I applaud Bravissimo for taking women who are beautiful and yet have realistic figures and putting them front and center for their new lingerie advertisements. While I tend to roll my eyes at all the hoopla over the curvy, plus size, and ‘regular’ woman, I can’t deny the importance of incorporating healthier models into fashion. After all it makes sense that lingerie for larger-breasted women would feature healthier frames and not just anorexics with boob jobs but I wonder if this would have happened a few months before the plus size phenomenon swept our magazines spreads and advertisements. As these stories tend to gain press and momentum, I can’t help but question is this is just a trend that will soon die our. Anna Prince, Bravissimo spokesperson explains that the new campaign “promotes healthy body image by showing that real women can look fantastic too. Our customers have told us that they would prefer to see images of real women than of models. The girls we have chosen are beautiful yet attainable.”

I find it refreshing that Bravissimo’s audience wants something more real but my question is how many women truly want to take the fantasy out of their fashion?

While many of the women I interview highlight the importance in having women of different shapes and sizes on the runways and in fashion spreads, there is still quite a large number who believe when it comes to purchasing, fashion should be kept for the skinny. It is also obvious in the numbers of what sells since people tend to buy what is on a Gisele and not a Gabriel Sibde. It’s no secret that there is still a notion among some women that viewing thin models gives them something to aspire to and fits within their fantasy world of perfection. However the problem is that when perfection only means size zero it is incorrect and damaging. We already know that super skinny to the point of unhealthy is not what men find attractive and yet we still keep envying figures that look like they haven’t had a meal since 2001. Until there is a mental shift of who is worthy of appearing in Vogue and selling clothes, I am not sure if these ads will truly help change anything.

We have been hearing too much about over sharing on the internet. Posting pics of you on the toilet, drunk twittering while driving, or status updating that you are playing hooky on the beach right after telling your boss you are home sick is just the tip of the over sharing iceberg. However as popular social marketing sites like Twitter, Foursquare, Yelp, and Google Buzz encourage you to disclose your exact up to date location, certain sites have taken action to expose how easily your personal information can get in the wrong hands. One of the latest examples is ‘Please Rob Me,’ which launched this month and demonstrates how easy it is to rob people when they are constantly posting online that they are not home.

The site owners disclosed on their site “The danger is publicly telling people where you are. This is because it leaves one place you’re definitely not… home. So here we are; on one end we’re leaving lights on when we’re going on a holiday, and on the other we’re telling everybody on the internet we’re not home. It gets even worse if you have “friends” who want to colonize your house. That means they have to enter your address, to tell everyone where they are. Your address.. on the internet.. Now you know what to do when people reach for their phone as soon as they enter your home. That’s right, slap them across the face.”

The bigger picture is that people need to start rethinking their incessant verbal vomiting online because whether it’s a robber, boss, friend, or enemy, some things are better kept to yourself!

I recently received a gift certificate to Completely Bare, a chain of a spas that specialize in waxing and laser hair removal but have been putting it off mostly because I can’t really imagine spending over $70 dollars on torturous hair pulling even if it was a “gift.” However, looking on their website to see what else was offered, I found even more reason for me to stay far away. Apparently Completely Bare is claiming they started the latest trend known as “Vajazzling” which involves a Brazilian wax followed by decorating your vagina with individually glued on Swarovski crystals. Researching this further, I found out that women other than strippers have decided this is a good look and it has even sparked interest from celebrities like Jennifer Love Hewitt. Hey, I applaud the desire to dress up or creatively decorate oneself  but the last thing I want to see when I look down there is a disco ball on my whooha!  Just the logistics of it tells me it would A) frighten or blind my partner and B) make sex a WHOLE lot more annoying especially if some of the crystals fell….well you know where.

I am just waiting for someone to annoy the hell out of me by passing this off as  a womens’ liberation move to adorn ones vajajay in celebration of our sexuality. I think for now, I will stick to my quick and easy wax at the local nail salon that costs less than 25 bucks and involves no bling bling.

Married to the Blog: Vejazzling!

Starting her workday at 8pm as a nurse in the ICU, Rachael discusses how she prepares herself for a rush that involves life or death decisions. In this interview, we find out how a person’s life is impacted when your work schedule runs contrary to that of everyone else and involves people dying in front of you.

Age? 26

Places you have lived? Cleveland, Columbus, New York

Places you want to live? New York and I have to say somewhere in New Jersey but I don’t know where yet.

Where do you work? Nurse in the cardiothoracic unit at Lenox Hill Hospital

There are so many stereotypical ideas out there of what a nurse is supposed to be and do, can you tell us what it is really to be a nurse?

Well, I work twelve-hour shifts and my day starts at 8 o’clock at night. I usually get a patient who is fresh out of open- heart surgery, relatively unstable, with an IV drip and on a lot of medication. As a nurse, I have to trouble shoot all the problems such as if the patient is bleeding internally or if his or her heart is not effectively pumping. It’s not just passing them a pill and telling them they will feel better, it is like you are treating a machine that is the body; it is all business, all the time. It is a lot different than you would think and if you could be a fly on the wall, I would love it because no one can really see what we do.

Do you feel respected by doctors and surgeons or do they often behave as if they are the big shots and you are only there to assist them?

It depends on the surgeon. There are some that are very good and will come ask you what you think because you are the one who has seen the patient for the past twelve hours. They have that holistic view and nine times out of ten they will listen to your clinical assessment on what the patient needs. I only work with surgeons and a lot of times I encounter very egotistical “I am God” personalities, surgeons that come in, take a one-minute look at the patient and think they know better. It is hard sometimes because you have to take what they say and do it even if you think it is wrong. But you kind of have to respect the place they are coming from because I have found situations when a surgeon who doesn’t want to listen to you is right.

Can you remember a time in the ICU that was particularly hard for you to get through?

Well, I have been there for two years now and so far, no one has ever passed away during one of my shifts.  However this past week, I had a patient who wanted the hospital to withdraw care; that was also the wish of the patient’s family. It was very hard because we could have given him certain kinds of care and gotten him to a point where he would have been ok and could have even gone home but this was not the person’s wish. I had to step back and over the twelve hours I was there I had to watch him go from a stable condition to the point where he passed. As nurses we are trained to do the opposite, and try whatever we can to keep the patient stable.  I didn’t want to be the one who let this happen, but seeing the family at peace and understanding that this is what that patient wanted helped me get through it.

What are your thoughts when patients in a dire situation prefer to be at home regardless of the risk rather than stay in the hospital and get the care they need?

I don’t think that is an easy question to answer and it depends on the person. I think if I can give an advice, it would be to have a living will in which you specify what you want before anything happens to you; because otherwise it is a legal issue for us. I do have to say this discussion is so weird for me because (more…)

I have always found it interesting that men often rate curvy women like Beyonce, Jennifer Lopez, Christina Hendricks, Marilyn Monroe, and Kim Kardashian as some of the most attractive women in the world and yet we as women always stress over becoming super skinny. Whether in interviews, polls or face to face, many men agree that having curves on a woman are an important asset that they find extremely sexy so why is the image of an emaciated twig still stuck in so many women’s heads?

Furthermore, with all the recent focus on the “normal size,” “plus size” and “curvy,” new research is now showing that men prefer a curvier figure but I am not so sure that is such a good thing for our self esteem. Claiming that  images of women with curves excite the male brain in the same way that illegal drugs do, this recent study is showing that men actually get a high off of curvy ladies.

The Daily Mail reports, “Researchers in Georgia, in the U.S., scanned the brains of 14 young men as they looked at before and after pictures of nude women who had plastic surgery to give them more shapely hips and bottoms. The operations didn’t reduce their weight, just redistributed it, the journal PLoS ONE reports. Seeing the post-operative shots excited the brain’s ‘reward centres’ – regions more usually activated by drink and drugs.”

Ok, so I guess in a way I should be happy that we are moving away from the unhealthy skinny that plagues our society and yet I am not sure that fourteen young men brains is enough research nor do I believe we should focus on curves being more valued than other frames. When it comes down to it, men are not so simple to only want one thing and we should not dumb them down to desiring only one body type. In the end a size zero or a size 16 will be attractive to different men especially when being healthy comes first–hey, you look just as bad as huge slob as you do a malnourished skeleton. So let’s stop being taken advantage of and come to a place where being being healthy is what is sexy.

PS–I think it is also important to note that the article on loving curves which ran on the Daily Mail was directly right next to a large ad about how to diet and losing fat…pure coincidence? Sadly, I think not.

Daily Mail: Looking at curvy women ‘gives men the same high as alcohol or drugs

This is the type of news I want to read on a Thursday (or any day for that matter)!

We often hear about the lack of women in finance and investment banking which was sadly ingrained in us from the start with little encouragement in schools and even our Barbie doll saying “math class is tough.” However a recent survey conducted by The Hedge Fund Journal is showing that when put to the challenge, women are more and more playing lead roles in hedge funds. Even with the fact that women manage only 3% of the $1.5 trillion invested in hedge funds globally, the strides and achievements they have made are now opening up more doors for women in a field that is often known as alpha male.

And the proof is clearly in numbers. The Hedge Fund Research is showing that “Between 2000 and 2009, women-owned funds delivered an average 9.06% annual return, compared with a 5.82% average for all funds.”

Whoo…hoo!

While it is clear that there is still a lot more than needs to be done to make the numbers equal, it is inspiring to hear that the woman who are in these positions are kicking ass even in a crap economy!

Guardian: Female touch is boosting hedge funds

Taking TheDailyFemme to the streets, coffee shops, libraries, art galleries, sports games, buses,  trains, and a few email exchanges, we ask women all over the country (and sometimes the world) one simple question. What we get in return is a lot of insight, advice, some nervous confusion and even a hug or two.

This week’s question: Since over 8 million women are estimated to visit online dating sites monthly, we asked women have they ever online dated and why or why not?

What we found out: Received a lot of “No way” answers but aren’t too sure if that was the truth or just a cover up. It was also interesting that most women preferred that we did not include a picture in this round to mask their identity.

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Janice: Charlotte, NC

Part of me feels a little too old fashion to try online dating but honestly another part of me realizes I may just be a little bit scared. I think there should be some more support and openess towards it to make people comfortable. I would love to have chats with my girlfriends on it but worry they would judge me.

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Leigh: Santa Barbara, CA

Ew….no thank you. To me it admits defeat, like you can’t get a guy on your own you need a service to help you? Not for me.

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Annie: New York, NY

Oh online dating is addicting! Every day I open 5 tabs–match.com, j-date (I am only 1/4 Jewish!), eharmony and chemistry and start working at it! It takes way too much of my time but its enthralling to find new interests and people interested in you. I think I need to start weening myself off some of the sites because honestly, it is taking up some of my work day but I am seriously hooked. You do have to be careful though because some of the guys are such creeps but I think you can tell pretty easily if you screen them enough online and the sites help you do that.

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Joanne: Amherst, MA

Well because I am a lesbian, there aren’t as many options for me. A lot of online dating sites don’t let lesbians find love becuase they feel we are deserving or within their morals. Just the fact that a few are against women who date women, it really turned me off to the whole thing.

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Britney: Miami, FL

I have tried it but it was a NIGHTMARE! Listen, guys don’t put some pic of you 10 years ago when your fat and gross. It’s misleading and it’s not like we aren’t going to find out sooner or later! Also I don’t really like the ones that are race or ethnicity focused because I think it only promotes a lot of issues that we have with acceptance of biracial couples.

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Isabelle: Portland, Oregon

I have had some really great experiences with it and actually have been in a relationship with one guy for over a year now thanks to chemistry.com. I also just got the opportunity to meet some great guys that I would have never had the opportunity otherwise and we actually still keep in touch as friends. Only awkward thing is that I am not that comfortable telling people how we met mostly because I hate the look of shame that they give me every time. But I think I will get over it–its amazing how little my boyfriend cares. He is the first to tell people which I think is great.

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Chrissie: Melbourne, Austrailia

I lived in the states for three years and I tried online dating but not really in a serious way. I much prefer joking around on Craigs List Casual Encounters but (more…)