Rachael Ray

There are so many things that make the holiday season exciting and joyful-seeing loved ones, baking special holiday desserts, and carrying out time-honored traditions like hanging stockings above the fireplace. This year, as you enjoy the close feeling of being together with family, consider taking a moment to create some new traditions that honor the holiday as well as the health of the planet. In addition to all the celebrating, the Christmas season is often a time of excess and waste, but it doesn’t have to be. Why not save the earth from some extra pollution, and save yourself some money while you’re at it? Below are some suggestions for a bountiful holiday season without all the waste. Enjoy! Louisa’s Earth-Friendly [...]...

I love jewelry. I got the bug from my mom who has literally thousands of pieces of costume jewelry. Seriously. And she collects more pieces everyday, from thrift stores, flea markets and garage sales. My mom takes to jewelry like a fish to water. So it is no surprise that I have cozied up to a jewelry designer supreme, Amy Lehmann. Amy and I met about a year ago at this uber swanky fundraiser for the Museo Del Barrio here in NYC. We instantly bonded because, aside from her wearing one of her gorgeous creations around her neck, Amy and I were hopelessly under dressed. I first realized it when a magazine editor mentioned to me that she wore the same [...]...

Being one of Rachael’s buddies, means I am lucky enough to meet some really amazing chefs - Ingrid Hoffman, Katie Lee Joel, Bobby Flay, and Daisy Martinez are the first to come to mind (besides Rach herself, of course).  But there are many others, from courageous Iron Chefs to innovative Next Food Network stars.  But the other day, I met some of the most courageous, innovative chefs ever - and I’ll swear to that even though I’ve never sampled a single one of their recipes. My friend Sian is the resident primatologist at the DuMond Conservancy, a non-profit organization that houses confiscated and retired laboratory primates.  In turn, these primates provide a unique resource for any student interested in learning more [...]...

We all know how much Rach loves her rescued dog Isaboo, and if you have read my blog about the Chihuahua races you know how I feel about my shelter pup Baloo (or The Loo as she’s called her for short)… This is the letter Baloo wrote to President-Elect Obama encouraging him to adopt a shelter or rescue dog for his family upon moving into the White House. Baloo says feel free to copy it and forward it on. Here is Obama’s contact info. Via email you can send this important message to: http://change.gov/page/s/yourvision Or http://change.gov/page/s/yourstory Dear Barack Obama, It’s not much of an exaggeration to say the whole world is watching as your family chooses it’s newest member. Please, as you make your choice, don’t forget the [...]...

Like clockwork, every year the phone rings on Halloween to let me know that friends are going out to a party or to the big Halloween parade and I don’t have a single costume prepared, let alone an idea for one. Well, this year I have done my homework and I have assembled a bunch of last minute costume ideas and some super last minute ones, (seriously less than 5 minutes to put together) so that this Halloween none of us will be left out in the cold. Happy Halloween!! Last Minute Costumes Substitute Teacher: Don your most conservative outfit, like a teacher (put your hair up in a bun, skirt and sweater, glasses on a chain around your neck). Then, stick a paper [...]...

A while back, I had to meet with one of my pickiest clients, an architect of luxury homes himself, about flooring in a new beach apartment. Flooring is a designer’s bane – lots of options, lots of weight. We have to carry all that stuff, people! After sorting through probably a couple of hundred different flooring options, and dragging in canvas bag after canvas bag full tile, stone, wood, cork, and bamboo goodies, I barely had enough breath left to discuss prices, let alone relative environmental quality of the products. So, I was shocked when my pickiest client, this architect determined to impress his own picky clients, chose one of the corks - not because he [...]...

Not to be a total downer, but I feel compelled to share this story with you guys. This past Sunday, my family and I took a drive to go try a great pizza place in another town. We had a fabulous lunch and were just driving around looking at the other great restaurants in the area (truth be told, I was researching for this site). My husband was driving our station wagon, I was in the passenger’s seat and my children, ages 5 and 3, were in the backseat. The last thing I remember is slowing down as we approached a red light. Next thing I knew, I felt my back and head slam against [...]...