College is RUINING MY SKIN

Stress, papers due, and two years later my usually clear skin suddenly looked like the skin of an awkward me back in middle school. What was going on? Sometimes, as a girl who loves her skin, you do crazy things. This week it was trying different homemade scrubs, the result? Not bad! My favourite one was a random combination of stuff that sounded good for my skin. I was honestly impressed at how well this worked. haha! Who knew?
College is RUINING MY SKIN
Maybe not drinking water is the culprit to my bad skin days? Or maybe it's a huge load of history reading charts!
What was in this scrub that I favored?
1. Freeman's fruit face (peel) mask.
2. 2 tsp. organic honey.
3. 1 tsp. organic olive oil.
4. Loose green tea leaves (I just ripped open a few packets of green tea and added them to the mix of ingredients.) 
5. A seriously relaxing Sex in the City marathon. 

What about you? Do you have bad skin days too? What helped? I hope everyone is having an okay Monday, Monday's are tough, just remember to breathe and have some water!

What is BEAUTIFUL?

In light of all this girl-bashing "you look..bigger" "not so cute" it is important to remember that just because women in magazines are airbrushed doesn't mean you have to be. Weight and looks have been issues with everyone for as long as well, forever. I even found myself thinking I wasn't beautiful because I gained weight. Is that true though? No.

So what exactly is beautiful? I'll tell you right now what it isn't.

Beautiful is not starving yourself to be thin.
Beautiful is not trying to be someone else.
Beautiful is not always a size zero.

Beautiful is being healthy.
Beautiful is loving yourself.
Beautiful is YOU. 

As long as you're healthy, you're doing your best to stay that way and work out a few times a week, be happy with yourself. Being a size double zero won't solve all your problems, you'll still be you. So eat healthy, work out, and stop thinking negative thoughts about yourself. You'll feel better.

How do I get an internship in NYC? Or Anywhere?

Internships are one of the best way to learn your trade (and in my opinion the best way to learn). But how do you get an internship? What if you can't find anything near where you live? One word.

ASK

I realized last April (of 2012) that I wanted to work in fashion, in magazines, and that after a trip to Jersey and New York, that I wanted to find an internship in the city. Of course I was in full swing panic because everyone had already applied and been accepted to all types of internships. What was I to do? I emailed, I called, I sent texts. By the time August rolled around I had four internships under my belt. "But how Belle?"

I emailed everyone I admired in the fashion industry, senior fashion editors, other interns, web assistants, even copy editors. I emailed anyone that would listen or give me advice. And some people got back to me. Actually a lot of people emailed me. I used Craigslist and that landed me an assistant buyer internship with a wonderful fitness company. Craigslist helped me get another position as a Social Media Manager for an Ethiopian Pop-up dinner. I emailed a local newspaper where I was living in Jersey and asked if they were hiring interns/freelance writers and I was given a position there. Craigslist came in to play again in July when I found a Fashion Marketing position for a start up company. Don't be afraid to ask, the worst that can happen is that you get a no. On of my family friends suggested I try to meet her friend in NYC at Hearst, and she knew someone at Seveneteen magazine. Getting advice from someone in the fashion industry seems daunting, but everyone I met was so incredibly sweet, and full of advice. When I went back to visit in NYC I TWITTED a senior fashion editor at Hearst and she TWITTED back. We got coffee together and I got some insanely good advice.

Not in NYC? Don't worry! Just email everyone, just ask, you'll never know unless you try.

Three DO's and Don's to Tips and Tricks?

DO's

1. Use twitter to follow your favorite people and make sure to comment on things you love. Like her skirt? Tell her so! (POLITELY).
2. Do email people that you want to meet, get advice from.
3. Do dress professionally for any meeting (obvs).

DONT'S

1. Don't follow people on twitter that you might work for one day if your twitter is disturbingly honest "this grl in frnt of me got the wrst muffin top i eva saw." Rule of thumb, if you wouldn't want you grandma to see it, then don't put it on Twitter/Facebook/whatever.
2. Don't forget to offer to take them to coffee or lunch. You're probably taking up their break, so make it worth their while, and don't forget to say thank you and send a thank you email or note. It's a nice touch.
3. Don't wear anything low cut, short or see through, I feel that I really shouldn't have to say this but unfortunately people do it all the time. 

Chanel Slingback Heels

This past summer was one of the most fashionable/intense/really exciting ones of my whole life. I worked FOUR jobs all at once. And I loved it! I loved every second of NYC and I made a ton of new friends. To treat myself I bought a pair of Chanel slingback heels. They were on sale (75%) off! I adored them and they were pretty affordable! This was definitely my splurge for the summer. I hope everyone else had a great summer. What do you think of my new shoes?

Sometimes Life Happens...

Well everyone, I'm so so sorry I haven't been keeping up well at all. I started University (the University of North Carolina at Charlotte to be exact). But a month before school started, I was in a pretty bad car accident and haven't been feeling too great. Luckily I'm alive and better and will soon be writing for all of you, daily!
I'm not one to lecture, but please please please don't drink and drive. It's not worth it. When you climb into the car, buckle up and leave your cell off if you're tempted to text. In fact, if you think you'll be tempted at all, put your phone in your trunk. That way you'll have no physical way of looking at it.
In other news, I went to Fashion Week in NYC and it was AMAZING. I'll give you all the details soon...

Do's and Don'ts for the NY Newbie

I realize that I completely fell off the Earth. I'm sorry! I found not one, not two, but FOUR jobs in Manhattan from June to August and I've been very busy. I had an amazing time and I learned a ton, here's just a sliver of some things I picked up.



DO

1. Wear the ugly sneakers you own, as long as they don't mess up your patterned tights. You shoes are going to go through hell whether you take the subway or hit the streets walking. "What if I want to wear my heels while I commute?" haha. No.
2. Find a copy of the MTA subway map Iphone cover (the best five bucks you'll ever spend on Broadway/Canal). You're going to get lost. Your phone is probably not going to work underground, and your phone is even more likely to die when you need directions. 
3. Be a little adventurous, there is tons of things to see and do. Get out of your comfort zone, go to Chinatown and eat at a hole in the wall ramen place. (I ended up in the middle of a marketplace somehow and scored a sick tea set for $10).
4. When you see that someone is clearly lost, and you have a map, or if you know where you are, help that person out. Karma, right?
5. Lend a hand every now and then. Don't forget to be kind. There are so many homeless in NYC, you have an extra pb&j sandwich, why not let that hungry little girl have it? 
6. Follow your gut, if you're unsure about walking down that shadowy dark alley, turn around and go another way. Better safe than sorry, always.
7. Buy mace. Self explanatory.
8. Say yes! To lunch, to shopping to drinks or whatever a new friend invites you to come along to. You were just going to go home and go on the internet anyway. Wouldn't you rather explore SoHo "best smoothie ever!"?
9. Always try to look your best. You could meet anyone in one day. Out of the blue on a Tuesday, I was invited to go to an interns mixer. Important people were also there. Thankfully I had a nice enough outfit on.
10. Be polite, mind your p's and q's and all that basic stuff that your mother taught you. Unfortunately, it's not always common sense to be professional. No matter how much you dislike it you probably shouldn't tell your boss that "that tie is disgusting". Um, rude?
11. Buy a wristlet if you don't already own one. Nobody appreciates the women holding up the rest of the world while they dig through their purse to find their Metrocard. 

DON'T

1. Don't panic if you get lost! There are millions of people living in NYC, most people are more than happy to tell you that you're in South Ferry and you are at the bottom of Manhattan. (Yes, this also happened to me).
2. Don't assume anything. Just because you can't see the building you're looking for, doesn't mean it's not there. It's probably hiding behind another building! Ask for help!
3. Don't wear heels on your commute. Carry them in a bag and toss them on later.
4. Don't feel weird about your body touching someonelses body. You're going to be crammed on the C train. It's not a big deal. 
5. Don't be closed-minded. If your friend takes you to a super sketchy place just try to remind yourself that she knows where you're going!
6. Don't miss out on museums, the Metropolitan of Art is donation only. I got in for $3, it's worth it. In fact, take a whole day to just walk around museums.
7. Don't be afraid to go to that random bloc party in Williamsburg. As long as you have a friend with you!
8. DON'T go to Tasti D Lite, don't waste your money. If you want a vanilla fro-yo to taste (and look) like milk, then just go buy milk. It'll be cheaper. Seriously though, don't bother.
9. Don't leave your phone at home! You are going to need that thing. Don't forget to also bring a charger, google maps takes up pretty much all of your battery. 
10. Don't think that because you're new that you should be given a get out of jail free card. Whether you have an internship or a job, be on time. Preplan your whole commute a few days in advance. Or if you're unsure of where you are supposed to be, physically go and find the place.

$10 Charlotte Russe...