The Style of Manners

Every once in a while I find myself saying, "Wow, I can't believe how little attention some people pay to manners these days." Most of the times my bad manners murmurings come after reading something in the paper, checking out the celeb news on Yahoo!, or my husband sharing the latest "FAIL" tag story on Fark.

To give credit where credit is due, most of us know the standard, "Say please and thank you and treat others with respect." However, our ever busy, ever connected culture sometimes makes practicing good manners seem like a nuisance. 

Don't buy it, tell me when is the last time you sent a request via text and said "Please" or "Thank you" unless it was to frame a sarcastic request to an ex, as in "Please do not contact me again. Thanks."

That said,  I thought it fitting to share some resources to help us all reboot our manners buttons- I know I can use a reminder for time to time, so here goes:

How to Have Good Manners

How to Use Proper Etiquette

25 Manners Kids Should Know (adults should know these too!)


Do you have other resources to share? I would love to hear from you-please post your thoughts/suggestions below.

Remember: behaving properly and displaying good manners is always in style, so please have a great day...thanks.

Integrating Two Cool Industries-That's Stylish!

The good folks with Emerging Leaders (EL) at the Houston Downtown Alliance are up to it again-innovation that is!

EL is the oldest young professional organization in Houston and it recently re branded itself  and in addition to a hip new logo, EL has put a new spin on the happy hours that made it so popular over 10+ years ago.

EL has been working to take networking to new heights by fusing industries that would otherwise hang out in the same places to make for a unique happy hour experience.Tomorrow, August 14, the industries on deck are Arts and Science. Read: creatives fused with brainiacs.

Pretty cool, huh?! There will be free food, free valet and drink specials.

Join EL, the creatives and the brainacs and be one of the first to check out the  NEW J. Blacks in the Washington Corridor area. For more information about this event and to learn more about EL, visit:
 http://www.houstondowntownalliance.com/EL/

Courtesy of Houston Downtown Alliance

SWS Supports the Fairy Godmother Project of Houston

Here at Styling With Shavonnah (SWS) we think helping others is tres stylish. This week we are taking our philanthropic style Uptown (as in the Houston Galleria area)! SWS is partnering with Ellen Chang, Founder of the Fairy Godmother Project (FGP) of Houston to raise money for and awareness of the FGP of Houston and the great work it has done and is doing in the Houston community.

For those of you who do not know, the Fairy Godmother Project of Houston was founded in 2000 by Ellen Chang as a grass roots organization to help students in the Houston area who cannot afford to purchase a prom dress or tuxedo. Last year FGP of Houston provided over 1200 students in the Houston area with free prom, graduation and Homecoming dresses and tuxedos.

FGP of Houston is super-powered by its awesome volunteers who assist students during the annual shopping day by helping them select one prom dress and two other dresses for graduation or other special occasions. FGP of Houston volunteers act as "personal shoppers" and also help students choose jewelry, shoes, purses and cosmetics for their special events.

Tomorrow, Wednesday, August 8, SWS is co-sponsoring the FGP Volunteer Appreciation event at ARCODORO restaurant, located at 5000 Westheimer Rd, Suite 100. Please join us to learn more about the FGP of Houston and volunteer opportunities that are available for this upcoming school year.

In addition to collecting clothing and cash donations for the FGP of Houston, I will be showcasing my Stella & Dot jewelry and donating 20% of the proceeds from jewelry sales to the FGP of Houston.

Instead of spending an hour in traffic, come spend that hour with SWS+FGP of Houston doing something good. After all, doing good is always in style!

We look forward to seeing you at ARCODORO!

The Style of Authenticity

I am a follower of a popular blog called The Daily Love, which is written by Mastin Kipp. Recently something I read in the blog really got my wheels turning. This is what I read:

“Life is messy. We mess up. We have great moments. We have horrible moments. We have brilliant moments. The goal is to allow and admit them all. To be willing to look bad, silly or goofy. To not aim for perfection, but rather express ourselves as we are, strong, scared and in human form. “

I absolutely agree with Mastin’s assessment of life! In my opinion, the question his words beg is this, “If being oneself is the most natural thing one can do, why so do few people make authentic living their goal?”

Here at Styling with Shavonnah we are all about helping people style their lives so they can be their most authentic selves.  That said, it’s only fitting that we share our Top Three Reasons Why Being Authentically You is Cool:

1.       You are absolutely unique, so not being you robs the world of your gifts/talents.

2.       Only in being authentically you can you show up fully for life and receive all the blessings that are designed for only you.

3.       You have known you your whole life, so you are an expert.

Have other thoughts on authentic living? Feel free to share below.

Living life authentically is definitely in style!

Stella & Dot Takes Over A Salon

This weekend I hosted my first Stella & Dot trunk show in a salon and had a GREAT response! Turns out salons are a great place to host shows because salon customers plan to spend a few hours getting their services and they are in "I want to pamper myself mode," so they are more likely to pick up some fun jewels to match their new hairdo, manicure, etc.  Here are some fun pictures from the event.

Stella & Dot Display

Models

Salon Owner + Me, And Salon Owner + Sister

I am definitely looking forward to bringing Stella & Dot into more salons!

What does “Styling Your Life” Really Mean?

Here are Styling with Shavonnah we are all about giving you creative ideas to style your life in a manner that allows you to achieve your goals. Sounds lofty, huh? Actually that basically means we want to connect you with the things we find “stylish” things and give you a forum to share with us and the readership the things you find stylish. Quite simple!

To ensure we are on the same page as we start our journey, let’s clarify what we mean by “style your life.”

Dictionary.com defines style or life style  as the habits, attitudes, tastes, moral standards, economic level, etc that together constitute the mode of living of an individual or group. We define style as panache, flair, grace and overall smartness in living.

For the sake of argument (and because I like creating things) I am willing to marry together my laywoman’s definition with that of the good folks at Dicitionary.com and I have come up with this definition of style: the habits, attitudes, moral standards that combine to give the person bearing them a since of panache, flair and grace. It’s living life smartly.

That said what’s in style may or may not have anything to do with fashion. Which brings me to what I think will be stylish all of August, it’s a trend (don’t cringe), but it’s the good kind. It’s Houston Annual Restaurant Weeks (HRW) event!

Why am I telling you about HRW now and it’s not even August 1? I am glad you asked, I am telling you because HRW is such an amazing event that participating restaurants often have a waiting list, so if you want to participate it’s smart to make plans (and reservations) NOW!

The best part about HRW (here’s the grace in action) is that all the participating restaurants donate a portion of their proceeds to the Houston Food bank. Last year's donation commitments from participating restaurants totaled $800,000!  Visit www.houstonrestaurantweek.com to check out the participating restaurants and make reservations. Dining out for a discount all while helping your community is tres' stylish!

EXTRA! EXTRA! The Silver vs Gold Jewelry War has Officially Ended!

At a recent Stella & Dot trunk show I had a guest say to me, "I see you have on silver and gold necklaces together. I used to think that was a fashion faux pas, but it actually looks good together."

This comment made me wonder, "Do people really still  believe you can't wear silver and gold together? And if so, what does the world of fashion say about this in 2012?"

This week I embarked on a quest to find any information to support why someone would not combine silver and gold jewelry and guess what? I found nothing! In fact what I discovered is that there are multiple jewelry sites from the high-end (think David Yurman) to the more affordable- (think Stella & Dot) that feature fun, stylish pieces of jewelry in the once frowned upon combination of silver + gold.

Now, some of you may be reading this and thinking, "What's the big deal? Do people really care about this?" I would suggest that yes, people still care about the silver and gold jewelry issue. So much so that many a "bride-to-be"  has caused her beau much stress regarding what type of engagement ring to buy because she can't decide if she wants to be a "Silver or Gold" girl forever, and she wants to ensure her ring will "match" the jewelry she wears most often.  (Yes, this conversation is a real one and it happens more than many people care to admit...)

And here's the big deal: Since this "issue" is actually no longer a fashion faux pas, people everywhere can proudly throw on their baubles (engagement rings included) all together to create a stylish, chic look without a second thought!

Just think of all the fun combinations that are left to be discovered in your jewelry box-so dig in and mix and match your silver + gold jewelry to make a fashion statement that is uniquely you!

All hail the silver + gold combo!

Stella & Dot

David Yurman

David Yurman

Stella & Dot