{Hectic Week}

The fashion show is on Friday, so it is going to be a crazy, hectic week! Aside from preparing for the show, tomorrow I register for classes for the fall semester and start a new internship. Then, of course, I still have classes and homework to take care of.

I love being busy, don't get me wrong, especially because all of the money we raise will benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation, but right about now I would love to be able to relax and read a book in a beautiful little nook like this one!

{via a life's design}

Enjoy your week!

{What's happening in FFP!}

It is hard to believe that the fashion show is eight days away. Overall, I feel that we are generally very well prepared for the show. Most, if not all, of the major details are figured out. It is just the finishing touches (which there seem to be a lot of) that need to be finished.

We have had "work days" every day this week, and club members have been diligently working on tissue paper flowers, painting cardboard, cutting out stars, and various other decorations for the gym.

{Bags of tissue paper flowers and donations next to my bed.}

At the same time, we are continuing to have model practices and are still working on fittings and styling looks. Members are still collecting donations and making final contact efforts with potential donors.

{Club members working on fittings and styling looks.}

I really feel as though this year's show will be the best yet, and I am really hoping to make at least $10,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, though I think we might even make more than that, which would be amazing!

I am so excited for the show, but I am also excited to have my room back. Currently I can not get to any of my shoes because they are covered in stacks of cardboard, and I can barely get into my closet because it is blocked by 300 Ted Gibson Salon shampoos and conditioners. I can't open my bathroom or bedroom doors all of the way because of the 300 O.P.I. nail polishes and raffle donations from companies like Clarins and Youngblood Mineral Cosmetics that are in boxes everywhere.

{Gift bags, O.P.I. nail polishes, and various other donations stacked in VERY heavy boxes.}

{Some of the 300 Ted Gibson shampoos and conditioners Tina and I had to get from Manhattan to the Bronx.}

Did I mention that one other club member, Tina, and I had to get those 300 bottles of shampoo from 1120 Avenue of the Americas (between 43rd and 44th) to Fordham University Lincoln Center at West 60th and 9th? We had four giant cardboard boxes full of regular sized shampoos and conditioners! Luckily, we got an amazing taxi driver and only had one box break at Lincoln Center. What a sight we must have been...

We have even more work to do this week and into next week, then it is show time!

{What's happening in FFP!/Giveaway Alert!}

All of a sudden, the fashion show is about three weeks away! We have made a lot of progress in many areas, but still have a lot of work left to do in others. We have secured donations for both gift bags and raffle items, from companies such as Essie, OPI, Tracy Reese, Clarins, and Henri Bendel, and many more, but there have to be some secrets!

In these finals weeks before the show, it is all of the smaller aspects of the show that now need to be worked on. We will be working non-stop on making flowers and other decorations for the gym, putting looks together, having practices with the models, printing tickets and brochures, securing final donations, and doint lots and LOTS of advertising.

It is certainly a lot of work, but so fulfilling. I get so excited just thinking about the money we are going to be raising to help grant the wishes of sick children; We really want to raise at least $10,000 this year. It also makes me SO thankful for the wonderful members of Fashion for Philanthropy!

Now on an aside, Alaina of Live Creating Yourself, the blog I have mentioned my love for/jealousy of many times, is hosting yet another great giveaway, this time from the design geniuses at West Elm, and their partnership with PATCH NYC. So head on over (if you haven't already!) and check out this great blog and giveaway!

{What's happening in FFP!}

Things are really starting to pick up with Fashion for Philanthropy. Alyssa, our super-talented student designer, has begun working on her line, we are accumulating tons of wonderful samples for the VIP gift bags, and decoration ideas for the theme of the show, fairy tales, are really starting to come together. Everyone has been working so hard, I really think this year's show, "Once Upon a Runway," will be the best yet!

At tonight's meeting, our main subjects were the upcoming bake sales and Valentine's Day "candygram" sale. The bake sales will be held in the McGinley Center, outside of the cafeteria, on Thursday, February 4, from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m., and on Tuesday, February 9, from 12:00 to 7:00 p.m. We have really been encouraging everyone to bring different kinds of items, not just your standard bake sale cupcakes and cookies, as our last bake sale was SO successful because of the wide variety of items we offered.

Candygram sales will be taking place all next week, from Monday, February 8 to Thursday, February 11 from 12:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the McGinley Center. For $2, students and faculty members will be able to choose a gift, consisting of things such as chocolate lollipops, chocolate covered pretzels, candy, and other yummy Valentine's Day themed treats. They then fill out a heart-shaped note, and members of FFP will deliver the gift to your sweet heart!

Both of these events benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation, so they are for a great cause!

{What's happening in FFP!}

I have decided to begin a new posting series, "What's happening in FFP," to keep readers up-to-date with what is going on in Fashion for Philanthropy ("FFP"), the club I am currently vice-president of.

Fashion for Philanthropy is a great club because it combines fashion and style, a love of many students at Fordham, with charitable work, a must at a Jesuit university. FFP gives students the chance to be involved with something they love, while doing good for others. What could be better than that?

FFP's main goal is to raise money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Last year we raised close to $6,000! The Make-A-Wish Foundation is truly a great cause, and one really close to my heart.

In November of my senior year of high school (almost four years ago, wow) my younger brother Jack, then nine-years-old, was diagnosed with leukemia. Needless to say, the road has been a little, at times very, bumpy since then. Our family life was completely turned upside-down. It was a non-stop roller coaster ride of treatments, sickness, scares, and unhappiness.

In March of 2009, thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, my family and I were treated to a vacation at the beautiful Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas, our first real family vacation since Jack's diagnosis. It was so nice to for once not have to worry about anything except sunburn and where to eat dinner. It was like a weight had been lifted off of all of our shoulders, if only for a little while. We laughed and spent time together like we hadn't since Jack's diagnosis. It was amazing.

{Hannah, me, Jack, and Connor on our first day.}

{Hannah, Jack, and Connor in the pool.}

{Jack, 11-years-old, in the Atlantis Marina Village.}

After seeing how much a granted wish truly changes a sick child and their family's life, I felt the urge to become even more involved with FFP and its fundraising efforts for Make-A-Wish, hence, my candidacy and winning of vice president for the 2009-2010 school year.

So, now that you know what Fashion for Philanthropy is and what we do, I will be posting weekly about what is currently going on in the club. Spring is most definitely the busy season for FFP. On Friday, April 16, 2010 we will be holding our annual fashion show, and all our efforts until that day will be put into making the show as fabulous as can be, and to raise as much money ($10,000 would be lovelyyyy) as possible for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.