Blog Posts by Reader s Digest Magazine

By Maria Hunt

The hostess of thebubblygirl.com and author of The Bubbly Bar shares her favorite cocktails and party appetizers just in time for your holiday party.

By: Janice Lieberman

You may wonder what really goes on behind the scenes of the stores before Black Friday. I did. So I asked Freeman Hall author of "Retail Hell - How I Sold My Soul to the Store, Confessions of a Tortured Sales Associate" (Adams Media; $22.95) for the inside secrets on how to get the best bargains for the holiday. Hall is a former handbag manager for Nordstroms and is willing to spill!

Here are 20 Inside Shopping Secrets:

1. Case the Place - Check out the store the day before Thanksgiving so you can make a beeline to the items you've coveted. Talk to sales associates to get the low down on what will go down!

2. Know What You Want Ahead of Time - Not everything is on sale on Black Friday. The best deals are advertised because the stores buy them in bulk.

3. Be Sale Smart - Bring sale ads with you for clarification and extra in-store coupons which also make great leverage for price-matching. Hit the back clearance racks and look for additional discounts, take

By: Liz Kennedy

1. Half- and-Half -- It's Not Just for Your Coffee
Recipe calls for: Heavy Cream
Substitute with: Half-and-Half

Love creamy soups but hate the calories that come with them? Me too. Instead of using heavy cream for your soups and sauces, try using half-and-half. If you want to go even lighter, use fat-free half-and-half. You'll get the same creaminess, but won't be loading up your soup with extra calories. And Grandma will still think you used her original recipe
Try this substitution in our creamy turkey vegetable soup. Perfect for Thanksgiving leftovers!

2. Hold the Mayo
Recipe calls for: Mayonnaise
Substitute with: Fat-Free, Plain Greek Yogurt

We all like to slather mayonnaise on our over-stuffed sandwiches, but all that slathering really adds up on the scales. Try replacing mayo or sour cream with fat-free, plain Greek yogurt in your recipes. It's thick and creamy, just like mayonnaise, but with no fat and more protein. I promise you won't be able to tell the

Craft projects and images created by Jennifer Sbranti

A table brimming with the fall's harvest is best bedecked with earthy autumn colors. We asked Hostess with the Mostess.com's Jennifer Sbranti for ten effortless craft projects to try at home. Read on for the lifestyle blogger's chic and simple how-tos.

The Reality of Married Lovemaking
When writer Miriam Arond and her husband, psychiatrist Samuel L. Pauker, M.D., surveyed hundreds of newlywed couples across the nation, they discovered that 85 percent had made love before tying the knot, yet the frequency and quality of unmarried sex had little to do with the reality of married lovemaking. Nearly half said that after marriage, they didn't have sex as often as they'd like; 20 percent of new wives reported low sexual desire. For a fourth of the wives, sex meant painful intercourse or elusive orgasms, while 1 in 10 husbands experienced premature ejaculation, and 1 in 20 had erection problems.

Plus: 6 Nutrition Strategies for a Stronger Sex Drive

What ever happened to athletic, swinging-from-the-chandeliers, "did-the-earth-move-for-you-too?" prenuptial lovemaking? The deep, mystical, Tantric communing of two spirits? Hours of Hollywood sex complete with mood music, flickering candlelight, and satin sheets?


© 2009 Jupiterimages Corporation
"The excitement of getting

By Amy Maclin

Turn castoffs into cash with these easy-sell secrets.

Think of all that unloved stuff spilling off your shelves or crammed into your closet: the last-generation iPod, the Donna Karan dress that never fit, Aunt Sally's porcelain shepherdess. With a little ingenuity, you could find you're sitting on a gold mine … or at least this year's holiday fund. Here, the Reader's Digest guide to thinning your overstock and fattening your wallet.

Plus: 9 Vintage Items That May be Worth Money

GETTING STARTED: WHAT IS IT WORTH?
That heirloom chest in your dining room looks just like the Stickley piece that pulled in a $3,500 estimate on last night's Antiques Roadshow. Should you get an appraisal?

The first thing the experts will tell you: Manage your expectations. "All you see on those shows is the highlights," says Alex Winter, general manager at Hake's Americana & Collectibles in York, Pennsylvania. "Don't get your hopes up until you've done the research."

Photo: ©2009

Don't wing it this holiday season. Get the secrets to cooking and handling your turkey properly

By Bridget Nelson Monroe

Bartenders share their secrets, tips and best etiquette advice.

Also 13 More Things Your Bartender Won't Tell You

1. Yell, whistle, or wave money and I'm going to make you wait. Make eye contact and smile, and I'll come over as soon as I can. Know what you want and have your money ready. Don't create a traffic jam.

2. Start a tab. If I swipe your card five times this evening, that's five times as much paperwork I have to do
at 4 a.m.

Plus: 10 Funny Happy Hour Quotes From Famous People

3. You want a drink made "strong?" Then order a double-for double the price. 4. Liquor sales in bars and restaurants were down 2.2 percent last year. Even beer sales are slow. But people scrimp on food first, drinks second.

5. A lot of bars have comp tabs, which allows me to give away drinks. It's smart business and helps build a base of regulars.



Clipart.com

6. Bars that don't have regulars (in hotels, airports) have started using wireless gadgets that measure how much