Guest Post + Contest News....with Author Dorothy Howell!

Hi there fellow readers!

Welcome back to another week here at Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers!

Since Monday's generally belong to 'In My Shopping Bag' posts here on the site, I thought...you know, I have this really perfect article that would be SUCH a great addition for a shopping themed day.  So...TADA!  Today is the day you get a chance to read it!  It comes to us from Caitlin over at FSB Associates (thanks!) and is written by mystery author Dorothy Howell.

Name sound familiar?  It should!  I just reviewed her latest addition to the literary world a week or two ago titled Should Bags and Shootings.  For a quick reminder of the story, just visit my review....though it's not necessary to enjoy the rest of this post I assure you.  Today's post is just for us girls (okay, so my use of proper grammar there was lacking but you get the picture) and all about one accessory, pardon me...key piece of our wardrobe, that for most of us, can also be counted as a vice (as in a need to buy a new one when ever and there is no limit to the number we own).  Stay tuned after the article for news on how YOU can enter to win a designer handbag of your own!  It's not a 'Sinful' like in the book (yes, I already asked...those are only fictional...at least for now), but it IS supposed to be pretty super.

Take it away Dorothy Howell....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Guest Post

Hollywood Loves a Great Handbag

By Dorothy Howell

Author of Shoulder Bags and Shootings: A Haley Randolph Mystery

Fashion is a major player in Hollywood. Wardrobe departments spend tireless hours perfecting the right "look" for their actors. Celebrity stylists live or die by the image they craft for their clients. Magazines and television shows devote themselves to photos and descriptions of celebrity clothing and accessories.

From the style and elegance of fashion icons such as Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn during Hollywood's Golden Era, to pics of celebs like Jennifer Aniston and Reece Witherspoon hitting the trendy L.A. shops, the public is fascinated by what they're wearing.

Regardless of current styles, situations or occasions, no actress or fashion icon would be caught in public without one indispensable fashion accessory -- her handbag.

This year's Oscar night saw pastels and bright colors, along with ruffles and trains, outside the Kodak Theater; most accompanied by a gorgeous clutch. The different shapes and sizes decorated with jewels glistening under the lights, made it the accessory to watch.

Anna Kendrick, a first-time nominee, carried a jeweled Judith Leiber clutch. Elizabeth Banks accessorized her Verace gown with a gray snakeskin and silver crystal clutch from Salvatore Ferragamo. Diva Demi Moore, ruled the red carpet with a gold leather envelope clutch, while Kate Winslet rocked an Yves Saint-Laurent silver satin bag. These Hollywood fashionistas proved nothing completes a red-carpet look like a handbag.

Yet for all their glamour and prestige, today's top handbag designers had decidedly unfashionable beginnings. Louis Vuitton made travel trunks in the 1800s, while Hermés crafted horse harnesses for Europe's aristocracy. Prada, Fendi, and Gucci were known for their leather baggage.

These houses made the jump to light speed, fashion wise, by looking into the future and adapting to changing times, and today they give us some of the most sought-after handbags in the world.

Purses aren't just another glitz and glamour accessory. Like all Hollywood beauties, the handbag is expected to work. Whether in a starring or a supporting role, the handbag is often in the spotlight.

Sarah Jessica Parker's character Carrie Bradshaw, on the Sex and the City television show, received a Judith Leiber handbag from Big. The cupcake purse by this famed designer made an appearance in the SATC movie. Samantha Jones, played by Kim Cattrall, ran afoul of Lucy Liu over a long awaited Birkin bag.

Ruth Buzzi turned her purse into a weapon and fought off her hapless, would-be attacker on Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In. A decades-old skit so funny it can still be viewed on YouTube.

Who can forget Jamie Farr's portrayal of Corporal Maxwell Q. Klinger and his desperate attempt to get discharged from the Army by dressing in drag on the long running television show M*A*S*H? He went about his duties wearing a dress, hat, gloves, high heels and, of course, carrying a handbag.

The style, glitz and glam of a Hollywood-worthy purse are available to the everyday fashionista. Retail, discount, and online stores abound. Be the star of your own show with the handbag of your dreams.

© 2010 Dorothy Howell, author of Shoulder Bags and Shootings: A Haley Randolph Mystery

------------------------------

Author Bio

Dorothy Howell, author of Shoulder Bags and Shootings: A Haley Randolph Mystery, was inspired to write Handbags and Homicide by her crazed obsession with designer purses. She lives in Southern California, where there is, thankfully, no rehab program for handbag addiction, and is hard at work on her next Haley Randolph mystery. Visit her Website at http://www.dorothyhowellnovels.com/.

Follow the author on Facebook.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

See?  Now that's what I'm talking about.  A fashion accessory turned focal point for society that also carries over to literature.  Gotta love it.

Okay, so on to the news I promised.  Right now, author Dorothy Howell has your chance to win a designer handbag!  That's right!  Now through the end of September she is accepting entries and then a random winner will be drawn to win the fabulous prize.  Head on over to her site to check it out (very easy to enter) and while your there, get to know more about the author as well as her characters!

Special thanks to Caitlin at FSB Associates for the article to post.  (THANKS!)  For more information, be sure to visit their websites (1 or 2), Facebook, or follow along on Twitter.

Until next time....happy shopping...I mean reading!