Abbie Stutzer – EcoSalon

Screw the Taboo: Older Women are Unapologetically Dating Younger Men

Abbie Stutzer — Thu, 15 Feb 2018 17:27:44 +0000

iStock/gollykim

Women have not always felt free to date whomever they’ve wanted. Society, personal obligation, fear…You name the reason and a woman somewhere at some time probably felt like she had to choose a certain partner because of one outside or internal reason or another.

Society and older women

As a society, we’ve villanized older women who like younger men, more so than their male counterparts, says Laura Bilotta, a dating coach and matchmaker in Toronto.

“Women shouldn’t have to feel a stigma when it comes to dating younger men. As long as everyone is a consenting adult and they aren’t abusing their power, there is nothing wrong with a May/December romance.”

Thankfully, though, many of these “walls” are coming down, and women, in general, fell freer to date whoever they want.

The polls

A 2017 poll from Seeking Arrangement found that 42 percent of women date younger men because of their increased energy; 23 percent date younger men because women think their male mates look up to them; 18 percent of women date younger men because they are in shape; 12 percent date younger men because these men are not intimidated by the older woman’s success; and 5 percent of older women say they date younger men because the women are looking for carefree fun.

Although this poll doesn’t come from an incredibly reputable source, and the poll only had 6,237 respondents, its findings were not surprising to interviewees.

The reasons behind the numbers

Generally, older women who date younger men have already been married, says Bilotta.

“[They] were unsatisfied in their previous relationship [and] want someone young and exciting in their life,” adds Bilotta. “I hear from women on their second time around that older men stop taking care of themselves and don’t have the energy to keep up with them.”

Bilotta also says that women who’ve gone through a divorce want a certain level of control over their lives and relationships. “Being older in the relationship means they have the experience and therefore the upper hand.”

David Ezell, CEO of Darien Wellness, says society is coming to terms with the idea of intergenerational relationships, too. “Our culture is much more comfortable with older men and younger women,” adds Ezell. “If you have any doubts, look at the hundreds of movies where that is the case. In most cases, either party is looking for someone outside of their age group who can bring a level of experience and maturity (for the men) and energy, excitability and optimism (for the women).”

Ezell also says he thinks the above information applies to younger women and older men, as well as same-sex couples.

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Welcome Spring With Stella McCartney’s ‘Stella Peony’ Fragrance

Abbie Stutzer — Thu, 15 Feb 2018 05:44:48 +0000

Image via Stella McCartney Facebook page

Although winter is still very much upon us, it’s hard to not let one’s mind daydream about the floral scents and warmer days spring brings.

One way to help trick the mind into “thinking” warm is by indulging in a few spring fragrances. One fragrance is Stella McCartney’s Stella Peony.

Making the old new again

Although Stella Peony isn’t a totally new fragrance—it’s a re-launch—it’s new incarnation launched on January 6, 2018.

Stella Peony is filled with fresh, peppery florals and amber. The fragrance gets its amber scent via ambergris, a modern and environmentally-friendly alternative to amber.

Stella Peony also features patchouli. The patchouli in the fragrance is sustainably sourced from local farming projects in Java and Sumatra in Indonesia. These projects ensure that “farmers get greater revenues”; they also help keep the “end product… ethical,” states Stella McCartney’s fragrance product description.

The relaunched perfume also features a new package that’s certified by The Forest Stewardship Council, and comes in a redesigned bottle.

Making a fragrance

McCartney loves creating fragrances that allow the masculine and feminine to collide. The designer also creates simple fragrances sans multiple scent layers. These “scent layers” often can overpower or overwhelm the person wearing the perfume. A scent should complement “who you are and how you smell,” says McCartney.

McCartney thinks that memory is the key to creating a fragrance that’s unique. During a recent Byrdie interview, the designer told a story about how the family’s McCartney Rose, yes… an actual family rose, inspired the scent profile for the original Stella fragrance.

A quality promise

McCartney admits that sometimes she cares “too” much about the fragrances she creates. But she can’t help but go “all in” because for her, fragrance creation is personal.

After all, McCartney asked her sister Mary to take the fragrance campaign photos, and worked with close friend Arizona Muse, model. Muse is the face of the Stella Peony campaign. “Stella Peony just came about in a very effortless kind of lovely, gentle manner,” adds McCartney. “And I think when it’s all women, I think people can feel it. I think they feel it’s real.”

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Start Perfecting Your Vegan Burger Recipe Now

Abbie Stutzer — Tue, 13 Feb 2018 18:23:56 +0000

Get ready for grill season.

This vegan burger recipe looks pretty great.

The post Start Perfecting Your Vegan Burger Recipe Now appeared first on EcoSalon.

‘Wonder Woman 2’ is Tackling Sexual Harassment

Abbie Stutzer — Tue, 13 Feb 2018 18:22:54 +0000

iStock/sensorspot

In the summer of 2017, audiences responded well to “Wonder Woman”, the feature-length film starring Gal Gadot. Thanks to audience numbers, and the film’s powerhouse female lead and director, Hollywood greenlit “Wonder Woman 2”.

We can only imagine how amazing the second film will be. But we’re currently thrilled that the superhero flick is the first to follow new anti-sexual-harassment guidelines.

The PGA and sexual harassment

The Producers Guild of America (PGA) announced its Anti-Sexual Harassment Task Force and list of guidelines in mid-January.

The Task Force was originally founded in October “in conjunction with its decision to permanently ban Harvey Weinstein from its membership,” reports Teen Vogue. Although PGA membership is voluntary, which makes the Organization’s guidelines voluntary, “Wonder Woman 2’s” participation is important.

The new guidelines

The sexual harassment guidelines will ensure that Hollywood “productions comply with federal and state laws about harassment, provide in-person anti-sexual harassment training to all cast and crew members, and offer a system for people to report any incidents of sexual harassment,” adds Teen Vogue.

And if sexual harassment does happen on a job, the guidelines outline “clear recommendations for reporting incidents,” reports Nerdist.

It’s exciting a film about female power is the first to implement these guidelines. However, it’s important that this film is the first for another reason, too.

Brett Ratner

Six women accused Brett Ratner, producer of “Wonder Woman”, of sexual harassment or assault in November 2017. Although Ratner denied the allegations, Gadot wasn’t having it.

Gadot showed support for the accusers by stating that she would not “reprise her role in ‘Wonder Woman 2’ if the producer [Ratner] remained attached to the franchise in any way,” Teen Vogue adds. “… Gal has since confirmed that Brett would not be producing ‘Wonder Woman 2’.”

Always evolving

However, the PGA’s Guidelines aren’t set in stone. So, the organization will likely change its Guidelines as the “industry explores new approaches to this problem [sexual harassment] and as new resources become available”. The PGA also adds it will continue to work with TIME’S UP and the industry commission chaired by Anita Hill.

You can read the PGA’s Guidelines here.

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This Organization is Helping Black Women Maintain Their Health

Abbie Stutzer — Mon, 12 Feb 2018 18:19:57 +0000

Image via GirlTrek Facebook

Sometimes we all need a reminder that a simple walk around the neighborhood is good for our health, and connects us with our community.

Walk it off

GirlTrek is the largest public health nonprofit that supports African-American women and girls in the United States.

GirlTrek was founded by T. Morgan Dixon and Vanessa Garrison.

Dixon began thinking of a bare-bones version of the organization while teaching high school history in Atlanta, Georgia in the early 2000s, reports Glamour. While teaching, she discovered the following statistic:

“Half of all black girls in America born after the year 2000 would be diagnosed with Type II diabetes in their lifetime unless a change was made to activity levels,” reports Glamour.

Garrison liked the idea of the organization, but felt that the only way this particular health crisis could be addressed was if Garrison got the girls’ mothers involved on a national level.

Making an organization

When the duo first formed GirlTrek, the organization was essentially a “local hiking club,” reports Glamour. Now, though, the organization has “more than 100,000 participants” who pound “the pavement in chapters across the country,” adds Glamour.

The organization’s overall mission is the following.

“[We will] heal our bodies, inspire our daughters, and reclaim the streets of our neighborhoods.”

Taking it to the TED level

Dixon and Garrison eventually transformed their grand idea into a TED talk. The Talk happened in April 2017. It focused on the fact that most healthy living programs are too focused on women getting the “perfect” beach-ready bikini body. In the Talk, the women also focused on how fitness solutions focus on “superficial solutions that ‘dont acknowledge systematic racism’,” explains Garrison.

It just takes 30 minutes

That’s right. The women of GirlTrek only ask that women and girls stick to one 30 minute walk a day.

This seemingly small amount of exercise can do wonders for people and the communities they live in.

“We knew 30 minutes of walking was radical for a woman with two jobs, who has kids, whose husband may or may not be in the home because he may or may not be affected by systemic or racial injustice and violence,” says Garrison.

Thankfully, GirlTrek is planning on expanding their organization’s reach; they’d like to get one million women walking.

“We want to create a new culture of healthy communities, and we need a critical mass,” says Garrison.

Glamour adds that the organization is “targeting the 50 most high-need communities in the rural South and Midwest”. This area is also known as “the obesity belt”; it’s acquired this name because it doesn’t have many healthy food options

The organization also is looking toward the future.

GirlTrek is launching Black Girl Healing; this program will “train women as fitness instructors and nutrition specialists,” adds Glamour. These women will then “lead free classes in parks, healing circles on college campuses, and grocery store walks”.

The post This Organization is Helping Black Women Maintain Their Health appeared first on EcoSalon.

A Quick Makeup Tutorial for Valentine’s Day

Abbie Stutzer — Fri, 09 Feb 2018 09:00:59 +0000

This makeup tutorial will allow you to go from work to your Valentine’s Day date.

The post A Quick Makeup Tutorial for Valentine’s Day appeared first on EcoSalon.

Telemedicine at Planned Parenthood Expands

Abbie Stutzer — Thu, 08 Feb 2018 10:00:08 +0000

Planned Parenthood could help patients seeking medical abortions with telemedicine.

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Another Sport is Plagued by Impossible Body Standards: #NowWhat

Abbie Stutzer — Thu, 08 Feb 2018 08:00:45 +0000

iStock/simonkr

Figure skating is a beautiful sport, but unfortunately, it’s plagued with an ugly problem.

Figure skating’s cold reality

Some professional figure skaters combat eating disorders.

For example, Akiko Suzuki, a Japanese professional figure skater, was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa after she attempted to lose weight to enhance her performance.

Suzuki’s battle with the mental illness started when her coach suggested she could lose one kilogram (about 2.2 pounds) to help her achieve better jumps. Unfortunately, Suzuki lost a third of her body weight.

“There were all these younger skaters coming along with good proportions, and I started wishing for longer legs. I got a real complex,” says Suzuki.

“But since there was no way I could grow, the only thing I could do something about was my weight.”

This isn’t a new issue

It’s not too surprising that eating disorders have always plagued professional figure skating. Often times, figure skaters feel pressure to size-down to make performing easier, and to appear more “aesthetically” pleasing. However, the issue seems to be peaking just in time for the 2018 Olympic Games.

According to the Independent, U.S. skater Gracie Gold says she’s taking a break to address psychological issues and an eating disorder. And Yulia Lipnitskaya, 19-year-old Sochi Olympics team gold medalist, quit skating after receiving treatment for anorexia.

“Anorexia is a disease of the 21st century,” says Lipnitskaya. “It is quite common. Unfortunately, not everyone is able to cope with it.”

Anyone can suffer from an eating disorder

Obviously, anyone can suffer from an eating disorder. We’ve covered these varied mental illnesses in the past, but feel the need to reiterate the following advice.

“Treatment for eating disorders is highly specialized and it is important to go to a trained professional,” says Dana Harron, clinical psychologist at Monarch Wellness & Psychotherapy.

“It is best to have a team comprised of a psychotherapist, a dietitian, a primary care doctor and perhaps a psychiatrist.”

Harron adds that websites, such as ED Referral and National Eating Disorders list professionals who specialize in eating disorder treatment.

“[And] If you already have a primary care doctor, they may be able to help you to find somebody who can work with you to establish healthier ways of relating to food and your body,” says Harron.

The post Another Sport is Plagued by Impossible Body Standards: #NowWhat appeared first on EcoSalon.

Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard’s Love is Next-Level

Abbie Stutzer — Wed, 07 Feb 2018 19:56:00 +0000

Would your partner do this?

The post Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard’s Love is Next-Level appeared first on EcoSalon.

The Cutest Valentine’s Day Cake Ever?

Abbie Stutzer — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 20:24:38 +0000

It will take some time and a bit of skill, but dang, this Valentine’s Day cake looks worth it.

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