You may recognize the clothing of designer Kristen Coates from such online sites as Couture Candy and Satine Boutique. They are definitely not pieces that mesh into a crowd.

Kristen creates modern and feminine dresses, jumpers, blouses and jackets for the every day woman; the one that likes to dance, work, go to the beach, lounge by the pool, go to fancy dinners and bake cupcakes. Basically, girls like herself! There's so many things that women in this day and age do in their busy lives. Kristen's clothes are aimed to provide comfort and style for the on-the-go gals, which is basically all of us!

The women's designer also has a philanthropic side. Her signature, the Painted Owl, which shows up on some of her pieces, raises awareness for the ongoing effort to support non-profits dedicated to protecting the Earth. Twenty percent of her clothing bearing the Painted Owl are donated to Clean Air - Cool Planet to promote solutions to global warming.

It's so refreshing to see designers doing good with their talent!

To see some more of Kristen Coates' collection, read more