Bostonista

Archive for March, 2009

ISO a Condo

Hi. Look, we need to talk. As per our agreement, I’m doing our shopping for us. I’m out there everyday looking at condos and spending my evenings combing zillow.com and trulia.com, and all of this is for us.

But I have to admit—the $300,000 we’d originally agreed to is a paltry sum, in spite of the economic collapse, etc. So I’m telling you now: We need more cash.

I hope it’s okay that I unilaterally decided to nudge the lever a bit to the right for us, for you and me. Because although we’d originally agreed to keep things, well, under control, I can assure you that searching in Brookline, Allston, and Cambridge for a lovely 2-bedroom for under $400K can seem a little like trying to find a Prada bag at a yard sale. (more…)

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Mini-Masochist: Impersonating a Celebrity

Lady Gaga is performing at the House of Blues on Monday night, and we couldn’t have been more ready to put on our “po-po-po-poker face.” But since Bostonista sometimes leaves things to the last minute, we tried to score tickets too late in the game. And now the show is sold out.

Looks like Bostonista won’t be just dancing with Gaga and commiserating over our misplaced keys and lost phones (send us your numbers, people!).

We did the same thing to Britney. So we had to make a play for Canada. When all else fails, go to Canada, right? Our friend is getting married in May, so our concert date turned into a Montreal “girl’s weekend” and bachelorette party (complete with our two fabulous gay man-friends).

The Britney concert was a full-fledged circus with tight rope walkers, contortionists, acrobats, and more. And even though Britney only said one sentence that wasn’t prerecorded, we were really only there to see her bejeweled costumes and the dances anyway. (more…)

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Because Once A Day Just Isn’t Enough

We get it. Like a lover who just can’t get enough of our regular weekday rendezvous, you suffer from Bostonista separation anxiety between our daily(-ish) posts. To that we say, right back at you. We miss your sassy, knowing eyes and your spot-on comments. And now, we can finally make you sat-is-fied:

No longer must we have such a spotty, once-a-day relationship. Because, in addition, your girl Bostonista will now be posting quickies via Twitter. Follow us here at www.twitter.com/bostonista for savory bites of news, gossip, and musings from the pulse of the local style scene at all hours of the day.

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Color Me Pretty (and Eco-Friendly)

Remember when people used to get highlights with a cap? We still can’t believe we subjected our locks to such horrifying trauma. Stylists would place the cap over our heads, and use a hook to poke through the plastic and lace (more like rip) our hair out the other end. It left us looking like a Chia pet with broken strands everywhere. Not to mention the tangles. What a nightmare!

Then along came foils. Foils are pain-free and gentler on the scalp. They also keep hair tidy while the dye does its job, and the heat lamp interacts with the foil to speed up the color process. But while you wait, you risk looking like a satellite, or like your mom trying to get a tan by the pool in the ’60s. Not to mention the waste. You can’t recycle that stuff.

The next innovation in hair color is Balayage.

(more…)

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Bostonista Loves: Dirty Bow Wow

Disclaimer: We realize that, thanks to the Internet, saying that Americans need more access to adorable animals is akin to arguing that the AIG guys need more zeroes in their bonuses or that Erin Lucas needs more hair accessories.

But we still maintain that everyone should buy Dirty Bow Wow…or at least flip through it at Borders. This delightful little book, by Boston-based design couple Cheryl and Jeffrey Katz, showcases local dogs and their playthings. (more…)

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Design Salon Boston

Mesa Arts Center - Shauna Gillies-Smith of Ground for MSI

Mesa Arts Center - Shauna Gillies-Smith of Ground for MSI (GroundInc.com)

This week we were invited to speak to an extraordinary group of women. Called the Design Salon Boston, this informal organization brings together interior designers, architects, product designers, and writers once a month to talk about their trade and figure out how to do what they do better. We met up at the groundbreaking architectural firm, Utile, hosted by principal Mimi Love.

It’s about time someone figured how to gather the creative types in the city, but I was a little wary of the women-only bent. Wary, that is, until I witnessed its merits first-hand.

(more…)

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This Week’s Mini-Consumer Index

An extension of the things we’re obsessed with this month:

Ballet-inspired classes: Like the rest of the celeb-following world, we’ve been intrigued by trainer-to-the-stars Tracey Anderson’s dance/Pilates hybrid workouts ever since client Gwyneth started showing off her legs on red carpets everywhere. As we wait for Anderson to open a Boston studio, we’ve signed up to try Life in Synergy’s Ballet Booty and Boston Sports Club’s NYC Ballet Workout Movement. We’ll keep you posted…

(more…)

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The Mating Call

Spring was in the air this weekend, and the male mating call was heard loud and clear at the Harpoon St. Patrick’s Day Festival and at the Liberty Hotel, where Bostonista played the wing-woman to all her single-lady friends.

Though this femme fatale is married, our Bostonista friends fell victim to some up the worst (and most creative) pick-up lines we’ve heard in a long time. It was like an episode of Tool Academy. Please share your stories in the comments at the end of this post!

The Scene: Harpoon St Patrick’s Day Festival
Guy: “Your jaw must hurt…”
Bostonista: “What? Why….”
Guy: “From smiling all day.”
Bostonista: “Ohhh Okay….”

(more…)

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Bostonista Gets Educated: Makeup

We’re a proud college town. Howard Stern once roamed Boston University. Harvard had a few good alums; Conan, Natalie Portman, and a few other very important folks. Even John Mayer called Berklee his hangout for a time.

There’s many more, of course, like Emerson alum and makeup maven, Bobbi Brown. She’s done-up the dolls of the runway for Oscar de la Renta and Caroline Herrera for years.

And lucky for us, she’s back in town. Brown is launching a new program in makeup artistry this spring at Emerson College, which will kick off with some basic workshops that anyone can sign up for. That means you and me. (more…)

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True Life of a Bostonista: I Want to Be a Patriots Cheerleader

The auditions for the 2009-2010 season Patriots cheerleading squad were held on Saturday at the Dana-Farber Field House At Gillette Stadium. Thanks to some prodding from her sister, Boston magazine online designer Casey McNamara decided to try out even though she had never cheered before in her life.

“My sister literally knocked on my door with coffee in hand that morning,” Casey says. “I knew she was serious, so I quickly got myself glamorized.”

Here’s what Casey’s experience was like.

(more…)

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