All Things Fashionating by tracy mausser

I am excited to announce my recent collaboration with Mogul, an award-winning technology platform for women worldwide, as a contributing writer.   Getting back to my journalistic roots has been challenging but I feel truly honored to be a part of a community of such diverse women writers.   Check out my recent post:   https://onmogul.com/articles/8-healthy-habits-for-losing-weight-right-now    Here is a little bit of the back story from the Mogul website Mogul ( www.onmogul.com ) is an award-winning technology platform for women worldwide, connecting users to trending content, including stories, jobs, and products that are personalized to their interests. Mogul is ultimately democratizing information for women worldwide by enabling users to connect, exchange such information, and access knowledge. Reaching millions of monthly unique users, Mogul is regularly visited by more than 196 countries and 25,000 cities worldwide. Mogul w...

  Mausser Family Affair at Nautica Malibu Tri  Well the big day came and went. I am happy to report that I completed the Nautica Malibu Tri Classic Distance today and -- swimming, biking and running beside some really serious competitors was daunting -- I am very happy with my results.   It dawned a humbling day.  Waiting an hour and five minutes for my swim wave to start was quite excruciating and a bit intimidating.  Within my women's 40-49 age group, there were many experienced racers.  Moments before our gun went off, House of Pain's "Jump Around" roared out of the speakers and more than one hundred 40 year olds got motivated. Forty is definitely the new 20! The ocean conditions were the best in the 29 year history of the race and clear as can be; However, I did get a few kicks to the face and I did see a very dark 10 to 15 foot shadow below me at one point.  Jason's advice in hindsight:  "IF it was a shark or something tha...

  My Inspiration... In two days, I will be participating in the Nautica Malibu Triathlon “Classic” distance which consists of a ½ mile swim, 18 mile bike ride and 4 mile run.   This is – by far – the longest event I have set my sights on, and to say I am nervous as hell is an understatement. For those who know me personally or have read my blog over the years, I have a passion for running.   I have one full marathon, six or so half-marathons, and more 10K and 5K races than I can count under my belt; so one may think that triathlons would be a natural progression for a competitor like me.   Actually, it didn’t go down like that at all. A few years ago, my neighbor Lisa started competing in Triathlons.   She suggested that I do one with her.   I smiled politely and said I would give it some thought but, in my head, I didn’t even consider the idea. Now, I did grow up on the Jersey Shore and, during my youth, I spent a lot of time at the beach an...

Several months back, my bestie Rachel told me about a book that had really resonated with her.   The book, entitled The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin, accounts the author’s year-long journey “test-driving the wisdom of the ages, current scientific research, and lessons from popular culture about how to be happier.” During that time, Rachel would forward me blog posts, podcasts and “Rubin-isms” that she found inspiring.   I have to be honest, they really did interest me; however, I was hesitant. I’ve never met a self-help book that didn’t initially intrigue me but, inevitably, my interest would usually wane after the first few chapters.    Point in case, my Nana was inspired by Suze Orman and bought me her book “9 Steps to Financial Freedom.” I started out the gate strong and was super motivated. I even bought Quicken ® and spent hours inputting all our data.   But by the 4 th step, I was done and way more interested in the allegations that Orman w...

Photo: D. Jason Mausser Have you ever felt as though you can’t breathe? I’m not talking about actually losing your source of oxygen but the surreal feeling that you just “can’t” take a deep breath.   During my senior year of college, I had a non-paying college internship but I was also working a few part-time jobs to pay my bills and supplement my college career.  On top of that, I commuted an hour in each direction – to my State University – twice a week for a 12 hour school day.   I mean, have you ever looked at the calendar and said, “Wow, it is going to be 21 days until my next day off?” Now, this is not a pity party.  I did what I had to do and actually was having a lot of fun doing it.  However, I reached a point to where being the energizer bunny 24/7 finally caught up with me, but I hadn’t even realized I was being chased until it was too late. One day, while commuting to my University, I started to feel like my heart was going to ...

Photo: Tracy Mausser Be quick Los Angeles area fashionistas!  There are mere days left to see one of the most Vogue-centric art installations by the decadent French fashion house Louis Vuitton. The free exhibit called "Louis Vuitton Series 2 - Past, Present, Future" was fashioned by LV creative director Nicolas Ghesquière and is housed in a massive Hollywood warehouse.  However, its doors close on Sunday Feb. 22 so don't miss your chance to see the inspiration behind Ghesquière's latest collection in a marvelous mixed-media revelation. A sequence of seven idiosyncratic rooms -- which include lots of flashing lights, talking holograms, multiple-mirrors and the secrets behind LV's impeccable craftsmanship -- highlights Ghesquière's influences behind the sumptuous Spring 2015 collection.  Dont' miss Series 2: Past, Present, Future which is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 1135 Highland Avenue, Hollywood until Sunday Feb...

Photo via Pinterest I practically live in my rag & bone duds because they are über comfortable and fit my lifestyle at the beach to a tee; however, I never really thought about how this American fashion label made it into my closet until I started watching the realty television series, The Fashion Fund, on the Ovation channel. In 2006, Marcus Wainwright and David Nevelle, the designers behind rag & bone, were only finalists in the Council of Fashion Designers of America's (CFDA) Vogue Fashion Fund; however, the exposure from “The Fund” boosted the brands popularity. And rag & bone is not alone:  Designers such as Proenza Schouler, Doo.ri, Rodarte, Phillip Lim, Alexander Wang, Thom Browne and Public School (just to name a few) have become household names thanks to the endowment that helps to support the next generation of American fashion designers. Thank God for Netflix because I first became aware of the CFDA/ Vogue Fashion Fund in ...