Okay, I’ve been tagged by Stephanie of BISJ for this one, so as a dutiful blogger, I must do my part! :P I love her Beauty Predictions for 2007!

In 2007, I predict:

People will get sick and tired of “fad” diets and go back to counting calories eaten versus calories burned. Okay, so maybe this is more of a hope for humanity than a prediction, but with the advent of sites like SparkPeople and books like French Women Don’t Get Fat(aff), I think people really are annoyed with all the restrictions on these fads of recent years. Getting back to non-diet eating and simplicity is something to be considered thoughtfully.

People are going to become more introspective than ever. Yoga, meditation, and the like are no longer for “hippies”, and are practices that encourage calm, peace, and inner reflection. Celebrities do it, why shouldn’t we? In this world of speedy everything, sometimes people need to just slow down, and given all the new technology coming out every year to make things faster, it simply gives way to more time for personal peace.

More blogs. More podcasts. More computer based entertainment. I’m not sure that this is entirely a good thing - it’s akin to parking your butt on the sofa for hours watching your favorite shows, but in a way it seems like a way to extend human interaction. I remember (oh so many many years ago!) being fascinated that I was able to carry on a conversation with someone in Italy in real time over AOL IMs (the first real instant messenger). I think with the new wave of hosted blogs (Wordpress.com, Blogger’s revamp, etc.) that are allowing for much more customization by the users, we’re going to see a lot more weight loss bloggers (which contrary to how it may seem, has declined in the past few years) and internet celebrity superstars. Combine this with YouTube and the like, and we’re going to really need to drag ourselves away from our computers to get that 40 minute cardio workout in every day, as opposed to getting away from the boob tube.

Someone, somewhere is going to combine chocolate, green tea, broccoli and lemongrass benefits into one, easy to swallow pill, or a nectar to add to water, or something. I thought it would’ve happened this year, but I’m willing to bet that someone’s working on it for ‘07. Let’s just hope they don’t try to market it as a weight-loss fad, but rather a vitamin-like push. I do believe in the benefits of these things - I just wish I liked the taste of broccoli. LOL

Like Stephanie, I believe the rest of the fashion world is going to step up and start requiring models to look a little more human and less alien. Will they all be size 12’s? No. Will they be “meaty”? Probably not. But I think designers will start catering to their audience of buyers rather than oglers. I predict we’ll see more size 4-6-8 models than we do 00-0-2 models over time. Even though I’m nowhere near 4-6-8, I’m thrilled to see this happen for humanitarian reasons alone. I don’t look at someone who is a size 6 and think they look sick. But I have serious “heartache” when I see someone who is a size 0, probably just as much as I do when I see someone who is a 28. It’s not healthy, it’s not comfortable, and it’s just not eye-appealing in either extreme. I don’t even know any men personally who think runway models are “hot”. If they’re out there - I don’t want to know them. LOL

I have a lot more things I’d like to think will happen this coming year, but they’re not likely to do so. But in general, I think we’re going toward a time of “not just me, but you, you, and you”. Back in the 80’s it was all about greed and perfection. The 90’s were a lot about education in terms of “I’m going to tell you something and you’re going to listen to me, or go eff yourself”. I think we’re finally rounding up this decade with something more like, “Okay, so we’re all human, right? And we all want to live a long time, and look like normal people, and be happy, right? Then let’s try this…”

And I’m really a lot more than okay with that train of thought. :)

Let me see who I can tag with this one…
Renee, N.Mallory, Julie, and Liz.

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