Shop Emma and Edward - Support a Starving Artist

Martini Clutch

It's a rough economy, so I am tapping into my entrepreneurial spirit and opening a new etsy store. Emma and Edward is the place to shop for unique homemade clutches by yours truly. Using remnant materials from past projects, these clutches are part of my effort to support sustainable living by upcycling old garments and putting scrap fabric to good use.

Super Kawaii Clutch

Fabrics range from a brocade used for a smoking jacket to cotton imported from Japan. There is even a clutch made from a pair of linen pants. Each clutch is made with care and features topstitch detailing and hand sewn snaps.

Tropical Breeze Clutch

Whether you are looking for a cute bag for a girls' night out, a stylish wallet to stash in your tote, or a pretty pouch to pop necessities in, Emma and Edward clutches are a great option (if I do say so myself). Plus, all clutches include free shipping throughout the continental USA. Look for new additions to be added in the next couple of weeks.

Things i LOVE Thursday

Wearing dresses

Making Rice Krispie treats

Reading Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

(Thank you Velvet!)

This chiffon dress

Ombre hair color

Air conditioning

Watching the finale of Lost

The Stolen Crown by Susan Higginbotham

(Thank you Laura!)

Miu Miu's Satin Daisy-Print Clog

Journals

(like this Asian Butterfly Small Journal)

Land's End Canvas

When shopping for clothes, Sears is not the first store that pops into my head, but on a recent trip to the mall, I discovered Land's End Canvas. A cross between The Gap and J. Crew, Land's End Canvas is a far cry from the frankly dowdy offerings of Land's End. Plus, Land's End Canvas is Guaranteed. Period.®, which means their products are guaranteed to last or you can return it. Amazing!

The Stripe Sailor Tee is a favorite of mine and would look great paired with the Chino Shorts or the Poplin Skirt. Although the weather is getting too hot for jackets, I'm loving the Sport Utility Jacket, which would still work for transitioning into fall. Lastly, the Heritage Ballet Flat in orange spice seems to be calling my name...

Thanks to everyone who entered the My Tagalongs Giveaway!

I will be e-mailing the winners soon.

Getting Lost in Arcadia Falls

There once was a girl who liked to pretend she was lost

until the day she really lost her way...

Arcadia Falls by Carol Goodman

Arcadia Falls by Icedivastar featuring Alexis Bittar jewelry

Slip on a white dress, light some candles, and curl up with a cup of tea as you read this mystical tale about a private art school in New England.

Links a la Mode: The Independent Fashion Bloggers Roundup

Edited by Ashe/Mischief Dramatis Personae

To be honest, I’ve been really excited about the content on the web lately…. because each week, it seems that fashion & style bloggers are making a bold step forward. In a niche that was once dominated by runway photographs and personal style posts, we’re evolving to include daring, thoughtful, provocative posts as well. I am continually shocked and amazed by the range of posts… from wearabout’s post on androgynous Indian men and Style Amor’s post on Arab women in fashion to posts about fashion blogging as a career at Style Eyes fashion blog.

Images via The Curvy Fashionista, The Coveted, Hello Beauty, and Wearabout

Links à la Mode : May 20th

• Awakened Aesthetic – Giveaway! Enter to win a hand-embellished floral top by independent designer Eliza + Axel and take the floral trend in a different direction.
• CMYKaboom!: – New York Fashion Week Coverage: IFB “Evolving Influence” Conference
• fete a fete: – Clarins Instant Sun Light summer makeup
• Guacamole & Toast: – What makes a good fashion blog? How can we avoid turning into one of the minority of superficial fashion bloggers that everyone stereotypes us to be?
• hello beauty!: – we have a new makeup lesson video with Guerlain’s top makeup artist and a review of the Guerlain Summer 2010 Collection.
• Holier Than Now: – How to fall in love with last year’s summer essential, all over again.
• Independent Fashion Bloggers – Skills Bloggers Can Use to Get Hired
• Jewelry Whore: – Designer You Should Know: Elsa Schiaparelli
• kaKofonie Of si(gh)lenS: – An exclusive interview with Amanda deLeon, a fabulous avant garde designer from North Carolina, and personal favorite of Kat Von D!
• M.I.S.S.: – TV: Follow the Leader: A New Style Series Promo! | M.I.S.S.
• Pretty Shiny Sparkly: – Exploring the trend of resin-coated black denim, with a best of the best roundup!
• Shoe-a-Day: – How to Shop for Shoes when you’re living ohsofaraway from civilization.
• Style Amor: – Celebrating the Beauty of Arab Women & Our Diverse Culture
• Style Eyes Fashion Blog: – A career as a fashion blogger – have you considered a career as a fashion blogger? Here are my experiences.
• Stylish Thought: – The Dressing Dilemma: Who do women really dress for?
• The Coveted – Anica boutique is the place to experiment with avant garde
• The Curvy Fashionista: – Curves in the USA? A Question… The Elite of fashion magazines across the pond are fashioning the most fabulous spreads of full figured fashionista, bloggers, and models, will the US follow suit?
• The Recessionista: – Jeans: We’re Spending More and Shopping Longer Does anyone recall the moment when jeans became a luxury item?
• The Thrifty Poet: – “Why Should I Be Ashamed of My Shape” — why I think classifying women into only 4 different body shapes (two of them fruit) isn’t right
• wearabout: – The luxury of not caring – a look inside an androgynous indian male’s wardrobe.
• What 2 Wear Where: – After the fab opportunity to preview the Met’s exhibit “American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity”, we looked at each of the perfectly portrayed eras and paired them with contemporary looks.

Things i LOVE Thursday

Watching Glee (my new addiction)

Singing

These Galaxy Leggings from Black Milk

Chocolate and believing that it should be used in every recipe

Ashley Watson Junco Bag

Claire de Lune Dress

Having a good audition

My Tagalongs Disposable Underwear and Giveaway

When I first heard about My Tagalongs disposable underwear, I was intrigued and contacted My Tagalongs for a pair to review. Made from breathable, non-woven, recyclable polypropylene with 100% cotton gusset, these wear-once panties are surprisingly comfortable and durable. The panties, also, feature a a faint leopard print design. Even though the underwear is disposable, my pair easily lasted throughout the day and can be washed up to three times, although I didn't try washing mine.

The tiny zipper pouch contains two pairs for only $3 and is perfect for stashing in your carry-on or your purse. You can even buy a five pack for $5, so you can stow an extra pair of underwear in your gym bag or emergency kit.

Giveaway

My Tagalongs has given me two packs of Disposable Underwear Bikini 5 pairs sets in size small/medium to giveaway as well as a few packs of Disposable Underwear Bikini 2 pairs sets in size small/medium and large/extra-large.

To win, leave your e-mail address and answer the question, "Where would you keep a pair of disposable underwear?"

Contest ends midnight, May 25th.

http://www.freegrechen.com

Two-Finger Rings at Forever 21

If you've been wanting to try a two-finger ring, now is the time to buy one, and Forever 21 is offering several inexpensive versions. I bought the Bengal Connector Ring this weekend and want to go back and pick up some other styles.

Bengal Connector Ring, $6.80

Shimmer Posie Connector Ring, $5.80

Diva Connector Ring, $3.80

Links a la Mode: The Independent Fashion Bloggers Roundup

Beauty is Truth

Edited by Thom Wong

Beauty is truth and truth is beauty, but what happens when fashion enters the mix? Several of this week’s links tackle this thorny question with gusto, teasing out the various layers of meaning behind the term beauty and what it means to feel or be beautiful. Ethics and the material nature of style emerged as another dominant theme. The Laundry Narrative wonders if she can enjoy fashion blogging without dealing with the BIG ISSUES. Then there are longer form posts where I felt the writers stretched their narrative legs, some new voices in the game who could use your attention, and, since this is still about fashion, some lovely outfit pics of girls on bikes. Finally I’ve included the only two men who bothered to post (seriously, what up men). And meggings – nooooo!!!!!

Collage images via: Brachman’s Sparrow, évoluer, The Sunday Best, and Oranges and Apples

Links à la Mode : May 13

365 Fashion Rehab – Notes from the closet: Day 357! Building better future buying habits by way of a major wardrobe investigation.

39th and Broadway – The Fall of Designer Denim.

Bachman's Sparrow – Saturday Advice column: develop your personal style into something amazing by learning how to take risks and not dress for others.

Chrissy Styles – I create an outfit inspired by a painting. This time one by Luc Tuymans:

D e f i n i n g B e a u t y – Pass it On – What do you do with clothes you don’t want?

DailyDivaDish – True Cost of Disposable Fashion: You may be paying more than you realize.

Debutante Clothing – Are you Lying? Why Do You Wear Vintage? A response to 5 Lies Women Tell About Vintage Dresses.

Emerald Dandy – Meggings: Meant to be?

Evoluer – 7 girls : 7 bicycles : 7 unique & adorable outfits

Independent Fashion Bloggers – Finance & the Fashion Blogger: Ignore-ance

Journey to Fashion – From Undergrad Slob to Graduate Fashionista? An introduction to my quest for fashion.

Missemmamm – How the internet has changed & woman are now more empowered.

Oranges and Apples – On Beauty.

Retro Chick – Are you ethically fashionable or fashionably ethical?

Return to Sender – What do you do when your old insecurities rear their ugly heads?

Shrimp Salad Circus – Ten things to smile about right this very second.

Style on a String – The Insatiability for Logos, not Luxury.

The Coveted – The Coveted launches a new blog dedicated to real women wearing denim.

The Laundry Narrative – Fighting the urge to justify criticism of fashion blogging as superficial, anti-feminist, and materialistic.

The Sunday Best – The Best Time of the Year for Menswear

The Thrifty Poet – How to Feel Beautiful.

Things i LOVE Thursday

Little Lord Gaga

Pins and Needles Chambray Bow Skirt

My Rodarte inspired birthday cake

Dilbert

Ikat Obe silk dress

Watching (500) Days of Summer

Paula Deen's Red Velvet cake recipe

The soundtrack from Avatar

Going to see Iron Man 2

Gypsy Spirit

Warm weather makes me want to embrace my inner gypsy - dressed eclectically while dancing in the rain and listening to Fleetwood Mac. Campy skirts and cloth messenger bags are perfect accoutrements for summer adventures. Hippie Couture is an amazing source of inspiration...

Free People Caravan Flared Skirt

Simone Camille 3 Tier Messenger Bag

Wuthering Heights

Wuthering Heights (1939)

"It would degrade me to marry Heathcliff now; so he shall never know how I love him; and that, not because he’s handsome, Nelly, but because he’s more myself than I am. Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same, and [Edgar’s] is as different as a moonbeam from lightning, or frost from fire."

-Wuthering Heights

Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights is not an easy book to read. Some characters, such as Joseph and Hareton, speak in a heavy dialect and can be difficult to understand. What I found most difficult, however, was my constant desire to step into the story and shake some sense into the cast of narcissistic characters that inhabit Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange. Don't get me wrong, I like the book. The first time I read Wuthering Heights was in high school, and the torturous love affairs of Catherine and Heathcliff and their children made sense to my angst-ridden, teenage brain. (I like to think that it is a sign of maturity that after a second reading I felt no desire to throw myself into a passionate but doomed love affair.) What kept me reading this time around was knowing that (1.) at the end there was redemption and (2.) Emily Bronte is a genius. She is proof that with imagination and determination you can create anything, even a book that people will be talking about some 150 years later.

Links a la Mode: The Independent Fashion Bloggers Roundup

The Business and Beauty of Style

Edited by Debutante Clothing

This week, the links were especially thoughtful. With all of the buzz about fashion bloggers and how (or if) we make money, it was great to see some insightful posts about fashion and the almighty dollar. Grechen of Grechen Blogs discusses blogging for money, while Style On a String takes an in depth look at the dark side of logo chasing. But let’s not get too bogged down with the seriousness of fashion. Perhaps Simply Luxurious can convince you to indulge in the beauty of fashion with her collage of gorgeous, backless gowns. Or maybe you’re more interested in a catwalk down memory lane, via celluloid, with Old Fashion Love Story’s stills of unforgettable 70s costumes from the film Mahogany (costume designed by Miss Diana Ross!). After all, in the sarcastic words of Stanley Tucci in The Devil Wears Prada, “Yes, that is what this billion dollar business is all about. Inner beauty”. Enjoy!

Links à la Mode : May 6

Blog To Be Alive – Plus Size London Shopping Guide

CakeNotCoke.com – Greg Lauren Alteration

Debutante Clothing – Vintage Inspired Finds From Marshalls

Dedicated Follower of Fashion – DFOF TV: Nosey Parker – Chelsea Rebelle

Denim Debutante – How to Stretch Jeans

grechen blogs – why shouldn’t fashion bloggers make money blogging?

Idiosyncratic Style – Fashion that goes Splat!

In Her Stilettos – UT Fashion Show

Independent Fashion Bloggers – Read the Fine Print: Chictopia and Payless Don’t Need to Ask to Profit from Blogger Images

old fashion love story – old fashion on film: mahogany

Pink Dossier – What They Wore: Coachella

Retro Chick – Review – Soap & Glory Sit Tight

Searching for Style – Fashion 101: Where do Fashion Trends Come From?

Simply Luxurious – Unforgettable Exit

Snapshot Fashion – Prom 2010

Style on a String – Luxury: Counterfeiting – The dirty secret of logo chasing

style, substance & sutton – A TIE DYE DIY

The Coveted – Behind the Scenes at Nasty Gal

The Pink Peplum – The Green Movement

Tog & Trappings – A hat, a hat, my kingdom for a hat

What to Wear Where – The World of Yves Saint Laurent

Things i LOVE Thursday

Monte Cristo sandwiches

Kentucky Derby parties

Mock Mint Juleps

Paper lashes

ASOS Leather Twist Lock Satchel

Dress shopping

Warm weather

My mom and grandma

Hot Pink Future Nobel Laureate Earrings

10 Things to do Before You Turn 25

I love birthdays, so I am pretty excited that mine is coming up in just a few days. To celebrate, I thought I would make a list of the top ten things you should do before turning 25. Of course, these are things you can do no matter your age, so if you haven't done these yet, it's time to give them a try.

1. Bake homemade cookies - No, I don't mean break & bake or using a mix, but actually following a recipe and cooking from scratch. Yes, there is a difference, and it is so worth it. I recommend trying the Tollhouse chocolate chip cookie recipe.
2. Volunteer - Work with children. Spend time at an animal shelter. Pass out food at a soup kitchen. Find something you like to do and use it to give back to your community. You'll feel better about yourself and will be helping to improve the lives of those around you.
3. Go on a road trip - The open road is calling, so grab a few friends and hop in the car. While Route 66 isn't what it used to be, there are still plenty of roads to travel and country to see.
4. Learn CPR and First Aid - Knowing how to respond to an emergency is important and may save your life or someone else's. Don't depend on someone else knowing how to do CPR or perform the Heimlich Maneuver, although it's OK to hope you never have to put your skills into action :) Check with your local Red Cross or community center to see when classes are offered.
5. Read a classic novel - Really, I mean read a book written before 1900 that you are reading for pleasure not for school. Jane Austen's books, such as Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility, are an excellent introduction to classic literature. Some other favorites are Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne, and Middlemarch by George Eliot.
6. Watch a Hepburn movie - Katharine Hepburn was a New England socialite who became a famous Hollywood actress by starring in films like Bringing Up Baby and The Philadelphia Story. Katherine is, also, famous for wearing men's pants at a time when wearing pants was considered unfeminine. The other famous Hepburn, Audrey, was born in Belgium and eventually became America's sweetheart by starring in films such as Roman Holiday, Love in the Afternoon, and Breakfast at Tiffany's. Both women are worth watching and learning more about.
7. Get an education - While college can be overrated, getting an education never is. If you can't afford a major university, look at community colleges that offer subjects you are interested in studying. Don't forget to look into scholarships and financial aid to help cover the cost.
8. Learn a foreign language - I admit the only language I'm fluent in is English, but I've dabbled in other languages and learned that nothing makes you appreciate your native tongue like learning another language. One day I hope to be at least conversant in French and Spanish, but until that time I can still enjoy movies such as Volver and Coco Avant Chanel.
9. Visit a foreign country - I love to travel, and visiting a different country only adds to the excitement. I haven't done as much international traveling as I would like, but even a trip to Canada can open your eyes to the way other people live.
10. Try something new and unexpected - Audition for a play. Move to a new city. Eat sushi. Learn martial arts. Write a book. Trying something new can be challenging but it, also, offers you the opportunity to learn more about yourself and to widen your horizons. Life is about experimenting, so be prepared to seize the day!

What are some things you want to try?

Any suggestions for things to do before you're 30?

Plan B

When I saw that BookSneeze was offering Pete Wilson's Plan B for bloggers to review, I eagerly accepted the invitation. Who doesn't know the disappointment surrounding a Plan B? One of my goals this year was to read more inspirational books, and Plan B certainly fits the bill. In the book, Wilson talks about his own disappointments as well as those of his friends and even people in the Bible and shows how God is in control even when you are not. Wilson's tone is friendly and not preachy making it feel like you are getting advice from a friend and not a stern teacher. Using Joseph as an example, Wilson explains that life is full of ups and downs, but God is with you through it all. The book is full of inspiring quotes, which I have been constantly highlighting for easy perusal later on, and has made me realize that resorting to Plan B doesn't have to be a bad thing. In fact, it is often the unexpected events that define our character and open new doors for us.