Showing posts with label Breakthrough Breast Cancer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Breakthrough Breast Cancer. Show all posts

Breakthrough Breast Cancer AW13 Fashion, Accessories and Homewears collections

Next Tuesday, the 1st of October marks the beginning of Breast Cancer Awareness month here in the UK so its a great time to show your support for the great work that this and other Breast Cancer charities do to help us have a Future Free from Breast Cancer, a World Free from Breast Cancer.  
You may remember our recent post about our trip to the Breakthrough Breast Cancer HQ and the Great Pink Bake Off? Well, the other reason we were invited up to BtBC HQ was to view their Autumn/Winter Fashion and home accessories lines. Breakthrough are always working hard to get the best brands on board to donate a percentage of the retail price of these products to their charity and this season was no exception. From brands they had worked with before like Ghd and Debenhams to newer homeware lines from Sainsbury's and Laura Ashley, to accessories from Stella and Dot, it was a sea of pink glamour. 

We were treated to lunch of wraps and yummy sandwiches from Tossed, the healthy sandwich company.

After a healthy snack we got to view the vintage/shabby chic homewares from Sainsbury's and Laura Ashley which were some of our favourites, I loved these trio of white baskets from Sainsbury's...

and the floral bird wall paper by Laura Ashley.

These pretty mugs would be perfect for those late night cosy hot chocolates. 

A new addition to the group is the U.S. based Galmglow who have produced a special edition mud mask, which smelled lovely, can't wait to get my hands on some of that and have a pamper day. Long time partners Avon have produced a Viva Pink nail colour and the Avon crusade pink pin.

Ghd have been working with Breakthrough for a few years now and every year they donate money from their sales of their limited edition Pink styling wands to the charity. This years metallic magenta pink paired with a paddle brush may mean that I am purchasing a new pair! There is also £20 off if you use the code 'GHD20' £10 still goes to BtBC.

Another long time partner of Breakthrough is Debenhams who have chosen some of their top designers to design pieces for this years collection, including Preen, Ben De Lisi and Betty Jackson. I also had my eye on this cosy coral jumper by Warehouse.

I am in love with this Rose Gold Stella and Dot rose gold cuff! They are currently one of my favourite brands for accessories, I am saving for one of their purses at the moment, this cuff may have to be added to the shopping basket at the same time...

Stella and Dot have also designed a scarf, earrings, a necklace and a bracelet for this collection, they are all so pretty.

I loved the cute sketchy perfume bottle and bow design on the M&S lingerie line, it is a shame that the bra does't go up to my size, but I found the satin wrap dressing gown in the same fabric does, so that is on my wish list.

H was loving the Ben Di Lisi sequin dress from Debenhams.
There are also pieces from Adidas, Pandora, and My-wardrobe.com . If you want to check out the full collection head over to the Lookbook you can also find out more about the Great Pink Bake Off.

All the companies we saw do such an amazing job at producing a stunning line of products that donate at least 10% of the price to this brilliant charity. It is really nice to see a charity always looking forward with such a modern approach to fundraising.  For instance if you are a fan of the game Candy Crush Saga, during the month of October there is a special candy to purchase that all the money from that goes to Breakthrough Breast cancer, so make sure you have look out for that one in October. 

Thanks again to the team at Breakthrough Breast Cancer for having us to visit. We had such a lovely, informative morning, it is always such a pleasure.

Sammy and H
xxx

Breakthrough Breast Cancer #TLC and the Great Pink Bake Off!

Last week H and I were lucky enough to be invited up to London by the lovely girls at Breakthrough Breast Cancer to visit their head office and hear about all the amazing things they have coming up in preparation for Breast Cancer awareness month in October. 

There was so much to take in, the guys at Breakthrough are always working so hard to heighten awareness of early detection and the first thing we learned more about is their TLC campaign

The idea behind TLC is to help everyone to be aware that the signs and symptoms of breast cancer don't always just show themselves as a lump.

#TLC stands for Touch, Look, Check.

They have produced a pocket sized guide that you can keep with you, We were really surprised as we had always thought that it was only really a lump that you needed to check for.

You can download these leaflets or find out more at Breakthrough's website.

One of the other things we were there to find out about was the Great Pink Bake Off which sounded right up our street.

This October, during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, they're asking you to put your pinny on, roll up your sleeves and show breast cancer what you’re made of. On 18 October an army of bakers will hold their own Great Pink Bake Off in aid of Breakthrough Breast Cancer. You can find out more and download a fundraising pack here.  They have designated Friday 18 October as Great Pink Bake Off day but don’t worry if that date doesn’t work for you – you can choose any day in October;  Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

David Bright from Bright Cake Design made an amazing cake specially for the occasion too! 

Bea's of Bloomsbury had supplied some yummy cupcakes for everyone so we ate ours whilst checking out some recipes from some familiar faces. 
This new fundraising opportunity has some great people behind it who have donated yummy recipes. Michelle Heaton who at the age of 32 underwent a double mastectomy and re-constructive surgery when she found out she had an 80% chance of developing breast cancer and a 30 per cent chance of developing ovarian cancer after being diagnosed with a mutated BRCA2 gene, has shared a healthy cupcake recipe.

Will you rise to the occasion? We do love a good pun!


The thing I love about Breakthrough and why we like supporting them is that they always manage to build a community around their campaigns, the Bake Off is no different, you can head over to the site and show off your baking creations and disasters to the other fundraisers, you can also vote for your favourites.


We had a lovely morning with the guys over at Breakthrough Breast Cancer, we learned so much and had some yummy food. We also found out all about the AW13 fashion and homeware lines, which I will be sharing next month. 

Do you fancy being a part of The Great Pink Bake Off? Head over to the site and get registered!!
Sammy xxx

Link for the week: Books for good



This week's link has a little charity flavour.

You might remember a few weeks ago Sammy did a post about Breakthrough Breast Cancer's fundraising fashion.  They have just added a new campaign and as its related to books (which I LOVE) we thought it only fair you guys should know about it.


Breakthrough Breast Cancer has teamed up with Penguin and WHSmith to launch the Read Pink - Make a Difference campaign.  Each of the Read Pink titles carry a 50p donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer and  WHSmith are offering a "buy one get one half price" promotion on the titles!  Even better.

I have heard about some of the books on the list and also read a few.  My favourite being The Help by Kathryn Stockett.  This book is about African-American maids from the Deep South in the 1960's who decide to help a woman write a book about their treatment at the hands of their white employers.  This is a hard hitting subject which really lets you into the world in which women in the deep south would have been in.  It is an uplifting book though, all that being said and you come out of it knowing that people who believe in each other and trust each other really do win.

Anyway, back to the books:

Belle - Lesley Pearse
Stolen - Lesley Pearse
Trust Me - Lesley Pearse
The Promise - Lesley Pearse
The Help - Kathryn Stockett
Foursome - Jane Fallon
The Ugly Sister - Jane Fallon
The Patchwork Marriage - Jane Green
Mr Maybe - Jane Green
Accidental Husband - Jane Green
The Mystery of Mercy Close - Marian Keyes
Anybody Out There - Marian Keyes
Sushi For Beginners - Marian Keyes
Rachel's Holiday - Marian Keyes
The Seamstress - Maria Duenas
The Postmistress - Sarah Blake
The Girl You Left Behind - JoJo Moyes
Me Before You - JoJo Moyes
Lake of Dreams - Kim Edwards
The Memory Keepers Daughter - Kim Edwards
Secret Life of Evie Hamilton - Catherine Alliot
A Rural Affair - Catherine Alliot
One Day In May - Catherine Alliot
Between A Mother & Her Child - Elizabeth Noble
The Way We Were - Elizabeth Noble
The Friendship Test - Elizabeth Noble
What The Nanny Saw - Fiona Neill
The Fever Tree - Jennifer McVeigh
Women Who Went To Bed For A Year - Sue Townsend
Pieces of My Heart - Sinead Moriarty

So, pop on down to WHSmith and check out which one, or two or three of the books you want to go for.  I have heard really good things about The Seamstress and Accidental Husband.

Let me know which ones you go for.

Live it
H

#FashionTargetsBreastCancer


You may have noticed our newest addition to the blog, the Fashion Targets Breast Cancer banner, If you click on it it will take you through to Breakthrough Breast cancers 'Wear your Support' page where you can find out about all about their latest campaign. 
I have always loved this charities selection of fashion fundraising products, they have their finger firmly on the fashion pulse, and always seem to pull off on trend pieces that aren't too in your face 'charity'.
This year they have done another stellar job with the help of some of our favourite high street stores of creating a collection of super wearable pieces. 
These are my favourites that I will be adding to my summer wardrobe, whilst feeling very smug  that 30% of the cost is going to help this Fantastic charity.

I love the summery tie dye towel, great for our holiday, and that Warehouse feather top is gorgeous! My top pick though has to be the Laura Ashley stripe dress, beautiful!

Check out the whole collection on their website, there are all the usual ways to follow all the news from Fashion Targets Breast cancer, don't forget to #WearYourSupport
''2013 is the year Fashion Targets Breast Cancer focuses on unity. Together we are stronger and this year’s campaign will see us unite mothers and daughters with leading high street and online retailers to encourage you to Wear Your Support.
This year’s campaign is fronted by two of the world’s most famous mother and daughter duos, Sharon and Kelly Osbourne and Pearl and Daisy Lowe, conveying strength, support and unity against breast cancer.
The range is full of exclusive pieces that can be teamed up for any occasion throughout the Great British seasons: day or night, home or away, rain or shine. Whatever your age, whatever your style, whatever your budget, there is something for you to wear with pride and get involved.
Fashion Targets Breast Cancer is the UK’s leading charity fashion campaign. Now in its seventeenth year, the campaign raises vital money for Breakthrough Breast Cancer. Each year 50,000 women in the UK are diagnosed with breast cancer. We need you to Wear Your Support for these women and unite to stop women dying from this disease.''
Have a great weekend.
Sammy xxx