Springtime is here!

Spring: The Season of flowers and Life. The crisp lights from the sun overcasting the flowers giving it a tender appearance. Spring is a season where all colors unite to create something beautiful, and an opportunity to break Fashion Barriers.

The spring piece that was chosen from Designer Marinaasta is a Raw Silk Dress that is colored with a deep plum shade. The decorative flowers are hand painted and the length of the dress is 96 cm. The Price of this striking dress is $99.00!

We interviewed Designer Marinaasta to elaborate more on this piece as well as her collection. Her view for this collection is Spring, and to her, “Spring is the year Awaking”. Her signature style is to add her painting creations on every piece she makes and this particular piece took two days to complete. Marinaasta is a painter and learned fashion design from her Grandmother then began tying the two together. And where did her inspiration come from? "I look around with wide eyes open and ready to catch any inspiration with everything”.

You can find Mariannasta’s designs on her Etsy page.

Much thanks to Jenny Lopez for the inspiration behind this post! :)

Jean Straps.

Jean Straps are a pretty simple product, you strap them to the bottom of your jeans to hold them down while putting on boots. I thought they were a simple product, but not something I would remember to use everytime I put on boots. After using them, I decided I liked the product and would definitely use these with my boots. For a mere $10, I think they are definitely a product to add to your closet.

I wish they came in more colors, and were possibly a bit more durable, but I think this is a great first product and I am excited to see how the company grows and what more they do!

Check out their website!

Grace in Bags

I love this collection of bags by Sarah Donegan. Such a graceful and fun collection! Can't wait until spring for more collections like this to come out.

All you need is....

I love that last shirt! It really matches the theme of my engagement party ideas as well, so it was funny to find this right now!

291 Venice has such a laid back and fun style. Their "collection" photoshoot has such a fun vibe to it and offers an great style while still pulling off some sweats and a t-shirt. Love the idea behind this collection and I can't wait to see more from this designer!

Don't forget to check up on aspiringcouture.com
And check up on my wedding blog for the latest and greatest there!

Returns and Receipts

I went to Ann Taylor LOFT today to return something. It was the only Christmas present I bought that I didn't still have the receipt for. During Christmas I always have a whole envelope and organization situation so that I (or the gift-getter) is always able to return the present. This receipt somehow didn't make it into the bunch!

So, I go into the store and say I don't have a receipt, hoping I can at LEAST get store credit. The girl informs me of their return policy: "Without a receipt you would get store credit for the lowest amount it was ever on sale for. If it is currently a final sale item, they can't return it at all." She rings up the necklace that I paid $55 for, and she says the lowest ticket price is $12.95 that I would receive in store credit. Insane.

That's my story, and here are my thoughts. Receipts made sense a long time ago, but have since become out-dated. With the advancing technology we have now, there have become better methods of keeping track of purchases. Nordstrom is a great example, or even Apple. The technology is there, and stores that don't advance are just creating further problems for themselves as buyers become more and more frustrated. Making it difficult to return or exchange is actually very poor customer service.

You better believe I never plan on shopping in their store again. Just curious if it was worth the $30 to them to have an unhappy customer walk out the door because there was "nothing they could do" when in reality there IS something they could do! The technology is there, the stores just need to implement it. Some examples would be: store the information of the purchases in the database, program the barcodes to match the actual amount paid, or even e-mail me the receipt!

All these new companies such as, Twitter, Facebook, Digg, Google, etc. are making it easier for people to get information and do things more efficiently. The key words there are "easier" and "more efficiently" and it is about time stores followed suit and came up to the standards we are all becoming used to these days. Stores need to get smart about advancing with technology and

Plans of the next fashion show???

Winter on the Runway (our fashion show in December) was incredibly successful and incredibly fun! I have been itching to do another, but I have yet to get back into the "runway show" mode! I want to do a garden chic Spring collection fashion show where designers can launch their newest lines. I thought it would be fun to go completely local for this show and only do Bay Area designers (and maybe I'll open it to a few other great collections)

It is also my one year anniversary, so it would be a big anniversary party as well! How fun would that be right?

Please let me know your thoughts-would you come, what area would you recommend, etc. Also, any local designers feel free to contact me-and I'll get this show on the road!

New Designer

The newest Spring Collection from Jaleh Designs is now available on aspiringcouture.com

I am very excited about this collection as I love the designs, and think it is a fantastic Spring Collection! Let me know your thoughts :)

Our little Giveaway!

I wanted to post this, in case any of you were interested in a fun giveaway!

Here's my first little giveaway. The company has a few websites, offering items for your home like a mailbox, great cookware, and so many more things you need to create a gorgeous household. I picked an item to giveaway from one of their sites, which I really like.

To enter, all you have to do is post a comment on any blog entry on the Engaged and Inspired blog and you will be entered to win. Each comment counts as an entry for you, and there is no max!

The winner will receive:

Two champagne flutes! I found these great modern flutes, which I thought were incredible! You could even use these as the bride and groom glasses, as they are a bit different than the traditional champagne flute. The winner will be announced on February 26th, so be sure to enter before then!