Wellness: Norma Kamali Cafe

When I think of Norma Kamali, I think of the sleeping bag coat and versatile jersey pieces, garments fit for an active lifestyle, so it seemed fitting when I learned about Wellness Wednesdays at Norma Kamali Wellness Cafe.

A couple weeks ago, I attended an event with acupuncturist and spiritual counselor Abdi Assadi. Hearing him speak made me feel guilty about my stressful lifestyle, which was a nice reminder to take better care of myself. He spoke a lot about how stress is almost always rooted in ego, and he shared some helpful tips for calming the mind. He suggested taking five minutes a day to plant your feet on the ground, feel your hands and breath from your stomach rather than your chest. Most of us are shallow chest breathers.

From the event, I picked up a small bottle of olive oil and bar of soap. I won't lie; I was a bit skeptical. I wasn't sure a clothing designer had any business selling olive oil. Turns out Norma Kamali is quite the expert! Every season she picks a new harvest from different orchards. Having used the olive oil for a handful of meals over the past couple weeks, I have to say I'm totally in love! The best olive oil I've ever had. It made every dish taste better. Here's a video of Norma herself talking about her olive oils at The Wellness Cafe.



Norma Kamali Wellness Cafe is located at 11 West 56th Street between 5th & 6th Ave (212.957.9797 x111), and for those who can't visit the cafe, her olive oils and selection of wellness solutions are available online at thewellnesscafe.com.

Health & Wellness: Yoga to the People Comes to Brooklyn

Yoga to the People is opening up a new location in Williamsburg, Brooklyn (211 N 11th St between Roebling & Driggs). I'm super excited; yoga was on my list of New Year's resolutions!

This weekend only January 22 & 23, they will be offering free pre-opening hot yoga classes at 10am, 12pm, and 5pm. The sessions are free, but you'll need to pre-register online. For more information and to sign up, click here.

Now Drinking: Kombucha

For those of you who aren't familiar, kombucha is a fermented drink made with tea, yeast and bacteria. The live cultures sometimes make the drink look a little milky or funky, but don't let that scare you. Kombucha is awesome. It's a healthy elixir, which helps your body detox.

I was first introduced to kombucha years ago by Chef Ito at Au Lac Vegetarian Restaurant back in California. At the time I thought the flavor was too pungent, but after things like beer and wine tastings, I've acquired a taste for it and love it!

Kombucha's become quite popular since then. There are a lot of new brewers and flavors, which is always exciting. When I'm out and about, I tend to buy GT's Kombucha; my favorite flavor is Super Fruits. And when I'm at home, I like to order locally from Brooklyn-based Mombucha. I don't have a favorite Mombucha flavor yet just because I like them all - white tea, green tea, black tea, ginger mint, etc. I'm anxiously awaiting for the coffee flavor to be perfected because I sampled it in it's experimental state and loved it.


Important to note about kombucha, while it is tasty it's not something you should chugged like a thirst quencher. Mombucha recommends drinking only 4 ounces a day, unless you're coming down with something in which case you should drink 4 ounces every three hours.

Skinny Jeans Can Cause Nerve Damage

Earlier this week, Consumer Reports' health blog and The Today Show reported that "squeezing into skinny jeans can put you at risk for nerve damage, fertility problems, bladder infections, and even blood clots."

I find The Today Show and Tory Spelling incredibly annoying, but this clip is midly amusing (and informative). The clip recommends thinking of skinny jeans like heels. You can wear them, but in moderation. So be careful with those jeggings ok?