Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Go Chic or Go Home - Your Virtual Closet!

Recently I found Audry of Putting Me Together on Pinterest and have really enjoyed following her blog. The first set of posts I read was her Building a Remixable Wardrobe series and I really enjoyed how she put everything in simple terms and basic rules. I especially enjoyed the post about Layering Pieces or "completer pieces" as she called them because I have realized lately that those are what can really take an outfit to the next level.
 But this post isn't about her, awesome as she is! It's about another website that she introduced her readers to: Go Chic or Go Home. I haven't had a ton of time to play around with it yet but there is one feature that I am truly excited about: the virtual closet feature! I have been wanting to have a digitized version of my closet for quite some time that I could use to keep me more organized. I knew that if I just took photos of my clothes and kept them on my computer that I would have to do a lot of work to really use them in the way I wanted to. GCOGH does the organizing for me. You start by taking photos of your clothes and then and then uploading them to the site. Then you label each piece by type and color and the site organizes them and you can drag and drop them to create outfits. You can save those outfits and access them/change them at any time. I plan to use this as a resource for trip planning as well as outfits that I want to feature on the blog. On the website you can also view outfits and clothes from other users and share/glean ideas with each other. There is also a section where you can get coupon codes for stores that you like. Here is an outfit I built and then wore recently to take my daughter to play at the mall.
T-shirt - Ross (maternity)
Gauchos - Wal-Mart
Shoes - Kohl's
Scarf - Wal-Mart

Click here to request an invitation to join the site!

Saturday, June 1, 2013

Fearless - Book Review

Here is another Blogging For Books review. For this round I decided to pick something entirely different for me. I really like to read books about things that I don't know anything about. I love learning about new subjects and the lives of Navy Seals is certainly ground that I've never covered!

Overview: This book tells the amazing life story of a man named Adam Brown who battled more than just the Taliban. In the midst of it all he found Christ and that is what saw him through. Adam grew up in Arkansas and wanted to do nothing but play for his older brother's high school football team. He wasn't a star but he did his best. He also was just an all around good kid, until after high school that is. After graduation he fell into the wrong crowd and ended up a drug addict, putting his family and friends in danger and ultimately himself in jail. After serving his time he went through several attempts at rehab but always failed, until he met his future wife. After meeting her he still had slip ups with the drugs but he had finally turned a corner. Through a series of small miracles he actually was able to enter the Navy on the tract to become a Seal and was able to put drugs behind him for good. The rest of the book follows Adam through his amazing accomplishments as a Navy Seal despite numerous injuries that would have sidelined other men, and an account of the battle in which he ultimately gave his life for his country.

Pros: I learned a lot about the military that I was not aware of by reading this book. I also got a different perspective of the lives of military wives and children and gained an even greater respect for them. And, not that I ever doubted it, but reading accounts from the "War on Terror" strengthened my conviction on the necessity of it. Also, this book is a real testament to what someone with a real faith in God can be capable of, and of God's grace to see them through.

Cons: Adam's life was not pretty. This is not a book for children. Adam's family wanted his story to be told without reserve in hopes that it could help others. That being said it covers alcohol, heavy drug use, profanity (in some of his correspondence), and violence on and off the battlefield.

Conclusion: I enjoyed reading this and I would recommend that every American Christian read this book or one like it. Our Military deserves to be revered and respected for what they do for our country and we need to be remember why they must do it.

You can find out more about "Fearless" here.