Not only is Vivienne Westwood an inspiring designer who constantly pushes the bounds of fashion and art, but she is also known for encouraging every individual to find their voice and use it to make the world a better culturally and environmentally. On September 8, 2010 Vivienne Westwood Anglomania and Lee are launching the “100 Days of Active Resistance” online installation.

Westwood and Lee are asking anyone and everyone to participate by submitting an original piece of artwork or photograph depicting the idea of Active Resistance.

“The principle idea of Active Resistance is that you get out of life what you put in and that real experience of the world involves thinking,” says Westwood.

A different piece of submitted art will be featured on the “100 Days of Active Resistance” installation website each day for 100 days, after which, the best pieces will be printed and displayed in an exhibition in London.

So grab your camera and pick up your paints or just scribble down an idea, but show the world what you want from it and that you care.

For more information on “100 Days of Active Resistance” visit www.ar100days.com. Learn more about Active Resistance on www.activeresistance.co.uk.

These shirts touch on my love of literature by featuring the covers of notable and often out of print novels. The Catch-22 tee would be my ultimate ironic statement, while most hipsters (and Mark David Chapman) would go for the Catcher in the Rye shirt.

As interesting as the concept is, Out of Print Clothing also likes to help out society by taking initiatives to bridge the international reading gap. For every shirt sold, a book is donated to underprivileged children through their partnership with Books For Africa— an organization dedicated to ending “the book famine in Africa.”

With a tee from Out of Print Clothing, you can’t lose. Not only will you look smart by sporting the cover a famous literature on your top, but you can also feel good about helping others experience the pure bliss begotten from reading a good book. Shop the shirts at Out of Print Clothing, outofprintclothing.com. For more information on Books for Africa visit booksforafrica.org. ]]> http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/2010/08/30/dot-your-%e2%80%9ci%e2%80%9ds-and-cross-your-tees/feed/ 0 http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/2010/01/06/hms-garden-collection/ http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/2010/01/06/hms-garden-collection/#comments Wed, 06 Jan 2010 16:58:33 +0000 Chelsea Rae Simmons http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/?p=1576 There’s a scene in Sherlock Holmes when Irene Adler (Rachel McAdams) slinks off down an alley, and you realize the coat that she put on upon exiting Holmes’ flat is actually a kimono. Said scene reinforce my love of the kimono sleeve, dolman sleeve, bat-wing, and anything that isn’t a normal straight sleeve. So, when I saw this H&M dress on Refinery 29′s blog my heart pitter-pattered a little faster.

Not only do the sleeves meet my odd-shaped, long-enough-to-fall-in-my-soup standards, the dress itself is overwhelmingly cute with the watercolor flowers, wrap v-neck top, and short but not too short hemline.

I can see myself walking around my university’s horticulturally impressive campus, this spring, with an extra pep in my step, knowing my dress is adorable. I could even go to one of Central Park’s summer concerts in it, evoking a very Woodstock vibe— shorts under shirts/dresses are a must at concerts. There are countless places I could wear this dress, and I won’t feel an ounce of remorse if I do buy it because not only did I pay H&M prices— under $60— but also, the dress itself is part of the store’s Spring 2010 Garden Collection and “are produced using sustainable, organic, and and recycled materials like PET bottles and textile waste.” Photo Credit: Refinery 29, H&M ]]> http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/2010/01/06/hms-garden-collection/feed/ 6 http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/2009/09/04/anna-sui-bags-the-target-billboard/ http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/2009/09/04/anna-sui-bags-the-target-billboard/#comments Fri, 04 Sep 2009 13:52:37 +0000 Chelsea Rae Simmons http://pinkrockcandy.net/fashion/?p=1272

In an attempt to save money and avoid the blistering hot subway tunnels, I like to walk from Grand Central Terminal to my internship every now and then, taking me directly through the heart of Times Sq. and a giant billboard directly above the big subway entrance on 42nd St. between Broadway and 7th Ave. Starting today through October 31st, 2009, this billboard will be covered in art from emerging artists like Michael Anderson and Josh Goldstein commissioned by none other than my favorite lifestyle store, Target.

When the billboard comes down, the flex vinyl will be turned in to edgy totes designed by Target’s latest GO International designer, Anna Sui.

The 1,600 limited edition, upcycled billboard bags officially go on sale today until supplies last for $29.99, and will be shipped to the cool cats who snapped them up in early-January.

I personally see no downside to getting one of these bags— except maybe the thousands of other bloodthirsty Target lovers— the totes are green because they’re upcycled, they’re a piece of art, they’re designed by Anna Sui, and they’re the right price (i.e. less than $50).

Target has hit the mark once again— pun totally intended!

For more information, visit www.target.com/billboardbag

Rachel Phipps from Lipstick Royalty Magazine created a campaign on Battlefront called ‘Who Wants To Be A Size Zero Anyway’. For the campaign she created a cheeky video called Socks and the City that made me seriously laugh.

Two things came to mind when I watched the video. The first was wondering which sock was Carrie, and the second was the knowledge that depriving oneself of life’s little luxuries, like a doughnut, is not worth being a size zero.

If you agree make sure to click through and join the campaign!

Gorjana jewelry has designed a heart shape necklace on behalf of the United Soybean Board to help support WomenHeart, an organization aiding in the fight for women’s heart health. All $45 of the proceeds from each sterling silver necklace go directly to WomenHeart’s Heart to Heart campaign.

The necklace is simple, elegant, and gets the health heart point across. Plus, the proceeds go to a fantastic cause that has probably affected almost everyone in one way or another. It is very rare to find someone who has never been effected by heart disease directly or indirectly.

For more information or to purchase the ‘Heart to Heart’ Necklace visit the Gorjana website.

Though I am a PR major, I realize the best designer tip-offs come from other bloggers and not the designer’s individual publicists. To be honest, this actually helps the designer, because as you can guess, we’re more likely to pay attention to a brand if a peer suggests it rather than a gusher-for-hire— no offense to my, hopefully, eventual colleagues. Browsing other blogs is how I found accessory designer Ashley Watson.

While reading the blog Couture Salope in October, I stumbled across a post featuring some of the most subtly-beautiful leather handbags I’d seen in quite some time. I became even more intrigued after reading that all of Ashley Watson’s accessories were made of recycled leather. The recycled leather gives the bags the soft feel and perfectly worn look of your favorite, old leather jacket.

To me, recycled leather is something like vintage fur. No extra animals were murdered to make the specific bag so it is almost 100% okay. Plus, the bag is eco-friendly without being completely made of hemp.

Though you may not be able to get the Spring ’09 collection including the red version of the ‘Thrush’ Bag until February, you can get the ‘Thrush’ bag in black for $250 at shopfatal.com or for a bit more at their other stockists.

The beginning of my day usually consists of me dropping my sister off at the train station around 8AM then heading back home and napping until 9:30 or 10 in the morning. Today however, I took my father to work instead of my sister to the train station, causing me to be up much earlier, and when I returned home, I couldn’t get back to sleep— so I got an early start. This meant, I was able to gorilla glue the hair straightener that somehow broke, change outfits numerous to settle on the outfit above, and then take pictures of it (I highly doubt this will be a regular occurrence).

I was completely psyched because it looked really pretty outside, and I would finally be able to wear a skirt. Unfortunately, as soon as I stepped outside, heading to class, I realized I was not dressed for the weather in the least. I hoped a cardigan could solve this problem, but it was a no go— so, I sped inside and changed into my handy-dandy black skinnies and threw a gray tunic and creme belt over them. Unfortunately, or fortunately, I was left with no time to take pictures of it, so your imagination will have to do.

I hoping next week might be warmer, but I highly doubt it. Real Spring can’t come soon enough.

In other news, the National Jean Company stores in New York are having a denim drive from April 9th to April 13th. This event formed out of the partnership between National Jean Company, Earnest Sewn, Madison Harding, and Cotton Inc. The denim will go to Cotton Inc’s initiative, “Cotton. From Blue to Green”, that “recycles old denim into UltraTouch environmentally friendly insulation for homes for communities in need”. So if you happen to be in the New York area and have a pair of old jeans or two make sure to donate. Visit the National Jean Company website for store locations.

Last year I was impressed and weirded out by the antics of the 4th China Reproductive Heath New Technologies & Products Expo. To stress safe sex in China, the put on a fashion show with all the clothing made of condoms. I mused about this being a great idea, and apparently I wasn’t the only one with this frame of mind. “Dress Up Against AIDS” had a fashion show in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia where more 30 student designers from the International Beauty & Make-Up Academy created kooky rubber-wear for the models to strut their stuff in.

Oddly this still fascinates me. It’s such a fantastic idea, yet it hasn’t been implemented in the US. Yes, sex education is important, but you have to have a little fun every once in a while. There isn’t much the fashion industry does to encourage safe sex other than talk, but it’s obvious they can make their point by educating the public about HIV/AIDS and safe sex, then proceed to have a bomb condom fashion show. I’d love to see a Diane von Furstenburg wrap-dress made of condoms!

What do you think? Is this taking HIV/AIDS awareness to an extreme or is just enough to make a statement?

[via Yahoo! News]

The tank is $42 and 25% of the precedes go to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Moise Emquies, the founder of Splendid says, “The pink camouflage tank is an icon that represents the battle women face when waging the war on breast cancer. We hope this symbol raises awareness of this issue and ultimately helps in finding a cure for this devastating disease. ” So whether you are battling/ have battled breast cancer, know a someone who has breast cancer or has beaten breast cancer, or just like camouflage, this pink tank is cute and for a great cause.

Have you seen any breast cancer related products? Leave a comment or send us an email so we can feature them all October.

Looking for a way to justify those $300 shoes you just bought? Stuart Weitzman gives it to you on a platter, well, an auction block is more like it. SW is putting on his seventh annual Celebrity Shoe Auction, and this year the auction will benefit ovarian cancer research. Each pair of shoes are designed by a celebrity and represents their personality and style. Some of the celebs participating are Oprah (hey O!), Sharon Stone, Courtney Cox, Glenn Close, Hayden Panettiere, Charlize Theron, Molly Sims, and Kelly Ripa; even some guys got in on the action with shoes designed by Mario Lopez, McSteamy Eric Dane (and his wife Rebecca Gayheart), and Kyle MacLachlan. Each pair of shoes come with and autographed sole and glossy photo of the designing celeb. The auction ends on October 4th, and you can start bidding on these gorgeous and sometimes wacky shoes here.

See all the different shoes below.

The silver bracelet is a set of two bangles with pink ribbon and heart, wishbone and ball charms on them. 50% of all proceeds will go to the Y-ME National Breast Cancer Organization.

Aside from the bracelets being for a good cause, we’re stoked because it’s a Marc Jacobs bracelet. MJ is our hero, except for the whole multiple stints in rehab thing (but he’s kicked the habit, right?). Plus, its pink, and we can never get enough pink!

The video was shot when the guys went to Uganda with Invisible Children. When I first heard they were filming it there, I thought, “Oh God, I don’t need another PSA about Africa”, but it wasn’t a PSA at all. It was a love story, and I’m a sucker for anything that has to do with love. Sure, it did its civic duty, by informing us about terrible events going on in Africa, but they did it the right way.

Watch the video here (uhh! We can’t add AOL videos on wordpress) and tell us what you think.

EDIT: Heres the video…

Our favorite politically incorrect supermodel, Janice Dickinson, is joining in on the PETA fun. On Monday, she and her nearly-nude (and some quite naked) models hit the streets of Hollywood to support PETA’s “We’d Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur” campaign.

Janice also recently instituted a “fur-free” policy for her modeling agency, The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency.

Truthfully, this protest might just be because she doesn’t like words that start with “F” (except fuck of course), fur, fat, food. Who needs that crud anyway?

You can help out by going to FurIsDead.com.