Day Three: Feminine Fashion Week: Purple Peacock

 

Hi girls! It's day three of the Feminine Fashion Week here on A Butcher, A Baker, A Candlestick-maker. :) Today I went casual and comfortable, as I was cleaning our home for hosting church tomorrow. :)

Meet: Purple Peacock. :)

 

I happen to love purple. :)

I believe this style of shirt is properly called "baby-doll" and I think it's a fitting name...the shirt fits like those little baby-dresses with no sign of a waist-line at all! :D But I think it's a cute shirt. :)

My lovely pea-cock feather earrings. A friend who has a jewelry-making business did these as a custom order for me, since it had long been a dream of mine to have such a pair. Thanks, Josie! :)

 My favorite blue-grey denim skirt. Sadly, it has one of those invisible-zippers-that-never work and so I now am resigned to the fate of having to safety-pin it closed. *weeps and wails*. It is such a cute skirt!

And so swing-able! I would love to dance with that skirt on!

 

I thought I'd show you how I wear my make-up. :) I go by the rule that it should enhance your beauty, not cover up flaws, and it should look natural. Granted, I put on my lightest colors of eye-shadow today, but I don't like using a lot of eye-liner and heavy mascara---you don't want to be mistaken for a raccoon and shot! :D

And here is a picture of my fabulous thrift-store find earlier this week! These are the cutest vintage-style heels! I couldn't help humming ♫ "The best things happen while you're dancing..."♫ as I walked around in them. They are so Ginger Rogers, and only cost $2.98! :)

 Purple Top: Hand-me-down from Joanna
Skirt: Thrift-store
Shoes: (same as yesterday)
Earrings: from a friend

And last but not least, I wanted to share a cool website with you girls. It'll help you determine which colors look best with your skin-tone, hair, and eye-color so you can look vibrant and beautiful! :) As far as I can tell, I'm a strange mash of Winter/Summer. My skin tone is not as olive as some of my sisters, and has rather pink undertones, [and I look good in jewel-tones, silver jewelry, etc.) but I am told I look good in some traditional summery colors like bright orange. Who'd have thought? :D  Anyway, check it out and tell me what colors look good on you. :) What colors look good on me? 

~Rachel

Day Two: Feminine Fashion Week

Day Two of the Feminine Fashion Week: 

You are seeing the continued efforts of a self-portrait-er. Sorry if the angles are a little funny sometimes, but a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do! :D

 

My younger sister, Abigail took this picture of me. My usual photographer was at work with Dad. ;) [Thus my concentrated expression and the awkwardness of the pose. Oh well. Beggars can't be choosers. :D]

 

Earrings are another Black Friday find, and the necklace was bought at our county fair in September.

 

I thought I'd show you what I did with my hair. I love random coiling and twisting. It looks so amazing but it's so easy!

 

And my shoes. These have got to go down in history as some of the most comfortable shoes [that look this cute] that I've ever worn. Sing ho for dark-blue suede! :)

Raspberry-colored sweater: Thrift-store

Black cami: Thrift-store

Skirt: Unknown

Shoes: Thrift-store

Earrings: Belk ($4)

Necklace: County Fair ($?)

Please keep sharing about this Feminine Fashion Week on your blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and wherever else you lurk. :) And a big thank-you to all of you who have shared the button around, including Joanna and Miss Georgiana Darcy! :) There will be a giveaway this week. It is now official! Further information will be coming up soon! :) ~Rachel

Day One of Feminine Fashion Week!

Hi everybody! Welcome to the first day of the New BBC's Feminine Fashion Week! :) I'm rather excited, having interviews, fun posts, and other things lined up for the week. :) I hope you all enjoy this week as muc has I plan to. Please continue to share the news around so we can get lots of young ladies involved, and leave a comment and tell me how you're liking it. :)
As promised, I am posting pictures of my outfits each day to give you a taste of my style. There will be at least one post a day during this week, sometimes more depending on what I've got up my sleeve, so keep your eye out and drop by often! :)

Day One: Whispers of Autumn 

(Sorry. I had to name it. ;)

 

Sorry about the darkness of this picture. It's pretty much hideous, but it was a chilly morning and my sister-cum-photographer didn't relish the idea of going past the porch. :P

 

A close-up of the neckline. I love the crocheted accents--very feminine. :)

My earrings...a $4 Black Friday find at Belk. :) 

Here you can see my skirt and my shoes. :) This skirt is so incredibly comfortable!

Top: Thrift Store (no more than $3)

Skirt: Hand-me-Down from the King's Daughter (free :)

Shoes: Payless (ahem. I prefer not to talk about it.)

Earrings: Belk ($4)

And now I have the first of several interviews I have scheduled for this week! I interviewed the King's Daughter, or Joanna T., as she is a very dear friend of mine with a great eye for modest, feminine style. Actually, she has played rather a role of "older sister" in my life and forever revolutionized my idea of dressing well about 4 years ago when I first met her. :) She is 23 years old and she stays at home with her family nannying, tutoring, sewing, and a enjoying a vast variety of other pursuits. She lurks in blogland over at A Needle Pulling Thread and I love her to death. :) .....

1. What first inspired you to be fashionable as well as modest? 

Too many times I have seen Christian young ladies who love the Lord, and desire to be modest, but look frumpy. I vowed that I would endeavor to dress modestly, but look attractive, and be a good testimony! 

2. What is your purpose in dressing modestly? 

Pleasing the my Lord Jesus, and respecting my body. I don't want a guy to be attracted to me because I'm showing off my curves. That's not the kind of man I'm looking for anyway. :) 

3. Where do you get most of your clothes? 

I think Thrift Stores are great, but I have hard time finding clothes my size there. I get most of my clothes from Belk. You have to be a wise shopper though. Only go when there are great sales. Most of the time, this means buying clothes out of season, and saving them up. :)

4. What's the single biggest tip you have for girls who desire modesty and fashion in their attire? 

Figure out what your style is! Everyone has certain styles of clothing that look best on their figure. It might take some experimenting, but find yours, and work it! :)

5. How do you define modesty? 

For me, modesty is so much more than just your outward attire. Modesty is an issue of the heart. If you love the Lord, and are walking with Him, you'll allow Him to speak to you in this area. I have seen young ladies who were dressed modestly, but acted just the opposite. Make sure you are modest inside and out! :)
6. Do you agree with wearing make-up? (If not, do tell us a bit more about your thoughts on it!) 

I think that a little bit of make-up, applied in the right way, it fine. Make-up should be to enhance your beauty, not cover up your face! I hate it when girls wear so much that you wouldn't be able to recognize them without it on. :) Scary!!

7. Do you believe it is important for a woman to dress well?

YES!! It's ok to look nice people! :) And for us single gals, we don't want a young man to be attracted to us because of our outward appearance, but man does look out the outside. :) 

8. How has dressing modestly and femininely impacted your life? Accepting God's design for women is so freeing! God created us to be feminine, and I'm so glad! I love being a woman, and I love dressing like a woman! When we look like ladies, I think it encourages men to look and act more manyly! And that's always a good thing! :)

***Bonus Round!***

A. What color-group looks good on you? 

Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall? Because I have darker skin, hair, and eyes, I am very versital in my colors. Some of all these color-groups work for me. I try to be very consience of making sure a color looks good on me. If you put on a top or dress, and it makes your face look pale, don't go for it. I have also seen some people in yellow or lime green, and their faces looked the same color. :) Oops! Wear colors that bring out the best in you! :)

B. What is your favorite item in your closet? 

Right now I think it might be my cream colored, fur-lined hoodie. It's warm and fuzzy on the inside, with very cool knit cables on the outside.  

C. Fashion-wise, which season is your favorite? 

I would have to say fall/winter. There are so many possibilities! I love the accessories you can use. I'm really into boots, scarves, and hats. :)

D. Tell us something random about yourself! I love classic literature!

Thank you so much for answering these questions about the issues of modesty and femininity, Joanna! And the rest of you girls, stay tuned for more Feminine Fashion posts!

Modesty: My Stand on it :)

In preparation for this blog's Feminine Fashion Week (which begins tomorrow!) I thought I share with you my own thoughts on modesty/femininity. It would do absolutely no good at all for me to just start up a Feminine Fashion Week without letting people know where I stand on the entire issue! So here's the deal in three points. (I'll expand on each later)

1. We are women. We ought to dress like women

2. Men are men. We have the responsibility and privilege to help them keep their hearts and minds pure.

3. Modesty does not mean frumpiness.

Okay. :) That being said, let me talk a little more about the first point. (And remember here, I am going off of the idea that you already know that inward beauty is far more important than outward, and that Jesus sees your heart, not your dress size. :)

1. We are Women. We ought to dress like women. To me, femininity is a beautiful privilege and something I treasure. I am so glad God made me a woman, and I think it pleases Him when I dress like one. In my opinion, that doesn't mean that I have to wear skirts or dresses all the time. There are jobs that require jeans, and there are days when I just don't feel like tramping around our property with a long skirt on. However, for most of my days, dressing like a woman usually includes wearing a skirt, a nicer top (if I'll be seeing anyone. ;) and having my hair in something other than a pony-tail. Not that there's anything wrong with a pony-tail, but my friends used to swear I was born with one. I took the hint. ;)

2. Men are men. We have the responsibility and privilege to help them keep their hearts and minds pure. This is really important, girls.Even if you have "it", that doesn't mean it's right to flaunt "it". None of you would ever dream of having an affair when you are married, I know. But by Jesus' standards, lust is the same as committing adultery, and if we are dressing in a manner that causes men to stumble, we've just helped them commit that sin. That's why I've made a decision to dress with modesty. I don't want to be viewed by men as "eye-candy". You might get attention but great Scot, it won't be the kind of man you want to marry! I think the single biggest thing we can do to help the guys in our life stay on track, is by dressing with modesty. For me, that means not wearing skirts that come above my knees, making sure my jeans/capris are not too tight around my curves. It means not wearing low-cut tops or dresses, and not showing cleavage. It also means not wearing fabrics that are snug against my skin.
But I would like to make a point. We can't entirely eradicate lust from the sin-nature of man. That just isn't feasible. Dress in a fashion that glorifies God, but leave results up to Him. :)

3. Modesty does not mean frumpiness. I can't tell you how many young women I meet who are confused by the issue. They think that because they seek modesty, they must look like flour-sacks and never do anything with their hair and for heaven's sake NEVER wear any make-up. :P That is not at all true. Beauty is pleasing. Neat and pretty personal habits make for a much better experience for people who are around you. It's okay to have style. It's okay to have cute shoes. I have several I'll show you this week. ;) It's okay to present yourself in the best way you can. I would even go so far as to say it's right and pleasing to God to present ourselves in the best way we can. We are, after all, His temple, and we are ambassadors for Christ. Who wants to know about a God you follow if your hair is a rats' nest, your clothes are stained and torn, and you're wearing a dismal frown?
What is true is that the best adornment for a woman is the unfading beauty of a meek and quiet spirit. I think of meekness, not as mousy submission, but as quiet strength. A woman who could have much to say and much wisdom in what she says, be chooses to submit to the authorities in her life with a joyful heart.

So that's where I'm coming from, and that's why I'm having this Feminine Fashion Week, and that's why I love being a woman. :) ~Rachel

(And here are three absolutely lovely coats that I will buy if I marry a millionaire. Ahem.)

Feminine Fashion Week at The New BBC! :)

I am very pleased, very excited, and entirely charmed to announce The Butcher, the Baker, the Candlestick-Maker's Feminine Fashion Week! From now on you will hear this event referred to as Feminine Fashion Week at the New BBC. :) (Yes, if you think about it this blog's name can be acronym-ed as that. :)This blog event will kick off this Thursday and run for a week. Mark it down: Feminine Fashion Week at the New BBC is running Dec. 15-22, 2011!

 I am so excited to get into this week and to remind myself and all of us that dressing modestly and femininely does not have to mean potato-sacks and a beau-font ribbon in our hair. *smile*

We can have some style and some fashionable flair to our clothing and still be honoring the Lord and our brothers in Christ. We'll have interviews, posts on modest fashion, and each day during the event I will post a picture of my femininely fashionable outfit. ;) I am even thinking of having some surprises along the way, such as (and don't quote me on this...) a giveaway! So please advertise for this week by putting the picture on your side-bar and linking this BBC to it, and join me for a week of feminine fashion! :)

~Rachel

"Shake me up, Judy!" :)

All right everyone! At last I have the pictures up of the present for the friend I was hinting about. I made her a cookbook called "Shake Me Up, Judy!" The Purist's Guide to Dickensian Cookery. I scoured my copies of Dickens looking for mentions of food in the text, then pulled those quotes, rummaged up corresponding recipes, and generally knocked myself out making it into a lovely cook-book for her. I tea-stained paper (which I can do a tutorial of sometime if you'd like) and used that as the base, then sort of "Scrapped" it with other paper and original illustrations. Anyway, here is a peek at it! (There were many more pages, but I didn't want to bore you)

This is the page right before "Fezziwig Pie", which is a variation of Mince-meat pie.

Mrs. Cratchit's Christmas Pudding

From The Cricket on the Hearth...

Moving on from the Christmas Tales into Bleak House...

"You have four classes this afternoon--I would recommend a hasty sandwich " ~Mr. Turveydrop, the model of Deportment, and father of Prince.

Mrs. Joe Gargery's Pudding from Great Expectations...

A page from the Great Expectations section with a scene between Pip and Pocket. :)

I had fun with the decor on this one...

Nothin' like a good pen and some ink to set you up for success...

Here are some pictures of the little things my sisters loved that I made to add some flair to the pages...

♫"Brown paper packages tied up with string...."♫

A teeny pass-port...hee-hee. :)

If you look closely you will see that the letters are indeed addressed to Honoria Barbary, (eventually Lady Dedlock) and I took care to include the "Smells like ladies" quote on that page. :D

Love letters...

Anyway, that is just a peep at it! I hope you enjoyed seeing what I've been working on. I know I told you that you could make fabulous presents at home...I spent hours making this book, but guess how much money I spent on this gift?

Any guesses?

Come on now, guess!

Ready?

Okay....

Four Cents. Yep. That's all, and that was for ribbon to tie it with. Score! ;) What sorts of gifts have you made this year?

Just a bit of Love.

Do you ever get to that point in your personal Bible reading when there are just so many choices of where to read you get overwhelmed and end up reading a Psalm? :D Lately I have been doing that, but it was not entirely satisfying, so I did a sister-ish thing and asked Sarah to assign me a book to read.

 "Ummm....First John?" she answered, looking at me as if to be sure I was okay.

It was an off-the-cuff answer, but Sarah? I'm so glad you gave it to me! :D I hadn't read 1 John in awhile, but ever since I started reading I've been overwhelmed and delighted by the richness and tenderness of this book of God's word. Right from the start John gives the Gospel and tells us that he writes these things to us that our joy may be full.That, right there, is such a great reminder of what the Christian life must be. Full of joy and abundant in it.

Maybe it's because I'm a writer myself and I pay attention to little things like sentence structure, but I was also impressed by the very word choices John used. He piles words upon words in a way that leaves you feeling as if your arms were full to the brim with packages of God's love. There is no condemnation in the way John writes, only a desperate plea for us to recognize the love of Jesus for us. I love the first part of chapter 2:

"My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world."

Wham! The richness of the gift of grace is seen so clearly here, even by how we are addressed as "Little children." Not Dirty Little Sinners, not You People Out There, not Everyone in the World Who Needs a Savior, but as if Christ stooped down, gathered us in His strong, all-encompassing arms, and whispered, "Little Children, come to Me."

 Then in 1 John 2:22 he says, "Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also."

This verse is worded so flawlessly. It states the case of things with clarity and conciseness, without pointing fingers. It is so beautifully black and white and loving. Deny the Son and you won't have the Father either. But acknowledge the Son and you have both of Them. :)
In the end of Chapter Two there is a whole paragraph that strikes deep chords with me:

"These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him." (1 John 2:26-27)

I will admit that I struggle with loving the Prunes & Prisms variety of Christians--those who value propriety above a personal relationship with Jesus. We have all met these poor, constricted people who put on so many garments of "convictions" that they can scarcely breathe, they are so pressed on from all sides.

 I want to caution us all to only put on the convictions God hands us, not ones that Men, fallible Men tell us to put on. There are times when God may use Men to convict us, but listen for the Shepherd's voice and listen only to Him. As he says, we do not need to be taught by Men, for the Holy Spirit and God's word will teach us all things, as it has already taught us.
Did we need people to tell us taking a cookie from the jar was wrong as a child? No, we knew it was wrong because the Holy Spirit was teaching us. Do we need people to tell us to do or not to do something? No. Ask Jesus about it and He will show you His stand on the point. He will answer, and after that don't mind what Men say--you've got the approval of the Most High Lord.
 Anyway, I think I've succeeded in taking you for a hopeless ramble again, but I just thought I'd share some of the things the Lord had been teaching me recently. I hope it encourages one of you!