Ten years ago a retired police officer Gwen Elliott founded her Gwen’s Girls mission to create a place that gives girls more than hope and a helping hand, but a future. This Saturday, May 19^th  a gala to celebrate and raise funds for the organization will ‘Put on the Ritz’ and light up the Frick Art & Historic Center.

Honorary Co-Chair and Designer Kiya Tomlin

Recently I have started turning Accidental Mama into a project that is more than just a blog. One of the things I want to do with the A.M. project is to highlight places like Gwen’s Girls that is helping young mothers as well as troubled girls.

Benefitting neighborhoods struggling with poverty, drugs, and violence, the organization has helped more than 1600 girls since its beginning. Their mission is to strengthen mothers and the community follows. It is a beautiful mantra that really resonates no matter your income level.

When working as an officer Gwen saw girls that were jobless, angry, and lacking life skills. Often these were the same girls getting in trouble again and again. She sought to stop the cycle and give them alternatives.

The progress is obvious. One hundred percent of the seniors graduate from high school, and fifty percent go on to post-secondary education. They also report that 94 percent did not enter in the juvenile justice system again.

Artistic hair creations by Brett James Salon

Not only do they teach the young moms to care for their children, they help young mothers learn a vocation. It is my pleasure to have been asked for a second year to help raise funds for their gala.

Like last year my good friend Tara Rieland has produced a Couture Fashion Show with local designers that include Nami Ogawa Holderman, Linda Lacek, Tori Mistick, Roberta Weissburg, Jenna-Anne Sabom, and the honorary co-chair Kiya Tomlin.

Designer Roberta Weissburg and her model for the 2011 gala

The theme is a sophisticated take on “Putting on the Ritz” in celebration of the 10^th Anniversary of Gwen’s Girls. They will auction off the dresses following the show. Last year many of the dresses were in bidding battles the garments were so unique and extraordinary.

The museums will be open for tours before the show and, of course, there are libations and delectable dishes. It’s another great gala on the circuit of charity events.

Designer Tori Mistick

However, more than just an event, this organization has really genuine roots in the community with two homes in Point Breeze for the girls. In addition they have a lot of programs and outreach that go beyond giving the girls shelter.

Gwen passed in 2007 but she planted a seed and it has touched a lot of people that are coming out to spread some love and support their way.

Even if you don’t get to make it to the event on May 19^th keep them in mind when you are considering annual charities.

Tickets for the May 19^th event are $150. Go to  www.gwensgirls.org/events  or contact Lonnie Silver 412-731-7670 ext. 44. 

PELL & CO.
The Pell & Co. collection combines our heritage as shirt-makers with our fashion-forward pursuit of the best ideas from the most talented people in the industry. Pell & Co. draws upon our roots as the Doncaster Collar and Shirt Company, and adds a modern twist: innovative partnerships.

Renowned designer Alexander Julian partnered with Doncaster on the launch of the Pell & Co. label for spring. Alex was a natural collaborator with his singular eye for color, his love of prints and on-of-a-kind washes, along with his insistence on superb tailoring. Pell & Co. takes on the essential and iconic tailored shirt and shirtdress and gives them a modern attitude and laidback-luxe feel through our choices of color, texture and silhouette.

Top-quality shirting for men and women is the centerpiece of the Pell & Co. collection. From fabric to silhouette to stitch-work, we attend to the little details that make a big difference in how our shirts look and feel. We’re serious about producing great shirts featuring surprising details that keep customers clamoring for more. And more is indeed in store with Pell & Co. Each collection also includes terrific shirtwaist dresses and specialty knits. We will look to have guest designers continue contribute their talents in collaboration with our outstanding design team led by Patricia Clyne.

Family
At Doncaster, we are family. Since 1931, Doncaster has been a family- owned, family operated company, led by descendants of our founders Millie and S.B. (Bobo) Tanner, It was Millie, in fact, who championed the idea of women selling to women – a very unusual concept at the time. Millie recognized the then-untapped potential of women. She saw entrepreneurship as a new way that women could contribute to the family while building confidence and an independent spirit.

Fashion
We love fashion. We love the fun, the energy and the excitement that comes from being in this whirlwind business. Great design inspires us. Fantastic fabrics make us want to press swatches into everyone’s hands. Seeing what’s new and making it relevant for our customers is a constant challenge, as well as a source of satisfaction and pride.

Innovation
Doncaster is the originator of social selling, and we’ve been collecting firsts since the day the company started.
•    First clothing company to offer direct-selling opportunities to women
•    First (and only) direct-selling clothing company to handle all back-office operations
•    First direct-selling clothing company to issue catalogs to customers
•    First direct-selling clothing company to offer an e-commerce site
•    First direct-selling company to sell in three seasons
•    First direct-selling clothing company to collaborate with leading
quest designers

For nearly a century Doncaster has played a small part in the dreams of many women; we want to be part of yours.

www.doncaster.com

Home is where your suitcase explodes and you scatter diapers, clean and dirty, along with various inconsequential plastic toys. This is what couch surfing with toddlers is like. Or better yet, what we have made it.

It’s Derby time and we have occupied my Granny’s old house. Granny and papa escaped to the farm years ago because the mini malls made them claustrophobic so they left their home in as a DIY bed and breakfast. However Fern Creek ain’t so populated, they don’t even have a STARBUCKS! Don’t these people need more caffeine than sweet tea?

I can’t believe that while standing in the heat waiting for the Pegasus Parade some guy asked me if I knew where he could find some sweet tea. He looked at me like he was going to have a mental break.

“Do you know where a guy can find some sweet tea? I just want some Sweet Tea!” he whimpered. Of course, I looked at him like this couldn’t be real. This man didn’t just whine at me looking for sweet tea! Then I thought  – Oh no! Did I look like I drink sweet tea! maybe I do standing with two toddlers and a baby waiting for a blow-up horse to waft by? Oh the shame!

Original Makers Cheese Social with Garden&Guns Magazine

Before that incident I attended the The 2012 Cancer Survivor Celebration, hosted by the Kentucky Cancer Program and the University of Louisville’s that precedes the Mint Julep Ball. I made a day of it by strapping my infant to my bosom and leaving my husband and mother with the toddlers to guard our viewing post. The guy from Glee and the girl from The O.C. were pointing fingers at me while I was breastfeeding my baby while taking photos of them. Ha! Star Jones even adjusted the strap of my camera when it hit him in the face. Hats off to my little Lazar. He was a stellar assistant.

I am always so tickled when I see celebrities come to Louisville. Derby is no longer an exclusive home spun party. It’s worldly now and it is the best opportunity for people to raise money for great causes.

Stayed tuned for my photos and interviews from this weekend’s fundraising events.

Farmington Plantation party

Saturday night we enjoyed the Skye Terrace at Churchill Downs’ Opening Night with a view of the hail storm. Thank goodness it stopped I needed to win a little. Reminder to self – taking toddlers to the track during boogie night at the tracks is only a sort of good idea. Lyra wanted to ride the horses, but mommy told her only the special little people can hold on to these extraordinary horses. It is fun creating explanations sometimes until she turns around and tell them to the funny old lady in a decorated bag hat.

Skye Terrace at Churchill Downs watching the track with the fam

“The horses are going to get hurt because the moon is throwing ice at them,” says Lyra.

Okay, time to go.

~ Sarah Lolley    Watch A.M. develop a new site at www.AccidentalMama.com/dev

Style Segment’s new stylist and trend blogger talks Project Style and Fashion with Jeannie Mai

A true expert of fashion and innovator of personal style, The outstanding Jeannie Mai provided us with simple details of her personal take on fashion and beauty that influences her style decisions daily. Though Jeannie makes a bold style statement, her philosophy of fashion is effortless, structured, and detailed.

Mai believes the best fashions stems from the education and knowledge of emerging  trends. A trend is always current, modest, and accepted in mostly any environment. Fashion trends its best when you understand which trend is specific and fits into the category of your lifestyle.

Jeannie Mai provided us with the trends she feels can work for just about anyone including herself while remaining chic, comfortable, and emboding confidence.

The list of current trends Jeannie Mai recommends are classic ones, such as wearing a mint green top which is cohesive to all skin tone hue, or wearing an eighties over the shoulder top that enhances all bust lines and body shapes, or a skinny jean which can be worn casually and formally.

By far the best tip receive by Jeannie was the her signature style statement  ” Swagger” which to Mai defines a well rounded and fashionable personality. Someone who wears their personality on their sleves and takes carefree risk while remaining stylish with wardrobing. This fashion star believes before leaving home simply ask yourself, ” How do I Look”, and If your answer is POSH you will have the complete confidence and swagger to carry out your day and looking your best.

Stylist and Trend Blogger for StyleSegment-

Donovan Wilburn

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Carbon Made.

In honor of my anniversary today, here is my story:

It was the spring of 2008 and I was six months pregnant. Patrick and I had gotten engaged on a mountain side in Romanian after introducing me to his parents. Most people would step back and take some time to embrace the life changes, but not me.

I was losing control of my body and the ring on my finger now symbolized the excitement and anxiety growing inside my guts quite literally. I always felt that I had no idea what a successful relationship felt like since my parents were unsuccessful.

Despite being unsuccessful with men my heart would conjure daydreams of the perfect wedding. Then my head always told me that that image was balderdash. Now I was pregnant and engaged to a fate that was so oblivious to me as to be beyond any preconceived notion I might have ever held about my future. This was indeed up there with impulsive and crazy, and yet it was completely normal.

Who ever said that morning sickness only lasts for the first trimester is full of bologna because my mornings lasted for eight months. I was exhausted and prone to body rashes; therefore, I didn’t have the pregnant glow either, unless you count my bright red, hive riddled face. It was as if I was a slug and a bratty kid poured salt on me, and I began to disintegrate and get fat.

At this point, I wondered when the warm, fuzzy mommy feelings were going to start because most of the time I was about as cuddly as a shaved gorilla.

I was in my fifth month when the anxieties of getting married hit me like a psychotic episode. My due date of July 21^st was looming over me like Armageddon. I had no idea what the world would be like after the birth of my daughter. The prospect of having a new body and quite possibly a new vagina also weighed heavy in my discussions with Patrick. He began to whimper that he liked my va-jay the way it was and maybe I should have a C-section, you know, to make sure there were no complications.

As we lay in bed chatting about such ridiculous notions as the size of my post baby body, I was coming to realize that there would always be someone between us. Even when our daughter grew up, a part of our thoughts would always be with her. Parenthood was beginning to happen to me, happen to us.

The foreboding responsibilities of a financial commitment that stretched the lifetime of my daughter also began to surface. I might mention that I was deeply hormonal and nearly every week we spouted more tears of joy or rage. My state of mind was so delicate that I was half afraid I might do something stupid like leave him because he was friends with his ex-wife on Facebook. I needed to get married in a bad way. I needed something to make me feel safe and calm the storms that were fixed in my head.

My dad, a retired heart surgeon from Louisiana, had been hanging about a lot since news of my pregnancy. He started coming over solely for the purpose of expressing his desire that I become an honest woman and get married in a small plantation town called St. Francisville. He charmed us by telling us stories about how he was a prison doctor in nearby Angola Prison. It was a perfectly crazy idea.

Professing his love, it was earth moving I promise

I had thought that planning a wedding in three weeks would be as easy as a Vegas style wedding, but Louisiana-style with a voodoo minister instead of Elvis (chapels in New Orleans actually offer this service). The small backwoods town was full of large antebellum homes that were accustomed to big Southern weddings. I finally found one that wasn’t booked and was oddly called Desert Plantation.

The news of a Yank coming down to have a shotgun wedding became part of the town gossip after many days of begging many proprietors in frustrated tears to provide services on such short notice. The Reverend Jesse Means decided to come out of retirement to save the day and give me a proper wedding. He was a man that resembled Colonel Sanders and held many hats in the town.

As if I needed something else to cry about, every gown I found looked like a Halloween costume on my pregnant bosom. One of my very close friends was a wedding dress designer, Stephanie Keremes, who was accustom to high profile brides. I cried my eyes out in phone message after phone message.

“All right I will do it!” Stephanie said giving into my girlish frustrations. “Fashion is one thing I can do. No diapers or babysitting, but if you have a wardrobe problem you can count on me.”

To have a couture dress made for my emergency wedding was like having a security blanket to have for the biggest ceremony of your life. It was a soft silver silk with the slightest touch of blue. She wove in crystals in the fine twisting of the empire-waist bodice. I wouldn’t have a rockin’ band or tons of my closest friends at my wedding, but I could have the dress.

On a bright misty April day amongst weepy Spanish moss, I walked down the steps of a large white antebellum house with only two guests to witness our wedding tears. My dad and Patrick’s sister Olivia were the wedding party and our witnesses. I had written my vows the night before.

“I spent a lot of time regretting heartache, but on this day I wouldn’t change a thing,” I looked into his eyes and said. “Because all of my mistakes led me to you, the best and most blessed mistake of them all.”

After that day I finally got my pregnancy glow. I was falling in love with the father of my baby even though he ran around with holes in his underwear and wanted to home school our kids to avoid any negative American indoctrination of our child.

You might think that my story would turn less dramatic, but there are no breaks for the wicked. After my co-ed open bar baby shower at the Firehouse Lounge my water broke after I slumped down on the bed to rest.

“Oh snap!”

We drove to the hospital in a hot thunderous storm. I was leaking so much water I was frantic. I had never done this before and we hadn’t even completed our child care classes!

Poll dancing at my baby shower just a few hours from breaking my water

Although Patrick is an anesthesiologist he became worried as I started to shiver with pain and I still didn’t have an epidural. He discovered my monitor was hooked up wrong, my contractions were through the roof, and I was six centimeters dilated with still no delivery room. My father and Patrick began freaking out at the nurses like two doctors.

The next thing I remember is being wheeled into the delivery room with my legs spread to God staring up at big bright lights that resembled an alien invasion. Then a nurse burst into the room and demanded that the delivering doctor quickly come to another room. He instructed me to breathe through the contractions and left.

Mama & Lyra soon after birth

“Don’t do anything I will be right back,” Patrick said to me. “I need to get a different lens for my camera.”

“Don’t you leave me!” I screamed to no avail.

I laid there looking at the lights feeling the unforgivable urge to push. The only one in the room was the nurse holding my legs apart when the baby started pushing herself out. The nurse started freaking out and calling for a doctor. Guess who came out from behind the curtains – my dad.

“Glove me up,” he declared like a superhero. “I delivered 500 babies at Charity Hospital in New Orleans.”

If I could have fainted I would have. Thankfully, a team of doctors and nurses ran through the door and relieved my father of his heroism. In two pushes a little screaming human popped out of my vagina.

After the circus left our room and I could close my legs again, Patrick and I huddled around our daughter, who was just five and half pounds. We hadn’t agreed on much so far, but we had quite easily agreed on a name for our daughter – Lyra. The name is taken from the stars and has musical meaning in Romanian.

All because of you, my angel

It was exactly a year to the day that we met. On that stormy night Patrick and I held each other in that little hospital bed exhausted from a year of magical and dramatic beginnings. Little did we know that the real challenges of our accidental parenthood was about to begin- and it would clutter baby puke and diapers across America and Europe.

~ Sarah Lolley    www.AccidentalMama.com

Who is Jeannie Mai?

Fashionista, Foodiva, Wearapist, Believer in YOU-from her Twitter Profile. You may recognize her from her most recent style competition NBC’s Fashion Star. Now she is touring our country’s malls to compete in a live and local style competition! Here are the details for the Pittsburgh competition and check out more about Jeannie on her personal website!

Details for Competition:

All individuals ages 18+ are eligible to compete in a live style competition. To register, post a picture with personal fashion statement expression why the contestant would like to compete on The Mall at Robinson Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/shoprobinsonmall.

Four contestants will be selected as qualifiers and will be contacted and asked to report to The Mall at Robinson at 12:30 p.m. this weekend on Saturday, April 21 to receive $150 and one hour to shop and model a fresh, innovated style. Winner will receive a $500 gift card.

VIP MEET & GREET WITH JEANNIE MAI

The Mall at Robinson is offering Fashionistas the opportunity for a VIP meeting with Jeannie Mai, Correspondent for Fashion Star and Host of Style Network’s popular program “How Do I Look?” Students who attend on Saturday, April 21 at 1:00p.m. will be invited to meet and visit with Jeannie Mai and KDKA’s Christine Sorenson. A great opportunity to expand a professional network in the fashion industry.

ALSO IN THE GRAND COURT from 1 to 3 p.m.
* The Live Style Competition
*A Spring Fashion Show
*Meet Jeannie Mai
*Mini Mani and Makeover Studio
*Prizes and more

The Mall Robinson is located at 100 Robinson Centre Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15205.
Questions about the competition or VIP meet and greet with Jeannie Mai: 412-788-0816

Sweatpants. Everyone (or at least, almost everyone) owns a pair. I happen to adore lounging in mine from J. Crew on a quiet night here in the city. But unfortunately, I see a lot of “not-so-cute” sweatpants and lounge outfits out and about on the streets. It’s totally fine to wear your sweats outside, if they are cool. In fact, a lot of designers focus a large portion of their line on active wear, such as Alexander Wang. I’ve been seeing a lot of killer sweatpants and active wear outfits from Club Monaco, D&G, James Perse and so on. Looking to update your weekend wear? Check out some ideas i’ve posted below of acceptable and pretty awesome sweatpant and hoodie options. You’re bound to find something you like!

T by Alexander Wang Hoodie and Sweatpants

Kennedy Hoodie by Club Monaco

James Perse Heathered Fleece Sweatpants

RLX Ralph Lauren Beach Fleece Sweatpant

“The Rocky” Eco-Fleece zip hoodie by Alternative Apparel

xoxo,

Alexis

Alexis@StyleSegment.com

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Enough about you, it’s all about cute babies – cute couture babies.

Pitti Bimbo hosts a runway show for European children apparel designers in Florence, Italy every season and announces trends to watch. I am totally guilty of being obsessed with European culture. I married a Euro, I gave my children Euro names, and I have a collection of Euro’s in my coin collection. So it goes without saying that I pay attention to how the Euro kids dress.

This spring/summer season designers went white, which is what a lot of mommy’s designers also advertised. White on kids is cute, but COMPLETELY unrealistic. When I was boutique shopping one shop keeper told me she thought the white trend was great because you can just bleach everything. Eeeeek! I can’t handle the stuff.

Monnalisa

Gray is the next wonderful trend that I can’t get my daughter to wear. Gray is just not a fun color that screams like a three-year-old. Maybe you have to be born a melancholy poet to naturally want to wear it. I have a few creative gray sweaters I get Lyra to wear over her pink.

Miss Grant

Sweater vests on little boys melt my heart. God gave me boys to challenge my fashion sense. When I discovered I was having a second little boy my heart sank and my first thought was, ‘Crap, boys fashion is no fun.’ I love it when I can find stylish little pieces for my little men. So far my 22-month-old boy loves to wear mommy’s sparkly heels the best and when his sister is at pre-school he likes to stomp around in her hot pink Dora shoes.

Miss Grant

Some of the standout Pitti Bimbo designers for Spring/Summer 2012 for me included:

1)      Miss Grant channeled the cheeky English motif with fun takes on classic style.

Miss Grant

2)      Monnalisa rocked hats and that is just precious.

Monnalisa

3)      Miss Blumarine took sail with wispy coastal inspirations

Miss Bluemarine

4)      Barcarola inspired a collection fit for sun-soaked Rivera children

Barcarola

5)      Rubio Kids looked a little like they belonged on the Music Man, but in a Euro way.

Rubio Kids

Looking for a patriotic place to buy cute couture try www.chasing-fireflies.com. The direct mail catalogue Seattle-based company was recently purchased by HSN that also owns Garnet Hill, also one of my favorite places to discover new kids lines.

Here are some alternatives you can buy straight from this side of the planet.

Chasing Fireflies $88

Chasing Fireflies $74

Chasing Fireflies $58

Chasing Fireflies $68

Chasing Fireflies - linen vest $58

~ Sarah Lolley, see more fun stuff at www.AccidentalMama.com

Shoes. Not only are they fun fabulous and fashionable but they are a necessity. We all need to wear shoes every day in our lives and yes, even if you live at the beach (jealous!) you will need some sort of shoe at times. This season we’ve talked about how important color is… it’s been making appearances everywhere from jeans to accessories and now you will need shoes to go with these fab items. Now guys, I know what you are thinking and the answer is no, your shoes do not have to be all shades of the rainbow. However, they do need to be cool, and no one does cool quite like the Frye Company.

Founded in 1863 by John A. Frye, The Frye Company is the oldest continuously operated shoe company in the United States. Mr. Frye ran the business for nearly 50 years and after his death in 1911, his family continued to run the company until 1945.

That means for 150 years Frye has continued to make amazing shoes- pretty impressive, right? If that doesn’t convince your need to try out this brand then their craftsmanship and leather quality will.

With our steadfast commitment to quality and painstaking attention to detail, it takes more than 190 steps to make one pair Frye boots, and a similar set of processes to make our shoes and accessories.

We use the highest quality leathers, all tanned with natural oils, which distinguish our products. We have developed demanding standards for our materials and craftsmanship, and our experienced team of shoemakers and designers work diligently to ensure these standards are met in all the places we make our products.

Now that you are completely obsessed with the brand’s heritage, let me show you some of my favorite picks for this season:

The Hudson Chukka is Frye’s twist on the classic Chukka boot. Dressed up or down, this shoe will steal the show. I see it paired perfectly with slim fit jeans and a cool sweater, or even a pair of colored chinos!

This James Lug Wingtip shoe symbolizes everything that I love about style: Sleek and masterfully crafted. Wear this shoe to the office or to a lunch date…. or on a date with me.

More of a sneaker dude? No problem! The Greene Artisan Low combines comfort with cool. Try it in a cool color such as the one pictured above! And don’t be afraid to wear it with those red jeans in your closet- baller.

Ahhh, my favorite! This Otis Penny loafter will rock your world! And the color… shut up.

I hope some of the shoes above have tickled your fancy! These are just a few out of TONS of killer shoes the Frye Company has to offer. My latest obsession from them? My Jillian Oxfords. What do you think?

Enjoy your new kicks!

xoxo,

Alexis

Alexis@StyleSegment.com

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Guest Post by Susan Bodack for InStyleSwimwear on Trends for Swim 2012

Hottest Resort & Swimwear Trends for 2012

Swimwear season is upon us, ladies!  In addition to a little confidence, the key to looking hot at the beach this summer is to know what the hottest resort and swimwear trends are.  Whether you’re in the market for a new swimsuit, cover-up or both, this post will help get you in gear for a stylish summer of fun!

Color-Blocking

I’m sure you’ve been seeing it everywhere—bold and brilliantly placed blocks of color!  The color-blocking trend is HUGE in both the fashion and swimwear worlds and it’s a must-try trend this season!  Whether you’re into true color-block styles featuring bold contrasting color or more subtle styles with just a thin color-block strip, this swimwear trend is sporty, chic and perfect for the beach.

Fringe Fever

In addition to color-blocking, fringe is also one of the most popular trends for the 2012 swimwear and resort season.  If you’re looking for a new two-piece, try bandeau, triangle or halter tops embellished with fringe, all of which will help enhance the bustline.  If you’re not into bikinis, look for one-pieces with fringe-lined plunging necklines.  Finally, if a fringe swimsuit is a bit too much for you, ease into the trend by covering up with a poncho, tunic or dress with fringe detail.  Regardless, fringe will help you nail the beachy boho-chic look!

Animal Prints + Color

Finally, this season it’s “out with the old and in with the new.”  If you crave color and are a fan of animal prints (who isn’t!?) then this last swimwear trend is for you!  For the 2012 resort season, the hottest designers have been infusing bold pops of color into classic animal prints to create fresh and unique new styles.  Look out for python prints in blue-green color palettes, zebra prints with splashes of citrus and leopard prints with pops of pink!  Fashionable and oh-so fierce!

What 2012 swimwear and resort trend are you most excited for?  Get ready for a fun-filled summer with this season’s hottest styles!

Susan Bodack is a blogger at InStyleSwimwear.com, an online retailer specializing in chic designer swimwear, resortwear, sandals and accessories.  For additional trend reports and style tips, check out their swimwear blog, Beauty and the Beach!