Winter is in full-force here in the American South and many of us, including Atlanta, are buried in snow. So what could be better to thaw off those cold toes than a sneak peak at the hot new Spring 2011 Stella & Dot Designer Jewelry collection?

With design influences from Morocco, Brazil and Palm Beach, Stella & Dot’s new designs definitely get the party started.

Get a new Spring 2011 Catalog today! Email me at belle@auraleigh.com or view the Online Catalog Flip Book. Shop the Boutique today!

Shop the Pink Boutique and 20% of net proceeds will be donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Stella & Dot has brought back their famous Pink Boutique to help the fight against breast cancer.

As the daughter and granddaughter of breast cancer survivors, I “think pink” all year long, but especially in October.  And as the mother of a young daughter, this cause has taken on a whole new meaning for me lately. The search for the cure becomes more urgent for me as I watch her grow and get a little older each year.

This year’s Pink Boutique features the Stella & Dot signature Breast Cancer Awareness charm, the rose quartz briolette charm, and the inspiring “hope”, “heal”, “faith” and “love” charms, all in gold or silver.  Also featured is the pink silk charm base with a silver-plated heart charm to use as a necklace or bracelet to add more charms to as you like for your own custom Pink Boutique piece. And with each purchase, 20% of net proceeds from the Pink Boutique will be donated by Stella & Dot to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. But hurry – the Pink Boutique closes it’s doors on October 31, 2010.

Have you or someone you know been affected by breast cancer? Tell your story here in the Comments below, then share your story everyday by wearing your Pink Boutique charms.

Shop til you drop and win a Stella & Dot Soiree Bracelet!

Just because we’re in the middle of a national economic recession doesn’t mean you can’t look oh-so-fabulous. Every smart Belle knows that half the fun of shopping is getting a great deal on something gorgeous. And here’s your chance! The posh Hamilton Mill Women’s Consignment Sale is back with more designer brands than ever! Coach, Alfani, Louie Vuitton, Jones New York, Anne Taylor, Shelly Segal and many, many more top name brands will be there. The Sale starts Tuesday, September 21, 2010 from 5-9PM, then runs Wednesday through Friday from 9:30AM to 1PM with a 50% off sale Saturday from 9AM to 2PM at the Dacula Kids Village at 1152 Auburn Road, Suite 107, Dacula, GA 30019.

How would you like to get a sneak peek at the exclusive Seller’s Preview from 5-8PM on Monday, September 20, 2010? Then raid your closet, ladies, for your gently-worn in-style clothes, shoes or jewelry and bring them in to sell. You can earn a little extra money to keep or to spend on more beautiful goodies. Learn more about how to become a Seller…it’s easy!

A stylish event like this is just too good to keep secret, so help spread the word: Tell all the stylish gals you know (and the guys who want to buy them gifts…remember the holidays are coming soon!) And if you post this article to your Facebook or Twitter status, you’ll be registered to win a gorgeous Stella & Dot Soiree Bracelet to be given away at the sale. So get online to spread the word, clean out your closet and get ready to shop ’til you drop!

The original Divine Unruly Girls

If you’re looking around the South this Fall for some oh-so-very naughty girls, come to Atlanta to see the infamous divine unruly girls of the Moulin Rouge. The Atlanta Ballet is kicking off the 2010-11 arts season with their opulant production of this fiery cabaret love story set in 1880′s bohemian Paris. Only one other ballet company – the Canadian Royal Winnipeg Ballet – has adapted this French burlesque classic for ballet.

The story was born in Pierre La Mure’s novel, published in 1950, and centered on the life of French Post-Impressionist artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec who frequented the raucous Parisian nightclub. In 1952 John Huston wrote and directed the movie Moulin Rouge starring Jose Ferrer and Zsa Zsa Gabor. In 2001, Baz Luhrmann released Moulin Rouge! with Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor.

The Atlanta Ballet’s production – which does not include a painfully crooning McGregor or an overly batty-eyed Kidman - follows the tasty entanglements of aspiring artist Matthew, the young launderette Nathalie, and Zidler the nightclub owner. This performance of Moulin Rouge runs October 22-31, 2010. Get your tickets today and see how entrancing French girls who don’t follow rules can be – en pointe.

The New Stella & Dot Fall Collections are here! This year we celebrate strong women, rich cultures and exotic design. Founder and CEO, Jessica Herrin – named one of Inc. Magazine’s Top 10 Women Entrepreneurs for 2010 – puts it best when she describes the new line:

• The Vintage Luxe Collection is couture for everyday, paying homage to the details like you do.
• The Metro Chic Collection puts an edgy twist on femininity with lots of dimension.
• The Day to Night Collection multitasks as much as you do, wearing as gorgeously with denim as with a little black dress.
• The La Coco Collection is your own style statement that you create with versatile, mix-and-match chains, strands, and brooches.
• The Little Girls Collection is a whimsical tribute to the little girl in your life who matters most and her growing sense of style.

It’s finally here! Stella & Dot just introduced their Little Girl’s Collection just in time for Mother’s Day. There’s even a gorgeous set of pearls, just for the little Belle in your life. After all, every Southern Belle needs pearls to wear, no matter how old she is! To celebrate, I cordially invite you to our Mommy & Me Online Trunk Show>>

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March is National Women's History Month

This month we celebrate National Women’s History Month. In 1980, President Jimmy Carter – a truly Rogue Southern Gentleman – declared the week of  March 8 to be Women’s History Week.  Then in 1987, Congress very wisely expanded Women’s History Week to include the entire month of March.

The fuel behind this fire has been the National Women’s History Project, whose mission is to recognize the achievements of women in all areas of life – science, community, government, literature, art, sports, business and medicine.  Founded in 1980, they are celebrating their 30th anniversary with the theme “Writing Women Back into History”.

Here at the Rogue Southern Belle, we will celebrate National Women’s History Month by honoring some of the women of the South who have made incredible contributions to our lives. I’m thrilled to announce that we will be featuring some of these women as Honorary Rogue Belles and telling their story to the world so that they can be recognized.

So here’s our question to you: Famous, infamous or obscure – who is the one woman who has made the most difference in your life? Tell us your answer in the Comments section below or email me@roguesouthernbelle.com We may feature your female hero as an Honorary Rogue Belle!

My Southern Belle Instructor

I called my grandmother Mema. She was born Mildred Franklin Brannen. As Southern tradition dictates, she was given her mother’s maiden name as her middle name. My parents continued the tradition (but skipped a generation) and gave me her maiden name, Brannen, to fit between my first and last names. This explains why so many Southern girls have boy’s middle names, in case you were wondering.

She was my father’s mother and she was responsible for making sure I understood all the rules for being a proper Southern Belle. And she had beautiful, big blue eyes. I was the first grandchild and had hazel green eyes. She always told me that I had Dada’s green eyes. Dada was her husband – my grandfather – whom I never knew because he was killed in a tragic tractor accident while working our family farm at Denhamville when my father was only 12 years old and my uncle, 8. Both my father and uncle inherited Mema’s blue, blue eyes. Growing up, I could always tell if Dad was angry (and hence I should make myself scarce) because those blue eyes would become pale, almost white. I’ve researched it and learned that the phenomenon of blue eyes turning pale is due to the blood pressure spike that occurs during anger or fear…part of the fight-or-flight response.

My two younger brothers both inherited my Mom’s intense brown eyes, and my son and daughter were both born with hazel eyes. But my son’s eyes turned brown before he was one year old, while my daughter’s eyes turned from hazel to brown when she was six years old. I had thought for sure that she would’ve kept those green eyes after 6 years but alas, it was not to be. My uncle’s oldest daughter, Kaly, has Mema’s beautiful blue eyes and his son, Jeremy, has the hazel eyes like me. My uncle’s little twin daughters, Jenna & Kayla, have the blue eyes and show no sign of them changing color now that they’re 6 years old, so I guess it’s just me and Jeremy to carry on Dada’s hazel eyes.

Have you been able to keep track so far? Good. Because family history and relationships are very important here in the South. Mema made sure I understood that, too. However, I’m pretty sure that my Mema’s been rolling over in her grave for several years now, ever since I went “rogue”.  That was her prediction in case I violated one of those proper Southern Belle rules – “And when I’m long dead and gone, I’ll just roll over in my grave if I catch you doing [blank].”

I miss my Mema. I wear her wedding band as part of my wedding set. I touch it every day and think of her.