My gal pal Sonya and I at Birmingham's Fashion's Night Out

One night a year people all around the world get together to party in the name of fashion. This global shopping event, known as Fashion's Night Out, was first launched in 2008 and coordinated in the U.S. by Vogue magazine, the Council of Fashion Designers of America, NYC & Company and the City of New York. It's been called “the best fashion party in history."  And last night the party made its way to Birmingham. (You can read my preview story on Birmingham's Fashion's Night Out here on Magic City Post.)

The Magic City made me proud with its celebration of Fashion's Night Out. I was very impressed that style mavens had options. Instead of there being a single event at one shopping mall, there were specials at the Summit, Colonial Brookwood Village and at a number of locally-owned boutiques in downtown Homewood. 

My gal pal Sonya and I decided to go to the Summit for the evening. We left with a goodie bag full of samples from fragrance and cosmetics counters at Saks and got a great deal on some purchases at Juicy Couture. J. Crew was giving out free gourmet popsicles from Steel City Pops and I nearly fainted when I saw the cupcakes from New York City's Magnolia Bakery at Belk. 

Megan LaRussa discussing some of fall fashion trends

Belk also featured a special presentation by Megan LaRussa of Southern Femme on fall fashion trends. Three of the key style statements you'll see this season at Belk are: My Fair Lady, Town and Country,and Vivid. 

Layering a peplum dress with a feminine silk top is an easy and elegant way to achieve the My Fair Lady look. Add a metallic clutch and you're ready to hit the town. 

"Every woman should own a metallic clutch," LaRussa said. "It's a great way to take your look from day to night." 

The My Fair Lady Style Statement

If you're into the Town & Country look, LaRussa said Ralph Lauren is the brand for you. And if you've been skeptical of the colored jeans trend, try a pair in an autumn hue. 

And, of course, you can't go wrong with tall boots over skinny jeans. 

The Vivid look is all about mixing and matching colors in fresh, new, and unexpected ways. So be bold and sport a teal jacket with a red top and a neon clutch. 

I left Birmingham's Fashion's Night Out with many ideas on how to update my wardrobe for fall, but what's more important is that I left feeling good about my city. My friend and I had so much fun at this event proving to me once again that Birmingham really does know how to show a girl a good time. 

Hey, babes! Check out my latest article for Magic City Post. Be sure to pass this on to anyone interested in creating a fashion career in the South. 


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Alabama may not be home to any of the cities dubbed fashion capitals of the world, but that’s not stopping Megan LaRussa from turning her passion for fashion and sense of style into a successful career. LaRussa runs the website SouthernFemme.com and is a style coach and fashion event planner. She also writes a monthly style feature for Birmingham Magazine.

While some may think Alabama is an unlikely place to carve out a career in fashion, LaRussa has found Alabama to be the perfect stage on which to style her professional goals.

“We as Southerners take pride in our heritage and ourselves and thus dress accordingly,” LaRussa said. “Southern women, for the most part, take pride in their appearance and enjoy getting dressed up in feminine pieces like sundresses.  Take college football games as a prime example.  Southern women dress to the nines for these games, while in other parts of the country women simply wear jeans and their team’s jersey.”

You can read the complete article at Magic City Post. 

Hey, babes! Check out my latest article for Magic City Post. 


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Runner Olivia Affuso has completed a 50K North Face Endurance race, she’s an associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and she has a Ph.D. from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  Yet, even with all those accomplishments, she says one of her proudest moments is actually starting a local running club called Black Girls RUN!

According to the Centers for Disease Control, nearly 45 percent of African-American adults are obese. Black Girls RUN! is a grassroots effort to tackle the growing obesity epidemic in the African-American community by providing encouragement and resources to both new and veteran runners.

“My goal as a researcher has been to find ways to help individuals become more physically active and reduce their risks of developing chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, and heart disease,” Affuso said. “This has been a difficult proposition in the past, but there is something about the BGR social running movement that just motivates our women to get moving.  And I think it’s group identification - seeing someone that looks like you doing something active.”

The Birmingham group is a spinoff of a larger grassroots effort which began in New York City in 2009.  Toni Carey and Ashley Hicks, the founders of the NYC group, have seen the organization spread into 29 states and the District of Columbia.  Affuso contacted them last August about starting a Birmingham chapter. 

Jeralyn Powell, an active runner since 2008, joined Affuso and together they launched the Birmingham group that same month hosting its first run on August 20.

Currently, Black Girls RUN! Birmingham has over 800 women signed up for its Facebook group and has accomplished a lot in its short lifetime. The group had eight teams participate in the Mercedes-Benz Marathon Relay and at least another five members who completed the Mercedes Half Marathon.

You can read the complete article at Magic City Post. 

Hey babes, I'm freelancing for Magic City Post now! I recently had the chance to write about an issue that many of your know is near and dear to my heart. Check it out!

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Team Katie at Walk for Lupus Now Birmingham

When Katie Held tells someone that she has lupus the response is typically, “What is that?”

This is one reason why Held has been striving to raise awareness of the disease and to raise funds for its cure through the Walk for Lupus Now Birmingham event. The event is the Lupus Foundation of America, Mid-South Chapter’s largest fundraiser to support programs and services for lupus patients in Alabama. This year’s walk will take place Saturday, June 9 at Heardmont Park, located at 5452 Cahaba Valley Road.

May is Lupus Awareness Month, a great time for not only the Lupus Foundation of America (LFA), but also for people like Held to educate others about the disease.

Lupus is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory disease that can affect various parts of the body, especially the skin, joints, blood and kidneys. Held calls lupus an “invisible disease” because oftentimes there are few visible signs that a person with lupus is sick.

“It is a hard disease to have because everyone thinks you look fine, but you feel terrible,” Held said. “I try every day to smile through the pain and fatigue. Sometimes people have no idea I am having a bad day.”

Finish reading this article at Magic City Post.