BuzzSugar

Tinseltown Has Gone Tots On Screen and Off

LilSugar — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 08:00:02 PDT

Hollywood's baby boom continues on the big screen. While we anxiously await the births of the Jolie-Pitt babies, Tinseltown has delivered yet another movie that deals with motherhood. Heather Graham stars in Miss Conception, a flick about a woman obsessed with having a child. As the character's biological clock ticks, she makes desperate attempts to find a potential papa to impregnate her - even if it means pretending to rent her apartment to lure men to her lair or attending funerals to take advantage of grieving guys. Knocked Up, Juno and Baby Mama were all huge hits, do you think there's room for more babycentric movies or have you tired of the tot topic?

Movie Preview: Miss Conception

BuzzSugar — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 15:30:51 PDT

For many women, the idea of a constantly ticking biological clock is stressful at best, downright irritating at worst. Yet when it's handled well, the "single woman planning a family" movie schtick can be pretty fun to watch (see box office smash hit Baby Mama for the most recent example).

On the other hand, it can be pretty painful when it's handled poorly - and I'm guessing that's what's happening with Miss Conception, which stars Heather Graham as a British woman (yep, she's sporting an accent in this movie) who discovers she has one egg left - and it will be gone in two weeks. Huh. I'm not sure this is even plausible, much less a worthwhile premise on which to build a quirky, slapstick comedy around . . . and yet, here we are.

Does a British-accented Heather Graham desperately trying to get herself pregnant via lots of sex look like a good time to you? I may be surprised, but I don't have high hopes for this one. The movie's set for release on June 6. To take a look at this trailer for yourself and tell me what you think,

read more. Photo courtesy of First Look Studios

Earn More Money By Changing Up Your Office Space

LearnVest — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:15:07 PST

We're thrilled to present this smart LearnVest story here on Savvy!

Most of us spend about 40 hours per week at work - in other words, the majority of our waking hours.

And nearly all of those hours are spent sitting at our desks. It’s a definite problem - and not just because we’re missing happy hour or quality couch time at home.

There’s no shortage of discouraging research pointing out the evils of a sedentary lifestyle and claiming that sitting will actually shorten our lives.

But, conversely, making a few tweaks to the way you sit - and the space you sit in - all day has been proven to make you a happier, healthier worker, busy earning your killer salary.

And, scientists say, the happier you are, the more you tend to earn.

In an effort to make the time spent at our desks as productive (and as profitable) as possible, we’ve combed the research for the easiest, most effective tips to soothe your mind and body when trapped in a cubicle . . . or corner office.

Just follow these four steps.

1. Make It Comfy

When we say “comfy,” we mean “ergonomic.” It’s an unfriendly word for a friendly concept: basically it means “intended to provide optimum comfort and to avoid stress or injury.” Friendly, right? Besides, an awkward workspace can lead to major health issues, including disorders in your joints or tendons, so a little tweaking of your cubicle can go a long way for your well-being. Line up your body correctly by following these two principles:

Your feet should be flat on the floor and your elbows should be even with your desk. This can be achieved either through adjustable chairs or - if chairs are a hot commodity at your office - a combination of step stools and pillows.

Read on for more tips.

The Benefits of Homeschooling Your Kids

LearnVest — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 03:05:49 PST

We're thrilled to present this smart LearnVest story here on Savvy!

In the past, LearnVest spoke to parents who chose not to use diapers with their children and dove into the stay-at-home parent debate. This time, one mother shares why she has decided to homeschool her children.

In 2002, we had our third child, 10 years after our second was born. Our eldest two boys were in a private school, but we began to consider the best way to educate our newest addition. Although we loved the school our boys attended, each year cost us about $10,000. We questioned how feasible it would be to put additional kids through there, too.

We had three more children in the following years for a total of six, and with each new baby came further confirmation that putting our four youngest through private school was out of the question financially. Our two eldest were approaching college age, which put even more pressure on us.

The decision was simple. We elected to educate our four youngest at home.

Why Public School Wasn’t an Option

We always knew that we wouldn’t send our children to public school. Parents who opt out of public school do so for many reasons: safety, quality of education, religious conviction, and many others. My husband and I both went to public school, but that was a long time ago, and I don’t know what schools are like today. For us, religion was the main reason. We believe that God gave parents the responsibility to raise, train, and educate their own children. Many parts of the Bible talk about training your children - to us, that includes education.

For more, read after the jump.

9 Steps to Get Your Finances Back on Track

Business Insider — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 00:15:01 PST

We're thrilled to present this smart Business Insider story here on Savvy!

As the youngest daughter of two borderline baby boomers, like many other Generation Yers, I grew up watching my parents spend cash faster than they made it and had no concept of financial planning whatsoever.

When I scored my first full-time job after college, I'll never forget the rush I felt seeing all those numbers fill up my bank account. I bought new furniture for my apartment, stocked my closet with fancy new work clothes, and spent paydays filling my shopping cart on Amazon.com.

Ten weeks later, my entire department was laid off.

At that point, I had no savings, my credit score was bad, and I had absolutely no backup plan. I scraped by for two months with a few freelance jobs until I took a $10,000 pay cut just to get by.

Things finally turned around, and a couple years later, I found myself in the same place as many of my friends in their mid-twenties. We're paying rent comfortably for the first time and are able to start building our nest eggs. The problem is many of us have no idea how to start doing it.

Rather than turn into some sort of cautionary tale for future generations, I decided after my last birthday that I was going to take a good hard look at my finances.

I asked for tips from a trio of financial whizzes who broke down a few actions us 20-somethings can take today to start to getting our money on the right track. Here's how I did it and you can too.

Know your numbers

I have something akin to post-traumatic stress disorder from my days when I was in constant fear of overdrafting my account or bouncing my rent check.

But Chris Hobart, president and CEO of Hobart Financial Group, said knowing how much debt you have is the first step to chipping away at it.

I laid out how much I owe in student loans and on my two credit cards, set up auto-payments for each, and worked out a plan to start paying off more than my minimum payments each month to get rid of the debt faster and cut back on interest.

Read on for more ways to get your finances back on track.

You've Heard of Slow Food, What About Slow Parenting?

LilSugar — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 03:15:18 PDT

The wise Ferris Bueller once said, "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." Families embracing the concept of slow parenting movement would certainly agree. The "slow family" style isn't a totally new concept - it has popped up as an alternative to the popular and often satirized helicopter mom archetype for the past several years. Families who embrace slow parenting feel that in general, kids these days are overscheduled, overstressed, overextended: basically overparented. Believers in the "slow" philosophy advocate fewer after-school activities, more time with the family, less TV, and more time playing outside.

The movement might have gotten off to a - slow - start, but it seems to be picking up some momentum lately, probably due to some combination of Tiger Mom backlash, a down economy, and a growing trend focused on simplicity and getting back to basics.

What do you think about the slow parenting philosophy?

Ashley Olsen Steps Out in NYC as She and Mary-Kate Talk Being a "Unit"

Lindsay Miller — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 12:50:23 PDT

Ashley Olsen was out and about in NYC yesterday in TOMS + The Row cashmere kicks and a scarf. The designer strolled in Soho during the sunny East Coast afternoon. Mary-Kate and Ashley were interviewed in The Telegraph this week, and the sisters had a lot to say about how they work together on their clothing collections, as well as how they grew from child stars to a fashion force to be reckoned with. Here are some highlights:

Ashley on why they design: "I did feel there was a need for luxurious basics, to wear with couture. When you're small like I am, you need things to break it up, or not look like you're in the full look. So it started with that concept, and just kind of grew from there. It's pieces that we feel are missing, or that we want. We make the best quality, things that we would shop for, that we appreciate and find beautiful."
Mary-Kate on their little sister, actress Elizabeth: "We're so proud of her! She's working really hard."
Ashley on still having Full House fans: "Four- and five-year-old kids come up to us and they're like, 'I don't understand, because you're so big now, and I watch you on Full House and you're a baby!'"
Mary-Kate on where she sees herself in 10 years: "My answers are always sarcastic to this. [Laughs.] I always say taller."
Mary-Kate on her closeness with Ashley: ". . . We are a unit! We still probably spend more time together than we're apart. The only time we really don't see each other is when we're sleeping, I guess."

Van Gogh's Father and Son Portraits Celebrate a Family Reunion

Elka Karl — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 10:28:39 PDT

On my trip to Holland this Spring, I mostly stayed in Amsterdam, so I missed the Museum Boymans-van Beuningen in Rotterdam. But if I were going back, I'd definitely make a stop at the museum for its exhibition Van Gogh & Roulin. While in Arles, France, Van Gogh painted or sketched 25 works portraying the Roulin family. Now, at the exhibition, a portrait of the father, Joseph Roulin, will be temporarily reunited with a portrait of his son, Armand Roulin. Holland's Facebook page cheekily asks, "What would a typical conversation be between this father and son?" Check out some of my favorite responses from the Holland Facebook fans below.

Sandy suggested, "Mom says it's OK to stop hiding behind your 'beard.'"
Athena wrote, "Good to see you son. Its been a long time. . . . You know these people I have been staying with refuse to shave me."
Jonathan captioned it, "Dad, the parted beard went out last season."
Mary wrote, "Armand: 'No way am I growing a beard like yours when I get older!' Joseph: 'Really Armand? I would think you would be bothered more by this wallpaper.'"

The concept of grouping a "family" of paintings together is also seen widely in the decorating world. Whether grouped by a familiar theme or as a literal family, it's a great way to organize art. More locally, Victoria from SFGirlbyBay noted that she loves her "collection of vintage portraits - they are like a family to me, and I love their quirkiness!

Do you decorate with portraits? Have you ever thought of them as a "family" or grouped them as such?

Take a Peek at Jason Wu's New Tweed-Effect Polish

Miriam Lacey — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 10:34:19 PDT

Jason Wu and CND have come out with a color collection full of subtle delights, including a shade in his signature gray, Miss Wu, and a delectable red the hue of Bing cherries called Veronica (above). But the most exciting shade in the collection isn't a color at all; it's a new special effect polish. The effect, called Anna (also pictured), is supposed to mimic the appearance of tweed wool. It's a cool idea, but does the reality match the ambition of the concept? I got to try it out before the collection's May 1 debut, so to see the tweed effect in action, just keep reading.

Curtis Stone on His New LA Eatery and Responding to the Haters

Susannah Chen — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 09:15:29 PDT

If you watch any amount of food television, there's a good chance you've heard of Curtis Stone. From Take Home Chef to The Biggest Loser, there's nowhere this attractive Aussie hasn't been. Currently, he's busy being host of Top Chef Masters and a judge on America's Next Great Restaurant. We took time to get to know the chef, who's busy as the new face of Great Grains.

Over the phone, Stone - who revealed he's opening a new restaurant in Los Angeles, and talked about the highs and lows of filming - was surprisingly grounded and impressively well-spoken. He also addressed naysayers' criticisms that he spends too much time on TV and not enough in the kitchen. Curious to see what he's got to say? Read more.