We all have a bit hometown pride. Idahoans have their potatoes, New Yorkers have their bagels (to say the least), and Texans have their big hair. But who can claim to be the healthiest? Here at Spa Week we want you to live your healthiest and happiest life, that’s why if moving to a healthier city isn’t in the cards, at least you can find a local spa.

Self Magazine featured the 2011 Best Cities for Women based on 7000 bits of data. Here are some of the nation’s best cities for your health:

Cleanest Air: Cheyenne, Wyoming

The capital of the Cowboy State, Cheyenne has the cleanest air and the shortest commute for its residents. Oh, and they are really into boot art.

Dirtiest air: Los Angeles.

Walks to work most: New York, NY

A mile long walk to work for New Yorkers is a walk in the park! And sometimes quite literally. New Yorkers have no patience for long commutes with annoying transfers, so many opt to walk to and from work every day. A good way to burn off those delicious bagel (and pizza) calories.

Walks to work the least? Birmingham, Alabama.

Most green buildings: Burlington, Vermont

Burlington is the largest city in the Green Mountain State and they are definitely living up to the state name. Burlington has the most green buildings and more farmer’s markets than any other city.

Fewest green buildings? Wichita, Kansas.

Soundest sleepers: Santa Barbara, California

The American Riviera understands the need for beauty sleep. Don’t live in Santa Barbara? Here are 7 tips for a sound night sleep.

Most fitful sleepers? Charleston, West Virginia.

Lightest smokers: Provo, Utah

Prov-who? Provo is the third largest city in Utah and where you’ll find the least amount of fast food restaurants per capita. Hate the smell of smoke? Move to Provo where they have the least amount of smokers.

Heaviest smokers? Vegas, baby!

Slimmest: Honolulu, Hawaii

The good ol’ Aloha state. Not only do they get to wake up to water so blue that you would think it was a screen saver but they also have the slimmest population. So not fair!

Heftiest: Detroit, Michigan.

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One out of three people will be diagnosed with cancer and it is highly likely that you already know someone with the disease. There is nothing fun or glamorous about the big C, but everyone deserves to look and feel fabulous. That is the philosophy of non-profit organization Hair2Help, and  Spa Week definitely follows the same ideals as our #50dollartreatments. It was founded by celebrity hair stylist James Corbett in October 2010 when he realized that there was a real need to help women affected by cancer. (more…)

As Spa Week continues to grow, our biannual parties for the media have no choice but to follow suit. And THAT is a good thing. Last week on October 5th, we held our Spa Week Media Party at The Altman Building, a space double the size of last year’s party! We welcomed 400 of our closest friends like we were Kim Kardashian. It’s our favorite night of the season, and we were truly touched at everyone who came out to celebrate the week of #50dollartreatments, and to thank them, we touched them back. Touches in the form of massages, acupuncture, hair, makeup and more, and from what we understand, it was a good time had by all. Everyone in the business from TV producers and radio personalities to magazine editors and top bloggers, even weather men came out to celebrate Spa Week!

Now take my hand and come with me – let’s a take a tour of the par-tay:

First, a stop at the Carefree Refresh Lounge.

Pink was in the air as the Carefree girls welcomed guests to sit and relax, or learn some new stretches you can do at your desk. In the spirit of feeling fresh, guests learned about their new super-absorbent Acti-Fresh liners, great for busy women on the go. Enter the Carefree $1000 refresh sweepstakes.

Now, the hair. If you see party girls in pretty curls, it’s because Ouidad, “the curl experts” were styling ringlets all night long. They took to locks with curling irons, and also did one-on-one consultations (plus sampling!) on how to embrace your curls, waves and kinks with their amazing products for curly hair. Enter the Ouidad sweepstakes.

Youngblood Mineral Cosmetics glammed out our guests with mini makeovers by Pauline Youngblood and her skilled artists. They introduced their new fall product, Incredible Wear Gel Liner. And when it comes to making a statement, according to Ms. Youngblood herself,  it’s all about bold lips for fall, ladies. Enter to win $500 worth of their all-natural makeup products.

Dole passed out samples of their Real Fruit Bites (which we are addicted to here in the office) and their oxygen bar offered fresh O2 in the flavors of their hearty, good-for-you snacks:  Mango, Apple and Pineapple. Enter Dole’s Fall Bliss sweepstakes.

Vdara Hotel & Spa, a non-smoking, non-gaming destination oasis, gave away a Vegas vacation to one of our lucky guests. (Not yet announced – hang tight!) But you didn’t miss a thing here, because we’re giving away a 3-night Vdara getaway with penthouse suite, spa treatments and limo for YOU too.

American Laser Skincare taught guests about how to obtain beauty through technology, such as photo facials, skin tightening and Velashape, and conducted onsite skincare analyses. Enter to win their Back to Beauty sweepstakes.

BREAK! Let’s grab a bite and go for a dip in the infamous Spa Week chocolate fountain.

Spa Chicks On The Go, our go-to girls for pop-up party high-quality spa treatments, did eyebrow shaping.

Red Door Spa pampered guests with small tastes of their coveted $50 Spa Week treatments.

Spa Martier flexed their nail art skills with Yukie, who co-owns both Martier in NYC and her nail school in Tokyo. Check out the p-p-p-poker hand manicure by Yukie and her team.

For the first time in Spa Week Media Party history, Village Wellness Project brought acupuncture to the scene. Guests, and many for the first time, experienced the power of the needle that’s been healing folks for thousands of years. Cupping is fun too!

LifeSpa, that brilliant spa located in LifeTime Fitness centers nationwide that’s offering 2 hours of free childcare with your Spa Week treatment, massaged all the kinks out.

The Bobby Berk Home Lounge provided a refuge from the, uh, refuge of the Spa Week Media Party. Using his modern, high-quality furniture and designs, Bobby created a large homey space, carpeted with statement-making Plank Yoga Mats.

Doreen Hing, owner and designer of Plank Yoga Mats at left, next to Bobby Berk himself, with Michelle and Bobby Berk’s crew.

La piece de resistence: Last season we had a Spa Week ice  sculpture… this season we upped it to a full-on Spa Week ice bar and luge! It kept Seagrams Smooth chilled all night, even with all those cameras flashing.

Cocktails by Given Liquor and Reve Vodka kept the crowd buzzed and feeling beautiful.

Guests also sipped on Honest Tea and Hint Water as a refreshing alternative to alcoholic beverages.

And of course, those famous goodie bags of ours. We hear they were really worth the weight. Literally. Wendy of Nitrolicious weighed hers and it was 15 pounds! You’re welcome. (Full post on the contents of these coveted bags coming soon.)

Thank you to everyone who came to celebrate! We were thrilled to have guests from: ABC, CBS 2 News, Access Hollywood, EXTRA, Fox & Friends, Fox 5 News, Good Day New York, Good Morning America, HBO – Creative Services, Inside Edition, Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment, News 12, NY1 News,  PBS, The Early Show, The Martha Stewart Show, The TODAY Show, Z100 Morning Zoo, American Spa Magazine, BizBashMedia, BUST Magazine, CITY Magazine, Essence Magazine, Family Circle Magazine, Fitness Magazine, Food & Wine Magazine, HGTV Magazine, Men’s Journal, Metro New York, Metrosource Magazine, MVP | NY, Next Magazine, OK! Magazine, Parents Magazine, People Magazine, Shape Magazine, Style 1 Media, The Daily Buzz, The Daily Mail, The Atlanta Post, The Huffington Post, New York Post, Town & Country Magazine, Travelocity, US Weekly, Women’s Health Magazine, Zink Magazine, TheFrisky.com, Lifescript.com, GuestofaGuest.com, TheLuxurySpot.com, FashionIndie.com, Examiner.com, SociallySuperlative.com,  Eye4Style.com, MommysLinks.com, GreenBeautyTeam.com, Nitrolicious.com, PageDaily.com, LadyAndTheBlog.com, KittenLounge, JohnSimonDaily.com, LoveThatMax.com MakeupLovesMe.com, KittyBradshaw.com, PrettyConnected.com, Second City Style, StyleITonline.com, Glamazon Diaries and so many more.

Photos by Tanya Isaeva, and also by Sunny Norton of Guest of a Guest.

To see more photos of the party, check out the album on our Facebook page or the coverage on Guest of a Guest.

Kick up your leg and shout “I’m FIFTY” like Molly Shannon’s character on SNL. Here at Spa Week, fifty is our favorite number – hello $50 treatments. And now a community of women is helping women look and feel well… fabulous.  FabOverFifty is a place for women over 50 to ask beauty and style advice as well as share their tips for staying young. They are on a mission to change the dirty term  “over the hill” to something to be proud of. Women should shout from that hill: “I’m 50!”

Mark your calendars because Fab Over Fifty is hosting a 2-day health, beauty and spa event on October 1st and 2nd for  women who’ve proudly passed the half-century mark. Beauty Bash is where women can get their burning fashion questions answered by top stylists. For example, Mark Garrison will be on hand for personal hair and makeup consultations. His celebrity clientele include America’s sweetheart Sandra Bullock, Ashley Judd and Scarlett Johansson.

Meet with the “Guru of Hue,” Jill Kirsh for a personal color analysis. Along with 1-on-1 consultations with New York’s top doctors, including, Dr. Sharon Giese and Dr. Robert Gotkin.  Dr. Giese’s “Natural Lift” is touted as “the future of plastic surgery” by Dr. Oz, and Dr. Gotkin, a dermatologist, was named “One of New York’s best doctors” by New York Magazine. Not too shabby. Then have one of the most respect doctors in the dermatological field, Dr. Ellen Marmur, do a full-body skin check.

There’s a staggering statistic that 80% of women are wearing the wrong bra size! Le Mystere will be on hand to solve this dilemma for attendees with custom fittings. HALLELUJAH!

To top the day off, attendees receive a gift bag filled with more than $150 worth of beauty products, as well as exclusive offers from partners, including Soft Surroundings, Molton Brown, Cynthia Rowland Beauty Systems, Perricone and many more.

Spa Week Daily readers, enjoy a 50% discount on tickets with code BB50 at checkout. To learn more, visit the event site.

With ladies like Kim Catrall and Michelle Pfeiffer (and YOU?) in the FOF community, 50 never looked so FAB.

Welcome to the Fourth Stop on the Wet Hot American Makeup Tour: New York City! 5 days, 5 stops, 5 A-list makeup artists with their best summer makeup tips, 5 featured beauty items, 5 winners.  On this stop along the Tour, ENTER TO WIN a customized makeup session in NYC with makeup artist David Maderich, who has done makeup for Brad Pitt, Gisele and Bethenny Frankel. His work as graced the covers of Vogue, Elle, Vibe, GQ and Glamour, among others. You’ll also get a makeup and skincare prize package including ALL products featured on The Tour this week. (Click HERE for the original post about the Wet Hot American Makeup Tour.)
David Maderich, NYC Makeup Artist: How to look cool in hot weather?
Face When the temps reach the boiling point, it’s time to say goodbye to greasy luminizing foundations and hello to oil-free tinted moisturizers loaded with SPFs. If your skin needs more coverage, try dabbing on a touch of cream to powder foundation only on the trouble spots. As for powder, only apply powder once in the morning to set makeup – use blotting papers for touchups to avoid the dreaded cake face. Be sure to choose a translucent shade or you risk having an oompa loompa orange face by the end of the day.

• How to pick the right powder? Mix a dab of moisturizer (it mimics the oils on your face) with your powder – if it stays neutral, you’re in business, if the powder turns orange, it will do the same on your face.
• Bronzers are a great way to get a sun kissed look without the damaging effects of the sun.  Be sure to pick a shade of bronzer that is appropriate for you skin tone – and always matte –never glittery gold.  I like to mix gel bronzer into tinted moisturizer for a subtle sun kissed look – and don’t forget your neck – no lollipop heads allowed! Nothing is worse than spending 20 minutes putting on a fabulous face only to go outside in the sweltering heat and witness your work melt into a greasy mess.

Lips Shiny lip glosses can look messy and greasy on humid days – try a lip stain with a touch of matte lip balm.  

Eyes Steamy days can make your mascara and eyeliner run and give you raccoon eyes – not pretty!  Make waterproof mascara and eyeliner a must in hot weather.

Featured product (part of the prize package for all winners):YOUR NAME® Professional Brands’ Mineral Photo Touch Concealer

ENTER TO WIN NOW!

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