Vote for Dare to Design Finalists 2011

It's that time of year. Vote for your favorite in the Shabby Apple Dare to Design Challenge. This year there are fifteen finalists, 13 dresses & two skirts. Visit the SA Apple a Day blog & choose.

A little tip: GG's editor found it helpful to visit every link to see the patterns & supplementary drawings. You might not fancy the fabric or the colors & embellishments used on a dress or skirt but will like the pattern.

Voting is open until September 11th; the winner will be announced on September 15. Good luck to the finalists!

ciao-meow/GGCM

(Suzy Parker in Givenchy by John Rawlings/Vogue, 1953. Available at The Condé Nast Store)

Shabby Apple Dare to Design Finalists - Vote Now

GG wants YOU to vote for your favorite Shabby Apple's Dare to Design finalist dress. There is a technical error that zee blogeuse at Apple a Day is working to resolve, but you can vote in the comments for now. Voting ends 15 November 2010. Vote only once. (This photograph is on many sites. This particular version is from audrey hepburn complex via daily bits of beauty)

ciao-meow/GG's hairdresser (she doesn't need a dress, remember?)

Daring to Design - Week's End

You don't have to be designer, nope. Visit Shabby Apple's website & learn all about it. GG's editor loves Shabby Apple & thinks that you ought to consider some creative activity this weekend. The contest opened on August 15 & closes October 15. It's really, really not too late. You can find out more on their blog An Apple a Day.

As loyal readers know, Giulia does not need a dress--she has the perfect outfit every single day. She's incredibly chic. It's also very chic to have good manners & care about others. That's why we are pleased by the following from Shabby Apple Dresses website:

We at Shabby Apple Dresses love to help women dress but are also commited to helping women live as well. Thus we are supporting the fight against global poverty by partnering with Unitus-a non-profit organization that accelerates access to life-changing financial services for those at the bottom of the economic pyramid. Shabby Apple donates 5% of its net sales to support work in India (where Shabby Apple Dresses has sourced many of its dresses and the textiles used to manufacture its dresses). In addition, each Shabby Apple Dresses customer has the opportunity to donate an extra five dollars to Unitus every time she buys a dress. Shabby Apple Dresses and Unitus are involved with 10 of India's most promising microfinance organizations that provide financial services to more than 1.6 million hard-working women and their families.

Every $100 donation from Shabby Apple Dresses provides at least 20 women with access to financial services - and the chance to live a life without poverty.

Each new Shabby Apple Dresses dress features a unique hang tag with a micro-credit success story.

Now, isn't that fabulous? Go forth & design!

ciao-chic-meow/GG Central

(Christina Hendricks of Mad Men via AMC; Shabby Apple dresses collage)