National Harbor -- Jonesmag.com -- June 2010

Aside from the monuments and museums, the Nation’s Capital now has even more to offer Chocolate City visitors. National Harbor is a shining new waterfront destination located in Prince George’s County, MD—just fifteen minutes outside of D.C.

If you’re looking at National Harbor from across the scenic Potomac River, it has an ethereal glow, like it might not even be real. But it is indeed real, and offers plenty to eat, play and love.

Eat

For lunch, head to Ketchup, another fabulous restaurant brought to Maryland by the people behind Geisha House in L.A. and Dolce in ATL. Taking American classics and updating them with an upscale twist, Ketchup’s Southern Spiced “Shake & Bake” consisting ofcountry spiced pecan crusted chicken with barbecue baked scarlet runner beans and sugar snap peas, is a must taste.

You can then head over to Cake Love. D.C. locals flock to the various Cake Love locations in the area and this one is no different. Using only natural ingredients, Darren Brown, D.C. local and host of Food Network’s “Sugar Rush” offers decadent goodies, like the 44 Cupcake topped with vanilla buttercream and caramel, named for our awesome President.

For dinner, Grace’s Mandarin offers a stunning view of the Potomac River and generous portions of delicious Pan Asian cuisine. The ambiance and décor make you feel as though you are visiting Asia for the evening (the waitresses are actually dressed in authentic-looking garb).

Play

At the Gaylord Hotel and Convention Center—really a city within a city—stop by Relache Spa for an ultra-pampering experience. In addition to a pool and fitness area, Relache has spa and salons services, like The Ensemble, 120 minutes of attention for your face, hands and body. Treatment rooms offer tranquility and Potomac scenery.

When evening hits, there are a couple of different spots to chill out. You can hang at the bar or play a little pool at the W XYZ Lounge at the Aloft Hotel Or you can head to Pose Ultra Lounge on the 18th floor of the Gaylord. Take in gorgeous nighttime scenery on the wraparound terrace with an exotic drink in hand. If you like to get a little rowdy, Cadillac Ranch restaurant has a mechanical bull with your name on it.

Love

Art is big at National Harbor, as it is home to several different galleries, like Art Whino and The Art League, that range in works from street/graffiti art to classic landscape pieces. At the Amber Tree Gallery, you can purchase authentic African artifacts from various countries in the Western African region.

Although National Harbor plays host to many different festivals and events throughout the year, a definite highlight is the highly-acclaimed Cirque du Soleil’s OVO premiering Thursday, September 9 at the Plateau.

When you visit the D.C. area, consider staying at one of National Harbor’s six hotels. It’s only eight miles away from Reagan National Airport and is a hop, skip and a jump from the city. To get to D.C., just hop on a water taxi to Georgetown and enjoy the ride or water taxi tour.

Visit www.nationalharbor.com and check out the full calendar of events to see what you can get into the next time you visit the Obamas.

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Clean Up Your Act -- Jonesmag.com -- May 2010

You know that washing your face twice daily is essential to ensuring skin always looks healthy and fresh. But is your cleansing as effective as it could be? Celebrity makeup artist/esthetician Denise Tunnell gave us tips on choosing the right cleanser based on your skin type.

Oily/acne-prone skin

Look for cleansers with antibacterial agents, like benzoyl peroxide or tea tree oil, and use gel-based cleansers to absorb oil. Surprisingly, oil-based cleansers are a viable option as oil-based cleansers dissolve oil.


Try: Clean & Clear Continuous Control Acne Cleanser, $6.29, walgreens.com, powered by benzoyl peroxide to fend off breakouts.


Combination skin
With combo skin, your goal is to find a gel or foaming cleanser that harmonizes the face, yielding a nice balance between your oily T-zone and dry zones.


Try: Origins Checks and Balances Frothy Face Wash, $18.50, origins.com, helps control excess oil and dryness.


Dry skin
Look for milky-textured cleansers with moisture binding ingredients, like chamomile and aloe. To treat dry patches and flakiness, Denise said, “Salicylic and lactic acids are great for shedding the top layer of skin.”


Try: Burt’s Bees Soap Bark & Chamomile Deep Cleansing Cream, $8, burtsbees.com, will leave your face baby soft.


Sensitive skin
Sensitive skin can be hard to shop for, but try to avoid harsh ingredients and stick to organic, as-close-to-natural-as-possible, or botanical-based cleansers.
Try: Caudalie Gentle Cleanser, $26, caudalie-usa.com, which uses grape-seed polyphenols (OPC) to protect skin against free radicals.

Remember: Water alone will never do it said Denise. “You need a product to penetrate your pores for a deep cleansing.” Also, stay away from cleansers that use alcohol, as it strips skin of moisture.
 
See the story on Jonesmag.com here.

June 2010 -- Sister 2 Sister Magazine

Gross Anatomy: Lance Gross -- Honeymag.com -- March 2010

As a promising young actor dripping with sexiness, we’d say get forward to seeing a lot more of Lance Gross, especially on the big screen. Better known as Calvin on Tyler Perry’s House of Payne, Lance has already won the hearts of many with his humble demeanor and his seemingly wholesome image. He just received his third NAACP award for outstanding supporting actor in a comedy series, and now Gross is reaching even more hearts in Our Family Wedding.

Starring opposite to America Ferrera, Forest Whitaker and Carlos Mencia, Lance plays Marcus Boyd, a striking piece of man-goodness engaged to Lucia (Ferrrera). The hilariously comical culture clash between their families makes it harder for them to get married than they anticipated.

Honey asks Gross about his budding career, his penchant for tweeting his horoscope and why real-life Our Family Wedding moments aren’t an issue in his engagement to Eva Marcille.

Honey Magazine: So, you studied acting at Howard University. Is that when acting began for you?
Lance Gross: I always knew I wanted to do it. Ever since I was a kid I was always fascinated with how actors could bring characters to life and how actors play different characters. I was always intrigued by Jack Nicholson and Sean Penn and Denzel Washington, people like that, but I grew up as a very shy kid, so I had to break out of that shyness. It really didn’t happen for me until college. So that was definitely when I made the decision that this is something I do want to pursue.

How did college help you break out?
It was just more about me being on my own and me being independent. I was kind of forced to interact with people, so that was an easy way to break me out of it. I went to school on a full track and field scholarship. Going into college, I wanted to major in theater, but my coach told me I would have to pick one of the two, either major in theater or run track [because of conflicting schedules]. Of course I chose to have school paid for and run track, but all through college I felt like I made the wrong choice. That’s when I decided to minor in acting, and then when I graduated I was going to give up track and pursue my dream of acting.

If given the chance, what would be your ideal role to play?
I would love to play Midnight from The Coldest Winter Ever by Sister Souljah. If that is ever made into a film, that is the character I would love to play.
 
Read the rest here...

Sister 2 Sister Magazine -- February 2010

Sister 2 Sister Magazine -- Haute Contour-- October 2009

Cover Story with Supermodel/Actress/TV Host Donna Feldman -- ShyMagazine.com -- July 2009

When we say the word “hot,” we actually mean Israeli supermodel Donna Feldman. Where might you have seen her stunning face? How about campaigns for Christian Audigier swimwear, Justin Timberlake’s “Senorita” music video, GQ magazine, the NBC hit show “Deal or No Deal,” Adam Sandler’s "You Don’t Mess with the Zohan," and many, many others.

Currently, Donna can be seen co-hosting the Fox News show “Redeye” commenting on all that is worth commenting on. She just finished working for German lingerie client Quelle and she just won the 2009 Valsport America Model Search to be featured in their first ever North American Valsport Lifestyle ad campaign.

Growing up, Donna was extremely shy (her friends were surprised when she went into modeling) and in the beginning, she didn’t set out to be an actual model. When she was studying Fashion Marketing/Merchandising at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, she thought a good way to network with designers was to be a fit model—“basically the human mannequin for clothing companies.” It then grew from that to print work, catalogs, magazines, TV, international campaigns, and more.

We got the chance to chat with Donna and find out more about the beauty and her beauty within.

What do you think makes you stand out in the modeling world?
I am certainly the curvier, more feminine and natural-type model compared to many in the modeling world. I get hired as more of a personality and as a real woman rather than just another stick thin alien-looking type girl.

Have you ever been compared to any other models?
The 90’s supermodel Yasmeen Ghauri.

How did it feel to be picked as one of the hottest women in the world by Maxim and FHM magazines?
Very flattering and exciting of course.

What do you like most about working in television?
I like TiVo-ing it and watching it later with my family and laughing at myself! It’s always a fun time!

What are your hobbies?
Lately dancing has become a wonderful hobby of mine along with playing videogames, swimming, and makeup artistry.

Do you have any pets?
Yes, I have an American Staffordshire Terrier named Lucy.

Read the full article on Shymagazine.com here.