Sometimes I feel like the luckiest style/beauty blogging girl in the world. I get to do some pretty cool things and for the most part, I get to pursue my passion as a profession (I said “passion” not “fantasy”…it’s a LOT of hard work and NOT terribly glamorous most of the time). I was recently asked to participate in a project that makes me feel incredibly proud and beauty-full. You know what “beauty-full†is right?…for me being “beauty-full†is all about sitting pretty both inside and out and using my platform as a style/beauty editor to educate and inform on issues that matter. Have you heard about The Uniform Project? If you haven’t, please allow me to “educate and inform†(smile) 
Never has a single lbd (little back dress) created such buzz for a worthy cause. In May of 2009, Sheena Matheiken (the cutie in the pic above) pledged to wear one (lbd) dress for one year as an exercise in sustainable fashion. Here’s how The Uniform Project went:
- There were seven identical dresses, one for each day of the week.
- Every day Sheena cleverly reinvented the dress with various accents, layers, accessories, etc.
- The majority of the adornments were vintage, hand-made, or hand-me-downs.
Sheena explains the styling as “wearing a daily uniform with enough creative license to make it look like I just crawled out of the Marquis de Sade’s boudoir.†At the core of The Uniform Project, in addition to the lbd, was a year-long fundraiser for the Akanksha Foundation, a grassroots organization that strives to revolutionize education for children in India. At the end of the year, all contributions toward The Uniform Project went to Akanksha’s School Project to fund uniforms and other educational expenses for underprivileged children living in Indian slums.
When I first learned of the project I was immediately intrigued. My dear friend Shana Stephenson (Editor In Chief for allsportseverything.com) shared the attached video with me and I was moved beyond words. Watch!
(Expand the video for the ultimate viewing experience)
Uniform Project Picture Book from The Uniform Project on Vimeo.
So for 365 days, Sheena Matheiken wore the same dress. To date she has raised over $100,000 for her cause.
Enter “Bright Young Thingsâ€, a new clothing line from designer Eliza Starbuck.
Starbuck designed the little black dress that Matheiken wore every day for a year. Starbuck’s goal was to create a dress that would not only hold up to a year-long daily wearing, but would function in all facets of real life.
As The Uniform Project launched, Sheena, Eliza, and the lbd garnered international media attention, including articles and posts in the New York Times Magazine, Glamour, Daily Candy, The Huffington Post, The Guardian and the BBC, to mention a few.
It was at this point that Starbuck decided that her dress had the ability to empower and engage. At the end of Sheena’s one-year challenge, Eliza produced a 365-piece Limited Edition of the lbd. And like hotcakes, the dress sold out in less than a week….contributing an additional $10,000 to Sheena’s fundraising efforts.
Today, Bright Young Things is making the dress available to the public. Of the universally flattering lbd, Starbuck says this: “I’ve seen so many women with closets full of clothes who say, ‘I haven’t got a thing to wear’. I’m giving them one dress that they can wear forwards, backwards, open, again and again, with anything they like.†
Starbuck hopes that women will be inspired to shop their closets. And here’s where the “Bright Young Things†Style Challenge comes in! Starbuck and her line “Bright Young Things†turned to their favorite style/ fashion bloggers and put forth a challenge to wear The Uniform Project lbd and style it with total free range using beautiful vintage garb from the East Village vintage shop Cobblestones. 
Yours truly has been asked to participate….*Squeal*….and I would love for you to check out the challenge and vote for your favorite look.
Click here for further details
You may vote for “Our Favorite Style†on the Bright Young Things Facebook Fan Page by clicking “like†and giving a thumbs up on the style post you like the best. The contest will begin on Wednesday, July 28th, and the poles will close Sunday, August 1st at midnight. All winners will be announced Monday, August 2nd, along with the Voter Dress Drawing winner.
In addition to your votes, Bright Young Things have assembled a panel of virtual judges including designers Sophie Buhai and Lisa Mayock of Vena Cava, Chris Benz,model Elettra Weideman and Eleanor Friedberger of The Fiery Furnaces, who will judge the Best In Show. There will also be a People’s Choice Award for the best blogger style.
All fashion bloggers will be featured on the Bright Young Things blog and the winner of the challenge will win the Bright Young Things dress and be featured on the Bright Young Things homepage.
I hope that you will check out the Style Challenge, vote your fave, and support The Uniform Project.
xo, Felicia – a Bright Young Thing!
