Thursday, September 29, 2011

Meet Brianne....Our Latest "Feel Better Campaign" Recipient


"I plan for the future, live for today and cherish every moment I have with those that I love, because you never know what tomorrow will bring" ~ Brianne



This is Brianne.  She is a 20 year old college student who was diagnosed at birth with cystic fibrosis.  We are extremely happy to announce that Brianne is our latest recipient of our "Feel Better Campaign".  You can read more about our "Feel Better Campaign" on our recently updated website here:  FEEL BETTER CAMPAIGN




We are very excited about this campaign because we both have seen how much a nice, beautiful, dignified, designer hospital gown can help in the treatment and healing of a person dealing with a difficult diagnosis.  We have had so many women wear our gowns and express such gratitude for how our hospital gowns made a difference in their hospital stays, radiation treatments and rehabilitations.  We feel truly blessed because while each of these women thank us for designing our hospital gowns, we thank them for teaching us so many life lessons!! 



When we read stories of women dealing with tough diagnoses, we immediately want to give each of these women one of our hospital gowns.  The "Feel Better Campaign" is a small way in which we can give back to some of these women and we encourage you to read about our campaign and give back as well!!  We plan to give at least three gowns per year to a deserving person.  You can help us by nominating someone that you feel would benefit from one of our hospital gowns and may not be able to afford to purchase one themselves.  Our nomination form can be found here: NOMINATIONS


We would like to share more about our latest recipient Brianne.  Brianne recently wrote to us about how much she loved our designer hospital gowns.  She has had to spend plenty of days in the hospital and always dreads wearing the oversized, dingy, standard hospital gowns.  She loved that our hospital gowns were chic and provide dignity by covering the back side completely.  She also loved the fact that our gowns come in many sizes, including extra-small!!  Brianne chose our "Susan" gown and we think she looks fabulous in it.



Brianne is a very family oriented girl and recognized that we shared this value with her when she saw that we named our company and all of our hospital gowns after family members who we loved and were important in our lives.  Brianne is now living at home due to an increase in the number of lung infections she has had and decrease in her lung function. Her immediate and extended family are a huge support to her and to her brother and sister who are also living with cystic fibrosis.


Brianne graduated with honors from high school and completed two years of college away from home before having to move back home due to more medical problems related to her cystic fibrosis.  She is a go getter, however, as she still attends junior college near home, gardens in the backyard when she can with her mom, and enjoys going to jazz concerts with her dad.  She tries to live the most normal life that she can but her normal is very different from that of  the average person. 


Brianne spends four hours a day doing breathing treatments and chest percussion. She also takes 15 pills a day, needs to eat 4,000 calories a day to maintain her weight, and attempts at least 20 minutes of exercise a day to strengthen her lungs. When she is sick, she adds another hour to those treatments and 4-5 more pills a day!!!



With all those pills and treatments, Brianne remains so very positive which is what we love so much about her.  She recently told us the following statement, which really inspired us and made us realize that she is a perfect candidate for our "Feel Better Campaign":

"I have learned over the years that a positive attitude and outlook on life goes a LONG way.  Why waste my time being upset over the things I personally have no control over.  Sure, I have bad days where I really hate Cystic Fibrosis, but most days I am able to smile and find the beauty and good in my life. One thing I've learned about Cystic Fibrosis is that you never know what will happen. So I plan for the future, live for today, and cherish every moment I have with those that I love, because you never know what tomorrow will bring."

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

After the Loss of Twins Delivered at Six Months, Amy Celebrates The Miracle of a New Baby Girl!!


In February, we were SO excited to see a beautiful new mama had posted the most adorable pictures on our Annie & Isabel facebook page!  Amy looked so chic and stylish in her "Evelyn" Annie & Isabel designer hospital gown as she welcomed sweet baby Lucy Valentine.  We absolutely love when our customers post pictures on our facebook wall as it gives us great pleasure to see women enjoying their stylish hospital gowns!! 


Here is what Amy said about her experience receiving and wearing an Annie & Isabel hospital gown:

"I can't even begin to express my love for my Annie & Isabel gown.  My hubbie and I had just faced delivering little 6 month twins that we lost the previous year where I stayed in the hospital for a month and lived in my normal dreary hospital gown.  So when we were blessed on our 9th cycle of IVF with another little miracle I couldn't have been more excited to receive the most AMAZING gift from a dear friend and fellow Annie & Isabel devoted fan.  It seriously was the biggest HIT at my shower and had the entire room in oooh's and ahh's!  I was so excited to slip it on after my c-section from delivering our little miracle Lucy Valentine!!  It truly made me feel like a million bucks and I loved how bright and cheery it made me feel!  We are already back on our IVF cycles trying for another miracle!!!  Annie & Isabel, you truly made our most amazing experience in life a million times even more exciting! All thanks to you!!  

All my love, Amy xoxo"

Amy....we are keeping our fingers and toes crossed for another miracle in your family! Thanks so much for sharing your story and first pictures with us.    

UPDATE!!! June 2012
Amy and her husband Bill were once again blessed with another little miracle baby girl! She welcomed Lola Love into this world and was able to rock her Evelyn gown again! What a GORGEOUS family!!!




Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Super Model, Shea Anne, Wears Annie & Isabel Hospital Gowns For The Birth of Her Second Child


norellecosmetics.com
In March, 2011, we were introduced to Shea Anne, a beautiful model who was expecting her second son in May of 2011. Shea is affilitated with the online magazine, Mom's Advice Magazine. Two online issues of Mom's Advice Magazine have published so far and it is a really wonderful, packed with loads of information for moms and moms-to-be! We were asked to become a sponsor of this magazine and, because we loved the exciting things they had planned, we jumped right in.


She is absolutely gorgeous and is an incredibly sweet person.  She wore two of our Annie & Isabel hospital gowns for the birth of her baby this past May. She chose the "Elizabeth" and the "Isabel" designer hospital gowns and looked beautiful in both. Here is a little video from right after her baby boy was born in her "Elizabeth" hospital gown.  There is nothing more beautiful than the sound of a baby's first cries after birth and we feel honored that she is sharing such a special moment with all of us.


We thought it would be fun to do a little Q&A with Shea!
A&I: How long have you been modeling and working in photography?
Shea: "I've been modeling since I was 16 and have been doing photography for about 2 years now".

A&I: What are some of your most memorable modeling jobs that you have done?
Shea: "Working with brands such as the J Lo campaign, Speedo, Daks, cover of Pregnancy & Newborn, and Fit Pregnancy".

http://www.pnmag.com/

A&I: Are you planning on focusing more on photography and Mom's Advice Magazine now, or will you continue to model, or both?
Shea: "I am focusing on the magazine! I still model, but only for clients that I've been working with for years as it is not my main focus anymore. I'm trying to encourage and help other moms through the magazine".

A&I: What did you like most about your Annie & Isabel designer hospital gowns?
Shea: I loved that the back of the gown was not open, so I could actually walk around!! They are also great looking. I love the fact that I looked different than anyone else in the hospital because having a child is supposed to be a special time so you want to look special as well".



Below is the latest online issue of Mom's Advice Magazine. Be sure to check out pages 47 for Shea's story on wearing her Annie & Isabel hospital gowns and page 52 to see our ad. Thank you Shea for including Annie & Isabel in your fall issue and for supporting mom owned businesses! Congratulations on your beautiful baby boy!