Blog Posts by Glamour Magazine

Homemade pasta is something--along with pie crusts--that terrifies me. The pre-made, boxed versions are so easy and the homemade versions are so deeply, deeply work-involved and take talent and skill and a whole lot of luck I do not actually possess, and are you mad, to consider making your own pasta? Nicky over at Delicious Dish says no, seriously--it is ridiculously simple to make your own gnocchi. With a little practice, you could go from craving to sitting down to a plate of perfect pumpkin-potato pillows in about an hour. Here at the beginning of the week, while we still have a little energy and maybe a little optimism, a little hope that we can cook a tasty dinner for ourselves every night, is the time to tackle something that sounds so scary, and surprise ourselves with our superpowers.

Once you've mastered the art of the gnocchi, try out this delicious recipe for potato gnocchi with shrimp and peas.

image via Delicious Days

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• Top 10 reasons

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Malcolm Gladwell's new book, Outliers: The Story of Success, reveals how exceptionally successful people like The Beatles and Bill Gates, were able to become so wildly outstanding. He attributes their success largely to extraordinary circumstances, incredibly good fortune, and "the magic number of true expertise"--10,000 hours of practice. Gladwell says he achieved his 10,000 hours of practice during his ten years as a reporter for the Washington Post. The Beatles collected theirs in their early years by playing long sets in clubs in Hamburg, Germany, that led them to be more creative and confident as a band. By the time they achieved their first success in 1964, they'd already played a staggering 1,200 shows.

This 10,000 number got me thinking about the hours of my life spent doing different activities--sleeping, eating, reading, working. I shudder to think how much time I spend in front of a computer screen. I need a pie chart. I am serious about committing myself to a healthy

I know we've talked about the importance of eyebrows before. A nicely shaped pair of brows frames your face, makes your eyes look more awake and generally just adds to your overall glam factor. But would it be worth it to you to spend $3,000 to $5,000 to get yours looking perfect? Well, one of the newest trends in cosmetic procedures, has women with ultra-thin arches (thanks either to genetics or years of over-plucking) forking over a couple Ks for eyebrow transplants. Yes, you read that correctly, eyebrow transplants! And the results are actually pretty dramatic. Check out the before and after shots!

Before (left) and after (right):

Before (left) and after (right):

Basically, the folks at Bosley have developed a way to take hair from the sides and back of your scalp and implant it into your brow area to fill in sparse spots. And unlike other options like tattoos and brow pencil, the effect looks like regular ol' brow hair.

What do you think: Would you ever

It's already started: my annual holiday freakout. You see, my family is dysfunctional -- a whirling mire of passive-aggressive behavior, snide remarks and constant gossip. Scheduling anything with them is impossible, because nobody seems to be capable of arriving on time. If we are told to come at 2:00 p.m., we sit in an empty living room for at least an hour or more, waiting for people to show up, some of whom start arriving around 5:00 p.m. Then they get irritated when we have to leave for other plans at 6:00. How can you leave now? Aunt Drusilla isn't even here yet? And I'm the inconsiderate one? What's more, they ignore Esteban the entire time. He's been coming to holiday gatherings for the last 18 years, so you'd think they'd stop treating him like an outsider by now. If we skip a gathering, I'm branded a snob or "hoighty-toighty," (which is the worst sin imaginable to my grandmother). However, some years, my family has decided they want to have a gathering on Christmas Eve AS

I'll bet you didn't need yet another reason to absolutely love Kate Winslet, but she's scored yet another win for body acceptance. You'll of course remember that she blasted GQ for airbrushing away most of her BMI, and she also had extremely non-sexy washbasin sex with Patrick Wilson in a way that was somewhat unflattering. While filming her latest, The Reader, she considered whether to bare or not to bare. The directors offered her a body double for the naked scenes, but she refused:

"Describing her own body, Kate admits to having aged, but maintains she is proud of her flawed physique, saying: 'Here we go, I have a crumble baby belly, boobs are worse for wear after two kids... I'm doing all right. I'm 33. I don't look in the mirror and go, 'Oh, I look fantastic!' Of course I don't.

'Nobody is perfect. I just don't believe in perfection. But I do believe in saying, 'This is who I am and look at me not being perfect!' I'm proud of that.'" (Source)

Call me a masochist, but I like a mean, yappy facialist who relishes in violently purging my hideous skin of all its shameful gruel and lectures the whole time: I'm not staring at the ceiling miserably for an hour, tortured by some squawky Beyoncé song that somehow made its way into my shower-capped head.

My all-time favorite aesthetician was a cranky Polish woman in her 50s who detested spa music and mood lighting; small talk about anything non-skin-related was out of the question (the exception: long, thickly accented rants about her lazy, disobedient teenage son, who never picked up after himself). Alternately, she never shut up about how stupidly I'd been treating my face and the MANY things I absolutely HAD to do to salvage it, but always had great tips I'd never heard before. Some of the best:

1) If you're acne-prone, dry your face with paper towels to prevent bacteria from spreading ("Not good for trees, but who cares," she said).

2) Change pillowcases three times

I love Thanksgiving. Especially when I'm invited to someone else's. Thanks to my friend Lisa, this lazy crabmommy won't have to tussle with any turkeys this year. And thanks to me, those of you hosting Thanksgiving-fests of your own can dazzle your diners with these swanky but budget-conscious $13 and under Etsylicious decorations.

How about these Thanksgiving letter-pressed place cards (set of 10 for $3.00, at left)? And how screamingly gorgeous are these needle-felted wool acorn napkin rings (right) bound by double-sided chocolate ribbon? As you know I have a bit of an acorn thing going on right now, but can you blame me? I think these offerings are a swell deal coming in at $8.25 for a set of two. Convo with the vendor over custom colors, and when T-giving is over, use them to jazz up holiday gifts, or twist around a wine bottle for some serious recycled panache. Recession-fabulous, I tell you!

Continuing with the recycled motif, why not add a stylish, vintage-y,

A lot can happen in ten minutes, especially when you only have that long to get ready for a party. For ideas on how to make it snappy-but look like you spent hours primping-try Allure's Best Party Hair and Makeup Tips. You'll get time-saving tricks, product recommendations, and how-tos for mastering five-minute makeup, creating an easy, dressy ponytail, and even looking and feeling refreshed the day after.

By registering, you'll be automatically entered to win a spa trip for two to the Exhale at the Fairmont Miramar Hotel and Bungalows in Santa Monica with treatments, meals, fitness activities, and more!

More from Allure:

• Skin Magicians: Secrets from skincare ads
  Tips and tricks from all the behind the scenes experts.
• Allure's Salon and Spa Directory
  Our undercover reporters get manicured, massaged, scrubbed, and rubbed-all to bring you reviews of the best beauty services from coast to coast.
• Ready to slim down, tone up, and look your best?