I'm currently working my ass off on a new book called "Embrace" soooo I won't be online much for the next few weeks.
Still love ya all and will make sure I keep you updated !
Love
Belle
Monday, May 30, 2011
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Saturday, May 14, 2011
On the web something worth reading...
The Designer: You. The Maker: Who?
By STEPHANIE ROSENBLOOM
Published: May 11
IN an age of style blogs and “Project Runway,” everyone’s an armchair Alexander Wang. And would-be couturiers who long to design their own wardrobes but can’t sketch or sew are in luck. Do-it-yourself Web sites are making it easy for fashion buffs to design and order custom outfits: all you need is an Internet connection and a credit card.
Tony Cenicola/The New York Times
Jeans from MakeYourOwnJeans.com came from India and cost $77.
Multimedia
Tony Cenicola/The New York Times
The writer created this pair at MilkandHoneyShoes.com. They took five weeks to arrive from Hong Kong and cost $277.
But are the sites any good? Can design-your-own jeans rival designer jeans? Is the shoe of your dreams mere mouse clicks away?
I decided to find out. And where better to begin than with the foundation of any eye-catching ensemble: lingerie.
Visitors to PickYourPerfectPairBras.com, licensed by Fruit of the Loom, are encouraged to design a bra with contrasting patterns on each cup. I’ve never had a yen to clad one breast in a more festive print than the other. But try anything once, I say.
I clicked through the Web site, mixing and matching its quartet of cup motifs: black, white, rainbow dots on a black background, rainbow dots on a white background. It was like designing a bra for Pippi Longstocking. I contemplated dots for one cup and solid black for the other, but that called to mind an eye patch. Eventually, I created what I refer to as the Black Swan brassiere: rainbow dots (on black) for the right cup; rainbow dots (on white) for the left cup. I was hoping to play with embellishments like lace, ribbon, strap color. But Pick Your Perfect Pair doesn’t offer much customization. (In a word: imperfect.)
Even so, the site provides an important service. It sells different cup sizes for the same bra, a welcome option for women whose breasts are not symmetrical (the cups snap together in the front of the bra). Customers can select from sizes 34B to 40D as well as “just about” sizes. And at $7.70 a bra (regularly $10) — less than the price of a small cheese pizza at my neighborhood Domino’s — the site may be perfect for those who want their money in their pocket, not their bra.
But then my custom bra arrived. It was a riot of hot pink and polka dots. I pictured a clown. A colleague said he pictured Baskin-Robbins. Either way, I prefer that my underwear not evoke an afternoon at Coney Island. I decided to slip into the bra, though, to check the fit — only to discover, in the most inelegant of ways, that it was too small. Turns out the site’s fine print says the bras are designed for a “junior frame.”
From now on, I’m sticking with my local lingerie shop, where variety and experienced salespeople are plentiful. So adieu, Black Swan. While you are seemingly a bargain, I don’t consider you an inexpensive bra but, rather, a costly sling shot.
Next up: skinny jeans.
After perusing Web sites like IndiCustom.com and Z2JeansCo.com, I decided to design a cropped skinny jean on MakeYourOwnJeans.com because the site offered that jean style and appeared to have more features, like patches and zippers. (Note: In all these instances, I used a personal e-mail address and credit card when ordering so the companies mentioned in this article wouldn’t know that I’m a reporter.)
Hurdle No. 1: the site’s design. It’s cluttered and lacks 360-degree images and models, which are key to the success of sites like Zappos and Net-a-Porter. NavigatingMakeYourOwnJeans.com was at times more exasperating than trying on jeans. This is a problem with many design-your-own clothing sites, but it’s glaring when customers are evaluating denim style, weight and wash. Discerning the difference between “posh” and “body hugger” denims was like trying to tell the Olsen twins apart.
Then there was the matter of Lycra. How might my derrière benefit (or not) from 3 percent Lycra? What about 2 percent? There was no way of knowing. That sort of thing should be explained on the Web site.
Hurdle No. 2: taking measurements. This, of course, is critical. But the site needs clearer instructions. A colleague and I had to go over them several times, and as veteran online shoppers, we’re not unfamiliar with measuring tape. We spent hours scrutinizing the site and measuring my waist, thighs, hips, knees, inner and outer leg, and more. I’ve had less invasive doctor’s appointments.
Yet it’s crucial to be precise. There are no returns unless the measurements of the jeans you receive differ from those you submitted.
On the web something worth reading...
The Designer: You. The Maker: Who?
By STEPHANIE ROSENBLOOM
Published: May 11, 2011
IN an age of style blogs and “Project Runway,” everyone’s an armchair Alexander Wang. And would-be couturiers who long to design their own wardrobes but can’t sketch or sew are in luck. Do-it-yourself Web sites are making it easy for fashion buffs to design and order custom outfits: all you need is an Internet connection and a credit card.
Tony Cenicola/The New York Times
Jeans from MakeYourOwnJeans.com came from India and cost $77.
Multimedia
Tony Cenicola/The New York Times
The writer created this pair at MilkandHoneyShoes.com. They took five weeks to arrive from Hong Kong and cost $277.
But are the sites any good? Can design-your-own jeans rival designer jeans? Is the shoe of your dreams mere mouse clicks away?
I decided to find out. And where better to begin than with the foundation of any eye-catching ensemble: lingerie.
Visitors to PickYourPerfectPairBras.com, licensed by Fruit of the Loom, are encouraged to design a bra with contrasting patterns on each cup. I’ve never had a yen to clad one breast in a more festive print than the other. But try anything once, I say.
I clicked through the Web site, mixing and matching its quartet of cup motifs: black, white, rainbow dots on a black background, rainbow dots on a white background. It was like designing a bra for Pippi Longstocking. I contemplated dots for one cup and solid black for the other, but that called to mind an eye patch. Eventually, I created what I refer to as the Black Swan brassiere: rainbow dots (on black) for the right cup; rainbow dots (on white) for the left cup. I was hoping to play with embellishments like lace, ribbon, strap color. But Pick Your Perfect Pair doesn’t offer much customization. (In a word: imperfect.)
Even so, the site provides an important service. It sells different cup sizes for the same bra, a welcome option for women whose breasts are not symmetrical (the cups snap together in the front of the bra). Customers can select from sizes 34B to 40D as well as “just about” sizes. And at $7.70 a bra (regularly $10) — less than the price of a small cheese pizza at my neighborhood Domino’s — the site may be perfect for those who want their money in their pocket, not their bra.
But then my custom bra arrived. It was a riot of hot pink and polka dots. I pictured a clown. A colleague said he pictured Baskin-Robbins. Either way, I prefer that my underwear not evoke an afternoon at Coney Island. I decided to slip into the bra, though, to check the fit — only to discover, in the most inelegant of ways, that it was too small. Turns out the site’s fine print says the bras are designed for a “junior frame.”
From now on, I’m sticking with my local lingerie shop, where variety and experienced salespeople are plentiful. So adieu, Black Swan. While you are seemingly a bargain, I don’t consider you an inexpensive bra but, rather, a costly sling shot.
Next up: skinny jeans.
After perusing Web sites like IndiCustom.com and Z2JeansCo.com, I decided to design a cropped skinny jean on MakeYourOwnJeans.com because the site offered that jean style and appeared to have more features, like patches and zippers. (Note: In all these instances, I used a personal e-mail address and credit card when ordering so the companies mentioned in this article wouldn’t know that I’m a reporter.)
Hurdle No. 1: the site’s design. It’s cluttered and lacks 360-degree images and models, which are key to the success of sites like Zappos and Net-a-Porter. NavigatingMakeYourOwnJeans.com was at times more exasperating than trying on jeans. This is a problem with many design-your-own clothing sites, but it’s glaring when customers are evaluating denim style, weight and wash. Discerning the difference between “posh” and “body hugger” denims was like trying to tell the Olsen twins apart.
Then there was the matter of Lycra. How might my derrière benefit (or not) from 3 percent Lycra? What about 2 percent? There was no way of knowing. That sort of thing should be explained on the Web site.
Hurdle No. 2: taking measurements. This, of course, is critical. But the site needs clearer instructions. A colleague and I had to go over them several times, and as veteran online shoppers, we’re not unfamiliar with measuring tape. We spent hours scrutinizing the site and measuring my waist, thighs, hips, knees, inner and outer leg, and more. I’ve had less invasive doctor’s appointments.
Yet it’s crucial to be precise. There are no returns unless the measurements of the jeans you receive differ from those you submitted.
On the web something worth reading...
The Designer: You. The Maker: Who?
By STEPHANIE ROSENBLOOM
Published: May 11, 2011
IN an age of style blogs and “Project Runway,” everyone’s an armchair Alexander Wang. And would-be couturiers who long to design their own wardrobes but can’t sketch or sew are in luck. Do-it-yourself Web sites are making it easy for fashion buffs to design and order custom outfits: all you need is an Internet connection and a credit card.
Tony Cenicola/The New York Times
Jeans from MakeYourOwnJeans.com came from India and cost $77.
Multimedia
Tony Cenicola/The New York Times
The writer created this pair at MilkandHoneyShoes.com. They took five weeks to arrive from Hong Kong and cost $277.
But are the sites any good? Can design-your-own jeans rival designer jeans? Is the shoe of your dreams mere mouse clicks away?
I decided to find out. And where better to begin than with the foundation of any eye-catching ensemble: lingerie.
Visitors to PickYourPerfectPairBras.com, licensed by Fruit of the Loom, are encouraged to design a bra with contrasting patterns on each cup. I’ve never had a yen to clad one breast in a more festive print than the other. But try anything once, I say.
I clicked through the Web site, mixing and matching its quartet of cup motifs: black, white, rainbow dots on a black background, rainbow dots on a white background. It was like designing a bra for Pippi Longstocking. I contemplated dots for one cup and solid black for the other, but that called to mind an eye patch. Eventually, I created what I refer to as the Black Swan brassiere: rainbow dots (on black) for the right cup; rainbow dots (on white) for the left cup. I was hoping to play with embellishments like lace, ribbon, strap color. But Pick Your Perfect Pair doesn’t offer much customization. (In a word: imperfect.)
Even so, the site provides an important service. It sells different cup sizes for the same bra, a welcome option for women whose breasts are not symmetrical (the cups snap together in the front of the bra). Customers can select from sizes 34B to 40D as well as “just about” sizes. And at $7.70 a bra (regularly $10) — less than the price of a small cheese pizza at my neighborhood Domino’s — the site may be perfect for those who want their money in their pocket, not their bra.
But then my custom bra arrived. It was a riot of hot pink and polka dots. I pictured a clown. A colleague said he pictured Baskin-Robbins. Either way, I prefer that my underwear not evoke an afternoon at Coney Island. I decided to slip into the bra, though, to check the fit — only to discover, in the most inelegant of ways, that it was too small. Turns out the site’s fine print says the bras are designed for a “junior frame.”
From now on, I’m sticking with my local lingerie shop, where variety and experienced salespeople are plentiful. So adieu, Black Swan. While you are seemingly a bargain, I don’t consider you an inexpensive bra but, rather, a costly sling shot.
Next up: skinny jeans.
After perusing Web sites like IndiCustom.com and Z2JeansCo.com, I decided to design a cropped skinny jean on MakeYourOwnJeans.com because the site offered that jean style and appeared to have more features, like patches and zippers. (Note: In all these instances, I used a personal e-mail address and credit card when ordering so the companies mentioned in this article wouldn’t know that I’m a reporter.)
Hurdle No. 1: the site’s design. It’s cluttered and lacks 360-degree images and models, which are key to the success of sites like Zappos and Net-a-Porter. NavigatingMakeYourOwnJeans.com was at times more exasperating than trying on jeans. This is a problem with many design-your-own clothing sites, but it’s glaring when customers are evaluating denim style, weight and wash. Discerning the difference between “posh” and “body hugger” denims was like trying to tell the Olsen twins apart.
Then there was the matter of Lycra. How might my derrière benefit (or not) from 3 percent Lycra? What about 2 percent? There was no way of knowing. That sort of thing should be explained on the Web site.
Hurdle No. 2: taking measurements. This, of course, is critical. But the site needs clearer instructions. A colleague and I had to go over them several times, and as veteran online shoppers, we’re not unfamiliar with measuring tape. We spent hours scrutinizing the site and measuring my waist, thighs, hips, knees, inner and outer leg, and more. I’ve had less invasive doctor’s appointments.
Yet it’s crucial to be precise. There are no returns unless the measurements of the jeans you receive differ from those you submitted.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Contest!
Win a Kindle or Iphone for you and a friend. You choose what you want! The Kindle will come preloaded with all of my books and 3 of Amanda Hockings books as well as 3 other bestsellers of your choice.
All you have to do to win is the following :
1) Recommend my book to your friends make sure they buy a copy of my book.
2) Purchase my book here https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004ZZM9E6 or http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004ZZM9E6 here! Send me your invoice number to Isabellakruger@gmail.com
3) Send me the names of your friends so that I can enter them into the competition . I will use their names to determine a winner.
4) As soon as I reach a thousand sales I will choose 5 winners!
Prize 1
A Kindle or Iphone for you and a friend. Preloaded with content!
Prize 2
A bag with a signed copy of my book and 2 bonus other books.
Prize 3
Same as above
Prize 4
Will be donated to fight illiteracy! I will donate 3 books to non profit organizations and high schools ![bookcover:Afterlife|11007649]
Monday, May 9, 2011
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Afterlife Release Date
Afterlife is set to be released on the 5th of May 2011 on amazon.com/amazon.co.uk/amazon.de
Friday, April 29, 2011
Lady in Waiting
Lady in Waiting is my latest project ! It is the true story about the life and times of Lady Anne Barnard .
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Look alike competition
A year ago I entered a Twilight Bella look alike competition in You magazine and out of 4000 people ended up 3rd ...Check it out :P
Interview
I was recently interviewed by Freelance and Fiction ...You can read the interview here : http://freelanceandfiction.weebly.com/the-freelance-and-fiction-blog.html
Elixir by Hillary Duff
I just finished Twilight for the 2nd time and now its time for a new book ...Let's hope this one is as good as reviewers are making it out to be!
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Cnn Article
I was mentioned on CNN I-report today ... Pretty cool I guess... Check it out here ! http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-595446?ref=feeds/latest
Monday, April 25, 2011
New book - Wormwood
I have officially decided to write a Dystopia book ...Not sure if it will be a series or not but anyway I hope you love the cover as much as I do!
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Entwined
My article for Elle South Africa
Thigh highs , sky highs and come on baby lets do the fashion fly by.
So darlings, I’m stuck writing this piece at 12:54 pm its late, but I’m excited I just Spotted the latest Proenza fall collection online. A year ago I was saying Thigh highs, thigh highs, thigh highs! Way back then the girl at La Senza looked at me funny and thought I was dressing up for a scene of Moulin Rouge or I was some stripper from Greenside or something. Nevertheless, I say ‘No!’ think again, think this year’s fall collection, think ... Proenza!
For those of you who are still new to this fashion thing, I suggest you buy a guide because this column is not for the faint hearted occasional Fashionista and no, Proenza is not the latest mood enhancer, but if you buy a piece of their latest collection it might even be better than that bottle of Prozac next to your bed! Step aside Prada, there’s a new bitch in town and she’s wearing knee highs and baby doll dresses!
So how is it that something so outdated can make a come-back in less than a month and get every well known celebrity to fight for a chance to see the collection on the fall runway?
Rules ? What rules?
Well knowing fashion and it’s so called rules, anything goes or does it? The skinny jean and scarf look has basically been around since Siena Miller posed on her 1st issue of Vogue. Since then the world has gone gaga over skinny’s and scarf’s. Scarf’s in all colours and styles like the recent war scarf’s fad. Don’t forget the latest fad leather jackets, teamed up with skinny’s. Since our favourite it girl, Taylor Momsen dressed as a grungy but stylish rocker chick on CW’s Gossip Girl, the world has been tamed over by the leather jacket.
But in this month’s fall collection skinny has gotten a make-over.
This month’s Proenza collection is grungy and daring with a little bit je ne suis que. The show stopper a pair of J brand skinny jeans, graffiti printed and high waisted was an instant hit and sold out throughout European stores.
If that wasn’t enough, Proenzas fans were even more delighted with the varsity jackets teamed up with the sexy knee high look. Sure to bring the cool back to school on the streets of the world. Keeping in line with Proenza’s stunning out there collection, was the Marc Jacobs collection as always stylish and elegant as only Marc Jacobs can be.
Now there’s a secret you need to know about me ... shhhht! I might have to kill you if you tell anyone ... I can tell all ... but I can’t reveal my name or the latest celeb I jetted off with to New York ... but I can reveal this: I’m a sucker for Marc Jacobs, if fashion had a king who ruled over all of fashion land it would be Marc and his exhaustingly exuberantly creative genius that always comes up with something new, fresh and exciting. He is my hero. Well, my secret is out and now I can tell you that I’d just about buy anything by Marc and that includes the latest Marc Jacobs Daisy perfume special that comes with a limited edition free bag. Someone please bring me a millionaire? Hallo! Any one? Please?
It might be old but who says it can’t be new?
As cheesy and cheap as that may sound I’d do anything, anything that is for a Marc Jacobs.
Keeping with all things old and borrowed and back in the fall 2010 collection is the return of the tweed jacket, a trend we saw coming up in the early turn of the century in 2000. Well it’s back and its stylish and its grey. Marc Jacobs latest collection started off with a gray sweatshirt, a pair of low heal croc pumps (you heard right, croc pumps so if you’re in Peta you might want to skip this part) and full on ankle socks! As a critic put it, it’s really stylish to see something that isn’t really trying to be new.
That brings me to my part what exactly is new? What’s wrong with old? Maybe new really is just the old. Old or is it new is just an invention or reincarnation of the old. And besides keeping in the spirit of things and this year’s fall collection - keep it simple, keep it stylish and dig into your wardrobe for those outdated numbers. Store your valuable items, rather than throwing them out, because vintage is oh s-o-o-o-o cool. Until next month stay tres fabulous my darlings and stay away from the crème brule!
Friday, April 22, 2011
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Who I would cast as the main actors if Afterlife was commissioned to become a film
Adam Brody as Zach
Channing Tatum as Jacques St Cloud
Lindsey Lohan or Halley Ramm as Fleur
Demi Lovato as Louisa
Cynthia Nixon as Miss Agatha Madison
Jessica Alba as socialite Amber Evans
Ian Somerhalder as Daniel
Michael Cain as Oscar and Sally Field as Oscar's wife Martha
Ed Westwick as Joel
Water for Elephants
I attended the opening of Water for elephants this weekend...I loved the movie almost as much as I loved Moulin Rouge, anyone remember Moulin Rouge? Anyway, I decided to post some pics on Water for elephants and hope you enjoy them . If you haven't read the book yet, get yourself down to Borders or Barnes and get a copy already ;)
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Reconciliation a bestseller !
Another one of my plays "Reconciliation" has topped the charts in both the play write and history and criticism categories on Amazon.com . Here is a link to the bookhttp://www.amazon.com/Reconciliation-ebook/dp/B004T4X21M/ref=pd_rhf_p_t_2...Today my best rating was 6# and #14 on Amazon but unfortunately my ratings have now dropped to 7 and 20. Thank you to every one of you! You guys are truly amazing !
Belle
Friday, April 15, 2011
Bestseller status
Hello all !
I officially reached bestseller status today under my pen name Cecily Von Menger . I wrote a screenplay / play at film school and really well to be honest I HATED IT but self published it on Kindle anyway. Guess what its currently number #4!
Monday, April 11, 2011
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