The fairest of them all

Tags

beauty, cartoons, celebrities, Cinderella, Disney World, entertainment, fashion, princess, Sofia the First

Just for the record, I don’t watch cartoons.

My youngest child is 26 and I’ve never been a fan of “Family Guy” or “The Simpsons.” Which is why I was surprised to discover a new cartoon princess while channel-surfing last Friday night with a lovely bottle of Pinot Noir.

And this cutie-with-a-crown might even make feminists smile: She’s not looking for a prince and doesn’t have a creepy stepmother. Indeed, “Sofia the First” was raised by a single mother who made shoes until she met and married a king!

Way to go, Disney!

Sophia now has a new dad, new stepsiblings, a new school and a new royal lifestyle. The episode I watched had her preparing for a “Princess Test” administered by three fairy teachers – delightful. (Let me emphasize that I was sipping Pinot Noir, not guzzling it.)

The writing emphasizes her character, rather than her beauty. No wonder the show is this year’s most-watched cable series among children 2 to 5, according to Nielsen Holdings data. (Rumor has it that Sofia also is a live attraction at Disney Hollywood Studios in Orlando.)

“I’ve got the shoes, I’ve got the dress.That makes me a princess, I guess,” she sings.

This royal girl is the product of a Disney team of writers, child-development and early-education experts and she’s vastly different from traditional “princess” characters.

Think about it – Cinderella swept a lot of floors before the glass slipper fit and mermaid Ariel gave up her voice to be reunited with a man she once saved from drowning. Really?

At last, the Disney “Marketeers” have produced a princess most of us can relate to.

Rapunzel, Rapunzel

Tags

aging, baby boomers, beauty, fashion, Hair, skin care industry, style

Psssst – does my hair look old?

Neither wrinkle creams nor treadmill time will diminish the latest worry for aging baby boomers. That’s why the number of anti-aging hair care products is growing on supermarket shelves near you.

One of the biggest complaints mature adults have about their hair is that it gets thinner. (That actually starts happening in our late-30s, due to a decrease in the number of active hair follicles according to scientists at Procter & Gamble.) But after 40, our locks also become more brittle and fragile. And if we color our gray hair or use other chemical treatments, we damage it further.

Voila! The beauty industry is pushing new hair products to the 82 million of us between the ages of 45 and 64. And they’ve learned a thing or two from the skin-care industry:
To attract older men and women, skin-care products developed new language cues. Most avoid the words “old“ and “age“ and focus on “results.”

If only our younger selves had known about the preventative steps which can be taken to maintain our hair’s soft and shiny appearance… We would avoid anything that causes repeated tension or pain – like aggressive brushing while drying or tugging with a flat iron. Thankfully, Floridians of all ages learn to stay out of the sun because UV rays damage our hair as well as our skin.

I guess I’ll just have to shampoo, condition, add volume and shine to fool Mother Nature (and the general public) for one more day.

Like the wrinkles on my forehead weren’t enough to worry about….

Greetings

Tags

business, cards, e-cards, email, Family, greetings, Memories, technology

Alright, I’m sentimental.

If you open my nightstand drawer, you’ll find a card from my grandfather (congratulating me for making the dean’s list,) a Valentine from old lover and several Mother’s Day cards signed in crayon. They share space with anniversary cards from my husband, supportive cards from my girlfriends, and a stack of sympathy cards that I received, but could not bear to read when my mother died.

That’s why the news that greeting-card industry sales are down – battered by free competitors online – is so unsettling to me.

Technology companies launched electronic greetings – no stamps, no handwriting needed. But we can’t save those sentiments as tangible reminders of the ones who love us. Emails and E-cards have no lasting significance.

Of course some people still buy paper cards: The average customer is in their 40s, according to American Greetings Corporation, which was founded in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1905. That company still generates 89% of its revenue from cards and gift packaging. Interactive business accounts for just 4% of its revenue.

That’s good news for those of us who prefer the printed word to trendy new digital offerings. There’s a certain comfort that comes from reading a message in my grandfather’s meticulous penmanship or holding a birthday card signed by my mother’s hand.

Quite simply, the new way to share old sentiments isn’t as satisfying. Am I wrong?