Introducing the Biggest Hair Trend From Spring Couture (and How to Pull It Off)

Introducing the Biggest Hair Trend From Spring Couture (and How to Pull It Off)

© Daniel Jackson

La voilette: In French, the word means "face veil," a diminutive of la voile, which is the word for veil. I'm telling you this not because I'm an expert in French (quite the opposite, actually), but because until I looked it up this morning, I had no idea what to call the hair accessory we saw on multiple couture runways. So there it is, the biggest hair trend to come off the spring runways was the voilette. Now, a sheer or mesh black face veil can look superchic and kind of badass. I mean, it takes balls to wear a black veil; plus, there's the mysterious quality you acquire when you obscure your eyes. However it can also, if you're not careful, look like you're a Sicilian grandmother in mourning. That's why I reached out to the experts—milliner Gigi Burris and accessories designer Jennifer Behr—to figure out just how to wear these things in real life.

© Provided by Allure

"I think voilettes have a modernity about them," says Burris. "They lie close to the face and feel more natural than the volume seen in a traditional birdcage veil." Burris prefers a voilette that hits just above the lips, the better to sip champagne throughout the night (I like where her head's at). Avoid any sort of glitzy embellishment (sequins, crystals), and as for your hair: "Keep the hair back and somewhat undone so that it doesn't feel fussy or compete with your voilette," says Burris. "For me, the secret is to keep the hair simple and pulled of the face so it doesn't look costumey," says Behr. "I love voilettes with a low chignon or ponytail, like at Valli, or a cool twisted updo like Jennifer Lawrence wore to the Met Ball in 2013." To amp up the drama, Behr suggests wearing red lipstick, while a knit cap, like we saw at Chanel, gives a veil a casual vibe. And, says Burris, "confidence is most important when wearing a statement accessory like this." Nothing a few more sips of champagne can't fix.

source Introducing the Biggest Hair Trend From Spring Couture (and How to Pull It Off)

Hair How-To: Gorgeous Tucked Fishtail Braid

Hair How-To: Gorgeous Tucked Fishtail Braid

You're obsessed with braids (Who isn't?!), which is exactly why Cosmopolitan.com asked Glamsquad stylist TeQuan Johnson to come up with a new twist on a fishtail braid. Here, he shows you exactly how to execute this gorgeously simple style.1. Boost body and texture in your hair. Model Lizzie used Kérastase V.I.P Dry Volumizing and Texturizing Spray to coat all her strands. Texturizers add grip, which helps any braid you create stay in place longer.2. Begin fishtail-braiding your hair right above the nape of your neck.Need a tutorial on how to create a fishtail braid? Click here. After you're finished braiding, secure your plait with a clear elastic hair band, like Goody Ouchless Mini Elastics.3. Starting with the end of your braid, roll your hair under until you reach the nape of your neck. 4. Secure the rolled style with bobby pins.Finally, finish your gorgeous look with flexible hold hairspray, likeAussie Mega Hair Spray Aerosol Flexible Hold, and then get ready to go out, because girl, your hair looks stunning!Makeup by:Lauren CosenzaSequin Jacket: Awoke VintageFollow Carly on Twitter.

source Hair How-To: Gorgeous Tucked Fishtail Braid

An Easy Winter Nail Art Idea Even Beginners Can Do

Add a little Winter sparkle to your nails with a festive snowflake accent nail. While you can deck out all 10 fingertips with glitter and white snowflake designs, I decided to go for a more simple nail art look that highlights one accent nail. I used the classic Essie Mint Candy Apple ($9) on all my nails except my ring finger, which I painted with Essie Beyond Cozy ($9) as a glittering base. Once I applied two coats of both polishes, I used the Art Club Nail Art Duo Pen in White ($5) to hand-draw snowflake designs on my ring finger. I like the mint-colored polish for a Winter chill look, but you can use red or green for a more Christmas-inspired look and a cobalt blue for a more Hanukkah-inspired look, too.        source

11 Reasons We All Date Guys We Don't Even Like That Much

Everyone has met someone who seemed like a total Gosling and then, a few months later, added up all the negative things about the person and thought,What. The. F**k. Why did I start dating this person in the first place? And why, oh why did I stay with them for this long? An example: One time I dated a guy whose lips were constantly chapped and peeling, and we were dating in the summer, so that doesn't even make sense. And he wore shoes with massive holes in them. Every time we went out, I knew people were thinking, Is she OK? Is this a kidnapping situation? and that's completely fair. Was he a horrible monster? Not at all. He was nice in a lot of ways, but he was an extremely weird match for me. These are pretty much all the reasons we'll stay with someone who is not even close to our type: 

1. You're bored. They're a person, you're a person. And honestly you have nothing better to do right now anyway. 

2. Eh, they're not the worst. I mean they're not the best but, eh. Whatever. 

3. You're too lazy to find someone else and you don't want to be alone. If I wanted to find someone great I'd have to, like, meet people. And leave my house. And put on pants. Jake lives downstairs. Boom. 

4. You're worried your standards are too high, so you figure maybe you should just settle. Look, I know there are people out there whose standards really are too high but if what you're looking for is "a funny, feminist, intelligent, cool person," trust me. That shit isn't too high. It is hard to find though, so I feel you on that. 

5. They're sooooo nice. I've dated people before who I did not have fun with, I thought they smelled kind of weird, and didn't really respect them as a person, but man, were they ever not mean to me! That counts for something, right? Right?

6. Look, they're hot OK? Are they dumber than a box of hammers? Absolutely. But, you know, pecs and stuff. I am only human. 

7. You know this isn't the person you'll be with forever, but they're fine for now. Do I see myself getting married to the guy who threw up at three -three — different locations in my apartment during the course of a night? No, strangely I do not. But he makes really good burritos. 

8. You're kind of depressed. When you're feeling sad or depressed, you'll kind of put up with anything because you feel like garbage anyway. Truthfully, you know you shouldn't be dating anyone right now but oh god, human contact and oh god, so much crying. 

9. They're a good distraction. From school, from work, from life, from stress-eating. It's easier to focus on another person, even if that person blooooows, than to focus on what's really bothering you. 

10. You think it'll make a funny story one day. I'm not endorsing dating jerks for funny stories, but have I done it on some level? Absolutely. His name was Crackhead Dave and I have no regrets. 

11. Because breaking up with someone is really hard. And it takes so much time and energy. Sometimes I just wait until they do something truly terrible because then at least it's like, OK, yep, I had to do that. I had no choice.         source

5 Reasons You Should Never, Ever Get Back Together

Does this story sound familiar: you were dating someone and you were happy, like brag to all of your friends that you're "kind of sort of seeing someone," happy. Even though you didn't have the title, he was basically your boyfriend. You had a parking pass at his place (and not just one of those disposable weekly ones). And you did silly couple-y stuff like kiss in photo booths, venture to the farmers market, and *gasp* get brunch. 

A month passed and you asked the inevitable question:

"So, are you my boyfriend?"

He said he needed more time. Which is Guy for: "I need to spend more time on Tinder."

So you give him time, he never committed, you broke up. Well, can you break up with someone who was never your boyfriend? Like, can you return something you never bought? Time passes and now he wants you back.

What the what?

You should be overjoyed. If this were three months ago, you'd be elated. But the passage of time makes it feel wrong. It's like when those wedges you were eyeing finally go on sale and suddenly you don't want them anymore. They don't have that fresh out-of-the-box smell they had when you first tried them on. Now they're worn with scuff marks. Also it's November. You don't need wedges in the Winter. I'm not saying men are wedges. 'Cause it's nice to have a boyfriend in November.

Getting back together after a break up is common. Look at Ashton and Mila! According to Science Daily, almost 50 percent of couples break up and get back together.

I get the appeal. It's familiar. You know which side of his bed you like to sleep on. It's comfortable. Not to mention the obvious: dating is the worst. See: Tinder.

Here's why I think getting back together can be problematic.

1. You broke up for a reason.
Remember why you broke up? Remember all the times he made you cry? Remember when he didn't want to commit? Or that time you saw another girl texting him her nail art?! Whatever it was, your best friends sure do. They were the ones that were calming you down as you were eating your weight in Yougurtland.
2. It's work.
Relationships are work and sometimes that work is worth it, especially if you have kids or a marriage tying you together. But if you don't have those commitments, then the relationship can feel like it has passed its shelf life, and the work isn't worth it. I had a therapist once explain to me that my relationship with an ex was expired like spoiled milk. And would I drink rotten milk? I told him I drink almond milk, which doesn't really expire. He told me I needed to stop making jokes in therapy. Point is, the work isn't worth it, if the relationship has run its course and you're left with sour milk.
3. Sure, couples get back together on TV, but that's TV.
Chuck and Blaire, Ross and Rachel, Carrie and Big. Yes there are cases when couples get back together and it works out. But you're not a fictional TV character or (and I know this will be harder to accept) Carrie Bradshaw. Every relationship is different. Be realistic about yours and your expectations. Hate to break it to you, but in the real world, your ex is not going to chase you to Paris (unless Paris is Paris, OH).
4. You don't need to "catch up." That's what social media is for.
OK, so maybe you're not getting back with your ex. But you're "grabbing coffee catch up." And you think this is pretty harmless, you're just being cordial! And he deserves to see how much skinnier you've gotten since the break up! Stop it. You might as well hook up with him again (don't do that). We live in a digital age. There is no need to catch up with someone in person, when you can just scroll through their Instagram account and see they're still drinking lattes and seeing sunsets. If someone hurt you so much, what's the point of letting him hurt you again?
5. You can change socks; you can't change people.
My dad told me that and I hate to say, it's true. You know that thing that annoyed you about him that made you realize you're not compatible? He still has that. People do not change. He still likes bad Nicolas Cage movies. He still thinks that terrible taco place next to him is "a nice restaurant;" he still argues the same way. So all you can do is change socks. Aka find someone new. Life is short. You deserve to be happy and eating at a restaurant with at least an A rating.
I hope my two cents helped you, if you're on the fence of getting back with an ex. I truly believe in the words of the great Bob Dylan, "Don't look back."

And this Arnold*, is why we are never, ever getting back together.

*Names have been changed, obviously - who is named Arnold these days aside from the Terminator?          source

7 Reasons Introverted Men Are So Damn Attractive

Think of James Bond for a moment. Quiet. Pensive. Confident. Mysterious. Do you think he was more of an extrovert or introvert? Introvert, of course. If Bond were to follow the common pick-up advice of today, he would have a lot of trouble attracting women. Can you imagine? Tossing out jokes, making a loud and gregarious show, centering himself as the life of the party… It feels a little off, doesn't it? That's because it's just not him. Instead, Bond is mysterious. Badass. Intriguing. Quietly confident. That combination is irresistible to women everywhere, apparently. Do you have to be James Bond to have the same genre of charm he has? Not at all. As long as you're an introvert, you can focus purely on bettering yourself in a way that feels good to you, and your nature will take care of the rest. Here are seven reasons why you, as an introverted man, are naturally attractive: 

1. You are mysterious. You have a rich inner world, full of intriguing thoughts and feelings. Women who like you want to know what you're thinking, but they can't possibly know so easily. This sets up a playful, intense dynamic naturally. 

2. You are easy to be around. By nature, you are chill and relaxed. You're not clamoring for attention, and you're a great listener. These qualities make you pleasant and appealing.

3. You have a fresh perspective on the world. Because you're not into passing fads but are attuned to a deeper reality, the way you see the world is often surprising and wonderful to others. You have a fresh sense of humor and quirky playfulness. 

4. Your introspection makes you a wonderful partner. You have a habit of searching out where you're going right and where you're going wrong in life, so you can take responsibility and better yourself. When developed, this is incredibly earnest and trustworthy to a woman. 

5. You are in tune with subtle chemistry nuances. This is so sexy. Your quiet depth puts you in close touch with your body, her body, and the environment in a way that gives you a special edge. Sometimes, just the slightest glance can make a woman melt, and your intuitive nature means you are especially primed to do that well. 

6. You are intellectually stimulating. Intelligent women are energized by meaningful conversations with intelligent men. Because of your intellectually curious and exploratory nature, you know all kinds of different things to share with others. 

7. You know yourself. As an inwardly oriented man, you know what you like and what you don't like. You know your values, your preferences, and what you want in life. This makes you sophisticated and trustable. Those are only seven reasons you are naturally attractive. There are many more about you specifically that you may not even know. For my clients, it is such a joy to learn themselves, to learn what is uniquely attractive about them. I encourage you to go hunt for those naturally attractive qualities in yourself. Recall meaningful compliments. Reflect on your accomplishments. Try to see yourself in each of the seven facets above. Then, go do whatever it takes to turn up the dial on your most attractive qualities so you can naturally attract extraordinary women and enjoy the hell out of the process.           source

Never Ignore These 10 Red Flags

Picture this: You're getting to know a guy who seems like the total package. He's brilliant and witty and has a body like a Hemsworth. But then all of a sudden, a red flag pops up that makes you reconsider the entire thing. How do you deal? That depends on how serious a red flag it really is. Does he not see the appeal of Friends , like my boyfriend? That kind of minor disagreement isn't what I'm talking about, since it just amounts to a small thing you may not have in common. But there are a few more serious red flags you should never ignore, because they tell you a lot about the dude you're with. Have you ever encountered any of these? 

He moves too fast. Ah, the instant boyfriend. It's one thing if you're both caught up and rushing things, even if you may regret it later. But if he's trying to move things along and get intense before you're ready for it, listen to your intuition. A guy who's moving too fast often has less than pleasant reasons for doing so. Maybe he's actually scared of intimacy and is using you as his crash-test dummy for a real relationship, or maybe he gets attached too easily. Either way, it's not a situation you want to be in. 

He doesn't want to introduce you to his friends. It's a bit more understandable if he has a tough time introducing you to his family, since that's serious. But his friends? If it's been around a month of seeing each other and he's dodgy about you meeting his guys for even a second, it might be cause for concern. Don't jump to conclusions; maybe he's been hurt before and doesn't want to deal with the questions that he gets after a girl he likes meets his crew. But if this is just one of many red flags on his list, he might be hiding something.
He won't spend the night. Hello, cuddling is key! Even if neither of you wants to snuggle after you do the deed, there comes a point when it's just normal to sleep over. If he always rolls out of bed and heads back to his own place, it could be a sign of potential intimacy issues. Spending the night is an easy route to couplesville, so he might avoid it to keep you at arm's length.
He's mean to waiters. A guy who's rude to people who have to be nice to him has power issues. If he snaps at the waiter or bellboy, doesn't tip sufficiently (anything less than 18 percent is only warranted if the service was notably terrible), or makes fun of how people make a living, there's probably some nastiness lurking under the surface.
He doesn't listen during sex. You say you're not into something and he tries it any ways? Bye, Felipe.
He gets out of control. Does he black out from drinking? Depend too much on some Mary Jane to relax? Any substance-abuse issues are a clear warning sign. I'm not saying to immediately break up with a guy who may be an addict, but recognize that supporting someone through that kind of journey is one of the most challenging things you can put a relationship through.
He talks down to you. If he's mean, dump him. If his jokes actually slice at you like a knife, lose the guy. I used to think it was super attractive if a guy was a regulation douchebag to everyone else but nice to me. That guy doesn't exist. If he's rude to other people, you'll eventually get that treatment too.
He refuses to call you his girlfriend. You spend almost every night together, you celebrate anniversaries, and you don't see how he would have time to fit anyone else in on the side. If he still won't call you his girlfriend, I call BS. If a guy refuses to DTR, or hopes that you'll keep things exclusive without putting a name on it, he's asking for permission to get away with things. He'll always be able to fall back on the "I'm not your boyfriend" excuse, even if he is in everything but name.
He flirts a ton in front of you. Sure, lots of people flirt when they're in a relationship. But if it makes you or the other woman uncomfortable, pay attention to that. If he'll do it in front of you, what is he doing when you're not with him?

He's always busy. First of all, don't jump to conclusions. If he has a crazy job or intense family, it makes sense that a lot of his time will be occupied. But if alarm bells start going off because you can only get ahold of him when he wants you to, well, listen to them.        source