Get a Little, Give A lot

With spring in full swing and summer right around the corner (here in Pittsburgh you know 'tis the season when everyone starts complaining how hot it is!) you're probably starting to think of revamping your wardrobe after all that spring cleaning. Well, when you're out shopping looking for those styles that make you heart pitter-patter -- you know that fabulous dress, cozy v-neck tee, all those nice shiny statement piece jewelry items -- just ponder on this for a minute: what if those awesome clothes and accessories you're buying  could do some good for someone else too? 

Well that's the idea behind this entry. The following 22 designers are literally the coolest because they give back to the less privileged when you purchase their duds! Wanna see what rad stuff they have in store for you? Check it out in the slide show below (and for all the deets on the designer, the item, and the website, just hover your cursor, or finger if on mobile, over the image): 

Market Colors

Market Colors' mission is called a "Handmade Impact"—the idea that collaborating with craftsmen in Ethiopia, Kenya and Malawi on 100% handmade items, can make a difference.

Polished Medallion Clutch in Tribal,  $36.00

Market Colors

Headbands of Hope

For every headband purchased, $1 is donated to the St. Baldrick's Foundation, a non-profit to fund child cancer research, and one is given to a child with cancer. Awesome right?

Anna Banana Headband, $14.85

Headbands of Hope

Elegantees

Elegantees is a clothing company that employs women rescued from sex trafficking in Nepal and the US.

Stacy Skirt In Grape, $38.00

Elegantees

4Love Clothing

 4Love's maxi dresses are manufactured in the USA and then exported to the Republic of Panama, where the women of 4Love add their signature, one-of-a-kind, handmade embellishments to each dress. When you purchase from 4Love, you are providing stable employment to the indigenous women that 4Love employs with fair trade wages, and ultimately empowering them.

Neon Lights Mini Nagua, $75.00

4Love Clothing

Sevenly

Each week, Sevenly launches a new cause campaign and $7 from every item purchased that week goes to the weekly charity. Sevenly has successfully unlocked not only a way to crowd fund for causes, but to drive massive social awareness as well. They sell fun and cool clothing and accessories for men, women, and children.  (And their tees are super adorable!)

Winners Never Quit V-neck, $26.00

Sevenly 

TOMS

When you buy a pair of TOMS Shoes, you are also helping improve the health, education, and well-being of a child. Available in hundreds of styles, TOMS Shoes for women, men, and children are not only a fashion statement but a charitable one at that!

White Satin Embroidery Women's Classic, $69.00

TOMS

Noonday Collection

This jewelry and accessories brand features fair trade items from around the world, with proceeds supporting more than 1,000 artisans worldwide. (And the styling of their catalog images are extremely inspiring for those of us who do fashion shoots of our own.)

Kantha Fold Over Bag, $78.00

Noonday Collection

Vaalbara Designs

Portions from the proceeds of your purchase are donated to the Surfrider Foundation, an organization working to protect the world's oceans, waves and beaches. Fun fact: all the items are handmade in Venice, California.

Ponderosa Clutch, $132.00

Vaalbara Designs

Light Gives Heat

Starting back in 2007, Light Gives Heat has partnered with local artisans in developing countries to create consistent incomes where there once were none. Through their brands SUUBI and EPOH, in-country staff has created long-term partnerships with artisans to create beautiful handmade products to grace the shoulders, necks, and wrists of fashion conscious consumers in America and beyond. Check out their website for great necklaces, and apparel for men, women, and children!

Slim, $2.50

Light Gives Heat

NightLight International

NightLight is an international organization committed to addressing the complex issues of commercial sexual exploitation. Their local offices build relationships with victims of commercial sexual exploitation and those who are at-risk to provide hope, intervention, rescue, and assistance by offering alternative vocational opportunities, life-skills training, and physical and emotional support. Their online store is full of cute, affordable jewelry for women and men.

Pearl and Shell Earrings, $12.00

NightLight International

Five Pound Apparel

No matter what you buy from Five Pound Apparel, your purchase is guaranteed to benefit someone, somewhere. Every brand they carry has a charitable cause - from FEED accessories and tote bags to TOMS Shoes, and a plethora of Missouri-themed gift items, after all that is where they are based.

Orwell Tee, No price listed because it is unfortunately out of print [sigh.]

Five Pound Apparel

Alex and Ani

The Rhode Island-based charm bracelet retailer is already well-known for its personalized charms perfect for any occasion. But founder Carolyn Rafaelian takes in one step further withCharity by Design, a project where Rafaelian designs an exclusive, symbolic charm for non-profit organizations with the goal to raise funds and awareness. The brand already has charms for over 30 non-profit organizations, from the National Autism Association to Toys for Tots.

Star of Venus bracelet, $28.00

Alex and Ani

Project Hazina

Every time you make a purchase from Project Hazina, you provide an orphan with a pillow and blanket. Project Hazina currently employs six local artisans in the USA and is currently working on establishing relationships with artisans in Kenya and Uganda. 

Unity Necklace, $40.00

Project Hazina

Nordstrom TMRW TGTHR

Nordstrom's Pop-In program, a series of themed pop-up shops that transition every four to five weeks, has been highly successful, featuring exclusive merchandise and a new shopping experience. The department store's current pop-up, TMRW TGTHR, highlights artisanal, upcycled or eco-friendly goods with the goal to give back to the community.

Raw Edge cotton sweatshirt, Loomstate, $155.00 

Nordstrom TMRW TGTHR

Bracha

Each piece of jewelry is handmade in Texas and the brand partnered with A21 Campaign, a non-profit with the goal to end human trafficking.

ream Collection White Turquoise Bangle, $63.00

Bracha  

Westward Leaning

All Westward Leaning sunglasses feature an accent material on the frame's arms, each to celebrate a human achievement, with proceeds benefitting a mutlitude of charities. From the turquoise pairs benefitting education opportunities for Native American students, to accents of redwood to support Teach for America Bay Area, the brand likely gives back to a charity close to your heart.

Vangaurd Sunglasses, $225.00

Westward Leaning

Luna Noir

No More is an organization seeking to end domestic violence and sexual assault. 25 percent of the proceeds from Luna Noir go to benefit this all-important cause.

Moonstone Silver Ring, $37.50

Luna Noir

Lemlem

Liya Kebede launched Lemlem, a clothing line, in 2008. Lemlem, which means "to bloom" in Amharic, features hand-spun, woven and embroidered women and children’s clothing.Kebede founded the line to help preserve the art of traditional weaving in Ethiopia and to offer work opportunities to local artisans. Lemlem is sold at Barney’s, J.Crew, Net-a-Porter.com and numerous boutique shops.  Kebede says she hopes this will be part a sea of change for her home country. 

Kedam Shorts, $165.00

Lemlem

Warby Parker

If you buy a pair of glasses they give a monthly donation to their nonprofit partners, which covers the cost of sourcing a pair of glasses in countries in need. (For those of you follow me on social media, you probably recognize these from my instagram! Yup, these are the glasses that are in my nightstand drawer.)

Downing Glasses, Starting at $95.00

Warby Parker

Angela & Roi

At Angela & Roi, your handbag color of choice not only depicts your personal style, it also has a charitable effect. Each color handbag donates $5 to a cause—from red to support HIV/AIDS fighters to green for those suffering from depression. And with 11 colors to choose from, there's plenty of ways and causes to support!

Sunday Tote in beige, $150.00

Angela & Roi

The Givve Collection

The Givve Collection is a site that exclusively features products with a charity tie. Over 150 charities are being supported through 500+ products, with causes varying from protecting the environment to cystic fibrosis.

Rayne Gunmetal Necklace in Black, $80.00

The Givve Collection

Olive + Piper

This company is awesome not only because of it's affordable but beautiful jewelry, but also because 15 percent of proceeds goes to Habitat For Humanity.

Triangle Ring, $24.00

Olive + Piper

Steals & Deals

With summer just around the corner many of us, myself included, are about to be overwhelmed with rocking the summer trends (who else is stoked for dresses and skirts?!). 

Now, if you are anything like me and get caught up in the excitement of a new season, we buy way too much and seem to forget that in another month styles are going to change again. This being said, it's always best to shop strategically and look for ways to save, while being fashion savvy. Of course there are these few tips such as:

• Buy items that can be worn during multiple seasons and are timeless and match a variety of other pieces. 
• Keep in mind accessories are key and can really change up an outfit. 
• Try and buy more solid colored garments opposed to printed, because again, they can be worn in multiple seasons. (I mean who wears floral in the winter?) 

But when it comes to actually purchasing your chic new summer wardrobe, there are these nifty sites and shops that I've been using that really give you bang for your buck! Who doesn't like a good deal, right?

    Tradesy (my new found love)

Okay, so when you think about buying trendier designer items you probably first consider checking out eBay for a good deal before hitting the designer racks. However as I'm sure we all know if we're looking for genuine Chanel, Prada, Louis Vuitton, or other name brands this method is approached with skepticism at best, thanks to the ever growing amount of counterfeiters using the platform to make a quick buck. But that's to the establishment of Tradesy back in 2012, fear no more!

 What is it? Well obviously it's a shopping site however this site has a guarantee that your goods are 100% authentic, but at a steeply discounted price. The catch? These items maybe a season or two old, but bargainers can't be choosers, though the gorgeous pieces you find here generally are timeless. 

The brands they carry? Almost anything you can think of from Louboutin, Prada, Micheal Kors, and even J. Crew.  

What's in my closet from Tradesy? 

Christian Louboutin Daf Booty, $369.99 (original price $1,400.00)

ModCloth

Ahhh, ModCloth one of my favorite vintage clothing companies with out the vintage pricetag. This Pittsburgh based clothing store (No, not the reason I favor them but I do find it pretty sweet they are based in my home town!) is my go to store for casual dresses, shorts, and tees. 

Unlike other normal department store, ModCloth has vintage and contemporary clothing for less and they'll keep you looking fresh and fashion forward without killing your bank account. Another thing to know about ModCloth is if you need to return anything they are good with handling exchanges and refunds. 

My loves from ModCloth? 

Roughly $250.00 for all items shown.

The Runway -T.J. Maxx 

Much like the regular T.J. Maxx "The Runway" features designer goods at discount prices. However unlike the regular T.J. Maxx The Runway features designers such as Valentino, Alexis Bitter, Versace, Gucci, and Elizabeth and James. And the prices are rad. I mean a Diane Von Furstenberg dress for $179.99? Yes please! Another perk is The Runway stores are popping up everywhere meaning if you're a more tactile shopper, you're in luck. Though this store maybe a tad bit pricier than the others, I just had to include it due to the awesome deals! 

What I'm wanting to own from The Runway T.J. Maxx? 

Gucci Women's Swiss Made Stainless Steel Watch, $599.99 (originally $900.00)

Spring & Depop

So while fuelling my Twitter problem, I stumbled upon these two gems completely by mistake. They were actually both being advertised as one of those horridly annoying and sneaky Twitter promos (come on you hate those things too!) that catch you when you mis-scroll and take you straight to the App Store or somewhere else you don't want to go. But these two particular mis-scrolls left me presently surprised, this being said I think every fashion forward girl should have these on their phones. Here's why: 

The icon above is for Spring, and much like the apps description states it's like going shopping in Soho, but on your phone. It has so many quaint little "shops" and a ton of variety to choose from if you have a versatile wardrobe. It also has variety in other ways too, Spring doesn't only sell clothing but accessories, beauty products, and home decor, as well!

It also has many features that I adore such as being able to follow your favorite brands, like products (these save to your "My Loves" section), as well as a nifty tab titled "Discover" which is great for finding the newest products from clothes, to accessories, to beauty products! It's basically WeHeartIt for shopping. And to top it all off the app's appearance is visually pleasing and easy to use.  

The next app is called Depop and I will admit the icon for it is a little queer but if you are looking for it in the App Store this is the correct one: 

The reason I like this app is simply because it's incredibly useful and easy to use. But what does it do you ask? 

Depop is basically a market place app like ebay or amazon where you can buy and sell things but the kicker is this: it's set up like Instagram, I mean exactly like Instagram. Meaning you can like and comment on goods as well as buy them, and if you're anything like me, this means the shopping gods have answered your prayers. 

This app like Spring has it's own sweet features as well, other than being similar to Instagram this app also offers features to help keep your purchased goods organized, your shop organized (and if you take pretty pictures your items can be featured on the "Explore" tab), as well as private messages, the option to bookmark items you are interested in purchasing, and last but not least you can connect this app up with you PayPal account (which I hope that one was a given). 

But the main reason I love this app is because it makes shopping and selling goods fun. I love that gives you the personal interactions with people that wouldn't through any other shopping site. 

Want to follow me on Depop? Check me out @starkravingchic