lifestyle not a diet: An outspoken fan of Weight Watchers, she credits the diet program for helping her maintain a healthy weight in realistic ways. She told People, "It takes time because you lose the weight slowly . . . You don't have to go through that horrible yo-yo cycle of binging." Even when counting points, Ginnifer can indulge in treats like her favorite dark chocolate or a pasta dinner. Ginnifer maintains a sense of balance when it comes to eating, so she never has to feel deprived.

Health is more than just weight loss: For Ginnifer, being healthy means being confident, feeling less stressed, and maintaining a well-rounded perspective in her life. She told Health, "Healthy is beautiful. Because what comes with health is a clear mind and a high spirit. When I’m not healthy, I can’t think straight, and I’m unhappy. I’ll realize that I’m an emotional mess, and it’s because I’m dehydrated. Or I’m cold and cranky, and it’s because I’m not exercising and my circulation is poor."

How Not to Destroy Your Marriage

The Good Men Project — Fri, 18 May 2012 12:30:42 PDT

We're happy to present this story from one of our favorite sites, The Good Men Project. Today, Mark Tyrrell offers eight relationship tools to make your marriage work.

"All marriages are happy. It's the living together afterward that causes all the trouble." - Raymond Hull

So how do you make your marriage work? Or do you just blindly hope it'll take care of itself?

Think of a hot, successful date with someone you’re attracted to. You have fun, great conversation and more sexual chemistry than a warehouse full of pheromones. You don’t have to “work at” the date because it’s self sustaining. It runs as smoothly as the gliding hand of a classical guitar maestro and you can’t wait for another rendition.

Teenage Dating in a Twilight-Hunger Games World

But marriage, or any long term relationship; well that’s a whole other caboodle.

If we’re not careful, marriage can deteriorate into little more than a torturous assault course; littered with routine boredoms, frustrations and resentments. Couple all that with external pressures and sometimes marriage feels not worth the effort. But there are major benefits to being hitched or committed, other than just a beneficial tax regime.

Healthy marriage; healthy people.

Being happily married bestows heaps of health benefits. You might be forgiven for thinking that if you’re married you don’t live longer it just seems like it but, no, a good marriage really can help you clock up more years (1) and married people are happier (2) even though they don’t always look it from the outside.

But when marriage doesn’t work it can feel being manacled to a maniac, marooned with a misogynist or nailed to a nag. And I don’t care what the studies say, that’s not healthy. You may hear couples say stuff like: “We are making our marriage work!” but how do we do this?

Making it work.

We pay lip service to “working on the marriage” but what is the work we need to do? Marriage vows such as “to love and to cherish” and “forsaking all others, for better or for worse” don’t really tell us how to make it work, although they give us a clue.

Fortunately a ton of research has been done on what to do and not do to make your marriage, or any intimate relationship work. Follow the guidelines here to become “good at marriage."

Tip one: Be romantic but keep it real.

We are all (force?) fed romance in movies and novels. The handsome man gets the beautiful woman. But what I wonder is what happens after our romantic couple ride off into the sunset together? What do they do exactly? Bicker? Moan at one another? Start to ignore each other?

After all that romance, our beautiful couple is bound to have massive expectations of their life together. But when rose tinted expectations clash with day to reality, watch out!

Romance is vital in any relationship. Always seeing the best in your partner helps to keep things intimate and love should be expressed. But if you have been raised on Mills and Boon Romance novels or feel-good movies, then your own romantic expectations can work against the sustainability of your long term relationship.

When day to day life fails to live up to the giddy, heady lust-filled days of the pre-settled down romance people can become angry, even blame one another: “This wasn’t what I signed up for." They find it hard to take the rough with the smooth because they never really figured there would be any rough.

Expectations not diluted with at least a dash of realism can be a royal road to relationship ruin. Your partner may be an angel, but they have feet of clay. You must learn to love those feet or at least accept them a bit!

Get the rest after the jump!

3 Steps to Finding Your Face Shape

Jessica Cruel — Tue, 15 May 2012 14:58:00 PDT

In the beauty world, your face shape can determine many things from your next haircut to your makeup tactics. Finding the correct measurement is a simple equation of proportions. While the most common shape is oval, others include round, square, triangle, diamond, and heart. Want to find out what category you fall into? Grab a mirror and follow these simple steps to discover your personal shape when you keep reading.

Game of Thrones "A Man Without Honor": What We're Still Talking About

Shannon Vestal — Mon, 14 May 2012 11:07:13 PDT

There are only three more episodes left in the second season of Game of Thrones, and this week's episode feels like it's ramping up for an intense last few installments. But there's still a lot to talk about from this week, including a particularly nightmarish end scene and some hilarious banter between Jon Snow and his prisoner Ygritte.

The title of the episode, "A Man Without Honor," certainly feels apt, though I'd say there's definitely more than one man who shows his lack of honor this week. I'm ready to break down the big moments of the episode, though, so to see which scenes I can't stop thinking about, just keep reading.

Jennifer Lopez Takes the Stage With Casper and Celebrates 10 Years With Coty

Katie Henry — Fri, 11 May 2012 10:59:53 PDT

Jennifer Lopez put on a sexy show with boyfriend Casper Smart last night in Hollywood. The duo performed her track "Dance Again" during the latest episode of American Idol. Following her dance duet with Casper, J Lo and her fellow judges, Steven Tyler and Randy Jackson, said farewell to American Idol hopeful Hollie Cavanagh. It was an emotional evening for the entire cast and crew, though Jennifer had the support of twins Max and Emme in the audience. The 3-year-olds showered Jennifer with hugs and snapped a photo with her at the judges' table.

The fun didn't stop there for Jennifer, since she made a quick change into nude shorts and Christian Louboutins for another event at the Bel-Air hotel. She was honored by Coty for her 10-year partnership with the brand. Jennifer's Glow kick-started the celebrity fragrance industry and has sold more than $1 billion in retail since it was first released over a decade ago. To celebrate the anniversary, Jen debuted a new scent, Glowing. Jen chatted with us during the event and said of her fragrance empire, "I don't think of myself as a beauty mogul in any way shape or form . . . it's mind blowing [the success], but I'm very proud."

Photos courtesy of Fox/FX, Getty

5 Lessons Learned From A Course in Weight Loss

Lizzie Fuhr — Fri, 11 May 2012 03:06:18 PDT

At the heart of her mission, best-selling author and speaker Marianne Williamson urges people to choose love over fear - and get very self-aware in the process. Marianne's book A Course in Weight Loss: 21 Spiritual Lessons For Surrounding Your Weight Forever looks at the deep connection between spirituality and weight loss, while providing concrete exercises to complement the journey in order to say goodbye to unwanted weight forever.

If you've grappled with issues of worthiness, weight loss, or compulsive eating, I urge you to pick up this book for some fresh perspective. While every page of this book offers new insight and advice, if you're interested in a taste of what A Course in Weight Loss has to offer, here are five quotes that really moved me.

"When you're eating excessively, you're expressing fear." Marianne urges her readers to look deep within themselves and see places where they are expressing love and where they are expressing fear. If you're a compulsive overeater, chances are you're trying to satisfy some urge unrelated to the food in front of you. Whether it's a lack of meaningful purpose, low self-esteem, or another difficult circumstance, Marianne wants her readers to make the connection between an unhealthy relationship with fearful thoughts and food.
"The Not-Thin You is not your enemy; she is an unintegrated part of yourself." This point definitely struck a chord with me. So often we look at our extra pounds as our direct adversary, but Marianne tells us to shift our perspective. Only when we love and accept our bodies for what they - all their imperfections included- can we find a healthy way to let go of extra unwanted weight and keep it off.
"It all begins with a beautiful napkin." In one of my favorite lessons in A Course in Weight Loss, Marianne talks about starting a love affair with food. Simply buying a beautiful napkin for yourself can help build new healthy rituals around mealtime. Marianne also believes that quick eating along with disposable napkins and plates are out of the question. By creating new mindful, beautiful rituals around mealtime, you'll be able to let go of negative patterns from the past.

For two more lessons learned from A Course in Weight Loss, keep on reading.

The Final Say in the Light Weights vs. Heavy Weights Debate

Shape — Thu, 10 May 2012 10:47:20 PDT

We are pumped to share one of our fave stories from Shape here on FitSugar.

You've always heard that when it comes to building muscle mass, heavy weights are preferred over lighter weights. But a new study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology has found that isn't always the case. In fact, you can build just as much muscle by lifting lighter weights. If you do it right...

10 Health and Fitness Myths You Still Believe

The key is working the muscle to total failure or exhaustion, says Michele S. Olson, professor of exercise science at the Human Performance Laboratory of Auburn University Montgomery and the star of the workout DVD Perfect Legs, Glutes and Abs.

8 Reasons Why You Should Lift Heavier Weights

"Failure, in this sense, is a success," Olson says. "If you work your muscles, on each set, until you cannot execute another repetition with appropriate form, the heaviness of the weight becomes less important."

Find out exactly what a "light" weight is after the break!