summer wish list

Limited edition drape side dress by Topshop























Steve Madden "Watchout" Black wedges



















Vivienne Westwood "Mini Gallop" Skirt















Badgley Mischka Calista Satchel

Oh hello, Update :)

Hello all :) It's been far too long. School, work, and life have seemed to take over all of my time for the last few months, but it is my summer resolution to get this blog going again! I guess it's kind of awkward so just "start up" out of the blue, so I guess I will catch you up where I left off, which was shortly before my trip to Europe in January. Through my program at my University, I had the opportunity to spend a week in London, and a week in Paris, meeting with designers and industry professionals in both cities. It was nothing short of an amazing experience.

Some Highlights:

Guided tour of Liberty of London (there's me! front left)
















Meeting with Ben, lead designer for Zandra Rhodes, and trying on original designs!



































Tour of the original Louis Vuitton Family home, private museum, and workshop

Once I got back to the US, I spent only a few days at home before heading back to school for the Spring semester. I had secured myself an internship in December and was excited to get into gear. I've spent the last 5 months interning at Nonchalant Mom, an online children's clothing boutique. I spent my time there working on pieces for different facets of the boutique. I've done everything from flat sketching to sewing prototypes, merchandising the store window, along with typical intern-ly tasks like taking inventory, cleaning the store, etc.

This experience has been a huge inspiration for me, and has even sparked my interest in possibly continuing in the children's clothing industry. I'll be posting some things I've accomplished later this week.

Guess this post was to "break the ice" a bit for those who have wondered where I've gone, but I'm back!

xx

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them.

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them.

My winter break...

I’ll be spending 5 days in London and 5 days in Paris :) I’m beyond myself with excitement, not only to be visiting these two cities, but I have the most amazing itinerary. The trip I am going on is a “Fashion Study Tour” through my University, and I will have the opportunity to meet and network with designers and industry professionals in both cities.

In London, we will be visiting Liberty, the department store, we will meet Arantza Vilas, designer for Pinaki Studios, visit the Vivienne Westwood shop and see the current collection for men and women red label of the most inspirational English designer, followed by a visit of Stella McCartney’s & Matthew Williamson’s shops, and we will tour the Rei Kawakaba Dover Street market.

While in Paris, we will meet Prudence, hat designer for Vivienne Westwood, Yves Saint Laurent, Julian MacDonald, and Biba, we will visit the Zandra Rhodes shop, we will visit and tour Versailles, we will visit L’Eclaireur an exclusive, top-of-the-range store and show room for new designers marrying fashion, decoration and design. L’Eclaireur is a real stepping stone for stylists and designers, showcasing a range of international designers such as Ann Demeulemeester, Comme des Garçons, Giorgio Brato, Martin Margiela, Dries van Noten… We will also have a private guided tour of the Louis Vuitton Museum as well as Musée de la Mode et du Textile, and what I am most excited for, we will tour the Yves Saint Laurent archives

I can't wait! I will be sure to take an abundance of pictures :)

A.W. SS2011

T by Alexander Wang SS2011

Another fabulous example of minimalism. Wang incorporates draping, neutrals, and varied hemlines to create another wonderful collection. T is a diffusion line from Wang's main brand, however does not try to "cheapen" itself from its high-end counterpart. T is simple, comfortable, street wear with a touch of luxury.

throwback of the day

Cristobal Balenciaga, House of Balenciaga, evening dress circa 1957

Sasha Pivovarova/Miles Aldridge/ 2005

looking for...

...inspiration for my line

while it's still fall...

I MUST make these!

(via http://gimmesomeoven.com/apple-cider-cups/)

I love apple cider and these just look so adorable!

Not to mention you can eat the apple when you're done :)

this and that

My favorite class of the semester has been my apparel design class, as that is ultimately what I’d like to do with my life. I find the class challenging in that the purpose of the class is to be able to translate design ideas through sketching. I prefer illustration and always seem to find myself behind because I take so much time on my sketches.

For my most recent project, I decided to design a line of non-traditional wedding gowns and bridal wear. My design motifs will include romanticism and femininity, using lace, beading, sheer flowy fabrics, draping, and touches of pinks, peach, and muted turquoise. Rather than designing veils for my brides, I decided to design a line of floral headpieces, accented with beading and feathers. (Sketches will be up soon)

This is drastically different than the direction I chose for my first design project of the semester, where I used military uniforms as my inspiration and used a fusion of women’s wear and men’s wear pieces.

AND IN OTHER REALLY EXCITING NEWS: I’m going to Europe this January! I will be spending five days in London and five days in Paris as part of a Fashion Study Tour through my University. While in London, we will visit Prudence, a millinery designer for couture houses, Harvey Nichols Department store, we will participate in a workshop with Zandra Rhodes, Visit Kensington Palace to see Princess Diana's gowns, as well take a walking tour of the city

While in Paris, we will visit the Yves St. Laurent Archives, view the Alain LaLou bridal collection, Musee de la Mode et du Textile (Vionnet exhibit), Louvre Museum, Orsay Museum, Edelkoort fashion forecasting, and take a day trip to Versailles Palace and Grounds.

It will definitely be the trip of a lifetime and an amazing opportunity to meet people in the industry over seas.

CFDA Fashion Fund Awards

Favorites from the night:

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen

Kim Kardashian in Zac Posen with the Man himself

Carey Mulligan in Chanel

Leighton Meester in runner-up Prabal Gurung's design