Someone asked me what I am most excited about seeing in Confessions of a Shopaholic (in theaters today!). Are you kidding? That’s like asking a 13-year-old to pick a favorite Jonas Brothers’ song. Or her favorite Jonas Brother (gasp)!

Between the out-there fashion ensembles that stylist Patricia Field (you also know her work from the drool-worthy outfits we saw in SATC and the Devil Wear Prada) puts together, the adorable and relate-able Becky Bloomwood, and one of my girl crushes Isla Fisher (I mean her hubby is Sascha Baron Cohen, HELLO) I just can’t choose.

What I can confess however, is how much I love her black on black on black ensemble. She makes it look effortlessly classy, sexy and chic, whereas most all black ‘fits end up looking like they would fit in better on the set of Doubt (read: dowdy).

So here is this week’s Celebrity Chic on the Cheap: Confessions of a Budget-Aholic Read More »

Chick Lit. We’ve all seen the books with their titles scrawled in cute fonts and the contact high of concentrated feminism that come with being in the near vicinity. Literary classics they are not, but that is what makes them perfect not-for-class choices.

Though chick lit catches flak for being notoriously breezy and light reading, there’s nothing better to pick you up after a bad day than a book about absolutely nothing. I will personally testify to the amazing power of chick lit, being that it saved me from waxing romantic about a “misunderstood, underestimated” ex-boyfriend who fits neither of those descriptions. As February 14th approaches, there is no better time to read chick lit, even if just to take a break from the steady downhill slide of The City.

1) Chick Lit inspires us to get off our couches, stop obsessing about our boyfriends (or lack thereof), and get going with life. When I finished reading The Devil Wears Prada, I felt like re-enacting the motivational montage where the main character of the movie starts turning her life around with self-help books (that actually work) and incredibly effective gym workouts (I want to go to whatever gym gets results that fast).

2) There is always a reliable disaster that will give us that ‘well at least that didn’t happen to me’ feeling. I had a hard time pitying myself for another single Valentine’s Day when the main character was suffering a spectacular firing, a nightmarish boss, or even worse man trouble than I had. Combined with my two favorite men, Ben & Jerry, chick lit is a proven mood lifter when things suck in life. Read More »

When you think about hypnotism, images such as a creepy old guy dangling a gold watch in front of some unsuspecting stranger and making him do crazy stuff like backflips and squawking like a chicken tend to float towards the front of your mind (or if you’re as obsessed with Harry Potter as I am, the Imperius Curse that Moody cast on that poor spider).

But can it help you lose weight?

Hypno-dieting, a new trend that just emerged in the U.S., has been popularized by its celebrity following, including former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell and British model Sophie Dahl. Recently, Lily Allen made headlines when she too endorsed this new type of fad diet, claiming that after several sessions she felt more inclined to choose healthy, low-fat meals rather than junk food. All of which made her lose 2 dress sizes! It’s also helped her give up her beloved bottle of booze, a feat in itself (of which many of my dormmates might take note).

Personally, I think all of this is just hyped-up mumbo-jumbo. I do realize that a healthy approach towards food is a key aspect of living a healthy life, and that counseling could help you get there, but a hypnotist? That seems a little extreme. This reminds me of other weird diets that have gone in and out of fashion, like the Breatharian Diet (yes, a diet based on living off of air- so chock full of nutrients, I suppose) or the diet that Emily from The Devil Wears Prada is on, which she describes as: Read More »

After watching last night’s episode of The Hills I couldn’t sleep. I was restless. I was angry. I just didn’t know who to hate more: Lo or Spencer. I also didn’t know if I should be embarrassed that I sorta wanna watch My Super Sweet Sixteen presents: Exiled. But that is for a whole different blog.

I used to love Lo. In fact, I considered my 25th birthday to be one of my favorites because it was the day I got to interview her. Too bad I suck at picking people to love, because that girl is a serious biatch.

I get it, Lo; Audrina is sorta bland and boring and you hate her cuz her legs are ridiculous. But stop being such a bitch. She may not be the brightest crayon in the box (although she most definitely is the tannest), but she is a nice girl and wants nothing but good things for those around her. Plus, she is your best friend’s other best friend and, quite frankly, she looked a lot better than you at She-Pratt’s birthday party. What was UP with your hair? And the red lips? You looked like a crazy cat lady.

And then there is Spencer. Oh Spencer – how many times can I possibly write how much I loathe you? Your life consists of one thing: being a bitch. You don’t work, you don’t have friends – all you do is plot evil plans with Heidi (consisting of either awful music videos, photo shoots or ways to make LC’s life a living hell) and eat Mexican food. Read More »

Ah yes, the Summer Internship.

You leave the comfy confines of your home to venture out into a new city, buy a bunch of hip outfits, secure housing, and then run full speed into a world of unpaid hours spent behind a computer or running errands in high heels. We’ve all been there. Hell, I was there for all four years of my college experience. Some of it was good (actually doing stuff that mattered), some of it was bad (lugging giant packages through a sweltering New York City), and some of it was just plain reDONKulous (buying a newspaper with my own money and then running into a random hair salon to deliver it to my boss because she couldn’t bare to read the stuff they had in the waiting room).

Are you currently living the life of a Summer Intern? If so, CollegeCandy wants you to be our spy in a new series of blogs called Diaries of a Summer Intern. We want you to blog once or twice a week about the trials and tribulations of working for (possibly) crazy people for little to no money. Do they send you on stupid errands? Make you pick up their dry cleaning? Refuse to learn you name? Do you feel a little Anne Hathaway in The Devil Wears Prada? If so, we want you to tell the world (all while keeping your identity a secret, of course).

Tell us why you should be our secret Summer Intern. Shoot me an email at Jess@collegecandy.com and get ready to show the world just how glamorous (or UNglamorous) the life of a summer intern can be.

After a lot of hard work, you’ve finally landed an interview for your dream job (or internship, as the case may be). Sure, what you say is important—but what are you going to wear? There’s that knockout Hermès scarf your rich aunt bought you for your birthday—oh, and that sweet pendant from the vintage store that you snagged last week—and the professional and stylish pleated pencil skirt you bought on clearance that fits you like it was tailored for you. Throw in a button-down shirt and some stilettos, and you’re hot to trot.

So you’re all set, right?

Wrong.

Unless you’re planning to follow in the footsteps of Andy in The Devil Wears Prada, you can’t always wear whatever is hip and trendy to your job interview. The good news is, though, that there are some easy guidelines you can follow that will lead you to a great interview outfit.

1. Dress conservatively. This is really difficult to do if you have a personality that you like to express through your clothes, but do your best to rein in that desire. It’s fine to wear a shirt with a splash of color or a pair of shoes with a little detailing, but it’s really important not to let yourself go overboard. You want the people interviewing you to focus on you, not on what you’re wearing. Think simple, classy, and professional. Read More »

What is it about chick lit that I find so distasteful and appealing at the same time? On one hand, I hate the superficiality of the themes, which are usually beauty, money, love, and a light dose of moral dilemma. On the other hand, some of them are pretty entertaining — when they’re not insulting, that is.

Some chick lit is pretty good. When I say “pretty good,” I am thinking of books like The Devil Wears Prada and The Nanny Diaries. (See, I’m not the only one who thinks they have potential — Hollywood even made movies out of them!) Confessions of a Shopaholic and The Ivy Chronicles also stand out. Bitter is the New Black is worth mentioning, as well — even though it’s actually nonfiction, it has all of the story and character elements of chick lit.

Unfortunately, there are just as many chick lit novels that I can’t stand. There is a fine line between lighthearted and superficial, but some chick lit coasts right on past into nauseating. For example, I was absolutely appalled by How to Teach Filthy Rich Girls. While most chick lit novels feature a mild moral conflict — “to tell a lie or not to tell a lie, that is the question” — this one was serious enough that it made the main character seem rather mean-hearted and opportunistic. It’s hard to like a book when you fantasize about beating up the narrator. Read More »

I absolutely love chick flicks. There, I said it. Usually in other aspects of my life, I am not an extremely girly or emotional chick. But, when it comes to movies, there is nothing like a good sob story about star crossed lovers who somehow beat the system and ended up together to really get me going.

And yes, unlike Jess, I consider Dirty Dancing one of my all time favorite movies and am so excited to see it return to the big screen this week.

Needless to say, when I read an article in the NY Times about the possible downfall of chick flicks, I was devastated. Supposedly there is a disappearance of many of the movie world’s most visible female power brokers and because of this, more male-oriented movies such as 300 will appear and not be balanced out with another female-oriented option.

For someone that cannot stand watching movies full of guts, guns, or any type of violence, this is not okay.

“You don’t see companies saying, ‘More than half of this population is women, we should design a slate to come up with movies like ‘The Break-Up,’ and ‘The Devil Wears Prada,’ ” said an independent producer. No more chick flicks out in theaters will mean much less theater going for me. Read More »