Ten Ways to Go from Frump City to Hot Mama
By Jennie Lucas
 

1. Posture. Go to the nearest mirror and look at yourself from a side angle. Now suck in your tummy, throw your shoulders back and stick your chest out like a ballerina. Whoa, did you see that? You just lost five pounds - and five years. You can thank me later.

2. Skin. Clear skin is a must! I just discovered Cetaphil cleanser. It's awesome and cheap, and you can get it at any drugstore. For a stronger way to clear blemishes, two of my friends swear by Proactiv. To diminish wrinkles, try a night cream with retinol. And do I really need to mention sunscreen? If you're crazy enough to go outside without it, don't complain when your skin looks like crinkled leather!

3. Teeth. Brighten up your smile - it's an easy way to look younger! Your dentist can make you a bleaching tray for about $100, or try Crest Whitestrips, available in professional strength for about $45 from your dentist or regular strength for about $25 from a drugstore.

4. Eyeglasses. You're still wearing the comfy glasses you bought in 1998? Are you kidding me?!! You know how dowdy and old they make you look, right? For Pete's sake, get yourself some trendy, flattering new glasses - or even better, get contacts! How do you expect your lover to look deeply into your eyes through Coke-bottle lenses like that?

5. Body. Okay, I know it's winter and we all get a little lazy. But shave your legs and moisturize. Just do it. It takes three minutes, and it'll make you feel sexy all day. Another idea: try Jergens Natural Glow lotion. (Yup, the same stuff that started a bidding war on eBay.) Because hey, you never know, today might be the day your husband decides to whisk you off to Bermuda.

6. Clothes. Here's a newsflash: the baggy t-shirt isn't doing you any favors, and those "mom jeans" (high waist, light blue with a tapered leg) make your butt look huge. There are ways to be both comfortable and cute. The trick is to highlight your body's best features and camouflage the rest. If you have a small waist, wear a fitted shirt; if you've got great legs, wear a pencil-cut skirt or fitted trousers. Try dark-wash, boot-cut jeans, or if you've got money to blow, check out True Religion's "Joey" fleece pants. Whatever your weight or age, it's a sin if you don't make the most of what you've got.

7. Face. If your makeup is out-of-date or your face just needs a modern look for spring, get a free makeover at a department store. Or consider going to a salon for eyebrow-shaping and a professional cosmetic application. Professional makeup artists really know their stuff, and they'll give up their secrets for around thirty bucks.

8. Hair. If, like me, your hairstyle usually involves a scrunchie, it's definitely time to hit the salon! Have you ever wanted to go shorter? To get hair extensions? To go blonde? Time for a brand new look! Cut out some pictures from a hairstyling magazine and ask your stylist if it would work for you. Be brave! After all, it'll grow back, right?

9. Spa. Ahh, a full day at the spa, with nothing to do but drink champagne and eat chocolate-covered strawberries while you go from Swedish massage to mani/pedi. But how to justify the expense? Easy. Next birthday, ask your hubby for a spa gift certificate. When he gives it to you, squeal with delight and cover him with kisses. Voila. He's happy to be your hero, and you're happy to have a day of blissed-out hedonism. Happiness for everyone!

10. Attitude. Attitude is the most important thing! As Sophia Loren said, beauty is 50 percent what you've got and 50 percent what people think you've got. Men (and women) are attracted to boldness and confidence. So be bold. Be confident. Because if you don't think you're worth that, who else will?

For more ideas and details, check out the awesome book by Elycia Rubin and Rita Mauceri, Frumpy to Foxy in 15 Minutes Flat: Style Advice for Every Woman. It shows before-and-after renditions of frump makeovers for every situation, from first dates to job interviews to pregnancy. It's light-hearted and great!


Jennie Lucas, the mother of an 11-month-old, is working on taking her own advice. See all you WNP hot mamas in Atlanta!


 

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Our Favorite Sports

by the Wet Noodle Posse

I'm not athletically inclined in the least, so as far as playing a sport, I'd have to say - nothing. I'd rather read! When I was younger, I really loved barrel racing, but I was never competitive. In fact, I didn't own a horse. But I had friends who did, and I frequently rode theirs and learned to barrel race. As for spectator sports, I love college football. Go Red Raiders! - Stephanie Feagan

I'm not a big sports fan. In order to enjoy a sport, I need to be actively involved in it, not watching it on TV. So my two favorite active sports would have to be bowling and swimming. - Pam Payne

I love to kick around the soccer ball with my kids and cheer them on when they play! My favorite sport to watch is football. Go OU Sooners!!! - Jill Monroe

I grew up watching basketball. You're pretty much born with a basketball gene in Kentucky. I watch NFL football when the Titans are playing. But my favorite professional sport to watch is ice hockey. It's so fast and exciting. And I'm a total Olympics junkie, so I watch pretty much whatever is showing during the Olympics. Personally, I like to bowl and go hiking. - Trish Milburn

Bowling. What other sport lets you buy a big, heavy ball in a variety of colors (and now, scents!) and use it to knock things down while surrounded by black lights, fog, and loud music? Mainly, people don't seem to get as bent out of shape over winning and losing. Maybe it's the beer. - Kiki Clark

My fave sport is badminton. Not that I'm a champion or anything, but I don't suck either. - Dani Collins

I love all kinds of sports. I've always felt out of step with so many other women because they don't like sports. I like to participate, and I love to watch them in person or on TV. My favorite to participate in personally is tennis. I play competitively on two different teams. My favorite spectator sport is college basketball. I'm a big fan of March Madness. And someday I want to write a romance that revolves around basketball. - Merrillee Whren

Favorite sport...does tee-ball count? Honestly, I love to watch my children play any sport, so my answer is whichever sport one of my kids is currently playing. Let's see...at the moment that would be soccer and basketball, and baseball season is starting up. - Janice Lynn

We are such a non-sports watching family! But I love the Olympics! I love that kind of physical challenge. My favorite events are the obscure ones, like curling in the Winter Olympics and combination ones, like the biathlon. My personal sport? Darts. - Diane Perkins (aka Diane Gaston)

My favorite sport to watch is bull riding. Those cowboys are SO hot! Chaps, cowboy hats, and they are sooo badass, and then turn around and call everyone ma'am and have these really cute, sweet smiles. To die for. - Stephanie Rowe

Oh! How could I have forgotten professional bullriding! I love it! I watched my first PBR telecast when I was researching rodeo for Lauren's Eyes, and frankly, I was a little embarrassed to discover how much I liked it. Those guys are definitely hot, for all the reasons Stephanie mentions. Most of them are also a little on the short side. Being tall is a distinct disadvantage in this sport, since the rider's height makes it easier for the bull to whip him down into face-to-head contact, but there are a few foolhardy tall guys. My personal favorite - Brazilian Adriano Moraes. Mmmmmm...! I also always had a soft spot for Australia's Troy Dunn. - Norah Wilson

Favorite sport to play: tennis. Favorite spectator sport: Major League baseball (Go Cubs!), NFL (Go Cowboys and Bucs!) and college football (Go Gators!). And of course the Olympics! - Priscilla Kissinger

I mostly don't watch sports on TV, although I'll sometimes watch a USC football game, a bit of an Angels baseball game, or some of a Laker basketball game. I'll also occasionally go to a Lakers, Angels, USC, Kings, or Ducks game, but only if someone else has tickets and invites me. However, I love watching the Olympics, both summer and winter. I've always been an athlete--track, ballet, basketball, swimming, ballet, skiing when I was young. Swimming, field hockey, basketball,
golf, and tennis in high school. Swimming and tennis in college. Volleyball and ballet afterwards. Now I mostly do martial arts (Goju karate), and sometimes I'll swim some laps. Someday I'd like to take up tennis and golf again. - Debra Holland

I had to give up netball a month after turning 40 - did my right knee and ended up on the operating table. Now hubby and I spend wintry Saturday mornings ferrying four girls around to their games and getting drenched. My favorite spectator sport is Aussie rules football. You cannot beat lean, fit guys wearing sleeveless vests and little shorts running around and climbing over each others' backs to take a mark. Great inspiration! C'arn the Blues! - Trish Morey

I'd have to say my current favorite (spectator) sport is adventure kayaking. I've been watching Scott Lindgren's Tsang-po River shoot, and it's like nothing you've ever seen before. These people navigate rivers at lightning speed, getting sucked into chasms and pushed over waterfalls while occasionally overturning completely and flipping themselves back up again with a twist of the waist--look ma, no hands! Major adrenaline rush, and I never dipped a paddle. - Bridget Stuart

I played volleyball and softball in high school and college, and I continued to play in women's leagues after I was married. But when I lost a pop fly to deep left field in the lights one night and caught it with my left temple (the shiner was impressive), I decided 40 was the right age to put away the kneepads and hang up my glove. I have a tough time sitting still and observing-I'd rather play! But I enjoyed watching all the sports my children participated in, and now I'm looking forward to watching the grandkids. - Terry McLaughlin

Spectator sports: ice hockey because it moves fast and ice skating because it's so graceful. Sport to play: tennis, but it's been a long time. - Lorelle Marinello

I love basketball. Go Kings! And I must add that there's nothing like watching your kids play a sport. I did really enjoy going to a couple of college football games this year, too. - Theresa Ragan

I don't have a favorite sport, unless you consider hiking a sport. As a spectator, I enjoy college basketball (Go Kentucky Wildcats!), and I'm enjoying the Olympics in Torino. - Karen Potter

Thanks to a healthy competitive streak, a large back yard, and an endless supply of racquets and shuttlecocks as a child, my favorite sport to play is badminton. My favorite to watch, however, is figure skating, especially ice dancing. - Maureen Hardegree

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