[The following post was written by dating coach, Kira Sabin, a keg of dating and relationship wisdom. She's been helping people find love for years so we thought we'd tap this keg and see what sort of brilliant advice she has for the CollegeCandy readers. Drink up!]

My cousin Big Mary is an inspiration. She is about 70 years old, a retired teacher and absolutely fierce. Although they lived in Virginia, Big Mary, her husband Jim and their daughters Little Mary and Martha would come up to the fine state of Wisconsin at least once a year. Having a very small family, it was always exciting when our cousins with the southern accents would come “up” to visit. My sister and I were always jealous of the tales of school being called off over one measly inch of snow. Ridiculous.

Somewhere over the last ten years or so, Big Mary came up with one of my favorite sayings. She would call to talk to Mom and tell fun stories about life and school in the not so deep south. At one point, it would always come back to Mary’s favorite saying: “Not my problem.” She would say it in a fun accent that reminds me of Gone With The Wind (you know us Northerners, all Southern accents sound the same) and would be copied around my house regularly. Read More »

In honor of our undying love for both music and cocktails, we here at CollegeCandy have decided to create a monthly playlist of pre-party music to help keep you in the know of some of the hottest songs, conveniently, while you get your drink on.

And to kick things off, well, you’ll have to forgive me. I’ve been in a kind of “electric” mood for some reason. And by “electric” I mean “computer generated.” But it’s not my fault; music seems to be moving in that direction. And it’s got me worried. Whenever I’m rocking out I can’t help but think, “It’s like I’m being serenaded by a computer.” Mmm… how seductive. How sensuous! Who needs a hot man on an acoustic when you’ve got this sort of sexy, raw, robotic vocals at your fingertips?

Too bad the music is undeniably catchy and perfect to drizink to. Read More »

Those lovable bros over at BroBible.com have once again attempted to tarnish the sterling facades us girls put up just to please them (riiiight…).  The latest topic up for debate: The 15 Most Common Ways Girls Try to Look Hotter on Facebook. From butts out to boobs smooshed, they’re calling us out on all our “tricks” of the online trade.

Well guys, a little of our own light research has gone a long way.  Turns out you’re guilty of posting some overused, Brolicious pics yourselves.  Need proof?  Just go through your tagged photos and see if you’re guilty of any of these thirteen major offenses:

Read More »

[Meet Margaret, a freshman at Yale. We've been checking in with her every week to see what she's doing, who she's meeting, and what new college surprises she's tackling (or freaking out about) as she embarks on the journey we call college. Or as I like to call it, the best thing since Trader Joe's Honey Greek Yogurt.]

Okay, so I am completely not a hippie. Let me just get that out there. Incense makes me sneeze, middle-of-the-forehead headbands make me look like an awkward boy and I own nothing made of hemp.

All that being said, I really do value the idea of finding inner peace and the feeling of “chillness.” So much so that one of my favorite teachers pegged me as the type who would go off to college and become one of those offbeat Bohemian types. Like Ashley Olsen.

And I clung to that idea—the idea that college would be a time for lots of self-pondering, free of nagging parents and 7 hour school days. I would ideally sit underneath a tree reading Whitman surrounded by perpetually tan Frisbee players and crooning guitar boys singing love songs aimed indirectly at me. And I would feel self-actualized and understand the deeper version of myself and be eternally fulfilled.

Well this little fantasy has turned out to be flat out false. Read More »

[Got something awesome everyone needs to know about? A really rad singer? A wicked new book? Gorgeous, hand-made bracelets? Email your “The Know” ideas to Jill@collegecandy.com or tweet me and I’ll pass them along to everyone right here, every week. Make your kindergarten teacher proud and share!]

It’s no secret that my favorite thing to study is the art of procrastination. It’s how I found CollegeCandy, it’s how I began writing for CollegeCandy. It’s why I thought of the idea to interview ’90s icon, Ben Savage. It’s why I held a paper plate awards ceremony for my friends. It’s why I think watching the same Modern Family episode for the 9th time in case I missed anything totally hilar is a grand idea. Because all of the above are way, way, WAY more fun than studying. Sure you may not do well in econ, but you can ramble off facts about (and outfits worn by) your ex boyfriend’s new girlfriend’s best friend’s sister.

But why spend your time procrastinating on FB looking at a total rando’s photos when you can spend time looking at yours own. I know what you’re thinking: “I’ve already looked at my own photos 9,246 times and detagged any photo where I didn’t have the skinny arm pose.” But what you don’t know is that now you can “awesomize” your photos.

First of all can I just say how cool the word “Awesomize” is? It sounds like a word straight out of Barney Stinson’s vernacular (Yes, I also procrastinate by watching full seasons of How I Met Your Mother) and I’m a big big fan of both the Barnicle and the word Awesomize. But back to my point…. Read More »

Say you had a million dollars.  That would be pretty cool, right?  You’d probably go shopping more than once a month.  Maybe bankroll your friends at the bar.  Pay off those student loans.  Get yourself set up in a cushy lifestyle, right?

Okay, now say you had $100 million.  You’d still do all of the above, but with the leftover change I hope you’d go all-out Oprah on some people in need.  Genocide refugees, abandoned animals, sad kids with distended bellies and flies on their faces…take your pick.  It’s really not that hard when you look at everything that’s going on in the world.

Or so I thought until one Mr. Henry Kravis proved me wrong.  The dude’s loaded.  Forget millions, his net worth is in the billions range.  And while he did recently make a significant donation, it wasn’t to the type of organization you’d expect.  Thanks to Kravis’ generosity, 100 million of his hard-earned dollars will be going to Columbia University’s Business School.  Because Ivy League universities need 450,000 feet added to their buildings and this guy really needs his name on a library or something.  Riiiight.

I’m sure the school would have gladly accepted a donation of a far lesser sum and maybe even still put his name in big stone-engraved letters somewhere.  The rest of that cool $100 mill could have fed families, bought vaccinations, or sent young girls to school.  Hell, he could have even done something as frivolous as sending a thousand sick kids to a baseball game and it would have been a better call. Read More »

Victoria’s Secret knows sexy – there’s no doubting that. But they also know that you don’t need to be in nothing but your $50 bra to feel sexy; all you need is this pair of leggings.

I know that off the bat leggings don’t sound like the sexiest garment in the world. You’ve seen all the girls on campus that wear them the wrong way with the too-short shirts, Uggs and panty lines galore.  There are other ways to wear leggings, ladies! Trust me, after the freshmen 15, even though your jeans may no longer fit (it’s not your fault all you can afford is ramen!) and you can’t afford new ones, leggings like these – when worn correctly – can be fabulously slimming.

The number one rule to wearing leggings is to always, always, always wear a top long enough to cover your bum! Leggings truly are not a substitute for pants. (Editor’s Note: Just ask my friend Erica who always screams “leggings aren’t pants” at girls who just don’t get it.) The material tends to thin out around the largest parts of you (read: your butt) and your underwear will not be safe!

The best thing about these leggings from VS is that they’re different. They’re not your momma’s leggings from the ’80s. They have a chic sheen that isn’t overdone and makes them a tad more dressy – perfect to pair with a hot going-out top and a pair of heels or tucked into my favorite wish list wedges from last week!

But the thing I love most about these liquid leggings is what they’re not: pleather. Although I love the look, I just don’t see how it’s feasible. Pleather leggings are too shiny for throwing on for class, and they’re too pleathery for anything else. Hello! Imagine trying to sit on a vinyl chair in a pair of those bad boys? And wouldn’t your thighs get stuck together?? These liquid leggings, however, achieve the hot idea behind the look without sticking you in a fake leather bind. Read More »

Is Glee bigger than The Beatles? Apparently.

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8 ways to take charge and get what you want!

Signs you might just not be that into him.

Presenting: Snuggie 2.0.

One time, I had sex on a pier. After my three month dance with celibacy, I finally gave in at the end of the summer, and I figured if I was going to go for it, I was going to do it with a bang (well, that and my roommates were asleep and we have very thin walls). I worked my charm with my then-friend-with-benefits, and before I knew it, there I was – butt ass naked at the end of a pier at 4am.

I’m a classy lady, what can I say?

Since that night, I’ve heard multiple stories from friends about how awkward it is to find a couple doin’ it in public, and knowing that I am one of those people, I feel a little guilty for giving in to my animal instincts out in the open (even though it was 4am and no one was around). I’ve also heard just as many stories about awesome public sex that make me think it’s not a bad thing, so long as it’s kept semi-private.

So, let’s discuss:

On one hand, everybody’s sex life needs a little spice from time to time. Gettin’ it on somewhere where there’s a chance – even a small one, that someone might see makes it just that much more exciting and risqué. Plus there’s something awfully freeing about being naked outside. Read More »

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