Have you walked around your city recently and noticed the new phenomenon of teal-colored pumpkins?  Nope, it’s not a GMO or a new varietal of pumpkins.

In fact, the teal pumpkins are part of the Teal Pumpkin Project, started by the Food Allergy Research & Education, or FARE. FARE started the project in order to make Halloween trick-or-treating safer for children with food allergies, and easier for parents.

It’s actually really simple and brilliant: if you paint a pumpkin teal and leave it on your doorstep, you are signaling to others than you are handing out non-edible treats like glow sticks or toys (please, not pennies!) instead of candy that children may be allergic to, such as Snickers or Almond Joys.

If your child is allergic to peanuts or almonds or any other food, just modify your usual route to hit up only the houses decked out with teal pumpkins. There’s even a map on FARE’s website that will show you all the particpiating addresses near you where you can get some not-so-sweet treats.

Every autumn, retailers and cooks across the country release foods and recipes to take advantage of the flavors of autumn.  Here are our three favorite.

Plum Torte

While plums may be disappearing from your local farmer’s market, you’ve hopefully stored a few in your freezer to make an amazing plum torte.  This recipe, which was originally published by the New York Times in 1983, is the most popular recipe in the history of the New York Times.  I’ve personally made the recipe myself, and can vouch for the fact that it is amazing.

If you’re a fan of HGTV, you’re likely familiar with Chip and Joanna, the stars of Fixer Upper.  If you’re not a fan of HGTV, what’s wrong with you? Chip and Joanna are unlike most television stars!  Rather than live in LA or New York City, they still reside in Waco, Texas.  In addition, their home is also a farm – they keep cattle, chickens and roosters.  Check out the story above from ET about the couple below.

While I usually like to blog about beauty and fashion, I want to make an exception tonight.  Ever since the 1988 Vice Presidential Debates between Lloyd Bensten and Dan Quayle, I’ve thought the vice presidential debates were underrated.  Aside from the fact that you have two people who are more willing to attack the other candidate and not necessarily seem presidential, you also have two candidates who are only a heartbeat away from the White House.  This is even more true with Secretary Clinton and Donald Trump, whose age has not been brought up often during the debates but is something that should give us pause when listening to their VP candidates.  Still, the VP debates aren’t without their own humor.

I used to think my older sister’s skin care regimen was overdone, but as I approach my late 20’s, I’m envious of her skin.  Her skin has a soft glow to it, and hasn’t been marred by teenage acne.  Simply put, it looks amazing and it’s clear that her skin is really healthy.

Now that I’m older, I’ve put away my jealousy, researched the topic and have realized the way you clean your face makes a difference in the overall health and well being of your skin.  Lets be honest and also mention that healthy skin also plays a role in your confidence and mental well-being too.

As you go about your day, your face gets coated with all sorts of gunk, including dirt, bacteria, dead skin, soot from automobiles, and even oil that you naturally produce (called sebum). The purpose of a facial cleanser is to wash away all that gunk and give you healthier, better-looking skin.

We spent the past six months testing different face cleansers in order to identify the best for different skin types.  Here are our favorites:

I’ve been using the Pure Body Naturals Dead Sea Mud Mask for nearly two months now, and I love it!

I use the mud mask once a week (almost always on Sunday evenings) and it has been amazing for my skin.  After using it for about eight weeks, the skin on my face feels fuller and less saggy.  In particular, I think it’s helpful for skin away from the T-zone, an area of the face that often gets ignored.  For instance, the skin around my cheekbones and chin looks younger and more vibrant.

Shinola may be one of the strongest brands you have never heard of.

The company is best known for its two flagship products – watches and bicycles. I visited the New York City store over Labor Day and took a quick photo of the sign that said: A TRUE MANUFACTURING COMPANY IS BUILT NOT BY THE THINGS IT MAKES. IT’S BUILT BY THE PEOPLE WHO MAKE THEM.  In fact, the brand is really focused on creating its products in the United States.  As I understand it, both the watches and the bikes are actually made in Detroit, a town that could use some American love right about now.  I recently purchased a Shinola Canfield, and it adorns my wrist right now.

Recently, I’ve been thinking about taking multivitamins in order to improve my health.  Aside from perusing the aisles at my local Walgreen’s, I’ve looked at some brands on Amazon.  It turns out that the multivitamin industry is (not surprisingly) a massive industry in the United States.  When I started doing some research, I was overwhelmed with the amount of choices there were.

About six weeks ago, I signed up for ClassPass and finally wanted to review it!  ClassPass is a subscription service that lets you take classes at multiple gyms for a fixed fee.  In short, I like to think of it as Netflix for gym classes.

During my six weeks of using ClassPass, I went to three boxing classes, three barre classes and one Barry’s bootcamp class.  I really loved using ClassPass – not only did I end up taking more classes than I thought I would, a ClassPass membership allowed me to explore LA and the gyms within it in a way I never would have before using ClassPass.

However, there are a few caveats to a ClassPass Membership:

• You are fined if you sign up for a class and don’t show up.
• Similarly, you’re fined even if you are late!
• You’re only allowed a certain number of classes per studio.  For instance, you can’t just take 15 classes at Barry’s Bootcamp and call it a month.
• Some classes aren’t available through ClassPass.  You can’t, for example, go to SoulCycle with a ClassPass Membership.
• Finally, ClassPass is really expensive!  ClassPass is $115 per month for 10 classes, and $60 per month for 5 classes in Los Angeles.  They also offer an unlimited tier, which allows you to take unlimited classes for $175 per month.

Ultimately, I think I’ll extend my ClassPass membership one more month and then let it lapse.  While I really enjoy the service, I’m just not sure it’s cost effective.  I can almost pay for a membership to Equinox at the 10 class per month rate, and at that point, shouldn’t I just do that?  There are no cancellation fees, and I can go as often as a I want (plus free Kiehl’s products)!

Have you tried CP?  If so, what did you think?

From what to wear to what to register for, planning and preparing for an upcoming wedding can sometimes be tricky. Navigating through each and every sticky situation with a smile can be even harder work. For instance, do you invite your cousin’s significant other even though you know it won’t last? Here are some answers to some of wedding planning’s toughest questions!