Today, I flew over to Los Angeles to style (along with my lovely assistant, Elaine Low) and interview the actor, director, and writer. The photographer was his brother, Shiloh Strong, who also acts, directs, and writes. Our make-up artist, Christa McCarthy, and hairstylist, Mandi Aparicio, were great company and offered Elaine and me some beauty tips in-between the shots.

Shiloh Strong

Elaine Low

Noel Duan

Elaine Low

Noel Duan

I managed to contain my Mr. Feeny jokes, but I couldn’t help but ask Rider about Shawn Hunter’s illustrious hair. Oh, and about his favorite books in Lit Hum. Curious? Stay tuned for the issue in January!

Noel Duan

Editor in Chief

If only we look like Karmen Pedera and Marlon Teixeira when we walk to class.

Noel Duan

Editor in Chief

Now, that’s not to say Seventeen is perfect. Far from it, in fact. As I grew older, some of the content lost its appeal for me. I began to question many of their cover choices – many of the girls (and occasionally boys) selected are not what I would consider ideal role models for pre-teens and teens.

parishiltononline.net

I recently stumbled across a blog determined to pinpoint all the flaws of Seventeen, The Seventeen Magazine Project. The writer, Jamie Keiles, intended to spend one month living according to the “gospel” of Seventeen magazine. Long story short, there isn’t much of the magazine she approves of. As Keiles puts it, “Seventeen makes an effort [to provide teens with relevant, age-appropriate content], but falls short of achieving this goal by addressing teen girls as a monolithic block of people with a unified interest in nail polish, dieting, and winning the attention of swoopy-haired boys.”

Point taken.

However, I don’t seem to remember Seventeen ever claiming to be the “gospel” of anything, or forbidding teens to apply to other sources for information. In fact, I find it hard to believe that in modern times, teens are relying on a single magazine for inspiration and advice. In reality, these girls are probably also surfing the internet, reading blogs, and receiving other magazines. At the time when I read Seventeen, I was also getting Cosmogirl!, Teen Vogue, and developing an interest in the fine arts. And you know what? I still like nail polish.

This isn’t an attack on Jamie or her project. In fact, I admire her for having the courage to put her thoughts out there, and enjoyed reading her blog. The truth is, there’s no perfect magazine or website for teens, because teen girls aren’t a homogeneous group with identical thoughts and interests. At an age when they are absorbing all sorts of information, and growing into adults, teens should be exposed to as much information as possible.

And yes, that includes Seventeen.

Helen Chen
Blog Director

First on my list is taking a guided tour of Big Bambú, a vast sculpture by Mike and Doug Starn on the Met’s Roof Garden consisting of 5,000 interlocking bamboo poles. On the tour, visitors can clamber on elevated bamboo pathways within the sculpture, 40 feet above the Roof Garden and 110 feet above Central Park!

Photo by Doug and Mike Starn. © 2010 Mike and Doug Starn / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

Next stop is a trip to Long Island City for MoMA P.S. 1’s Warm Up series. Each Saturday in July and August, the outdoor courtyard hosts an outdoor architectural installation, live music, and performances. Ratatat is DJing on July 17th and Animal Collective on July 31st! This year’s winners of the MoMA/ MoMA P.S. 1 Young Architects’ Program, the firm Solid Objectives – Idenburg Liu, have built Pole Dance, an interactive structure consisting of 25-foot poles connected by bungees cords and suspending a net with huge beach balls. The poles can be moved by visitors, resulting in awesome ripple effects.

I work right next door to the MoMA Design Store so I can’t help but suggesting creating your own jewelry for your MoMA Warm Up party outfit using their do-it-yourself necklace kits:

Credit: momastore.org

Best of all, the jewelry kit is only $13. Enjoy your outdoor adventure!

Alexandra Lotero

Copy Editor

Rockaway has the best of both worlds: it is reachable by subway and has a boardwalk, yet offers plenty of undisturbed sandy spots. Take the A train headed to Far Rockaway, then get off at Beach Channel and wait for the shuttle to Rockaway Park, which is timed to arrive immediately after the A train on the same platform. When you reach the last stop – Beach 116th Street- you have arrived! The whole trip is about 1 hour from Columbus Circle, and the 7 minute ride between Howard Beach and Beach Channel on a narrow strip of land with water on both sides is unbeatable when it comes to awesome subway rides.

View from the A train:

Alexandra Lotero (CC '12)

Depending on how far from Beach 116th Street you walk, the beach will be more or less crowded. The crowds stay near the station, but if you walk down to Beach 135th or even 125th, you can almost pretend you are sitting on your own private beach at a Caribbean resort. View of the beach from the boardwalk:

Alexandra Lotero CC '12

One-piece swimsuits are popular this season but I remain skeptical about the resulting tan line. So my pick for the perfect outfit for this beach trip is the Water-garden floral twist bandeau top and bikini bottom from J.Crew. I adore the pattern:

Credit: jcrew.com

Enjoy your beach vacation!

Alexandra Lotero

Copy Editor

The range of free programs is positively overwhelming to someone determined to have the best New York summer as inexpensively as possible: dance, music, theater, and movie screenings… Download the complete program here.

The event I’m most looking forward to a roving production of Much Ado About Nothing in Battery Park. Sound familiar to any King’s Crown Shakespeare Troupe fans?

Tomorrow I will be checking out the Eroica Trio for free at the World Financial Center Winter Garden.

My pick for the perfect dress to wear on these humid summer nights: a backless dress, like this one:

Credit: ModCloth.com

See you there! Next week: Fourth of July weekend beach escapes for the price of a round trip MetroCard fare.

Alexandra Lotero

Copy Editor

Under the pretense of searching for a last minute father’s day gift, I arrived at Bergdorf Goodman on sunny Sunday afternoon. And yes, it was the women’s side of the street. So much for that pretense.

Riding the not-nearly-air-conditioned-enough elevator, I became nostalgic for my first such summer sale shopping experience. In one fell swoop I came out with a pair of of petal-inspired, teal Moschino sandals at 65% off and a high-waisted, yacht-ready Marc by Marc Jacobs skirt in navy with gold buttons for a $100. I’ve never received more wardrobe compliments than on these two pieces. High-end bargain hunter success!

With these designer visions dancing in my eyes, I stepped off the escalator at floor 2.  This time did not look so promising—the happy red numbers were in the 30s range instead of the 65 and the racks were filled with one too many grandma kitten heel.

And then I spotted it- a red satin, prep toe Christian Louboutin (30% off of $775) looking lonely on the sale rack of just my size. Could my life-long (well, nearly) red-soled dream actually be realized? I slipped the piece of artwork on and instantly experienced…

Allison Malecha (CC’13)

…awkward pain in my squished right pinky toe. Louboutin mission abort.

There were a handful of other noteworthy finds: an army of Balmain army-green boots (with studs to kill, 30% off $1195) and an elegantly quilted pair of black Lanvin pumps punked up with a gold ankle chain (30% off $1150).

AAllison Malecha (CC’13)

I soon realized that 30 percent off a thousand or even two thousand dollars is still a hefty fee for a pair of shoes that will only repay you in blisters. Which, for me, meant hopping back on the escalator to higher altitudes and cheaper prices. Fourth floor. The sales were greater (40% off) but the selection noticeably less aesthetically pleasing.

Yay or nay on these Marc by Marc Jacobs sneakers?

Allison Malecha (CC’13)

This pair of industrial chic Ash boots (40% off $250) seemed to be the best find:

Allison Malecha (CC’13)

Of course they too were just a half-size too small. Instead, my greatest success came free- 3 snapshots of Bergdorf’s June window scheme to print and plaster over my conspicuously stained summer form wall.

Oh, and in the end, I did fulfill my original father’s day challenge—a spendy-looking golf shirt and shorts at more than half off. Bloomie’s mens’ shop is the real bargain hunter place to be.

Allison Malecha

Reporter

First up was the 32nd annual Museum Mile Festival, otherwise known as “New York’s Biggest Block Party.” Chalk drawing, street vendors, musicians, and free entry to all the museums on the 23 blocks between 82nd and 105th streets on Fifth Avenue? Perfect. Plus it’s always fun to walk (and do some chalk drawing!) right in the middle of Fifth Avenue without risking death from oncoming traffic.

One of my favorite chalk drawings:

Alexandra Lotero (CC '12)

With so much of interest on the street, I could barely pull myself away to get inside the museums. But I did manage to enter the Met and the Guggenheim, despite long, long lines. “Picasso in the Metropolitan Museum of Art” was a personal favorite, and the exhibition room featuring Blue Period paintings was particularly stunning:

Alexandra Lotero (CC '12)

Although the Museum Mile Festival has come and gone, the Picasso exhibition continues until August, so put your free admission as Columbia students to good use!

And as promised, my pick for the perfect museum-going dress:

urbanoutfitters.com

P.S. Check out the annual Mermaid Parade at Coney Island this Saturday the 19th!

Alexandra Lotero

Copy Editor

1. Benefit’s Dr. Feelgood ($28)—generously dab this matifier on in the morning and you’ll stay less-than-glossy the whole day through.

benefitcosmetics.com

2. Secret Clinical Strength Waterproof Antiperspirant/Deodorant ($9.99, at drugstores)—you may not be at the pool, but the pools of sweat collecting on your back (real romantic, I know) during a long subway ride are enough to warrant the “Waterproof” strength.

3. Tokyo Milk Perfume ($28, at Anthropologie)—such prevailingly fresh scents as “I Want Candy” (crisp apples, peaches, violets, roses)  and “Kabuki” (grapefruit, litchi, and sweet jasmine) will keep you smelling good even when fellow commuters do not.

fragrantica.com

4. Sephora Collection Eye Primer Pot ($8)—sultry summer dates call for sultry eyeshadow. This will keep the smoky eye from becoming a smoky cheek.

sephora.com

5. And when all else fails, rubber-band your sweaty, frizzy hair back into a messy bun, wipe your sweaty brow with your new tank top, and rock it like glistening was your goal all along.

Allison Malecha

Take a look around the new website, and tell us what you think! You can still reach the blog at http://blog.hootmag.org. Enjoy your summer, and check back often!

Noel Duan
Editor in Chief