Welcome to our first ever Hot Mom Monday! Here’s where you’ll be meeting the fabulous, multi-faceted women of our Hot Mom Spa Squad for insight into their juggling-act lives, business successes, family tips, and niche expertise. If you’re not yet acquainted with The Squad, it’s a growing group of online influencers who happen to be moms; spa and wellness enthusiasts who believe in frequent momME time to stay healthy, balanced, and most of all HOT!

First up, I’d like you to meet fashion industry guru Ruth Staiman, the brains behind that famous chartreuse chair known on Twitter as @FashionOffice and her successful company, The Fashion Office. Ruth and her team bring over 25 years of retail, product development, publishing, marketing, PR and editorial expertise to a wide range of Fashion Office clients from Target to Saks Fifth Avenue.

“We really have that crystal ball!” is one of Ruth’s tag lines – it’s her company’s job to distill what’s next in art, beauty, fashion, travel, tech and beyond. So, Spa Week Daily asked Ruth to look into this all-powerful crystal ball and give our readers a rundown on hot and coming up for Spring 2012. Take it away, Ruthie! (PS, we found those adorable owls here.)

By Ruth Staiman, The Fashion Office

Here’s a look into my crystal ball at what’s coming for Spring 2012…

ART | Fashion Exhibits are a Hot Ticket at Museums

The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute’s Exhibit this Spring, Elsa Schiaparelli and Miuccia Prada: On Fashion, May 10–August 19

Diamonds: A Jubilee Celebration. Queen Elizabeth II’s Personal Collection in London on display this summer at Buckingham Palace.

BEAUTY | Collaborations with Design and Fashion Icons, Multipurpose Products

Pantone & Sephora’s Limited Edition Color Palette coming in March (all us creative types are obsessed with Pantone)

Tom Ford Beauty – Anything and EVERYTHING. A Tom Ford Lipstick in your purse makes you feel like a Glamour Queen

Double Duty Products like Nars Tinted Moisturizer – coming in February

FASHION | Trends to Update Your Look for Spring 2012

Dressing Like A Lady – Buy a chic suit or sheath dress, add colorful pumps and nude hose. Dressing like a girl is back and it feels great. This trend brought to you courtesy of the Duchess of Cambridge – her wedding may be so last year but her fashion influence is just getting started.

White – Try wearing white and explore the angelic side of your personality. So many of us are perpetually in black. If you can’t break out of it, add white accessories as accents. Painting – Three Panels, 1951, Robert Rauschenberg.

Jewels – Bling is everywhere, embellishing shoes, bags, clothing and of course jewelry. If you can’t afford the real thing, start bedazzling! Featured: Christian Louboutin men’s and women’s styles for Spring 2012.

Activewear – Good news for spa-goers. Designers have turned their attention to Activewear. We love Stella McCartney’s collaboration with Adidas. (She’s the creative director for TEAM GB – Great Britain – do you see an anglophile trend here?)

TRAVEL | On Your Radar For The Jet Set

Sleeper Beds In Flight – Just flew on Continental/United’s new ones to Europe and it makes all other forms of air travel look uncomfortable.

London: All things British are the rage (as evidenced above). Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her Diamond Jubilee Year and we’re obsessed with Downton Abbey

Berlin: My cofounder was just there visiting galleries and shopping the eclectic antiques market. This week they are hosting Mercedes Benz Fashion Week: Spring 2013.

ECO | One Cool Up and Coming Company

I’m somewhat of a serial start up advisor. Three companies born in 3 years. This year we worked on the launch of Eve Echo (@eveechoinc), previously featured on Spa Week Daily. Eve Friedman is on a mission to empower women through micro-loans. She’s loaning 100% of the profits from her chic hand sanitizers and liquid hand soaps to FINCA, helping the world’s poorest entrepreneurs start businesses. Check out her VERY social site.

Tell us, Ruth! How do you manage to find momME time?

My life is VERY full, so it’s hard to make time MOMme time, but I find that if I don’t, everything becomes increasingly more chaotic. When I make time for me, I have a better attitude about the multitude of issues and challenges I face at work and at home. Basically there IS no time with a thriving business and 3 kids. Luckily my husband @BillBymel pushes me out the door for me time, and holds down the fort while I’m recharging. (Mommy/daughter mani-pedis with my 5 year old do NOT count as relaxing!)

My top choice is a body wrap or something that promises to take off inches or years. I favor treatments that keep me wrapped up, off my iPhone & give me time for a quick catnap. I love luxury, so the more luxurious the spa environment, the better. I make spa appointments in the evening, and I come home after everyone has done homework & gone to bed. A night off from the daily headaches of parenting can leave you fresh to tackle things with a fresh outlook tomorrow.

Stay tuned for more from our hot moms!

Schiapparelli/Prada pic via, QEII pic via, Catherine, Dutchess of Cambridge collage via, White Painting via

Losing 122 pounds is like losing an entire person… and gaining an entirely new life.

We’re thrilled to introduce Spa Week Daily’s Celebrity Stylist and Weight Loss Expert, the ever-inspiring Kithe Brewster, who has styled everyone from Julianne Moore to Beyonce, and did indeed lose 122 pounds in 2011. His true passion is helping REAL women, so now he’s here to help YOU to do the same! We just announced Kithe’s Mirror Mirror Weight Loss Challenge, challenging you to embrace a full length mirror and that one item in your closet you WISH you fit into as your motivation live a healthy, fit life. Join in now!

Kithe is a man on the rise – he has many exciting projects in the works, including building a foundation called CURRY 4 COURAGE, to help in the fight against childhood and adolescent obesity. It’s named after AJ Curry, a gifted young music producer and film director who died of obesity this past November. Kithe also has a number of fashion projects in the works which we can’t reveal just yet… but follow this one! He’s recognized now as “Cynthia’s BFF on Real Housewives of Atlanta” but we’re excited to watch him explode – and inspire everyone he reaches. Starting now:

Congratulations, you’re getting hitched in 2012! It’s hard enough finding balance in every day life, but now that you’re engaged you have a lot more to juggle. Most importantly: finding the right balance between your own personal style and what’s hot and current. This is especially true when it comes to your wedding dress. But don’t stress. Here’s the plan:

First, knead out those knots of stress with a wedding planning massage. (We insist!)

Then, narrow down the gazillion wedding dress options by knowing the top trends of the season, as told by The Knot.

Here’s a glimpse at what’s timeless yet modern – check out the top 10 wedding dress trends for 2012, according to theknot.com.

1. Sheer Lace Capes

Alfred Angelo

Last season it was all about long sleeves a la Kate Middleton, but the latest craze is gracefully draped capes. Try this trend for a modest, traditional look on your big day.

2. A Hint of Tint

Rivini

Peach, champagne, cotton candy, sorbet, lavender and mint – you’ve seen stars like Gwen Stefani and Portia de Rossi rock partially-tinted wedding dresses and brides like Kholé Kardashian and Reese Witherspoon add colorful accents to their gowns in the past, but this year the runway is totally dipped and dyed with a rainbow of feminine and romantic hues.  This trend is definitively not for the faint of heart.

3. Embellished Bodices

Anne Bowen

It’s all eyes on you with a glitzy bodice paired with a soft and simple skirt. This style option is great for pear figures who want to enhance their chest, cinch their waist and hide curvy hips.

4. Illusion Necklines

Ines Di Santo

According to The Knot, “Sheer bateau necklines continue to be all the rage on the bridal runways, and this season, crystal and pearl appliques give these see-through styles a more glamorous vibe.” This style is perfect for showing off toned shoulders, arms and back.

5. Hi-Low Hemlines

Oscar de la Renta

Often refereed to as a “mullet dress,” this style of gown is incredibly fashion-forward and edgy (and all business in the front, party in the back, ha!) ; perfect for a beach or outdoor wedding. Plus, the peekaboo hemline is the chicest way to show off amazing wedding shoes.

6. Romantic Ruffles

Pronovias

Use ruffles and ruching to your advantage! Fluffy fabric and cascading frills – when used properly – can accentuate or diminish curves where needed, in order to create a perfectly flattering shape for your individual body type. Plus, they will add the perfect amount of fairytale drama to your special day.

7. Cap Sleeves

Reem Aarca

By opting for a dress with cap sleeves, the eyes are drawn upwards towards the face, elongating your appearance and creating a flattering balance between the lower and upper halves of the body. Depending on the style, cap sleeves can also mask a bra stap, if you need the extra support.

8. Voluminous Ball Gowns

Maggie Sottero

For a traditional, princess-themed event, the bigger the ballgown skirt the better. This style is great if you’re a confident, all-eyes-on-me bride who wants to accentuate that tiny waist you worked for during your engagement. Show it off, girl!

9. Soaring Slits

Monique Lhuillier

Try this sexy trend if you are on the taller side and/or have great gams. Sky-high slits are great for adding drama to fashion-forward or old-Hollywood themed weddings. Want to try the trend but apprehensive about baring so much skin at the service? Save the slit for your reception dress and dance the night away with the freedom to shake a leg.

10. Cold Shoulders

Marchesa

Off-the-shoulder gowns can help you get the look of a strapless neckline and show off those collarbones without the awkwardness of always having to pull up your top. This style is perfect for larger busted brides.

Images via

Where has the time gone!? Suddenly we are being thrown into the year of the apocalypse, a year where iPhone apps may completely eradicate personal trainers, yet beauty trends are reminiscent of every decade since the 1920s.

Thinking back on how the times have changed from then till now, when our friends over at the Las Vegas Hilton told us they’re throwing their 2nd Annual Old School New Year’s Eve Party with 105.7 The Oasis this year, we were inspired. Their party is complete with old-school music, dancing, party favors and a champagne toast at midnight, and we thought: what would you be doing/thinking/wearing this year if it wasn’t 2012? If it was ’91, ’83, ’98? Here’s what you’d be up to (and what you’d be regretting come 2012):

Your New Year’s Resolution, 1991: Get a Thighmaster

Many thanks to Suzanne Somers and her buns of steel on infomercials that dominated the early nineties, your weightloss resolution this year would have been to bust a move with your very own ThighMaster.

Your New Year’s Midnight Kiss, 1983: Orange Lipstick
(with Matching Eyeshadow)

You’d be dancing in your legwarmers to Every Breath You Take by The Police (not Lauryn Hill) and rocking out to Billie Jean, complete with bright orange lips and orange eyeshadow to match.

Your Boyfriend’s New Year’s Eve Hairstyle, 1997: BLEACHED

It’s tearin’ up my heart when I’m with you! If we were ringing in 1997 this year, we’d be crooning along to N’Sync, and we would actually think our me looked sexy after their decision to bleach their entire head whitish-blond. Thankfully this phased out by the 21st century as we all realized how positively painful it was to look at.

Your New Year’s Eve Day, 2000: Prepping for Y2K (with your Saddle Bag)

Whether it was real or fake, the Dior Saddle bag carried your stuff as you ran around to grocery stores, pharmacies and liquor stores, preparing for the end of the world as we know it. Y2K didn’t exactly happen as expected, but at least you had your saddle bag.

Your Favorite New Year’s Eve Cardio, 1998: Cotton Eye Joe

In ’94, the Swedish band Rednex re-wrote the southern line dance that dates back all the way to pre-Civil War times. A couple years later it hit the States, and began to take over American dance floors in a big way in ’97. By New Year’s Eve of ’98, there wasn’t one New Year’s Eve party that didn’t giddy up, grab their partner and dance the Cotton Eye Joe. Where did you come from, where did you go!?

Your New Year’s Resolution, 1993: The Atkins Diet

Created by Dr. Robert C Atkins in the 60s, the no-carb, high-protein “New Diet Revolution” made a resurgence in the early 90s as the fad weight loss tactic of the decade and beyond. It worked wonders for some, but for many, the second that first piece of pita bread hit their lips, they gained back every single pound. If this were New Year’s 93 there’s a very good chance you’d be resolving to live on steak and eggs for the rest of your life.

Your hair, New Year’s Eve 1988: ABSURD

What may be your hangover morning hair in 2012 was the hottest style on earth back in the 80s hair band era. ’88 was the year the movie Hairspray was released, and the 60s-based movie was a further reminder to keep the hair spray going strong. Morgan Fairchild epitomizes the decade with her teased tresses, and the style didn’t fall flat until the mid nineties. Thank goodness for Jennifer Aniston!

If you’re going to Vegas for New Year’s Eve, check out the old school party and let us know how it is – tickets are only $49 and dinner packages are also available.

Also, be sure to check out Spa Week’s exclusive 3- and 4-night packages at the LV Hilton, which you can use for travel through March 2012. Not redeemable in the 90s. HAPPY NEW YEAR!

And remember…

With only a few short days left before the holidays, things can get seriously frantic. Squeezing in time for shopping, gift wrapping and holiday parties can be a huge burden on our already hectic lives. Have you caught yourself saying, “I can’t wait for the holidays to be over,” or “Sweetie, why does your mother have to stay the whole week?” Have you dreamed about fast forwarding to summer and skipping the holiday hubbub altogether? It’s only natural to want to avoid stressful situations, but have you turned into the Grinch?

Sometimes we have to stop and smell the poinsettias, hum to the caroler’s tune and remind ourselves that so many people don’t have the luxury of those very things that can sometimes annoy us – like money or family or even a decent winter coat. In order to inspire you with some fun and meaningful ways to give back this holiday season, we asked eight beauty and fashion bloggers to tell us what they do to make  the holidays less of a burden and more of a blessing for those less fortunate. Hopefully their ideas have you saying Hallelujah instead of Bah Humbug this holiday season.

“How are you giving back this holiday season?”

Laura from 24/7 Style says:

This season, I’ve opted to donate to Heifer International and World Vision. Heifer International uses donations to give struggling families obtain a sustainable source of food and income by giving them livestock like cows, goats, chickens, and honeybees. Each recipient family also agrees to pass offspring of gift animals onto other families in need. World Vision is similar in that you can donate animals but also clean water, emergency aid, etc. Currently, a gift of just $25 will deliver $150 worth of basics (clothing, shoes, etc.) to U.S. children thanks to corporate product donations.

Patrice from Afrobella says:

I like to participate in charitable efforts as often as I can in general, but I definitely step it up during the holidays! I use the end of the year change of wardrobe to clean out my closet and my beauty cupboards of slightly used samples, and I donate all of that to a women’s shelter in Chicago. I donate brand new, covetable items to BeautyBloggers.org, which raises money for Doctors Without Borders. And on December 30 in Chicago, I’ll be co-hosting a coat drive cocktail party! It’s called  Cocktails, Convos and Coats and together with The Red Pump Project, Blogging While Brown Conference, and Swish Dreams, we’re inviting people to come out and donate gently worn sweaters and coats, and to bring a little cash to donate because I’ll be hosting a makeup giveaway table of my 2011 samples I’ve received throughout the year!

Natalia from Fashionably Late says:

I’m very passionate about animal rights and environmental causes, so during this super busy holiday season – when I can’t give any extra time – I try to help by incorporating little ways to give back onto my holiday to-do list. When I go shopping, I buy a gift card and send it to the no-kill animal shelter (where I adopted my two lovely kittens one year ago). This is a quick and easy way to say thank you to the staff. To wrap all of my holiday gifts, I use recyclable paper bags and as an embellishment, I include an ornament that can be reused year after year. On my blog, I put together a Gifts that Give guide because a lot of people don’t realize there are so many great gifts you can buy that donate part (or even all) of the profits to a good cause.

Misha from The Fab Chick says:

This holiday season I’ve been in the spirit of purging my overflowing closet by letting go and giving to those less fortunate than myself. I think having 50 pairs of designer jeans is not necessary when there are people without proper clothing to wear. This year I’ll be giving my old clothes to Vietnam Veterans of America and New York Cares’ Annual Coat Drive. Plus, I give toys for children to The Apostle House in Newark, NJ

Yvonne from Socially Superlative says:

Every year around this time, I go through my closet to find things to donate, and tell my hoarder roommate to do the same.  New York Cares has a big drive for coats, jackets, hats, gloves, and any winter gear with tons of donation stations, including many office buildings that have a box set up in the lobby.  They also have a great volunteering community working on various different types of projects.  For other clothing, my go-to donation spot is Housing Works, a healing community of people living with and affected by HIV/AIDS.  You can shop in their thrift stores where they sell their quality donated merchandise.  For all else, I donate to the Salvation Army, which accepts clothing as well as furniture and household items.

Channing from Channing in the City says:

For me, charity just doesn’t start during the holidays. I like to donate clothing year-round, I actually like to take one item out of my closet and put it in a box designated for Good Will every time I bring something new home. It makes me feel good to constantly give to those in need. I also have a little bit more of an incentive to donate towards the end of the year, because of the tax write-offs, which doesn’t hurt!

Jena from ChiCityFashion says:

Every year I get a bunch of gift cards to food places like Subway, Dunkin’ Donuts, etc. and give them out to the homeless people I encounter on my walks to work and around the city (Chicago). I also like to participate in some kind of toy drive every year because every kid deserves a Christmas present. This year I’m helping out kids from local church, too.

Cherise from Makeup Not Down says:

I’m very passionate about giving back during the holidays, as well as throughout the year.  Instead of getting so caught up in buying presents for family and friends, I keep the spirit of giving alive by donating wrapped gifts to Toys for Tots.  Their goal is to deliver and distribute toys as Christmas gifts to needy children in the community. I enjoy taking the time to make someone else’s day a bit happier, so this has become part of my holiday tradition.  Most people I know are blessed with all the “things” they need, but gifts of generosity strengthen the spirit.