The Royal Wedding!

As everyone knows, Prince William and Kate Middleton have gotten married! The wedding was an extravagant affair and the bride and groom simply glowed. As quoted by Winston Churchill, it was truly "a splash of color on the hard road we follow". Among the guests to attend were David and Victoria Beckham, and Joss Stone as well as several other members of royalty from different parts of Europe and Asia.

The Bride looked stunning in her dress designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen. The dress had a cinched waist, a form fitting bodice, lace sleeves, a plunging (but of course not to sexy) neckline, and a nearly 9 foot long train all completed with a medium length veil. Her dress is said to be reminiscent of Grace Kelly's wedding gown in 1956, which proves just how timeless Kate Middleton really looked last Friday at her wedding.

Meanwhile, Prince William sported his Irish Guards officer uniform because of the honorary rank he holds as Colonel of the Irish as well as his Garter Sash and star, Royal Air Force wings, and Golden Jubilee medal. 

Besides the bride and groom, there were several smartly dressed guests. One of the trends to take center stage last Friday was hats. Many of the female guests added hats to their ensembles, some of which complemented their attire nicely, and some of which did not. Let's begin with the bad so as to end on a positive note, shall we?

The number one BAD hat goes to Princess Beatrice. Her hat is way to much and attracts attention in a bad way. Some people went so far as to say it looked like an octopus on her head. Just terrible. (She's obviously the one on the right, in case you hadn't realized it yet.)

Number 2 brings us to Princess Eugenie (pictured to the left of Princess Beatrice), her head piece is just as strange. It gets me thinking whether or not anyone could see with all the hats being worn. 

A third bad hat I saw while watching the royal wedding was worn by Palmer Tomkinson. Several people say they actually liked it, but I for one did not. It looks like she's wearing one of those army hats all wrong. Neither am I a big fan of the woman's hat she is standing next to, although it's much better than the previous three. 

These were just three of the hats that negatively stood out most to me. 

On the contrary, several of the royal guests, including the queen herself, were able to pair their hat nicely. 

My number one favorite hat had to have been worn by Victoria Beckham. Her striking royal garb was made even better with her accented head piece. David Beckham looked dapper as well in his long-tailed coat and top hat. 

Joss Stone also managed to accent her red outfit well with a sunny yellow hat.

Carole Middleton and the queen also properly paired their hats to match their attire. 

After the ceremony, the newlywed couple greeted the nation on the balcony of Buckingham Palace with several members of their family (including the Middleton's, the queen, Prince Harry and Charles with his wife, and the bridesmaids). On the balcony, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge shared their first kiss (and a second) as man and wife. 

Later that evening, Kate changed into a gorgeous evening dress for the after-the-wedding festivities. This gown was also designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen. 

Pippa Middleton also traded in her stunning white dress for an emerald green one, wowing the likes of Prince Harry!

Overall the lavish wedding was a royal success and the newlywed couple will be vacationing to an undisclosed location in a few weeks. Best of luck to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge!! This wedding is a perfect example that fairytales and happy endings really do exist. 

Coming Soon!

Hey everyone! I've been watching the royal wedding for the bast bajillion hours! But I promise you that soon (as in this weekend) I will post about the royal wedding and all the wonderful fashion and hoopla that came with it. I just want to take the time so I can make sure that I deliver a worthy post of this royal occasion! 

Editor Bio: Amy Astley

Well, if you didn't already know, Amy Astley is the Editor in Chief at Teen Vogue (launched in 2003), BUT before all that happened, like all others in the fashion industry, Amy had to work her way up the ranks. Fresh out of college she started her first job at House & Garden as an assistant to the editor Nancy Novograd. She worked at the magazine for about four years until it was closed in 1993.

Once this happened, Amy- who had been good at networking and had made a friend who had left for Vogue before the closing of H&G- was recommended to work for Editor in Chief of Vogue Anna Wintour.

By June 2002, Anna had obviously deemed Amy worthy when she came to her proposing that she "create a smart, fashion-savvy younger sister" to Vogue. In Amy's reign of Editor in Chief, the magazine was nominated in 2003 for a General Excellence Award by the American Society of Magazine Editors. In 2004 Teen Vogue was named Adweek Magazine's startup of the year.

Amy is a graduate of The Honors College of Michigan State University with a B.A in English Literature. Her hometown is East Lansing, Michigan. She now lives in Manhattan with her husband and two children. Her guilty pleasure is ice cream cones with her kids on Long Island.

Teen Vogue's latest issue
May 2011

Sources: http://www.mediabistro.com/articles/cache/a10632.asp

Trend Watch: Florals!

So this spring, flower power is back! We're seeing florals everywhere, whether its shoes, bags, dresses, skirts, necklaces and even more! Florals add a fun and flirty feel to any outfit and you can dress the pattern up or down. Its versatility is beneficial and it can even be paired with other (more subtle!) prints as well.

Beyonce in Paris, pairing her
beautiful floral dress with
a snakeskin bag. 

Selena Gomez at the People's
Choice Awards, sporting a gorgeous
floral gown! Love this girl!

There even putting florals on shoes! Great way
to add wonderful colors and prints to liven
up and outfit! These lovely shoes are on
the runway of  designer Chris Benz

Florals on the Erdem Runway

Floral handbags are also trending! Another
great way to liven any outfit and add
a splash of color!

Who Do YOU Think Wore it Better?

Which Hollywood starlet do you think wore it better? Miss Selena Gomez or Katherine Heigl? Comment your opinion!

Pencil or Shadow?

Alright, so whats your go to eyeliner? Is it a liquid shadow? A Liquid liner? A pencil? Or eyeshadow? There are so many ways one can apply eyeliner these days, which way do you do it?

I apply my eyeliner with Cover Girl's black eyeshadow and a M.A.C angle brush. Then I apply a coat of Maybelline Volume Express mascara. Sometimes if i want to go for a more fancy look i'll add some gold Mary Kay eyeshadow on my lids.

I like applying my eye makeup with and angle brush because it looks much softer than a hard pencil line. Plus its a lot easier to smudge and what not... I look really pale in the picture above, I promise I'm a lot more tan in person...

How do you guys do your eye makeup? Comment! 

Trend Watch: Nautical Totes

We've seen them everywhere, the Nautical inspired tote. What a cute way to ring in the summer! Online I've found some great nautically inspired bags that will look great going to the beach or even on the streets.

Love this bag! I think its just adorable. I think it'd be great for walking down the streets, and the bow accent adds a fun and flirty feel to this adorable piece.

Ann Taylor 

I like this bag a lot and I think it'd be great for a trip to the beach! Big enough to hold a towel, sunscreen, a book, sunglasses, what more do you need?!

Bayan Hippo

This is a more nautical inspired bag, and would be great for going anywhere! A great way to stay up with the fashion trends without looking like you just walked out of the sand.

Burberry

Again, a more nautically themed bag than anything. Another great way to add a nautical piece to your wardrobe.

Kate Spade

This big tote would be great for a day lounging in the sand!

Merona

Again, this is another way to add a nautically inspired piece to your ensemble. This is also one of my favorites!

Michael Kors

Designer Day: Valentino Garavani

Valentino Garavani was born May 11th 1932 in Voghera, Italy. That would make him 78 years old. He is an Italian fashion designer. His main lines include: Valentino, Valentino Garavani, Valentino Roma, and R.E.D. Valentino.

Valentino became interested in fashion when he was in elementary school. Later, he apprenticed with a local designer by the name of Ernestina Salvadeo. He moved to Paris to pursue his fashion dream and studied at École des Beaux-Arts and Chambre Syndicate de la Couture Parisienne. The recently graduated Valentino wanted to have an apprenticeship with either Jacques Fath or Balenciaga, but later settled for one with Jean Desses where he helped sketch dress ideas.

Five years later Valentino left Jean Desses and returned to Italy to set up a fashion house in Rome. After a fashion show or two, Valentino became known for his red dresses, the popular shade becoming known as "Valentino Red".

Valentino Red

July 31, 1960, Valentino met Giancarlo Giammetti in the Café de Paris. Giammetti gave Valentino a ride home in his Fiat and they became good friends and eventually partners. Later on, Giammetti came on board to direct the business part of Valentino's fashion house. 

Valentino's big break was in 1962 in Florence, which at the time, was the fashion capital of Italy. His first show was at Pitti Palace, it was "welcomed as a true revelation" getting him a lot of recognition in the fashion world as well as his clothing becoming high in demand. 

In 1966 Valentino moved his shows from Florence to Rome. Two years later his all-white collection was a major success and became famous for the "V" logo Valentino had created. In 1967 Valentino received the Neiman Marcus Fashion Award (the equivalent of an Oscar) and already had several famous celebrities for customers as well as close friends. 

In 2006 Valentino appeared as himself on the film The Devil Wears Prada starring Anne Hathaway and Meryl Streep. This included a behind the scenes interview on the DVD.

In September 2007 Valentino announced that he would be officially retiring in January of 2008 and had his last show October 4th 2007. Valentino has 6 pugs: Molly (the mother), Milton and Monty (the sons), and Margot, Maude, and Maggie (the daughters). 

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentino_Garavani

Trend Watch: Rompers!

Alright, so I have to say that my favorite spring trend so far is the romper! This little one piece is so comfortable and has a fun and flirty feel to it. You can go totally summery with it or you can pair it with some leggings to provide for a slightly colder day.

This is a great trend and I'm pretty sure it would look great on just about anyone. Try it! I bet you'll have fun with it.

My take on this Spring's hottest trend:

Romper: Forever 21, Sweater: Ann Taylor,
Sandals: TJ Maxx (Steve Madden)
Necklace: Forever 21,
Sunglasses: Urban Outfitters

I had a lot of fun with this look and as you can see, I did wear it to Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills on my most recent trip to L.A! It was pretty amazing. I went to stores including: Prada, Dolce & Gabanna, Gucci, Chanel, Valentino (my favorite of the day), Versace, Faragamo, Michael Kors, and Bally! Wow, it was the coolest thing ever! I didn't buy anything though because it was all INSANELY expensive, but I so wanted to!

As I stated above, Valentino was my favorite designer of the day. I swear I would've worn anything that was in his shop! I'll have to do a bio on him and post it here soon. Great pieces! All the designer clothes I saw were amazingly sewn and were pricelessly gorgeous! My whole designer adventure on Rodeo Drive was spellbinding! 

Fashion Icon: Selena Gomez

Okay, so I realize this might be kind of a teenager thing, buuuut, I think Selena Gomez is definitely making her way to being a fashion icon, she's pretty much already a teen fashion icon. I really like her a lot, I think she's absolutely gorgeous, and I love her style.

I love this outfit of Selena's! It is sophisticated, yet it's got that younger feel to it too. I love how her hair is pulled back to also add another sophisticated younger element to it as well. I also love the peep toed sling backs. I gotta get me a pair of those! My favorite thing about this look? Is she can totally pull of red lipstick. I wish I could do that. 

Here is another picture of Selena looking breath taking in red lipstick. I don't know why, but I've got this thing for red lipstick. It just loos so flirty and fun and luscious. If only I could pull it off. I'll have to find a shade of red that works for me... Well anyways. I just wanted to blog about Selena because I think she's just a wonderful fashion inspiration to any young teenager. I can proudly say that I look up to Selena as a fashion icon. Teenager, or not. 

What Does Fashion Mean to Me?

Hhhhmmm... What Does Fashion mean to me? Thats kind of hard to answer.

For me, fashion is a way you can express yourself without words. A way to give people an idea of your personality. A flash into the world of YOU. I love being able to look at someone, take in what their wearing, and automatically get an idea of the kind of person they are.

Right now, my style is very simple. I don't take a lot of risks, and to be honest with you, its kind of boring. Fashion means so much more to me than what I portray from my clothing. If I had the money to buy all sorts of wonderful clothes, I so would! If I had the bold personality and the self confidence to wear something so loud and attention grasping, I so would! I really want to be able to find that in me. I really do like fashion a lot and I hope that through the process of me learning about fashion and writing about it here, my fashion sense and my ability to wear "fashion-forward" outfits will grow more. That I can become that bold and outgoing person that I am on the inside. I just need to work on bringing whats on the inside, out (but then again, who doesn't?)

Anyways, I kind of wanted to blog about this because I know that in the future I'll want to know what fashion meant to me now, because I'm sure it will mean something very different to me in the future. Well at least I hope it will.

Right now, my style looks a lot like the picture below. Why? Well because its me of course! You know, just the plain ol' skinny jeans and simple top. Although I do frequently rock the gladiator sandal (; Usually I wear TOMS, Sperry's, Converse, or boots.

Jeans: American Eagle, Shirt: Forever 21
Shoes: Converse (super old pair of mine)

What does fashion mean to you guys? Give me your opinion! What is your style like?

The Road to Becoming an Editor.

Well seeing as how the reason I started this whole blog was because I wanted to have a job in fashion (specifically an Editor at a fashion magazine) I thought I might do a post on how to become an Editor. What it takes and what to expect. I read up on it and I found a few good sources of information.

Where to begin: Be a sponge. Soak up as much information about the fashion industry until you think you'll explode! Take classes or just read read read. Learn the key things like: major photographers, designers, magazine editors, models, and anyone else remotely important in the fashion industry. Do your homework!

So now that your educated, expose yourself! Freelance work for blogs, magazines, forums, websites, ANYTHING. Just get your name out there. Let people get to know you. Also, doing this is a good way of networking and making good links within the fashion industry. 


Now that you've done everything above, it's time to get a job!

There are two different jobs that you can get. The first being an in-house fashion stylist and the second a marketing editor. For both of these jobs you must be very informed about all the latest fashion trends and whats coming next. You must be able to travel around the world and create good relations with all the best show rooms. You want to have the right clothes for the right stories and you want to be able to have them delivered and returned like no one wore them.

Just like in any food pyramid, you must start at the bottom and make your way through the ranks of the fashion industry. Pretty much everyone starts out as an assistant at a not-so-at-the-top magazine.

Next step? Interning. Ruth Basloe (Fashion Editor at Cosmopolitan) says "There's nothing more important than to intern at a magazine during college." Another editor even says that she didnt know anyone in the business who hadn't interned at a small magazine first. Fashion editors say that when they are looking for an assistant, they want someone who already has experience at a magazine, what better way to get experience than an internship, right? Editors also look for high skill levels and genuine desire to work there, as well as drive and good work ethic of course.

Send your resume anywhere and EVERYWHERE. Someone is bound to come across it! And even if they don't have an opening they may know another magazine that does. Don't ever count anything out. A lot of internships are not paid so thats a good thing to know before you jump head first into the business.

Certain jobs in the fashion industry are not always glitz and glamour, you're going to be doing a lot of dirty work at first. Make sure you maintain a good attitude while doing this task because the first thing to remember is that "people notice even the little trivial things" an editor advises and then adds, "Also, you shouldn't kiss ass too much. Its better if people think you're cool." Zeal, in this industry, also goes a long way. One such case is that Nancy Roth (NYU Graduate) interned at Harper's Bazaar magazine, it is said that she didn't miss a single day of work even during finals. After that she was the market editor for Allure and is now the Senior Fashion editor at Mademoiselle. She is just 24 years old.

At any fashion magazine you can expect the standard cattiness from the people working there. Don't take it personally, just keep your head held high and you'll be fine. Perks? There are always perks. Some of which include: free clothes (don't get greedy), going to fashion shows in place of your boss and more!

The last and final step? Start applying for jobs at major fashion magazines! Your bound to find something, especially if you've got a good portfolio a good resume and lots and lots of experience!

I wish you all the best of luck on your endeavors of making your mark on the fashion industry! I'm trying to make it there myself and will most likely be following this process as closely as possible. Have fun! Work hard! And do your best!

Anna Wintour editor at Vogue

Nina Garcia editor at Elle Magazine

Amy Astley. Editor in Chief
of Teen Vogue.        

Sources: http://www.fashion.net/howto/fashioneditor/
                http://www.ehow.com/how_4424119_become-fashion-magazine-editor.html

Opening Post

Hey Everyone!

Welcome to my fashion blog. I love fashion and I really want to possibly have a career in writing about it some day. What better way to get experience and practice by actually doing it! I'm new at this whole fashion thing, so you'll have to bare with me a little here. For this blog you can expect to see: Polls, Trend Watches, Who Wore It better, Reviews on my latest beauty product experiments, Reviews on books and movies and magazines and anything else having to do with fashion, as well as much more! I really hope Fierce Fashion (F²) will be able to take off. Please, follow and comment! Anything is greatly appreciated!