‘Tastebuds’ for Best Buddies

Fashion wasn’t always a particularly big deal for 33. “When I was younger ... I could just put on a cute T-shirt and go out. I usually just worked with what I had in my wardrobe and shopped in my sister’s closet a little bit,” said the Monkton resident. However, Burnham said all that changed after becoming a mostly stay-at-home mom of son, Colt Mitchell, now 5, and daughter, Hayden Mitchell, now 21⁄2. First, there was her added awareness of promoting a healthy lifestyle for herself and her family. “Being active and into nutrition. I changed to organic foods, becoming more fine-tuned and really into holistic preventative health,” she said. “And looking a bit fashionable is part of taking care of yourself.” Her everyday mom attire of workout clothes — and her scrubs uniform for her part-time job as a registered nurse at St. Agnes Hospital — doesn’t generally fall into that fashion-forward category. So when Burnham hits the town — as she did for the “Tastebuds” event — fashion takes the lead. “I feel like fashion is part of keeping yourself. It’s a way of hanging onto yourself because after having kids, a lot changes,” she said with a laugh.

New York & Company red dress with black piping. Mossimo black tuxedo jacket from Target. Pearl necklace and matching bracelet borrowed from her sister. BCBGeneration shoes and Rosetti ruched black leather and patent leather wristlet she’s had for a while.

HER ENSEMBLE: