Pre Grad School

It's common knowledge that being accepted to grad school can be very challenging, and this is one of the things that scares me most about going back to school.  I've already almost completed three out of seven pre-requisite courses I need in order to apply, but the fear of "what if" continues to linger.  What if I didn't do enough, what if I don't get in? 

My plan is simple, straightforward, and what many admission counselors and grad school advice forums would tell you; do as much as I can to be the most competitive applicant.  By this I mean while one of the programs I will be applying for does not require volunteer hours, I am knocking on every door of opportunity I can find to volunteer, especially with an Occupational Therapist.  This has been such a challenge for me, especially given the fact that I work full time and am taking 10 units at the moment, but I know it's crucial.

I have good news...I found the perfect opportunity as a communications intern for a pediatrics company - and its online!  It's a win-win for me, I get to research about the field I am interested in, and I am able to help a wonderful organization from my own home.  In case you're wondering, I found this on VolunteerMatch.org, a great website that will help you find practically any area you are interested in volunteering in.

Borrowed from "Hokuto's Awesome Blog" on Wordpress

One important crumb of advice I can give is this - stay open minded and keep trying!  Even if it's not Occupational Therapy, or directly related to the specific volunteer hours you need, it may be a great opportunity to meet inspirational people, and who knows where it can lead you.

New Chapter

I used to think when you graduated high school you go to college, major in a particular field (for me it was Fashion Design), and then that's it, that's what you do for the rest of your life.  That was 17 year old me.  27 year old me has decided to leave Fashion Design and pursue a career I find more fulfilling.  Of course designing was wonderful in so many ways, the reward of seeing your product in department stores, (and actually selling out!) was exciting and motivating.  I was designing little girls clothes, from age 4 to age 16...I got to work with super talented graphic designers to come up with the perfect dog wearing sunglasses in New York (because dogs always sold so well).  I was living in Los Angeles, making good money, having a great time, and yet here I am now...I quit my job as a Girls Designer to pursue a Master's Degree in Occupational Therapy. 
The problem was there was this feeling I had, a feeling that wasn't going away.  It began as an inkling - a passing thought - and grew into curiosity, which then slowlllllyyyy transformed to possibility.  I toyed around with that for a while, the hallway between curiosity and possibility, because I didn't think it would be possible to change the path I had worked so hard to lay out, the path I put so much time and effort into.  But ultimately I had to make the decision that felt right in my heart. 

I want to write about my trials and tribulations on my new journey, to help anyone who might stumble across this, and also for my own keepsake.  I know it's going to be a long road ahead, but I've already made the hardest decisions, what comes next is the rest of my life.

Summer 2012: Ombre Mini Skirt

I've been very interested in the art of ombre dyeing and wanted to try it out.  I had this crochet lace that I thought would be perfect for my experiment, so I dove head first into attempting to ombre dye a finished skirt I had made.  I used my dad's cooler, that will no longer be returned to him...

You can do a simple Google search for ombre dyeing and have several hits, but I found the Rit Dye tutorial to be the easiest to follow.

Things I would do differently:
1. I hung the skirt on a hanger and let it sit in the dye for the specified amounts of time, versus actually holding it for 10 minutes and swirling it around to give a smoother transition between each level of saturation.
2. Made sure the fabric was 100% natural...it wasn't too big of a deal, but the thread was synthetic, so it didn't take the dye....rookie mistake.

Ta da!!!...

Inspiration

Where does inspiration come from?  As a young designer I find myself asking that on different occasions.  Do I look at what successful, notable fashion houses have done?  Do I do research the trends that months from now I'll be seeing in every knock off, cheapy fashion store out there?  Or do I say screw it all and go with what I'm feeling?

While attending Woodbury I was faced with this challenge for my senior project.  The possibilities were limitless, the only thing we were asked as young designers was to incorporate the broad theme of "living green" into our collections.  Beyond that it was up to us.  Everything we had learned up to that point was ours to use.  I remember tossing and turning at night trying to come up with an idea, a concept I could run with and not be bored by.  I tend to have a short attention span, and get bored by ideas quickly so I knew it had to be solid.  Then, finally it came to me...the human body.  How amazing, this beautiful, organic being made from organ systems that are each responsible in its success at striving.

This inspiration came to me like a light had been turned on after being in the dark for weeks.  Once it was there it grew and pushed me to create a collection I was proud of.  But inspiration comes and goes.  Sometimes I go weeks without feeling inspired, other times it flows out of me.  I appreciate design houses such as All Saints for their unique approach to designing, where doing what they are good at is amazing.  They seem to follow their own flow, not necessarily what has been said to be the next trend. 

I guess my point is that when I go looking for inspiration it doesn't come naturally.  My inspiration comes from my experiences, and how I'm feeling at the time.  But I don't think there is a right or wrong way when it comes to designing, because as long as the outcome is what you envisioned, it doesn't matter where the inspiration came from.

Nothing To Wear

A birthday party.  This is how it began.  As my excitement grew to spend an evening with one of my close friends, a thought popped into my head.  That thought led me to spend notable time perusing the web in search for something to wear.  I used to have this horrible habit where I would buy a new dress almost every time I went out.  That habit was kicked quickly upon warily standing on my own two feet, paying for rent and the mountain of every other expense I seem to have attracted like a magnet.  So I checked out F21, and with my luck they were in one of their weird transitional-we don't have that cute of stuff right now-phase...you may or may not agree, but my research has confirmed this.  I looked on All Saints website, then came back to reality and agreed with myself that I cannot spend upwards of $100 on a top...$200 on a dress.  I checked some other sites, but still wasn't finding anything worthy.

Luckily, I recently went on a fabric shopping trip downtown.  There, among homeless citizens, I found a great crochet lace fabric that I thought would be perfect for a Bavarian costume I'm currently working on.  I bought it and eventually decided it wouldn't be right for that costume so it was put aside. 

I've been craving a simple high-waist mini lately, and the crochet lace inspired me to try and create a simple yet classy skirt I could wear to the birthday party.  It began with me draping the gray knit backing for the skirt on my dress form in a very messy, haphazard manner.  I knew I only had a couple of days and limited energy, but half-assing this skirt wasn't an option.  I would need structural support for the knit fabric to stay up on my waist, so I re-draped, and re-sewed a skirt with boning and a black contrasting binding along the top.  I also wanted a subtle tail hem...just because. 

I wanted to make a sheer chiffon tank to go with it, but time was not on my side and I ended up pairing it with a simple black tank.  For someone who tends to over-think their designs and tries to come up with the most technically challenging concepts, this was truly an exercise in simplicity.  

Image property of C.A.P.

Image property of C.A.P.

The Art of Failing

I've always admired my mother's ability to apply watercolor paint to a blank canvas so freely and openly.  Her beautiful brushstrokes create dream-like scenes of forests, flowers, exotic animals and seascapes. 

I tried to paint a lily when I was about 10, and was unsuccessful.  I believe this is because I tried to control every aspect, every color, every runny water mark.  I design the same way.  My personal favorite garment I've made is extremely technical, and won two awards - one surface design award for the use of laser cutting, and the other was an overall technical award for my couture collection senior year of college. 

 Now that I'm out of college and work full time to sustain living in Los Angeles, draping, pattern-making and sewing are squeezed into a schedule with a 50 hour work week, a social life, and any other useless time sucks.  Sometimes when I get home all I want to do is eat and watch some show on Hulu, but then I remember my ultimate goal and how bad I want it.  I work on patterns for a dress for a couple weeks in between working and living, make sure they are perfect, cut out a mock-up, put it on the dress form...only to be disappointed that it's not what I envisioned.  You see, when I'm at work and we need a pattern it's a matter of an hour or so that the pattern maker has the pattern completed, it's put up to be cut, and we are looking at the sample by the end of the day.  It's not that easy when it comes to doing everything yourself. 

 So now I have this semi-complete mock-up of a dress that I know I don't want to spend any more time on, and am starting to accept that not everything I start is going to come out perfectly, but in some way still helps me get a step closer to my goal, and maybe one day I'll have a pattern maker who can whip out patterns for me.  Until then I'll try and learn from my mother and take it one brushstroke at a time.

In Good Company

Image by celebritybug

When I studied abroad in London I met a very inspiring individual.  This person would coach me along during my term when I felt overwhelmed and under-prepared.  We would stay in studio until the instructors kicked us out, snacking on treats we would pick up because breaking for dinner was out of the question.

I remember feeling so out of place as the professor gave us our mid reviews and I was told I would earn no better than a "C," maybe a "B-" as a result of my work and research abilities.  As an over-achiever, and believing I could do better, I took this as a challenge.  The lessons I learned and experiences I had are priceless, and far more valuable than any grade.  By the end of the term I received an "A" and was one of the only (along with my friend) students whose work had been pre-chosen to be shown in the annual fashion show.  I thank you, James Paul.

An amazing artist, generous spirit, and gifted individual, I have the pleasure and honor of being able to call him a friend.  You may or may not recognize him from the first season of Bravo's, "The Fashion Show," where he placed third in a mosh posh of emerging and already successful artists.  His designs are unique, and truly inspired by years worth of research.

As an aspiring designer I look up to you and your accomplishments and thank you for being apart of my life.