Best of 2009: New Person

You guys can probably already guess this one; I talk about her enough that you guys probably think we’re “special friends”.  My favourite new person this year is Birdie.

I met her through Twitter (after stalking her site and twitterfeed for about a month) during the setup period of my blog.  I’d been bitching and moaning about how very little I know about CSS, and she swooped in with DMs and eventually email to help me get on my feet.  Sweet, right?

We got to talking one day after exchanging personal email/Gchat info, and I explained my wholestyle idea to her.  Through a series of conversations spanning days, she helped me put my nebulous feelings into words, effectively translating all my crazies into a coherent and real philosophy (which you can read here).  I couldn’t ask for a better partner in crime!

After getting past all the initial “are you a crazy person from the internet” weirdness, both of us opened up and we started talking every day about just about anything.  Turns out we get along awesome (although that’s not to say we haven’t butted heads (cos there’ve been some doozy days)).  We bounce creative ideas off each other, vent when shit’s fucked up, confide our fears, get each other out of “the hole”, crack each other up, drool over fashion we can’t afford, and generally wish we didn’t live on completely opposite sides of the continent.

So yeah.

Birdie,

Thank you for doing everything you do; I couldn’t have done any of this without your help, encouragement, and persistant ass-kicking.  Thank you for sharing your fears with me and listening to mine.  Thank you for making me giggle at completely immature things like poop and farts.  Thank you for enduring my obsession with Robert Downey, Jr.  Thank you for reminding me that I’m amazing when I feel the least worth the dirt I’m made of.  Thank you for lending me writing space when I had none.  Thank you for sending me links to Bloggess articles and LOLcats all day.  Thank you for letting me comfort you as best I can when you’re sad.  Thank you for valuing my opinion.  Thank you for putting trust in me.

Like everything in our lives, we’ve had ups and downs in our short time knowing each other, but I think every minute has been supremely worth it.

Thank you for being my Super Twin (or Borg Sister, whichever it is today).

xxxooo,

Edited: December 28th, 2009

Wholestyle on the Web: Week of 12/18/2009

Only six more shopping days ’til Christmas! Thankfully, the wholestyle roundups are blissfully free of stress-inducing holiday posts about parties (attending and hosting) and gifts (giving and receiving). Dive into this batch of articles and take some time for you!

And as an administrative note, Jaka will be out of town until January 5th, so there won’t be any roundups until the second full week of the new year. I know, I know, you’re all heartbroken. But there’ll be great pictures of Baja when she gets back.

Arts & Entertainment

• Agent Lover: Late Night Feelings – An Interview with Nathan Appel Talking with a contributor to a new erotic photography site, FLNGS
• BoingBoing (Lisa Katayama): Why it’s Time to Lighten up About “Weird” Japan Why do so many love to gawk at this mysterious, foreign “other” that is Japanese culture?
• The Daily Beast (Taffy Brodesser-Akner) Who’s Killing the Soaps? With the cancellation of As the World Turns, a former soap-opera magazine editor dishes on daytime’s dwindling world
• Manolo for the Big Girl: Big Girls in Art – Les Toil’s Pinup Art Loving, joyous, and vivid pin-up images of large women, and only large women
• M.I.S.S.: Fashion Meets Music – Francoise Hardy One of France’s Yé-yé girls produces both signature music and style
• Poetic & Chic: Amish Abstractions at the de Young An exhibition of Amish bedding the abstract designs that pre-date Abstract Expressionism and Op-Art

DIY

• Blogher (Karen Walrond): How to Use Photoshop to Enhance Your Best Images Not to give people alien-looking waist/thighs
• DIY Life: Make a Sweater Wreath Got a boatload of old winter clothes you need to get rid of? Make festive decorations!
• M.I.S.S.: She’s Crafty – DIY Multi-Chain and Ribbon Necklace Use your old chains to create a bold statement piece on the cheap

Education

• Blogher (sassymonkey): Publishing Wars – Hardcovers versus E-books The debate between a book in the hand and a book on the drive continues
• BoingBoing (Ned Sublette): Principles of Postmamboism A portable theory that places music at the center of understanding and uses music to interrogate other fields of study
• The Daily Beast (Douglas Rushkoff): The Decade Google Made You Stupid Technology has changed your brain over the past ten years, mostly for the worse
• Discover: With a Blood Sample & 20 Minutes, Nanosensors Could Detect Cancer The next leap in eradicating cancer is happening now
• Neatorama (Stacy): 43 Facts about 44 Presidents Fun factoids for every US leader (remember: Grover Cleveland counts for two)
• New York University, Office of Public Affairs: NYU Researchers Develop Non-invasive Technique to Rewrite Fear Memories Reactivating fear memories in humans allows them to be updated with non-fearful information

Fashion

• Bonne Vie: The Rebirth of – The Hat Love ‘em or hate ‘em, hats are back!
• Cupcakes and Mace: 5 Style Trends of the Decade – The Great and the Ghastly A personal look at styles to love and love to hate
• The Everyday Minimalist: How the French Keep it Simple and Obtain that Fabulous “je ne sais quoi” We could learn a thing or two from the French
• Retro Chick: An Evening of Vintage Hair Styling Styling demonstrations by Flamingo Amy in Norwich hair salon Flint followed by some live music in Lady Luck’s Boutique
• The Skinny: 4 Ways to Achieve Mixmaster Status Mixing prints may be risky, but it’s one of the easiest ways to rework your favorite garments and get more mileage out of your wardrobe

Food

• Closet Cooking: Candied Bacon That’s right.  Candied bacon.
• The Daily Beast (Rachel Syme): How Top Chefs Stay Thin Yep – eat healthy, exercise, and indulge occasionally.  Sound advice, I think.
• DIY Life: How to Hold a Wine Glass By the stem?  Cupped in your hand?  What’s correct?!
• EcoSalon: Got Mortar? Along with the Pestle it Makes the Kitchen Grind Greener An old-fashioned tool makes cooking greener and more satisfying
• EcoSalon: Test Tube Steak – It’s What’s for Dinner If test tube meat was made tasty, affordable, and cruelty free, would you willingly buy it?
• Gwen Bell: 5 Teas to Taste Even if you’re not a tea drinker, these picks sound perfect for chilly winter days
• Serious Eats (Chichi Wang): The Nasty Bits – Pork Neck Posole New Mexico can churn out some interesting and spicy food (and culture)
• Zested: Christmas Croquembouche Croquembouche, a spun sugar tower of cream puffs, is French for “crunch in the mouth.”

Positive Life

• In the Library with the Lead Pipe: How do You Say No? The abil­ity to say no to tak­ing on a new project is directly related to men­tal well­ness and a healthy work/life bal­ance
• Positively Present: The Best Ways to Embrace Solitude When we have the opportunity to spend time by ourselves, we should embrace it and realize that solitude is a gift
• Sexgenderbody (Millie Jackson): Something for Every Body – Well into the New Year Positively reframing our goals make them easier and healthier to achieve
• Through the Illusion: Stop Apologizing and Start Rocking Your Self-Esteem! Combating that evil voice in your head that tells you you’re bad

Sexuality

• Blowfish Blog: Why Did Gayness Evolve? A discussion of the evoluntionary benefits of homosexuality
• Psychology Today (Nigel Barber): Ladies in Heat?  Scholars argue that women have estrus, or sexual heat
• Sexis (KalCobalt): Your Kiss, Your Fist What is it about fisting that captures the minds of its devotees?
• Tranifesto: Sexualized or Sexy – The Fine Line The fetishization of transpeople tends to erase “sexy” from the board
• Violet Blue: A Visit to the Musee d’Erotisme in Paris (NSFW) A visual tour of erotic artwork

Travel

• Almost Fearless: What Redesigning Your Life and Traveling the World Really Means The hard part?  Giving yourself permission to be wildly, irresponsibly happy
• Blogher (Pam): Sleeping Well While Traveling Tips and tricks for getting the rest you need while you’re on the road
• Just a Titch: San Fransciso Re-Cap Amy’s weekend in that city full of hills (and tasty coffee, apparently!)

Work, Money & Organization

• Penelope Trunk’s Brazen Careerist: Underrated Career Skill – Asking Questions How to ask the best questions in order to get the best answers
• Wisebread: Hold that Resume! 5 Red Flags in Online Job Listings What to watch out for when looking for work online

Edited: December 18th, 2009

Canadian Fashion 2010 Paper Dolls

Final Fashion’s mastermind, illustrator Danielle Meder, is at it again.  From designing Doc Martens to creating wicked Keds for charity to inventing Snow Queen apparel, it seems like this wily gal always has something amazing in the works!

This particular project is a comprehensive look at the Spring/Summer 2010 offerings from LG Fashion Week in Toronto.  Starting in October, Danielle churned out 17 unique paper dolls for 15 collections, including designers like VAWK, Brazen Hussy, and Biddell.  Take a look at some of the best (in my humble opinion):

What I love about Danielle’s drawing style is that it’s so smooth and fun.  Every person she draws not only looks like a real human being, but they seem like they’re having a good time with their clothes.  You can see how much she loves her work in every illustration.

And by the way, since it’s the holidays, you might want to pick up the entire paper doll book, available as a PDF ($17.95) through Final Fashion or as a softcover book ($42.95) through Blurb.  I’m definitely putting it on my wish list!

Edited: December 16th, 2009

Wholestyle on the Web: Week of 12/11/2009

Arts & Entertainment

• Chinashop: The Bunny Museum – A Strange Brew of Rabbit Stew Like a foam pit you used to see in gymnastics or P.E., except it is FILLED WITH THOUSANDS OF BUNNIES
• The Daily Beast: The New Italian Renaissance (Rachel Wolff) A controversial show celebrate 40 years of sex, death, and Arte Povera
  
• Gala Darling: John Lennon A tribute to the famous Beatle on the anniversary of his assassination
• The Sassy Minx: Inspiro – Gemma Correll Interviewing the felt-tip pen illustrator about her love of pugs (and her drawings)
• We Love DC: We Love Arts – Dana Ellyn, Divinely Irreverent An overview of the artist’s insightful paintings

Body Talk

• Body Impolitic: Body Image Language – The Interpreter’s Task A mother’s struggle to impress body-positive language on her daughters
• The Fat Girl’s Guide to Living: The Fat Girl’s Guide to Ice Skating Being queen-of-the-ice doesn’t require a svelt body…but you might get one

DIY

• The Art of Manliness: How to Rotate Your Car Tires Never  run on cupped wheels again
• Instructables: DIY Vinyl Wall Art Get huge Tim Burton swirls on your ceiling for about $50

Education

• Discover: Does Testosterone Cause Greedy Behaviour or Do We Just Think it Does? (Self-explanatory title, I think)
• Don’t Feed the Animals: Playing with Probability What are the odds?
• Life: Ethiopia’s Vanishing Tribes A photo essay illustrating the beauty of disappearing African culture
• Neatorama: Getting to Know Nostradamus (Jill Harness) The myths, hoaxes, and truths about the (in)famous prophet
• New Scientist: Homosexual Selection – The Power of Same-Sex Liasons Is homosexual behaviour evolutionarily beneficial?
• Psychology Today: Body Language Myths The prevailing myths about nonverbal communication
• Psychology Today: Unlocking the Mystery of the Artistic Mind Science is using art to learn about the mind, but great artists turn out to be the world’s first neuroscientists

Fashion

• Already Pretty: Button-Downs – Why, How, Where The all-purpose, yet hated, button-down explained and vindicated
• Dramatis Personae: High Fashion & High Art – Two Worlds Apart? Examining the difference between a knockoff and the genuine article in terms of art and licensing
• Frock ‘n’ Roll: Storage Solutions – Accessories Where to put all those dangly, sparkly, shiny things we love
• Nubby Twiglet: Shoe Care Secrets How to take care of your beloved footwear
• Poetic & Chic: Beautiful Biba An in-depth retrospective on a famous 60s brand that is often referenced today
• Style on a String:  Leggings vs. Tights These things are not pants

Feminism

• Guardian: Feminist Books for Five-Year-Olds Reading lists of subversive gender-role books for young kids

Food

• CBS4 Denver: First Gourmet Marijuana Restaurant Opens in Denver A medical marijuana dispensary idecided to get creative and make the business into a full-service restaurant
• The Cooking Photographer: Rolled Gingerbread Cookies, a Very Old Recipe A holiday favourite, old-school style
• The Daily Beast: Cookin’ with Coolio (Rachel Syme) The legendary rapper produces his own fusion cuisine in a bestselling cookbook
• Irreference: DIY Peppermint Bark for the Holidays The great equalizer: Candy
• The Kitchn: Fancy Flavors – How to Infuse Olive Oil Put any delicious flavour into your cooking by adding a few simple ingredients to your oil
• M.I.S.S.: Healthy Bites – Freshman 15? Forget about It! Avoiding those extra college pounds by minding your eating
• Serious Eats: The Nasty Bits – Rabbit and Garlic Soup Many eaters are discouraged by the idea of cooking that which you can buy at a pet store
• Wisebread: 6 Questions to Ask Before You Buy Ground Beef Think about where that hamburger comes from

Health & Beauty

• Destructo Deviations: Toxic Beauty – The Toxic 12 List There are hidden things lurking on your bathroom counter that could harm you

Positive Life

• Already Pretty: Loving Your Inner Self How do you move away from feeling inferior and when is it okay to change?
• Positively Present: When You Want to Cry, Laugh Instead If you want to wake up laughing, to see the good in even the worst situations, you have to work at it
• Productive Flourishing: Don’t Look a Gift Horse in the Mouth Don’t “yeah, but” your way out of greatness
• Rabbit Write: Rabbit’s Guide to Therapy An experiential and researched guide to going, being there, and leaving
• Simple Marriage: Expectations…The Path to an Unhappy Marriage Grow your happiness by lowering your expectations and growing your gratefulness

Sexuality

• Bitchbuzz: Violet Blue and “The Future of Sex” It’s digital. It’s mechanical, pumped with AI and completely uninhibited.
• Genderfork: Detransition, Retransition What are the reasons for reversing or stopping gender transition?
• Sexis: Knife Play (KalCobalt) Bringing blades into the bedroom
• Sexgenderbody: GFE vs PFE – Definitions of a Sexual Encounter Know your escort acronyms in order to get the experience you’re looking for

Social Issues

• Racialicious: The Melting Pot 2009 – Job Applicants Choose Assimilation as Means of Economic Survival Black Americans are increasingly forced to delete signs of their race to find employment
• What Tami Said: When Allies Fail, Part 2 The responsibilities of marginalized people who want to work with allies

Travel

• The Coveted: Heart and Seoul The long-awaited post on Jennine’s trip to Korea (only slightly marred by getting sick)
• Gawker: How not to get Arrested While You’re Abroad – A Foxy Knoxy-Inspired Guide How not to be that guy gal when you’re in a foreign country

Work, Money & Organization

• Compound Thinking: Things I’ve Learned about Time Management Don’t do it, avoid thrashing, and how saying “no” lets you say “yes”
• Stratejoy: A Restless Generation Generation Y’s desire to work to be happy instead of work to live is a result of its upbringing
• White Hot Truth: Kissing Ass, Quantum Leaps, and the Power of Being Unqualified Getting the job when you have zero training in the field
• Wisebread: The Joy of Buying a New Car – 7 Car Buying Tips In the vast confusing world of automotive retail, what should you know before you buy?
• Wisebread: The Best Online Swap Sites Buying new is so pre-recession and there’s no excuse not to get out there and start trading.

Edited: December 11th, 2009

Best of 2009: Blog

This is my first year in the blogsphere, and I mean that quite literally.  Before March, I hadn’t read anything that wasn’t on Livejournal and my first post in my own domain came in July.  So for me to choose only one blog that’s changed my world this year is not only impossible, but dishonest.

The blogs that started me out in the ’sphere aren’t necessarily the ones that inspire me most now nor are the ones that I’ve just come across automatically dismissed.  I have 219 subscriptions in my Reader now (and yes, I clear it every weekday).  I’d love to list everyone here, but my head might explode and you might faint.  We can’t have any of that.

These are my top five, in no particular order.

• The Bloggess:  Think Hunter S. Thompson with boobs.  And a wig.  No matter how much I’ve got to do in the day, if Jenny’s got a new post up, I make the time to read it.  Her evil hilarious rants about sex dungeons, stuffed boar heads, and Xanax never fail to put a sadistic grin on my face.  And make me shoot Coke out of my nose.
• No Titles:  Mary’s a big fan of creative non-fiction and it shows; you can tell how much love and care she puts into her writing.  Her articles walk that fine line between personal blog and themed content, somewhere between the emotional chaos of daily life and the carefully structured facade of Salon.
• Agent Lover:  Sass, style, sexiness: Marie’s got them all in spades.  Except they’re red spades and in the form of a little cake on top of her head.  That and her obsession with love of John Stamos makes me squee whenever she posts.
• Dancing Down the Moon:  I was beyond jazzed to find that Dianne Sylvan has a blog.  Her personal approach to spirituality closely mirrors my own, providing me inspiration in lots of areas of my life.  She also writes about vegan food, ecstatic dance, and magical music; she even writes sexy vampire stories!
• Bonne Vie:  This list wouldn’t be complete without mentioning this site.  This was one of the first blogs I started reading and it inspired me to get started on my own.  Birdie’s posts cover the gamut and include research with frank opinion and gushing, which makes for a well-rounded and insightful read.

Thank you to every one of these special, wonderful, beautiful women for sharing your thoughts and wisdom (and hilarity) with the world.  You’ve truly made my internet a better place and motivated me to keep it up when I feel like tossing in the towel.

Edited: December 8th, 2009

Wholestyle on the Web: Week of 12/04/2009

As December starts, we begin to fill up on holiday treats – this week we’ve got some amazing treats for your brain (and a giant list of treats to fill your tummy!).

Arts and Entertainment this week has Danielle Meder’s Toronto-fashion paper doll book and a review of Influence – because the Olsen Twins have been frickin’ adorable since they were tiny tv tots. There’s also some fascinating thoughts on Gay Superheroes; an article that muses on the connection with superheroes, and how that opens doors for everyone – no more us vs. them.

Our Body Talk section asks you to look in the mirror to see who’s really there – it’s you, and you’ve got beauty in all the right places!

The Education section offer’s Simon Doonan’s view on Pauline Bonaparte and why she was such a babe. There’s also some insight on loneliness – a common holiday affliction. Learn you somethin’!

In Fashion, Ms Agent Loverrrrrr breaks down the Rodarte for Target line and Michelle at Wicked Whimsy talks about the practical quality of what you buy.

Since it’s the holidays, there’s a bajillion (or like 9) Food links. We love food – can you blame us?!

Our Health and Beauty section weighs in on Pilates, Yoga and Vitamin E. And for the ladies with light eyebrows, Zoetica has a fantastic tutorial for filling them in. No more pencil for those brows – it’s all about the powder.

To beef up your Positivity, we fully believe in the “get from life what you put in” philosophy, and there’s a great article on that. And Generation Meh wants you to know that “You can’t erase, but you CAN revise.” That seems to be some of the best inspiration we’ve heard all day!

Our Sexuality articles offer some insights on how porn is overly demonized. Also, are there gray areas of sexual consent? I bet your answer is no… you should read on, to find out!

Social Issues this week explores the fat revolution (the Food Network is trying to slim people down!?). Someone should email Christoper Kimball from Cooks Illustrated and tell him I need less butter in EVERYTHING in the Test Kitchen cookbook! >_<

The Travel section has a bunch of beautiful places to visit. Star went to New York, Zevs has creepy places to stay, and the Amazon Basin awaits. Go forth, young one! Be amazed!

In Work and Career we have a few talented minds weighing in on working for yourself, keeping up with your clients, and your career versus your need to bear offspring.

Arts & Entertainment

• Clutch: Gay Superheroes Defy Homophobia & the Down Low Phenomenon?
• Final Fashion: Paper Doll Book (& Photoshop Contest!)
• Instant Vintage: It’s a Long One
• M.I.S.S.: Reminisce with M.I.S.S. – Queen Latifah
• Stickers and Donuts: Interview with Minty Lewis – Part 1 and Part 2
• Worn Fashion Journal: Book Review – Influence

Body Talk

• Already Pretty: Mirror, Mirror
• Positively Present: Looking For Beauty in all the Right Places

Education

• The Daily Beast (Simon Doonan): Pauline Bonaparte – Dead Cool
• Livescince: Lonliness Spreads Like a Virus
• Orion Magazine: Ecological Inheritance

Fashion

• Agent Lover: Rodarte X Target
• Alixrose: Step out of Your Routine & Be in Living Color – Eyelids Style!
• Already Pretty: Reader Request – Accessory Balance
• Bonne Vie: The Case for a Knockoff
• Hijabtrendz: Hijabtrendz Exclusive – Sunglasses Modeled after the “Burqa”
• Racialicious: Shopping with Squaws – Irregular Choices Gives Itself a Bad Name
• Wicked Whimsy: Practical Quality

Food

• The Asian Pear: Baking as a Science
• BoingBoing (Lisa Katayama): Taste Test – Raw Eggs
• Cakespy: Instant Pleasure – Pumpkin Cake in a Mug from Coffee Mug Cake Cookbook
• Closet Cooking: Butter Pie Crust (Pate Brisee)
• Fabulously Broke in the City: Homemade Pita Bread and Hummus
• Gourmet Traveller: Whipped Brandy Butter
• The Kitchn: Eating Local – Would You Ever Hunt for Wild Game?
• Lemondrop: Climb Aboard My Gravy Yacht
• Serious Eats (Chichi Wang): The Nasty Bits – Frankenstein’s Frog, Stir-fried

Health & Beauty

• Astrocytoma Brain Cancer: Vitamin E
• Biorequiem: Blush Response 003 – The Prophesied Eyebrow Tutorial
• Lisa Johnson Fitness: Pilates vs Yoga

Positive Life

• Generation Meh: You Can’t Erase, But You Can Still Revise
• The Happiness Project: Eight Tips to Know if You’re Being Boring
• Psychology Today: Go Ahead, Say You’re Sorry
• Raptitude: The Things We Said Today
• Wisebread: A Superior Life – What You Put in is What You get Out

Sexuality

• Blogher (avflox): Like Water for Chocolate and Semen for Depression
• CNET News: New Research Suggests That Porn Is Overly Demonized
• Daily Dose of Queer: Labels on the Gender Spectrum
• Rabbit Write: Gray Areas of Sexual Consent

Social Issues

• The Daily Beast (Nina Simonds): Jamie Oliver’s Fat Revolution
• Foreign Policy: The Militarization of Sex
• FWD/Forward: Budget Cuts Work in Funny Ways

Travel

• Almost Fearless: 10 Tips for Traveling by Dugout Canoe in the Amazon Basin
• Timeidol: 8 Most Beautiful Bridges in the World
• Zevs: The World’s Creepiest Places to Stay a Night
• This Is Star: New York

Work, Money & Organization

• Blogher (paulag01): Staying Grounded in the Face of Big Clients or Big Money
• Give Me Back My Five Bucks: Who Spends More – Men or Women?
• Nubby Twiglet: Freelancing 101 for Graphic Designers
• Well-heeled, with a Mission: Maternity Leave & Career

Edited: December 5th, 2009

Wholestyle on the Web: Week of 11/20/2009

Arts & Entertainment

• ChinaShop (Dustin Downing): Reverend Butter
• Clutch: Matrix & Terminator Creator Sophia Stewart Won Landmark Trial
• Hijabtrendz: Hijabtrendz Exclusive – iCover
• Nothing Elegant: Winter Muse – Geraldine Chaplin

Body Talk

• Already Pretty: The Story of Your Body
• sexgenderbody (Millie Jackson): Something for Every Body: Happy Thanks-giving
• We Are The Real Deal: The “Exposed” Trail of Fame

DIY

• Already Pretty: Video Tutorial – The Zipper Flower
• Love, Maegan: Marabou Feather Vest DIY

Fashion

• Awakened Aethestic: Eco-Friendly Stocking Stuffers Part II
• The Daily Beast: The 10 Most Valuable Models
• The Demoiselles: Wing Tips – Finding a Tailor
• Denim Debutante: The Do Nots of Taking Care of Denim
• Dramatis Personae (by Michelle): The Hat’s out of the Bag!
• Gala Darling: Lovely Lavender Ladies

Feminism

• BlogHer (Suzanne Reisman): Do Working Moms Lose Child Custody in Divorces?
• BUST (Carmen Rodi): Smells Like Teen Spirit
• O Filthy Grandeur: Presentations of Violence and Gender in the Twilight novels

Food

• BoingBoing (Lisa Katayama): Taste Test – Natto, Gooey Fermented Soy Beans
• The Casual Art of Procrastination: Bitter and Dark – Chocolate
• Eco Salon (Anna Brones): The Complete Protein Dessert – Delicious Quinoa Spice Cake
• The Kitchn: Cookie Time – 9 Cookies We’d Like to Bake Soon
• Serious Eats (Chichi Wang): Seriously Asian – Thai Curries, Part Three
• Serious Eats (Erin Zimmer): Taste Test – Store-Bought Stuffing

Health & Beauty

• Clutch: Bleach, Nip, Tuck – The White Beauty Myth Part I and Part II
• The Daily Beast (Liesl Schillinger): The Great Mammogram Debate
• Frock ‘n’ Roll: Um, Can I Sniff You?!
• Sexis (Elizabeth): (Willful) Ignorance is Bliss

Positive Life

• Generation Meh: In Praise of Stopping the Clock
• Positively Present: Are the People in Your Life Positive?
• Raptitude: Same Same But Different
• Stratejoy: The Gutsy Girls’ Guide to Success

Science

• Discover: This Could be Last Call for Alcoholic Energy Drinks, Says FDA
• Eco Salon (Vanessa Barrington): A Global Analysis – Is Biotechnology Really the Only Way to Solve Hunger?
• Wired: Algae and Light Help Injured Mice Walk Again

Sexuality

• Cuntlove: What is Healthy Sex?
• FWD/Forward: Disabled Sexuality and Disempowerment Through Fetishization
• Reuters: Boehringer Drug Shown to Kindle Female Sex Drive
• Sexis (Kal Cobalt):  The Kink Corner with Kal Cobalt – Predicament Bondage

Social Issues

• Pandagon: Looking at Releasing Dirty Pictures as a Form of Sexual Assault
• What Tami Said:  When Allies Fail – Part One

Travel

• Almost Fearless: Traveling Pregnant – Hiking and Tubing the Jaguar Reserve
• The Art of Nonconformity: Midnight Train to Tbilisi, Georgia
• The Bloggess: Japan, Part 2(ish) – Tommy Lee Jones Needs to Mind his own Business
• Fabulously Broke in the City: Ne jamais ecraser le buste vers l’assiette
• Stickers and Donuts: What I Love About: Amsterdam

Work, Money & Organization

• The Everyday Minimalist: The Consumerist Minimalist
• Gwen Bell: The Hard Truth about Entrepreneurship
• Retro Housewife Goes Green: Lowering Your Bills by Going Green
• Wise Bread: What it Really Costs to Own a Home

Edited: November 20th, 2009

Wholestyle on the Web: Week of 11/13/09

Ah, another week of wholestyle fabulosity come and gone.  Friday is really one of the best parts of our week just because we get to share these articles with you.  The feedback has been amazing andwe read some incredible stuff every day!  Roll around in these, get inspired, and have a great weekend!

Arts & Entertainment

• BlogHer (Nordette): Sapphire’s Push: Merciless Honesty
• BoingBoing (Cory Doctrow): Pratchett’s “Unseen Academicals” – A Gift to Discworld Lovers and an Argument for the Importance of Sport
• The Daily Beast (Rachel Kramer Bussel): American Striptease

Body Talk

• Already Pretty: Just Deserts
• Athena Magazine: Real Beauty
• The Coveted: Everyone is Beautiful

Fashion

• Awakened Aesthetic: Eco-Friendly Stocking Stuffers Part 1
• Broke and Beautiful: Be My Paper Doll with M641
• Chinashop (Gala Darling): Hopeless Hotel
• Dramatis Personae (by Birdie): A Girls’ Guide to Faux Eyelashes
• Denim Debutante: How to Easily Find the Right Denim Sizing for You
• Ginger Won’t Snap: Converse Sneak Pek + Flare 30th Anniversary
• Wicked Whimsy: Handbag Heaven – A Review

Food

• BlogHer (Alanna Kellogg): Three Vegetables to Cozy up to When the Weather Turns Cold
• Fabulously Broke in the City: Recipe – Vanilla Almond Pound Cake
• The Kitchn: Chez Pim’s Mix-on-the-Counter Flaky Pastry Dough
• Serious Eats (Maggie Hoffman): Seasonal Fresh-Hop Beers
• Well-Heeled, with a Mission: How to Host a Dinner Party for Less

Health & Beauty

• Clutch: Therapy in Black and White
• The Demoiselles: Inside Out – In this Skin
• Destructo Deviations:  Miss Destructo’s Beauty Secrets
• We’re the Real Deal: The Breastfeeding Diet – Myths, Facts, and Mixed Emotions
• Wisebread: The Pros and Cons of Retail Clinics

Interviews

• Mademoiselle Robot: Mademoiselle Robot Still Loves You – Catching up with Steve Damstra
• The Sassy Minx: Are You Dating a Werewolf? (Francesca Lia Block)

Positive Life

• Hannah, Just Breathe…: The Art of Saying “No”
• Positively Present: It’s Okay to be Happy
• Psychology Today (Matthew Hudson): Magical Thinking
• Rabbit Write: Exploring What Intimacy Means
• The Sassy Minx: Dear Me…

Science

• Asylum (Dan Solomon): Paranoia Alert – Existence of Semen Allergies Verified by Doctor
• Discover: NASA’s Plan to Irradiate Monkeys Raises Cruelty Concerns
• Don’t Feed the Animals: Evolution and Our Thought Process

Sexuality

• Apricot Tea: Coitus – My Personal, Honest Married-Sex Story
• Asylum (Brian Fairbanks): The Best Playboy Covers of the 1970s
• Fast Company: A New Vibrator by Yves Behar Arouses our Interest
• Sexis (Mother May I): The Talk
• Sexgenderbody (arvan): Ins Kromminga: Gender Binary is Absurd

Social Issues

• FWD/Forward: In Which Homework is Assigned
• Psychology Today (Satoshi Kanazawa): Why Do Some Battered Women Stay?
• What Tami Said: Stuff Black Folks Don’t Do – Creating our own Oppression

Travel

• The Art of Manliness: Mountaineering 101
• Dream Sequins: Notes from Thailand (Part Four) – Phuket
• Nothing Elegant: An Okie Expedition – Bartlesville
• Sexis (The Bloggess): The Bloggess Does Japan – Rearranging the Furniture in a Sex Dungeon in Tokyo
• Wisebread: 8 Free (and 4 Cheap) Things to do in Auckland with a Toddler

Work, Money, & Organization

• Already Pretty: Grouping – An Easier Route to a Happier Closet
• BlogHer (Morra Aarons Mele): Cobbling Together Maternity Leave – What’s the Best Strategy?
• The Happiness Project: Eleven Myths of Decluttering
• Ittybiz: Deceptive Marketing Techniques – Which Ones Are You Using?

Edited: November 13th, 2009

Wholestyle on the Web: Week of 11/06/09

This week the round up is full of fun surprises – some excellent body-talk, fashion, feminism, food and more! We had so many entries this week (can you say 25 by Tuesday alone?) that it was hard to pare them down to bring you the BEST of wholestyle on the Web!

AND just in case you missed it, the Hive Mind at Bonne Vie (that is – Jaka and the Bird!) had some excellent features on Media Literacy this week – so check them out! The idea is extremely important when you’re reading these (and any!) articles.

So without further ado, on to the fun!

Arts & Entertainment

• BlogHer (Maria Niles): Will You Watch “What I Hate About Me”?
• ChinaShop (Shop Keeper): The Kids are Sick – The Studio’s Sicker

Body Talk

• Athena Magazine: Big Fat Revolution(s)
• BlogHer (Susan Wagner): Glamour’s Plus Size Photo Shoot – Real Change, or Trend?
• Psychology Today (You’d Be So Pretty If…): A Moment of Body “Thanksgiving”
• Yes and Yes: It’s all Good. No, Really. All of It.

DIY

• Love, Maegan: Leopard Belt, Chains, Accessories DIY
• Prom Mafia: Designer Scarves for $5

Fashion

• Already Pretty: Reader Request – The Side View
• ChinaShop (Gala Darling): Rodarte in Target
• Denim Debutante: How to Find Your Perfect Pair of Jeans
• Doe Deere Blogazine: My Beautiful Rocket with Audrey Kitching
• Dramatis Personae: Gilt – A Review
• Fashionably Marketing: Dispelling Illusions – The Reality of Fashion’s Night Out
• Final Fashion: Just a Thought – All the Rage
• Katie Senior: Mascara Reviews

Feminism

• The Daily Beast (Queen Rania Al Abdullah): Queen Rania – Stop Ignoring the Girls!
• O Filthy Grandeur!: Does “Lady Stupid” Exist?
• sexgenderbody (arvan): 2009 World Survey on the Role of Women in Development

Food

• The Amateur Gourmet: Where to Buy Ethical Meat?
• BlogHer (Beth Terry): Saving Money & the Planet with Baking Soda – How Many Uses Can Your Think Of?
• The Daily Beast (Keith Wallace): How Wine Became like Fast Food
• Sparkle and Glitter: Quick Post – Creamy Leek Sauce Recipe!

Interviews

• Agent Lover: Dear Menz – With Special Guest TNUC
• Clutch (Zettler Clay): Nia Long – Back by Popular Demand
• The Sassy Minx: Five Minutes with…Pearl Love

Positive Life

• Generation Meh: Anti-Adulthood-What’s Behind Generation Y’s Reluctance to Grow Up?
• Positively Present: Kicking Ass with Kindness
• Rabbit Write: The Meaning Behind What You Wanted to be When You Grew Up
• Rapititude: What Five Days of Silence Taught Me

Science

• Don’t Feed the Animals: Dolphins Offer a Glimpse into Brain Evolution
• Through the Illusion: How to Deal with Dyslexia

Sexuality

• The Blowfish Blog: 101 Sexual Positions that Won’t Spice up Your Sex Life
• Consumer Reports: It’s Tough Being Perfect, but We Found 7 Condoms that Are
• SOVO: Officer Dani Lee Harris is First Intersex Person to Lead Pride Parade
• sexgenderbody (Annabelle River): Queering Heterosexuality
• The Three Muskequeers (Chavery): Quite Frankly…

Social Issues

• FWD/Forward: The International Symbol of Acceptance
• Racialicious (Thea Lim): Cheerleader Blackface-The Cultural Function of Pretend Shock
• sexgenderbody: The “Guardian Angel” of Gulf Transsexuals
• The Sexist: Write to Rape Victims – Sometimes, it’s too Late to Say No
• Sour Grapes: Implausible Deniability
• What Tami Said: Civil Rights, but Just for Me

Travel

• Almost Fearless: This Place Exists – The Amazing Wild Buffalo in the Yukon
• Dream Sequins: Notes from Thailand (Part 3) – Chiang Mai
• Sexis (TheBloggess): The Bloggess Does Japan (Memoirs of a Geisha. Sort of.)

Work, Money & Organization

• BlogHer (wellheeledblog): Philosophy of Credit Card Use: A Method, not a Source
• Everyday Minimalist: Simplify Your Routines
• Financial Samurai: A Weak US Dollar Doesn’t Matter, Folks!
• WiseBread: Networking Basics for Regular People

Edited: November 6th, 2009

Wholestyle on the Web: Week of10/02/2009

It’s Friday!  That means you get to check out all the wonderful wholestyle-approved articles that have been popping up all over the place, in one convienient location.  I do apologise for the lack of pretty pictures in this edition, but it appears that my server’s having a hard time and may possible have contracted swine flu.  Here’s hoping it’s better soon!

• Almost Fearless: 67 Travel-Friendly Jobs to Consider
• Already Pretty:  Compare and Contrast
• Apricot Tea:  The Things My Mother Taught Me
• Athena Magazine:  A Question of Nipples
• Boing Boing:  The American Burquini and Modesty Throughout the Ages
• Bonne Vie:  The I in “Relationship”
• The Coveted:  Do Fashion Blogs Glamorize Smoking?
• Cupcakes and Mace:  The Lost Symbol – Dan Brown Review
• Dancing Down the Moon:  VeganMoFo – Cookbook Whores of the World, Unite!
• The Demoiselles:  Wing Tips – There is Nothing Wrong with Your Hair
• Denim Debutante:  Celebrate Lee National Denim Day
• Dramatis Personae:  Ashe Mischief’s Shopping Bill of Rights
• Gala Darling:  Yayoi Kusama
• Her Bad Mother:  Snips And Snails And The Unbearable Heaviness Of Roman Polanski
• Mother Henna:  Silent Truth is No Longer Silent
• No Titles:  What Writers Need to Do
• Positively Present: Light Up Your Life – 5 Ways to Make Your Path Brighter
• Rabbit Write:  Stupid Girl
• Yes and Yes:  The Five Beauty Tips That I Know

That’s all for this week, kids!  Enjoy your weekend and roll around in some of those newly-fallen leaves for me.

Edited: October 2nd, 2009