I created Be Fashionate for a number of reasons. I want to have a place to document my thoughts on fashion, for practice and for fun. I want to become a part of the vast fashion blogging community, to gain experience, get ideas, and make friends. But most importantly, I want to show that you don’t have to be rich, you don’t have to be famous, you don’t have to be an expert. What really matters is how passionate you are about what you’re talking about. And I am all about passion. I’m fashionate! (And, apparently, a dork.)

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

S-A-L-E at Net-A-Porter!

Fashionable woman with shopping bags, SaleNet-A-Porter.com is currently holding a Sale Spectacular! From the looks of it, many items are around 50% off, so if you're interested, I suggest moseying on over there to take a look as soon as you can. I especially had fun looking through the dresses.

You can see my picks below:

Dress spread from Net-A-Porter, Roberto Cavalli cream floor length gown, Roberto Cavalli purple dress with gold sequin trim, Giles black and white stripe dress, Zach Posen gray polka-dot wrap dress, Celine cream strapless dressIf I had more money and a place to where it to, I would buy the floor-length Roberto Cavalli in the blink of an eye. It is incredibly gorgeous, isn't it?

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Natural Beauty

I am a firm believer in preserving natural beauty. I love experimenting with makeup as much as the next girl, but when it comes to a solid, easy, and beautiful everyday look, I would definitely opt for a minimalistic approach. Especially if you're young and you're skin is still youthful, why cover it up with heavy foundation? If your eyelashes are naturally long/full/curled, do you really want to gunk them up with mascara?

That being said, there are certainly methods that you can employ to enhance the beauty that you already have. I've put together a guide to getting that flawless (but still real) complexion based on my own daily regimen.

(I'd like to say now that I'm not reviewing any products - this is actually what I use.)E.L.F. Cosmetics, 3 steps to flawless skin, tinted moisturizer, blending wedges, concealer, concealer brush, total face brush, clarifying powderStep 1: Apply a pearl-sized amount of E.L.F. Shielding Hydro-Tint SPF 15 with a Blending Wedge.
Step 2: Spot-cover using E.L.F Tone Correcting Concealer and Concealer Brush.
Step 3: Using the Total Face Brush, blend in E.L.F. Clarifying Face Powder.

The best part? Everything at E.L.F. Cosmetics cost just $1! You can view all of their products at E.L.F..

I started using E.L.F. products just a little while ago, but I am extremely pleased with how fresh and clear my skin looks. I especially like how these products are beneficial, what with the moisturizing, the SPF 15, and the clarifying. And this way, you can feel polished and look completely natural at the same time!

Monday, November 26, 2007

The Importance of Inspiration

French designer Coco Chanel“Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.” ~Coco Chanel

I agree whole-heartedly with Mademoiselle Chanel’s assertion that fashion is all around us, that is everything we see and hear and touch. At least, this is how I try to approach fashion. As an amateur fashion writer/imaginary stylist/professional shopper, I am constantly searching for inspiration in the world around me. This inspiration comes in countless forms, from people’s outfits to magazine spreads to music and songs.

My hours upon hours of browsing online stores is more to me than just another way to remind me that you can’t always get what you want. Sometimes the clothes inspire me to put together an outfit, sometimes they inspire me to do something out of the ordinary with my own wardrobe, and sometimes they just plain inspire me because they’re so amazing.

Magazines are also a constant source of inspiration for me, on many levels. Since I want to go into fashion journalism, I love going through to see what kinds of articles there are, and then I comb through the articles to learn about writing style. The clothes, obviously, also provide inspiration, in many of the same ways that the online stores do. In fact, I have a little black notebook that I glue all of my favorite clippings into every month. And of course, the spreads can be absolutely breathtaking, and that in itself is quite inspirational.

And then, there is the world around us. There are so many vibrant colors, so much natural beauty everywhere you look, how could someone not be inspired?

So, I guess my question is, what are you inspired by? And what do you do with that inspiration?