Don Piper Story

Check out the article I wrote about Don Piper's visit to Parker Memorial Baptist Church, Anniston, Alabama for The Alabama Baptist:

Before he came back.
Author, pastor talks about how prayer brought him back from heaven

Mark Harris

Check out a story I wrote about Mark Harris, singer/songwriter and former lead singer of 4Him, for The Alabama Baptist.

A heart for church work
After 4HIM, Mobile native finds ministry in local church

Bony Hands

Not long after posting an All the Rage column and blog on alltheragecolumn.com about my obsession with my aging hands, I was contacted by a reporter with MSNBC.com. She was just the sweetest gal and we talked for so long about living in the South, Alabama tornado's and beauty rituals that an hour past by quickly.

The result of the interview is a wonderful story about how women are trying to erase aging in hands. For me, I'll try natural remedies cause I am quite afraid of needles. Read more here on MSNBC.com - Turning back the ‘creepy old hands’ of time by Diane Mapes

Mark Harris

I interviewed Mark Harris, former lead singer of 4Him, for The Alabama Baptist a few weeks ago. I have to tell you that he is such an amazingly nice guy. Not that I thought he would be anything but nice! If you are like me, you cry every time you hear Find your wings. (It is on my playlist.)

Mark called me from a youth retreat he was attending and we had a chance to talk about his music, his family, his church. I'll post a link to the story when it runs. By the way, my favorite song on his latest CD, Windows & Walls, is Living Room and it happens to be his favorite too.

Check out his site at MarkHarrisOnline.com

Homelife - March 2008

I received an advance copy of the March 2008 issue of Homelife magazine (Lifeway) and an article I wrote about modesty is featured. I love Homelife magazine and can't wait to open it every month.

On the issue of modesty, I love fashion and style, but I get so bored with TV programs and fashion shows handing out advice on improving the way we dress as women by dressing sexy. This type of advice to me is an easy road to take when you don't know what else to say. Sure women want to feel sexy or look sexy for her partner, but to dress this way outside of the bedroom is a sign of insecurities and lack of respect. Dresing sexy is an attempt to be suggestive and stimulate men. I have been happily maried for over 16 years and this part of me is for him only.

I really do believe the way we dress reflects our hearts and it was an honor to write this for Homelife. If you don't subscribe or receive Homelife through your church, you can order it here.

For this article, I interviewed the following women:

Shannon Stewart, professional model. myspace.com/model4christ
(Shannon will be on the Tyra Banks show on Feb. 20, 2008. She is working on her first book.)

Dannah Gresh, Pure Freedom founder and author, Five Little Questions That Reveal the Life God Designed for You www.purefreedom.org

Wendy Shalit, Modestly Yours blog founder and author of Girls Gone Mild, www.girlsgonemild.com

On a side note, when I showed it the issue to my son, he was impressed with the fact that my picture was right next to Max Lucado on the contributer page. He asked me if I was going to be in Hermie and thinks Max and I are buddies now!

Tiara-Wearing and Book-Sharing

By Theresa Shadrix
Consolidated Publishing, Co.
01-28-08

It is not everyday that you come upon a Southern gal wearing a tiara in Jacksonville. Unless you are Lauren Moon, the newly crowned Miss JSU or perhaps Teresa Cheatham Stricklin, who surely must dust off her Miss Alabama crown every now and then just for fun.

Recently, Kathy L. Patrick, author of The Pulpwood Queens Tiara-Wearing, Book-Sharing Guide to Life, made a stop in Jacksonville during her first national book tour and I was able to meet her tiara-to-tiara. Yes, I greeted her in my tiara and of course, she was wearing a nicely polished tiara.

And, we turned a few heads.

Kathy is difficult to explain and even she admits it. “I am a beautician, turned book publishing representative who was fired so I opened the only beauty shop-book store in the country.” As she takes a deep breath, she adds, “Oh, and I started The Pulpwood Queens book club and it is the largest in the world.”

The Kansas native who now calls Texas her home talks passionately about her love of big hair, beauty, reading and books. Her salon in Texas, Beauty and the Book, is decorated with mementos of her book royalness and is a frequent stop of both authors and book lovers. You just have to read her book to soak it all in. Part memoir, part motivation and part book recommendations, it is one whole book of fun and inspiration.

Each chapter details her journey from a shy girl with an aspiring actress mother who often neglected her needs to a book publishing rep who was downsized to the owner of the only bookstore/beauty salon to a book club organizer. Then at the end, she gives book recommendations related to that chapter.

As you read this, you are probably trying to connect the dots from tiaras to reading, but Kathy is the Queen of making reading fun. You see, the Pulpwood Queens book club motto is “Where tiaras are mandatory and reading good books is the rule!” This is not your grandmother’s book club because everyone wears a tiara, dresses up in hot pink and leopard print and reads a book selected by Kathy each month. This month, her own book and Robin Roberts’ From the heart: Seven Rules to Live By are the book selections.

Kathy Patrick is one of those people who never meets a stranger and oozes Southern charm. And, she does it holding a book in one hand and a shiny tiara on her big, Texas hair. But don’t take my word for it, check her blog out at www.pulpwoodqueen.com

Secrets of Style

By Theresa Shadrix
Consolidated Publishing, Co.
07-08-2007

Have you ever noticed a woman with an effortless sense of style and asked yourself, “What is her secret?”

You can’t put your finger on exactly what makes her stand out from other women, but she just seems polished and classic. More than likely, she understands that style is not about fashion or trends, but rather it is a conversation through clothes.

Fashion and trends are sort of like leaves blowing in the wind. While fashionistas frantically run around following each leaf, you might be one of the women who catch up to the leaf, only to discover it has not been all the rage since last season. All that running around has only made you feel like a wind-blown mess.

Style is telling the world, “I am comfortable in my own skin and I dare to be unique.”

So, if you had the nerve to walk up to that woman and ask her secrets of style, I imagine she would share these:

Style is all about the basics.

The foundation for every wardrobe is the basics. Sonya Barnes of Harris & Barnes Image Consultants in Charlotte, N.C., said there are basics every women should have in her wardrobe, regardless of her work environment.

• A great structured classic jacket in a classic color becoming to you.

• A great pair of black trousers.

• A fabulous fitting pair of Jeans; updated, NOT MOMMY JEANS!!

• A classic white button-down shirt.

• A great pair of shoes; preferably classic pumps.

• A piece of classic jewelry that’s real! (diamonds, pearls, etc).

• A trench coat.

• Leather gloves.

• Great handbag.

Like primary colors, you start with one basic piece of clothing and create different outfits by mixing them.

If you work in a professional office, then you should create outfits around suits and separates. If your work environment is casual or you stay at home, then build outfits around neutral pants and shirts, like brown, black and grey and khaki. Then, bring in color with your accessories. Although I do love to wear my pearl earrings, I also adore wearing inexpensive jewelry that I can mix and match, so I stock up with clearance sales at JC Penney, Goody’s and Target.

Style takes strategy.

Style doesn’t just happen. Just as you might lay your child’s clothes out for school the previous night, you need to think about what you are doing each day and what you should wear. If you have an important meeting at work, then you should dress accordingly in a professional outfit. If you wear a uniform, then make sure it is clean and ironed. (Please do remember that I have an ironing obsession and when I wore scrubs in a previous job, I even ironed them.)

Also, if you don’t work outside the home, try to wear a comfortable, but cute, outfit and don’t wear it five days in a row.

Style is in the fit.

Wearing a piece of clothing that is not the correct size never achieves the desired effect.

I remember my post-pregnancy days when I couldn’t find anything to fit me and so I stuck to a pair of old sweats and a big baggy shirt. For a long time, I checked out of the fashion arena and simply gave up trying to look good. After all, I was sleep deprived. I also hung on to pre-pregnancy clothes that I dreamed would one-day miraculous fit again.

Honestly, deep down, I knew that if I placed those smaller clothes in a box, buried it in my back yard, and dug it up five years later, those clothes would still be too small. So, I donated them.

Style can be signature.

Just because you are a Southern gal with a less-than-glamorous life, it doesn’t mean you can’t have your own signature style. The one true secret of style is that it should be all yours.

Maybe you really like to wear a pair of pearl earrings that once belonged to your grandmother, or you enjoy scarves even when they are not the trend, or you like to layer your clothes, or you enjoy energetic colors.

Don’t be afraid to tap into the youthful vibrancy of having fun with clothes, play around with them, try something new, and discover your own unique style. You never know, people may start asking you about your secrets of style.

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