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Category Archives: Archive It

RSMLVTravel Client Profile

08 Tuesday May 2018

Posted by Stefanie Van Aken (RSMLVTravel) in Fun

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Client Profile, RSMLVTravel

Welcome to RSMLVTravel where everyone deserves to travel like a RockStar!

In order for us to provide the most personalized service for your travel and vacation planning needs, please complete the following form answering as many questions as possible. We won’t share your information with anyone else without your permission. The more you tell us about yourself and your ideal vacation, the faster we can get you there!

This form is Part 1 in a 3 Part series of creating your client profile. The next questionnaires will come once you book your first trip with us.

Again, not to worry, we won’t flood your inbox with unnecessary deals and packages that will make you want to give us the side eye. RSMLVTravel is here for you! Our job is to make sure your only job is to pack and go.

drybar Las Vegas

03 Saturday Feb 2018

Posted by Stefanie Van Aken (RSMLVTravel) in Featured, RSMLV

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fashion, hair, Las Vegas, rockstar mom recommends, salons

UPDATE! December 2017, a new drybar location opened inside the Cosmopolitan Las Vegas. Located on the 2nd floor, facing the Strip. Admittedly, the space feels smaller, I wish there were more wash bins, and they are struggling a bit in keeping time (schedule your weekend appointment at least 30 minutes before the time you actually want to arrive) I find this new location to be way more convenient than Planet Hollywood- I might be biased. drybar does offer a really easy booking service via their app or online. You can call, too, the customer service peeps are very friendly and thorough. I find the app to be just as easy, if not easier.

You want a RockStarMom LV tip? Get your hair done at drybar Cosmopolitan Las Vegas then walk across the bridge to get your make-up done at Tom Ford at the Shops at Crystals (minimum purchase of $100, but tip your stylist because these gals really are talented).

drybar Cosmopolitan Las Vegas | Photo by Stefanie Van Aken

Getting ready to bring in 2018 with JuanYa at the drybar Cosmopolitan Las Vegas! 🍾

 

It’s amazing. Your blowout will last for days. You have to have this blow dryer. I kept hearing about this drybar from my friends who live in almost every major city in the country. After countless Christmas gift exchanges year after year with requests for drybar gift cards that I had to keep buying online…I was starting to get a little offended that this place had not graced my presence on the Las Vegas Strip. Until now. My friends were right, and I want to extend one of the warmest welcomes to drybar Las Vegas…(it’s about damn time!) located at the Miracle Mile in Planet Hollywood on the Las Vegas Strip. Yeah for me! And all of you! Here’s why….

What is drybar? In case you’ve been living in an ashram for the past 6 years…it is the creme de la creme of hair styling salons. Featured on TV series like the Housewives of {insert city name here}, you can basically feel like you are rich and fabulous by getting your hair blown out daily, weekly, or monthly. It is a blow dry only salon meaning no cuts, no color. Just style. And folks there is a formula to this style. After browsing through their LookBook, you choose the style most suited for your mood at the time: Cosmopolitan, MaiTai, CosmoTai and the list goes on. Any hairstyle you have ever seen any glam actress or en trend model sport on the runway or in Vanity Fair….honestly, you can have that done to your hair here. I mean it. I don’t care how much you love your hair dresser, they cannot style your hair like drybar does. (To a stylist in action check out the videos on my Facebook page.)

drybar las vegas

drybar las vegas| photo credit Jeff Green

What is drybar Las Vegas? Yes, I asked that question twice-ish because Vegas is the only location with a DJ and full bar on premises during operating hours. Yup. Only in Vegas is more than just a hashtag, it’s for reals. We bring the fun and the life to any party! Especially the one happening at drybar Las Vegas! So, order it up! Your service will take approximately 30-45 minutes depending on what your style selection, which means plenty of time for a cocktail.

drybar las vegas

Where is drybar Las Vegas? Located in the Miracle Mile Shops at the Planet Hollywood. If you are visiting Vegas, I would suggest either walking or Uber yourself here to make it easier. Otherwise, my local peeps, valet park at the Miracle Mile valet (yes, this is a thing…bypass the main valet and look for the Miracle Mile Valet…easiest way to get there is via Harmon behind the actual hotel). Once in from the valet, go up the escalator, make a right and keep walking. And we are walking and walking past the food court, and towards the middle of the Miracle Mile. You will see LUSH (my other favorite place) which is right next door.

Drybar Vegas Storefront_Credit Jeff Green

Drybar Vegas Storefront_Credit Jeff Green

How Much is drybar Las Vegas? In Las Vegas, the price for a wash and blow out is $49. You can add other services like a braid ($10) or extension ($20), or add treatments to your hair like a floater ($10 for 10 minute scalp massage) or hydrating hair shot ($20). Uptinis (updos) are $100, Shirley Temples (kids blow outs) are $35. There is also a barfly membership: $80 a month for 2 blowouts, plus a free birthday blowout, 10% off products bought in-store, and $5 off additional monthly blowouts. With this membership, your blowouts roll over to the next month if you haven’t used them. So let’s see, for my daily blowout, I can factor in $49 + $10 (who doesn’t want a floater??) + $10 (suggested tip)= $69 into my budget (30 x $69= $2070…). OK, maybe monthly…or bi-monthly.

drybar menu

Why drybar Las Vegas? Because why not? What better way to pamper yourself than having someone wash and style your hair while you sip a Sin City Fizz and listen to some delicious beats spun by the hot, I mean, hottest DJs around? But, truthfully, as a local, I don’t see myself getting there as often as I would like, which is probably a good thing for my wallet. Lucky for me, my hubby works down on the Strip, so I DO see myself booking appointments when I plan on meeting him for dinners or events, because, again, why not? And, easy location for me to access as all I would have to do is cross the foot bridge that connects the Cosmopolitan (City Center for those staying at Aria or Vdara) to Planet Hollywood. With that being said, the valet at the Miracle Miles Shops is actually pretty easy to access as well from a local’s stand point. But consider drybar for those special occasions as well: Girls’ Night Out, Bridal Parties, Bachelorette Parties, Mommy/Daughter days, Mother’s Day, New Year’s Eve (if celebrating on the Strip)….the lists and ideas could go on forever. Locals cross your fingers and send good vibes out to the universe that other drybar locations start popping up in Henderson and Summerlin ASAP.

drybar before after

What I 💜 about drybar Las Vegas? Besides everything I mentioned above…product. LOVE LOVE LOVE the product!! Vegan, Earth-friendly, products! No parabens, sulfates, or phthalates. No animal testing. How amazing is that? They all smell divine, they work well and they are reasonably/competively priced for the market. There are products for every concern you can think of it when it comes to preserving and extending the life of that fabulous blowout. drybar offers many of their hair stylist tools as well.  My first experience with the buttercup blowdryer was lovely. Priced at $195, it’s definitely a hair tool investment, but I have friends with thick, curly, luxurious locks who claim the buttercup is the only way to go. There is also the baby buttercup now available which is a travel blowdryer priced at $135. But my true love here in this paragraph is the product. I’m obsessed with finding vegan hair and body products. Way to go drybar!

drybar products

What needs work? I can honestly say my experience at drybar Las Vegas was outstanding. Cocktail waitresses, DJ booth, friendly stylists who listen and do what they say they are going to do. Products and hair styling tools were phenomenal. Atmosphere lively and fun. I brought my 10-yead old daughter for a Shirley Temple, which she had both the style and the drink. By the way…just because it’s called the Shirley Temple it does not mean the only style for kids is a head full of tight corkscrew curls…they can choose their own style as well from the LookBook. My daughter had fun, too! There is a selfie booth, and plenty of photo opps around the salon.

drybar stella

Go ahead…you know you want to…BOOK IT! and Enjoy!

drybar las vegas

 

disclaimer: my daughter and I were invited media guests by drybar Las Vegas to experience their newest location located on the Las Vegas Strip…I speak 100% of the truth. 

 

 

 

The Teal Pumpkin Project: How to Have a Peanut Free Halloween

26 Wednesday Oct 2016

Posted by Stefanie Van Aken (RSMLVTravel) in Archive It

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As you can probably see, I have stopped writing lifestyle posts on my site unless it is directly related to travel. However, I feel the fire-burning-in-the-gut urge to help spread the word about this grassroots effort that started a few years back about how to have a peanut free Halloween. 

Why I am writing about it now? Because a dear friend has a son with a severe peanut allergy– not to mention there is always a letter sent home at the beginning of every school year indicating a student in my child’s class has a severe nut allergy. My children all went to pre-schools that were “Nut-Free Campuses”. Corporations and companies are starting to take note about peanut allergies, and are actively participating in acknowledging how this unfortunate allergy can be horrifying for parents and deadly for children (or anyone who has a nut allergy).

The Evolution of the Peanut Allergy and Halloween

Here- I’ll make this a bit travel related so it makes sense sitting on my blog. Within the last 6 months of my travel business and in working with clients who have some sort of peanut allergy, I can share this information with you: Delta Airlines has an option to indicate if any passenger of your party has any sort of special need, dietary need or nut allergy. This person is then “asterisked” and no peanuts will be served to anyone on that plane during that flight. Have you been on a flight like that lately? I have! And, I have booked two separate families with peanut allergies on Delta and have had them “asterisked” (sounds so much nicer than Flagged 🚩 !). I do this– not because my children have peanut allergies- thank goodness none of them are allergic to anything. But I have seen the terrified look on parents faces at parties and events, the throw yourself over the table to grab that candy out of their mouth move, and the just plain, “No, my child cannot come to your child’s party because I can’t be there, and I need to make sure he watches what he eats.” 

I have painstakingly planned an entire birthday party for my son to be entirely nut-free because I wanted his two BFFS who have severe allergies to come to the party and for the parents to feel relaxed and safe. 

No, my kids do not have allergies, but I am a mom. And it breaks my heart when I see kids afraid to have fun at their fullest potential because one teeny tiny avoidable mistake could change their life forever.

Besides the fact that I am already the mom who would hand out toothbrushes and floss if my kids would let me (they get them in their stocking every year instead), I am also the mom who would dig through the candies at the store and research the heck out of what had nuts or were manufactured in a nut facility so I could pass them out on Halloween.

Remember– I want every kid to have fun no matter the cost of my “coolness” to my own children. Wildly enough, a few years back it wasn’t so easy to figure this out. I really had to do the research. Most of the times I would end up with Halloween themed puzzles, bubbles and stickers (boooorrrrriiiiinnnngggg), pretzels and cheese puffs, and finally one year I figured out that a brand of popcorn balls were nut free! As time has gone by, companies have become more privy to the nut-allergy epidemic and parents have become savvier in educating communities. Organizations such as the Teal Pumpkin Project have been moving with steady grace to keep up the awareness on how to have a peanut-free Halloween for all who participate.

Non-Edibles can be a perfect and safe treat for children with nut allergies on Halloween

And, here’s the thing…they have made it super easy for anyone and everyone to participate. So have the candy companies! Because like I said- I am happy to pass out non-food items, but let’s be real, I would imagine the nut-allergy kiddos want to feel like their peers and be able to collect and EAT the candy!! 

How to have a PEANUT FREE Halloween:

First– Get a Teal colored pumpkin to display on your doorstep. This will help parents and kiddos identify that your house has nut-free options for Trick-or-Treaters.

How to Have a Peanut Free Halloween | Teal Pumpkin Door Step

Again, this is super simple…you have options. If you are the crafty type: buy a pumpkin, paint it teal. If you are the parent who wants to participate but doesn’t have time to paint and carve: buy one. Yes, you can buy them! I bought mine this year for $5 at Target. A styrofoam version of a teal pumpkin that I sit outside my doorstep. 

Second– Purchase candy and items that are nut-free. I’m telling you, it is not as hard as you think. If you have already bought your candy this year, no worries, I implore you to look at your bags. I will guarantee at least 1 bag is nut-free. Unless, of course, you only buy candy bars and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. If that’s the case, just grab a bag of one of these next time you are at the supermarket (according to PeanutAllergy.com):

  • Any Tootsie Pop product
  • Jelly Belly
  • Lifesavers
  • Sour Patch Kids
  • Mike and Ikes
  • Haribo Gummy Candies
  • Red Vines
  • Twizzlers
  • Double Bubble
  • SweetTarts
  • Dum Dums
  • Jolly Ranchers
  • Most Wonka Candies (Nerds, Laffy Taffy, Pixie Sticks, Runts, and Fun Dip)
Nut Free Candies for Halloween

See! That wasn’t too hard, right??

Third– Separate your candy into two different buckets. This will make it super easy when a ghost or goblin has a nut allergy. In fact, I like to buy a bowl that is teal colored already, or I will put my teal pumpkin right next to that bowl so there is no confusion. 

Parents whose children have nut allergies are usually pretty super savvy. They know everything! Really! They will be the first to spot if a candy has even been manufactured in a plant that processes nuts. So, if you are not sure or have more questions, reach out to that parent. They would be happy to share what they know. And, just in case, they don’t know this, which I’m sure they already do…The Teal Pumpkin Project has teal colored pumpkins for trick-or-treaters, which would be super awesome on my end as a parent who wants to make sure the right kid gets the right candy. (Target carries them! 

The Teal Pumpkin Project
We found these Teal Pumpkin Project candy buckets at Target

There is way more info on the TealPumpkinProject.com website. You can even list your house on the map so kids know where to go for treats!

Have a safe and Happy Halloween!!

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