Blogs on More

GTA-area residents: You can win two tickets to join CHFI 98.1¹s Erin
Davis, Rona Maynard & Moksha Yoga Maple for an informative morning to discuss mental health topics and other secrets your mother never told you about women’s wellness over 40. Each attendee will receive a gift bag valued at $160 with lots of door prizes available for all! This event is a fundraiser for the Mackenzie Health Foundation with all proceeds supporting mental health programs at the Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital.

Comment on this post before midnight ET on Wednesday October 17 with any
health tip for women¹s health to win two tickets to the Joy of Aging show
at the Bellvue Manor Vaughan (8083 Jane St.) on Sunday October 21, 9am -
1pm! (Value: $150) Please note: To ensure we can get the winner all the
information about how to pick up the tickets, the winner must check her or
his email Thursday October 18.

All transportation, parking etc. is the
responsibility of the winner, and you cannot be a resident of Quebec. You
must accept this prize as awarded, although we do reserve the right to
substitute a prize of equal value. And you have to be of the age of
majority for your province.

Beauty editor Beth Thompson shared her top picks for fall in the September 2012 issue of More. Now we invite you to share yours and you could win the prize pack below!

Here’s how to enter: Just leave a comment below before midnight ET, Thursday October 4 with the one beauty product or tip you can’t live without this fall. You must be a resident of Canada but not of Quebec, of the age of majority in your province, and you must agree to accept the prize as awarded.

Reduce the size of large, congested pores and get make-up ready, matte skin with The Body Shop Tea Tree Pore Minimiser. More.ca is offering you a chance to win a The Body Shop Community Fair Trade Tea Tree prize pack valued at more than $150. For more information, please visit www.TheBodyShop.ca You can also like The Body Shop on Facebook.

This contest is now closed. I’ve emailed the winner and will share who that is once I hear back! Thanks everyone!

I’m going to run a 10k race in the Reggae Marathon in Negril, Jamaica – and you can enter to win the trip to come with me! It’s an amazing prize package with a stay at the beautiful Caves resort.

As I blogged earlier, I started running this summer. I’d always envied runners because it seems like a simple way to exercise, as well as a beautiful way to connect with the city (or country) you’re in. But I have to admit that for most of my life I’ve hated running.

Then I came across the technique of running s-l-o-w-l-y so that runners don’t injure themselves and also don’t get that gaspy out-of-breath feeling some of us associate with horrendous gym classes back when we were all wearing Olivia Newton-John-inspired wristbands. And I tried it out. I also started following, vaguely, the Couch 2 5k ™ programme in my own style, which went pretty much like this: Run past two bus stops; walk to the next bus stop; repeat. And it worked.

I think I’m a convert. Next post I’ll talk about my (changing) relationship to my (aging) body.

I’m also so excited about the Reggae Marathon and visiting Jamaica for the first time – as well a bit scared about running a 10k. I’ve worked up to running 7k over the last couple of months, but I’m not sure how I’ll handle the pace of a race (although my mantra is going to be “be a turtle.”)

So please:

1. Share your tips for staying motivated. Fear of falling on my face in Negril is pretty good motivation. So is the idea of running in Negril, Jamaica – it is going to be beautiful. But that doesn’t always penetrate my lazy brain at 5:30 am.

2. Share your training tips…please? I’ll be blogging about gear, training routines and routes and race prep. You can follow me/More on Twitter and Facebook to see how I’m doing, as well as right here on the blog. I would love it if we can get a community of women supporting each other in their fitness goals.

3. Any encouragement is much appreciated. I was not kidding about being scared!

4. Do not forget to enter the contest to come with me! You could end up right here:




Jenn Gruden is the web editor for More.ca, and has been in love with the Internet since 1991. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

I just called my father up and said to him “say something wise.”
“What?” he said, “What do you need?”
“I’m writing a blog around Father’s Day and I need you to share some wisdom.”
After telling my mother that I was on the phone asking, my dad came up with some wisdom for, well, anyone, but particularly for 20-something year olds: Find something you love to do, do that, and if you can, earn a living at it.

I’m pretty sure he chose that bit of advice not just because he’s a semi-retired university professor, so that’s kind of his target market, but he may also still consider me vaguely in the age category even though I’m actually 41. But it’s also very him: That’s what he did, and it did make him happy. And so have I.

The great thing about my dad this year though, is that he could share that with me. Last winter he had a brain injury, likely an aneurysm, and for many days we were not sure what faculties he would recover. I’ll know we’re back to normal life when being able to call him up like that doesn’t give me a little thrill: This moment almost didn’t happen. (I’m motivated to check out Kate Daley’s Father’s Day gift guide too!)

Relationships with our dads can be complicated ones. Although I grew up in the 70s to the strains of Free to be…you and me, it was still my father who seemed to be the one who was the interface to the larger world; the person who conveyed more of the wings than the roots.

In that spirit I was hoping you all would share something you learned from your father: A saying, a habit or anything else, in the comments.

I’ll pick a random winner from all the comments received before noon, Friday June 15, for a copy of Rob Rainford’s Born to Grill, since I’m willing to bet a lot of us learned how to barbeque at our father’s sides. The usual rules apply: You must be a resident of Canada, but not in Quebec, and of the age of majority in your province. By entering you give us permission to quote your entry and name you the winner. You also agree to accept the prize as awarded, or a prize of equal value.

So please comment away: What have you learned from your dad?

Here in Toronto we’re celebrating More’s 5th birthday with a tea at the Windsor Arms. Linda will be interviewing 5 special guests. And online we’d like to invite you to join us via Twitter! You can win amazing prizes:

1 NeoStrata basket valued at over $250
1 Shiseido Ultimate Radiance Prize Pack with a value of $167
5 prize packs from Elizabeth Arden featuring Prevage® – each pack valued at $360
1 euphoria prize pack – value $150
1 philosophy prize pack – value $150
1 Roberto Cavalli prize pack – value $150

Here’s how it works: We’ll be tweeting live from the event between 1 and 3 pm on Thursday May 10th, and then we’ll be tweeting again from 8:30 – 9:30 pm (both times ET). We’ll give away 6 prizes during the afternoon and 4 in the evening.

You will need a Twitter account to participate. If you don’t have one and don’t want to get one, well, keep an eye on the blog for future giveaways but this one’s not for you.

The hashtag will be: #More5th

To enter for one of the prizes all you have to do is:
1) Follow us @more_ca
2) Tweet the following during one of the two party periods: Happy #More5th! Follow @more_ca and RT this to win!
3) Tweet us something else during those times too! We would love to hear your ideas about the magazine, about celebrating women’s passions and achievements at this stage, and about what you have to celebrate this year. Your first tweet gets you one entry and if you tweet again using the #More5th hashtag, you’ll get a second ballot.

Legal: You must be of legal age in your province, and this contest is only open to Canadian residents excluding Quebec. You must accept the prize as awarded. We reserve the right to award a different prize of equal value (although this rarely, if ever, happens).

See you there!

What’s your favourite Steven Spielberg film? Tell us in the comments (be sure it’s one of his!) and you’ll be entered to win a Blueray/DVD copy of War Horse, which will be released tomorrow.

Mine’s going to have to be E.T. Sorry! And Drew Barrymore is pregnant too (I had to work that in there.)

The usual rules apply: We’ll select 3 winners randomly from the comments which have correctly provided a Spielberg film before noon on Thursday, April 5. You must be of legal age in your province to win. You must accept the prize as awarded. And my apologies but this giveaway is not available to residents of Quebec.

I Don’t Know How She Does It, starring Sarah Jessica Parker, Pierce Brosnan and Greg Kinnear. I’m giving away 3 DVDs! Read this post to find out how to win a copy.

Today’s my last day here, everyone. Sadly and gladly, I’m handing the reins back to the permanent web editor, Jennifer.

The timing is great…it’s a fresh new year, I’m off to another fun project for Canadian Living‘s website, and Jenn says she’s all ready to roll when we had lunch together last Friday.

Now just a quick word of thanks to the More team before I tell you how to win a copy of I Don’t Know How She Does It. Thank you all, for helping me this year. A huge thanks to my right arm, Grace, the web producer, and to Simone who preceded her: these ladies have also become my friends. Thanks to More’s fabulous copy editor Brenda Thompson for her help and friendship; to editors Beth Thompson and Kate Daley for their excellent and generous editorial contributions to More.ca; to travel columnist K. Jill Rigby for her sense of humour (and great travel content). Thanks also to editor-in-chief Linda Lewis, for her insight, encouragement and unfailing personal support. I’ll miss working with you!

It’s quite fitting that I’m giving away a few copies of I Don’t Know How She Does It, you know. Because for most of the last twelve months, I juggled my husband’s serious illness, childcare issues, work, doctor’s visits, bad news, good news, anguish, joy and everything in between –  and I didn’t know how I would do it. I just did. Each day came and passed, and little by little I got through it.

How to win: Ok, you’ve suffered my deep thoughts and thank-you speech, now here’s how to get one of these three DVDs. Tell us, in the comments, how you do it. How do you keep life running smoothly? Describe in the comments by Friday, January 13th, 11:59pm and we’ll pick three winners next week. Check back to see if you won!

Goodbye! And good luck!

-Helen

Update: This contest is closed. Winners have been chosen and we will announce their names once we have confirmed with them!

(Update, Dec. 20: Thanks for your comments, we’ve picked a winner! Scroll down to the comments to see who it is. -Helen)

This is Sally Hansen’s Crackle in Antique Gold. We’ll tell you how to win a Complete Salon Manicure Wine Not with Crackle Antiqued Gold and Complete Salon Manicure Gilty Pleasure with Crackle Fractured Foil at the end of this blog post.

Let’s face it, at holiday time many of us are too busy with family, baking and wrapping to make time for a manicure.
Luckily, we don’t have to. According to Sallly Hansen beauty expert Dana Caruso, achieving salon results at home is easier than you think.

What makes it so simple is the range of nail products now available. Crackle, for instance, is a festive and fashion forward look that’s easy to achieve with just a few simple tricks, says Caruso.

Here are her step-by-step instructions for a salon-worthy look.

1. Choose your favorite base colour. Then apply a thin even one-coat application. This will prepare for best results and allow the under coat to shine through.

2. Mask off a strip of the first color application with striping tape and apply crackle to only the exposed area. After thoroughly dry, remove tape and apply topcoat to overall nail surface.

3. Cut a small piece of sponge and soften the Crackle application by gently pressing the sponge on to the just applied wet Crackle and you’ll have a softer more subtle look.

4. If you would like to achieve a 3D effect, apply the topcoat in stripes over the dry Crackle either vertically or horizontally.
Says Caruso: “My favourite Holiday 2011 looks are: Complete Salon Manicure Wine Not with Crackle Antiqued Gold and Complete Salon Manicure Gilty Pleasure with Crackle Fractured Foil.”

Want to win these? We’ll send the above to one winner. Just tell us in the comments below what’s on your nails right now (and why) by Monday December 19, 11:59pm and we’ll pick a favourite answer.

-Beth

One of the refrains of my inbox this week is “Where is your Tony Bennett contest? Huh? Huh?!”

It’s coming, promise! November 21st, 2011 is the date the contest opens. So visit more.ca/duets starting on Monday to enter and for the full set of rules and regs. This prize includes tickets for two to see Tony, a chance to meet him, roundtrip airfare and hotel accommodation in sunny Naples, Florida. (Plus we’re giving away 5 secondary prizes of his new album, Duets II.)

We’ve also got an web-exclusive interview with Tony Bennett, which I’ll post soon. He talks about the enormous talent of Lady Gaga, the late Amy Winehouse, and More‘s December/January cover girl, Queen Latifah. 

Have a great weekend!

-Helen

Our Jann Arden concert contest is open! Just click here and enter for your chance to win. It’s a trip for two to see Jann in concert (including a meet-and-greet with Jann during the show), it also includes flights for two people and three nights hotel accommodation, ground transportation and dinner for two at the hotel!

And don’t miss our COPA-nominated Haute Flash e-newsletter. We didn’t win at the awards ceremony yesterday, but we had fun trying. Sign up now to get our forthcoming newsletter, which will feature an exclusive note about Jann Arden.

-Helen