CRAVE CRUSH the urban girl's blog to all that you CRAVE

Join Seattle’s Fashion Community to Benefit Forgotten Children

April 28, 2009 by Amanda | Comments (0)

Fashion Art Compassion Event (FACE) 2009 presents their second annual charity fashion event in conjunction with Barney’s New York to benefit Sunflower Children. Showcasing designer fashions for Spring/Summer 2009, it will also feature wine tasting hosted by Young’s Columbia, and both a silent and live auction with special emphasis on the art and fashion communities. 100 percent of the net proceeds from the event will benefit the Sunflower Children’s Foundation. Silent Auction items include: Genuine Buddy Scooter, Beauty Portrait Package, An ultimate wine lovers package 2 in Napa Valley, Private dining for 12 at French Bistro Crémant and many more (check it out here).

When: April, 30 2009 at 6:30pm- 10:30pm.
Where: Herban Feast at SoDo Park, 3200 1st Avenue South, Seattle, WA 98134.
Admission: includes hors d’oeuvres, wine tasting, live and silent auction and fashion show. To purchase tickets, visit www.faceseattle.com.

Interview with Shelley Miller of Hagensborg Chocolates

April 27, 2009 by Amanda | Comments (0)

Shelley Miller, chocolate princess and foundress of Hagensborg Chocolates recently shared some of her most delicious business secrets with us. Get your fix below.

What was the biggest surprise you have had as an entrepreneur?
I can’t say there has been one thing that has surprised me other than the fact that everyday there is always a new adventure to embrace and that’s what makes being an entrepreneur so fun. There is always great sense of accomplishment and satisfaction relying on oneself to get things done. I sometimes feel like MacGyver!

What have you done to make your business more profitable and your finances more stable?
I believe that how we look at the business structure to the products we are selling it pays to be original and that’s what keeps our products selling and our company stable.

What are three top things you invest your time and resources into to grow your business?
Always talking to new businesses and retailers to generate more sales, introduce exciting new products to always keep our product line fresh so retailers remain excited to sell our product, support our existing retailers through various marketing channels and talk to people like you!

What type of marketing efforts do you plan to increase over the next year and what things are you eliminating or decreasing investment in?
We are a small company that relies on viral marketing therefore if I tell you our tactics they won’t be so stealth, but one thing for certain is the continuation of our charity work.

Building a business can be both lonely and scary. Share some ways you stay motivated, encouraged or brave.
I know it sounds cliché but I really enjoy what I do and this enthusiasm filters down to my staff. I truly believe in our company mission and of course our wonderful chocolate keeps me motivated and smiling. I also love seeing the satisfaction and delight on peoples faces when they thoroughly enjoy our chocolates.

What advice do you wish someone gave you as you were getting started?
Start using wrinkle cream before you even think of becoming an entrepreneur. More seriously, follow your dream and work very hard but never lose sight of the bottom line. The business has to be sustainable and eventually profitable.

Share something you are excited about right now.
I am so proud of our newest product, our truffle “piglets.” They are the most adorable little chocolates we have ever produced.

Share a website, book or some other kind of resource you have found valuable in building your business.
The Emperors of Chocolate (of course) and Good to Great.

Currently CRAVING: Women Talk Back

April 27, 2009 by Amanda | Comments (3)

We asked some of our favorite women to tell us what they are CRAVING this second and received a ton of fascinating, relatable responses. Here are our favorite 75. We want to hear from you too! Please take a second to meditate on what you want out of life right now, and add to this list in the comment section below.

1. Expressing myself creatively through entertaining, design, and fashion.
2. Freedom, wealth, love, travel, great food, books.
3. Peace, harmony, beautiful surrounding.
4. Being happy in the present.
5. Color, sunlight, stories, laughter, music, hugs.
6. Bliss. Contentment. Less worry. That being in the moment and of the moment rather then assessing everything.
7. Caramel
8. A day where I don’t have anything scheduled.
9. Unconditional love, a happy (functional) family, total prosperity, good health, peace of mind, a loving soulmate/spouse, children, blessed career as a NY Times best-selling international speaker/author.
10. Chocolate, sweet drinks, not diet. Really good food. Good friends, happy and healthy adult children, and contact with them. A husband who works around the house or in the yard.
11. Contentment with self
12. Stimulation: cultural, intelletual, physical (ie the feel of the ocean, a long bike ride, etc)
13. Advice about how to be a better person. I crave affection right now. recently divorced, being alone is hard. I crave laughter and the ability to let things go and forgive easier.
14. Freat color palettes
15. Chocolate! Peace of mind, energy and positive spirit. Having the ability to see the big picture, rather than just focusing on the difficulty at hand.
16. Joy & peace (from the inside out)
17. Genuine God-talk
18. Salt
19. To feel absolutely successful in all my life, body, business, relationships.
20. truly enjoying each precious moment of this life
21. stimulus
22. freedom from day-to-day household needs
23. romance
24. Deep, soul-stirring relationships. Adventures in exotic locales.
25. Peace: of mind and body and soul.
26. Orderliness, less clutter. A really beautiful home office.
27. Passion
28. joy.
29. INNER PEACE
30. patience!
31. Knowledge
32. stillness in motion golden silence energy concentration and flow beauty aesthetic practical design presence of trees
33. More beauty in my life, beauty around me in nature, in possessions, in my own art I create. Visual, tactile and scented beauty.
34. Focus
35. pizza. being in nature
36. Dark chocolate at all times, every single moment of the day. Besides that, happiness.
37. spirituality, authenticity, happiness, success, inspiration and french fries
38. authenticity
39. comfort, freedom, feeling good
40. I have an abundance of what I’ve always sought: Love, connectedness, learning.
41. traveling and digging into other people’s cultures and daily lives/routines
42. Great love, lots of fun, great food, great wine!
43. Art in all forms. I love to look at photography and paintings, watch ballets and Broadway shows, and reading new books. I crave learning new forms of art such as sewing and foreign languages.
44. patience and contentment
45. cleanliness, comfort, swimming, and egg rolls
46. Professional accomplishment; personal fulfillment. My iPhone.
47. Health, love, affection, chocolate, to be ok.
48. A creative outlet. I am stifled in a corporate environment doing something that I do well, but no longer really enjoy.
49. I crave opportunities to change women’s lives by helping them to achieve body literacy.
50. equanimity. being grounded. encounters with different cultures
51. Love, respect, emotional closeness.
52. joy, my husband
53. Deeper personal long-term connections AND more high-quality alone time.
54. peace of mind. I’d love to love my work and be in sync with my partner – to be able to communicate and be heard. equality – not just between men and women at work but respect for artistic endeavors in the same way that people respect science and technological advances… (it’s a big one)
55. Beauty,and pure simplicity!
56. Personal Branding
57. Success for my magazine. Safety and happiness for my children and husband.
58. Knowledge. Trite but true. I sometimes feel like a shark in that if I’m not “moving forward” I’ll die.
59. LOVE.
60. fresh air, good coffee, time with friends & family, unplanned weekends
61. a beloved life partner
62. quality time in beautiful scenery
63. Funny you should ask. I’m going through a whole career metamorphosis right now. I’ve always been the one to bend over backwards and fit my life around a job. Now (two kids later) I’m at the point where I want something that works into my life. I’m thinking about going freelance… so I guess the answer is FREEDOM. Freedom to do what I want, when I want and how I want, and to make good cabbage doing it!
64. love, kindness, true friendship and chocolate chip cookies
65. Happiness. Joy on a daily basis. Contentment with my job and my life. Laughing. Being myself. More time to be creative.
66. More time
67. Chocolate. Surfing
68. Fuller engagement with the world. To feel more valued, useful, productive. To love more broadly, find and use my compassion. To connect with more people on a basic level.
69. I have sooooo much and I am grateful
70. movement, dance
71. Travel
72. laughter, ease of living among frightened society, time with people i love
73. Beauty in everything, in people, fashion, movies, buildings, art, food…
74. Happiness
75. To be comfortable in my skin, as the French say.

Plan a Day of Boutiquing and Noshing in Austin’s SoCo Neighborhood

April 24, 2009 by Amanda | Comments (2)

Entrepreness, stylish Austin resident, and hot tipper Kerry Rupp of Holiday Golightly gave us the lowdown on how to spend a perfect girlfriend getaway day in her beloved city.

Guide to the SoCo ‘hood via Small Planet
It may be hard for visitors to Austin’s vibrant, creative and hip neighborhood known as SoCo to believe, but just a few years ago South Congress Avenue was a little seedy, a place where businesses had slumped and a couple of motels rented rooms by the hour. The days of headlines about naughty state legislators out on the town caught up in police sweeps are long gone. Now those restored South Congress motels are likely to be renting rooms to high tech execs and movie stars.

1. Start out your day at Ann Kelso Salon and CitySpa (1400 S Congress Ave)
We recommend the 4-hour Persephone-Rebirth package which includes a Lymphatic Drainage Massage, a Rebalancing Paprika Facial, Custom Blend Pedicure and White Flower Scalp Treatment and Blow Dry. Heaven!

2. For a casual lunch, try Enoteca (1610 S Congress Ave)
You’ll find bona fide antipasti and salads, wood-fired pizzas, pastas from light to robust, amazing entrees, self-indulgent desserts and pastries, and a nice assortment of wines and cocktails.

3. Time for some cardio! Go boutiquing at:

Maya Star (1508 S Congress Ave) for fabulous baubles and flirty frocks.

Y&I (1113 S Congress Ave) for adorable, affordable finds.

Hovercraft (1115 S Congress Ave) stocks quality, hip, and timeless wares.

Parts & Labour (1604 S Congress Ave) has something for everyone—boys, babies and you!

4. Phew… Nosh time? Luckily Uchi is nearby (801 S Lamar Blvd).
Fresh is this sushi restaurant’s middle name. They maintain close relationships with local farmers and fly in seafood every day from the Tsukiji market in Tokyo. The essence of Japanese cuisine is the ingredients; at Uchi they prepare their dishes using innovative food combinations for one of the most unique dining experiences in Austin.

5. Final indulgence… dessert (s’mores!!) and eye candy (sculpture) at La Dee Dah (1311 S 1st St) in the Austin Trailer Park Eatery.

Reaching Baby Boomers with Social Networks

April 24, 2009 by Jessica P. | Comments (0)

This article by Katie Johnson, blogger and owner of Fusion Marketing and Consulting, is a informative, relevant, quick read.

Baby Boomers are becoming the largest growing demographic on social media sites. But many people are asking: Which sites are they apart of? What roles are they taking on these sites?

According to a post on Read Write Web about the report:

The one thing that Boomers are less likely to do in the online world is actually create content—outside of updating their online profiles and leaving blog comments, that is. Boomers are still not involved heavily in writing blog articles or creating videos and posting them online.

The best bets for getting Boomers interested in your content is to create blogs or videos that relate to the life or work-style of Boomers, Forrester suggests. And if you’re looking for feedback and contributions from the Boomers themselves—like comments or criticisms—make that process dead simple. Don’t introduce overly complex sign up forms or processes. Instead, encourage low-effort contributions such as star ratings.

I would agree with most of this post regarding Boomers and how they want to give and take information. I believe this will change at a very rapid pace. It is possible in 6 months a great deal of Boomers will have blogs they update regularly.

In my experience, most Boomers are starting with a Facebook page to connect with old friends and classmates. It is at that point they will reach out to LinkedIn and start connecting with colleagues.

Who’s Got Your Back?

April 23, 2009 by Amanda | Comments (0)

I can’t wait to read Who’s Got Your Back, the latest book from one of my favorite gurus, Keith Ferrazzi!

Watch a video about the book below, or click here to see it on Keith’s website.

Tricks for Eating Well and Staying Healthy in the Office

April 20, 2009 by Amanda | Comments (0)

Confused by what to eat during the day? Do you start your day right and by 4pm find yourself elbow deep in the candy drawer? With these eight simple steps from Jamie G. Dougherty, owner and foundress of JAMIE|LIVING Health and Lifestyle Counseling, you are guaranteed reduced sugar pangs and increased energy for a more productive and enjoyable workday. Jamie helps women around the country discover what foods work best for them and how to love every bite of it!

1. Reduce or eliminate caffeine. Caffeine concerns include dehydration, blood sugar fluctuation, and mood swings.

2. Drink water. Most Americans are chronically dehydrated. Before you go to sugar or caffeine, have a glass of water and wait a few minutes to see what happens.

3. Eat dark leafy green vegetables. Green is associated with spring, the time of renewal and refreshing, vital energy. Greens are full of vitamins and nutrients and great for improving circulation, purifying the blood and strengthening the immune system. Broccoli, collards, bok choy, kale, mustard greens, broccoli rabe, arugula and dandelion greens are some of the many to choose from. Make a double batch at dinner for a quick lunch the next day.

4. Increase your sweet vegetables. Try eating a sweet vegetable to curb your sugar craving. Yams, sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips and beets are all delicious options and loaded with the sweetness, vitamins and minerals our body desires. Roast a bunch in advance to avoid a sugar emergency!

5. Move it or Lose it. Get outside during your day at least once. Walk around the block, eat lunch out doors, or simply step outside and take a few deep fresh breaths. When we take a moment to get out of the “office zone” we are actually more focused and productive when we return to our desks.

6. CHEW. Try to chew your food 10-15 times each bite. Chewing our food gives our body a chance to digest and recognize what is coming its way. Chewing also gives us time to savor our food, which creates satiety and keeps us away from afternoon snacking.

7. Get more sleep, rest and relaxation. I know you know this, but rarely do we actually do it! When you are tired or stressed, your body craves energy and will send you signals (cravings, mood swings, lethargy) until you give it what it really needs. Try to get at least 7 hours of sleep per night and see how you feel.

8. Create a drama-free you. Coworkers and clients can affect your work experience. This does not make them good or bad, however it’s important to notice who drains you and why. See if you can transform those relationships by effective communicating and setting strong boundaries.

Twitter Tornado: April Coffee Chat Recap

April 20, 2009 by Jessica P. | Comments (0)

Many of our Coffee Chat sessions thus far, despite their intended subject, have turned turned into conversations about Twitter. We figured it was high time to bring in experts Danielle Morrill (Director of Marketing at Twilio, and Editor in Chief at Seattle 2.0) and Thu-An Bui (of An Consulting), to demystify the Twitter phenomena for non-users, and to elaborate on features and functions for those with tweeting experience.

WHAT is it, exactly?
Twitter is a free social networking and micro-blogging service that enables its users to send and read other users’ updates which are called tweets. Tweets are text-based posts of up to 140 characters in
length which are displayed on the user’s profile page and delivered to other users who have subscribed to them (known as followers). Senders can restrict delivery to those in their circle of friends or, by
default, allow anybody to access them. Users can send and receive tweets via the Twitter website, Short Message Service (SMS aka text messaging) or external applications.

WHY Twitter?
• People are online, talking about you and your business! Twitter helps you to find, measure, and participate in these conversations.
• Twitter encourages one-to-MANY communication as opposed to one-to-one.

TIPS
• Think carefully about how you brand yourself and be transparent. Once something goes live on Twitter it ends up on Google within five minutes. It is extremely powerful, and extremely public.
• Keep business and personal accounts separate. Use a Twitter tool like Tweetdeck, or Twhirl to help manage them.
• Scratch each others’ backs! Follow other users intently, and they will follow you. The more followers you have, the greater the influence of your tweets.
• Twitter messages may be tagged using hashtags, a word or phrase prefixed with a #, such as #shoes. This enables tweets on a specific subject to be found by simply searching for their common hashtag,
provided that the user has tagged his or her tweet. Meanwhile, the @ sign before a username, such as @example, is used to distinguish a reply directed at that user.
• Publicize and promote your Twitter account whenever you get the chance to. Put a link leading towards your account on all of your other social media profiles, email signatures, and even your business
cards.

Twitter TOOLS
• Tweetscan is a search engine for Twitter that allows you to see what people are tweeting about you.
• Tweetstats allows you to graph your Twitter stats including tweets per hour, tweets per month, Tweet timeline and reply statistics. The free site allows its users to view everyone’s analytics, not just your
own.
• HootSuite enables you to manage multiple Twitter profiles, pre-schedule tweets, and measure your success.

Any Twitter success stories out there?

Wedding Wonders: Photography (Part 2 of 3)

April 15, 2009 by Jessica P. | Comments (1)

When it comes to your wedding, the difference is in the details. This three-part series will explores wedding photography, bridal hair and make-up, and catering services. Check out part one of this series: Hair and Makeup.

Kasia Stromecki and Anna Kathleen Spong are uber-talented, Vancouver-based entreprenesses who started the fabulous company gucio photography. They recently sat down to dish CRAVE-style, about their business and brides.

What was the inspiration behind starting your business?
Having worked together on various art projects throughout college, it was just a natural progression to extend our collaboration to more commercial photography work as well. We were approached by a few friends from art school who were looking for “non-wedding” wedding photography, and ended up shooting a handful of weddings and loving it. We also really quickly realized that there were tons of really creative, art-loving couples out there who were looking for an alternative to traditional wedding coverage… and gucio photography was born.

Describe your style and approach to wedding photography.
Fun! This is key. First and foremost we are there to document the day, but we strive to do it in a way that really reflects the style of the couple that we’re working with. We’re always looking to mix things up and bringing in references to art and fashion imagery, and combining it with beautiful portraiture. With every commission, we’re working to create images that make us and our couples with giddy with excitement.

What is the standard cost of a wedding photography package in BC and what does it entail?
The amount of coverage that couples need really varies depending on the type of event they’re planning, for the most part though, couples are looking to to have images that start with the anticipation and getting ready prior to the ceremony, right through to the speeches and dancing. Our most-booked package, The Audrey (they’re all named after Shakespearian heroines) includes 8 hours of coverage, a warm up engagement session, a credit towards a album of their choice, the digitally enhanced high resolution files on disk, as well as online slideshow and gallery of their wedding. It retails for $3200 CDN.

Do you work internationally? What are your rates for US and destination wedding photography?
Starting in 2010 we will be accepting international engagements. Please contact us directly for a custom quote.

What is your favorite place to go with your girlfriends?
Anywhere with great music (we just saw Glasvegas at the Commodore and they blew us away), gorgeous shoes (love Gravity Pope!), and good food (Finch’s tea house in Gastown and Wild Rice restaurant, which is way too conveniently located downstairs from our studio, are both current faves).

Words of Wisdom From Our Gurus

April 15, 2009 by Amanda | Comments (0)

Enjoy a brief selection of inspiring words from some of our fav women to help get you through the rest of the week!

Inez Gray, foundress of Habitude

“Take time to nurture yourself. Then you’ll be better able to care for those you love.”
Tip #1: Book out six, full day retreats in the next six months.
Tip #2: Notice what makes you relaxed and joyful, and what makes you uptight. Example—a clean or dirty house. The truth might surprise you!
Tip #3: Commit to one or more of these each week: bath, book, candles and chocolates.

Rebecca Luke, foundress of Sustainable Style Foundation
“Each of us has the power to effect global and social change by the simple choices we make every day. It is indeed possible to live well, do good and look fabulous.”
Tip #1: Start by making simple sustainable choices. No need to get bogged down by the heavy stuff. Make it fun.
Tip #2: Educate yourself. Knowledge is power! Ask questions and start a “Change Reaction.”
Tip #3: Create change by being a positive example to others.

Anne Phyfe Palmer, foundress of 8 Limbs Yoga
“When we take care of ourselves, we are inherently more able to support our partners, friends, family, employees, and others. Take ten minutes a day to center yourself, every day.
Tip #1: Breath deeply, consciously, and gratefully.
Tip #2: Drink a liter of filtered water (glug, glug) first thing every morning.
Tip #3: Stop using disposable plastic water bottles.

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