Men are from Mars

Truth is we never read that book, figured we knew men do everything backwards, or, should we say--differently--than women. This certainly is the case when our significant other goes to book his boys' trips. JSG does it like this: pick a city, then search out the coolest, chicest, fanciest hotel within our budget. Our guy on the other hand goes straight to Vacation Rentals By Owner. This site boasts thousands of properties listed by owner for properties all over the world. According to the website, the advantages over a standard hotel room, are more space, less expense, kitchen facilities and flexibility in price and booking. Sounds pretty good...
On our guy's last ski trip to Park City, he rented a two bedroom house which slept 6-8, where they walked to the lift and to the town. Not a stand-out from the outside, it was completely redone and updated on the inside (gourmet kitchen, gas fireplace, and a big new bathroom with whirlpool tub): all for $300 per night. JSG can't personally endorse VRBO, however the S.O. has used the site three times now, and each was a great experience.

Maybe we can learn something from these guys after all? If you act really quickly maybe you can still rent a house for the Sundance film festival, in Park City today through January 27th.

Spas on the Go

One of the best parts about traveling and staying at a swank hotel, is that you’ll find a decadent spa a stone’s throw away from your room (Unless of course you’re in Vegas and that kick ass spa that’s in your hotel could still be a half a mile walk away from your room). And as much as we love spa-ing, we never do seem to book an appointment while we’re at home, aside from the basic mani and pedi, which is essentially maintenance.
Throughout our travels, we have been fortunate to have many a spa treatment from the truly pampering, like a 2-person massage at the Ritz Carlton in Laguna Niguel to the completely unnecessary, like the chakra balancing at the Phoenician in Phoenix.
Here’s a few things we’ve learned:
1. Seek out the energizing treatments. Scrubs that get your circulation going with scents like lemon, menthol and eucalyptus are immediately uplifting and energizing, says our friend Denise Vitello, Spa Director at NYC’s Mandarin Oriental.
2. Got a hangover? Detoxifying treatments like a mud wrap can help, says Dzeneta Arslanovic, Director of the Spa Avania at the Hyatt Regency Scottsdale at Gainey Ranch in Arizona (shown above). They drain your body of toxins (hello third margarita). BUT—major word of caution here—both Denise and Dzeneta agree, and we can tell you from experience, you won’t feel good after a detoxifying treatment. In fact, you may feel a little more queasy and tired than when you started. Add to it that you want to drink lots of water and do not want to add alcohol back in to your newly detoxified body, it’s best to save these treatments for the last day or when you get back home.
3. Ditto any treatment involving heat. They feel great while you’re having them, but they can wear you out. True story—we passed out at Ole Henriksen after a massage in a steam room from being over-heated. That put a serious damper on our night out in Los Angeles.
4. It’s virtually impossible to get out of a massage without getting oil in your hair, so if that's an issue, don't even bother. While at the Montage in Laguna Beach, our very nice therapist put a shower cap over our head and did her best to keep the oil out of our hair, but to no avail. But showing what a five-star property they are, she set us up with a free blowout. If you really must get a massage, seek out a Thai massage (lots of stretching) or reflexology—two relaxing treatments sans oil.

Happy spa-ing!

Speaking of Those Ruskies...

We got a kick out of this story that male strip clubs are proliferating all over Moscow! The Jet Set Girls are rather "Western" in our mentality and agree with the author that over here in the states, clubs like Chippendales and the Thunder from Down Under dancers come across as a cheesy. We still remember going to the Hanger Club outside of D.C. where the first dancer who came out danced around in his thong to "Hail to the Redskins!" and one half of JSG is still trying to recover from being flipped upside down and spanked by an at-home stripper at a friend's bachelorette party (thank goodness that tape got erased).

But maybe the Russians are on to something. Wouldn't it be fun to have a night out with the girls' in a classy establishment with half-naked guys? And we have always wanted to see the Kremlin...

That's a Wrap

On chilly nights, it’s a challenge to find a jacket that’s both warm and sexy enough to go with your outfit. Our apologies to the animal-lovers out there (you already know we’re not vegetarians) but our best solution to date has been a vintage fur stole. Please note that we said VINTAGE—we’re not advocating that you run out and spend thousands of dollars on a brand new mink. Mink stoles are a staple at secondhand stores and also abound on eBay. We bought ours in Brooklyn for about $20—a bargain even after we spent $50 to have it cleaned. Plus we’re giving second life to Rebecca Lowenthal’s stole (the name stitched into the satin lining on our own stole).

Now that we’ve defended our decision to wear secondhand fur, let us tell you it’s virtues: You’ll feel instantly glamorous the second you put it on. It goes beautifully with everything from slinky cocktail dresses to your favorite pair of jeans. It makes your hair look gorgeous—blondes and redheads will light up in mink, brunettes should try darker sable fur. It truly is THE warmest thing out there, plus it doesn’t weigh you down like wool or shearling does. (There’s a reason all those Russians love it!) Finally—you will have spent less than $100 on it, so if it does get stolen, you’re not out a lot of money.

Are You Blushing?

We were feeling a little perplexed about our blush as of late, especially on our big girls’ nights out—with too little we look washed out, but with too much, we get a little overly flushed thanks to our Irish genes. We decided to call in a pro, MAC Senior artist Romero Jennings. Sounds like our lesson came just in time, as Romero says, "Blush is our new found friend especially for this up coming season."

The most important part is to pick the right blush. Romero recommends a cream blush, like MAC’s Blushcreme, because it gives that coveted, instant glow. A word of caution from Romero, "Be careful to make sure that your nose forehead and chin are powdered when wearing crème blush or you might get a dated, retro, 70’s music video feeling. Don’t get me wrong there is nothing wrong with that image but if it happens then it should look as if it was arranged."

Word up—no Blondie Blush for us!

To pick the right color, Romero says to look for a color that looks as if the cheeks are just sun kissed. “You should feel as if the blush is making you look healthier,” he says.

And for evening, save your money—you can use the same blush as daytime. “Just add a bit more than you would normally apply for your every day adventures,” he says.

We tried Mac's Brit Wit over the weekend and loved it! It gave the hint of sheer color without ever making us look like we had a full on flush--even after 3 glasses of Cab Sav.


Note: The Jet Set Girls are psyched to announce we have joined the Total Beauty blogging community! (You'll find us on their "Blogs We Love" page.) It's a killer site with reviews of just about every known lipstick, moisturizer and hair spray in the universe. We'll be reviewing beauty products on our site and theirs. To read our full review of Mac's Creme Blush, click here. Anyone can join and start rating products they love --and hate. The more reviews, the better! Now we'll never have to waste our money on a over-hyped jar of moisturizer or wimpy mascara again!

Off Our Radar: Let Boys Be Boys

The other day we were at a local sports bar with our significant other. We were seated at the bar, and couldn’t help but notice that there was a long line of guys spread out down the bar, all avidly watching football on the five jumbo screens in front of them. Once JSG realized the Patriots were going to crush yet another team, our eyes started to wander. We spotted a table of two adorable 20-something women seated right in the middle of the room. Given that the odds were about 50:3 men to women you would think they would have their pick of the litter.
Not so. Despite the fact that they were very cute and obviously available, not one guy talked to them for the entire four hours we were there! What gives? Our own scrumptious boyfriend, put it this way: When guys are watching sports, first comes the game, second is beer, third is the chicken wings, women rank a distant fourth. Making matter worse, according to honey, after the game guys are too drunk and full to think about women.
So head to the sports bar to watch the big game (Hail to the Redskins! Go Yanks!) but know you won’t be going home a winner in the game of love.

Snow Bunny Pony

With a few ski trips coming up in our near future, we asked one of our favorite stylists, Sarah Rapport at NYC’s Bumble & Bumble for tips on how to work a pony on the slopes and at the bar, après-ski. Sarah's tips:

Spritz on Bumble & Bumble Does It All to create some texture and hold. Part hair from middle of brow diagonally back to crown. Smooth hair tightly around head and secure a tight low pony behind the ear. It's a good look with or without a hat for drinks by the fireplace a la Keri Russell at last year's 's Sundance.

Or, for a post-hat pony, lightly mist Tonic Spray all over head to bring listless strands back to life. Apply Surf Spray (or other salt spray) at root to get some texture and grip at root. Take one inch sections and start teasing hair all the way down to the root with a fine tooth comb to give it some volume and life. Lightly brush top layer to smooth and polish. Pull back into a pony.


Whichever way you go, secure your pony, go with a band that’s close to your hair color. Then take a piece from the bottom of your pony and wrap it around the band. This will make your pony look sexy and elegant as opposed to gym rat or kindergartener-y.


Right on, Sarah!

Want a hat like Keri's? We bought a couple of hats like hers this year. We love them, because they don't flatten your hair like most hats will. Boden has a knitted hat in bright purple- a great jewel tone accent for this season and it's on sale for $18!