Career Girl Answers: What Does It Take To Become a Fashion Writer?

Dear Career Girl:

My name is Megan and within the past couple of years or so, I have been HOOKED on fashion. I was wondering if you had any information you could give me about being a fashion writer, for a magazine preferably, and what it takes to be one and how to get there.

Currently, I am only a freshman in high school and my ambitions may change, but for right now I would love to learn as much as I can about this! Thanks so much and please get back to me soon! :)
-Megan

 

Dear Megan:

There's nothing quite like a career as a fashion writer for someone who LOVES fashion. How wonderful that you're considering it. Are you in a Fashion Club at your school? If not, start one. That's a great way to begin your career in fashion.

Now, if you write, offer to cover fashion for your school's newspaper or blog. And if you don't write, start writing, and then offer to cover fashion for your school's newspaper or blog. :) You could pitch story ideas to the paper's editor, such as "Spring 2012 Fashion Trends" and "What's Hot and What's Not." Offer to interview managers at the major department stores and local boutiques for quotes. You could research local fashion designers to write about their stories. You could even pitch your local newspaper's editor to cover a fashion story about the students on your campus.

And when you're getting ready to go to fashion college in a few years, you will be way ahead of the rest! Did you know that FIDM publishes a student magazine? It's called Mode, and it's written by FIDM Students for FIDM Students. You would be the perfect candidate to work on it.

A good fashion writer is someone who adores fashion and follows it closely, and loves to write.

If you find that you have a change of heart later, and you're not exactly sure what part of the fashion industry you'd like to pursue, take a Career Quiz. FIDM offers 20 creative majors in the fashion, entertainment, and interior design industries.

Keep me posted on what you decide, and all the best to you.

Fashionably Yours,

Career Girl

Dress For Less: Skull Tees

Dress for less with skull tees!

1. Daydreamer LA Floral Skull Sweatshirt, $49, urbanoutfitters.com
2. Light Grey White Bling Flower Skull Tank Top, 24.50, hottopic.com
3. Charcoal Acid Wash Foil Skull Vest, $36, topshop.com
4. Black Joystick Junkies Pirate Skull T-Shirt, $26.86, asos.com
5. Grey Wild Skull Tee, $19.50, delias.com

Former FC Member Angelica Villegas Gives Talk at Escondido High School

Former Fashion Club Member Angelica Villegas, now FIDM Graphic Design Student, recently gave a talk to students at her alma mater Escondido High School. She addressed Fashion Design classes and the students were inspired by her story and how she created opportunities for herself while she was in high school.

FC Advisor Sharon Eichten says, "She is an amazing young gal who has grabbed every opportunity. She designed her career path throughout high school, and exhibited a high level of leadership and academic success."

When asked about her career goals, Angelica said, "Becoming a graphic designer is my plan, A-Z. I don’t see myself waking up every morning going to work not designing or translating concepts into visual reality."

Last year, Angelica won the FIDM National Scholarship Competition for Graphic Designer of Tomorrow.

Winners Announced for Branded Beauty Contest

Congratulations to Tatiana R., Hannah L., and Katie H., our three winners of the Branded Beauty Contest.

Contest entrants were asked to write an essay of 150 words or less about their favorite beauty brand for a chance to win Mark Tungate's new book Branded Beauty: How Marketing Changed the Way We Look. Thank you, to everyone who entered! Check out the excerpts from the winning essays below!

Tatiana R. from Cape Coral, FL
"One of my all-time favorite beauty brands would be MAC Cosmetics. Being Afro-Latina, it is hard for me to find makeup that actually blends with my brown skin. Sometimes I get makeup that looks too dark or too light on me, but when I go to the MAC counter at Nordstrom they do a fantastic job helping me get the color right. Their makeup comes in a cute, sleek container that I can return to the MAC store for recycling. They are saving the planet, making quality products, and helping a girl out!"

Hannah L. from Kernersville, NC
Essay excerpt: "It was literally love at first sight the second I applied Urban Decay’s 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil. I’ve used their products approved by The Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics since becoming a vegan in 7th grade. Their Big Fatty Mascara is covered with colorful psychedelic flowers. The Alice and Wonderland palette’s gorgeous illustration included a pop up scene. Their vegan pallet has doodles of animals and insects. The art work on their packaging is so creative and beautiful, it’s hard to throw away."

Katie H. from Adrian, MI
Essay excerpt: "My favorite beauty product is CoverGirl WetSlicks Fruit Spritzers. One reason why I love this product is because of the design. It has a clean-cut, simple appearance. The first thing I look at when I am choosing a beauty product is the design; I don’t want a product that drains my mind when I look at it. The WetSlicks Fruit Spritzers look cute without overdoing it."

FIDM Street Style!

Koalani | Fashion Design

Just Accepted Fashion Design Student Interns With Zandra Rhodes

Full Name: Ally Greven

Age: 17 (almost 18 on February 7th!!!)

Hometown: San Diego, CA

Year in School: Senior

FIDM Major: Fashion Design

FIDM Campus and Start Date: Los Angeles, Fall 2012

Admissions Advisor: The fabulous Susan Pope!

Tell us a bit about yourself. I'm a senior at La Costa Canyon High School. I have danced since I've been three years old and competitively since I've been six years old. I am a fashion and shopping addict!! I have two Sheltie dogs named Libby and Luc. I love doing my [and my friend's] makeup. I have an obsession with candles. I recently learned how to sew and have made a few garments including my Homecoming dress.

I currently intern with the lovely British fashion designer Zandra Rhodes. I work at my local HomeGoods. I was a member of the Nordstrom Fashion Board. I enjoy drawing and was enrolled in AP Studio Art last year where I made Lady Gaga my concentration for my work. I love music, the beach, and shopping! 

What is your internship with Zandra Rhodes like? I intern at her quirky studio in Solana Beach. Typical tasks I do around the studio consist of ironing clothes and scarves, organizing, help designing placemats, and help with Zandra's new collection. In October, I helped out with her annual Westgate Fashion Show at the Westgate Hotel downtown San Diego.

Over the summer, I interned on the set of CBS's The Talk with Sharon Osbourne, Holly Robinson-Peete, Leah Remini, and Sara Gilbert, helping my sister-in-law (a FIDM Alumna) pick clothes out for the show.

What are your proudest accomplishments so far? Well, getting accepted to FIDM is an accomplishment that I'm pretty proud of! But other than that, I'd have to say my proudest accomplishment was landing an internship with Zandra Rhodes. It's such an amazing experience to be surrounded by such a inspirational designer.

What made FIDM right for you? FIDM Los Angeles is where I need to be to pursue my dreams and career of being a designer and/or stylist. I've known for forever that I've wanted to go to FIDM for college, and after years of investigating, I really saw how FIDM helps their students with their goals and that really won me over.

Describe your entrance project. For my entrance project, I had to create a six-piece collection that reflected my inspiration board. My entrance project contained a wide variety of garments. There wasn't really a theme except for being items in my dream closet! My inspiration board featured all of the pictures from magazines and Tumblr that showed my interests and what inspires my everyday style so that FIDM could get a taste of my personality and get to know me.

What are your career goals? My career goals consist of having my own clothing line. I think I would start out with a women's line first because I love how clothes accentuate the female figure. Then I'd like to move on to men's and children's lines. Since I interned on The Talk this summer, I would like to start out my career by being a stylist for TV shows and movies.

What do you expect to learn at FIDM? I expect to learn how to make patterns and create textiles. Also, I would like to learn to develop my own style with drawing croquis. Also, I hope to be prepared for the 'real world' of fashion.

Follow Ally on Twitter @allygreven!

Fragrance Trends: Snooki by Nicole Polizzi

Fragrance designer and FIDM Instructor André Barnwell is our guest beauty blogger, reviewing fragrances and reporting on fragrance trends.

André says...

Yes, Nicole Polizzi—affectionately known to her fans as Snooki—is the latest to enter into the celebrity fragrance business with Snooki by Nicole Polizzi. Snooki by Nicole Polizzi is a 3.3-oz eau de parfum spray with top notes of chilled lychee, quince flower, and cool kiwi; middle notes of white jasmine, beach flower, and pink cupcake; and bottom notes of earthy woods, driftwood, and sugared musk.

This fragrance is going to be on the sweet side, which is usually a winner with younger women and girls. If you’re a Snooki fan this is definitely a collector’s item for the "Jersey Shore" faithful.

André Barnwell is a fragrance designer and instructor at FIDM who teaches Fundamentals of Fragrance in the Beauty Industry Merchandising & Marketing Program.

Celebrity Style: Victoria Justice in Pinkyotto at Sundance

The Sundance Film Festival is in full swing in Parkside, Utah, this week. And you know what that means—the stars are out, in style!

Victoria Justice was spotted wearing a super cozy Pinkyotto Sound Waves sweater for the premiere of The First Time. She styled the sweater with dark denim jeans, black leather boots, a skinny black belt and feather earrings for a cool, chic look.

FIDM Street Style!

Dina |  Fashion Design

Just Accepted Merchandise Marketing Student Co-Owns OC Boutique

Full Name: Kailee Hardy

Age: 17

Hometown: Placentia, CA

FIDM Major: Merchandise Marketing

FIDM Campus and Start Date: Orange County, Summer 2012

Admissions Advisor: Tina Takahashi

Tell us a bit about yourself. I am a very enthusiastic individual who loves to laugh, loves to dance, and really loves to shop. I am also a self-described perfectionist who has big dreams and I am set to achieve all of them. I enjoy volunteering with various organizations within my community, as well as competing in pageants. Who knows, I could possibly be a future Miss America! Which also happens to be, just one of my many goals.

At the young age of 17, I am proud to say that I already co-own a business with my mom. The Dress Exchange is a prom and pageant consignment boutique located in Yorba Linda, California. We carry formal and casual dresses, bling jewelry, accesories, shoes, and much more!

What are your proudest accomplishments so far? I am very proud of the fact that I was able to finish my high school academic requirements early so I could focus on other areas of my life. I was a student in an independent study program and am very thankful that I was given the option of finishing early. This allowed me to get a head start on my career and is giving me a little break before I start at FIDM this summer.

What made FIDM right for you? Ever since my freshman year of high school, I knew that I was going to have a career in an industry that expressed creativity. I excelled in my art classes and instantly found my niche. I love that FIDM not only has a pretty pink interior, but that they are so accepting of your background and understand that the fashion industry is for anyone who has an eye for it. Another quality that sets FIDM apart from any other school is that there is nothing else like it! It really is the Harvard of fashion and is a perfect fit for me!

Describe your entrance project. For my entrance project I was asked to create five different looks for a store that fit a certain demographic. I did a little trend prediction and based this project off of what I think I would personally wear when I become a fashion student, living and working in a fast-paced environment. My fully accessorized outfits were inspired by the glamorous, independent, and free-spirited people that thrive in the big city.

What are your career goals? My ultimate goal is to become a fashion buyer. Although I am very interested in styling and being a personal wardrobe shopper for women, becoming a buyer for a well-known store and traveling the world is what I really want to do with my life. And after getting a little taste of what a career in fashion buying would be like from choosing dresses to feature in my own store, I honestly can't wait to be able to say that I get paid to go shopping everyday!

What do you expect to learn at FIDM? I am extremely excited to learn more about the merchandising side of my major, what it really takes to make it in the world of fashion, as well as all to gain more insight into my dream career in order to become successful. Being able to learn from teachers who are active in the industry is another one of the great advantages that FIDM gives its students.