8 Beauty Tips from Giada de Laurentiis

Giada de Laurentiis is best known as a culinary genius, host of numerous Food Network shows and a talented cookbook author. As one of the most celebrated food figures in the world, Giada is also a beauty and style icon. After taking notes on her delicious recipes, we’re turning to Giada for beauty and lifestyle tips. Scroll on for Giada’s secrets to maintaining inner beauty and aging gracefully.

1. She Hearts Olive Oil: If you are a fan of Giada’s Food Network show, you know she uses olive oil in almost every dish she whips up. It turns out olive oil is more than just her BFF in the kitchen. “Olive oil to me is sort of a key to feeling good, to great skin, to great nails [and] to just shiny hair, so I try to include olive oil for all of that,” Giada told NewBeauty.com.

2. Skip the Gym: “The idea of being strapped to a treadmill every day is my worst nightmare,” she dishes on Food Network’s Healthy Eats blog. Instead, she enjoys morning yoga, paddle boarding and taking walks on the beach. Exercise doesn’t have to mean running for miles. Follow Giada’s lead, and turn an activity that you like into your exercise routine.

3. Exfoliate Your Skin: Every time she talks about her beauty secrets, Giada almost always mentions her exfoliating routine. She shared the recipe to her DIY exfoliant in the “My Skin Diet” issue of Giada Weekly. The only ingredients you need are three tablespoons of rice flour and two tablespoon of olive oil, mixed into a paste and applied to your face. Do this routine every night before putting on your face and eye cream, and the excess oil and dirt on your skin will be gently removed.

4. Protect Your Skin, Rain or Shine: Giada sticks to this fundamental beauty rule: Always wear sunscreen. She wears SPF 30 every day, rain or shine. Ever since she lost her younger brother to melanoma in 2003, she makes sure to apply sunscreen to her face, neck and chest. She’s been spreading the word on how important it is to protect your skin every single day.

5. Go Beyond Hair Masks: Giada shared her hair secret with Women’s Health Magazine, revealing that she applies a homemade avocado-olive oil hair mask to her hair for 15 minutes before taking a shower. While taking a shower, Giada gives her hair a cold rinse, which locks in the shine. Before blow drying her hair, she makes sure the dryer is on a cool setting so her hair doesn’t get too hot and dry out.

6. Stay Hydrated and Moisturize: Giada can’t emphasize enough how important it is to stay hydrated and moisturized. According to her interview with InStyle Magazine, she constantly moisturizes her face, hands, feet, body and hair. Since she spends a lot of time in the kitchen, she uses a little bit of olive oil and coconut oil for her fingertips and cuticles, and even on the tips of her hair to give them shine.

7. Eat Beauty Foods: Giada believes you are what you eat, and makes sure to eat whole foods like avocados, nuts and dark chocolate. She shared her avocado-chocolate mousse recipe with , saying, “It’s just avocados, unsweetened cocoa powder, a little bit of agave and bittersweet chocolate. I put it all in the food processor, make it smooth, and then I put it in the fridge to chill in little cups. That is my indulgence. It’s so good for you, and you don’t taste the avocado.”

8. Go Natural: Giada shared her favorite skincare brands with her weekly magazine readers. She loves Tata Harper, Kjaer Weiss, Ilia and RMS Beauty. If you want to take all-natural beauty to the next level, try DIYing your own exfoliant, face mask and hair mask right in your kitchen. You’ll feel good knowing exactly what you are putting on your skin.

What do you think about Giada’s beauty tips? Which will you add to your beauty routine? Tell us in the comments below.

(Photo via Ethan Miller, Frederick M. Brown/Getty and Giada Weekly)

I truly feel like I’ve been living under a rock when it comes to what’s good at Whole Foods. Turns out, they’ve been hiding some really impressive deals on groceries in the shadows, but I’m here to shed some light on ‘em. Whole Foods offers savings every week, and I’m fully convinced that my local Whole Foods will be seeing a whole lot more of me from now on.

Scroll on for details on Whole Foods’ top deals to shop starting today!

Kaboompics / PEXELS

1. BOGO 50% off packaged soups (Tuesdays)

Tuesdays and Fridays are the main days of the week that Whole Foods offers savings on their groceries. The first amazing deal for Tuesdays is BOGO 50% off packaged soups – perfect for this time of year!

They’ve got every kind of flavor from minestrone and chicken noodle to Italian wedding and broccoli cheddar. Their packaged soups average out at about $9 per 24-ounce tub, so saving 50% on one when you buy one is pretty good, especially for meal prep purposes.

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2. $2 off classic and organic rotisserie chickens (Tuesdays)

You can take $2 off two kinds of Whole Foods’ rotisserie chickens every Tuesday. Their classic rotisserie chicken goes for $9 while the organic version sells for $13. I love using rotisserie chicken for soups, sandwiches, wraps, and pastas, so getting a whole chicken to use for recipes all week long for just $7 is so nice!

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3. $8 large cheese pizzas (Friday)

Sometimes you just do not feel like cooking on a Friday evening after work – that’s where this Whole Foods savings hack comes in! Every Friday, you can get a large cheese pizza for $8. While there’s nothing wrong with a plain cheese pizza (nostalgia galore!), I’d take advantage of this deal then bulk up my slices with various toppings like peppers, pepperoni, and olives.

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4. 12 for $12 wild caught oysters (Friday)

Ooh, fancy! Every Friday, Whole Foods’ wild caught oysters go for $1 a pop. Buy a dozen for just $12, and you’re golden. This deal would be perfect for a bougie at-home date night.

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5. BOGO 50% off packaged sushi rolls (Friday)

This is another great date night pick! Buy one packaged sushi roll, and get another 50% off on Fridays only. From rainbow rolls to California rolls, this Whole Foods savings hack has my cravings going crazy.

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6. $10 family-sized tiramisu (Friday)

Got a hankering for a sweet treat? Don’t fret – you can shop a whole family-sized serving of tiramisu at Whole Foods for just $10 every Friday.

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7. $12 bottles of prosecco (Friday)

The death of the work week and start of the weekend is obviously a cause for celebration, and Whole Foods has you covered with $12 bottles of Presto prosecco every Friday. Cheers!

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As much as I love celebrity couples, I love celebrity sibling relationships even more. And Elle and Dakota Fanning are two sisters I've grown up watching since I first saw Dreamer in 2005. Considering Elle Fanning is only five months older than me, and I have a sister of my own, this is one relationship that feels particularly familiar. And while Elle has also watched Dakota Fanning act since we were kids, Dakota just revealed seeing Elle onscreen is just as special for her.

Here's why Dakota & Elle Fanning get emotional seeing each other onscreen.

Elle remembers "sobbing" during one particularly emotional Dakota Fanning movie.

“When Elle’s in anything, it makes me feel it deeper,” Dakota Fanning said at TheWrap’s Power Women Summit on December 3. “She never can fully disappear into a character totally for me as her sister. She obviously does an amazing job, but I’m always gonna see my little sister a little bit.”

And Elle is just as touched by Dakota's roles, and remembers "uncontrollably sobbing" after seeing Now Is Good, a movie where Dakota's character was dying of cancer. “Because it was my sister, I had a real traumatic reaction after that premiere and the screening,” Elle says. “Obviously the acting, but it was something felt on a deeper level.”

“I’m doing this job, I’m an actor because my sister started before me and I watched her,” Elle continues. “I wanted to do exactly what my big sister wanted to do.”

And their movies have also made an impact on everyone who watches them.

When Brit + Co caught up with Dakota Fanning at the world premiere of The Watchers, I had to ask about one of her most iconic movies: Uptown Girls. "I love it," she says of TikTok memes and edits giving the movie new life. "It's nostalgic for people who are kind of around my age, who grew up watching that movie, I think it's like a comfort movie for people. And so I love that people are still revisiting it and loving it. And maybe now that everyone's older [they're] understanding different things about it."

Dakota starred opposite Brittany Murphy, who also had roles in movies like Clueless, 8 Mile, and Girl, Interrupted. Brittany passed away in 2009 when Dakota was 15. "I loved Brittany so much and I still miss her," she says. "So anytime that she has, you know, a moment where people think about her is also nice."

You can see Elle Fanning in A Complete Unknown, in theaters December 25, and you can also stream Dakota Fanning's new show The Perfect Couple on Netflix now.

Heaping plates of Christmas cookies are synonymous with the holidays. It seems that nearly every country around the globe has their own variation on the holiday classic. In fact, some of these regions have been making their version of Christmas cookies for literal hundreds of years.

If you’re looking for a way to reconnect with your heritage, or maybe just want a little baking inspiration, check out our picks for the yummiest Christmas cookies from around the world.

The Noshery

Mantecaditos con Guayaba

These may look like ordinary thumbprint cookies, but these almond shortbreads from Puerto Rico are filled with a special guava marmalade. (via The Noshery)

Broma Bakery

Meringues

French meringues are a classic crumbly egg white cookie with a chewy interior. These get an extra European twist with the addition of Nutella. (via Broma Bakery)

Pretty. Simple. Sweet.

Alfajores

Deeply flavored dulce de leche, a caramel made from whole milk commonly found in Spain and many Latin American countries, is the key ingredient in these super pretty sandwiched Christmas cookies. (via Pretty. Simple. Sweet.)

Fancy Peasant

Melomakarona

These Christmas cookies that hail from Greece get their sweetness from a generous soaking of fresh honey! (via Fancy Peasant)

Very Eatalian

Baci di Dama

The name of this Italian treat translates to “lady’s kisses” — how adorable is that? These bite-sized cuties are made with ground hazelnuts and filled with a dollop of dark chocolate. (via Very Eatalian)

Cooking Classy

Linzer Cookies

These Austrian Christmas cookies are typically made with raspberry jam, but feel free to get crazy with a filling of your choice. Plus, the gorgeous windowpane look will make them a prize takeaway at your next cookie exchange. (via Cooking Classy)

Olivia’s Cuisine

Basler Brunsli

If you’re hanging out in Switzerland around Christmas time, you’ll definitely see these chocolate treats around. They’re often described as Swiss brownies due to their deliciously chewy texture. Perfect with a cup of eggnog or coffee! (via Olivia’s Cuisine)

Cilantro Parsley

Buñuelos

These tender miniature fritters from Mexico are a mix between a donut and cookie. Whatever you want to call them, they’re delicious. (via Cilantro Parsley)

Chef Lindsey Farr

Apricot Kolachys

The Hungarians definitely know what’s up when tart apricot jam gets wrapped in a blanket of flaky pastry. They’re a bright spot on a cold Christmas day. (via Chef Lindsey Farr)

Life, Love and Sugar

Cutout Sugar Cookies

In the United States, a plate of these festively decorated sugar cookies is just what Santa ordered. (via Life, Love and Sugar)

Saveur

Polvorones

You’ll find these simple pecan shortbread cookies all over Mexico around this time of year. The coating of powdered sugar and canela, a type of Mexican cinnamon, really bring the flavor to the next level. (via Saveur)

A Healthy Life for Me

Pignoli

These Italian Christmas cookies are made of a chewy almond base and topped with pine nuts. (via A Healthy Life for Me)

Fancy Peasant

Kourabiedes

These Greek Christmas cookies feature a buttery biscuit topped with mass amounts of powdered sugar. (via Fancy Peasant)

Does your family have a traditional cookie recipe for the holidays? Tag us @BritandBo in your Instagram photos and let us know!

This post has been updated with additional reporting by Meredith Holser.

Lead image via Pretty. Simple. Sweet.