cause for drinks... chicago... this wed!

ladies lotto chicago... september meeting

sleepin...

you sooze you loose. i'm totally not a label whore, just more of a vintage tramp. i slept on these oversized chanel earrings for $150. they would compliment my ears so well! until next time- spotted at fruition.

get registered to vote chicago!

Are You Ready For A Change?

My wonderful cousin Stephanie Morris, who is also the PR coordinator at MNJ PR asked me to spread the word about registering to vote Chi–Town…….!!!


Are You Ready For A Change?

With the cost of living on the rise, America sliding quickly into a recession, health care benefits decreasing and our overall quality of life being compromised and jeopardized every minute…. are you ready for a change??

Well all of us are capable of creating change this November by voting in probably one of the most important elections… EVER! Even in arguably, one of the most challenging times for Americans, there are still too many us out there that are not registered to vote and this is unacceptable. Sixth Ward Alderman Freddrenna Lyle has stepped up to help people get registered to vote. Her team will be at various locations on the City of Chicago’s Southside to help people, especially those between the ages for 18-24, get registered immediately.

You can find them at the CTA Red Line “L” stations at 69th, 79th, 87th and 95th as well as various intersections, Walgreen’s locations, Jewel Grocery Stores, Dominick’s and the 87th St. Shopping Center parking lot. For more information on these locations please see the contact information below.

Also, if you are already registered and would like to volunteer your time to help create change, there are opportunities available for you to help register people to vote.

For more information please contact Keith at Alderman Lyle’s office at 773-846-7006 or email VOTERDRIVE2008@HOTMAIL.COM.

Htdogwtr for Obama!

ATTENTION ALL OBAMA LOVERS! The election campaign has been BANANAS!!
So far both candidates are at each others throats during their campaign speeches and having mis-leading ads. But most of all, I have never seen in my 20 years of life political fashion wear so trendy!

Usually, it's the boring white t-shirts with the check mark next to the candidates name, or a big red slash, but now It's safe to say the politics wear has upgraded!!

Jefferey Lee has designed a special line of Barack Obama t-shirts for his clothing brand Htdogwtr. With every shirt sold 100% of the proceeds go towards the Obama campaign. Lee believes in Obama's promise to help small business owners.

You can find his merchandise at Giana Marie’s Foot Fetish located on the 1st floor of Four Seasons High Point Mall in Greensboro, NC or online www.htdogwtr.net or www.myspace.com/htdogwtr

Jefferey Lee, creator and owner has made a political statement with his clothing brand by having a line of Obama T-shirts

topshop us is here!!

ladies, the uk powerhouse topshop has landed in the states...online that is! time to get it in. i've already spotted a pair of must haves.

designers for google? (for all the fashionable techies)

everyone knows i am obsessed with google. LOL. well, it ain't so lame anymore...

google has proven to be the coolest interactive company out there and has teamed up with various designers and artists to create custom kinds for users' homepages. before you only had a few random options, like cityscapes and sweet dreams, but now you can add images created by diane von furstenberg, jimmy choo, dolce and gabbana, anna sui, stella mccartney, tory burch, gucci, and others to dress up your google homepage.

check them all out here. i'm having a hard time deciding... let me know which one you like!

IT TAKES TWO- ILL PARTY WEDNESDAYS & I'M YOUR HOST....

come out come out WEDNESDAY!! NEW YORK CITY!!





OPEN BAR AT MIDNIGHT!!

Ill Party Wednesdays**
@ the Delancey Bar!
168 delancey street
bet clinton and attorney
manhattan
10pm - whenever

Brown Skin Lady... How Do you Feel?

Do you identify with any of these images?

Hello Everyone!

Being a lover of makeup  and all things beautiful, the earth would be off kilter if I were to ignore the on going discussion about standards of beauty. As a lot of you may know, this issue is confronted on different levels pretty much on a daily basis -deliberate or not. It has been a desire of mine to play an important role in balancing the scales and leveling the playing field in regards to representation and diversity in the images of beauty. 

We all have our preferences and our own opinions about beauty, but how much of your opinion was formed through the limited exposure of diverse imagery in our society? How much of an influence does euro-centric standards of beauty have on your own standards? Do you feel as if the image of women - Black women in particular is portrayed in a positive light? What is beautiful to you? As stubborn and opinionated as I am, I can honestly say that there aren't any wrong answers. I would just like it for people to have an open  mind and love themselves. That would lead to wonderful infinite possibilities.

What I am getting at is that if everyone truly loved their own skin tone and facial features or better yet, if positive images of minorities were popular/main stream, the self-hate wouldn't trickle down as much to infect the masses the way that it has for eons. I'm not going to debate the straight hair thing, because, that is a touchy topic for some. The observation that is more universal is the blatant efforts to white wash beauty and to make other ethnicities invisible. I mean it's everywhere: hollywood, magazines, internet and personal care products. From the legacy of slavery to present day, it's pretty inescapable.  And to me, that is criminal. 

Black women seem to bare the brunt of this assault. If it's not music videos, movies (mammies, over sexed vixens, emasculated heroines and Angelina playing a bi-racial woman - wtf?!?!) ad campaigns etc. - it's the lack there of on pretty much every front. We often are objectified or ignored. Often times the negative images and/or the revering of euro-centric beauty creates a negative self-image. That negative self-image is then internalized and seeps into our everyday lives. This can lead to perpetuating and promoting the exact same negative images that were forced upon us.  The question is how do we battle this problem? How do we teach young Black girls that their own beauty is to be celebrated and honored?

My Black AND Beautiful friends, Sarina and Shelise

Black is beautiful to me. I absolutely love, love ALL shades of brown.  But I think that we all know that we don't get to see all of those shades represented in a positive manner in our society- especially in entertainment, consumer ads and media. We should ALL know that there are particular types of women of color that are promoted as the end-all, be-all standard of beauty. They are your usual suspects: Halle, Beyonce, Rhianna, Halle, Beyonce, halle, beyonce, ellah, ecnoyeb. There is no denying the beauty of these women, however, there also cannot be any denial of the beauty of the REST of the women throughout the Black Diaspora that may not fit that celebrated standard. Pushing this standard onto the masses only leads to  unrealistic desires and worst of all, self-hate. 

This being a life long issue for Black women, I was pleased to stumble across Proctor&Gamble's My Black is Beautiful campaign. Rather than repeatedly responding and accepting negative images of Black women derived from a racist past, Procter & Gamble's Director of Multicultural Marketing, Najoh Tita-Reid  decided to develop an initiative celebrating the personal and collective beauty of Black women - regardless of  their skin tone, shape or hair texture.

"History proves that when we gather together behind a common mission and take control of our future, we can change the world", Najoh explains. "My Black is Beautiful is a movement designed to ignite a national conversation by, for and about Black women to effect positive change in the way Black women are reflected in popular culture. My Black is Beautiful encourages African-american women to define and promote a beauty standard that is an authentic reflection of their spirit."

This initiative encourages women to go to myblackisbeautiful.com to download it's discussion guide in order to conduct conversations in small groups. The goal of this conversation group is to celebrate Black beauty and self-determination. It gets women to open up and share their feelings. It also provides women of different age groups the opportunity to network, deepen relationships, strengthen community ties and advocate on behalf of African-American women's health, education and economic empowerment.

The manifesto for the initiative goes like this:

Dialog is definitely important to tackle issues such as self-image and beauty. Let's keep it going.  Please share your thoughts.

nyc: the polaroid funeral

she's at it again!

See What the Republican National Convention Can Do to Your Face????

Cindy "Narnia Witch" McCain Then       

Cindy "N-Dub" McCain NOW - hahaha!

It's a vast improvement if you ask moi!

I'm just kidding!!! I had to find some childish way to lash out at the utter stupidity that was on television tonite. Sarah Palin - you're NEXT!!! 

Moisturizer is key!!!! LOL! Ya gotta use it, wear it - whatever. There are several options out there. I have tried several prestige brand moisturizers and "eh" is all i could come up with. I mean, for $35 to $Infinity USD, I was expecting to be transformed into HalleBeyonceNia Milian!!! But, no dice. So I went on the hunt for the ideal moisturizer: tone + texture evening, non-greasy, SPF, light-weight formula that provides radiance- even for oily skin types and 

C-H-E-A-P. However, I didn't find it in a department store - I discovered it at the drugstore. And I LOVE it!!

BEHOLD!! Aveeno Positively Radiant Daily Moisturizer SPF 30.

This unique moisturizer goes beyond moisturizing to provide patented technology -ACTIVE PHOTOBARRIER COMPLEX, for superior, long-lasting protection against the sun's harmful UVA and UVB rays. In addition, Aveeno Positively Radiant SPF 30 contains clinically proven Total Soy Complex to brighten and even skin tone, and natural light diffusers, like mica and silica, to reflect light to visibly smooth imperfections and immediately bring out skin's natural radiance. Now, skin is able to receive protection from both the sun and premature aging. Daily use leaves skin softer and smoother and looking healthier.

To my people of color: YES. We need SPF as well! UVA and UVB rays are serious. And... I don't know about you guys, but I don't want premature wrinkles i.e. laugh lines, crows feet, etc. I'll be damned before I end up looking like Narnia Witch McCain! Ha!!! 

I have been using this moisturizer daily for two years. It's looks great underneath foundation. 

Despite the darker dramatic trends that I previously posted, SKIN is still very much IN. It is very important that the skin is flawless and perfected (with moisturizers and/or concealers, foundations, powders). The "J.Lo Glow" is sooo 2001-2004 -BUT - try this underneath a natural matte textured foundation. It will give a subtle radiance without looking like a walking oil slick. 

chicago: fresh for 88'

solemates x swank society "fresh for 88'"

wednesday, september 3rd
subterranean
2011 w. north Ave
free before 10, $5 after
be there or be square...

introducing rockett mansion!

rockett mansion is for all of the ladies who strive to achieve a look that can only be described as "avant glam". melanie lyke (fellow howard u. alum)created this fabulous line out of her love for vintage and a minimalist lifestyle. rockett mansion mixes beautifully constructed vintage finds with everyday pieces to create a look at the dazzling and effortless.

you will not only look good rocking your rockett mansion pieces, but you'll also feel good about it because they donate 10% of all sales to local and international non-profits. who ever thought giving back could look so good?

check them out and add rockett mansion to your fall wardrobe!

In Dealer News...

Let Your Soooooul Gloooow, Baby!! :)

Me, left,wearing my natural hair using Miss Jessie's Products and my friend Sarina on the right - she uses it too! Oh so silky smooth!!! Ha! Wait, where the hell is my makeup in this pic?! 

Greetings!!

Anyone that knows me knows that I'm a peddler for Miss Jessie's Products. Now, I'm not a hairstylist - I'm a makeup gal. Every time I tell someone about what I use on my hair (Miss Jessie's and that just about IT!), I transform into this live-in-your-face infomercial for the entire line!! It's craaazy! So that is why I entitled this post "In Dealer News..." - because seriously, if I find a product that i love I turn into a dealer for the company. I know when and where to get it - for the low-low. LOL! I then convert EVERYONE that I speak with. Wow! The power of persuasion and a DAMN good product hand-in-hand. Awww!

Now ladies, do you have to struggle with your hair in it's natural state? 

Do you wish to snap you curls, waves or kinks into a uniform polished looked? 

Are you tired of your natural hair feeling like dry ass fuzzy wool? 

Are you sick of curl shrinkage? 

Well, let me introduce you to Titi and Miko Branch! They are the two mastermind sisters behind Miss Jessie's Products. Born to a Japanese mother and African- American father, Titi and Miko had a head full of hair that was multi textured. That left the sisters with very little options for hair care. Japanese salons were inexperienced with their hair type and Black salons just wanted to relax and tame their "unruly" tresses. The sisters' grandmother, Miss Jessie, used to formulate hair care  remedies for them in her very own kitchen. In adulthood, Titi and Miko opened up a salon of their own, which soon became the go-to place for natural and naturally curly hair attracting clients nationwide. 

In 2004 Miss Jessie's Products (named after their grandmother) were introduced consisting of styling cremes, moisturizers and deep conditioning treatments.  With the introduction of Curly Pudding, Curly Meringue, Curly Buttercreme, Baby Buttercreme and Rapid Recovery Treatment, Miss Jessie's soon garnered a cult following and continues to be a market innovator in the natural hair and curly hair segment. 

Here's the breakdown:

 *Curly Pudding (soft hold) and Curly Meringue (medium hold with volume) are to be applied to hair that has been thoroughly cleansed, conditioned and detangled. Hair can be dried naturally or by using an overhead dryer.

You do not have to wet your hair daily to see desired results. You can go 4 to 7 days in between washes.

To keep hair moisturized, *Curly Buttercreme, Baby Buttercreme or Silkening Creme can be used to tame frizziness and to fluff out curls. And these products truly "de-crunchify" your hair.

These products are great for puffs, double strand twists, rod sets, "slick-backs" (I made that term up) and for transitions. Visit missjessies.com for a full tutorial.

* not to be used all at once - choose ONE

Rapid Recovery Treatment is a buttery soft deep conditioner that instantly repairs your hair. 

Miss Jessie's also offers the newly added Creme De La Curl Shampoo (very creamy and non-sudsy) and Creme De La Creme Conditioner (rich non-watery consistency) in a special two-fer deal.

   I tried the S&C a couple of days ago and it seriously helps with frizz  control, detangling and curl definition - and I have a lotta hair!

I have tried several products on my hair and NEVER got the results I wanted until I stumbled upon this wonderful line. To all my au naturale hair girls out there - you DO NOT want to pass this up!! Try it!! (Yeah, I stole Vitamin Water's Formula 50 slogan - and WHAT?!?! lol)

 Visit missjessies.com for more details.

Shouts out to Lauren over at stereohyped.com for putting me ON! Thanks!

Hi, I'm Alana! And I'm in a Cult! :)

Hello All! My name is Alana Skye and I'm the new addition to the Fashionation team and makeup is my addiction. I am an artist for a very well known three letter trend setting makeup company ( sssshhh!!). I happen to love, love, love beauty products and long walks in the park. Just kidding!!

I'm constantly looking for that new "It" product and I pay close attention to budding makeup trends. I don't really follow rules. I feel like anyone can make any color work for them. I don't think  there are many wrong answers regarding makeup because after all, it is an art form  and FUN! However, there are definitely ways to perfectly execute a look. Down the line I will be uploading photo tutorials for certain makeup trends and color stories. But uh.. we'll cross that bridge when we get there, k? LOL

Feel free to ask me any questions regarding makeup - I'm an open book! In the mean time, let me get right down to business: MAC Cosmetics Cult of Cherry

I thought that it would be a minute before I would see strong, dramatic eyes paired with strong, dramatic lips again. Well, that moment has arrived just in time for the Fall 2008 Cult of Cherry collection. And I'm digging it hardcore. Seriously.  3 shadow palettes, 4 new lipstick shades, 5 new lipglass colors and all new mattenes!!! Yesss!!!! MAC describes this color story as "The new forbidden fruit. Deep, dark, dramatic. Lips ripened with juicy cerises and intoxicating kirsches while eyes smoulder in luscious spiced chocolate. With its sense of way-to-go dark, this is how we separate the bitter from the sweet..." Well damn! I'm ready!!! 

Now before you all go shaking your heads at this cherry and chocolate inspired collection, remember, ALL looks can be modified. So instead of doing your same ol' neutral gloss paired with a neutral eyeshadow palette, try mixing it up by doing a deeper lip color. Matte and gloss textures can be interchanged on the lips this season. Why not do both? Anyone can pull this off! Don't be shy! Drama is headed your way this Fall! Cult of Cherry is currently available at maccosmetics.com

 

Trace Mag, Black Girls Rule issue out today!

feat. Keri Hilson
(FYI she was, a swimmer
back in her day!) :)

Trace Mag.

strike a pose...

fatburger in the chi?????!!!!!!!!????

looks like mr. west was in my head... check out this article which announces that kanye west is bringing fatburger to the windy city!

anyone who knows me, knows i am ALL about a big fat turkey deal w/ skinny fries and a strawberry pop!!

chicago: bridging the gap...

have a coke and a smile...

roberto cavalli is designing the new coke light bottles. only 300,000 are being released, and you will have to hit italy to get em'...enjoy!