Now I am not exactly bringing you an original idea here. I have been buying jean shorts for so long that I actually forgot about recycling my old jeans. This thought struck when I was trying on a pair of True Religion jean shorts at Nordstrom priced at a very reasonable $176.00. I am more of an American Eagle jean short girl. I’ll spend the big bucks on jeans but definitely not the shorts. While peeling the shorts off I remembered I had a pair of NEVER worn True Religion jeans at home in my closet. Truthfully, I only bought them because the size 25 fit. What can I say? I’m vain. Here is the way I saved myself almost $200…

These are 2 years old and definitely look out of style. The boot cut is way too wide. Also, the white threading makes it hard to match anything but a white shirt.

True Religion jeans have always seemed a little flashy to me. Every time I put them on I felt the need to go out and buy a country-style snap button shirt and head over to the local honkey-tonk.

This is where you must pay close attention. Okay, let’s begin…

Step 1: Get scissors

Step 2: Cut jeans at desired length

Step 3: Cuff or don’t cuff. Whatever pleases you.

This project took all of about 5 minutes. Aren’t they cute??

Reader Note: Please don’t judge me on my dirty carpet. I’ve got toddlers.

Seksi, huh? I have to say that True Religion jeans are much more tolerable in their shorter version. Just give me a ring if you need any help recycling your old jeans. I think I may be on to something here.

Bam.

Scott told me I shouldn’t post the back view but I said I must be true to my readers. Now what to do with the old pant legs…

Bat wings, perhaps?

Written by Lea Barlow • Leave a comment

Some of these are obvious and some are just down right ridiculous but none of them involve sex or walking up an amount of endless stairs.  I wanted to give you more unique ways to burn a few extra calories in the day.

1. Indulge your inner dork and do 27 underwater handstands.

2. Push a grocery cart for 45 minutes.

3. Put a 42-pound 4-year-old in the child seat and it’ll only take half an hour.

4. Carry five grocery bags from the car to the kitchen and put the food away, take out the trash, wash the dishes, and wipe down the kitchen counter.

5. Eat chili for a couple of days: Research shows that chili peppers boost your metabolic rate, burning 50 more cals a day.

6. Hula-hoop for 22 minutes.

7. Wash, halve, and seed two acorn squash, then watch them bake for 30 minutes.

8. Play “Chopsticks” on the piano incessantly for 41 minutes.

9. Sing the Grease original soundtrack from start to finish.

10. Degrease by scrubbing in the shower for 15 minutes, then spend 7 minutes shaving, 3 minutes toweling off, 4 minutes moisturizing, and 20 minutes blow-drying and styling your hair.

11. Have fun when you get back to work: Twirl 123 times in your office chair (try not to puke).

12. Shop during your lunch hour while carrying a 7-pound hobo bag (and, naturally, a few new purchases).

13. Kick off your Sunday shoes and dance to the first four songs off the Footloose soundtrack.

14. Drink 3 cups of green tea in 24 hours: Researchers say it can increase energy expenditure by 106 calories.

15. Play interactive Wii Tennis for 13 minutes.

16. Do 780 jumping jacks. Yes, 780.

17. Spend 29 minutes mopping over any scuff marks.

18. Sweep your floors for 15 minutes, then vacuum for 15.

19. Now read 30 pages of Hugo’s Les Misérables (or how about just lifting that book a few times!)

20. Take in the greenery: Sit in lotus position and breathe deeply for an hour and 42 minutes.

21. Email 68 times.

22. Carry a cooler stocked with three bottles of water, a six-pack, four PB&Js, two oranges, a bag of tortilla chips, and 12 servings of cool cucumber salsa for 22 minutes.

23. Slather on lip balm 765 times

24. Swing a lasso over your head 375 times

25. Play fashion show and try on 16 different outfits (one every 3 minutes). – my personal favorite

Source:  womenshealthmag.com

Written by Lea Barlow • Leave a comment

I stopped reading fitness magazines years ago. I got sick of seeing ridiculously thin stick figured bodies portraying the picture of ‘fit and healthy’ on the covers. Now we are in the celebrity airbrushing phase. Airbrushing is a fact of life when it comes to selling fashion magazines. I get that.  But it really irks me when they apply it to the fitness genre. Here are a couple examples…

Really, SHAPE?? We all know the Duffster is actually more of a chubster….

Trust me, I am not busting on Lizzie Maguire’s bod here. She looks perfectly fine but NOTHING like the magazine cover. These obvious deceptions make me not trust anything the magazine has to offer. Here’s another one for you…

Hmmm. Not real interested in reading how Jennifer Love Hewitt keeps the weight off. While SHAPE magazine is a repeat offender my latest gripe is with Women’s Health. I have come to really like this magazine. It is full of a wide variety of tips ranging from nutrition to fitness to beauty. Unfortunately, the interview with cover girl cutie, Julianne Hough was extremely disappointing.

Here are Julianne’s ‘Nutrition Tips’:

1. “Don’t blow off breakfast. Even if it is just three bites.” Uh, okay. Breakfast is unacceptable to miss but three freaking bites DOES NOT constitute a breakfast! That one really got to me.

2.  “Have cereal for a snack. Honey-Nut Cheerios is my treat. Or, for a late-night snack, I’ll have Raisin Bran.” I had to take lots of deep breaths after reading that quote. Granted, this ballroom darling is only 22 years old and dances all day for a living. She can get away with eating sugar-filled cereal to tide her over between meals. Good for her. Shame on Women’s Health for actually trying to sell me her ‘nutrition’ tips. This part of the interview should have been cut out.

Okay, I am done with my tirade. Sorry, I’m in a bit of a mood today.

Written by Lea Barlow • 2 Comments

I have not had a treat so decadent in quite some time. But frankly, this week I deserve it. Besides working out every day (sometimes twice) for the past 2 weeks I also had a painful deep cleaning done on my teeth yesterday. You may wonder what that has to do with indulging myself this weekend and I will tell you – nothing. I’m just hungry. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 15 whole crackers ground in processor)
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3/4 cups sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate (do not exceed 61% cacao), chopped
• 1/2 cup (scant) heavy whipping cream
• 3/4 cup plus one 7-ounce jar marshmallow creme
• Nonstick vegetable oil spray
• 12 1-inch pieces broken graham crackers (for garnish)

*Special equipment: Apple corer

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 12 standard muffin cups with paper liners. Whisk graham crumbs, flour, baking powder, and pinch of salt in medium bowl. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating to blend between additions. Beat in vanilla. Add graham-cracker mixture in 3 additions alternately with milk in 2 additions, beginning and ending with graham-cracker mixture. Divide batter among muffin cups.

Bake cupcakes until tester inserted into center come out clean, about 22 minutes. Transfer cupcakes to rack; cool completely.

Place chocolate in medium bowl. Bring cream just to boil in small saucepan; pour over chocolate. Let stand 1 minute; stir until smooth. Cool ganache until lukewarm.

Push apple corer about 1 inch into top of each cupcake; remove cake, forming hole. Spoon 3/4 cup marshmallow creme into resealable plastic bag, pushing into 1 bottom corner. Cut 1/2 inch off corner. Pipe into holes in cupcakes. Spread 2 teaspoons ganache over each cupcake. DO AHEAD Can be made 8 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.

Preheat broiler. Coar rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray. Spoon dollops of marshmallow creme on sheet. Broil until slightly charred, 1 to 2 minutes. Spoon dollop of charred cremem over each cupcake; garnish with crumbled of graham crackers, chocolate chips or a mini Hershey’s bar. Whatever you wish. Makes 12 delectable cupcakes. 

*Happy Friday – now go get your bake on!*

Written by Lea Barlow • 1 Comment