Enter to win a pair of Ray Ban Wayfarers

In Honor of Design is having a contest to win a pair of Ray Ban Wayfarers from Smart Buy Glasses.

Decorating with kitty litter

One of my favorite blogs, Cupcakes and Cashmere, had this video today.

Penny Pincher Fashion's FragrenceNet Giveaway

Penny Pincher Fashion is doing great giveaway during the month of February where you can win her top beauty picks from FragrenceNet!

J.Crew Factory Giveaway

Pink Peonies is having a J.Crew Factory giveaway. Thought this would be a great time for a fashion post too!

What would I consider getting if I won?

Cashmere Stripe V-Neck Sweater - $100.50


Boatneck Blouse - $45.00


Sequin Striped Tank - $41.50


Stripe Knit Pocket Blazer - $58.50


Classic Chambray Shirt - $38.50

Giveaway

Let The Tide Pull Your Dream Ashore has yet another great giveaway of a monogrammed tray from McLaughlin Glazewear. What a great gift or addition to your home!

Giveaway

Let The Tide Pull Your Dreams Ashore is having a his and hers giveaway from J.McLaughlin.

The winner will receive the Lilac Beckett Silk Scarf.

And the Coral Mini Wellington Tie.

Giveaway

There is a giveaway at one of my favorite blogs Let The Tide Pull Your Dreams Ashore for a Southern Tide polo. Enter here. 

Extra Petite

My co-worker showed me this blog called Extra Petite that has great resources for those of us who are petite and often have trouble finding the right size. Not only does this girl have incredible style but she's a DIY whiz when it comes to altering clothes. The site has great tutorials for how to alter your own clothing if you don't have a ton of money to spend on a tailor. She has great advice about which large clothing retailers are "petite friendly" and some smaller boutiques with petite options.

What to do if you become unemployed

If you're unemployed and worried that employers will turn you down for taking on unimpressive work during the recession or for the large employment gaps on your résumé-you needn't panic. A new survey just released by the careers website CareerBuilder.com reveals that the vast majority of employers are sympathetic to such circumstances.

The nationwide survey was conducted online by Harris Interactive, on behalf of CareerBuilder, among 3,023 hiring managers and human resource professionals between November 9 and December 5, 2011. Not only does it offer unemployed job seekers some hope, but it also provides tips to help them land a new position.

"More than 40% of unemployed job seekers have been out of work for six months or longer," says Rosemary Haefner, vice president of human resources for CareerBuilder. "There's a sense that such a long gap on a résumé negatively affects a candidate's chances, but the survey shows that is not true. That's very positive news for this group of job seekers. If you fill the gaps with activities and experience that illustrate how you are still developing your skill sets, the overwhelming majority of employers will look past your unemployment and focus on what you can bring to their team."


Eighty-five percent of those surveyed employed reported that they are more understanding of employment gaps post-recession. Ninety-four percent said they wouldn't have a lower opinion of a candidate who took on a position during the recession that was at a lower level than the one he or she had held previously.
But this doesn't mean you can sit around and wait for a sympathetic employer to offer you work. "The worry is that employers may think job seekers are losing some of their skills because they haven't been utilizing them. By volunteering, taking temporary work, or signing up for a class that develops your professional tool kit, you show employers that you've made the most of your time and will be ready on day one," Haefner says.

Employers and CareerBuilder experts recommended a variety of activities you should engage in to build, expand, and strengthen your skills during period of unemployment, in order to increase your marketability.


Take a temporary or contract assignment.
Seventy-nine percent would recommend doing this. Why? "The key is to get people to see your work and to see what you're capable of doing," says Andy Teach, the author of From Graduation to Corporation: The Practical Guide to Climbing the Corporate Ladder One Rung at a Time. "If you do a great job, even if it's for a temporary job, whoever hired you is more likely to recommend you for a permanent position."

Take a class.
Sixty-one percent of the hiring managers surveyed recommended taking a class during a period of unemployment. "You never stop learning in your career, so the more technical competence you have, the better," Teach says. "When you take a class in your field, you are also showing that you are serious about your work and that you take initiative." Another advantage to taking a class: It's a great networking opportunity.

Volunteer.
Sixty percent of the hiring managers said volunteer work makes you more marketable. "When you volunteer for something, you are telling potential employers something about you as a person," Teach says. It shows that you are passionate about something and care about helping others-and it demonstrates that money isn't the most important thing to you, he adds. "When companies are hiring, they are looking not only for people who can get the job done but also for people with character and integrity."


Start your own business.
Twenty-eight percent suggested doing this-but starting a business can be pricy and time consuming. If you have the means to do it, it's a great résumé booster and a wonderful marketing tool.
"The beauty of having your own business is that you can work part-time or full-time depending on whether or not you are able to land a job working for someone else," Teach says. "You are also going to learn skills that are transferrable if you do end up working for someone else again."

Start a professional blog.
Eleven percent of the surveyed employers said a professional blog can be a good way to market yourself to employers. Why? You get people to see you as an expert in your field. "You are also conveying your passion, gaining knowledge, and separating yourself from others," Teach says. "Potential employers will see you as having taken the initiative during your job search to blog about something you truly care about: your career."

Source

Hobo giveaway

Pink Peonies is having another amazing giveaway from Hobo! One winner will get the Lauren Wallet and Sheila bag. I love Hobo wallets - they are durable, function, and come in a variety of colors and prints.

Blog: J's Everyday Fashion

I found this blog on pinterest. The author finds inspiration from runways, magazines, and catalogues and shows readers how to recreate the look with items from stores like Forever21, H&M, Kohl's, and Gap. She provides links to the pieces that are still available so you can get the clothes too!

Giveaway

This gorgeous J.Crew bag is part of a giveaway at Pink Peonies!

Two giveaways

Two giveaways today on Pink Peonies. One for a jewelry store and one for an home decor shop. Check it out!

New giveaway

There is a giveaway going on at Let The Tide Pull Your Dreams Ashore where the winner gets a monogramed pillow from Be.Designs.

The 9-year-old food critic

Jamie Oliver and Michelle Obama may be commanders of a healthy school lunch revolution. But a 9-year-old girl is on the front lines.

A Scottish grade school student named Martha Payne has launched her own revolution in school lunch reform. It all started with a simple idea. What if food critics reviewed school lunches? Cafeterias would probably do a lot more to satisfy their customers.

That's what Martha discovered two weeks ago, when she started the blog NeverSeconds, a daily review of her flimsy cafeteria lunches.

With help from her dad, Dave, the Argyle-based student, photographed her sparse lunch tray daily and offered a Zagat-style rating system based on the following criteria: food-o-meter (or overall taste), mouthfuls (or portions), health, courses and pieces of hair. So far there's been one or two hairs on her lunch tray, but not much else.

One of the first lunches she reviewed included a dried-out rectangular piece of pizza, a fried mozzarella stick, some corn droppings and a mini muffin. Another tray featured a slim, grayish burger, two fried cheese sticks, an ice pop and three thin cucumber slices. Overall, Martha gives the soups at her school high marks, particularly the carrot and coriander recipe. "The soup was brilliant," she raved. Then, on May 14, a day of sausages, vegetable soup ("it tasted mainly of carrot") and roasted potatoes ("a bit small") the inevitable happened. Nestled under three cucumber slices was a single strand of hair. Martha doesn't speculate where it came from, but there's a fair chance it wasn't from her own head. Generously, she gave that meal a "food-o-meter" rating of 8, despite the small portion and the unappetizing surprise.

"The good thing about this blog is Dad understands why I am hungry when I get home," writes Martha.

Dad did more than sympathize; he got the attention of Food Revolution general, Jamie Oliver, via Twitter. After Oliver tweeted the blog to his followers describing it as "shocking but inspirational," Martha's page views reached nearly half a million. (As of Monday, NeverSeconds is closing in on 700,000 page views and counting.)

In less than two weeks since launching the site, her school seems to be instituting healthy reforms, thanks to Martha, Dave, and some pressure from local media. By Thursday of last week, Martha blogged good news: "It's official that we are allowed unlimited salads, fruit and bread! I'm really happy that all of my friends can help themselves to good stuff."

Now Martha is asking students reading her blog to submit their own school lunch photos and ratings.

As much impact as policy makers and advocates, like the first lady, have had on improving school lunches, student voices have been largely absent from the debate. They are, after all, the ones eating the food.

Martha's blog makes a strong argument not only for improved nutrition, but tastier healthy options. Her most recent lunch, posted last Friday, got a 9 for taste and a 4 for health. That's in part because the veggie option didn't impress.

"One of the peas was black" she writes. "If you look closely it's the one in the middle." At least there wasn't any hair in her food.

Source

Elaine Turner giveaway

Win this beautiful Elaine Turner nude clutch, which is perfect for summer, here.

Bubble necklace (similar to J.Crew)

I've been gushing over the J.Crew bubble necklace (but not gushing over the $150 price tag!) Here is a replica that looks exactly like the original and a third of the price:

It comes in turquoise, yellow, coral, and black! 

And a reminder that I added new necklaces to my shop! Check it out here. 

37 things I learned at 37

I love articles like there where the author reflects on life and imparts their simple wisdom. I highlighted the ones that I think are important to keep in mind.

1. Where you come from shapes where you end up, one way or another.
2. Better living through chemistry is not only possible, but transformational.
3. Living the unexamined life sounds kind of restful sometimes, but who are we kidding.
4. Heartbreak is not fatal.
5. I am lucky that I escaped my bar years without becoming a drunk–or becoming dead.
6. We should all read more poetry.
7. I have the best mother and sister in the world.
8. In my head, I feel as young at 37 as I did at 17 ( except in some of my joints.) It is shocking to realize I’m not, and I mean truly, deeply shocking.
9. My anti-authoritarian streak might prevent me from ever being happy working for someone else.
10. I’m still sure I’m supposed to have kids, but I’m no longer sure I’ll be able to make it happen.
11. The sticky toffee pudding at Queen Vic on H Street is the best thing there is to eat in DC.
12. My idea of what a successful life looks like for me is much simpler than I ever imagined it would be…but simple doesn’t mean easy to attain.
13. I’m not an atheist.
14. Well- groomed eyebrows magically improve everything.
15. I should have pursued a truly, boldly creative life.
16. Never skimp on Ziplocs, trash bags, Kleenex, or toilet paper. The cheap versions suck.
17. Caring about how much other people like me has been the single most limiting factor in my life. I wish I knew how to stop.
18. Writers write. Me too.
19. Things are connected in irrational and inexplicable ways. There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
20. Emotional intelligence is the best kind of intelligence.
21. Finding someone to fall in love with is only one tiny part of the battle.
22. Prescription sunglasses are the bomb.
23. I should have taken much better care of my skin when I was younger. Now, putting my makeup on in direct sunlight ruins my day.
24. I need to increase my tolerance for discomfort from its current level, which is zero.
25. I really, really, really want to live abroad at some point.
26. Friendships last for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. Believing this lessens the pain of the ones that can’t go the distance.
27. Sex should often be funny.
28. Err on the side of kindness. You never know what’s going on in people’s lives.
29. I need to become, simultaneously, much more open and much more armored if things are going to go the way I need them to.
30. Hating my younger self for her poor choices is a waste of energy, but hard to stop because OMFG what a weak-willed, short-sighted idiot.
31. Always, always, always go to the funeral. There is no busy/awkward/they won’t notice excuse that is acceptable. Learning how to deal with grief is an essential part of being a grownup.
32. Grating nutmeg freshly each time really does make a huge difference.
33. Orgasms can cure headaches, insomnia, boredom, and sadness, especially if someone else is in the room with you.
34. Class warfare is a real thing and if you don’t think so, your staff definitely does.
35. Just sing if it makes you happy. F-ck the haters.
36. Actually, f-ck the haters in general. But not with your loins.
37. This is a marathon, not a sprint, so set a pace you can keep.

Source

New giveaway

You can win a Gretchen Scott dress of your choice here. There are ten winners!

Giveaway

New giveaway for a bride-to-be or for someone who knows a bride-to-be! You can even wear the accessories everyday.