A couple of months ago when my mom was in town visiting I noticed a bright, white silicone bracelet adorning her wrist. Was it in support of a cause a la Livestrong, I asked. Nope, a neighbor kid gave it to her for helping her out with homework. “It is supposed to increase strength and flexibility” she explained. Disinterested and unimpressed by her lack of enthusiasm, I left it at that.

That was until last weekend when mom was back in town I was intrigued when I saw her still wearing the same bracelet. After a more rigorous questioning, this time, she instructed me to stand with my feet together and put my arms out so I was in a T position. “I’m going to push your arm down to your side. Try your hardest to keep it up,” she said. Yes, I’ve been slacking on the gym lately, but still I was surprised at how quickly she was able to defeat me. Next she slipped the bracelet off her wrist and onto mine. We repeated the same exercise. The results: incredible! I was much stronger than before.

We repeated it with a few other flexibility exercises and again I was wowed by the power of this magical little bracelet.

My mom explained that these bracelets were apparently “all the rage” with professional athletes and in Hollywood. So why hadn’t I heard of them?

Mom didn’t know the brand or manufacturer, so I ran a google search for “silicone strength flexibility” and PowerBalance.com came to the top. After a bit of research I learned that these $29.99 bands (which also come in neoprene and in the form of necklaces) are said to work by balancing the body’s energy with a small holographic disc that is on the band. Their site is loaded with all sorts of testimonials, (including some from some big name athletes like Lamar Odom & Shaq) but very little information about how the bands work.

The reviews on Amazon.com run the gamut. Some people swear by PB, others warn of scam. Some of the discussions are actually pretty heated which kinda makes me laugh. It costs $30. It’s a novelty. It’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t work, right?

The only good article I could find about the bands (besides the robust Press section they have on their site which is mainly geared towards pictures with celebs sporting the bands) was this one from the San Francisco Chronicle. The article basically says that the bands have no medical merit and chalk the phenomenon up to the placebo effect.

Nonetheless, after seeing this puppy in action, I seriously want one. This begs the question: Does being a believer make me a fool? Tell me what you think in the comments, or keep reading to read the research I did on how to get the best deal on a PowerBand!

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In a few short hours I’ll be headed to take part in one of my favorite Dallas activities, attending a Dallas Mavericks game! Tonight the Mavs take on the Washington Wizards in their first pre-season face-off. Beyond being super excited that basketball is back in season, I’m also psyched to re-start my basketball season crush on J.J. Barea (left). Sigh.

Basketball season crush? Yes. A high school friend (you know who you are) once taught me that it was not only acceptable, but preferable to schedule your crushes to coincide with the different sports seasons. “It’s just more fun that way” she’d say. And I agree.

So how, out of all those crush-worthy Mavs did I choose J.J. Barea? First, he’s short by basketball standards. Coming in at exactly six feet, he is one of the few basketball players I could date and not look ridiculous standing next to. (I’m only 5′ 2″)

Second, he speak Spanish. I love the Spanish language and think it’s hot when guys can speak it. I also really have any easy time getting on board with any guy who has an accent.

Lastly, he’s sweet. Okay, so I don’t actually know him, (I did meet him once at an All-Star party this February and the proceeded to blush and giggle for the next 20 minutes.) but my friend who used to work for the Mavs does and she seems to think he’s a good guy. Given the amount of a-holes in the NBA she’s told me about, a good recommendation from her is a pretty good sign.

Now, do I totally realize by blogging this I further decrease my chances of JJ finding me adorable or even date-able? I mean, hard to get is totally out the window. I guess I should, but if JJ really is a guy worth dating I’m sure it will work out despite this post. Or so this blogger hopes!

That said, I leave you this: GO MAVS!

PS Loud shout out to Miss Brett S. for letting us park at your place tonight! Let’s catch up over drinks soon!

Pasta salad is truly an art. Trust me, I’ve been to enough barbecues and family reunions to talk. One poorly chosen ingredient, be it in taste or texture, can ruin the whole thing. Too much dressing and your pasta wilts, too little and you’re left with dry, starchy noodles. Obviously, I’m pretty particular about my pasta salad, which is why I’ve never attempted it for a party of my own before.

That was, until this summer, when while planning a Fourth of July themed soiree for my sorority alumnae club, I ran into the problem of finding a side dish to accompany the mini burgers I planned on serving. Pasta salad would be the perfect solution. But could I find a recipe that was elegant enough to match the menu, company and decor? And was I, the admittedly inconsistent chef, up for the task?

As a last minute addition to the party menu (I was already at the grocery store!) I decided to attempt a pasta salad. A quick call to my mom reminded me of the perfectly prepared past salad that my Aunt Tricia brought to this year’s family Easter festivities. Another quick flip of the iPhone and I found myself scribbling this delicious recipe on the back of my grocery list.

Turns out it was a hit. Not only was the pasta salad delicious, the ingredients came together to make a photo worthy dish! Check out the full recipe after the jump!

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Let’s be honest, I’m not a great cook. Sure, I have a slim stock of sure fire recipes I’ve mastered, but beyond that my kitchen creations are only as good as the recipes I work from.

I’d been in sort of a cooking rut until my friend Alison shared a recipe for Chicken Crescent Roll-ups on her blog, Ross Ramblings, a few months back. The cheap ingredients and simple instructions seduced me into stepping out of my kitchen comfort zone and trying something new. I mean, nothing with that much cheese could possibly be bad, right?

That’s correct. Beyond being absolutely delicious, the recipe is sinfully simple! I made it for Ryan and we both gobbled it up. Plus, we had plenty of leftovers for the next day’s lunch.

Check out the full recipe after the jump. And don’t forget to subscribe to Ross Ramblings. Alison is full of great recipes and DIY projects!

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When I was a little girl, I loved to play with Barbies. I was constantly rearranging the furniture in her “dream home,” but when it came to dressing the dolls, I was at a loss. I forced my little sister, Bailey, to assemble outfits and dress all my dolls.

Fifteen years later, not much has changed. As much as I enjoy fashion, I just can’t seem to put together outfits on my own. Two to three times a year I invite my sister on a shopping spree where she chooses and pairs my outfits for the season. Bailey, guess what?! You’re off the hook! {Well, sort of.}

This spring two of my friends from high school, Cara and Holly, launched at an online boutique called Peacock Plume that caters to the budget-minded, fashion clueless gals like myself. Not only do they have an adorable collection of dresses, tops, bottoms, accessories and handbags, but they’ve paired most of their outfits into complete looks! And the best part — every outfit (including shoes and sometimes even handbags} costs under $150!

{Meet the Parents, Secret Garden, Backyard Bash}

My first order will include the adorable “Romp ‘n Roll” romper pictured above, the 100% silk “Royal Treatment Tank” and the Frill Seeker Clutch in black. (For only $50 I might have to invest in the white one too!) I’m also contemplating the Boot Scottin’ Boogey Dress as a Fourth of July outfit. What do you think? Yay or nay?

They have plenty more outfits, many perfect party dresses! {Yes, of course I would tie this back to entertaining!} Be sure to go and check out PeacockPlume.com and sign up for their email list. They’ve been known to send out coupon codes to their subscribers, so it’s totally worth it!

The Bachelor is back! Which means three months of Monday night wine drinking and drama with the girls. This week the main topic of conversation was about how each of the bachelorettes vying for Jake’s heart looked familiar. Everyone kept throwing out names of who looked like which celebrity.

The insomniac of the group, I couldn’t resist looking them all up and making the comparison for myself when I got home. I Photoshopped each of the bachelorette’s pictures together with their celebrity twin. Which one do you think looks the most like the person I paired them with? Tell us what you think in the comments. I’ll post what I think at the very bottom!

1. Ali and Kate Bosworth

2. Elizabeth and Megan Fox

3. Ella and Melinda Clarke

4. Kathryn and Brittney Snow

5. Tenley and Christine Taylor

6. Vienna and Ashley Tisdale or Haylie Duff

What do I think? Elizabeth and Megan Fox were twins separated at birth. Is the resemblance incredible or what?!

Clearly Kendall’s Entertaining Life hasn’t been so entertaining lately, but, actually, my real life has been crazy busy and highly entertaining over the past few months. I just haven’t had time to blog about it here!

The biggest highlight? A new job! I am now a full-time “Social Networking and Marketing Associate,” or in other words, a professional blogger! That’s right, this little ole blog helped me land a new job in a brand new industry! I still can’t believe that I’m getting paid to do what I love!

So that’s where I’ve been. I’ve spent the last five months working to launch my work blog, LowerOakLawn.com. I get to blog about the Dallas Design District including our new apartments, restaurants and all the cool interior design showrooms in the area. Yep, my job pretty much rocks.

Oh, and the new job also explains the two non-entertaining related posts: Doors of the Design District and Day in the Life of a Socialmediaite. Part of the interview process for my new job was to write blog post. Thanks to you faithful readers who commented on them and supported me through the interview process!

In other exciting news, I’m moving next week! Don’t worry, I’ll still be in Dallas! Just a little closer to work. I picked out an awesome apartment that is HUGE and has a perfect layout for entertaining. I’d love to hear any suggestions you have for how to arrange the living/dining room. The X marks where the cable connector is which makes the furniture arrangement a little less straight forward. Help! I could use it

Besides the great layout the biggest upgrade is the added cabinet space. There is TONS of room for all my plates, serving trays, glasses, etc. I’m sure my fellow entertaining enthusiasts can relate — keeping a fully stocked set of glassware and serving platters can sure take up a lot of space!

So that’s my update. Thanks to those of you who have kept my blog in your feed reader and I promise some great new parties this year! I’ll try to blog over here at least once a week. There you go — a new years resolution!

I’ll leave you with a little treat — some napkins I saw at Z Gallerie the other day. How true is this statement?

Now how great are those?! Totally worth $5.95.

As first impressions go, doors pretty much lead the way. A door can say a lot about a home or a business, or it can reveal very little about what lurks beyond.

Since the first step is the doorstep, that’s where I started when exploring Dallas’ “next urban neighborhood.” From the old, rustic doors of the antique shops on Slocum Street to the modern, glass showroom facades of the Decorative Center, the doors of the Design District are effortlessly chic.

Evolving from an industrial warehouse hub in the 1950s and 1960s to a center for antiques and decorative showrooms, the Design District is known internationally for its high fashion decorative fabrics and furnishings. It has become a reliable resource for decorative arts professionals who enjoy exclusive access to the area’s showrooms and stores. Interestingly, the economic downturn has led many showroom owners and artists in the Design District to re-think their designer-only policy, and many have opened their doors to the public.

Lately, the biggest door that opened for the Dallas Design District is the new exit ramp to Oak Lawn from the Dallas North Tollway. Dallas real estate development firm PegasusAblon, in anticipation of this new doorway, has invested heavily in its vision to take the Design District from a trade-only decorative destination to a vibrant, distinctive urban neighborhood.

Just a couple of years into the redevelopment of the Design District and the entire Lower Oak Lawn area, (now known as LOL), PegasusAblon’s team has effectively re-purposed and given new dimension to a treasured Dallas neighborhood.

Over the past week, I’ve been stalking LOL, touring the new apartment complexes and window shopping at the various furniture, lighting and antique shops and showrooms. The carefully crafted design of the new apartment communities is beautifully apparent. Both the Alta and Alexan Design District have developed home spaces that are unique and warmly livable for the urban professional seeking affordable style and premier proximity to Dallas’ hottest urban locales. I fell in love with the stained concrete floors, granite countertops and breathtaking skyline views.

Both communities are equally lush in amenities, including state-of-the-art gyms and A+ pools. Special features such as decorative tile back splashes in the kitchens add a custom home feel. The main difference between the two lies in the floor plans. The Alta units have a loft-like feel with open floor plans and exposed ventilation. While studio style units are available at the Alexan too, this community also offers more traditional apartment layouts.

The old saying goes; choosing a place to live is all about location, location, location. In that same vein, LOL is all about proximity, proximity, proximity. By car, LOL and the Design District are less than one minute from the Dallas North Tollway, two minutes from the AAC and Victory Park, five minutes from Downtown, six minutes to Uptown and just seven or eight minutes to West Village shopping. And with the current buzz about four new restaurant ventures planned for the LOL area, soon enough it will be the place to be — not just the place to live.

Doors are opening to a new community in Dallas — a community that is simultaneously rich with heritage and steeped in authenticity, yet artfully punctuated with a hip and ultra modern aura. The doors to LOL and the Design District are wide open with possibility and potential, giving Big D a new perspective on urban renaissance and redevelopment.

Tip: Ready to explore LOL but don’t know where to start? Check out Furniture Your Way showroom on Slocum Street, one of the oldest leather manufacturers in the DFW region. This week they hosted a massive sale, opening their doors to the public. With over 100 leather styles to choose from, you can find the look you want to achieve, whether it’s Hill Country Rugged or Dallas Modern Sleek. While I was out taking photos to chronicle the doors to LOL, the owner of the store walked right out the door to introduce himself to my friend Renee and me. He welcomed us through his doors and invited us to take a look around. Now this is a door worth gracing!

Find the Doors

Interested in checking out what’s behind all those beautiful doors? See the map below.
View Doors of the Dallas Design District in a larger map

{Photos by: Kendall Shiffler}

Last May, my friend Samantha and I hosted a Sex and the City Movie Premiere Party. With a small budget and a large guest list we set out to create an A-List party on a shoe string budget.

Movie studios spend hundreds of thousands of dollars throwing glamorous premiere parties to promote their newly released films. With a little determination and a lot of creativity you can throw a Hollywood worthy premiere party for a fraction of the cost.

Party Decor
Movie premiers are glitzy in nature, but a movie like Sex and the City ups the ante when it comes to glam. Start planning your décor by selecting a color palette. Take cues from the movie poster and movie website. For the Sex and the City party, our color palette consisted of black, white, hot pink and sparkly! Our inspiration board included Chinese takeout boxes, Manolo Blahnik shoes, engagement rings, the New York City skyline and, of course, martini glasses. We worked these details in to the party decorations and menu.

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When my alarm blares at 7 a.m., I immediately reach for two things: my glasses and my iPhone. My eyes may barely be open, but I already have the news itch—what if something happened overseas while I was asleep? I would hate to go to work without knowing the day’s headlines.

I quickly load the Associated Press mobile app. Home sales rose in June, the president is talking trade with Chinese officials and the Rangers won. It’s time to shower.

I drag myself out of bed, load Pandora and dock my iPhone—I only have time for a three-song shower this morning.

After my shower I open my laptop and load iGoogle to scan my e-mails and check the weather—looks like rain, no heels today. While drying my hair I update my Facebook status and catch up on what’s going on with my friends. Alison and Hudson broke up again? I make a mental note to send her an e-card later. I send a Happy Birthday wish, accept a new friend request and sign off.

I fill my coffee mug, grab my purse and load TwitterFon as I walk to my car.

When I arrive at work, I settle in by loading my multiple e-mail accounts and opening the Dallas City Hall blog—I have to check out the day’s happenings at 1500 Marilla.

I load my “Be Productive” playlist and get to work.

At noon I get a message on G-chat from a co-worker a few cubicles away.

“Bring your lunch today?” she asks.

“No. It’s such a nice day. I’m thinking of heading downtown. Want to join?” I reply.

“Sure! What are you in the mood for today?” she asks.

Feeling indecisive, I open Twitter and tweet: “Any good deals downtown Dallas today?”

Quickly I get three replies informing me that the new Jason’s Deli is giving out free cookies. Jason’s Deli it is.

At lunch we chat about new restaurants/bars we want to try. My co-worker suggests a new place on Lower Oak Lawn that she went to over the weekend but she can’t remember the name. We both pull out our phones and launch a quick search, she on her Blackberry and me on my iPhone. Both of us find the name and address of the restaurant within seconds. I check out the restaurant’s menu and text my boyfriend about the place she has recommended. He replies that it sounds good and suggests we invite our kickball team to join us there for dinner. He sends out a group text telling our team about our dinner plans.

Back to the office with 10 minutes of my lunch hour to spare. I open Google Reader and scroll through my list of entertaining and home decor blogs. I open a few interesting articles and post comments. I send a couple of emails to friends and say hi to my Mom, who works from a home office and uses Windows Live Messenger. She tells me about her new work Twitter account and that she already has 70 followers. Impressive.

Back to work.

5:30 p.m. Work is done for the day. Home at last. Phone starts buzzing. More friends confirming dinner plans. We’ll meet at 8:30 p.m. Until then I will spend some quality time with my laptop. I check Drudge, Facebook and Twitter, adding a post to Facebook about the new restaurant we’ll be going to and check out a few tweets. A tweet from @Nordstrom reminds me of their anniversary sale. I hop on over to the site and order a pair of jeans.

I also have time to send an E-vite for a small get-together at my place in a couple of weeks. I check on my blog, www.entertaininglife.com, approve a couple of comments, and begin researching my next blog topic.

I notice my Grandma is online and we chat for a few minutes before I throw on my gym clothes and hit the treadmill. I plug in my headphones to my iPod and listen to one of my favorite podcasts, “Grammar Girl.” Today she is discussing proper pronouns.

Back at home to get ready for dinner. Out of the shower and drying my hair again, I check Facebook to see that we’ve got a larger crowd coming for dinner. I check my E-vite responses and already five people are coming to my get-together. I check in with my work e-mail to assure everything is covered on that front.

Running fashionably late, I run Loopt to see if anyone is there yet. Looks like most are still in route. I hurry out the door.

10:30 p.m. back at home. I wind down by reading my favorite blogs and post a couple of Mobile Pix from dinner on Facebook. Then I check my Web site, www.designbykendall.com and discover a client inquiry about updating a Web site. I e-mail him back and then it’s off to bed.

Before sleep comes I think about this job I want to apply for and the post I need to write about “Why I love Social Media.” I think back over the events of the day. Social media helped me determine what to wear and where to eat lunch. It helped me organize dinner plans and figure out if I was running late. It compelled me to shop a sale, host a party and updated me on the day’s events—local, national and personal.

That’s when it hit me: “I don’t just love social media, I live social media.”

Photo credit: {d u y g u / CC BY 2.0}