Eco Chic

So, I know that Earth day happened last week, but I didn't want to interrupt Megan's AMAZING wedding week to dish out this info, so here goes!

With all the talk about going green happening all around us, it's not surprising we'd see some translation into the world of fashion. There are lots of fun ways to go green with your clothes- hemp and bamboo fibers and even cork are comfortable and very renewable, and there are lots of eco-conscious companies focusing on recycling things like juice pouches, water bottles, and soda cans into lunch sacks, tote bags, and more. While I'm not about to go around wearing pants made of grape kool-aid wrappers, I'd totally rock a recycled capri sun pouch tote as a grocery bag. Check out these fun, and earth-friendly, finds:

Quilted cork tote, Chadwicks.com, $16.99.

Cork wallet by Sydney Love, Ebags.com, $24.80.

Cork, which grows under the bark of (shockingly) the cork tree, found mainly in Spain and Portugal, is readily renewable and incredibly durable. You're used to seeing it blocking oxygen from getting into your wine and causing it to spoil, but it makes a great alternative to non-animal-friendly leather or not very durable fabrics. Cork platforms in your shoes are fabulous too- cork is resilient and helps to absorb shock, protecting your feet and your joints from all that walking around! Keep an eye out for cork uppers on shoes, cork belts, cork everything. Designers are getting very creative with cork!

Bamboo Ribbed Tank, YouDeserve.com, $14.95.

Know what's great about bamboo? It's the fastest growing plant in the world. Within 3 years, it's ready for harvest, making it ultra-renewable. If that wasn't cool enough to make you at least give it a shot, it produces super soft fibers which evaporate moisture readily AND contain a natural antibacterial agent. Bamboo, 1, cotton, 0.

Anyway, while you're greening up your wardrobe, make sure to pick up a re-usable water bottle and coffee mug (some coffee houses even fill it up at a discount!). If you bring your lunch to work or school, get a re-usable lunch tin or tote (check out Oprah.com for some great discounts on ultra-cute ones!). Above all else, if you're not using re-usables, don't throw away your recyclables, make the extra effort to recycle them!

What should YOU wear??

Since you now know a little about wedding attire as a bride or bridesmaid, the last segment is about most of you: the wedding guest. What should you wear? Definitely don't go to a wedding with your significant other in matching Hawaiian print, with the woman in a muu-muu (as Lindsay and I witnessed at a wedding last summer). Not cool. But hey, pretty entertaining for the rest of us guests! :P

When deciding what to wear, pay attention to the invitation to see if it specifies for you, such as black-tie or semi-formal. Also pay attention to the time of day and season. For example, if it's a daytime summer wedding, a light colored floral dress is cute (especially if it's outdoor near the beach or in a garden). However, if it's an evening wedding, no matter the season, you can get away with wearing darker colors- even black! Wearing black is no longer considered taboo for an evening wedding. A color to NEVER ever wear? You get one guess.... Yup, that's right, no WHITE. It's not polite to take attention away from the bride by wearing her color. She needs to stand out. So that also means no ivory as well. It is OK though to have ivory or white as a background color if wearing a print in other colors. Just never solid white/ivory. That should be a no brainer.

Generally you shouldn't wear much sequins (unless it's a black tie affair). If black tie is requested, wear a formal long gown or fancier cocktail dress. Lastly, know ahead of time if the ceremony is at a church or synagogue; you don't want to show too much skin (i.e., your shoulders should be covered with a wrap or shawl).

Now here's some dresses I found online that are great for weddings this spring/summer.

Tahari ruffle chiffon dress $138 (www.nordstrom.com)

Adrianna Papell rosette halter dress $148 (www.nordstrom.com)

Floral sheath dress $169 (www.anntaylor.com)

Bead trim halter gown $79 on sale (www.newport-news.com)

Max and Cleo dress $130 (www.nordstrom.com)

Bridesmaids

"Always a bridesmaid, but never a bride". That's an expression I've come to know and live quite well. :) After being in a few weddings as a bridesmaid, and working at a bridal salon where I worked with a lot of these girls, I know a lot about this category. Bridesmaids don't have to be equated with pepto-bismal colored, puffy-sleeved dresses in awful taffeta. Thank God the 80's and early 90's are long gone!

For a formal, evening wedding, full length gowns are more appropriate, where as tea-length (hitting just below the knee) dresses are perfect for daytime or summer weddings. Rules have also changed a bit where it's not necessarily required for all bridesmaids to be clones of one another. Let each individual come out! You can have all in the same dress, but let them wear their own jewelry and shoes; or have all in the same color gown but in different styles. The latter option is the best bet if your girls are all shapes and sizes. That way each girl can wear a style that best flatters her body. If you stick with the same designer, you can usually pick two or three different dress styles in the same fabric and color. Also, when it comes to ordering, make sure all the dresses are ordered from the same boutique and the order goes in together, as dye lots can vary. Out of town bridesmaids? They can usually call in with their measurements and order over the phone, then have their dress shipped to them for alterations. Ok, enough talk. Here are some designers (with a picture of a style I like) that are affordable for your bridesmaids. Most dresses average from $120-$200.

1. Dessy Collection:

2. After Six (part of the Dessy Group):


3. Wtoo: The more affordable line within a company called Watters.


4. Jim Hjelm:


5. Belsoie:

Just a side note: If you're asking friends to be in your wedding, realize that you are also asking them to contribute to a major expense by buying their own wedding attire that you choose. If you don't plan on buying every one's dresses, keep in mind all the extra costs that go into their role as a bridesmaid. In addition to a dress, there can be extra things such as alterations, matching jewelry, and shoes. Most places will give a discount or free alterations if you bought your bridal dress at the same location. Come from a strict religion where everyone needs to be more modest in the church? Give wraps or shawls to all of your girls as their gift. Having each girl pay for straps being put on or a sleeve to be built on not only makes the dress often uglier and unwearable again, but is another cost for your close friends. So, be considerate of the commitment you're requesting and try to keep prices low for your girls.

Over 1,000 views- thank you!

Just wanted to write a quick thank you to everyone who's been reading our blog! We have officially had over 1,000 visits to our site! We hope you all have enjoyed what we have to say thus far. Please feel free to comment on our posts or write us an email at wnkspot@gmail.com with any requests for topics, questions, comments, etc.!

Bridal Fabric and Silhouettes

I feel like I could talk about bridal/bridesmaids fashion for eons since I worked in bridal for awhile, but I'll keep it short and sweet. Today I'm going to touch on silhouettes and fabrics to watch out for when choosing a bridal gown.

Bridal gowns are usually made out of the following silk fabrics: satin, duppioni, shantung, charmeuse, taffeta, lace, chiffon, or georgette. The main shades a gown can come in are white or ivory. If your skin tone is not dark, you should NOT be wearing pure white. Especially for silk duppioni or silk shantung: these are raw silks, so ivory is the natural color of the fiber. If you buy white in these fabrics, the fibers are being bleached and it can look fake and harsh. Silk charmeuse is a beautiful fabric perfect for sheath gowns that is common for a beach wedding. But be careful, it's a very clingy fabric and is often cut on the bias, so you'll need a good body to pull it off because it will show every flaw!


Silhouettes

1. A Line: Probably the most common silhouette. This style looks good on everybody. It's not too slim, and not too big, it's juuuuussst right. :) It's fitted in the bodice and flares out at the hip. This is great for hiding a heavier bottom (aka pear shaped).



2. Ball Gown: Calling all Cinderella wanna-be's!! This is the true "princess" dress and is the most formal you can find. Not having your wedding in a large indoor ballroom though? Probably not the best dress for you. You'll look really silly wearing a huge gown near the beach or for a small, intimate affair. Petite girls also need to be careful with this silhouette. It can swallow you whole. YOU need to wear the dress, and not let the dress wear you. Ball gowns normally have a dropped waist too which can also shorten an already short girl because you will have to hem the bottom and will end up chopping off so much skirt you'll look unproportioned. This is good for both bottom heavy girls and boy-shaped, as it can hide bottom flaws as well as make straight girls look curvier.


3. Mermaid: Two words: hot mama. This silhouette is very form-fitting and is perfect for all you tall, long waisted chicas. It screams modern, yet sophisticated. This style hugs the body all the way down to the knees and then flares out. The only problem with this style? It might be a little difficult to walk and dance the night away with little leg movement, so keep that in mind. A good compromise that I like? A variated mermaid that flares more at mid-thigh. This silhouette also works best at any venue.


4. Sheath: Usually made with slinky silk charmeuse or chiffon, this silhouette is simple and sleek. It can either hang from an empire waist and fall straight down (known as a "column" dress), or hug each and every curve you have! Again, if you are self-conscious about certain areas such as a pudgy tummy or large rear, this is not the dress for you! Still like the simplicity of this silhouette though? Just choose a thicker fabric like satin to help hide your trouble areas, instead of charmeuse and chiffon. This is perfect for petite girls too! This is the most popular silhouette for beach weddings and destination weddings (because it packs so small!).



all images courtesy of Google images

Bridal Fashion

This week (and maybe some of next) I'm devoting all posts to weddings. I know not many of you are getting married and are thinking, "I don't care about this stuff!". But, I'm not just talking about bridal gowns. I'll go over what is good for bridesmaids, as well as wedding etiquette, and what to wear as a guest to a wedding.

It's that time of year, where couples are dropping like flies around us by getting hitched. Even as a single girl, this is one of my favorite times of the year! I love going to weddings. Who doesn't love an excuse to get dressed up where there's great food, an open bar, and fun music to dance the night away? Plus, I just love all that goes into weddings: gorgeous florals, creative table decor, as well as paper products, such as invitations, programs, and place cards. Here's where I'll do my quick plug to my sister's company. :) She has an eco-luxe stationery company. Not only does Copper Willow specialize in greeting cards and other notes, they have gorgeous letterpress invitations, save-the-dates, maps, menus, etc. My sister will design custom products, or you can buy off the shelf at your local retailer. Plus, everything about the company is "green". Who doesn't love that?? Go to www.copperwillow.com for more.

Today is a quick overview of bridal gown designers I like for those who are getting married, or maybe just like to look at bridal magazines and swoon over a dress they'll wear one day (as I admit to doing). Lindsay, on the other hand, probably doesn't. :P


Here's a list of what I consider affordable designers (under $2,500) and don't compromise quality:

1. Jim Hjelm- one of my faves! He does gorgeous lace gowns similar to Monique Lhuillier, but for much less, as well as bead In addition to Jim Hjelm Couture, he has a cheaper line called "Visions". Other designers within this label are Tara Keely, Lazaro, and Alvina Valenta. You can't go wrong with any of these!

www.jimhjelm.com

2. Paloma Blanca-

www.palomablanca.com

3. James Clifford- www.jamescliffordcollection.com

4. Pronovias- one of my other faves. They have gorgeous gowns for an average price point of $1,600. Gotta love that right? They are based out of Barcelona, and have many, many other designer lines that are more expensive (like Manual Mota, Elie Saab, and Valentino Sposa), so be sure to try on their regular line! They are also popular for their variety of laces and natural fabrics such a silk duppioni and shantung.

www.pronovias.com

5. Demetrios-

www.demetrios.com

If price of your dream gown isn't an issue, here's a quick list of some of my favorite higher priced designers.

- Monique L'huillier
- Rivini
- Romona Keveza
- Reem Acra
- Liancarlo
- Vera Wang
- Casablanca
- Amsale
- Amy Michelson (great for destination dresses!)
- Carolina Herrera
- Judd Waddell
- Melissa Sweet

More DIY Tips

As promised, today is packed full of more DIY spa treatments. Here goes:



Skin brightening: Slice an orange, grapefruit, or lemon in half, squeeze it so the juice runs down your hands. Shake off the excess and pat what's left on your hands onto your face. Vitamin C brightens and tightens your skin.



Exfoliating: Brush your body with a bath brush while your skin is dry- before showering. Not only does this brush off dry, dead skin, but it also helps boost your circulation...which is good for your skin!



Not just for Halloween: I love pumpkin. I cook with it because of it's fantastic health benefits. It's obviously fun at Halloween to carve a jack-o-lantern. And furthermore, it's amazing for your skin. So when you scoop all that gunk out of your pumpkin before carving it's face, pop it (seeds and all) into the blender for a couple minutes to grind up the seeds. Rub all over your body and let sit for five or ten minutes before rinsing for a skin conditioning mask.



Lip Conditioner: Honey. Tasty, shiny, albeit a bit sticky.



Oatmeal: ...is great as an exfoliant and skin soother, and the best part is, it works for any skin type. It helps soak up oil, exfoliate dry skin, and soothe sensitive skin. Cook up some oatmeal and mix with an egg white and lemon juice for oily skin, a yolk and some avocado for dry skin, or a whole egg and some honey for sensitive skin. Smear on the mask, leave for ten to fifteen minutes, and rinse with lukewarm water.



Blackhead peel: 1 tablespoon unflavored gelatin, 2 tablespoons milk. Dissolve over low heat, allow to cool, smear it on your face and hang out for a half hour. Peel it off- it's like a hundred pore strips have been sitting in your kitchen all this time!



My mom always told us "put some witch hazel on it," if we had a bugbite, a random itch, or a wacko skin irritation. Witch hazel is a natural antiseptic, and makes a great facial toner (just avoid the delicate skin around your eyes, where it can sting a bit). Keep it in the fridge and it's more soothing.



Rinse your hair with some steeped tea in the color closest to your hair color after conditioning. It will add shine and bring out your highlights.



That's it for today. Stay tuned for Megan's wedding blitz next week!

More Remedies and DIY Tips

I just learned some things from Megan that I never knew. WD40 as a cleanser? Who knew? Not me! Here's one more for you guys- from my own aresenal...

Greasy food stains on your clothes are never cute. Put a couple drops of Dawn (or other grease cutting liquid dish detergent) on the stain, let it set for a minute or two, then add some warm water and rub gently. Wash normally. Don't put it in the dryer until you're satisfied that the stain is gone! The beauty of this one is that the dish detergent is formulated to cut through food grease, so that pizza grease or buttery sauce is no match for it!

Onward and upward:

Face it girls, even though we're either grown up, growing up, or pretending to be, we still love playing beauty shop with our girlfriends. As we grew out of our Cavaricci's and into our Tahari, we started going for Mani/Pedi's instead of doing our best friends' nails in the backyard, and that gets EXPENSIVE! These days, we're all pinching pennies, and frankly, a few years out of college and no longer living with 4 of my very best friends has me missing slumber parties! It's not that I don't love some very sweet girl I don't know snipping my cuticles and playing soothing nature sounds for me as she asks me what I do for a living and makes small talk while a hoarde of eleven year old girls are screaming and cackling about a boy they all like as they sit through their spa birthday party. It sometimes just seems like it would be more fun if I was just home with my girlfriends, and Megan was scolding me for my occassionally less than traditional views, painting polka dots on my nails and turning up the volume when "Like a Prayer" shuffled it's way onto my Itunes. So, for your slumber party and girlfriends' spa weekend at home pleasure, I'm going to spend today and tomorrow posting about some homemade beauty fun.

*Manicures & Pedicures*

Foot Soak: Each girl gets a tub of hot water with 5 or 6 green tea bags. When it's cool enough to dunk your toes, soak your feet and sip your mimosa til the water in your bucket is completely cool. Rub your feet with fresh mint leaves and moisturize with olive or baby oil. To make the soak even more luxurious and refreshing, you can add some rose petals, mint leaves, or essential oils to the tub. Personally, I love relaxing lavender, but some other outstanding ones are peppermint (refreshing), eucalyptus (antiseptic), grapefruit (toning), and tea tree (skin-clearing).

Scrub: Toss a handful of shelled almonds or walnuts, a generous drizzle of olive oil (two quick trips around the bowl should be plenty) and a squeeze of honey into a food processor. Grind until there are no more chunks of the walnuts/almonds left. Scrub over feet, hands, or other dry areas that need exfoliating for a few minutes and rinse well with lukewarm water. Pat dry and moisturize immediately.

Scrub 2: Make a runny paste out of baby oil and sugar. My favorite is the lavender scented Johnson's. It smells fantastic, and the sugar exfoliates gently while the oil moisturizes as you give yourself a mini massage. So relaxing.

Cuticle Treatment: Almond oil! Rub it on your cuticles daily to keep them smooth and keep your nails from splitting. Bonus- it smells amazing!

Have another mimosa while you chat with your girlfriends and roll your feet over tennis balls, which stimulates the pressure points and provides an outstanding massage! More tomorrow!

Home Remedies for Stain Removal

Removing tough stains from your clothes can becoming expensive if you rely on all of the stain remover products out there. Before you treat any stain on clothing be sure to remember these rules.

1. Test a small part of the fabric in a inconspicuous place for color fastness with a white cloth. If color rubs off on the cloth, it's not good for stain removing chemicals.

2. The quicker you act on removing the stain, the higher chance of success you will have in actually removing the stain.

3. ALWAYS blot stains when treating it. Rubbing too harshly may damage the fabric. Then work only from the outside of the stain towards the center as to avoid a ring around the stained area.


Now, here are some home remedies:

Lipstick: Vaseline is great for removing lipstick from clothing. If that doesn't work, rub a little shortening in and wash as normal.

Blood: Pour hydrogen peroxide on the stain. It will bubble like it does on your skin. Rub it lightly and rinse with cold water. Another remedy is to sprinkle unseasoned meat tenderizer on the stain. This will digest the protein in the blood and help the stain to fade.

Ball point pen: Spray the stain with hair spray and then blot with a clean, dry cloth.

Chewing Gum: Rub the garment with ice or put the whole thing in the freezer. This will harden the gum and make it easy to scrape off as much as you can. Then, wash as normal.

Coffee: Rinse with cold water as soon as possible. If the stain is already set, mix 1/3 cup white vinegar with 2/3 cup water. Blot with a towel, rinse with water, and blot dry.

Perspiration stains: Do you ever notice that your white shirts start to get a yellow-ish stain in the armpit area? If you don't want to buy bleach, blot a little vinegar on the spot, then rinse with cool water and wash in very hot water (as hot as is safe for the type of fabric).

Deodorant: Take a sock and turn it inside out. Rub the deodorant off of the fabric with the sock. Another quick way is to rub the fabric of the garment where the stain is onto another area of the same garment.

Soiled shirt collars: Rub shampoo on the collar (which is for removing body oils) before washing.

Tomato sauce: Spray WD-40 on the stain, wait a few minutes, then wash as usual.

Wine: Pour club soda on the stain as soon as possible. If the stain is more set, mix dishwashing detergent and water into a paste and rub into the fabric. Wash with the hottest water possible.

Fab Find!

Fab shoes from New York and Co!

Check out http://www.nyandcompany.com/ for today's fab find- these super cute disc detail sandals. They come in amazing, vivid colors (including yellow and turquoise- especially perfect for this spring/summer!). And at only $15.96, you can afford to order a couple pairs! While you're at the website, check out the rest of the shoes- there are some hot gladiators and studded flip flops there too!

Tie One On!

Scarves are so hot right now. What better, easier, and cheaper way to add some color and trend to your basics than to tie a scarf around your waist, neck, or even go boho and tie it on as a headband? This is SUCH a great way to try out a trend or test a color on yourself. Not sure if you can shine in yellow or look like a big lemon? Yellow scarf. Love floral print but feel like a whole floral dress makes you look like your grandma's old sofa? Floral scarf. Plaid shirt makes you feel too outdoorsy? You get the point. Here are a few great options to get you started:

Floral Scarf, http://www.oldnavy.com/, $12.50

Ombre Scarf, www.lailarowe.com, $18.

Tribal Print Scarf, www.forever21.com, $5.80.