Recently in Our Favorite Charities Category

I’ve always supported St Jude’s Research Hospital. I think they’re a really well run charity with a really great cause. (St Jude’s covers all the costs for children with catastrophic diseases to come to their hospital/ research center and get care and treatment.) I’ve also always supported Saks so I was really excited to see the two come together this holiday season for such a great cause. They’re running a few really great programs that give you a variety of ways to support the charity. The first thing they are doing is selling an adorable book called Snowpeople ($16.99). It’s the tale of “…inquisitive snowpeople in search of their own identity…” They stop at Saks along the way of course! It’s a great gift for kids and two dollars from every book goes to St Jude’s 2007 Thanks & Giving Campaign. I’ve already ordered this book for all my friend’s children!

Saks is also selling five WOW gifts. These are truly luxury items for the most special person in your life. They range from a car to an amazing weekend away to front row VIP treatment at a rock concert. Prices range from $55,000 to $542,000 (for the car) but the payoff is huge - you get an amazing gift and the charity gets a sizable donation.

My favorite part of the site, and the most fun, is The Great SNOWPEOPLE Hunt! The idea is to go through the Saks catalog (It’s online for those of you who don’t have a hardcopy) and count all the snowpeople. When you think you have the final number, fill out the entry form and you’ll be entered to win a twenty-one day Antarctic vacation. It’s almost as good as one of our quizzes, right ladies? Saks is donating one dollar for every entry received so count away. This is also a great way to pass time if you are bored at work!

I really believe that the holidays are a time for giving and spreading love. Even if the most you can do is enter the online sweepstakes, I highly encourage you to do so! That dollar could help save a child’s life!

Pink and Navy Toms: $38 each

We all love a 2-for-1 deal especially when it's for a good cause. At TOMS "Shoes for Tomorrow" this is their motto. Every time you buy a pair of shoes the company donates a pair on your behalf to a child without shoes. Creator Blake Mycoskie (if he looks familiar, he was a contestant on The Amazing Race: Season Two) was inspired on a trip to Argentina by the traditional, rope-soled Argentine “alpargata”. He was struck by the poverty and health issues of the country, and set out to reinvent the alpargata for the U.S. market and provide for those without shoes. To achieve this goal, Blake made a commitment to match every pair of TOMS purchased with a donation of a pair to a child in need. "I was overwhelmed by the spirit of the South American people, especially those who had so little,” Mycoskie says. “And I was instantly struck with the desire – the responsibility – to do more.”

(Note from Bag Snob Tina: I just purchased 3 pairs for myself and ordered 2 pairs for my son, these are the perfect shoes to run around in all year long! Plus every time you pull them on, you can smile at the thought of a child somewhere in the world who also has a pair of shoes because of you :) GO SHOP!)

So, I know you all are dying to buy a pair for yourself. Then purchase a pair of Tiny TOMS for your kids, nieces, nephews, godchildren, etc. If you don't think owning a pair of shoes is enough, throw a Style Your Soles party - a great excuse for getting together and having fun with friends. Buy each participant a white pair of TOMS and let them become their own fashion designer. It's a party favor and good deed all in one. I am seriously considering this for my daughter's upcoming birthday. For more information read about Style Your Sole party or email them.

As for TOMS, the shoes are taking the nation by storm. The celeb following includes Keira Knightley, Orlando Bloom, Kirsten Dunst, Sienna Miller, Renee Zellweger, Tobey Maguire, Jessica Biel, Benicio Del Toro and many others. During Blake's first year in business, TOMS sold 10,000 pairs of shoes, and he returned to Argentina to lead his first annual Shoe Drop during which he donated to the children who had inspired him. For his second Shoe Drop, Blake will be donating 5 times that number when he travels to Africa in November giving 50,000 pairs of TOMS. That's amazing!

Friday, October 19, 2007, Blake will be in Dallas for an event promoting TOMS shoes. The party, hosted by the Sewell family, Heidi Dillon, Kimberly Schlegel Whitman, Cate Ford, Todd Fiscus, and others, will be held at The Apartment. We will also be talking to him. Stay tuned for our full interview. For more information about the event email Debra Thom of the HL Group.

Sasha Pivovarova, Daria Werbowy, Lily Donaldson, Lily Coleand Du Juan and for this year's Fashion Targets Breast Cancer campaign shot by Patrick Demarchelier

This year Ralph Lauren has designed an exclusive polo to benefit the Fashion Targets Breast Cancer Worldwide charity fund. This campaign is backed by CFDA who founded this fund in 1994 (remember Kate Moss with the target t-shirt? she looked hot in it but this t-shirt is way cuter!). This fitted polo is $75, 80% of which will go to the charity. There is no better way to show that you care than to look cute doing it! It comes in 5 colors; white, green, red, turquoise (pictured) and yellow. This polo shirt is the first of many collaborations to come from FTBC with other exciting designers to join forces. These t-shirts are always the hottest things each year so get yours right away. I got the turquoise, my favorite color but I might just get one in every color to play golf in! Exclusively at Net-a-Porter.