Cinderella Story handed out 77 dresses for graduation proms in 2014

Girls will live a true Cinderella story at their 2015 graduation proms through the work of volunteers who bypass financial barriers to provide prom fashion.

An annual dress drive will launch Jan. 2 as part of First Friday when donations of gently-worn and cleaned prom dresses will be collected at the Painted Cat on Christina Street.

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"It will be a fun event," said Debbie Anderson, founder of the Cinderella Story of Sarnia-Lambton.

In April, girls in Grades 8 and 12 should be able to choose from several hundred free dresses. The dress drive allows the inventory to be continually updated.

Anderson said financial restrictions can still prevent some girls from attending the social milestone of a prom.

But Cinderella Story's annual Prom Dress Boutique allows some girls to try on 10 to 15 dresses and that experience is important, said Anderson.

Their look can be completed with shoes, a mini-makeover and jewelry during the April boutique.

During the 2014 prom season, 77 girls received dresses from the Cinderella Story's large selection.

But Anderson said the key to the event is that girls are able to participate with their peers, helping them build confidence and making it more than just a dress.

The drive will continue from Jan. 5 to 18 when dresses can be dropped off at Libro Credit Union, Blackburn Radio, Agoya Fitness, Costumes Canada and Sarnia-Lambton Business Development Corporation.

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Khloe Kardashian Dons Low-Cut Sequined Dress With Daring Slit

Khloe Kardashian Dons Low-Cut Sequined Dress With Daring Slit



This isn't your average little black dress.

Khloe Kardashian has never been one to stray from a daring dress, and her outfit at 1 Oak nightclub in Las Vegas on Tuesday night was no exception to the rule. The 30-year-old worked her curves in a sequined black dress with a plunging neckline and a thigh-high slit as she played host for the evening:

Kardashian was kept company by her two close pals, Khadijah and Malika Haqq. Although her famous family was not in attendance, she found a creative way to make sure that Kim, Kylie, Kourtney, Kendall and Rob were all there in spirit:

Samantha Jade oozes glamour in dazzling gold dress as she puckers up for the camera after posting touching tribute to late mother

Samantha Jade was resplendent in a dazzling gold dress as she brought the house down with a New Year's Eve performance at the Gold Coast's luxurious five star Palazzo Versace.

Playfully blowing kisses to the camera the 27-year-old looked happy as she kissed goodbye to what has been an emotionally wrought year, following the death of her beloved mother Jacqui in June.

The diminutive pop singer showed off her delicate frame in the mirrored dress with spaghetti straps and a sweetheart neckline, posting the shot to Instagram.



She left a simple message beside the shot: 'Hello 2015!'.

Another image showed the Australian voice on stage, microphone in hand, as she oozed Hollywood glamour her hair styled in retro waves.



Earlier in the evening the positive Up! singer posted a touching tribute to her late mother who lost her battle to cancer in June, leaving behind Samantha, her brothers and father.

Posting an image of a Dalai Lama quote that read: 'The purpose of our lives is to be happy.'




She followed the image with the words: '2014 has been a life changing year. It has taught me a lot, My mum lived by these wise words and my New Years resolution is to truly do the same.'

She also shared the image on Twitter alongside the caption: 'Wise words to live by for the year ahead :) love to everybody x'

After her mother passed away earlier in the year, Sam has vouched to complete her second album which is set for an early 2015 release.

In a touching tribute the Perth local will be dedicating the record to her mother.

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The singer, who has been open about her grief after the loss of her beloved mother, revealed her new album will be called  'Angel'.

In October Samantha told Daily Mail Australia: 'The album is definitely dedicated to my mum,' explaining her mother's five-month stay in hospital gave the pair time to bond over her music.


'She actually had a lot of input into it. She was in bed and I was there with her so I went through all the artwork with her, all the ideas for the songs and played her the songs we had.'

Earlier in the month Samantha Jade - who won critical acclaim for her role as Kylie Minogue in the INXS mini-series Never Tear Us Apart - shared a photo with fans on Instagram, showing her jumping into a plunge pool in Bali with her hands in the air on Christmas Day.

The X-Factor 2012 is holidaying with dad, Kevin, her brothers Alex and Thomas and some friends.

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Dumped bride makes splash with 'trash the dress'

Shelby Swink has a powerful message: When life throws you a mess, make an even bigger mess.

When her fiancé unexpectedly dumped her five days before their wedding on Nov. 1, Swink, 23, decided to commemorate the day with some unconventional — and colorful — wedding portraits.

"I knew that a pity party was the farthest thing from what I wanted or needed. A few people brought up the idea of trashing the dress, and at first it sounded crazy," Swink said in an e-mail.

The ingredients for a memorable "trash the dress": family, friends, celebratory cigars, champagne and paint — lots of it.

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Wallowing was not invited to the party.

Via a phone call from her hometown of Memphis, Tenn., Swink tells USA TODAY Network the inside scoop: "Liz (Hoard, the photographer) wanted to make sure we wouldn't go all out and just throw all the paint in 15 minutes. She wanted to stage it, so it starts formally and everyone slowly loosens up. By the end, everyone is crazy and wild," she says.

The day of the shoot, Swink says, it was freezing. "We were wet with the paint and our fingers were numb, but it was so, so fun to just live in the moment."

Swink says that when her fiancé broke up with her, she felt "numb." They started dating in the beginning of 2011, moved in together in December 2013 and got engaged in March.

While the fame is unexpected, Swink is excited that the photos have empowered others in her situation. "So many people have contacted me telling their stories. I did the photo shoot for myself, not realizing that it would affect others," says Swink.

Her advice: "Everything happens for a reason and when life gives you something you can't handle, just face it head-on."

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Same-sex couples seek gay-friendly wedding services

Elizabeth calls her upcoming marriage to Julie, her partner of 12 years, "the amazing moving wedding."

The South Carolina women initially planned to marry in Connecticut, where same-sex marriage has been legal since 2008. They scheduled their wedding around their oldest son's graduation there, on Memorial Day weekend. But when gay marriage bans were struck down closer to home, their plans changed.

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"When North Carolina went with the court decision, we thought we would get married there, because that is really close to us," Elizabeth said. "Then South Carolina struck the ban down, and now we are getting married in Columbia, South Carolina. We call it 'the evolution of a wedding.'"

Elizabeth says the decision has left her rushing to plan a wedding far closer to home than expected.

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"I made my peace years ago with not having a 'real' wedding — 'real,' in the way you think about Southern weddings in particular: traditional and elaborate," she said. "So we are sort of scrambling to pull this off. It’s fun and exciting, but I think we are overwhelmed in the same way all straight couples are about finding wedding services."

Planning a wedding can be particularly stressful for same-sex couples in traditionally conservative states. Although some states have laws barring businesses from discriminating against gay couples, in many parts of the U.S. inclusive wedding services are still far from ubiquitous.

"I feel like we sort of have to check around," Elizabeth said of her South Carolina community. "Most people within the gay community tend to use word of mouth about who is friendly and who is not."

Whether it involves avoiding outright discrimination or making sure a bakery can provide a cake with two brides or two grooms, the question of how to find gay-friendly wedding services is becoming more and more prevalent.

The issue was brought to the forefront after a barrage of traditionally conservative states saw same-sex marriage bans struck down in 2014. States affected by this year's rulings include North Carolina, South Carolina, Montana, Kansas, Alaska, Wyoming, Wisconsin, Arizona, Idaho, Mississipi, Nevada, West Virginia, Colorado, Indiana, Oklahoma, Utah and Virginia.

Michael Jamrock is the owner of EnGAYged Weddings, which he describes as "the yellow pages for gay weddings." The website functions as a directory of vendors who have been vetted as being gay-friendly, listing everything from flower vendors to photographers and wedding officiants. He said that inclusive vendors are scarce, especially in states that very recently legalized same-sex marriage.

"One of our biggest problems is that we have more couples coming to the website looking for vendors than I actually have vendors to accommodate them," he said.

For example, Elizabeth noted the only South Carolina catering company listed on EnGAYged was in Charleston — two hours from Columbia where her wedding will take place.

Jamrock said this problem exists even in states that have traditionally been considered more liberal, including New York, where he has 200 listed wedding officiants who say they are all completely booked months in advance for services.

Reverend Will Mercer is one of the New York officiants listed on EnGAYged. He said he initially experienced a huge surge in demand for his services after gay marriage was legalized in 2011, but the number of same-sex weddings he officiates has dropped by at least half since then.

"At first there was a massive outpouring of people who were interested in catching up with the long wait they had lived through — sometimes 30 years or more — to have their relationships legally acknowledged," he said. "Since that time, it has become a more mainstream activity and the initial demand dropped off. In addition, with other states acknowledging same-sex marriage, people do not drive to New York to get married."



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Couple hold lavish 2nd wedding after guests had to pay to attend their 1st




A penny-pinching bride said an extravagant thank you to her guests who she made pay for their own food on her big day.

Gail Reynolds, 43, and her husband Brian, 44, from Worcester were so hard up that when they decided to get married in May 2003 everyone who wanted to come had to contribute money for the wedding breakfast.



Gail and Brian at their first budget wedding (PA Real Life)

“Every spare penny we had went on our wedding fund. Our clothes came from charity shops and we never went out or even had takeaway,” she said.

Gail, mum to son Ashleigh, now 24, and daughter Libby, 17, began selling Avon products in her spare time to try and raise extra cash. There still wasn’t enough money to pay for the whole reception though, so she and Brian came up with a cheeky plan.

“We honestly didn’t have any choice, we couldn’t really afford to feed our guests,” Gail said. “It felt rude but when we asked if they would mind contributing £10 each everyone was more than happy.”



The happy couple with some of their guests who paid for their own dinner (PA Real Life)

In fact, realising how hard up they were, the couple’s friends and family started offering to help in all sorts of ways.

“My old boss said we could honeymoon in his Spanish villa, a friend did the flowers and Brian’s sister made our wedding cake,” Gail said. “Their generosity meant so much to us. We had dinner in a local hotel. Although it wasn’t fancy, we had a lovely day.”

After the wedding Gail continued selling Avon products and had so much success it became both her and Brian’s full time jobs. In 2005 the couple sold £1 million worth of products, and that year she gave birth to Rosie, now nine.




Brian and Gail with Ashleigh and Libby at their first wedding (PA Real Life)

“It was a true rags to riches tale,” Gail said. “One minute we could barely afford to buy a burger, the next we could buy the shop!”

Now they were better off, Gail and Brian decided to renew their wedding vows – and say thank you to all those who had attended their first big day.

“One day Brian just handed me a glossy brochure, it was for luxury wedding venues,” Gail said, who now boasts a £7.5 million turnover. “He suggested having our dream wedding – now that we could afford it.”



The couple and their family at their second much more lavish wedding (PA Real Life)

They invited everyone who had attended their first do – plus 100 more.

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“No expense was spared. Everyone stayed in the luxury hotel where we had the ceremony. After renewing our vows we had dinner in a room filled with hundreds of white roses and lilies,” she said.

On June 1 last year, Gail got ready in a beautiful bridal suite, she was wearing an £800 gown and they cut a wedding cake that cost £250 and short wedding dress. And of course this time, they splashed out for a lavish dinner for their guests.


Some of their many guests enjoying dinner at their second wedding (PA Real Life)

“It was the wedding of my dreams but our first will always be special to me,” Gail said. “I really found out who our friends were and I feel very lucky to have them in my life.”


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Obama’s golf game boots bride and groom from Hawaii wedding

 For birdie or for worse.

President Obama’s golf game Sunday forced Army Captains Natalie Heimel and her fiancé, Edward Mallue Jr. to relocate their wedding ceremony.

The lovebirds were set to wed Sunday at the Kaneohe Klipper Golf Course, located on the Marine Corps Base Hawaii, until they learned Obama had his eye on the same course and they would need to find a new spot for their nuptials.

“In less than 24 hours they had to change everything they had planned,” the groom’s sister told Bloomberg News.

Instead, they held the ceremony on green lawn on the base that offered views of the Pacific coastline.

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 Obama spent most of the afternoon on Sunday at the base golf course, in the company of golf partners Mike Ramos, Greg Orme and Bobby Titcomb.

But upon learning how the scheduling snafu interrupted the military wedding, Obama reached out to the bride and groom to apologize.

The gesture seemed to smooth over any hard feelings.

"Obama just personally called my sister & her new husband to apologize for foiling their wedding venue golfing. Amazing!" the bride's sister tweeted, posting an Instagram shot of the newlyweds chatting with the President on their iPhone.


 Several other wedding guests also shared social media snaps of the incident, using the hashtag #ThanksObama.

The President has spent nine days in Hawaii for his holiday break.

He has golfed six times so far.

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