Heard of Silly Bandz? If you live in the Mid-west or the East Coast you have, no doubt.  All of us on the West Coast are just now catching up.  (I was just talking to a family from England who hadn't heard of them yet - YOU'RE NEXT, CHAPS!)  We heard about them earlier this year and brought them into the store, crossing our fingers that they'd find an audience.  Ummmm....the audience found them.  AND HOW.

It's totally taken off.  I've seen four year olds have melt downs in the store.  I've seen high-schoolers deliberate over which type to buy.  Vacationing parents loading up on souvenirs to take home, skeptical tourists buy them recluctantly.  I KNOW they are glad they did.

They are simply rubberbands.  In the shape of stuff.  On your wrist.  That's it.

Kids trade them and collect them, schools have banned them, the guy who invented them? A ba-jillionaire.

We've got them in the following themes (ranging from $4.95 to $6.95 a pack):

Snack Foods

Doggies

Princess

Beach

Zoo Animals

Sealife

Pirate

Glam

Glamour

Dinosaur

Tools

Vogue

Rock n Rebel

Africa 

I'm not sure which part of this new product I'm excited about most: the actual gorgeous earrings themselves, the fact that buying a pair means you're supporting a tree-plantin' Colorado artist, or the fact that he is working with cool, space-like biodomes that are planning on saving the Earth.

First, the earrings.  These are beautiful, lightweight wooden earrings that are handmade from furniture-grade wood veneers like cherry, mahongany, and maple.  They range from about 1 1/2" diameter circles to 2" long rectangles, they all dangle from sterling silver hooks.

                     

Then there's the fact that for every pair you purchase, the artist, John Murphree, will plant a tree.  Murphree works in Englewood, Colorado, and is inspired by "the organic shapes in nature, sacred geometry, popular icons and traditional design motifs such as Art Deco or Medieval."

Finally, he is planting all these trees in cooperation with the Eden Project in Cornwall, England.  This place was built in 2000 on top of an old china clay quarry.  It's mission is to educate people about our dependence on nature and different ways to save it.  They want us to realize that making environmental changes is both "believable and palatable."  They do this by experimenting in horticulture, natural pest & disease control, and controlled climate.  Put it this way: this place is so cool that it hosted "Live 8" in 2005.

Click on the photo above to see their site... 

These earrings are flying out of the store at $13.95 a pair. 

If anyone is looking for new "feel-cools" this summer, look no further.  Urban Girl carries several brands of sunglasses including Crush, Kreed, RayBan, and our newest brand: Suncloud.  Suncloud makes sunglasses with high-quality polarized lenses and a low price for the consumer. I interviewed myself about them this morning.

WHAT ARE POLARIZED LENSES?

Through advanced lens technology, Suncloud polarized lenses selectively filter horizontally reflected, visually interfering light waves know as 'glare'. The elimination of direct and ambient glare results in superior visual clarity, definition, color transmissions and optical comfort.

SO WHAT ELSE MAKES THEM SPECIAL?

Suncloud frames and lenses feature 8 base curvatures, enabling the frame and lens to wrap on the wearer's face. 8 base frames provide added protection from annoying side glare and environmental elements such as wind, dust and particulate matter.

 

ANYTHING ELSE?

The plastic-framed Sunclouds sell for $59.99, and the wire-rimmed styles sell for $69.99.  That price is pratically unheard of when purchasing polarized lenses.

REALLY, JANNA?  REALLY?

Yep.  I was a skeptic.  I liked my cheapies from Target just fine.  But the Suncloud rep gave me a pair to test and now I am a total convert.  I've been mistaking a dark lens for added protection, but not the case!  With polarized lenses, there is no glare from the bright sun.  Which means NO SQUINTING!!!  Which means MORE VISIBILTY!!!  And the frames are of great quality.  The screws are sturdy, the arms are strong, and they fit my face perfectly.

ANY DRAWBACKS?

Just one that I can think of: since my lenses aren't so dark, you can see my eyes through them.  Which means I need to stop being so shifty all the time.

ARE YOU KIDDING ABOUT THAT?

Yes...sorta.

I LIKE YOUR SHIRT.

Thanks.

Oilcloth has been around for a long time, originally used for utilitarian things like waterproof tents and tablecloths.  Originally, in the early 1900s, it was made from a heavy cotton or linen cloth with a linseed oil coating.  After the 50s, however, it was made from a flannel material with a vinyl coating.  With the creation of other waterproof products, the use of old-fashioned oilcloth subsided just like Grandma's recipe for homemade brownies.  However, in 1995, woman-owned Oilcloth International, Inc. started in Los Angeles.  It imports oilcloth from Mexico and contracts with local manufacturers to make the products that we know and love all over again (just ask Martha Stewart!).

To celebrate the arrival of Spring, as well as our newest shipment of oilcloth, there is a cheery display waiting for you at the front door of Urban Girl.

Small pouch: $8.95

Lunch bags: $12.95

Pocket Tote: $16.95

Medium Tote: $19.95

Large Tote: $24.95

These bags are perfect for the beach, the park, kid stuff, traveling, art supplies, lunches, picnics, even purses!  Give us a call, or drop us a note on Facebook if we can send any to you!  (619) 231.8845

See below for some of the awesome patterns!

(taken from www.annetaintor.com)

In 1985, Anne Taintor glued the words “intellectuals gone bad” onto an advertisement clipped from a vintage magazine and featuring a pair of proper and glamorous women. Twenty-five years later, what began as one woman’s attempt to make a living working from home while caring for her young daughter has become a thriving and wholly original business based on giving voice to modern women’s secretly subversive thoughts.

(click on the bag to buy one from Urban Girl!) 

Among the new products to be introduced in 2010 is the 25th Anniversary Shopper, a commemorative 15.7” x 15. 5” shopping bag made of 100-percent
recycled materials and featuring images of dozens of the most popular Anne Taintor illustrations from the past 25 years. A perfect gift for anyone who’s had
trouble choosing just one image—now they’re there in a single product. Best of all, 100 percent of the profits from sales of the 25th Anniversary Shopper will be donated to the Global Fund for Women, an organization that shares Anne Taintor’s drive to give voice to and improve opportunities for women everywhere.

OK, Christmas is San Diego was GORGEOUS, but even we have our cold days.  The perfect footwear for that is a pair of good ol' Uggs.  I remember getting my first pair in the mid-90s and lugging them back to New York for a visit.  The confused looks I got told me that the look hadn't gotten far from the West Coast yet.  But NOW!  Everyone loves'em. 

The look is classic Australian/Californian Apres-Surf.  Here's a bit from their website:

The UGG® Australia story began in 1978, when Brian Smith, a young surfer from Australia, took a trip to the United States with a bag full of sheepskin boots. After finding a new home amongst California surfers, the Australia brand began to take shape...In 2003, the UGG® was named Footwear News' "Brand of the Year" and was responsible for the creation of an entirely new category of footwear. From that moment on, sheepskin footwear would be seen on the runways in Milan, Paris and New York; and it all began on the beach in Australia. 

Of course, Urban Girl has a selection in the store and on-line.  Click on the picture below to see our collection.  (By the way - the Moss style that the model is wearing is now 30% off!) 

"For the last 21 years Africa’s longest running war has ravaged the northern regions of Uganda, home to the Acholi people. Over 2 million people fled their homes to seek safety. Some made it as far as Uganda’s capital city, Kampala, where they could only find refuge in a hillside slum, now called Acholi Quarters.

Acholi Beads are made by these refugees living in the Acholi Quarters slum. As they struggle to rebuild their lives, the sale of Acholi Beads provides a vital income and helps share their story with the world.

The beads are made from recycled paper from local printers. They are made by men and women whose families are, in the terminology of international aid and development, ‘vulnerable.’ This means that they don’t have a safety net. If something goes wrong they don’t eat, don’t get medicine, don’t go to school. Acholi Beads are made by 10 people from such families and are helping them go from vulnerable to successful."

I just bought a new Chanel lip gloss.  It is a bit pricey, but it looks great and lasts!  Sometimes it is fun to treat yourself to an expensive lip gloss. This one is called Eclipse and will set ya back about $26.