Soooooo it’s NO surprise that I. Love. Fashion.

Pretttttty positive that Betsey Johnson is my style soulmate.

Even still, I LOVE shopping for clothes anywhere and everywhere, especially online.  That ensures people nearby are less likely to have the same thing as me, which basically makes me feel special inside.  I love being able to score a killer piece and incorporate it with things I already own to create lots of different outfits depending on my mood.

When Shabby Apple contacted me about doing a review + giveaway, the fashion lover inside of me couldn’t say no!  Shabby Apple is a women-owned and operated business that focuses on creating beautiful, flattering pieces of clothing for women that’s artful in design and has a fun, vintage flare.  It is terribly easy to get lost in love with their incredible variety of Vintage Clothing!

Instantly, I fell in love with Shabby Apple’s Lighthouse Dress.  Once you take a peek, you’ll see why:

photo credit from HERE 

The Lighthouse Dress is made of 100% cotton voile which makes it perfectly lightweight and breezy for summertime. It features a white overlay with a buttery yellow slip underneath for a nice, cute pop of color. I was wary the slight yellow color wouldn’t do any favors for my milky white skin tone, but it actually looked really cute!  I think it’d look especially adorable on super tan girls, too!

What I love about this dress, besides the fact that it’s a perfect dress to toss on for hot summer days, is its nautical flair. The white sailor lapels have a pretty pintucked detail with the convenient no-cleavage slip guard in the middle.  And the detachable bow belt is TO DIE FOR!  So insanely cute, and adds that extra little bit of sweetness to this adorable nautical summer dress!

Of course, I can’t get a dress without channeling my inner Rachel Zoe and styling the heck out of it.  So I came up with three different ways to wear the Lighthouse Dress.

Hey, Sailor! If you know me, you know I am kinda sorta obsessed with sailor-y clothes and anything remotely nautical.  After falling in love with the subtle sea-inspiration of the dress, I went for it full force!  By draping a white or cream colored cardigan over the shoulders, it lends a yacht-club feel to the outfit.  Also echoing the sailor feel are the white boat shoes with gold hardware.  Finish off the look with some anchor jewelry (I love my jeweled anchor pendant!) or if you don’t have anchors on you, try pairing chunky gold jewelry with the outfit to help bring out the yellow undertones.  Conversely, red or blue jewelry would look adorable, too!

With hot summer barbeques lined up, you’ll need an outfit that’s both all-American AND all-adorable I dressed up this classic sundress with some costume-y black-and-white oxford flats and some pearl jewelry.  Nothing screams ‘girlie’ more!  For this look, it’s all about the little dainty details to emphasize the femininity of the dress.  Pearls, small diamonds, and pastels all help bring out that prettiness.  If you don’t have wing-tip or oxford shoes, pretty lace flats or even white or black Keds would look cute, too!

And ooookay, let’s be real here.  I own an alarming amount of spiked and studded clothing and accessories. Seriously, my room could probably double as a fashionable torture chamber or something.  I KNEW I had to punk up the sweetness by using some of those darker, edgier elements.  I immediately knew to pair this dainty dress with black chunky-heeled booties which makes the outfit look trendier.  Bring in more pops of black with a black and silver studded choker, studded black and silver bracelets, and fun rings (it’s hard to tell in the picture, but the ring on my finger is a hot pink skull & crossbones–so perfectly Rebellious!).  For this look, I replaced the pretty bow belt with a chunky leopard belt.  The leopard is a fun pop of color and texture and kind of breaks up the sweetness of the dress as a whole.  If it were cooler out, you bet your bottom dollar I’d be adding a leather jacket to complete the look!!

So whether you’re feeling punky, pretty, all-American-cutie or boho chic, Shabby Apple will definitely have something to catch your fancy! To enter to win $50 credit to their store, just enter below!  A lucky winner will be selected on 5/24/13 and will be notified via email.  In the meantime, be sure to check out Shabby Apple’s impressive collection of Vintage Clothing to stalk before you shop!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks for entering!  Have a fashionable weekend!!

xo, Hayley

Shabby Apple provided me with product to review.  All opinions are 100% my own. 

I’m just going to come out and say what everybody’s thinking: Boobs are awesome.

So when something mean and nasty comes along to take away boobs’ magical powers, that nastiness needs to get its booty whipped, or preferably drop-kicked in the face.

Besides lung cancer, women in the United States are more likely to die of breast cancer than any other cancer. And the scariest thing? Breast cancer doesn’t have to run in your family for you to get it. All women are at risk for breast cancer.  And the two most common risk factors that increase your risk?  Being a woman, and growing older. Um, cancer?  Why you hatin’ on older boobies?

However, through early detection and improved treatments and research, more women than ever are surviving this awful cancer. In 2011, more than 2.6 MILLION people survived breast cancer in the US, likely by being diligent about getting mammograms, which detect early signs of cancer when it’s most treatable, or by maintaining a healthy weight, exercising frequently, and avoiding excessive alcohol. (And also, helllooooo, we’ve lived with these boobs our entire lives.  We knoooow when something’s not right — and those people who spoke up to their doctors probably saved their own lives!)

So when beloved cookware brand Pampered Chef contacted me about participating in their Help Whip Cancer Campaign, I had to say yes.  Since starting the program in 2000, customers and Consultants have raised over $10.2 million dollars toward Help Whip Cancer! The funds raised through the Help Whip Cancer program are distributed to breast cancer education and early detection programs throughout the country.  And raising money is EASY through the progam: consider hosting a Fundraiser Show in May or October and up to 25% of show sales will be donated to the American Cancer Society. Or, purchase any of Pampered Chef’s Pink Products and Pampered Chef will donate $1 for each product you purchase.

In order to participate, Pampered Chef asked me to turn one of my favorite recipes PINK for the occasion.  Create an edible, adorable pinkalicious dessert?  No problem!  I took the basic premise for my Rainbow Truffles and tweaked the colors to different shades of pink to create a cool, almost pink-camouflage interior to these petite and pretty truffles!  A sweet treat that also kicks cancer’s butt?  Perfect

Pretty In Pink Truffles *adapted from my Rainbow Truffles (link above)

1 box white cake mix, plus ingredients on back of box
Wilton Gel Food Coloring in Rose
About 1/4 cup frosting (canned vanilla is fine!)
1 pkg. white chocolate almond bark (like Candiquik)
Sprinkles (I used rainbow heart sprinkles)

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line 1 muffin tin with 12 paper liners. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, prepare the cake mix according to package directions.  For easy measuring, I love using Pampered Chef’s Easy Read Measuring Cups. Once the batter has come together, separate it evenly among three smaller bowls. A large scraper works well for this! Using toothpicks, gradually tint each bowl of batter a different color of pink. Use a VERY light amount of pink for a soft, ballet-slipper color, then gradually add more coloring to each. I left the remaining batter in the original mixing bowl white.

3. Once your batter has been divided and tinted, fill 3 muffin cups 2/3 full with each color. Bake the cupcakes for approx. 13-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool completely. Once cooled, remove the wrappers.
4. Break apart the cupcakes into crumbs into four small separate bowls by color. Add about 1 Tablespoon of icing to each bowl and, using a spoon or your hands, blend the crumbs with the icing until combined. Meanwhile, have a foil-lined baking sheet ready.

5. Take a pinch of each color and stack them on top of each other in your hand. Gently roll the colored crumbs together to form a small ball in your hand. Place the balls on the cookie sheet and once finished, freeze for about 30 minutes or until firm.

6. Once firmed, prepare your chocolate bark. I microwaved mine in the large Silicone Prep Bowl because it’s microwave-safe and the perfect volume to dunk truffles; stir until smooth. Once smooth, tint the chocolate (if you’d like–I did a light pink) and begin dipping the truffles one at a time, allowing excess chocolate to drip off, until coated. Return to the cookie sheet and immediately sprinkle. Allow the chocolate to harden a couple minutes before serving.

I LOVEEEEE that the pink rainbow looks almost camouflage-y… these truffles prove that kicking butt is best done in pink

If you’re looking for more ways to help with Pampered Chef’s Help Whip Cancer program, visit them online for products and recipes, or to learn more info about the program and to watch the testimonial video.

Have a sparkly pink day!!

xo, Hayley

I have been selected by The Pampered Chef to be an ambassador for their Help Whip Cancer® program. While I have received product in exchange for my post, my opinions are my own, and I have not been paid to post positive comments.