Cardigan Empire

Salt Lake City Fashion Stylist

Wednesday’s with Andy: How to Save Money

“I don’t need advice on how to dress in women’s clothing.”  Andrew Bagley
Naked people have little or no influence in our society, thank you Mark Twain, but clothing is still just peripheral credentials.  Which is why I’ve invited a resident etiquette expert to assist us in polishing the unabridged package.
Below is the opening excerpt of a 100 item essay which has come to be known as The Bagley’s Previously Unwritten Laws of Behavior and Conduct.  Penned by my adolescent beloved, every misspelling is authentic.
I can attest to the earnest behind this list.  On our honeymoon I suggested a hot chocolate, my newly wed husband responded that perhaps we should throw four dollars out the window instead.
Persistent pressure has loosened my loved one’s purse strings ever so slightly, but he’s still one of the best budgeters I know.  And below are a few updates to his budgeting philosophy
  1. Never pay a late fee or fine
    No one’s life was ever enriched by a cell phone overage
  2. Get it from the library
    You’ll end up with more money and less stuff to store
  3. Get your wife to cut your hair
    Or cut it yourself and then teach her how to do it
  4. Share a meal and order water
    Fat wallets are much healthier
  5. Wait till it comes to video
    You won’t have to sneak in your own popcorn and candy or pay a babysitter

Obviously budgeting can never account for everything as there are often unexpected expenditures one must make from time to time and, in situations like this, loans are not an unreasonable consideration. Often, guarantor loans are expensive so it’s worth comparing available loans to find the best deals.

I too like to save money, mostly so I can spend on stuff I really, really want like yoga classes in Costa Rica and well planned adoption finalization parties and their accompanying Kate Spade uniforms.
 
But what do you do to save money?  

Feed me fashionably fresh

Beauty-full Tuesday: Debs Freckles

A transformative take on beauty from DebsFreckles, my favorite ginger curled,  vintage loving, sewing savant darling.  Who is in fact exceptionally pretty inside and out.

I am not pretty.
Red hair, large nose, crowds of freckles, small eyes, tiny upper body, large lower body.
Society didn’t praise my features.
Society commented without talking and stared without seeing. 
Mother always told me, “Use the mirror to look nice each morning, then leave the mirror and forget about it.” 
And for the most part, I did and do. 
But sometimes insecurities creep into my self reflection. For example, a few weeks ago my hair was long (the longest it has ever been by far).  I thought it was beautiful. But it was also hot, expensive, and time consuming. 
Whenever I considered cutting it, I could hear Amy March from Little Women saying, “How could you? Your one beauty!” I was telling myself I wasn’t pretty enough.  I was telling myself my beauty could be removed with a pair of scissors.  When I realized this lie, I made an appointment, and I am so glad I did!
I’m not buying what society is selling.
I have learned that the things we CAN control about our appearance speak volumes compared to the things we CAN’T control: the words that come out of our mouths, what we put into our bodies, how we use our energy tells about who we are and shows our beauty. 
My self esteem comes from feeling loved by my family and friends, not being flattered by strangers. It comes from my Heavenly Father who loves me. When I stop to count my gratitude, it is hard to dwell on my looks. Between the love of family, friends, and my Heavenly Father, I feel whole and very pretty.
“You don’t have a soul, you are a soul. You have a body.”
-C.S. Lewis

Be truly grateful for your body, work on improving your soul, and the insecurities (that came from who knows who) will waste away.

Feed me fashionably fresh