Cover of Advanced Style

If you don’t have personal stylists in your area you may want to check your local library for  these style and beauty books:

• The grown-up girl’s guide to style : a maintenance bible for fashion, beauty, and more / Christine Schwab
• Parisian Chic : a style guide / Inès de la Fressange
• Harper’s bazaar great style : best ways to update your look / Jenny Levin
• Agedefying lifestyle : create the life and looks you desire! : Body. Mind. Soul. / by Denyse Saunders
• The style strategy : a less-is-more approach to staying chic and shopping smart / Nina Garcia
• Tim Gunn : a guide to quality, taste, & style / Tim Gunn with Kate Moloney
• Nina Garcia’s look book : what to wear for every occasion / Nina Garcia
• The new secrets of style : your complete guide to dressing your best every day / by the editors of Instyle
• The little black book of style / Nina Garcia
• Triumph of individual style

The co-author the last title, Helen Villa Connor also does style consultations.  Fifteen years ago, I sent off my photos to Helen (she lives in the US) and she analyzed my body type and provided photos of outfits and a list of fabrics, which would suit me.  Great for those who don’t have personal stylists in their area. If you want to learn more, touch or click here.

Of course, there are also many wonderful style websites.  One of my favourites is for women over 60 – touch or click on Advanced Style.  In May 2012, an Advanced Style book will be released, proof that style is ageless!

Until next time,

Your Boomer Life Partners

Disclosure: Products/services mentioned in this Boomer Life Today blog post were not solicited or paid for by companies in New Zealand or abroad.

In the last post, I shared my experience of attending one of Julia Turnwald’s's style retreats at Mollies in Auckland.  Since then I’ve started collecting pictures of clothing that I like, had my hair re-styled thanks to  a voucher from Serville’s (one of the items in our gift bag) and started to practice mindful eating (savouring every bite).

The good news is that everyone can have a chance to win a $2000 makeover with Julia – just visit her website to find out how.

In the next post, I’ll provide a list of the style books I think are particularly good.

Until next time,

Your Boomer Life Partners

Disclosure: No services mentioned in this Boomer Life Today blog post were solicited or paid for by companies in New Zealand or abroad.

No matter how you say it, style is something most of us would like to have.  The good news is anyone can achieve it with a little help from professionals like Julia Turnwald.  Julia is a personal stylist who offers group style retreats and one-on-one consultations on wardrobe mastery, makeup artistry and interior wizardry.

Last October, I attended  Julia’s style retreat at Mollies, one of Auckland’s finest boutique hotels – a full day of activities, lectures and light refreshments.  Julia began by helping us determine our bra size and from that foundation (no pun intended!), our body shape. It turns out that I am a “cornet” (think “ice cream cone” – broad-shouldered and smaller through the waist and hips). This means that I can wear skinny jeans, slim heels, flared skirts, wide lapels, broad straps and layers.  Who knew? “No gos” are floaty dresses, platform shoes, scooped necklines, shoulder pads and 3/4 sleeves.  Interestingly, I  have always avoided floaty things, so at some unconscious level maybe we know what not to wear! More good news, our bodies change every 5 years, so we need to reassess our bodies and wardrobes periodically. Partners/husbands, are you listening?

Julia believes in carefully selecting a limited number of items, which can be mixed and matched to create your own personal style.  She recommends collecting pictures of clothes you like as the first step in the process. One woman in the group had previously taken Julia’s advice and with her help had reduced 500 items of clothing to just 20 pieces! I like the idea of having fewer clothes of higher quality and developing a personal style.

With our wardrobes sorted, we met dieticians who spoke to us about healthy, mindful eating habits, aestheticians who advised us on skin care and “restorative” procedures, and hairstylists who helped us determine the best look for our face shape and hair type.  Julia then chose one lucky attendee to demonstrate makeup techniques and ended the day with tips on interior design and decoration. The day was fun and informative and we each received a gift bag with over $300 worth of products and vouchers.

In the next post, I’ll give you an update on my style progress and some helpful resources to inspire you.

Your Boomer Life Partners

Note: To find out more about Julia Turnwald, click here.

Disclosure: No locations/services mentioned in this Boomer Life Today blog post were solicited or paid for by companies in New Zealand or abroad.

Photo courtesy of qthomasbower

In our first post on Valentine’s Day, we shared that we have several single friends, most of them female, who would love to meet someone but lament that “all the good ones are taken!”

Many boomers do find it difficult to meet suitable mates, but it isn’t impossible.  We met through mutual friends when we were in our forties after being divorced and “casting about” for many years, so it is possible.

If you’ve met that special someone since you’ve become a “boomer”, we’d like to hear how you met.

Until next time,

Your Boomer Life Partners

Photo courtesy of deirdren

Want to impress that special someone on Valentine’s Day? Whether you’re going out for lunch/dinner or staying home, why not prepare this delicious dessert to win hearts.  My sister made this years ago and we just had to have the recipe.

Coeur à la crème with raspberries

• 1 vanilla bean
• 1 pckg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
• 2/3 c. confectioners’ (or icing) sugar
• 1/4 c. sour cream
• 1 c. heavy cream, whipped
• 2 t. cornstarch (cornflour)
• 2 T orange-flavoured liqueur
• 1 pckg (10 oz) frozen strawberries, thawed
• 1/2 pint fresh raspberries if available
• 1 T julienned orange zest

1.  Line six 1/2 c. coeur à la crème molds (see note) with cheesecloth with enough overhang to cover filling later.  In bowl, combine seeds from vanilla bean, cream cheese, sugar and sour cream; beat until smooth.  Fold in whipped cream.  Spoon into molds; fold cheesecloth over filling.  Refrigerate at least 6 hours.

2.  Make sauce: In saucepan, blend cornstarch with liqueur.  In food processor, puree thawed raspberries; pass through sieve placed over same pan.  Bring to boiling, stirring.  Cool. Stir in fresh raspberries and 1 1/2 t. zest.

3.  To serve: Unwrap and invert each coeur à la crème  on to a plate.  Pour sauce on and around each coeur; top with remaining zest.  Makes 6 servings, 1 1/2 c. sauce.

Enjoy!

Until next time,

Your Boomer Life Partners

Note:  You will find the molds in fine kitchen shops and some restaurant/hospitality suppliers.

Planning to spend time together honours that special person in your life and when you’ve been together for years as many boomers have, it’s especially important.  We have single and divorced  friends who would love to have someone special to share Valentine’s Day with, so this February 14th why not plan to take time to show your love for the one you’re with!

Until next time,

Your Boomer Life Partners

                                                       William Wordsworth

Photo courtesy of Philip Hay

In the last two posts, we’ve written about spending time in nature and the health and well-being benefits to children and adults alike.  Nature also inspires designers, architects, scientists, researchers, business-leaders and engineers to solve human problems in innovative ways.  This fascinating discipline is known as   biomimicry. 

Intrigued? There are lots of examples of biomimicry from the Mercedes’ concept car fashioned after the boxfish to less painful needles mimicking the mosquito’s proboscis. It truly is awesome to see what nature has inspired.

If you want to learn more, listen to this TED lecture by Janine Benyus, founder of the Biomimicry Institute or check out Scoop.it!

Until next time,

Your Boomer Life Partners

Disclosure: Products/organizations mentioned in this blog post were not solicited or paid for by companies in New Zealand or abroad.

In the last post, I shared memories of my first days back to school.  The sights, sounds and smells of nature featured prominently for me and I wondered if today’s students are being deprived of the opportunity to appreciate nature’s beauty because they are often driven to and from school or walk plugged into iPods or MP3 players.

In fact, I’m not alone in my concern.  Child advocacy expert, Richard Louv has written a book called Last child in the woods : saving our children from nature-deficit disorder. In his book, Louv shares some startling facts – “by the 1990s the radius around the home where children were allowed to roam on their own had shrunk to a ninth of what it had been in 1970. Today, average eight-year-olds are better able to identify cartoon characters than native species, such as beetles and oak trees, in their own community. The rate at which doctors prescribe antidepressants to children has doubled in the last five years, and recent studies show that too much computer use spells trouble for the developing mind.”

And, it’s not just children who need to reunite with nature.  Adults also spend so little time outdoors that Vitamin D deficiency is becoming a serious health problem.   Nature has a restorative effect and is very important to our well-being. So the next time your grandchildren visit, why not plan a walk along the beach, in the woods or introduce them to hiking on groomed trails.  It’s free and you can do it year round!

Until next time,

Your Boomer Life Partners

Disclosure: Products mentioned in this Boomer Life Today blog post were not solicited or paid for by companies in New Zealand or abroad.

Photo of a bluejay courtesy of boismocassinwoods.ca

Here in New Zealand it’s back to school for primary, intermediate and secondary school students after 6 weeks of summer holidays!  I grew up in Canada and have fond memories of getting ready for that first day back. I loved getting new boxes of Crayola crayons or Laurentian coloured pencils (depending on my age).  The colours were amazing – I even liked the smell of new crayons! A look at the Crayola Colour Chronology on their website reminded me of my favourite colours then – Spring green, Magenta and Orange Yellow.  Did you have favourite colours? What were they? Check the link to jog your memory!

I used to walk back and forth to school and in the autumn I remember the crunching sound and distinctive sweet smell of walking through crisp maple leaves. My grandparents lived near us and they had a huge maple on their front lawn.  On my way past, I used to run and jump through the piles of leaves, to the piercing call of bluejays (pictured above).

The only year I was bussed to a school was my first year of secondary school.  It was a large inner city school and I felt very alone and anxious my first days there.  But, I remember looking forward to my lunch because I knew that within my neatly packed brown bag, there would be a ripe, golden, juicy pear or crisp, red apple. We used to buy our apples by the bushel from an orchard in the country and I fondly remember descending below the ground into a cold chamber where they kept the apples – MacIntoshes, Snow Apples, Northern Spys, and Russets were our favourites.

What memories will today’s kids have of their first days back at school?  So many children are driven to school or walk plugged into their iPods or MP3 players – it’s sad! What are your memories of your first days back to school?  We’d love to hear from you.

Until next time,

Your Boomer Life Partners

Disclosure: Products mentioned in this Boomer Life Today blog post were not solicited by companies in New Zealand or abroad.

Photo courtesy of codepinkhq

The last in our “Resolutions” series of blog posts brings us to our creative selves.

My parents were very talented – my mother with fabric and needle crafts and my father with wood. The first memory of my mother’s talent was a beautiful smocked dress made for my sister, which was then handed down to me.  The smocked pattern was a Grandma Moses painting!  For those who are unfamiliar with this famous American naif artist, her work always depicted very detailed scenes of rural life. My parents also loved restoring antiques and our home was filled with beautiful items picked up at farm auctions or made by my father.  My mother’s embroidery and handmade braided and hooked rugs completed the look.

Growing up it seemed natural to learn a variety of crafts – knitting, crocheting, sewing, embroidery, crewelwork, cross-stitch, macrame, needlepoint (tapestry) and quilting. Crafts have been a constant in my life, starting with designing and making doll clothes at age 8. In my twenties, when living in Saudi Arabia, I developed a small business designing and selling crafts, which featured aspects of Saudi life and culture. More recently, I’ve been developing handcrafted items depicting life in New Zealand and hope to  show my pieces at local art and craft markets this year.

Art and craft work are good for the soul and keep you grounded. There’s something very satisfying about designing and/or making something by hand in an age when most things are mass-produced in faraway places.

Do you enjoy an art or craft form? How does it enhance your life? If not,  plan to take lessons through your local craft guilds.  It’s important for your well-being to learn new skills and it’s fun too!

Until next time,

Your Boomer Life Partners