Cute jewelry, good causes
Making a donation to charity is especially fun when there's a little jewelry in it for you. Some places where you can give and get:
• ALDO is selling three special "Love for Life" bracelets to help YouthAIDS. The women's bracelets come in either goldtone or silvertone, and the men's is rubber with a silver tone segment.
The artwork on the bracelets was created by children living in Rwandan youth centers who drew what they thought "Love for Life" meant.
The bracelets retail for $5 each, and 100 percent of the proceeds will go to YouthAIDS. The bracelets are available at ALDO stores and aldoshoes.com
• "The Hills" star Lauren Conrad collaborated with mark, one of the Avon brands, to create the "Have a Heart" necklace which raises money for the girls' m. powerment campaign. The campaign works to empower girls and prevent dating abuse and violence.
The $22 necklace is available now from mark representatives or at www.meetmark.com. One hundred percent of the proceeds will be donated to the charity.
How to buy socks
Women can spend hours picking the perfect pair of shoes, but rarely do they spend time thinking about their socks.
The wrong pair of socks can ruin a perfectly good ensemble, but socks can also cause foot problems like hyperhidrosis (excess sweating) or bromhydrosis (foot odor). That's why the American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA) recently released tips on how to buy socks. The group recommends the following:
• Purchase a sock made of a polysynthetic blend, which wicks moisture away from the foot, preventing blisters and irritation.
• Avoid socks with large seams at the toe or in other areas. Seamless socks are a better choice, especially for people with diabetes or decreased circulation.
• The thickness of the sock material can be based on personal preference and comfort.
• Make sure the socks don't have loose fabric around the toes or heels, or are so tight that they decrease circulation.
• The APMA recommends two sock brands: the Injinji Footwear Performance Series Tetratsok and Takeda Legwear BigToe R x L Socks.
Safety check
You can't carry mace or pepper spray with you when you travel, but you can carry the Cavius. The 4-in-1 personal protection device is an attack alarm, a smoke detector, a door alarm and a bag alarm that's as small as the palm of your hand. Available exclusively at the Chicago-based Web site Lucky Day Boutique. ($79.95, www.luckydayboutique.com)