If you're starting to feel the chill of winter wearing off and your skin has that "Casper the Friendly Ghost" shade of white (you know....the one where you feel like you're basically transparent) then it is time to get a good bronzer and learn how the professionals use it effectively. The simple tips in this instructional video will have you looking like you've spent a week lying on the beach and sipping pina colada's in the Caribbean - you don't have to tell anyone otherwise!!

We freely admit to being waist watchers here at Savvy Central and look for any chance to save a calorie here and and a fat gram there. As we learned from our dear friend Valerie Orsoni at LeBootCamp: Every Bit Counts.

We're also not ones to throw good quality oil down the drain when the flavor of a dish is unlikely to suffer and will search high and low for alternatives to cooking with costly oils when other everyday items will serve just as well. Here are a few of our tried and true favorites. Generally speaking, these are cup for cup equivalents, i.e., 1/4 cup for 1/4 cup, but use your best judgement. If a dish or batter is looking too dry, add a little complementing liquid to moisten things up.

24/Savvy Beauty: New York, NY

Hi Savvy Readers!!

Since many of us have recently been doused with our second dose of snow, it seems appropriate to tackle the constant fight we all have with dry skin throughout the winter.

Don't worry, I'm not going to tell you to stop taking hot showers (I love them as much as you do!). I will give you a few tips instead.

• Firstly, it is still important to exfoliate! You need to remove all of that flaky dead skin to stimulate new cell growth as well as enable better penetration of your moisturizers. Use a loofah in that hot shower with a mild shower gel. Remember to replace your loofah at least once a month. They are a breeding ground for bacteria!
• After your shower, before you dry off one of the best things you can do is apply a body oil to wet skin and massage in! Trust me, your dry, itchy skin will become so smooth you'll probably convert to body oils year round.

Working with your hands can be a nice way to unwind. Often doing a little DIY task can be therapeutic, and take your mind off of things. We've been thinking lately about how to unwind and refresh. We've written an article recently about the beauty of sleep. Because a good night's sleep is truly a beautiful thing. But there are other ways to give oneself a mental break. In our fast-paced world that is locked up in me, me, me - oh, and what can I buy, one of the easiest and cheapest ways to refresh yourself is to do something for someone else. Here are 3 simple tips! 

1. Smile. So often we forget that a smile can change everything. Seems simple, but sharing a smile can immediately brighten someone's day - especially if they aren't expecting it.

2. A kind word. Just telling a co-worker, your child, a neighbor, that you admire something about them, can give that person a kick-start for their day. They say young people in adverse circumstances have been known to rise above because just ONE person believed in them. Be that one person. 

3. A kind act. Yes, we're all busy and often quite 'self important,' but how about lending a helping hand. Opening the door for that elderly lady, letting someone out of the elevator first, picking up a piece of garbage that someone accidentally dropped. It all adds up. 

3 ways to refresh yourself by refreshing others!

There are so many diets out there. SO many! And so many of them work, at least for a time. But old habits are hard to break. Inevitably, everyone puts it back on. This is why we love Weight Watchers. It doesn't tell you what you can't eat, because you can eat anything. What it does do is help you 'watch' what you eat, and therefore make better choices. 

As the New Year gets underway, we recommend this simple but effective tip for keeping trim: take a little off the top. Now this may seem hard, but if applied at every meal it really works. Basically, just take a bit away. Eat a little less than you had planned on eating. Make it a game, even. Yummy chicken breast! Only eat 2/3. Baked potato? Eat 3/4. Piece of cake? Eat half.

This little, simple, non-gimmicky approach can help you shed pounds. Try it!

We know that it’s only right to be prudent when using paper products. It’s good for the environment we love to love. But here’s the thing, when it comes to napkins and such at the table, to provide variety we like using paper. Just make sure it’s the recyclable kind!

For a recent holiday dinner, we opted for an aqua theme. There is nothing more refreshing than bringing a summer color into the drab dark of winter. Of course, if you go over the top it doesn’t work as well because the effect is too counter-intuitive.

To bring a bit of richness to the table we went with two types of paper napkins, one layered on top of the other to add complexity. We picked up the aqua theme in the smaller of the two, making sure it’s pattern and color palette mirrored a bit more of a winter feel. Our guests loved the look. We added tea candles in shimmering aqua-hued glass holders too.

Super simple, but super savvy. For our next dinner party we are going with a silver theme. Can’t wait!

24/Savvy Mom: Washington, D.C.

Ever since I've been a mama, I've lived for my weekly trip to Target. Back in Iowa when we were poor grad students, I sought to save a cent at every turn. Now in D.C., though our income has changed considerably, my shopping habits have not. From the beginning, Target managed to make me feel like I was having a good time even when I was buying “generic". Then it was the ol' bulls-eye branded stuff. Now it's their new house line, Up and Up. And I would love to share with you my take on Target's stuff.