Things Change

It's been almost two years since I wrote my first post on Silk and Purple. The design and creation of it was something I'd sneak away and work on every moment I could, because it had been an idea for four years beforehand. The ministry of this blog has reached far beyond my imagination, has reached countries closed to the gospel -- and it has and is growing me. I am a different person since 2007, but that is what we all do -- we change.

Our situations, knowledge, aspirations, style...they all change.

Before I continue with these ramblings, I must say I COULD NOT do this without my excellent team of committed individuals whose talents are used not for self, but unto the Lord! I can't tell you how many times a post by Elyse, Hope, Season, or Meghan has encouraged me. And without the countless hours of our editor making sure the posts don't look like this....

she was my frend. We where always happly engadged in games.

(Yes, this is rather close to what things look like before editing of this dyslexic writer.)

Here on Silk and Purple we are turning a new corner! We are all growing up and having new responsibilities and life paths open! Yet we still know the calling of sharing the goodness of Christ and encouraging Christian sisters in the Lord is not something we can give up.

We will be posting on Silk and Purple, but not every day as we once did. As you can tell, our posts are a little stretched out already, so we are going for more quality instead of quantity. If the Lord ever lays a post on your heart, email it to us.

Please pray for us as we start this leg of our journey, that the Lord will clearly show His direction for Silk and Purple. Things change, but our Lord never does, and that is only one of the reasons why we do what we do.

We send you a...

and a Happy Always in Christ!

We will be off till January to enjoy the holidays! Until then, enjoy archived posts and videos! More to come! See you in 2013!

1 Year Old!!!!!!

 Today Silk and Purple's blog is one year old!!!!!!!

In 2011, we were blessed to open this blog to the public. Since then, we have brought you 301 posts! With your help, we have had almost 44,000 views, reaching over 60 countries and gaining a strong following of over 400 through facebook, google friend connect, and email.

We have been overwhelmed with all of your sweet comments, questions, and willingness to share. We hope we have been a blessing to you as much as you have been to us. 

So we are pressing forward! We can't wait to see where the Lord will lead us this next year. Our prayer is to shine light on topics and issues that need to reflect a Christ-centered worldview.

 WE COULDN'T DO IT WITHOUT YOU!! 

So consider sharing Silk and Purple with a friend today! Let's see how many young ladies we can reach!

Here are a few of the highlights and best beloved posts of the year! 

• Shades for You
• What does He think?
• The Skirts vs. Pants Post
• The Betrothal and Wedding to Come
• Define Pink
• Baby Steps to Health
• Because it really does matter...
• Thrifty Shopping
• Tomboy
• Handshakes
• Skin Care Sensations 
• Escape
• Make it Magnificent
• Handwritten Notes
• Souls in Fashion
• The Color Wheel

Personal Style Challenge Results!

So we received some lovely stylish outfits for our personal style challenge! Take a look!

LysNicole ~ Here is my entry for the Silk and Purple Personal Style Challenge. I believe these colors fit me best because this is what I usually wear during the fall/winter -- black, gray, & white have always gone good with my skin color and personality.

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Emily ~ I've always been "the girl with the guitar" because I love to play my guitar and I love music. This outfit expresses my style and personality and I hope you all enjoy it!

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Kathryn ~ This outfit is me because it's simple and comfy, and absolutely perfect for collapsing into one of the big Samford library arm chairs and reading some Augustine. Minimal, comfy, and stylish -- this outfit has me, a cup of mocha, and an afternoon of studying all over it.

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By Clara

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By Gracie

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These are some from the Silk and Purple team!!

From: Season

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From: Hope

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From: Meghan

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From: Abby

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Happy Thanksgiving

We hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

As family and friends gather over a hot meal, it's a great time to reflect on the many rich blessings we have been given and our American heritage -- how our ancestors were willing to sacrifice their lives in order to come to a new land to worship God freely. I find it interesting that many people gather to show thankfulness, yet don't know to whom or why they should be thankful. As followers of Christ, we have a special mission this Thanksgiving as we gather with family members who may not know the Lord. Let's practice gratitude in our daily lives so that sharing about Him will shine forth every day!

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Silk and Purple!

We will pick up regular posting Monday, November 26. Until then, don't forget about our challenge.

http://silkandpurple31.blogspot.com/2012/11/personal-style-challenge.html

Welcome, Author!

Let's give three cheers for our newest team member, Megan!

This girl's got an eye for style and sees the world through the lens of her camera. She travels with her family around the world and carries the charm of the South wherever she goes.

We are so excited to have her join us! Keep watch for her posts on everyday style! And be sure to say cheese if she snaps a photo of you. ;)

Check out her blog and business sites!

http://meghanbphotography.blogspot.com

http://www.meghanbphotography.com

Reclaiming Beauty Giveaway (Closed)

Silk and Purple has teamed with Anna Sofia and Elizabeth Botkin to give away one registration to the online webinar series Reclaiming Beauty!

All you need to do to enter is leave a sweet comment on this post and share this giveaway with your friends. Winner will be selected at random, so enter by Thursday, August 30, 2012.

Winner will be announced August 31, 2012.

If you are new to Silk and Purple and like what you see, follow us or like us on Facebook.

What is beauty?

Some say beauty fits in a size 0. Some say beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. Some say beauty is only skin deep. Some say beauty is only a quality of the heart. Some say beauty is truth. Some say beauty is a lie. Some say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Some say beauty is as beauty does. Some say Elizabeth Taylor and Grace Kelly are beautiful. Some say everyone is beautiful. Some say beauty is divine. Some say beauty is corrupting.

From all this confusion, one idea emerges clearly: The world knows beauty matters. They talk a lot about it, write poetry and paint paintings celebrating it, and spend $160 billion dollars a year on it. But what’s equally clear is that they don’t know what it is. The question is: Do we?

Today’s young Christian women have grown up in the most image-obsessed generation in history, a generation that worships some of the most twisted ideals of beauty the world has ever seen. But whether we love them or hate them… they tend to shape our own perceptions of what beauty is. Some of us accept its ideals, and struggle to fit into its mold – others of us are repulsed by it, concluding that physical beauty itself is immodest, worldly, and unspiritual, and reject the realm of beautification completely. But when all we’ve ever seen is the counterfeit the world offers, we can sometimes forget that the world did not create beauty – God did. And though we all know the world has a lot to say about image, we sometimes don’t realize how much God does too.

It’s time to reclaim beauty. For thousands of years, believers, pagans, Gnostics, Humanists, Neo-Platonists, iconoclasts, and creators of culture have battled over this critical turf called “beauty.” Today, we have only to look at who designs the fashions, markets the beauty icons, rules the red carpet, adorns magazine covers, crowns Miss America, and designs clothes-and-makeup advertisements, to know who is currently holding the turf.

It’s time to take beauty back. When faced with an industry that runs on photoshop airbrushing, plastic surgery, starvation diets, grotesque catwalk styles, and billions of squandered dollars, our response can no longer be, “Beauty is not for us.” It’s time for our response to be, “Get your flag out of our ground.” It’s time for us to be a light in a culture that uses beauty as a weapon against God. 

It’s time for God’s ambassadors to make His principles – such as modesty and femininity – look as beautiful as they really are. It’s time for us to show the world: Ugliness is not beauty. Emaciation is not beauty. Androgyny is not beauty. Immodesty is not beauty. Unnatural distortion is not beauty. From Genesis to Revelation, God paints a different picture of the inner and outer beauty of a woman, and it’s time to show the world what it really looks like – one soul, one body, one face, one closet at a time.

Find out more here!

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Winner Announced

8/31/12

McKenna!!!!

"I'm so excited about this webinar! I have posted this on Pinterest and Facebook. It's so nice to find some sisters in Christ around the web. What a blessing this is!!! 
God Bless,
McKenna"

Please contact us to claim your prize!
silknpurpleprov31@gmail.com

Welcome, Authors!

Hope ~ Who doesn't love a little hope in life? Hope is Silk and Purple's youngest team member and what a delight she is. Hope is starting on the path of figuring out this big world we live in and how we are to use God's Word as our guide. She is a young lady of many talents, and as she continues her education she will find more! She is such an encouragement to our younger readers of Silk and Purple and we are blessed to have her post!

Peek into Hope's world and you will find her writing, singing, playing and practicing the violin, writing songs with her sister, working on her schooling, and spending quality time with her family.

Favorite Food: Mac and Cheese

Favorite Animal: Dog

Favorite Color: Lime Green and Hot Pink

Season Sinclair ~ We are are honored to have Season Sinclair join us with all her southern elegance. This young woman knows that hospitality and etiquette protocol are treasures in 2012. As a published author, her writing style is refreshing and oh-so-classic.

A peek into Season Sinclair's life reveals days filled with baking, gardening, tending an orchard, writing, reading, studying, hosting a dinner, sewing, or teaching! 

Rainbow Connection Winner!

Thanks for all the entries! We loved looking at your awesome creations!


Congratulations, Cassie Hope!!!

You did a beautiful job with mixing colors in an oh-so-fab way!

"I chose coral as my main colour because it is so cheerful but also very elegant and classy. It works especially nicely with blues, both bright ones and dark ones, and can absolutely top off any outfit either as a feature colour or as an accent. It can be worn to a special event or merely as a bright and stylish addition to a casual outfit. I paired my coral features mainly with blues, and the overall effect reminds me of beautiful summer and spring colours and is bound to present a cheerful and friendly countenance."

Runner up!

clara-bessie

RED by clara-bessie featuring sailor jeans

Gone Fishin...

...well, maybe not literally, but we will be gone till Tuesday, May 29, 2012.

Miss ya and see ya real soon!

Congrats, Grads!

A BIG congratulations to two of Silk and Purple's grand team for graduating from high school!

Elyse and Nathan

Thank you for all you do!!

Silk and Purple Promo Video

Here it is! Be sure to share this video with all your friends and family!

If you don't have a flash player on your device, be sure to check out our YouTube channel!
Just click YouTube on our sidebar  --->

100!!

Today we celebrate our 100th post!!

We thank our Lord, for He has withheld no good thing, and we thank Him for His guiding light.

A big shout out to our editing master, Mrs. Debbie! Without her grammar-rocking, dictionary-defying brain, we would be oh-so-very lost. 

We can't wait to see what the next 100 posts will bring. We hope to hear more from you and thank you for stopping by and visiting with us :) Be sure to spread the word about Silk and Purple! Grab our button or share us on facebook -- together we can reach young ladies across the country and around the world!

October Baby

Everyone seems to be a movie critic these days. I do not pretend to be one, but whenever an exceptional film comes along, I have to share it with others! If you have never heard of October Baby, then be educated. :) October Baby is a film by the award-winning Erwin Brother. These guys are not new to the filming world, but this is their first full-length feature film. My brother and many friends had the privilege of working on it...  so I might be a little biased ;) Regardless of who worked on this film, it is one of the best faith-based movies I've ever seen.

October Baby tells the story of a young woman, Hannah, who discovers she was adopted after a failed abortion. Her story unfolds as she grapples with her identity and seeks to find her birth mother. As she goes on a journey to discover more than she could ever imagine, Hannah is faced with a decision. Will she choose forgiveness and life?

I was able to see this film several times during its pre-release screenings, and yes, I cried every time. The story, acting, and overall artistic quality are magnificent. October Baby has also opened a ministry to promote life as we fight against a culture of death, called Every Life {Is} Beautiful.

Be sure to find a theater near you as it opens across the nation in 18 days! Let's tell the world we support life!

Find out about the film October Baby here!

Find out about Every Life {Is} Beautiful here!

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Hey October Baby Fans,

Silk and Purple is a blog for young ladies by young ladies!
We take on issues like modesty, identity, beauty, femininity, style, and how to live according to Christ's calling!

If you like what you see, "like" our facebook page and follow this blog! You'll find inspiring posts, practical ideas, and great giveaways! Hope to see you around Silk and Purple!

REAL Girl ~ Runway Show

Thursday, March 29

6:30 — 8:30 p.m.

Hors d'oeuvres & Free Admission

Spring fashions provided by

®

What a great event! Be sure to mark your calender for this event at Briarwood PCA in Birmingham, AL. The team of Silk and Purple is sure to be there! More information to come.

Visit Briarwood's site here!

Tea with the Queen ~ Winners

We had a three-way tie! Here are the three winners of Tea with the Queen! Thank you to all who entered. You impressed us!

Isabella

Heidi

Danika age 8

Tea with the Queen

What would you wear if Queen Elizabeth and Princess Kate asked you to tea?

Here is a challenge! Visit this site and create an inspiration board with an outfit you would wear to have tea with the Queen! Select dresses, hats, shoes, and so much more! Tell us why you would wear this outfit!

Send your outfit to us via email by Monday, February 27, 2012, no later than 11:59 p.m. CST. We will select the winner and post your outfit on Silk and Purple for all to see! 

Have fun and tell your friends! Here is what I might wear...

Here is the site again: http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/app

Here is my email: missabby@silkandpurple31.com

Thank You!

We just reached 50 followers via blogger!! Thank you for your following and for spreading the word!

We want to know!

We've been public for two months and want more of your lovely feedback!

Leave a general comment, a topic you'd like us to tackle, or a question you might want answered!

Also, Silk and Purple is looking for sponsors! If you have an online store, Etsy shop, local business, or blog, visit our Spectacular Sponsors and Lovely Links page to find out more. 

Remember you can reach any of our team at:

silknpurpleprov31@gmail.com

Or to contact Abby or Elyse personally:

missabby@silkandpurple31.com

misselyse@silkandpurple31.com

Be sure to grab Silk and Purple's button on the sidebar and add it to your blog or website. We depend on you to pass on Silk and Purple to many young ladies and are so thankful for all who have been sharing and supporting this ministry!

We give thanks to the Lord for opening many new doors and for closing the ones that are not in His perfect plan. All we have need of His hand will provide, for His faithfulness is abounding. Please keep Silk and Purple in your prayers as we will be praying for you, that your life will penetrate this dark world.

grateful,

New Vlog Post

For more information about our biggest giveaway, click here.

Hurry! Time is running short!