The Ladies Room: Pick your Poison

Written by Kristyn Ostman on November 4, 2009

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Ladies, you need to have a signature cocktail. You may not realize how much it ups your classy factor.

For starters, it’s important to know your way around a drink. Each spirit can affect a person differently. If you’re looking to maintain a level of control for an evening, it’s good to know how to handle your drink. Again, the aim here is to be classy and not be that girl. (Don’t act like you’ve never been that girl at least once.)

If you read some of my previous articles, I’m sure I’ve named my go-to cocktail. Gin & Tonic. It’s the smooth, classy and, dare I say, refined drink of only the most sophisticated thinkers. A well-made gin and tonic is like rolling up all of my best childhood memories into liquid form.

I took a break for a while and switched to light beer, which was an abysmal attempt at protesting astronomical drink pricing. Seriously, how do bars justify charging $9 per drink!? I can buy an entire liter of Bombay Sapphire for around $20, bar cocktails only give you about 2 oz. of gin. The accountant in me had trouble justifying the cost.

Anyway, what’s the criteria for a good signature drink?

1. Short name. Don’t be caught dead repeatedly ordering something that sounds like Willy Wonka developed it. You sound like an idiot.
2. Uncomplicated. If it involves three fruit juices, a blender and an umbrella, it’s likely many bars can’t accommodate and having more than two will result in diabetic shock.
3. Enjoy it. Pick something you actually like drinking and not just chugging so you can avoid the taste.
4. Be  unpredictable. If I see another chick drinking a screwdriver or cosmopolitan, I’ll lose it. There’s a whole world of fabulous cocktails out there. I order you to stop being lame.

Please remember to drink responsibly…and flirt your way to a few freebies.

Update on a previous article about Lauren Luke make-up tutorials. I tried out her
“Paramore, Ignorance video”-inspired look for Halloween. I looked downright fabulous.  I used bargain basement drugstore make-up instead of MAC, which she uses in the video. But honestly, I can’t imagine myself needing shimmery black eye shadow on a daily basis. Wet n’ Wild works well enough and managed to stay in place for most of the night. Just don’t rub your eyes or your look goes from sex kitten to zombie.