Add To Your Wardrobe For Free

How would you like to add to your wardrobe without spending any money?

That would be an ideal situation, for many of us, during these difficult financial times. Savvy shoppers in England have found a creative way to enhance their wardrobes and get rid of their unwanted clothing all on the same website. It's a vintage clothing community called Covert Candy. Membership to the community is free and the only thing you ever pay for is to ship your items to the person who has chosen to "purchase" them.

How It Works

First, register to join the Covert Candy community for free. Second, upload pictures and descriptions of the clothing, jewelry, purses and hats, that you are interested in parting with. Third, determine the value of the clothing. Next, mail the clothing to the customer who has ordered them. Once the articles of clothing have been received by the "buyer" your account is assigned the credits that your clothing was worth. Finally, shop on Covert Candy with the credits that were accumulated.

I think that this could be a wonderful way to acquire, unique, vintage clothes and an awesome way to keep clothing that is still in great condition out of landfills. It is also a great way to save money and still get to wear something fabulous that you didn't have to pay for.

Acquiring great clothing and helping the environment, sounds like a win-win situation to me.

Yele Haiti Boots

Popular recording artist and Haitian Activist Wyclef Jean has collaborated with Timberland to produce a new line boots made from eco-conscious materials that they call Earthkeepers Yelee Haiti Boots. The boots boast such features as organic canvas, recycled laces, soles made from Green Rubber and leather from silver rated tanneries.

Proceeds from the boots were originally going to be used to help reforestation efforts in Haiti but they have since been redirected to the earthquake relief efforts through Wyclef's Yele Haiti Foundation.

Wyclef has been doing serious charity work in Haiti long before the earthquake struck and I am confident that his work will continue despite allegations that were made against him regarding mismanagement of funds. The allegations were found to baseless and unfounded.

The Fashion Community Responds to The Crisis In Haiti

I can't begin to express how extremely proud and appreciative I am of the United States and the international community's outpouring of support, help and compassion towards Haiti. As I mentioned previously, both of my parents were born there and Haiti will always, hold a special place in my heart because, two of the best parents a girl could ever ask for, were raised there.

For as long as I can remember, Haiti has been in desperate need of assistance but now that the the need has escalated to the critical level, the world has responded in a big way. I, of course, wish that this disaster had never happened but I'm hopeful that all of this pain and suffering will be replaced by something good, maybe even something great and Haiti will finally be able to live up to it's full potential.

I have been unable to write about anything related to fashion since the tragedy until today. I am happy to announce that the fashion community has been doing their part to help the, battered, island nation in a variety of ways.

Here is a small sampling of the fashion communities response to the crisis that I got from Rachel Strugatz' column at the HuffingtonPost.com :

1. Luis Vuitton donated $100,000 on behalf of the company and it's employees to assist the Haitian Red Cross with purchasing supplies.

2. Calvin Klein is matching contributions of it's employees and is making a
corporate donation to Save The Children and more.

3. Ralph Lauren is donating clothing through Fashion Delivers.

4. Havaiainas sent footwear to Haiti via Soles4Souls and is donating a percentage of sales to the Red Cross.

5. MAC Cosmetics has donated $125,000 to three organizations in Haiti who will deliver medical care, food and supplies.

Many other fashion designers are donating a percentage of their sales and/or hosting benefits to help Haiti get on the road to recovery.

Major Earthquake In Haiti

I was moaning about having bounced a check due to an oversight when I found out that
The small island nation of Haiti, my parents' native country, was struck by a magnitude 7.0 earthquake 7 miles southwest of The capital of Port AU Prince. The quake hit today at around 5:00 Pm eastern standard time. Reports are sketchy but my understanding is that there is widespread damage with fallen buildings everywhere but no word available regarding casualties or injuries. According to CNN there were at least two aftershocks measuring 5. 9 and 5.5 and there is a lot of 'wailing' and there are many people in the streets who don't know where to go.





I am calling on all of you prayer warriors (we all have a little prayer warrior inside of us but we often don't realize it until we have something serious to pray about) to pray for the people in Haiti. The tiny country has endured it's share of tough times including devastating hurricanes and widespread poverty. Although Haiti has suffered much It's beauty and rich history can never be denied. It is the first and only black lead nation whose Independence was gained as a result of a successful slave rebellion against the French in 1804.

Time to stop focusing on my small problems and start praying for others.

I found video footage but it was so graphic and devastating that I was unable to upload it.

For more information visit http://www.haitixchange.com/

CJ Jeans by Cookie Johnson

Happy New Year everyone!

I am excited about entering in to a new year with a fresh start and positive outlook. I pray for many blessings and great things ahead for all of us.

I'm happy to start off the new year doing something different, discussing a new brand of premium denim called CJ jeans. The jeans debuted last summer and the designer is none other than Cookie Johnson the wife of popular ,former NBA superstar and current business man and TNT basketball commentator Magic Johnson.

Cookie, who has a degree in Retailing of Clothing and Textiles, decided to to enter the premium denim game out of frustration from not being able to find jeans that properly fit her curves. She says that she has created a more contoured jean with more room in the thighs and butt area that still fit nicely at the waist. The jeans also run from size 24 (2) to size 38 (18) which will accommodate a much larger population of women ,who come in all wonderful shapes and sizes, then most other premium denim brands do.

Cookie teamed up with denim guru Micheal Glasser, the brains behind Seven For All Mankind, Citizens of Humanity and owner of Rich and Skinny Jeans, to deliver a amazing lineup of great looking jeans that include bootcut, straightleg, highwaist and skinny styles.

Oprah has listed the jeans as one of her favorite things. I look forward to trying on a pair and letting you all know how it went.

What Makes Premium Denim So...Premium

During these trying economic times it is difficult to make expensive purchases without weighing the financial pros and cons. Is it worth it to pay for premium denim when you can, usually, buy less expensive jeans just about anywhere?

That is a question that anyone contemplating buying a pair has to answer individually, based on their personal financial situation and their priorities. I, of course, will happily offer my two cents on the matter.

Premium Denim and Regular Denim: Is there Really A Difference?

The answer is a resounding Yes! Having owned a premium denim boutique I can attest to the fact that there is are differences between premium denim and regular denim jeans. Here is a concise list of the differences.

Superior Material- most premium denim is made from superior more expensive, denim usually made in Japan, Italy or the United States.

Superior Styling- The makers of premium denim have the styling down to a science. There is nothing arbitrary about the pocket placement or washes that they use on every pair of jeans and it shows when you put them on. properly placed pockets can give the illusion of a rounder perkier butt without surgery. What can be better than that? Darker coloring around the thighs appears to shave inches off of you in all the right places. How much would you pay for that? Premium jeans are also often hand distressed and treated to get the desired unique look that many premium jeans have.

Superior Fit- The combination of flawless material and the scientific styling come together to create a more perfect fitting jean. When it comes to jeans, fit is everything and I have yet to come across a pair of regular jeans that fit me as well as my premium jeans do.

Confidence "Boostability" - Confidence usually comes from within but a few outward things like a great hairstyle and an amazing outfit can help to boost your confidence even more. Premium jeans definitely have confidence "boostability".

What About the High Price Tag?

If money is an issue for you as it usually is for me, I suggest outlet shopping or raiding the clearance rack. I paid only $40 for my first pair of Premium denim. It was a pair of James Jeans and when I looked at myself in the three way mirror I was extremely pleased with what I saw. I appeared taller, thinner and best of all, my butt looked amazing! I rushed to the cash register before they realized that I would be willing to pay double that price to look that great.

Cost Over Time-Premium jeans will quickly replace your favorite pair of jeans and you will be wearing them often which guarantees that you will get your money's worth.

Premium Denim vs Regular Denim

I visited http://www.denimology.co.uk/ and they used the photos below of supermodel Alessandra Abrosio to make the case for the superiority of.premium denim

CAUTION- You can easily become addicted to looking great which can, subsequently, lead you to become a premium denim junkie like me. (Yikes!)

Merry Christmas!

Today is the day that we celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. I wonder what He thinks about the way we celebrate it.

I'm sure that He is dismayed by the way we have turned His birthday in to such a commercial holiday when we spend more money than time on the ones we love.

Hopefully He is proud of the many, who use this opportunity as a time to give to the less fortunate and to shower friends, family members and neighbors with kindness and love.

I have been the recipient of quite a few good wishes, kind words and friendly smiles during this festive holiday season. If only people were more like this all of the time, myself included.

My New Year's resolution is to be friendlier all year round. I believe that friendlier people are happier people and probably healthier people too.

My Grown Christmas Wish For You

My grown up Christmas wish for you is to have happiness, peace, good health and an abundance of love for you and all of your family and friends. God bless you and Merry Christmas!