By Tim Saunders on
It may be cold, and snow may be falling outside your window, but a new charity auction might have just the thing to keep you warm and cosy this winter. A host of celebrities have got together to fight the winter blues by designing a range of sheepskin-lined Ugg boots, with all proceeds going to fight childhood diseases.
Sharon Stone, Penelope Cruz, and John Travolta are just some of the 22 stars trying to keep your toes toasty this holiday season, with a variety of designs on offer in the auction to raise money for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, America’s third largest healthcare charity.
St. Jude’s is internationally recognized for its pioneering work in finding cures and saving children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases, and offers free treatment to all of its patients. The hospital, based in Memphis, Tennessee, was founded by entertainer Danny Thomas, and shares its discoveries with scientific and medical communities all around the world, making it a leader in children’s healthcare.
The auction has been organized by Ugg Australia, the company behind the famous sheepskin boots, established in 1978 when a young Australian surfer named Brian Smith started selling the boots while on a trip to America. The boots soon became the preferred footwear of Californian surfers, and have now become almost legendary around the world.
The surfing theme has been captured in Ashlee Simpson's design, which incorporates surfers and dolphins splashing in the ocean, and Eva Longoria's design highlights the importance of love, with bronze hearts adorning the toes. Matthew McConaughey's design is emblazoned with the phrase “Just Keep Livin’”, and Liv Tyler's boots look fit for an Elven Princess. Other stars to donate specially designed boots include Ashton Kutcher, Cindy Crawford, Ellen DeGeneres, Minnie Driver, Whoopi Goldberg, Martha Stewart, Kelly Ripa, and Kelly Preston.
The boots start with a reserve price of $200, and the auction runs from December 1-14 on www.cmarket.com.
Also in the mood for giving this holiday season is actress Maggie Gyllenhaal, who has teamed up with non-profit organization Trickle Up to offer a special piece of jewelry available when people make donations to the charity.
“Would you like to give a gift that will change someone’s life?” said the 30-year-old in a letter published on Trickle Up’s website. “This holiday season, make a donation of $100 in honor of a friend or family member and Trickle Up will send them the beautiful Trickle Up necklace, designed by one of my favorite designers – TENTHOUSANDTHINGS. Trickle Up will use your donation to help someone living on less than one dollar a day to start a micro-enterprise and take the first steps out of poverty. With their successful businesses, Trickle Up entrepreneurs are able to feed their families more nutritious meals, send children to school, receive medical care, and improve their housing. The Trickle Up necklace is a great holiday gift that will always remind you of an even greater gift: a hopeful future for a very poor family. You can seed a dream.”
The necklace is available from www.trickleup.org.
Copyright © 2007 Look to the Stars
