Alternative + Olivia Wilde: The Making of the Message Bag

Actress turned Activist Olivia Wilde and Production expert Barbara Burchfield has teamed up with Alternative Apparel to create a cross-body bag benefiting students in Haiti. All proceeds go towards the Academy for Peace & Justice school. The clip further explains the importance.

After visiting Haiti (Wilde) and cherishing her backpack. She knew that creating one for multi-purpose use was a grand idea. Purchase your bag and support child in Haiti. There's even a cool tag for you to personalize. The Message Bag is priced at $138.00, made in army green, accented with brass functions, and leather trimming.

The bag is nice and serves for a beautiful cause, but it is quite costly. College students are always trying to be involved in community projects, this is sadly one most may not be able to part take in. For the average student it's not affordable; at least I know I can't afford it. Just something to think about.

Givenchy Parks the Party.

The new Givenchy Fall Campaign ad, just made its way to everyone's laptop! The campaign is meant to capture the essence of a rave party, mentioned in WWD. I would have liked to see more of a party environment, not just a single, non-danced girl. It played to safe. Stella Tennant is the lead, featured with: Joan Smalls, Stef van der Laan, Daniela Braga, Simone Nobili, Jarrod Scott, and Rodrigo Braga. Styled by Carine Roitfeld and captured by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott. Visit  Givenchy to see more of the Fall/Winter 2012 collection.

Blue Sky

As Summer approaches, I am falling more and more in love with blue hues. Specifically Ice Blue. On a monthly Target shop, I witness this beautiful Ice Blue Sally Hansen Nail Lacquer.(stay tuned for the color on MandeeMiniMovie: The Amanda Show). Needless to say "it got, got!" Of course I bought it! I called a few people too. *Nail girl problems. It's a little more thick than what I like. So my toes is selling all the shine now.
In other news, my next step is to find some Espadrilles. Here's a few that caught my eye. (Note: they all are not Ice Blue, but it works. lol)

Zappos

Still Me.

Lilo to Liz

As excited as a was for the premiere of Lindsay Lohan as Elizabeth Taylor, I had not heard any present news regarding the TV Movie. Thanks to the Lifetime Network, the release of the first stills have been captured and was release on yesterday. I'm so thrilled to LiLo back on her game! She could of looked more stunning. At adolescent, she served as my Role Model. So to see fame back in her corner, makes me very happy!

Premieres November 3, 2012 on Lifetime.

Lilo to Liz

OOTD: Lovely in Lace

Creme Tunic- Mom's Closet, Free $.99

High-waisted, Light-wash shorts-Urban Outfitters, $49.00

Lemon Archaic Chain Satchel- Grannies Closet, Free $.99

Floral Print Head Scarf- Forever 21, $10.50

Gold Drop Necklace, Charming Charlie's, $7.99

my exact Moment.

   
I absolutely love this commercial! It embodies my life at this "exact Moment." With everything happening so fast: finding a job, almost concluding my College education, getting a new apartment, etc. I just want this year
of 22 years to pause for a quick second. I just want to make sure I'm enjoying everything, and living at life to its fullest potential. Lucky for me, my life is full of surprises, so this commercial/song will stay my theme.

I make my own SUNSHINE.

It's true! Working out,eating good, and drinking water does make one feel good about themselves. After discovering my largest weight gained last summer, I decided to get back on track and start working out. My routine includes (but not limited too): Mon-Fri 45min workouts, running outside, elliptical machine, lifting weights,and walking at an incline. I've seen major results. From October-Now I have lost and maintained my 25 pound weight loss. I have been lazy more days then others, but I refuse to gain another pound. My advice to myself and you is to make this process about you. Your emotions matter. And whenever I'm pacing the ground I feel my best! Its the brightest feeling one can feel. Enjoy your road to a better you. :)

How do you SHOP?

Upon taking Fashion Promotion this semester, I figured I had already learned all the chapters due to prior retail work. But what I did not know was the technical term for shoppers. I thought this was pretty interesting. The book is called Promotion in the Merchandising Environment, 2nd Edition. Everett, and Swanson.

1. The STEADFAST Consumer- A brand loyalty consumer who is not concerned with Sales Promotion.

2. The LOYALTY Minimizer- This shopper is willing to look around for the best price, but will eventually return to the opted retailer.

3. The CATEGORY CONTINGENT- This consumer is semi-based on loyalty. If the product is important enough for them to see a difference in brands, the preferred brand wins.

4. The IMAGE REJECTOR- This consumer unfortunately prefers cheap prices over quality. Their loyalty is 0%, considering the other shoppers

So the next time your shopping, refer back to this post, and share who you are, and your experiences while finding your find! Happy shopping!!!! :)

POP into color!

Summer is almost here, and I thought it would be fun to start playing around with my bright nail hues. In a act of boredom, I painted them in a light-dark pattern. They actually came out cuter than expected. But what I didn't know is that if you paint your nails white first, before loud colors. They'll POP more! And to my surprise they did! I receive a lot of compliments on this trend. I'm definitely trying this again. (Nail Party Problems).

Interviewing 101: 220Music

Introducing 220Music from University of Houston. A hip-hop group with cool flows and cool beats.

A: What is everyone’s name, and where is everyone from

          220Music:

          a.     Marc Haize (Detroit, Michigan)

          b.     EscalatorUp (Oakland, California)

          c.      Gene Green (Beaumont, TX)

          d.     DJ AudiTory (Houston, TX)

(Up, Gene, Haize, Dj AudiTory)

A: Coming from all over the country, how did you guys meet and how did one person’s weaknesses or strengths help mesh the group together?

220Music:

Marc, Up and Gene all met each other through a school organization where they found out about each other’s ability to rap. We then all met DJ AudiTory through a function he was DJing at on campus (University of Houston) and invited him to be a part of the group.  It is more-so our personalities and how we function as a musical ensemble that allows our sound to be exactly what it is today. To be a selfless group of guys really contributes to the creative nature of the music we make.

A: As far as being a full-time student, how do you juggle that along with extra-curricular activities, school events, and being in a hip-hop quad?

220Music:

 It all deals with scheduling, dedication and purpose!  If it has a purpose we involve ourselves in it. 220Music makes sure we utilize our time in such a way that our decisions are beneficial to education and music. Lesuire time is either dedicated to working on music, mixtapes for the DJ, or studying.

A: How are beats, and rhymes constructed for each song? Where does song inspiration come from?

220Music:

a.     Our beats are typically chosen through a number of producers we like to work with. We try to find a concept that we can all focus our verses towards. We then try to construct A universal message from personal perspectives that compliment each others.

b.     Song inspiration can come from a plethora of things. There’s no definite answer to define our inspiration. We can be inspired by faith, theories, music, jokes, family, experiences, or whatever just happens to come to mind. 

A: Since starting the group what has been the biggest challenge? And what is being done now to prevent that from happening again?

220Music:

The most difficult part about being in a group is communicating all the details necessary to have everybody on the same page! There are multiple events we participate in and people we have to meet. So when you have 4 guy’s, relaying all that information can easily become a task. We’re just getting better with it over time. We actually have a group chat specifically for communicating all details with each other.

A: As far as setting goals, have they been met? Dating back to the start of the group to now?

220Music:

We’ve accomplished a majority of the goals that we’ve set for ourselves. We pride ourselves in being able to do exactly what we set our minds to!  When joined, we told each other that we would take this as seriously as possible and ever since then we’ve seriously been making things happen. Big things! Lol.

A:    What’s the biggest accomplishment 220 has made? And as a member of 220, what does that milestone mean to you?

220Music:

We believe that remaining as a group for almost 2 years and still doing what we promised to each other, has to be the biggest accomplishment as a group! For 4 very opinionated and passionate men to be in a group and work to create one sound and brand tends to be difficult. Luckily we’re just as united to accomplish our dreams now, till dating back in May of 2010.

A: Are there any regrets thus far?

220Music:

The biggest lesson learned as a group was paying for shows early off in our career.  We were really just excited for opportunities to perform and didn’t know any better about the business. Sadly the group got hustled in the end. It was a huge lesson learned for us. Not so much a regret but that money could have been invested in other places that would have been more beneficial.

A: What’s up next? Any dates “The Following” should watch out for?

220Music:

May 24^th we have a show at House of Blues Houston. If people would like to keep up with us they can always visit www.weare220.com to keep up with us.

A:  Lastly, what’s everyone’s twitter names?

220Music:

a.     @220Music (220Music)

b.     @220Haize (Marc Haize)

c.      @220Gene (Gene Green)

d.     @Escalatorup (EscalatorUp)

e.      @DJAudiTory (DJ AudiTory)

Style-Child: Dallas Career Day

This 13th day of April marked Dallas Career Day! Even though it was a true adventure coming to Dallas, I reminded positive and focused on today's schedule. But to my surprise Dallas did not live up to my expectations. In my opinion, Houston Career Day was fabulous and very informative. I gained a lot of knowledge there as opposed to today. Luckily there was plenty of Style -Child's wondering the halls! I was dying all over the place.
Here's a few I melted over....

Ann-Hamilton (super cool government!)

Loves fashion, and loves her COFFEE!

Maria

Has a obession with funky stocking( as sported here) , and corky hats.

Jessie( immedately melted when I saw her fit)

Works as a Stylist with Free People.

"Music is my inspiration for everything that I do!"

Kayla

She enjoys "characterized" socks, and just recently traveled to Paris.

(How jelly was I when she said that.....EXTREMELY!)

Style-Child of the WEEK.

Tonight served as NAACP's annual Spring Fashion Show. While most came to view the collections(including me), I came to view the audience as well. It's nothing like ones individual style. From the performers to the designers themsevles, personality was floating

all over the roon. Here's two Style-Childs that rock out tonight. Showcasing their lean legs, and fun tops!

Rachelle (left)

Is a proud left-handed woman, and surprisingly doesn't like heels. (fooled me).

Raveen (right)
Is a junior at Sam Houston State, and has two mixtapes out! www.datpiff.com/Rae_Alexis_Sim

......Want to be featured as Style-Child of the WEEK? email me with two funky characteristics, and a photo of you in a on trend fit.........

Interviewing 101: Willie Vance

                       Willie Vance, SHSU graduate, Freelance Photographer

A:What was the first picture you took?
W:The first picture I ever took was of myself, one of my frat brothers had been showing me how to use photoshop and out of everything he showed me I really only remembered these two effects. It was how to change your reflection in the mirror and how to pick certain colors in black and white pictures. So I set this little camera I on a tripod in my shower and snapped a picture of me in regular clothes looking at myself dressed like I’m going somewhere. That was the first picture I actually took myself, before that I’d bother my roommate Zaki to snap me new profile pictures for Facebook all the time lol.

A:What do you love Most about photography?
W:It’s a challenge and It makes other people feel good. I love to the challenge of getting the “Money Shot”. That’s one of those pictures where everything seems to come together all at once for you. My goal is for every picture to be that money shot. Photography is another opportunity for individuals to be creative and express their everyday views of life.

A:What would be your dream set location? And why?
W:I’m like any busy downtown area or nice landscape. Any time it’s a lot of people walking around, nice buildings vibrant colors and trees it’s a dream location for me!

A:How would it contribute to your portfolio?
W:For me those kind of locations would allow me to experiment many different forms of photography, which is good when you’re just starting out because you are able to get a feel for what your style of photography is, which in-turn makes for a strong portfolio.

A:How do you plan to inspire people with your work?
W:I try to inspire by example. Honestly when people see my work I just hope that whether they are a photographer or not that they are inspired to pursue something that interest them.

A:In your opinion, is it best to start a business while in college or post graduate? How did you juggle both?
W:In my opinion it doesn’t matter whether you’re in college or 50 years old lol. To me what matters the most when starting anything you plan to profit from is faith, consistency and progression. You have to first believe in what you’re doing in order to present it to someone else in confidence. To provide good work consistently, you have to take what you’re doing seriously. And never stop learning, progression is key.

A:How do you plan to expand your business?
W:At this point word of mouth is key I appreciate anybody I’ve taken pictures for because they like what I’m doing and spread the word. My main focus is learning and progressing. I feel like if I continue to get better and provide quality people will continue to reach out and show support, which will eventually lead to expansion.

A:What’s your current project your working on?
W:S.I.T.U.S with Sedrique D’Juan its not my project so i cant go into too much depth. But thats something I’m apart of, but outside of that I’ve just been working on spreading The Prescription brand and graduation coming up so I’m currently shooting and getting back grad pictures.

A:How do you market your business?
B:Facebook,Twitter,Instagram,Tumblr lol. You name it, I’m on it. The internet has become the cornerstone for keeping people connected and when use correctly Social Networks can be very effective marketing tools.

A:Owing your own business, What is one important lesson you have learned?
W:I learned that I have to be patient. I pay attention to every detail of everything I do now because when trying to attract business it’s extremely important that your work is presented how you intended the first time.

Go ahead and check out his site. SUPPORT it.
http://www.picsnpeace.com/

Coachella...

Yes, I am a little salty about Coachella this year. A lot of my favorites are showcasing and I'll be here at school. :( poo. There's a lovely range of music as always. From ASAP Rocky to AVICII. To Feist to Gary Clark Jr. <<< Who I find very sexy. I have a thing for man fur. All is not lost though, Dom Kennedy isn't performing, so I should be ok. In other news here's alist of the artist. Weekend 1: April 13-15. Weekend 2:20-22.

http://www.coachella.com/
Friday, April 13, 2012
Alesso
Amon Tobin
Arctic Monkeys
Atari Teenage Riot
Band of Skulls
Breakbot
Cat Power
Datsik
Dawes
Death Grips
EMA
Explosions in the Sky
Feed Me
Frank Ocean
GIRLS
GIVERS
Hello Seahorse!
honeyhoney
James
Jimmy Cliff & Tim Armstrong
Kendrick Lamar
LA Riots
M83
Madeon
Madness
Manchester Orchestra
Mazzy Star
Neon Indian
Other Lives
Pulp
R3hab
Refused
Sean Kuti & Egypt 80
Swedish House Mafia
The Black Angels
The Black Keys
The Dear Hunter
The Horrors
The Midnight Beast
The Rapture
The Sheepdogs
Wolf Gang
WU LYF
Ximena Sarinana Yuck

Saturday, April 14, 2012
A$AP Rocky
Andrew Bird
AWOLNATION
Azealia Banks
Black Lips
Bon Iver
Borgore
Buzzcocks
Childish Gambino
David Guetta
Destroyer
Destructo
Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg
Feist
fIREHOSE
Flying Lotus
Gary Clark Jr.
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Grace Potter and the Nocturnals
Grouplove
Jacques Lu Cont
Jeff Mangum
Kaiser Chiefs
Kasabian
Kaskade
Keep Shelly in Athens
Laura Marling
M. Ward
Martin Solveig
Miike Snow
Mt Eden
Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds
Pure Filth Sound
Radiohead
SBTRKT
SebastiAn
Squeeze
St. Vincent
Sub Focus
Suedehead
The Big Pink
The Head and the Heart
The Shins
The Vaccines
tUnE-yArDs
We are Augustines
We Were Promised Jetpacks
Zeds Dead

Sunday, April 15, 22
AraabMUZIK
At The Drive-In
AVICII
Beats Antique
Beirut
Calvin Harris
Company Flow
Dada Life
DJ Shadow
Dragonette
Fanfarlo
First Aid Kit
Fitz and the Tantrums
Florence and the Machine
Flux Pavilion & Dr. P
Gardens & Villa
Girl Talk
Gotye
Greg Ginn
Housse de Racket
Justice
La Roux
Lissie
Metronomy
Modeselektor
Morgan Page
Nero
NOISI?
Oberhofer
Porter Robinson
Real Estate
SantiGold
Sebastian Ingrosso
Sleeper Agent
Spector
The Gaslamp Killer
The Growlers
The Hives
The Weeknd
Wild Beasts
Wild Flag
Zedd

REIGN on me: Jay-Z

Never doubting his work ethic, business plans, or self Jay-Z continues to reign as one of the top moguls. He never disappoints, always innovates. This man constantly proves himself in any endeavor! Even though his plans are unpredictable, I'm never too surprised why he choses to execute them in the first place. As you may remember Hip-hop artists clothing lines was a big business in the early 2000's. Since around 2007, that big business declined and no one has had  quite a comeback. Now Hip-hop artist T.I., recently re-launched Akoo Clothing's mediocre Fashion Show on the hit show T.I. and Tiny:The Family Hustle. Sadly I wasn't impressed. Nothing spoke to me. The message was not clear. That was the perfect way or one of the many to rebrand himself. As for Jay-Z, business first, he took the correct approach by staring in a commercial. I saw it first a couple days ago. My immediate thought "this is a grand slam!" Who would of thought? And who knew? With the market down in Artist apparel, it was only right. In the media, you actually see a lifestyle being sold. That's your selling point! What catches my eye? The most expensive item, how should it be merchandise? I'm sure sells for this year will exceed expectations. All I can say is, he's genius. "Rocawear just keeps reinventing itself and redefining itself every single day.” Jay-Z

Lookbook 101: The Student

I decided to have a Style Party, and here are the results.....



Model A: Danielle French, Fashion Merchandising Junior (Sam Houston State University).

(lace white shorts used again. remember classic pieces can always be repeated).

Model B: Sade Anders, Human Resource Management (Sam Houston State University)

Model C: Chasidy Billups, Mass Communications, (Sam Houston State University)

OOTD

Cynthia Rowley colorblock dress $39.99
Aldo necklace $12.00
XXI cuff $4.80

Frugal Fashion: Accessory Swap

Do you have ton of jewelry? Like jewelry pieces that stare you in the face every morning??? Like items you haven't wore in months? The perfect solution for this is an Accessory Swap!!! FMC (Fashion Merchandising CLub) had our first official swap of the year. It was full of laughter, and posing! Great idea for a birthday party or any other social event. This can work with clothes and shoes as well. Instead of throwing unwanted items, GIVE them away. Somebody else can appreciate your items just as you once did.

Frugal Fashionista: 20 items under $20

Fashion DOES NOT, I repeat DOES NOT have to come at a price! Now there are some things that I personal invest money in like bags, but there are other items, that requires little to no cash. These shops amongst many others are hot when it comes to on trend style. Granite you may need to search for the steals. But if your a true Frugal Fashionista, searching is nothing!I love finding things people have hid; the finding that skirt that fell off the hanger; or even trying on an "ugly" dress. Its a pure rush I get when shopping. Tis why I go so often, smh. Any who, I hope the purchases inspire you to go to these places, or even help out with your Summer buys.

1. Tj Maxx Shopper $19.00

2. Tj Maxx Nine West Tote $21.99

3. LOFT Snake print Wristlet $14.99

4. Kelsi Dagger Sandal Wedges $15.00 (each;reduced price)

5. XXI Floral Print Scarf $10.50

6. XXI Cuff $4.80 7. XXI Necklace $8.50 8. Charming Charlie's Peach Teardrops $7.99

9. Goodwill Fuchsia Crops $7.99

10. Target Egyptian blue Crops $19.99

11. Ann Taylor black Mermaid Maxi $9.99 (actually cuter on;reduced price).

12. Goodwill creme Pencil Skirt $5.99

13. Kohls Lauren Conrad pale pink pleat mini $10.00 (reduced price)

14. Ann Taylor tangerine stripe mesh neck $9.99 (reduced price)

15. Ann Taylor cobalt boat-neck $14.99

16. LOFT Circle neck stripe $20.99

17. LOFT green & blue tunic $18.99

18. Charming Charlie's ruffle sheer jacket $21.99

19. Tj Maxx black & white print $15.99

20. Ann Taylor tropical print Sheath $9.99 (reduced price)