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"I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing...kissing a lot. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls."
Audrey Hepburn


Monday, July 15, 2013

Shabby Apple Giveaway Winner! PLUS Stuff I'm Loving Today

Drum Roll Please....

The winner of the 50.00 Shabby Apple Gift Certificate is....

PRIZE IS FORFEIT SINCE UNCLAIMED. UP FOR GRABS ON FACEBOOK.:) VISIT AND LIKE ME THERE.

Congratulations, Toots! Just send me an email at lisafreemontstreet@gmail.com and I'll arrange to get you your gift. Don't spend it all in one place! Oh wait...I guess you have to...;-)

So what am I loving today? Well there are a few things.

I'm loving my local CASH SAVER food store, where everything is sold at cost plus 10 percent. Yay savings!! Plus, the local one here in Midtown Memphis has an AMAZING beer department featuring obscure and wonderful brews from obscure and wonderful breweries all over the world...they host tastings and have fantastic prices too. Loving Memphis Right now...


Hmmm, what else...I am loving Les Paul and Mary Ford doing Am I Blue...which I heard for the first time today. Is there anything more heavenly than Mary Ford's voice? I adore her guts:



Today I drove through Memphis and enjoyed seeing the crape myrtlesin full bloom. They're so pretty, they just make me sick:

Other stuff to love:
Grilled Brussel Sprouts
Just pop them into an aluminum pouch (cut the sprouts in half if you like smaller pieces), add some olive oil and butter. Add Cajun seasoning. Grill to desired tenderness. Dang, that's good.

Sherlock. Benedict Cumberpatch is really dishy. And the show is so frickin' well done. We have watched all but the final episode...and we're saving it because I'll be sad when I'm done!


Rogue Chipotle Ale:
I love-a the beer. I like to try a couple of brews I've never tried before every week and this was the beer of the week for sure. Unbelievable how a beer can be so drinkable and still have an aftertaste of adobo sauce. Yurm.

Sydney-aka 'The Golden Girl of the West'. I wish I had as much style consciousness in my whole body that Sydney has in her itty bitty fingers. Can we just talk about this whole blessed ensemble for a minute?


And my current IG crush is Dear Miss Daisy, whose perfect 'every day' hair makes me kinda wanna shave my head:

Okay,that's enough for now...:)

Cheerio!
Ashley



Monday, July 8, 2013

It's a Shabby Apple Giveaway!!

As an homage to the arrival of summer, I am offering a Giveaway here on my blog! Recently, Shabby Apple contacted me about hosting one and honestly, I dropped the ball and procrastinated over the last few weeks. But it all works out, because now it's SUMMER and this is the BEST time to check out this unique store!

Shabby Apple offers a wide range of classic and retro styled fashions for women, as well as maternity and (adorable) baby options! I can personally vouch for the quality of the clothing, having owned one of their maternity dresses before, and I continue to be impressed with what they have to offer. The swimwear is always fanciful and unique, with a decidedly retro-modern feel. This collection of 1920's inspired suits has me reaching for the smelling salts!


Casual outfits in a variety of classically tailored separates are available, as are flirty and whimsical dresses that speak of the season in softly feminine tone:





And don't forget to check their formal options, suitable for weddings or any other stylish occasions coming up this season:



This is a great store for those of you who love mid-century style but don't want to invest in authentic reproduction. Also, it's a great choice of full-on vintage makes you feel awkward and you only want a few classic pieces for your wardrobe. See these and other vintage clothing inspired pieces by visiting Shabby Apple and choosing how you'd like to spend your gift!

The prize is one 50.00 gift certificate and the entry rules are easy. Just enter once in the comments below and look for your name in a post next Monday, where the winner will be announced. This is a blog-only giveaway so no entering on Facebook, Instagram, or Youtube. Just here. :) It is open worldwide so all of you can enter! Instructions explaining how to claim your prize will be in the winner announcement entry next Monday.

Happy Shopping!!
xoxo
Ashley







Friday, July 5, 2013

Best and Worst Years in Fashion

So I recently got a bit of a complaint that my blog is mostly Sponsor Salutes etc. This isnt intentional. I actually plan to post something non-sponsor or affiliate related every week and then I get super busy. So that's my excuse for that. But if you follow me on Facebook or Instagram, you know that I posted a collage of what I considered to be the best and worst years in fashion, as inspired by my funny friend Amy Jeanne. It was so fun to research, because I've always known my favorite aesthetic year for everything pretty much, from cars to clothes. But my LEAST favorite was more of a challenge.

Being super opinonated, I think there are actually quite a few years in fashion that are just horrid. Most of them are between 1975 and 1992. For instance, 1976 had this lovely ensemble to offer:



And 1991, ah the beauty of the brightly colored tapered leg pantsuit:


But I guess before we determine which year won out as the WORST year in fashion, we should first visit the BEST. Of course this is entirely subjective and no one will necessarily have the same answer. I've noticed on Facebook, when this question was raised, 1939 was a popular answer. The fashions of that year were bold and varied, a nice combination, but also they were flattering to the female curves. Amy Jeanne chose 1932 and indeed the 30's did seem to universally be popular. I have always been an enormous fan of New Look fashion, however, which made its appearance awkwardly in 1949 and really reached it's peak in 1956. I adore the fashion illustration of this era, probably because my grandfather specialized in it, but the lines and silhouettes are just my favorite on the female form. In 1956, even as the automobiles became more sleek and angular, so did the clothing.



The hips became very pronounced, in contrast with the narrowness of the waist; the bullet bra was utilized to add even more contrast. It was a modern and powerful look, but also starkly feminine:





Boxy jackets and hats further accentuated the angles of the new look, but the sleek pencil skirts still hugged the natural curves of the body, to lend some softness:




Full skirts were also still the rage, and again these were beautiful contrasted with the narrow waists and pointed appearance of the breasts. I'm a huge huge fan of the full skirt:



Also, colors and patterns of the late 50's were bolder and braver than they had been in the decade up to that point.



And don't even get me started on the swimwear. Swoon-diggety-swoon:



So 1956 is my pick for the best year,and my reasons for choosing it should be quite evident. :)

______________________________________________

Coming up with the WORST year, as I mentioned, was a bit more tricky. So many sordid years to choose from! But then I remembered the Urban Cowboy era, and those god awful bridesmaid dresses Deborah Winger's wedding party wore for her fancy Gilly's wedding. :) And I remembered countless early 80's episodes of the Gong Show and Pop Goes the Country, when fashion was definitely at a low point. The 'elegance' of evening attire included long dowdy 'Little House on the Prairie' dresses in varying insipid pastel shades and which covered the female form in its entirety:



Interestingly, as replete as television programming seemed to be with these dresses, they've all but vanished from the internet. I had a hard time finding a photo! Proof that no one is proud of these, evidently.

But that as it may be, never fear, 1981 also gave us gems like the polyester 'dress slacks' with an elastic waist...meant to be worn with blouse tucked in:


And our fellas were looking mighty snazzy too, in 1981:


Add to that the headbands and shoulder padded sweater dresses:


Plus the horrid swimwear that manages to even be unflattering on Christie Brinkley:


Yeah, I rest my case.

So that's my feelings on some of our more noteable declines and ascents in fashion. Let me know yours!

Til Next Time,
xoxo

Ashley