Posts in category: Life Style

Girls’ nights out have started to feel like speed dating, with everything set on a timer: the restaurant reservation, the babysitter, a middle-aged woman’s ever-diminishing tolerance for noise. “Ladies’ Nights,” as they were known at their late-20th-century inception (shout-out to Kool & The Gang), weren’t even designed to satisfy women’s desires. A discounted drink to increase female patronage on a slow night was just bait—to lure male patrons willing to pay full price.

That’s not to say that girls’ nights in haven’t fallen prey to late-stage capitalism. Typing “adult sleepover” into Google’s search bar will take you down an Instagram rabbit hole to a yassified version of your childhood slumber party, replete with matching satin pyjama sets, balloon arches and personally-branded Prosecco. And, because it’s Instagram, group dances!

Performing choreographed dances in matching pyjamas is about as appealing as getting my annual mammogram. What I want more than anything these days is time. My girlhood sleepovers offered time in excess. When my sixth-grade bestie Denise swore during one slumber party séance that she saw my name flicker in the candlelight—which meant, as she explained it, that I would die that night—daybreak couldn’t have come soon enough. (The only thing that failed to survive was my friendship with Denise.)

I set out to schedule some low-key sleepovers across the two weekends a month when my kids were with their dad (which, admittedly, is one of the main reasons I could even consider this social experiment, as I have a house to myself every other week). But I lost one weekend to COVID and suddenly found myself cramming three sleepovers into the span of five nights in order to meet my deadline.

To ready myself for this five-night deep dive, I consulted a local expert: my 12-year-old daughter. In the few years since she’d started having sleepovers, she had tried every version, from full-blown, stay-up-all-night slumber parties to intimate one-on-ones; overnights with only boys (except her), only girls and a mix of all genders.

So, what was the key to a successful sleepover, in her seasoned opinion?

“Snacks,” she told me, flatly. “You’re going to need snacks and sooo many drinks.” She also revealed the number-one rookie mistake: pulling up in an outfit. “What you actually want is to come in the most comfortable, beat-up shit you own.” (Matching pyjama sets, be damned!)

Danisha, the deputy director of a nonprofit supporting Black and Latine children in private schools, arrived for the first sleepover around nine on a Friday night. We’ve been close for a decade, since her son and my daughter became fast friends in preschool, bonded by their love of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and roughhousing. She’d spent the afternoon and the better part of the evening at her son’s sports-doubleheader (first, flag football at school, then YMCA basketball), with both games going into overtime. During game two, she learned her childcare fell through, and with her husband out of town on a boys’ trip, she had a choice: cancel our sleepover or leave her son, now 13, alone overnight for the first time.

Does conflict and stress feel strangely comforting Taurus? That’s because you are used to being stuck in survival mode. Your nervous system now flags this as normal life. While it may have served a purpose in the past, it does not any more. The good and bad exist within each other, Libra. This is true for everything in your life— financial, relationship or any other goals. You are here to embrace the colours that exist between black and white.Your fear of missing out is really anxiety. Leo, today mind your own business, reduce your screen time, be more present, hydrate and eat healthy. Call up your loved ones and open your heart. Remind yourself that you are invincible. Instead of measuring your outcomes, focus on sharing your ideas in a way that adds value, Gemini. One prospect might feel more exciting than another and it is entirely up to you to see how things shape up. However, be assured that your decisions do not need to be made based on fear.

Read on for what the stars have in store for you, and make sure you check out your sun, moon and rising signs for the complete picture.

Choose what is being offered to you, Aries, even if it seems like the smallest fruit in the basket. You may have to navigate through choppy emotions but it will ultimately lead you to brighter places and sunnier spots that will become welcome changes in your life. Instead of treading these waters alone, let the support you receive carry you.

Cosmic tip: Open doors to reciprocal support and relationships.

Does conflict and stress feel strangely comforting Taurus? That’s because you are used to being stuck in survival mode. Your nervous system now flags this as normal life. While it may have served a purpose in the past, it does not any more. Your guides simply remind you that boredom is not the basis to invite conflict. Don’t you let an idle mind become the place where empty vessels keep clashing.

Cosmic tip: Rise above your fears and try something new.

Partnerships, fusions and recalibration are all on the cards today Gemini. Soon enough, offers, opportunities and prospective collaborations will arrive at your doorstep. Instead of measuring your outcomes, focus on sharing your ideas in a way that adds value. One prospect might feel more exciting than another and it is entirely up to you to see how things shape up. However, be assured that your decisions do not need to be made based on fear.

Cosmic tip: Remind yourself today that the Universe is on your side.

Sunglasses have followed Shah Rukh Khan through the decades the way a signature follows a letter. Used as punctuation at the end of dialogues; they’ve travelled with him through different hair eras and leading-man phases, settling into the visual shorthand that shapes how he exists in the public imagination.

That thread runs into the new D’YAVOL X eyewear campaign, built within the D’YAVOL Luxury Collective co-founded by Shah Rukh Khan, Leti Blagoeva, Aryan Khan and Bunty Singh. The collection comes out of what Aryan Khan and Blagoeva describe as a collaborative build shaped by shared taste, technical testing and rounds of refinement.

“He has been the biggest fan of glasses for as long as I can remember,” says Aryan Khan of his father. “From the start, he kept saying to make eyewear. It took time because we wanted the pieces handmade in Japan by the right people.”

Blagoeva describes the approach as one with wearability at the centre rather than a trend chart. The debut introduces a small set of shapes in the classic zone, each adjusted through colour or detailing. “We wanted frames people could use for years,” she says. “Not something that feels tied to one look or one moment.”

Finding that balance also meant paying attention to fit. “Most people do not want loud, costume-like glasses,” says Aryan. “It comes down to what feels flattering. The right detailing can add interest without turning it into something only a few people would attempt.”

Preview sessions echoed that desire for versatility with people finding more than one shape that worked for them, often in unexpected ways. Blagoeva remembers the reactions clearly. “That range mattered to us,” she says. “We wanted broad use without losing character.”

The frames are handmade in Japan in small batches using pure titanium, premium acetates and ZEISS lenses. It is the most technically complex category D’YAVOL X has attempted so far. Blagoeva recounts hours spent refining the smallest components, from the hinges to the wire cores that line the temples. Even the way the metal sits inside the acetate on the chunkier frames uses a method developed specifically for the line. “When you see the drawings, they look like diagrams for machinery,” she says. “There are many small parts that need to work together.”

For Aryan, one of the most useful insights came from his father’s long-wear habit. “He says. “Sometimes ten hours straight. He was very clear that the metal had to be titanium because it is so light. Otherwise it starts hurting your nose.” Shah Rukh had been wearing early versions for months before the launch, testing how they held up in daily use. “His feedback saved us a few rounds of mistakes.”

Cottage cheese has been blessed with an image overhaul. Once considered a stodgy health food, it’s now a popular recipe add-in thanks to its sky-high protein content; a huge advantage in a day and age that treats protein like the be-all and end-all of nutrition.

For people who eat dairy (because not everyone does), “cottage cheese is a really excellent concentrated protein source,” Desiree Nielsen, RD, a recipe developer with a focus on plant-based nutrition, tells us. While it also contains other vital nutrients like calcium, phosphorus and vitamin B12, protein is really the standout. Just a half-cup of cottage cheese contains around 12 grams, putting it at par with some protein powders, so even a small amount will have a big impact.

Compared to some other dairy foods (like regular cheese), cottage cheese is low in saturated fat, making it an especially strong dairy protein choice, according to Nielsen. It also has a mild flavour and soft, blendable texture that adapt well to a variety of dishes. “You can absolutely eat it out of a bowl with a spoon if you like, but it lends itself very well to incorporation in different recipes too,” Nielsen says. “There’s endless possibilities in terms of what people can make with cottage cheese,” Jasmine Hormati, MS, RD, a certified intuitive eating counsellor and the founder of the New York City–based practice Mendinground Nutrition, says. “The sky’s the limit right now.”

On that note, we rounded up a few of the best tips and tricks for turning cottage cheese into high-protein breakfasts, lunches and desserts. Here are seven creative suggestions for sneaking this ingredient, a bona fide “protein delivery vehicle,” as Nielsen describes it, into your cooking for a meaningful boost.

Put it in smoothies

For Nielsen, this is the first option that springs to mind. Relative to protein powders, which tend to be pretty expensive, cottage cheese is a “great, affordable option for boosting,” she says. Adding a cup or two to your blender could deliver a comparable protein value for cheaper. Basically, any smoothie that you’d typically make with Greek yogurt “will also taste delicious if you put some cottage cheese in it.”

Spread it on toast

While this tip is not earth-shatteringly original, it’s still worth mentioning because it’s so tried-and-true and it even happens to be a personal favourite breakfast hack of Hormati’s. Once the cottage cheese is on, add vegetables, fruit or other toppings as desired. “It could be some sort of fruit with honey drizzled on it or some sort of jam or vegetables like tomato, avocado or cucumber,” Hormati says, adding “I personally love doing a cucumber-tomato option.” Her suggestion: lean into seasonality. In summer, “fresh peaches would be really nice,” she says, though apples or berries could be tasty too. And honey always “brings a nice little bit of sweetness.”

Enhance dips and dressings

You can easily protein-ify any dip or dressing by adding in blended cottage cheese, according to Nielsen. For an easy two-ingredient cottage cheese pesto, just stir some of the former into the latter. P(r)esto: a protein-enhanced version of the beloved basil-leaf paste. “So delicious and easy,” Nielsen says. Plus, it takes “five minutes to make.” Heads-up: “You might need to balance the salt level or, if it’s tasting flat, add a little fresh acid, like a tiny splash of apple cider vinegar or a little bit of lemon.” Just make sure your cottage cheese is blended, since that will soften the sludgy-yet-chunky texture and, in turn, make it easier to work with. “It becomes more like yogurt,” Nielsen says. Whatever dip route you take, finish by dunking in some veggie sticks for a “fantastic” afternoon snack.

Turn it into a pasta sauce

If you’re not feeling a dip or dressing, “making a creamy sauce with cottage cheese could be another alternative,” Hormati says. You could try substituting cottage cheese for heavy cream in a homemade white sauce, adding cottage cheese to store-bought sauce for a creamier texture or even striking out on your own entirely. If you’re in the mood for something seasonal, a suggestion from Hormati: try blending chopped, cooked squash with cottage cheese for a DIY option that embraces fall flavors.

Swap it in for mayo

No mayo? No problem. You can always use cottage cheese in a pinch. This hack can apply to any number of recipes: egg salad, mayo-based dips, dressings and sauces, according to Hormati, even deviled eggs. “I’ve seen someone do that before,” she says and it was “just so unexpected, so good.” More recently, she and her partner made chicken salad this way, replacing the mayo with an equivalent amount of cottage cheese. “What we we did was make the sauce first in a bowl and use a whisk to make it smoother and creamier and then add in our food.” Chopped boiled chicken, tomatoes, pickles, almonds and dried cherries, plus some dill, sumac and pomegranate molasses for an Iranian twist, Hormati says. She notes the swap results in a lighter texture and slightly different flavor profile that some people might find more pleasant.

Use it as a base for a burrito filling

The sheet pan strategy is always an excellent meal prep option if you’re trying to get ahead on your breakfasts, lunches and dinners for the week. Nielsen recommends mixing cooked eggs, cottage cheese and various other burrito filling-type foods (“like black beans and corn or tomatoes and greens”), spreading the mixture on a baking sheet and popping it in the oven to cook. If you’re planning to incorporate lettuce, make sure to add it in after the baking step, otherwise the heat will turn it limp, soggy and wholly unappetizing. Once the mixture is done baking, you can cut it into sections and roll it into tortillas for an easy to-go meal.

Boost your baking mix

Yep, you can even make sweet treats with cottage cheese, athough, FYI, Nielsen doesn’t recommend going off-book. “I highly recommend that you seek out recipes,” she says. “Maybe just don’t sort of freestyle it on your own.” Thankfully, there should be no shortage of inspiration online if you’re in the market for a cottage-cheese-based baked good. Banana bread is a popular option, Nielsen says, but if you’re feeling something a little more out of the box, you can find creators putting cottage cheese in everything from bagels to pancakes. Plus, the protein boost isn’t the only benefit. Taking this approach will also enhance the moisture content, arguably improving on the OG.

And if none of these options really speak to you? Not to worry; there’s plenty more where that came from. Use it to instantly elevate any egg recipe (eggs pack less protein than you think), including egg bites, egg muffins and even frittatas.

Their texts quickly became the highlight of her day. A week after matching, she accidentally butt-dialled him. The missed call turned into a four-hour FaceTime conversation. A few weeks later, he told her he would be in town “scouting locations” for his Crumbl store. In reality, he flew in just to take her on their first date, then kept flying in every weekend for two months. “Billy is my best friend, the person I laugh with until my sides hurt, and the person who makes me the best version of myself,” says Saboo.

They spent two years together while she was in business school in New York and the next three years long-distance between Chicago and New York as they both built their companies. “We ended up dating for the two years I was at business school in NYC, but the next three years, through our engagement and all our wedding planning, we were long distance between Chicago and NYC,” she says. “Finally, we are now both NYC residents and are so happy.”

The proposal arrived in June 2023 on a cliff in Encinitas, near San Diego. The excuse was an annual boys’ trip. Every summer, Badruddin and his childhood friends follow the Chicago Cubs to an away game. This time the destination was San Diego and he encouraged her to join, folding her into what sounded like an easy weekend of baseball, brunch and the farmer’s market. While Saboo sipped lemonade at a kids’ stand with her friend Emily, pretending to wander, Badruddin engineered an elaborate setup at the Hyatt Alila Marea Beach Resort. On a private cliff, a live violinist played their favourite songs as a photographer waited beside a rose arch that read “Will you marry me” and golden stands displaying photographs from their years together. He had even packed her suitcase, down to her makeup bag, and arranged for them to move hotels.

“As we climbed the steps, I first saw Billy’s friends, then the violinist and finally him,” she recalls. Walking down a path lined with their photographs felt surreal. She barely remembers the words, only the joy of saying yes. Their friends popped the champagne. A pod of dolphins leapt across the water below, something their friends, who are locals, said they had never seen. Later that night, they skipped the fancy dinner for In-N-Out burgers and animal fries. “It was romantic, thoughtful and completely, perfectly us,” she says.

In a season dominated by primaries, pastels and gilded embellishments, Ananya Panday is making a compelling argument for the power of black. The actor turned heads in a Gaurav Gupta creation that challenges every preconceived notion about festive dressing. Her pick was a sari-gown that proves the shade can look just as celebratory, high-impact and modern as any bright hue.

“This piece is from our latest 2025 couture collection, ‘Quantum Entanglement’, and it is my way of reimagining the sari through our evolving design language,” says Gupta. His reinterpretation begins with the silhouette: a fluid, side-slit silk-chiffon drape that forms the base of the ensemble. On Panday, it translates into a skirt that hugs her frame, while the pleats on it are an unmistakable Gaurav Gupta signature, sculpted to fall with precision. He continues, “The cascading tassels bring back an old GG code in a more contemporary way.” Those tassels become the defining texture of the look.

Karmic lessons are behind you and thank Saturn for it. As it moves directly, it is ready to let the sun shine down on you in more ways than one. Love and life may both feel more vibrant today and there is a chance a lighthearted feeling that makes everything better, washes over you, Taurus.  Find workarounds to your present scenario, as a persisting one may help you choose how to tackle things instead of resigning from them, Scorpio. String a beautiful necklace from the scattered pearls lying around, instead of worrying about how little you have at hand. You may feel like you’ve seen it all, Gemini, but have you? No. There is more to explore, experience and definitely to learn. Now Leo, pretending like there is no problem will solve nothing. Address them, talk about them and decide to find solutions for them. Your ability to handle this in a practical and adaptable manner and the cosmos will resolve it for you.

Read on for what the stars have in store for you, and make sure you check out your sun, moon and rising signs for the complete picture.

A major day lies ahead, Aries. Work, money, love or anything else that you’ve been manifesting, there is a breakthrough coming forward at lightning speed. Slow down to receive it, and receive it well. Allow it to come through before you decide to shoot it down. Your intuition and instincts will speak only once, but with clarity. Listen to it, sleep over it and then gear up to get the ball rolling.

Cosmic tip: It will soon be the time to get things done. For today, receive the messages and blessings from the cosmos.

Karmic lessons are behind you and thank Saturn for it. As it moves directly, it is ready to let the sun shine down on you in more ways than one. Love and life may both feel more vibrant today and there is a chance a lighthearted feeling that makes everything better, washes over you. Now what will you complain about, Taurus? Nothing. Expect that you’ve gotten so used to expecting something bad that you might feel that you’ll jinx this day. Only focus on enjoying each moment and you won’t.

Cosmic tip: Have a little faith in yourself and the cosmos. Things are working out for you.

You may feel like you’ve seen it all, Gemini, have you? No. There is more to explore, experience and definitely to learn. Your childhood and history may be resurfacing in your mind lately. You could have blamed it on the Mercury and Saturn retrograde, but now that they are both in direct motion, expect these past ghosts to dissolve. As an addition ask what lessons they brought for you. That way you might not have to revisit them for a long time, unless they have something more to offer.

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Now Mody lives with Ari, the walls are decked out in pastels and there is pug art everywhere. The plates, cutlery, rugs, lamps—even the wall sockets—are all cute. The apartment reflects her own taste—there are no grey sofas. “The whole idea was that I was separating from a 10-year marriage. And that’s a loss, right? So I just wanted to be in a space that made me happy.” She is currently working on a book about dopamine decor with Ten Speed Press. “In it, there are checklists on how to do everything. If I had to paint a wall in my sleep, I know exactly the supplies I’ll need. I’ve painted so many walls on my own. The first time you try to put up wallpaper, you’re in tears—I was in tears. My wallpaper kept sticking back on itself, but now I can probably do that in my sleep too. I’m exaggerating, but I’m good at it.”

Mody’s kitchen before renovations.

Mody’s kitchen after renovations.

And Mody is good at it. Since 2020, her income has grown fivefold, and her current Portland house is owned solely by her. “The next plan is to buy a car, and once I start driving, travelling and exploring, I think I’m going to feel even more empowered.” In the meantime, she’s excited for her book release in August, taking on more interior design projects, potentially working with brands like Anthropologie, and even creating her own home decor line. That said, she has no plans to pause content creation. “It helps me be with Ari. I don’t have to leave home. It’s the perfect scenario.” This is a woman whose money is spent intentionally—on joy, independence and a life that’s her own. Her home, her rules, her happiness. And that’s what adulting looks like, according to Maitri Mody.