A Kind Heart Shines

When you picture a beauty queen, you probably imagine a life size barbie with long luscious blonde hair…but three months ago in Anchorage, Alaska they crowned a different looking queen, one with no hair.  Lovely Miss Debbe Ebben shaved her head, raising more than $4,000 for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, an organization that raises money to help research childhood cancer.  Why would a soon to be beauty pageant contestant shave their head BEFORE the pageant?  To raise awareness and to show children who have lost their hair due to cancer that it’s okay, and they can still be beautiful.  “I wanted to put meaning and emotion behind it, and let them know why I’m doing it — for the kids,” she said. “I’m not shaving it to get attention. I’m not shaving it for publicity. I’m not shaving it because it’s a really easy hairstyle to go with. I’m shaving it for them.” (quoted from: NewsOk.com).  Although her hair is growing back, currently in a pixie cut, she says she will probably keep her hair short for the Miss America pageant where she will be representing Alaska in 2013.  The story behind the St. Baldrick’s Foundation is actually a very interesting one.  Three insurance executives turned a st.Patty’s Day party into an event for cancer, having members of the party shave their heads.  Their name was formed out of the words “bald” and “St.Patrick” together forming St.Patrick’s Foundation.

 Debbe Ebben Plans to work with St.Patrick’s Foundation and Headbands of Hope.  Headbands of Hope is an organization that donates spandex headbands to children who have cancer, everytime they sell a headband they donate $1 to St.Patrick’s Foundation.  A beauty queen working with two wonderful organizations to raise awareness to help people cursed with a terrible disease.  Below are links to both of the foundations websites, even if you don’t have extra money to donate you can still do your part by raising awareness.

http://www.stbaldricks.org/
http://www.headbandsofhope.org/

Yours Truly,
Brittnay Sims ♥

MyHabit.com

Everyone should check out this new Amazon.com website, it claims to offer top brands for up to 60% off with a membership (which is free) and you can use your amazon account if you already have one. It offers free shipping + returns in the US and international shipping to 50+ countries. If you want to return an item it is free and you get credited on your account, which means you can use it on myhabit again or you can use it on amazon. That’s almost as good as getting your money back, since amazon has literally everything! Some of the designer labels they offer are Nicole Miller, L.A.M.B., Kenneth Jay Lane and many more. They many different products like clothes, shoes, handbags, and jewelry. Although it sounds too good to be true, it is backed by the trusted and beloved amazon.com and I have had quite a bit of experience with buying and returning products on Amazon. I’ve had a few mishaps with certain vendors and Amazon has always done everything in its control to fix any issue. So I’m going to give this flash site a shot, and I hope you do to…Please, let me know about what you think of this new site. Do they have good products? Are they as cheap as they claim? Have you had any issues?

-Yours Truly, Brittnay♥

In Need of Some New Running Shoes?

Asics.com for $90

Color Psychology?  Sounds like a made up science doesn’t it?  Well it’s actually a very interesting and powerful concept.  There is a reason aerobics instructors wear brightly colored spandex, and cops and other authority figures where dark blue and black.  It’s because our brains associate certain colors with certain emotions.  It’s just like when you hear a song you used to listen to a lot, it takes you back to when you listened to it and reminds you of how you felt at that time.  This color psychology can be used to help you get motivated to exercise, one way to incorporate color psychology into your exercising could be to wear brightly colored running shoes.  I think this would be a great way to keep the bright colors in sight because you end up looking at your shoes a lot while exercising.  You could also wear brighter shirts and shorts to keep you motivated.  Just remember that colors affect each person differently, so when putting color psychology to the test make it more about you, you don’t have to follow the guidelines online perfectly because certain colors could affect you differently than others.  Also, remember to wear the colors that produce the mood you would like to feel, not the mood you currently feel.  Here is a list of colors and how they can typically affects moods and behaviors.

• Grey – a colour linked to high status and gravitas, but it may lower mood.
• Black – cool, tough and individual, black has associations with resolve and confidence (although some people may view it as depressive). It may help sustain motivation, rather than kick-starting it.
• White – a fresh colour that may represent a new change in attitude. Good for re-starting your exercise programme, but not so good for taking you through the pain barrier when you want to go that extra mile.
• Red – the colour of courage, passion and anger. It’s hard to be half-hearted in red and it’s the colour that will attract the most attention from other exercisers, so you could be shamed into working hard!
• Yellow – the colour of creativity and enthusiasm, which can help with motivation.
• Brown – a steady and calming colour, associated with the earth and all things environmental.
• Blue – a calm, assertive and methodical colour. Not a colour to give a sudden surge of motivation (unless it’s bright blue) but good for long-term planning and resolve.
• Green – an honest and trustworthy colour, pale green may be energy-draining.
• Orange – good for exciting the senses, combining energy with a sense of fun.
• Pink – deep pink is the colour of passion, so could be good if you want to develop a passion for sport or exercise.

The Summer of Nails!

Finally, it’s the fist day of summer!  Everyone loves summer, but it can also be a little nerve wracking for several reasons; worrying about how you look in that teeny bikini you haven’t had on in MONTHS, working longer and busier days, and of course dealing with overbearing heat.  Of course there is one great thing that everyone looks forward to every summer…summer fashion!  Short shorts, mini skirts, tank tops, summer dresses, and of course the hot new nail polish colors that come into style.  One of my favorite nail polish brands is Essie, they have an amazing choice of colors and the nail polish dries fast and lasts, oh and they are reasonably priced!  Could it get any better than that?  Well, the polish experts at Essie have come up with a new collection of summer colored polishes and each one is even more adorable than the last.  Their newest collection is called “Bikini so Teeny”…you can already tell it’s going to be cute right?  Bikini so Teeny includes six colors: bikini so teeny, cascade cool, all tied up, off the shoulder, fear or desire, mojito madness.  Here are pictures of each in that order.

sweaters

What do you think about these outfits?

sweaters by brittnaye featuring v neck shirts

Jack Wills sports hoody
$80 – jackwills.com

Hooded cardigan
$84 – crooksncastles.com

Whyred long sleeve shirt
£95 – liberty.co.uk

Rosemunde silk tank
€59 – maryandpaul.com

Puma racer back tank top
$40 – buckle.com

Fat Face slimming top
£12 – fatface.com

BKE v neck shirt
$17 – buckle.com

Black pants
$253 – bleuclothing.com

Mango slim fit pants
£20 – mango.com

Opening Ceremony jacquard skirt
$196 – lagarconne.com

Hollister Co. cuffed shorts
$40 – hollisterco.com

Miss Selfridge printed legging
$35 – missselfridge.com

Alice + Olivia leather shoes
$295 – aliceandolivia.com

ASOS flat shoes
$58 – asos.com

Jimmy choo pumps
€398 – veryeickhoff.com

ALDO leather sandals
$80 – aldoshoes.com

High heels
£27 – houseoffraser.co.uk

Geek Chic on the Basketball Court

Miami Heat’s Dwayne Wade and LeBron James showing off their great style after winning over the Boston Celtics.

Rip Hamilton showing off his famous face mask

Sure we all remember Richard “Rip” Hamilton’s face mask, but could there be a new
wave of interesting face wear for NBA players?  When you think of basketball you don’t usually think of fashion, but a few NBA players have decided to show off more trendy sides.  The geek chic trend is a great popular look right now, it has been an “in” thing for quite some time now.  I don’t know about you but that’s one trend I hope NEVER fades, because I look fabulous in some thick plastic framed glasses and a cardigan.

Russell Westbrook, not only a Oklahoma City Thunder point guard, but also a new NBA trendsetter.   He’s known for things like his infamous fishing shirt and of course his geek chic, uber nerd style eye wear.  His most famous pair of geek chic glasses are the fire engine red frames, he first showed these off on a bus tour during the regular season, these glasses are lens-less although his teammates say you could hardly tell they were lacking in the lens department.

Russel Westbrook sporting his retro glasses and fishing shirt.

Some people think that fashion and sports shouldn’t be mixed, I feel that NBA players showing off a more trendy side is just a new way for them to have fun.  With the overtake of hipsters nowadays there is bound to be SOME that are professional athletes.  Comment on this post and let me know what you think about these trends started by NBA superstars.  Should they be more professional about what they wear at work? OR is it nice for fans to be able to see their more human side, and what trends they like to follow?

China’s Love of Luxury

I wish I was a child in China right now!  Apparently parents of China have no problem going all out to make their babies glamorous.  A recent study shows that by 2013 overall spending on luxury products on children in urban China will reach 8,000 yuan (1,256.16 US dollars) which is absolutely astounding when you consider that the average income in China is presently 21,800 yuan (3,423.04 US dollars) per year.  Studies show that the most popular high end brands are Gucci Kids, Burberry Children,Baby Dior and Armani Junior, whose most popular products in China are clothes and toys.  In April, Gucci announced that it is spreading out across mainland China, currently they only operate one store in China.  In fact, Baby Dior’s first opening outside of Paris, France was in Shanghai.  It is believed that this is a direct result of parents passing down their love of luxurious things.  I think we can all agree that those Chinese children are living the good life in their cute little Baby Dior ballerina flats!

Adorable Baby Dior ballerina flats

Inspirational Quotes

Fashion fades, only style remains the same.
Coco Chanel

Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.
Coco Chanel

I like looking nice, but I always put comfort over fashion. I don’t find thin girls attractive; be happy and healthy. I’ve never had a problem with the way I look. I’d rather have lunch with my friends than go to a gym.
Adele

I think the idea of mixing luxury and mass-market fashion is very modern – wearing head-to-toe designer has become a bit passe. It’s a new era in fashion – there are no rules. It’s all about the individual and personal style, wearing high-end, low-end, classic labels, and up-and-coming designers all together.
Alexander McQueen

I have fun with my clothes onstage; it’s not a concert you’re seeing, it’s a fashion show.
Freddie Mercury

Fashion is only the attempt to realize art in living forms and social intercourse.
Francis Bacon

The woman is the most perfect doll that i have dressed with delight and admiration.
Karl Lagerfeld

I think there is beauty in everything. What ‘normal’ people would perceive as ugly, I can usually see something of beauty in it.
Alexander McQueen

The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman is seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides. True beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It’s the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows & the beauty of a woman only grows with passing years.
Audrey Hepburn

One is never over-dressed or underdressed with a Little Black Dress.
Karl Lagerfeld

I like being a woman, even in a man’s world. After all, men can’t wear dresses, but we can wear the pants.
Whitney Houston

The most important thing to remember is that you can wear all the greatest clothes and all the greatest shoes, but you’ve got to have a good spirit on the inside. That’s what’s really going to make you look like you’re ready to rock the world.
Alicia Keys

So soon as a fashion is Universal, it is out of date.
Marie Von Ebner-Eschenbach

About the Author

Hello, my name is Brittnay.  I’m not a fashion expert, just a regular girl from a small town.  I’m twenty years old and I’m a waitress, I’ve been called frugal before because I think it’s very important to save money and spend wisely.  I love fashion, but it can get expensive.  Recently, I began following a few fashion blogs that I found to be helpful, but I had one problem with all of them, their tips were only for people who spend, spend, spend.  So I decided to start my own fashion blog for the average middle class woman.  I think that average women should have a blog they can go to for tips and ideas that is written by an average woman.  I don’t have a shoe rack full of jimmy choo shoes, or any louis vuitton luggage (although I do have a small louis voitton purse I got for free) but I can tell you what the best bronzer to buy at walmart is.  So if you want reviews on make-up and clothes that you can actually afford, you’ve come to the right place.  Currently I have no “how-to’s” but they are coming soon!  I hope to have a few “nail how-to’s” and “hair how-to’s” uploaded this week.  Also, I am planning on starting a “what I wore” segment, where I will post photos of outfits I’m wearing and include brands, prices (if I know them), and tell you about where I wore them and how much I like the outfit.  My specialty is probably nails, you will absolutely love my nail how-to’s once I get them uploaded.  I really hope you enjoy my blog and take something away from it.  This blog isn’t for my own personal satisfaction, I would love to hear if you have gotten any ideas or help from any of my posts, so please comment and let me know what I’m doing right/wrong.  Also feel free to contact me with any questions or suggestions…I am new to the blogging world so it would be a big help!

Yours Truly,
Brittnay♥