(Images above: Tree hugging from TreehuggersOfAmerica.org & WannaBeAdMan.blogspot)

Earth Day is just around the corner, and to celebrate, ModCloth wants to help make our world a little greener! Not only will we be donating a percentage of sales on April 22nd to a green charity, but we also want to volunteer for an eco-friendly activity that makes our community a healthier, happier place to live and work. From cleaning up the water table, to planting flowers at the Frick museum, to scrubbing public pools, we were overwhelmed with the amount of green volunteer opportunities. We narrowed the list to three choices, but we need your help picking the final winner!

Be a part of our volunteer day by voting below for the green activity you’d like to see us support. Just leave your choice as a comment to this post, and the project with the most votes will become our ModCloth Earth Day Employee Volunteer Project. We can’t wait to see what you pick. Here are your options:

1. Farming a Community Garden -Garfield Community Farm, just up the street from the ModCloth office, is in need of some TLC for the planting season. ModCloth employees would be urban farmers – digging, planting, weeding and getting dirty helping organic veggies grow! Yum.

2. Planting Trees in Pittsburgh - A classic Earth Day activity, TreeVitalize and Friends of the Urban Forest would have ModCloth planting trees and pruning bushes in our neighborhood and all over Pittsburgh!

3. Making Our Neighborhood Beautiful - We love being so close to all the coolest bars, cafes, and shops in Pittsburgh, and this is our opportunity to help keep it looking great! The Lawrenceville Community Clean-Up would have us picking up litter and scrubbing the streets of our very own stomping grounds!

Happy voting. We will announce the winner Monday, April 6th.

Are you volunteering anywhere for Earth Day? I’d love to hear about your green volunteer projects. Email me at molly.prosser@modcloth.com!

One of this season’s hottest trends is wearing heels and socks together. Marie J., seen on LOOKBOOK.nu proves that when paired with a classy balloon skirt, plain top, and great accessories, the combination results in a stylish and unique look. Needless to say, the outfit’s accent is obvious. However, Marie has managed to put together a great outfit and add an accent that brings the attention to her face and showcases her natural beauty.

Each spring, April Fool’s Day arrives and I am woefully unprepared. This year, I decided to read over Slate.com’s April Fool’s Defense Kit and do a little research to come up with some good ol’ pranks to play on my co-workers and loved ones. Many of the jokes I found were super gross (”Saran wrap the toilet”) or just plain mean (”start a rumor that someone is getting fired”or this self-proclaimed “most evil prank ever”). Here are ten tricks that I found to be fairly harmless, pretty funny… and, yes, just a little lame.

1. Plant a Whoopie Cushion. This old-fashioned bag o’ fun is always good for a few laughs and you can find them for less than a dollar at most party stores.
2. “Frozen Water” Frisbee. I admit that this prank is usually done with something other than water, but this is the edited-for-Modlife version: Fill a frisbee with water and freeze it. Take the frozen frisbee to the door of your victim. Carefully slide out the frozen disc of water and slip it under their closed door. The ice will melt, and your victim will spend hours trying to figure our how that puddle of “water” got there.
3. Spoiled Lunch. These funky ziploc bags are sure to liven up lunchtime (as discussed in last week’s 3 O’Clock Slump).
4. Two-Door Trap. This works best in dorms or apartment buildings. Tie a string on two doorknobs that face each other across a hallway. Knock on each door and enjoy the hilarious back and forth as each victim tries to open their door.
5. Do Nothing. If you’re known for being a prankster, everyone will probably be expecting you to do something. Just watching them nervously anticipating one of your pranks might be the funniest prank of all.
6. Cell Phone in the Ceiling a la The Office.
7. Spell-Check Prank. Change the settings on your victim’s Spell-Check to replace common words with ridiculous phrases, such as “I love tea parties” or “poodle time.”
8. Time Warp. Set your victim’s clock and alarm back three hours after he or she goes to sleep. The next morning, wait until your victim gets completely ready for class or work before fessing up. This only works, of course, if he or she is used to waking up when it’s still dark!
9. The Ol’ Switcheroo. Swap out his or her pants for the same style, but two sizes smaller. Your victim will think he or she gained ten pounds overnight.
10. Freeze Frame. Take a screenshot of your victim’s computer desktop once they leave their desk. Load the picture as his or her computer background and hide all of their icons. Watch their frustration over their frozen computer!

Got any tricks up your sleeve? Leave a comment!

Short stories have been a popular genre for thousands of years, perfected by the likes of Aesop, Chekhov, Hemingway, and Carver.  Sure, these guys did it best, but we’ve all become masters of conversational brevity with the rising popularity of texting and social networks like Twitter and Facebook status updates that force us to communicate the essence of our lives in micro-nuggets of information. But can we take our Twitter-fied communication skills and apply them to the art of storytelling? Let’s try!

We want you to tell us a story. This Thursday, April 2, between 12:01 a.m. and 11:59 p.m. E.S.T., leave us a story on ModCloth’s Twitter page.  To enter the contest, tweet @ ModCloth with hash tag ‘modstory.’ That means your entry should look like this (albeit, far better):

@ModCloth#modstory I wrote the greatest story for ModCloth’s ‘Short and Tweet’ Contest and I won!

Try to include the five elements of a story: character, setting, conflict, plot, and theme. Enthrall us from the hook to the climax to the conclusion, please. But make it quick! We have short attention spans!

For inspiration, read what’s arguably the most famous example of flash fiction, the six-word story allegedly written by Hemingway (For Sale, Baby Shoes, Never Worn), or check out the user-generated collection of short stories on One Sentence Blog.

The winner will receive a Literary Prize Pack, including Pen n Pals Set with Giraffe, Owl Librarian Bookmarks, Toftrees Tote, and Mad Scientist Eyeglasses.

So, get out your pencil (maybe one of those tiny ones they give you at mini golf or the bowling alley) and get writing! Remember, the contest is this Thursday, April 2! Stories posted before or after this date will not be accepted. Good luck!

Updated Contest Rules:

Sorry, guys and girls. For this contest, one entry (that means one tweet!) per person, please.

Semicolons are permitted, if used correctly.

There is no designated theme to the contest.

For more information, read ModCloth’s Official Contest Rules.

This week’s Style Inspirations come straight from everybody’s favorite stylist–Vasil!

“There are numerous qualities to this outfit, found on The Sartorialist; the look combines various styles and trends. However, the best feature is the coat’s yellow lining. Every outfit should have an accent and a focal point. Even though the entire look has multiple layers, the tiny splash of color makes it come alive and look spring-like. The lace socks and mixed patent leather gloves add to the effortless look.”

Who knew that our own Rad was such a pro at preventing balloons from hitting the floor!? He first revealed this talent to us during a ModCloth birthday party, and we discovered that even if the balloon lands on a table or bookshelf, Rad will be vigilant and wait for it to bounce back to him. Once, he kept one up for 2 1/2 hours before it popped!

In this vid, Danielle suspended the balloon from the ceiling with fishing line to keep the event contained. He looks so awesome while twisting and flying through the air!

If you’re impressed, please let Rad know by becoming his facebook friend.

• Deter food thieves or just play a really good April Fool’s joke with these awesomely gross ziploc bags (seen above)!

• Mad Men is an inspiration to many of us, but where does the show’s creator, Matt Weiner, get his inspiration? Possibly his son, Arlo, who has been dubbed by GQ Magazine as America’s most stylish eight-year-old. Described as “part Oliver Twist, part Royal Tenenbaums,” Arlo incorporates ascots, top hats, and mismatched plaids to wear to his second-grade classes for a playful, distinguished, and timeless look.

• Check out Ikea’s new interactive ad campaign. See how everybody from wrestlers to ballerinas organize their closets and watch them dance too; the website features five different rooms and you can upload your own mp3 files to synchronize their dances. Maybe I can’t afford a $1,500 closet, but I’ll gladly spend a few minutes watching people dance around in front of them to techno music!

What We’re Into:

Emily: I’m totally obsessed with Anna Dorfman-Stark’s blog, Door Sixteen. She owns a beautiful Victorian row house in New York state and blogs about her renovation projects and all things involving good design. Her style is inspiring, just my taste, and I would give anything to have a home like hers.

Alicia: Tea. It seems it’s all or nothing for me when it comes to coffee.  This is why I’ve decided to see how I operate for a few days without liters of caffeine in my system, and make the switch to caffeine free teas. I am in love with Egypitian Licorice Tea by Yogi Tea Company. It’s the only tea I’ve ever found that rivals a great cup of coffee. Do you know of any other great teas?

Have a great weekend!

Today’s Fashionista of the Week, picked from ModCloth Style Exchange Flickr Group, is “Ellen Ellen”! Her outfit pic,“Empire-ness” uses inventive lighting to highlight a fierce look. We love the way she paired the Sierra Nevada Dress with patterned tights and high boots for a style that is perfect for the seasonal transition. Her Empire Earrings add a regal touch…and what a pose!

Want to be a Fashionista of the Week? Post your outfit photos on ModCloth’s Style Exchange! Next week, one outfit pic will be chosen from the pool to be posted as a Style Inspiration on the blog and tweeted to all of our followers on Twitter. As an added incentive, we’re going to send next week’s winner one of our newest, cutest accessories.

Good Luck!

With formals and proms right around the corner, I volunteered to accessorize my most favoritest dressy dress, the Dancing At Tiffany’s. (Sorry everyone- as of today it’s sold out, but I’ve got a secret: it’s coming back soon in a new color!) Being a bit well-endowed around the hips, I’m always in search of dresses that compliment my figure. Not only does this dress have a flattering cut, it also has shaping seams inside the bust to keep everything perfectly in place.

I debated about whether to accessorize with floral or peacock-inspired accessories. But in the end, I decided to go with flowers for Spring! I love the way the Porch Swing Peep Toes in Blue match the dress and also add a bit of color to the ensemble. I added the Bestest Buds for a little floral shimmer and the Debutant Ball Gloves for a touch of formality. Finally, I matched the splashes of orange from my shoes with a blue and orange Ariel Comb and the Summer of Love Necklace.

Even though I’m too old for prom, I’m going to wear this dress to my friend’s wedding this summer for a fun and unique look!

[Want this look? Click on the image!]

ModCloth stylist extraordinaire, Vasil, presents his next installment of “Get That Look!”In this series, Vasil shows us how to create our own variation of celebrity fashion using ModCloth products. This week, he transforms our lovely buyer, Sari, into her style icon: Zooey Deschanel!

Keep reading to see more of Sari’s new look.

Read the rest of this entry »