Picture Perfect: Blue Diamonds, Red Tulip

Blue Diamonds, Red Tulip (Photo Credit: Bella Q)

Taken with an iPhone. 

You can see more of my street-shot pics on Instagram: @rosebudz

You can also view my Instagrams online via Extragram by clicking HERE.

Boyfriend Sweater, Joan Jett Tee + Me

This photo is soooo NOT about fashion, is it? Above you see the outfit I pretty much wore everyday this month. The sweater, I wrote about HERE. The shirt was a companion gift from the boyfriend, a perfectly worn-in super soft 1970's vintage Joan Jett concert T-shirt. It's pretty fucking cool. I HEART my boyfriend sweater and concert tee; not in a stylish sort of way, but in a sentimental sort of way. Which is one of the greatest things about vintage + favorite garments, they comes with memories but leave  room for you to make some more. 

Speaking of room, I'll be taking some time off the blog for a bit. I'll been busy moving into my new home. Yeah! I got a great new job, and now a fantastic new set of digs! This weekend all my things were trucked down from California- thanks Mom!) and now I need to unpack and set up the casa. So no bloggy for bit, but I'll be back, and I can't wait to show you my new place!  

See you on the first, friends.       -Bella Q

Pub Crawl to Raise Pints + Money for Charity

Hey Sactowners!

On the evening of Saturday, April 28th, you can drink in the name of a good cause. My pal Cassie Ramos, of Mornings on Fire has put together a great event to benefit Save Ourselves, Sacramento's very own breast cancer organization, and the Citizen Rosebud is one of the proud sponsors of this event. It's a charitable Pub Crawl, with 100% of ticket proceeds going to the Save Ourselves organization.

Founded in 1991, Save Ourselves is the breast cancer organization of Sacramento. It is a community-based, non-profit organization, providing support, education and advocacy services to women and their families affected by breast cancer. All Save Ourselves services are provided at no cost. Cassie's own mother is a survivor and thanks to the assistance and support of Save Ourselves is celebrating her fifth year of being cancer-free. In honor of this milestone, Cassie decided to help give back to this Sacramento-based charity.

It's $6 dollars per ticket for the Raise Pints to Raise Hope event.

This Crawl features premiere bars in the Downtown and Midtown area. All proceeds go directly to Save Ourselves, so grab your favorite drinking buddies and reserve your tickets today. 

Raise Pints to Raise Hope

Saturday, April 28th. 8:00 pm-midnight. 

Six bucks.

Mark your calenders, and raise a pint for this worthy cause.

You buy your ticket online, and print your ticket at home. You'll need to bring it, along with your valid Driver's license or State ID to the participating bars to get access to drink specials offered exclusively to the Raise Pints to Raise Hope participants. Be sure to bring cab fare, or a designated driver to ensure a safe ride home. And wear your pink apparel to show your support for the cause. The more the merrier, so please, invite your friends!

To purchase tickets for the Raise Pints to Raise Hope Pub Crawl, click HERE.

For live, up-to-date info on the event follow them on Twitter: @RaisePints 

Earth Day Weekend- SALE at Never Felt Better

This Friday, Saturday, Sunday AND Monday, the Citizen is celebrating Earth Day Weekend by having a blow-out sale at Never Felt Better. Want to shop secondhand first? Do it vintage and vegan style, with the Citizen Rosebud vegan collection exclusively at the Never Felt Better Vegan Shop in Sacramento, California. Take FORTY PERCENT OFF all Citizen Rosebud vintage- so bike, walk or run over to Never Felt Better and grab that 1960's calico jumper you've had your eye on since last Monday.

Don't forget the FRINGE- grab your favorite vintage Citizen frock and take 15% off when you say "Sophia" at check-out. 

Happy Earth Day Weekend, everybody!                                                -Bella Q

Blogger Meet-Up (the Seattle edition)

Bella, Lindsay, Chelsea, Elyse, Catie, Vivienne + Jean posing during our Seattle Blogger meet-up.

Earlier this month, I was fortunate enough to join handful of stylish chicas at a Seattle Style Bloggers meet-up. Organized by personal style blogger (and school teacher!) Lindsay of Lindsay Living, this group meets almost monthly to mix and mingle, talk blog-shop, fashion and just hang out. Thanks to the charming Jean of Jean of All Trades (whom I discovered on Etsy- you can check out her Etsy shop HERE,) I was invited to join the group, and right on time for a scheduled meet-up! 

We met in Capitol Hill at the evenly cool and chic Oddfellows Cafe, and chatted over coffee + various breakfast goodies. Sweet faces and stylish frocks awaited me; I was charmed by each one. It was a clique of all ages, ranging from the almost 16 Elyse to the plus 40 and fabulous Jean, with most falling in somewhere between and looking very twenty-something. While everyone's style is very different, we all share a common passion for fashion.  After our coffee talk, Lindsay played tour guide, showing us some great shop spots including a brand new vintage shop recently opened in the neighborhood,  AND the gi-normously grand Red Light Vintage.

Let me introduce you to some of the stylish souls that I met at the Oddfellows Cafe-

Meet the Seattle Style Bloggers:

Uncommon Goods

Happy Wednesday, peeps! 

I've got a guest post over at the blog for Uncommon Goods today. Please give it a visit and see some great shots of me and my Circle clutch touring Seattle! You can read my guest post HERE.

*Uncommon Goods is a Brooklyn based online marketplace offering "creatively designed, high-quality merchandise at affordable prices."  It just so happens that they are also sustainably minded and ethically produced. Uncommon Goods offers items for the men, women and babies, as well as items for the home, garden and office. You can visit their marketplace at:

uncommongoods.com

Guest Post: Jill Burgess, Everything Just So

Hi everyone, I’m Jill and I write Everything Just So and I’m excited to contribute a guest post for Bella! Can we talk about her for a moment?

Last September when I found out that she was attending the NYC IFB Conference and was literally staying around the corner from me in Brooklyn (what are the odds?), I jumped at the chance to not only meet her but to introduce her to the F train we’d have to take to the pre-IFB Con cocktail party happening in Manhattan.

It was raining. I was nervous. I arrived at the corner we agreed to meet on and when I saw her framed under her umbrella I thought: She is tall. She is glamorous. She is gorgeous! It took me about two seconds to learn she was something else—one of the most charming people you could ever meet. I am normally shy when it comes to meeting someone new but Bella put me at instant ease as we rode the train into the city and when we met up with all the lovely bloggers at the Mandarin Oriental I watched her work her magic in the room. It’s quite possible she met everybody there that night, each time I looked around for her she was chatting with a different person (please teach me this skill, Bella!); she’s so friendly and giving of herself that you can’t help giving all that love right back to her.

This essay is supposed to be about place and this is relevant when talking about Bella because what I learned about her when I met her is that she is living her motto—she blooms where she’s planted. Come back to Brooklyn anytime, Bella, we’d love to have you!

Crowded on the weekends, the path to Grand Army plaza is gloriously empty on a Monday afternoon.

Color Blocked Bella

The New Kid on the (Color) Block. One spring trend that has taken the interwebs by storm is the Color Block. I'm not sure why this one-two-one-two pow! of a bright color combo just feels right- is this over-the-top expression of optimism the antidote to our sunken (but hopefully on the rise) economy? This season, bright on bright is THE THING, and I couldn't think of a better pairing for a color-block-party than cardinal red and robin's egg blue. The blouse is a vintage top that was re-worked: a navy blue net-lace border was added to the bottom for a bonus block of color. The simple sundress, a stunner in bright red looks brand new, it's yet another amazing score from the Goodwill. I'll be posting the blouse for sale in my ETSY store, so if you're interested, shoot me a message and I'll reserve it for you.

Fashion Blogger Sighting: La Sophia

Who was spotted shopping at the FRINGE a while back, in my heady Sactown days playing shopgirl at my favorite local boutique? None other than the gloriously gorgeous and lovely Sophia, a fellow Nor-Cal girl and style blogger for La Sophia, that's who!

I snapped these photos a forever ago, one Sunday afternoon when this lovely stopped by with her handsome b-friend, Nacho.  Aren't they a handsome couple?

If you haven't done so already, take a moment and check out Sophia's blog: she has such a great style and is a vintage/thrift store maven! Her latest outfit posts feature polka pallazos, black + white batik, and a floral romper.

lasophialasophia.blogspot.com

Product Review: Hollywood Fashion Tape

The byline for the Hollywood Fashion Secrets product line reads "From the Red Carpet to real life...wear every outfit with style and confidence." Well, we all know I'm not a red carpet gal, don't we? But I do appreciate confidence and style, so I was willing to try Hollywood Fashion Tape when the nice ladies of Hollywood Fashion Secrets sent me a sampling of their products. Hollywood Fashion Secrets has a whole line of products designed to produce confidence for you and your outfits. There are 3 practical categories of goods are available to save the day: Keep Your Clothes On, Bodacious Breasts, and Fresh Face. My favorite + most indispensable item in the bunch is the Hollywood Fashion Tape.

They call it Secret No. 1, and the “The Original” Hollywood Fashion Tape: an easy-to-use, clear double-stick apparel and body tape. The 3M adhesive is gentle on skin, hypoallergenic and leaves no residue on fabrics. It’s also more discreet and fabric-friendly than safety pins. Hollywood Fashion Tape is useful for both everyday and special occasions.  You get 36 pre-cut pieces of tape that are a 1/2 inch in width and 3 inches in length, in a charming metal box. Each strip of tape contains a removable backing on each side. You simply peel the backing from one side of the tape, press the tape firmly to your skin or fabric, remove the other backing, and apply the item to be secured. I found the tape easy to use, and very versatile.

You can order your Hollywood Fashion Tape by clicking HERE.

Disclosure: I received complimentary product from Hollywood Fashion Secrets in order to write this review.

The Patchwork Hooded Cape by Lindsay Rickman

One-of-A-Kind: Patchwork Hooded Cape by Textile Artist Lindsay Rickman

This is the only photo in my possession my premier modeling stint for the Bows and Arrows Hooded Cape Fashion Show. Of the four score and seven photographers that swarmed the joint, there's been no hide nor hair of any photos, or videos to commemorate the event. So I post this lonely iPhone pic that someone snapped while I was outside waiting for my turn on the catwalk. Lindsay did an incredible job creating her capes- this one is a beautifully worked patchwork made out of recycled fabrics, with a grey jersey lining. If there's ever any real photos or videos of the show, I'll be sure to post them here on the Citizen. 

Lindsay Rickman is a Sacramento-based textile artist and a devoted supporter and sponsor of the 'Bud. If you'd like to show your support of this incredibly adorable + original artist, please do so by "LIKING" her Facebook fan page. You can do so by clicking HERE.

UPDATE: Lindsay has been selected to be a featured fashion designer for the upcoming LAUNCH, Sacramento's amazing design/music/fashion festival. For more information on this buzz-worthy event, check out the LAUNCH website at: 54321launch.wordpress.com

TRENDING: Sunshine Yellow!

Trending for Spring: Sunshine Yellow (photo source)

One of the "IT" colors for Spring of 2012 seems to be yellow. Not a mellow yellow, mind you, but acid bright-bright as day-yellow. Canary not contrary, this slice of sunshine may be easier to wear than you think.
Observe: 

Daydream on this daffodil hued dress from the Creatures of the Wind Spring Collection.

Ok, you might be asking a few questions, well no worries! I've got some answers.

Bella in the Basement

Notes from the Underground.  My name is Bella and I live in a basement. I've been feeling a bit off as of late, trying to get adjusted to my new environment. As you may know, as I may have told you, I've recently re-located from the sunny climes of California to the rain adorned surroundings of the Pacific Northwest. I did it for a dude. A dude I like. A lot. That said, I'm thinking I did it for more than just that reason. I was struggling in my previous situation, I wasn't thriving. I'm now seeking to make a life for myself in which I flourish. I'm not sure that I'm flourishing at the moment; I only know that I've bought the existential equivalent of a lottery ticket. Hoping to hit the jackpot. 

Meet the Sponsors: April 2012

A big thank you to those who read this blog! 
And a hearty shout-out to the lovely folks who show their support by sponsorship. 

The Citizen Rosebud would like to especially thank the generosity of the following  sponsors: 

• Fringe
• Lindsay Rickman, Artist
• Martin Mattox
• Front Row Spectator 
• Funkoma Vintage
• Karina Dresses 
• Oasap
• The Style Confessions
• United Styles 

+ a big hug to my those dear friends and citizen angels,
who without a a business to plug have shown their support! Thank-you!