Miss Couturable

Music Obsession: Tara Priya

2011-07-23T14:02:00.005-04:00

Every year of high school, on the last day of the academic year, we sat through an excruciatingly long awards ceremony. My freshman year, at the awards ceremony, I found myself sitting next to a senior. Her name was Tara Chandra, and she was one of the smartest, prettiest, and most enigmatic seniors I had ever admired from far away in the hallway. She sang for the jazz band and once did an amazing rendition of Wicked's "Defying Gravity." She had won numerous prestigious writing awards and once, she gave a speech in front of the entire school about apathy and about political action. That was the only student speech that moved me all year. Most importantly (to me, as a wide-eyed freshman), she was attending Columbia University in the fall. She was going to New York, which seemed like the perfect place for her.

She won the English award that year, and I remember the entire auditorium cheering loudly for her, with teachers nodding their heads and smiling with pride. She was everything I wanted to be in three years.

I did end up giving two speeches in front of the school -- once my junior year, and once my senior year. And I never won a single award at school, but I did end up going to the same college as she did. And I did rediscover my passion for writing in high school, though I never won any prestigious writing awards.

After Tara graduated early from Columbia (magna cum laude, natch), she started to pursue her music career. Now, she is professionally known as Tara Priya.

It wasn't my intention to write about Tara Priya on the day of Amy Winehouse's death, but now I consider it fitting because Tara considers Amy to be one of her greatest influences.

I'm no expert on music (much less widely accepted "good" music), but Tara's EP has been on repeat on my playlist for the past two weeks. It's catchy, genuine, and heartfelt music. At the very least, you'll see why I was both intimidated and in awe as a 15-year-old freshman, sitting next to that confident senior with the brunette curls, who seemed ready to conquer the world.

You can listen to her EP and download it for only $3 here. I've also attached her new music video, "Rollin'." Hopefully it brings a bit a soulful joy to your heart amidst all the tragedy in this world.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Refinery29 remembers us college students!

2011-03-10T10:18:00.002-05:00

While many of my friends are jetting off to tropical islands, European countries, or back home for spring break, I'm staying in the city, where I intend to eat good food, visit museums, shop, catch up on work, and sleep all day and night. So, no, no need to pity me.

Just in time for spring break, Refinery29 is launching its new college column! The first article is about what to pack for your spring break trip.

Anyway, I'm super excited about this because I know a lot of fellow students who read Refinery29, but sometimes it's hard to relate when you're not dressing for a 9-to-5 job or you can't always afford to head downtown for an $80 entrée. Not that it stops me.

ex.oh.ex.oh

Miss Couturable

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T21:41:00.004-05:00

So, while I'm spending my Valentine's Day having intimate relations with my laptop, you may have more ~~exciting~~ raunchy plans (but statistically not likely if you also go to Columbia).

Refinery29.com asked me to publicize their latest Reserve, in which you get two 13-pack of condoms from Sir Richard's Condom Company for only $13 -- shipping included. Also, 25% of the proceeds is donated to Partners in Health. And apparently four of the boxes have diamond earrings from Simmons Jewelry. Sweet deal.

But anyway, erm, I'm heading to the library to ~~hook up in the stacks~~ celebrate my singleness with other single stressed-out friends. Happy Valentine's Day! At the very least, love yourself.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Are you Pretty Amazing?

2011-02-05T13:47:00.004-05:00

If you've always wanted to be on the cover of a magazine (and you're between ages 15 - 22 in the United States), you should definitely enter Seventeen's Pretty Amazing Real-Girl Cover Contest, sponsored by Neutrogena.

The winner appears on the cover of the October 2011 issue, wins a $10,000 scholarship, and goes on a trip to New York City -- sweet deal, right? All you have to do is fill out a short form and write a short paragraph or two (no more than 1,000 characters -- that's like 300 words) about why you're "Pretty Amazing."

I know I have awesome (and gorgeous!) readers who have accomplished amazing things, so please let me know if you've entered! And hey, feel free to share your accomplishments with me. I'm always interested in learning more about you (and being in awe of you!).

ex.oh.ex.oh

Miss Couturable

How bad do you want it?

2011-02-04T21:40:00.003-05:00

Today, I was the last one to leave the office at my internship because I was frantically doing some work to lighten the load for my boss. My eyes were slightly bloodshot, I'm quite sure that my eyeliner was smeared, and I had not eaten for over eight hours. Still, I toiled on because it was the least I could do to help, in anticipation of New York Fashion Week.

When I got home tonight, I decided to skip the Friday night parties for a quiet night (er, weekend) of rest. While browsing Fashionista, as I do every night, I was intrigued by the comments on the post, "Blair and Dan 'Intern' at W Mag on Gossip Girl and We Debunk the Myths."

Someone commented, "From my magazine experience, the dumbest interns come from the most top-ranked schools." In response, someone else commented, "Because they always feel they're too good to be doing lowly intern work."

In response to that, someone commented:

The truth is that being from a top school translates in to expectations of (at times impossible) excellence and the additional pressure/drive to do well. I could argue that interns from top schools are used to hard work, more so than everyone else, and perform better; however, I know better than to make a blanket-statement like you just did.

So, speaking from a limited personal viewpoint, I don't think Ivy League fashion interns à la Blair Waldorf and Dan Humphrey (or me, for that matter) are necessarily better interns than non-Ivy League students. You don't need a perfect SAT score to return shoes to Dior -- although a sense of direction would be helpful.

However, I do think there are a lot of high expectations when you go to a "good" school -- both from yourself and external influences. If I can write a 30-page paper on German philosophy, I can properly use the Xerox machine, right? Conversely, you also feel the pressure to prove that you're not just book smarts. What's the point of acing calculus if I miscount the fashion week invitations?

And then, in academic settings, you feel the pressure to prove that you can be book smart and fashion-savvy. It's a constantly nagging feeling of needing to prove yourself which I am all too familiar with. I want my professors to know I'm serious about school and I want my employers to know I'm serious about fashion.

I do know of fellow schoolmates who have quit fashion internships because they thought the tasks were "beneath them" -- but these same schoolmates have also quit non-fashion internships with better pay, such as in investment banking. They don't speak for everyone.

The rest of us are extremely grateful for our internships, and we don't mind staying later or doing extra work or fetching coffee, as long as we get to be there. For me, at least, internships keep me sane -- they're a productive break from academia.

ex.oh.ex.oh

Miss Couturable

Shop my wardrobe and save the world

2011-01-30T09:06:00.006-05:00

I am somewhat of a pack rat and a hoarder, so throughout the years, I have accumulated more clothes than I can fit into my pocket-sized dorm room closet.

Luckily, I-ELLA, an invitation-only marketplace where you can sell your wardrobe and shop from other wardrobes (including celebrity wardrobes such as that of Selita Ebanks!), is hosting its College Week, in which you can shop from the wardrobes of your fellow stylish college students. The best part about I-ELLA is that a portion of the proceeds go to non-profit organizations.

They asked me to participate, and so I am selling a few select pieces from my wardrobe, from a pair of Nanette Lepore booties to a classic Lacoste polo to a never-worn-before pair of J.Crew sandals -- all at tiny fractions of the original retail price.

So, if you're a dress size 0 and a shoe size 36 or 36.5 (or you have a friend who is), shop my closet here (they also did a brief interview with me here). To join, you can use referral code COLUMBIA.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Uniformity, not conformity

2011-01-28T22:48:00.003-05:00

I attended the press preview of the Gilt Groupe Warehouse Sale tonight, and in between eating e.e. cookies and convincing myself not to purchase a pair of Rick Owens shoes in my size (college campuses are not the most fashion-friendly places -- not even Columbia), I picked up this Shipley & Halmos blazer with a fantastic sheer paneling on the side and in the back. Originally $545, it was now $125.

My friend picked up a giant faux fur coat (only $75) -- and as we stood in the dressing room with our pickings, we reminded ourselves that we were technically on self-imposed shopping bans. The two of us, having become close friends on the first day of freshman year because we liked each other's clothes, were really trying to veer away from impulse purchases this year. She, having lost an expensive new pair of Balenciaga sunglasses, and I, already running out of closet space in my dorm, were not in the best shape to be buying new clothes.

Additionally, we were exceptionally predictable in our picks. Amongst our friends, I am known for owning all sorts of tailored and structured blazers and jackets, and she is known for her beloved propensity towards fur -- unfortunately for her, even her faux fur pieces attract sneers from many of our fellow leather-wearing and meat-eating Columbia students (yes, I'm pointing fingers).

We finally decided to purchase the pieces, because we knew these were pieces that we would wear a lot. $125 for a statement blazer isn't so shabby when you wear blazers all the time, and $75 for a fur coat is a good deal when you wore a fur coat to the sale in the first place.

Is it wrong to know what you like and to stick with it? We think not. At the end of the night, we considered ourselves lucky in knowing what works with our style and finding pieces that fit into the formula. I wear my blazers frequently, much more than I wear any cardigans or t-shirts, and she later discovered tonight that her new fur coat was the warmest coat she has ever owned.

Experimentation should be encouraged, but there is a simple joy in realizing what your style is. I would like to think of it as a step toward growing up. Also, it was cute that we understood each other's preferences.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

When we all need that pick-me-up

2011-01-26T21:13:00.005-05:00

I sometimes wonder what fashion editors were like back in college. For the most part, I like to imagine that they were always stylish, coiffed, articulate, and experts at walking in five-inch heels. In the cases of editors like Teen Vogue fashion news director, Jane Keltner de Valle, I'm quite sure that's not too far from the truth.

Anyway, she attended Barnard College, so I asked her to write a letter to the readers of Hoot, Columbia University's student fashion magazine. It was published in the Fall 2010 issue starring Tinsley Mortimer, which you can read online here. Even if you don't attend Columbia or Barnard, I think you can gain a lot of inspiration by reading this letter:

Dear Hoot reader,

Full disclosure: When I was asked to write this letter, although very flattered, I was a little stumped. I didn't have the “typical” college experience. Never been to a frat party or a football game. My extracurricular of choice was WWD (fashion industry bible) not DDD (popular Greek house of worship).

Part of the reason I chose to attend Barnard is because I'm a strong believer that education extends far beyond just the campus gates. As a native New Yorker, I grew up with the Metropolitan Museum in my backyard. I never learned how to drive because I never wanted to have to forfeit all the merits of a pedestrian culture (street-as-runway being a central one). After touring various schools across America, I came to the conclusion that going to a first-rate college in a second-rate city seemed counterproductive. Within Columbia's gates on 116th Street is a historic academic enclave that appears totally cut-off from the city around it. You can barely even see the high-rises that lie just beyond. But as soon as you exit onto Broadway, all of New York City is at your feet.

I attended my first fashion show spring semester of freshman year. A friend at Parsons had a ticket to Daryl K, and she was too sick to attend so she passed it along to me. (Brief fashion history lesson: in the late ‘90s, Daryl K was pretty much what Alexander Wang is today—the coolest young designer in New York.) The fashion show was held in a huge industrial warehouse on the West Side Highway with rough wood planks for a runway. I can't remember if my friend's ticket was seated or standing, but it didn't matter. As soon as I walked in, I positioned myself right next to the photographers’ pit, and proceeded to photograph each and every look that came down the runway. I still have a photo album with all the images (this was back in the old days when pictures were taken with film, and developed not downloaded).

I started interning at W and Women's Wear Daily at the end of my freshman year. The subway commute from Columbia to the offices on 34th Street was only twenty minutes, but when I exited I was in a totally different universe. Whenever I wasn't in class, I was there. Other interns would arrive in June and leave in August, but because I was there year-round I became a part of the staff. Sophomore year, I remember receiving a call in my apartment on 110th Street asking if I had a passport. They needed someone to deliver a dress to a photo shoot in Poland that night. I wrote my first byline article about a year and a half into the internship. Meanwhile, at Barnard and Columbia, I sought out fashion- and journalism-specific classes to balance out my Victorian literature and art history classes. I took an incredible class on the history of fashion with Valerie Steele, the director of the museum at FIT. And I remember writing a comical piece about a Fendi sample sale for one of my journalism classes.

My college experience wasn't typical, but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. I also don't think I could have gotten it anywhere but Columbia University. I've been the fashion news director at Teen Vogue for a little over six years now, and it's no coincidence that two of my best interns were Barnard students. One is now the online editor of Teen Vogue, and the other graduates this May. I have no idea what she'll do next, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't keeping my eyes on her!

Best,
Jane Keltner de Valle
Fashion News Director of Teen Vogue

I keep this letter in a box of inspiration (with other knickknacks).

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

P.S. That online editor of Teen Vogue is the gorgeous Naomi Nevitt, and she has a pretty sweet Tumblr too.

Barter system: votes for bad haiku

2011-01-24T12:17:00.001-05:00

Sometime in my insomniac state last night -- between finishing up a philosophy write-up, convincing myself not to buy a pair of Proenza Schouler boots (verdict: still debating with myself), ranting about my frivolous pet peeve, and finally dozing off to bed at 6:30am (and then waking up at 7:30am for class), I decided to enter Refinery29’s and COVERGIRL’s Hunt For The Next Big Style Blogger. The winner gets a trip to New York City (although, I guess I'm already here -- lucky me), a $1,000 cash prize, and most importantly (and the reason why I entered), a guest blogger gig at Refinery29.

Basically, I read Refinery29 obsessively (I even bought my Oberon Design iPad cover because one of their articles) and I've also been a huge fan girl of the infinitely cool editor Connie Wang, from back in her Pretty Legit days (You mean she was once an awkward Asian college student who spent too much time on the internet too?!).

So, if you have five seconds and a Facebook account, I would be so grateful if you would vote for me once here. As of right now, I'm one of the more recent entries, and I'm Noel from New York. The most popular blogger has 240 votes so far (and I have two, ha) -- but hey, it's worth a shot. I get more than 240 views a day, at least.

In return, I will write you a bad haiku (if you request one -- and you tell me about yourself. Otherwise it would have to be a bad random haiku.). Merci beaucoup!

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

P.S. I'm slightly better at writing about style than I am at writing haikus. Vote for me and we can keep it that way.

Monsieur Vuitton never designed clothes

2011-01-24T04:56:00.005-05:00

(Photo Credit -- LuxeMont)

Yesterday, someone asked me what my pet peeve is. I thought about how I don't like peeing in public bathrooms or how I don't like when people reply to emails without reading them thoroughly, but in actuality, one of my biggest pet peeves is when people say Louis Vuitton is their favorite fashion designer.

It's not that I don't love the fashion house, Louis Vuitton -- I can even appreciate the revolutionary nature of the ubiquitous monogram canvas. I can appreciate the business genius and prowess of luxury goods conglomerate LVMH. I can appreciate Marc Jacobs.

I just can't stand when people don't realize that Louis Vuitton is not a fashion designer -- but a fashion house. In fact, the real Monsieur Vuitton designed flat-bottom trunks with trianon canvas, and I'm pretty sure most people aren't talking about him.

But I could be mistaken. Maybe these people are talking about the luggage designer from the 1800s. I can also appreciate a good suitcase.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

An Education in sartorial transformation

2011-01-22T09:07:00.009-05:00

I'm obsessed with the British film, An Education, and starring the ever-so-coquettishly-ethereal Carey Mulligan playing smart schoolgirl Jenny -- she's playing Daisy Buchanan in the 2012 adaptation of The Great Gatsby, by the way. One of the best lines in the book, uttered by Daisy, is "All right... I'm glad it's a girl. And I hope she'll be a fool -- that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool." Good stuff, Fitzgerald.
Anyway, a couple of my high school friends found An Education to be atrociously boring, but I beg to differ, as not only do I have a penchant for coming-of-age films and novels (A Tree Grows in Brooklyn comes to mind), but also I really enjoyed the contrasts between Oxford-bound schoolgirl preppy and worldly belle du jour, as evidenced in Jenny's costume. Set in 1961 England, it plays upon the excitement and confusion of growing up in a modern society that threatens to be torn down by nuclear bombs every day. It's about romantic love and disillusionment and falling in love with the world again. And realizing that your dowdy-looking Cambridge-graduated high school teacher might be right about some things after all.
The costume is designed by Odile Dicks-Mireaux, who worked with the director, Lone Scherfig, to brilliantly weave together the concept that clothes provide transformation of identity. While the expensively-dressed Helen, played by Rosamund Pike, looks sophisticated and worldly, she fails to exhibit Jenny's self-introspection and education. For example, when Jenny first meets her at a concert, Jenny begins speaking in French, assuming Helen would understand her. Additionally, the camera shows Jenny blissfully appreciating the music while Helen stares dumbfounded at the stage.
But still, much attention should also be given to Jenny's schoolgirl dress, for even if you don't care much for the A-line skirts, who can deny the whimsical yet serious pleasure of a leather satchel bag?
I own one myself, in red, made by the Cambridge Satchel Company in Cambridge, England. Individualistic as I think I am, I got my initials monogrammed on it in gold emboss. It is technically called a batchel (briefcase and satchel combined) because of its top handle, but you can also buy the traditional satchel without the handle.
The batchel is superb for heavy school books and it'll make you feel smart -- even if your mind is flitting off to a world of dazzling balls, scandalous French music, and memoir-worthy escapades.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Guess who's back?

2011-01-16T14:19:00.004-05:00

(Photo Credit -- Sharon Wu)

Six months later, I am making a spontaneous return to misscouturable.com -- while maintaining my personal blog at noelduan.com. I didn't even think of returning back here until this morning, when I found myself accumulating emails from readers like you, telling me how much the Miss Couturable archives have meant to you.

I don't deserve to be the one who changes your life. I'm a 20-year-old college student who is busy trying to figure out her own life, after all. I really didn't -- and still don't -- have much time to offer you as much as I'd like to on this blog. Most certainly, I'll be at fashion week, but I don't have enough time between shows and classes and work and The Good Things in Life to post my own thoughts on each show I attend.

I stopped posting here because it didn't seem fair to you. I didn't have time to provide constant fashion week coverage or even a daily post. I didn't think I had much to offer anymore.

But, for some reason, some of you found usage in the archives. And whether you were reading to procrastinate or you wanted college application tips, I'm glad my blogging was not in vain.

I miss this blog, and I'm returning back to this blog because I finally realized what I can offer you: A glimpse of life (and fashion) through my eyes. It's not that different from the life of any other college student who has a penchant for Marni jewelry (and frankly, I know quite a few), but maybe some of you would like to share your stories with me as I share mine with you -- as many of you have already done through email with me. We may not always agree with each other, but we will always have something to say.

So, bonjour, hello, and 你好.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

P.S. The above photo is from Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week back in September. I'm on the far right, sitting with two of my genius and stylish friends from college (and a third who is taking the photo). We sat across the runway from Robbie Myers, the editor in chief of ELLE. Just goes to show that fashion (and life) is more fun when you're with people you love, and you never know who is facing you -- so remember to dress well and smile.

Good-bye misscouturable.com, hello noelduan.com

2010-07-17T00:02:00.003-04:00

It was last October when I accidentally renewed the domain, misscouturable.com, for two more years. "Well, I guess I'll be obligated to blog until then," I said to myself.

But that's not right. Personal blogs shouldn't feel like obligations, which is why I am discontinuing misscouturable.com.

I started this blog in high school as a diversion to make summer listlessness a little more bearable. I didn't think I could meet so many amazing people through blogging. I didn't think I would get thick skin through comments. I didn't think Miss Couturable would become, essentially, a part of my identity.

And frankly, it will always be a part of me. My friends will probably always make fun of me for ending every post with "ex.oh.ex.oh," after all. I will never delete this blog, for it is a reflection of years of immaturity, burgeoning maturity (well, hopefully), creativity, frustration, inspiration, and wonder.

I am now blogging at noelduan.com, which is still under construction. Why? Because as much as this blog is a part of me, I have grown beyond my voice as Miss Couturable.

I'm getting teary-eyed as I write this, because I have had some amazing experiences through this blog. You, my readers, have shopped with me in New York City, eaten North Korean food with me in Beijing, and attended my 18th birthday party in San Jose. The power of the internet is frightening, but beautiful at the same time. Yet, in spite of these amazing experience, I began writing on misscouturable.com less and less -- but I never stopped writing. I wrote for publications, I blogged for other websites, I wrote in my private journal, I wrote letters to loved ones, and I sent plenty of emails. And admittedly, I really missed you all -- but I didn't have the time or energy to continue anymore.

After all, Miss Couturable is just one layer of me. I'd rather share all sides of me with you.

With noelduan.com, I will be writing for myself -- but hopefully, with some value to readers. There will still be fashion posts, but there will be other posts, which you may or may not want to read. Feel free to email me if you ever need anything or just want to talk. Merci beaucoup, everyone!

And, for the last time:

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Not really in North Korea

2010-07-12T00:45:00.004-04:00

I spent the past six weeks in China, where Blogger, Foursquare, Twitter, Tumblr, and Google Documents are blocked. Nonetheless, while my social media life was waning, I was busy experiencing real life in one of the most diverse countries in the world. Jokes about how "all Chinese people look the same" aside, China is a country made up of many mingzu ("tribes" or clans) and foreigners. I visited Beijing, Chengdu, and Shanghai during my six weeks there. A trip to Tibet was planned, but alas, sickness stopped us in the tracks.

The four weeks I spent in Beijing were filled with new experiences -- especially in the culinary area. One of my readers and a new friend, Viii, brought me to a North Korean restaurant owned by the North Korean embassy. All of the waitresses and hostesses were the prettiest, most-educated girls from North Korean, who were sent down to Beijing to work as waitresses and "ambassadors" of North Korean -- and the rumors say, as spies too. The restaurant was eerily reminiscent of a Chinese restaurant from the 1980s, from the ornate chandeliers to the giant wall paintings. A small television, playing clips from a North Korean musical performance, aired in the background.

As you may know, North Korea is one of the most isolated -- and poorest -- countries in the world. While they call themselves a socialist state, a totalitarian regime is more appropriate. Every single one of the waitresses and hostesses wore a pin with a photo of their "Dear Leader," who they call their "father."

Not only did they speak Korean, Chinese, and English, but also they played musical instruments and sang traditional Korean songs. I have uploaded a video I hastily took with my half-broken camera, in case you are curious.

As an American, it is very unlikely that I will have a chance to visit North Korea -- but hey, I ate their food, talked to their people, and visited their pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo. I am closer than I was two months ago.

Before this trip, I had the conception that North Koreans would be like characters straight out of 1984 -- I had never met a North Korean, but I had seen videos of their rhythmic gymnasts and traffic patrol officers. After eating dinner with Viii, and watching these girls laugh and giggle and wrinkle their brows like any other recent college graduate, I realized that I -- and most of us -- will never truly understand the lives of the North Koreans -- but I can understand them as fellow human beings.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

P.S. For more information about North Korea, searching "North Korea" on YouTube is a great way to start. Also, check out Noko Jeans -- designer jeans made in North Korea.

Woohoo(t)

2010-05-21T17:48:00.000-04:00

Ever since I was a high school student, I had been a fervent admirer of BARE, UC Berkeley's award-winning student fashion magazine. Putting together any magazine, after all, is no easy feat -- from attaining the funding to scheduling photoshoots, students have a lot of hurdles to jump. On top of a full course load and the bittersweet nuances of the adolescent years, BARE is a time-consuming but worthwhile activity for the students who dream of following the legacy of their fellow Cal brethren, from Humberto Leon and Carol Lim of Opening Ceremony to the Rodarte sisters.

Once upon a time, Columbia University had a student fashion publication too. It was called MODE, and Marc Jacobs was once on the cover. It died more than 10 years ago, but this year, I met a group of students who wanted to resurrect the presence of a fashion publication on campus.

Hoot faced a lot of set backs this year. We applied to every single grant foundation on campus -- only to be rejected but all but one. One group even rejected us because we looked "too organized and proactive to be in need of funding." CUarts took a chance on us. Most companies would not trust us with their samples for photoshoots (really, a bunch of college students asking to borrow clothes?). Many beauty companies sent us samples to help us prep for our photoshoots. Makeup Artist Jennifer Nam gave us a free photography makeup lesson.

Most of our staff had never written an article before. I was lending out my digital voice recorder left and right. Those of us who had never interned at a magazine before did not know how to request samples. Some of our design team staff had never used Adobe Photoshop or Adobe InDesign before. Many of our bloggers had never written a blog entry before.

We had a lot to learn, and we're still learning.

Not only have we launched the issue in digital form, but also we have scrounged enough money to be in print.
We've launched a new website and blog, and we're determined to keep growing and learning as members of the Columbia University community!

In any case, Hoot hopes to prove that within our student population, students can be substantial and smart, and still find pleasure in the frivolous.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

"Remember Now" by Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel

2010-05-11T14:14:00.001-04:00

As final examinations come to an end for most of you (I finished yesterday), Karl Lagerfeld's new short film, "Remember Now," should be the perfect launch into summer.

May you have a few early-morning dance parties, sparkly knits, and good laughs of your own.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Happy Mother's Day!

2010-05-09T19:10:00.001-04:00

All women become like their mothers. That is their tragedy. No man does. That’s his. - Oscar Wilde

My mother is not a glamazon with a walk-in closet full of Manolo Blahnik pumps and Givenchy gowns. My mother taught me nothing about wearing make-up beyond washing my face every morning and night. My mother has never shared stories about her first kiss with me. My mother is not a size 2. My mother does not speak perfect English. My mother does not have a wedding ring.

My mother was valedictorian of her graduating class in college. My mother gave up her dreams of becoming an artist for a career that could put bread on the table for her children. My mother works six days a week. My mother has two Master's degrees. My mother still wants to travel the world.

She once told me that she still regrets dragging me with her to her college classes and laboratory sessions, where I often sat in the corner, with a book or two. I don't think she realizes that without waking up at 7am every morning with her for a full day of classes at age four, I would not have understood the importance of education as much as I do now. I read my first book, See Spot Run, in the laboratory, as she spliced genes.

I learned how to record lectures on tape as I sat with her in the dark auditorium.
I learned how much perseverance paid off, as she replayed her lecture tapes over and over again because she couldn't understand the professor's rapid English. I learned how to put up with tedium as she analyzed the same mice cells over and over again, every day.

My mother never stopped believing in me.

In many ways, we are from two different worlds. She does not understand why I dress the way I do. She doesn't understand the lyrics to the songs I listen to. She has only been to New York City once.

But, if what Wilde says is true, I am looking forward to turning out like my mother, for my mother has an undying passion and love that never runs out, even when her back aches from a day of treating her patients. Thank you for everything, Mumsies -- I cannot wait to be home in four days.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

I never left high school

2010-05-08T10:35:00.000-04:00

A couple weeks ago, after a Sunday brunch with high school friends at Riingo in Midtown East, I wandered into the mass pandemonium that was Lord & Taylor on Fifth Avenue. I really should have headed uptown to start studying for my final exams, but instead I was surrounded by fresh-faced 16-year-old girls and their high-heeled mothers, sipping sparkling water and pink lemonade. I met up with Chelsea of Pink Rock Candy and Arabelle of Fashion Pirates -- ironically, Arabelle is the only one of us who is in high school. Ah, well, it's swell to be young at heart, no?

Lord & Taylor was launching "Prom-a-Palooza" -- consisting of a makeshift fashion show, 25% off prom dresses with free basic alterations, and three exclusive dresses designed by Parsons alumni: Hannah Haien Lee, Nicki Cozzolino, and Samantha Sleeper.This was my favorite dress, designed by Hannah Haien Lee and retailing for a reasonable price of $300. Paired with Betsey Johnson lace ankle boots, it offered a sugary sweet confection of a dress. I would have added a pair of motorcycle gloves and a simple string of pearls to complete the look.
Samantha Sleeper designed this nontraditional dress. While the outrageous skirt can easily be glammed up for prom, it could be suitable for future nights out with a tailored blazer and a nonchalant attitude.
And, of course, for the girl who reluctantly shows up to the dance and intends to leave after 30 minutes -- only to dance the night away against her prior discretion -- Nicki Cozzolino designed this short number. It's a bit short for a school dance, so you better wear tights or leggings with that.

In between mouthfuls of miniature cupcakes, I started thinking about my high school proms, and how I rarely have an opportunity to wear frothy, frilly dresses anymore. While I may have left these days behind for the collegiate world of dangerous minidresses for clubbing and "themed" clothing like "anything but clothes"for frat parties, I could not help but feel slightly nostalgic for the days of yonder, when I shopped (and fought) with my mother for an age appropriate dress.

For those of you in high school who are going to prom this year, I offer you three pieces of advice, as someone who went to junior/senior prom every year of high school and had wardrobe misshapes almost every year (I guess I don't learn my lessons very well):

Get alterations done. If the dress is a bit too loose on top or it drags too far past your feet, please seek a tailor. You've spent so much time shopping for the perfect outfit -- don't let it go to waste. A night of dancing can easily be ruined if you're too busy pulling up your dress or tripping over your date's feet.
Eat before the dance. Yes, you're probably thinking that you don't want a "food baby" in your awkwardly-posed studio photos, but you need the energy for dancing.
If your dress rips or a button snaps, don't worry -- no one's looking. Frankly, prom is very self-indulgent; after the initial glances at your outfit, no one else is going to care that your strap accidentally broke. Bring an emergency sewing kit in your clutch, get a good friend to stitch you up in the restroom, and forget about it for the rest of the night.

And as always, send me photos! I'd love to see what you wore to prom. Stay safe!

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Miss Couturable

Being Asian in the fashion industry

2010-04-26T14:03:00.010-04:00

(Photo Credit -- Sharon Shum)

That's right. That's me with some of my heroes in fashion, art, publishing, business, and entertainment: Joe Zee (Creative Director of ELLE), Carol Lim (CEO and Co-Founder of Opening Ceremony), Arabelle Sicardi (Blogger for Fashion Pirates), E.J. Samson (Online Editor of Teen Vogue), Humberto Leon (Creative Director and Co-Founder of Opening Ceremony), Ujjwala Raut (former face of YSL cosmetics and first Indian model to walk Victoria's Secret), Tina Chai (freelance stylist and a graduate of Columbia University), Phillip Lim (do I need to explain who he is?), Patrick Li (Creative Director of Li, Inc.), Aya T. Kanai (freelance stylist and former editor of Nylon and Teen Vogue), and SuChin Pak (MTV Correspondent).

All fantastic, articulate people -- and Asian American, to boot. I could barely sleep last night. I shook Phillip Lim's hand, Ujjwala Raut gave me a kiss, SuChin Pak gave me a hug, and I told Joe Zee that I stalk his Twitter obsessively.
In case you didn't know, I organized a panel discussion at Columbia University, "Asian Americans in the Fashion Industry," where some of the top figures in the fashion industry came together and spoke to the public about their experiences (tickets were $5 each and proceeds benefited the Tibetan Village Project to help victims of the Yushu earthquake in China). This was in partnership with Asian Pacific American Awareness Month and Hoot magazine, in which I serve as Arts Chair and Co-Editor in Chief, respectively.

(Photo Credit -- Anna Cooperberg)

The event was moderated by SuChin Pak, who is one of the coolest girls I have ever met. Not only did she rock that cashmere dress, but she has a talent for facilitating conversation. I mean, that's why she's a television personality, right? Needless to say, I now have a huge girl crush on her.

(Photo Credit -- Sharon Shum)

Anyway, the point of the panel discussion was to spread the idea that Asian Americans are succeeding in the fashion industry because they are talented -- not because they fulfill a special niche of "Asian Americans." We opened up the majority of the panel discussion to audience questions, since this is one of the few opportunities for us plebeians to talk to the fashion greats.

To my slight dismay, most of the questions from the audience members were along the lines of, "How do I become like you and can I please have an internship or job?" I sat on the aisles listening to students attempt to impress Joe Zee and Phillip Lim with a long list of Asian designers that they need and analysis of the fashion industry. I was expecting more questions along the lines of, "How has the fashion industry changed for the new crop of Asian American designers?" Maybe just because that's what I'm interested in, but I felt that we weren't able to go in-depth into the topics that we aimed to discuss because of the "How do I become like you and am I impressing you?" comments from the audience members.

However, I can't blame them. This is one of the few opportunities that these students have face-to-face with some of the most influential and successful figures in fashion, and I can understand why students brought their resumes and portfolios and asked "self-masturbatory" (not my words) questions. However, I've decided that in the future, I will be filtering questions beforehand. I would like to give some of the other panelists more time to talk too, instead of audience members repeatedly trying to impress Joe Zee and Phillip Lim.

Additionally, an issue that I wanted to address -- that Arabelle Sicardi already pointed out in her blog -- is that Issey Miyake, Rei Kawakubo, and Yohji Yamamoto are not Asian American designers. Someone in the audiences asked why there is a dearth of truly groundbreaking Asian designers like Miyake and Yomamoto and why Asian fashion is not thriving (for example, Takashimaya closing down in New York City).

Well, frankly, look at Phillip Lim, Richard Chai, Alexander Wang, Derek Lam, and Jason Wu -- they are well-known designers not because they design Asian fashion, but because they design well. As Phillip Lim said during the discussion, "You can't redesign the t-shirt," and there is nothing wrong with that (although I would say Alexander Wang's t-shirt line is his own take on the basic).

He went on to explain that so many students, coming out of Parsons and Central Saint Martins, think only of concept and forget about context. "Watch the master do his work," he said.

I do feel that a common misconception that people have is that if you're Asian or Hispanic or Black, you're expected to incorporate some of your "culture" into your work. Is that really necessary? We have great designers like Vivienne Tam to embrace the merger of East and West. We have great designers like Rei Kawakubo to push into the avant-garde. And we also have great designers like Phillip Lim who design for their clients. And there is nothing wrong with any of them. They're all achieved success for staying true to themselves.

To be successful, you need to be good at what you do, no matter what your ethnic background is. And if you're Asian, you're not obligated to bust out the dragons and lotus blossoms. Just look at the speakers from last night.

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Miss Couturable

P.S. For more coverage, check out these articles from Columbia Daily Spectator, Style.com, MochiMag.com, and genuine incongruity.

Also, thank you so much to all 300 of you who showed up! Expect more in the future.

Invitation to Asian Americans in the Fashion Industry

2010-04-18T12:05:00.004-04:00

I do not usually get this excited over campus fashion events -- and I may be biased because I'm organizing the event. Nevertheless, I have been working day and night for weeks on this event, and I would like to personally invite all of you, in the New York City area, to come.

Panel Discussion: Asian Americans in the Fashion Industry
Hosted by Columbia University's Asian Pacific American Awareness Month and Hoot Magazine

Sunday, April 25th, 2010
6:30pm - 8:30pm
Roone Arledge Cinema
Alfred J. Lerner Hall
Columbia University
2920 Broadway
New York, NY 10027

Speakers include:
SuChin Pak, MTV Correspondent (Moderator)
Humberto Leon, Creative Director and Co-Founder of Opening Ceremony
Carol Lim, CEO and Co-Founder of Opening Ceremony
Joe Zee, Creative Director of ELLE & Stylist (newest confirmed panelist!)
Tina Chai, Stylist
Aya T. Kanai, Stylist
Phillip Lim, Fashion Designer
Patrick Li, Creative Director of Li, Inc
Ujjwala Raut, Model
EJ Samson, Online Editor of Teen Vogue
Arabelle Sicardi, Fashion Blogger of Fashion Pirates

Refreshments will be served.

Columbia University's Asian Pacific American Awareness Month and Columbia University's first and only fashion publication, Hoot Magazine (hootmag.org), is hosting a mega-panel discussion with top Asian American figures in the fashion industry in order to promote the education and discussion of fashion and careers in fashion. In accordance to this year's theme, "Deeper," we hope to dive deeper into exploring the different ways in which Asian Americans have made revolutionary contributions.

The limited number of tickets (only $5 each) can be reserved through the TIC box in Lerner Hall or online at https://www.ovationtix.com/trs/pe/8095855. You may also purchase your tickets and pick up your will-call tickets at the door, but please be aware that seating will not be guaranteed last-minute.

A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Tibetan Village Project to aid in relief for those devastated in the Yushu earthquake in China.

RSVP on Facebook and invite your friends here:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=105120179527908

Please email apaam@hootmag.org for more information or press passes.

Basically, this is going to be a fun event, and you should all attend! And say hello to me if I'm not running frantically all over the building. You do not need to be Asian to come celebrate the achievements of people like Phillip Lim, Joe Zee, and SuChin Pak.

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Miss Couturable

Change of plans

2010-04-06T21:35:00.005-04:00

Everyone and their mother (literally) has read the recent article from the New York Times, "Growth of Unpaid Internships May Be Illegal, Officials Say," by Steven Greenhouse. My fellow schoolmates, many of whom are unpaid interns in the fashion industry like me, and I have laughed about how our parents called us after reading the article, demanding that we seek compensation from our employers. The Ivy League student that "spent an unpaid three-month internship at a magazine packaging and shipping 20 or 40 apparel samples a day back to fashion houses that had provided them for photo shoot" was close to home for many of us.

It's funny because, well, none of us would dare ask our employers for compensation. The fashion industry is all about paying your dues, and the internship opportunities are more apprenticeship than internship -- your job is to make your boss' job easier. You definitely learn a lot and you learn to think for others.

"It's not enough to be booksmart. It's even more important to be able to do the smallest menial tasks with full competence," said my mother, when I was helping her sort files last summer.

The truth is, though, it can get expensive being an unpaid intern. When I was interning for Seventeen, the summer before my senior year of high school, I spent over $2,000 on summer housing, not including my budget for food and transportation.

This upcoming summer, I am interning for a fashion magazine in Beijing, China -- unpaid, too. My mother just called me to inform me that plane tickets will cost about $2,000, and that doesn't even include housing, transportation, and food in Beijing, one of the most expensive cities in China today.

"We support you, but this will be the last summer that you're allowed to do anything unpaid," she said.

Understandable. After all, I go to school in New York City and I can do all the unpaid internships that I want during the school year, without any additional financial burden on my parents.

Additionally, I understand how my parents feel -- my friends who are interning in the finance industry are making about $10,000 this summer. They have comparatively much less experience in the finance industry than I do in the fashion industry, but I am unpaid and will most likely always be unpaid as an intern.

The truth is, this system is not fair to students. Many students cannot intern at all because they cannot afford to -- because they're working part-time jobs to pay for college. However, for every intern who is unwilling or unable to work unpaid, there will be ten interns who are willing to. And it continues.

I've learned a lot in my internships, and I wholeheartedly believe in making sacrifices to achieve your dreams -- but my parents end up being the ones making the financial sacrifices. And that's not fair to them.

So, I don't know what I'm going to do about future internships. I am going to continue to intern during the next three school years, but I can't work full time in the summer after this upcoming summer anymore. Is this going to hinder my fashion magazine dreams? Will it appear that I am less dedicated?

Well, I think summers should be used to explore new things. So, this summer I am improving my Chinese, working at a Chinese fashion magazine (unpaid), and exploring China. Next summer? Perhaps I will put my business and analytical skills to work and try to get a consulting internship. Or try my hand at finance. During the school year, I will continue to intern in fashion and try to learn as much as I can.

So, Mum, there you have it. Hope this compromise appeases you. And while I was initially frustrated that this basically shuts me off from all the summer magazine internships in the city, this may just be an excuse for me to explore the world and learn even more things to complete my education.

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Miss Couturable

P.S. What is the best internship you've ever had? And what was the best thing you've ever done for a summer?

Panel Discussion: Voices of American Fashion

2010-03-31T23:52:00.001-04:00

(Photo Credit -- guestofaguest.com)

As you may know, I love Pulitzer Prize-winning fashion journalist and Washington Post Style Editor, Robin Givhan.

So it grieves me deeply that I have an important class at the same time that she will be speaking at the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum (2 East 91st Street) tomorrow (April 1st).

However, you don't have to miss it. She will be speaking on a panel discussion called "Voices of American Fashion" with with past National Design Award Winners Francisco Costa (Women's Creative Director of Calvin Klein Collection), Yeohlee Teng (designer of YEOHLEE), and Maria Cornejo (designer of zero + maria cornejo) about their work and the role of fashion in contemporary culture. Their designs will also be on display from 5:30pm to 6:30pm in Design USA: Contemporary Innovation.

The icing on the cake is that the event is free for students. But even if you're not a textbook-toting fashionista, you can get in for $15 or $10 for seniors/members. Just register here.

Maybe I'll sneak in a glimpse or two on the live webcast here.

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Miss Couturable

A/W 2010: Betsey Johnson & Long Live McQueen

2010-02-21T10:49:00.003-05:00

I refrained from writing anything about my feelings toward Alexander McQueen's death because everyone else has said everything that I want to say.

I found out about his death on Twitter, before Anna Wintour even found out, if she really did rush out in the middle of the BCBG Max Azria show. It was the first day of New York Fashion Week. I was waiting in line for the BCBG Max Azria show, curing my boredom by incessantly checking Twitter on my Blackberry. I found out about Brittany Murphy and Daul Kim's death on Twitter too.

I've heard many grownups complain to me about how "kids like me" don't read the newspaper enough and how we seem to think Twitter is a suitable substitute for sharing news. Well, sometimes it is.

I remember calling my friend, Anna, the moment I found out. I remember we grieved incredulously as I sat there in Bryant Park and she hurried to get to her laptop.

I sat there, staring at the sky-high stilettos and tinkering bottles of Diet Coke, wondering how fashion could go on when one of its greatest visionaries had just committed suicide.

But it did.

Sunday night, I was at the Betsey Johnson show, sitting behind my blogging hero, Susie Lau of Style Bubble. Every girl in middle school and high school once wanted a Betsey Johnson dress for prom or graduation. Betsey Johnson is to 14 year olds what Vera Wang is to brides-to-be, after all. I still remember my first Betsey Johnson dress, when I was invited to attend prom by a junior in high school -- frothy pink in various shades, multiple bows, and reluctantly purchased by my dear parents, who took me up to San Francisco to the boutique. It was a dream come true to finally be sitting at the Betsey Johnson show.

(Photo Credit -- Style.com)

I have never seen models have so much fun on the runway. Kelly Osbourne walked down twice, with attitude that I can only hope to achieve someday. The adorable Hyoni Kang gave a sassy little booty dance before she strutted down the runway. Models like Tati Cotliar and Heidi Verster walked down, with long trains held up by sullen male models in striped bodysuits. Empowering and cheeky.

I found myself in the Wild West, where anything goes and Betsey runs the town. Models of every shape and ethnicity walked (or danced) down then hay-covered runway.

(Photo Credit -- Style.com)

And then, when all of the fun seemed to be over, the final pair of models came out as a tribute to the late Alexander McQueen, wax lips and all. The entire room was eerily silent, and yet slowly, applause began to accumulate. I'm sure I wasn't the only one tearing up.
As an ode to Valentine's Day, the models marched out with giant inflatable hearts, which were thrown out to the audience.
Betsey came out in all her glory, hugging and cartwheeling down the runway.

And it was then that I realized -- indeed, fashion has taken a hard hit with McQueen's death. But shows will go on, and we are still allowed to smile. Spread the love, whether it's in the form of a hug or a leopard print Betsey Johnson thong. It might make all the difference to one person.

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Miss Couturable

Failure of imagination

2010-02-15T21:28:00.000-05:00

I was so overwhelmed with Fashion Week this past weekend that academics were the last thing on my mind -- not exactly the model Columbia University student, I admit. I reluctantly decided to skip out on the shows today because I passed out in the afternoon and needed to go to class anyway.

I trudged to my psychology class across campus, thinking about the Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation show and Alexa Chung for Madewell presentation that I was missing. The throbbing pain in my head prevented me from paying attention fully.

However, at the very end of the lecture, my professor, a brilliant and renowned researcher, talked about extrasensory perception. According to the textbook, "Little or no good evidence supports the intriguing idea that some people have additional sensory systems that allow them to know what other people are thinking, for example, or to predict the future."

He told us about a researcher named Charles Honorton, who performed an experiment in which participants were contained in a sensory deprived environment, preventing influence from the external world. They were asked to guess which cards out of four cards were flipped. While they should have guessed correctly one-fourth of the time, the cards were guessed correctly one-third of the time.

Honorton performed his experiments to the utmost of scientific experimental standards because he was ridiculed and laughed at for his belief that there could be the possibility of extrasensory perception. He fought to publish his paper in a scientific journal -- which was only published after his death. In that same scientific journal, there was a rebuttal from another psychologist, who basically stated that Honorton's findings were false because extrasensory perception was not real. I don't know about you, but neither I nor my professor thinks that the rebuttal is conclusive.

After telling us about this, my professor said, "This rebutting psychologist committed a fallacy that we in academia are so prone to: the failure of imagination. Just because you cannot properly explain something, does not mean that it does not exist. Do not let the limitations of so-called reality prevent you from exploring the world."

And with that, class was over. And I walked away, feeling renewed as a student again.

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Miss Couturable

A/W 2010: Lela Rose

2010-02-15T17:10:00.000-05:00

Lela Rose originally designed bridesmaid dresses, so I expected nothing more than variations of cocktail dresses and other pretty numbers that one could wear to Sunday brunch. I half-expected a cohort of Ladies Who Lunch to sit in the front row, in fact.

However, I was pleased to discover that indeed, while one could easily wear this collection to tea with the grandmother, one could also easily transition to a party at the Boom Boom Room later that day.

(Photo Credit -- Style.com)

I suppose the one deviation from the typical cocktail wear collection that kept me interested was the usage of texture -- there is nothing like tactility to keep a person thinking. I spent half of the show thinking about how adorable Hyoni Kang was, admittedly. I'm turning into her biggest fan this season.

My favorite piece was a particular gold jumpsuit that look fantastically comfortable. I've been in my pajama pants all day (sick, sigh), so I can't help but want a glamorous one-piece suit. Lela Rose's pieces are always wearable and fairly modest -- and yet youthful, which I would imagine to mediate compromise between my mummy and me. She still thinks a bikini is risqué.

(Photo Credit -- Style.com)

Lastly, Lela Rose herself is adorable. I tried to snap a photo of her myself, but it was too blurry. Luckily, Style.com did what I couldn't.

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Miss Couturable

My early end to Fashion Week

2010-02-15T15:56:00.002-05:00

(Photo Credit -- ELLE Germany)

I passed out this morning in the bathroom, prompting me to make the ultimate decision of skipping all shows from the day, from Tracy Reese to Carlos Miele to Alexa Chung for Madewell to Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation. I am not pleased with my choice but I'd rather pass out surrounded by my suitemates than in the middle of Bryant Park.

However, on a brighter note, I made my "street style" debut on ELLE Germany's blog. You can see all of the other pictures here. I am wearing the ubiquitous BCBG Mendel Booties, Betsey Johnson crocheted tights over hot pink metallic stirrup leggings from American Apparel, a purple Nanette Lepore dress that you cannot see, an Alice Ritter coat, a Louis Vuitton bag and a Goyard tote (borrowed from my dear friend Anna Cooperberg Gonzalez of Purse Blog), a string of pearls from Mumsies, a giant cocktail ring from Nugaard, and a Lavinia hair bow from my dear Loulou of Loulou Loves You!

Stay tuned for updates about Betsey Johnson, Tony Cohen, Vassilios Kostetsos, Lorick, Rebecca Taylor, and Lela Rose! With illness and schoolwork closing in around me, I may be attending only one or two more shows this week.

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Miss Couturable

A/W 2010: Twinkle by Wenlan

2010-02-13T23:45:00.002-05:00

I found myself sitting in the second row at Twinkle by Wenlan today, close enough to notice which models had acne. I have a weird fascination with models who stumble and models with acne -- mostly just because knowing that they, too, are human, makes the "perfection" of fashion more approachable.
I noticed that there were some terribly emaciated models, but there was also a certain model with wonderfully muscular legs. We need more models like that. Hyoni Kang was also walking, and I snapped up quite a few photos of her.

(Photo Credit -- Getty Images)

My favorite pieces were the bold jewelry and the crazy matching top and pant set. Normally I don't like matching prints, but in this day and age, when people wear onesies, why not? I enjoyed how the collection wasn't completely black or muted colors -- there were jewel tones, pretty prints, and nudes.

I am also a huge fan of designers who support a diversity of ethnicity in casting their models. Wenlan Chia is Taiwanese herself.

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Miss Couturable

A/W 2010: Andy & Debb

2010-02-13T23:21:00.002-05:00

Seokwon Andy Kim and Wonjeong Debbie Yoon, the designers behind Andy & Debb, are a terribly adorable husband-wife duo -- which is fitting, because the collection debuted just in time for Valentine's Day.
Devon Aoki sat in the front row, and because I am an ultimate creeper, I snapped this photo of her. She's adorable and tiny. I wish I had the courage to talk to her (someday, someday!).

Additionally, I sat nearby my former boss and editor at Seventeen. As silly as this sounds, it is such a wonderful feeling to see a familiar face when you are in the tents.

(Photo Credit -- Getty Images)

Everything was very wearable and well-made, but the only pieces that stuck out to me were the intricate furs, made of individual balls. I suppose I was already jaded by the dull tones in every collection I've seen so far -- I wanted bright colors in the winter. There was a certain dusky rose dress in the collection, but I am not a fan of satin dresses in most cases.

One of Andy & Debb's strongest points, however, is the clean-cut tailoring and simple elegance of every piece. While I found each individual piece to be bare, I could imagine building a great outfit from such simple foundations. Too bad my closet is full of over-the-top dresses from high school.
Ah, so this is love.

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Miss Couturable

A/W 2010: Edition Georges Chakra

2010-02-13T22:17:00.003-05:00

The first thing I noticed about being at the Edition Georges Chakra show was that I was one of the youngest ones there. I sat there wondering if I was about to watch a show featuring clothing that my dear mother would wear.

(Photo Credit -- Getty Images)

Well, frankly, I doubt my mother would wear these pieces become some of them resemble high school prom dresses. While I enjoyed the tasteful but sensual cutouts on the gowns, I felt like their elegance was thrown up by an excessive usage of sequins (which is saying something, since I love shiny things). I loved the Chantilly lace gloves, which I found out later was vintage Georges Chakra.

However, I was intrigued by the lace caplets. Is this the new poncho? Is it translatable into eveningwear? Only time will tell. I would wear it though.
In the meantime, I will confess to you that my heart beats the fastest at the finale, when all of the models walk around. I almost expect them to wave. But of course not.

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Miss Couturable

P.S. The nicest comment I heard of the day was at Edition Georges Chakra. "I gave the pregnant lady a seat," said one of the PR girls.

A/W 2010: Charlotte Ronson

2010-02-13T21:55:00.001-05:00

Charlotte Ronson is the cool girl-next-door. I have to go to her show someday, I told myself. Amazingly, I received an invite this season -- in addition to a cute swag bag of cosmetics and hair products (thanks to the sponsors) at my seat.
Indeed, I am a creeper and I took a photo of Mark Indelicato, who plays Justin Suarez on Ugly Betty (being canceled?!). I am obsessed with the show.

(Photo Credit -- Style.com)

First of all, though, I must ask -- who is this girl? When she came out, everyone was cheering for her and she grinned sheepishly. My friend from Paper, who was sitting next to me, and I, exchanged confused glances. Educate me, mes amis!

(Photo Credit -- Style.com)

There were two things that stuck out to me -- turbans and sheer "pants." I suppose, if I were a gypsy, I would love the collection. Will they sell Charlotte Ronson turbans? Will there be knock-off turbans at American Apparel?

In all seriousness, I hope sheer pants will never catch on. However, I can appreciate the valuing of sheer and lacy materials when it comes to layering (and really, you're going to layer in winter). Charlotte Ronson is known for its ability to appeal to young women, which is evident by the placement of Tinsley Mortimer in the front row. I will opt for the turban instead of the lace pants.

I can now scratch "Attend a Charlotte Ronson show" off of my high school-self dreams list.

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Miss Couturable

A/W 2010: BCBG Max Azria

2010-02-13T21:32:00.001-05:00

BCBG Max Azria was an extremely packed show -- but it was high-profile, of course. I spotted my boss from Town & Country sitting in the front row, along with Amy Astley, Editor in Chief of Teen Vogue, and Anna Wintour, Editor in Chief of Vogue.
However, in spite of its well-known name, I actually think BCBG Max Azria is underrated. My Mendel Booties are some of the sleekest and most comfortable shoes (yes, at six inches) I've ever encountered, after all. In my opinion, BCBG Max Azria is not known for innovation -- it is known for chic wearability. However, one cannot deny the sculptural elements of the Mendel Booties...

(Photo Credit -- Style.com)

That said, I enjoyed the sculptural elements in this particular collection. There were a lot of neutrals, color-blocking, and muted tones, but it wasn't full of winter dreariness at all. In fact, there were sequins galore! And as you all know, I love shiny.

I am going to start wearing tablecloths and curtains. Really.

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Miss Couturable

A/W 2010: Mackage

2010-02-13T21:03:00.002-05:00

The first show I attended for Autumn/Winter 2010 New York Fashion Week was Mackage at the Salon at Bryant Park -- on Thursday, February 11thth at 9:00am. Admittedly, I overestimated my ability to shower swiftly and I ended up arriving in the tents at exactly 9:00am. Luckily, fashion shows are always late, and I was considerably early compared to the drifters who arrived later.
You have to admire photographers for their incessant clicking and flashing. While I can sit and admire the clothes, they must find the perfect shot.
Mackage is, essentially, an outerwear company designed by Eran Elfassy and Elisa Dahan. However, this time, they were also debuting a ready-to-wear collection.

(Photo Credits -- New York Post and Getty Images)

While I lived in California, I dreamed of wearing luxurious wool coats and wrapping myself with cashmere shawls, but I didn't understand how cold I would be until I actually moved to New York City. Since arriving here, I've become extremely interested in outerwear. In California, one wool peacoat was enough. Here on the east coast, I have three coats and I still need more. Mackage seems to serve the quintessential New Yorker, with its muted colors and attention to tailored perfection. I was enamored with a particular gray coat, cinched by a wide black belt.

While ready-to-wear did not blow me away, I could see the sophisticated but urban lady in Mackage, taking off her Mackage furs and revealing her scalloped sleeves and high-waist pencil skirt underneath. I'd suggest leaving the leather shorts and thigh-high boots for an equestrian-worthy day though.

Although, truth be told, Mumsies did just buy me a pair of heeled thigh-high leather boots. Perhaps there will be a little Mackage in my winter wardrobe after all.

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Miss Couturable

New York Fashion Week commences

2010-02-10T16:06:00.002-05:00

'Tis my first snow day ever and I am already excited about the prospect of snowball fights and makeshift sledding down the steps of our regal buildings tonight, but I am also gearing up for a frantic but exhilarating New York Fashion Week. Check back on Miss Couturable every night for updates. Hoot, the fashion magazine at Columbia that I co-founded, will also be covering some shows (I've decided to give some of my invites to my staff members so that they could have a taste of Fashion Week and get some experience writing reviews -- and so that I could attend class without wasting invites).

What's on the agenda for tomorrow? Mackage, BCBG Max Azria, literature class (one must never forget that academics are priority), Ports1961, meeting at the MoMA, office hours with my astronomy professor, MIK CIRE by Eric Kim, and a birthday celebration for my roommate. May I stay upright in the snow at all times.

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Miss Couturable

Forever Seventeen

2010-02-10T11:09:00.000-05:00

Two years ago, I had my fifteen minutes of fame in Seventeen, when I was one of the Best-Dressed Girls in America. My parents bought out the entire supply of August 2008 issues at Barnes & Noble, and I came home to California from my summer fashion internship at Seventeen to see my face, framed on the wall. Talk about embarrasing.
Well, nowadays, Seventeen's annual Best-Dressed Girls in American feature has reincarnated into Style Council -- a select group of girls from the tri-state area who blog, give fashion advice in the magazine, and interact with the readers. Coincidentally, one of my good friends at Columbia, Anna, is one of the members of the council. Anna is not only the sweetest southern debutante on this island, but also Accessories Director of Columbia University's fashion magazine, Hoot, and an intern for the Purse Blog. She is also a talented contortionist. Be sure to read her posts on the Seventeen Style Blog from now on!

Also, she lends me her bags and tights. And we're both a size 6 in shoes. 'Tis nice to have kindred petite fashionistas as friends. We're obsessing over the Alexander Wang 'Darla Pyramid Clutch' at the moment.

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Miss Couturable

P.S. Another one of my good friends, Katie from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, is a member of Seventeen's Freshman 15! Be sure to check her out in the magazine too.

Sorority madness

2010-02-08T20:28:00.003-05:00

After Fashionista posted dress code requirements for Cornell University's Pi Phi sorority recruitment process, I wanted to check out the sorority recruitment process myself. Would I be told that my Uniqlo skinny jeans are inferior to designer jeans (by the way, they are not)? Would I be told that my chandelier earrings must be replaced with pearl studs?

So I did it. I did sorority recruitment this weekend. And I definitely stressed out about what to wear more than I should have.

I was hesitant at first. An hour before the first event, I was sitting on my bed in my pajamas, realizing that I had forgotten to do my laundry. Apparently, I was supposed to wear something "comfortable and cute" -- so I opted for a pair of long black Uniqlo leggings, Marc by Marc Jacobs mouse flats, a hanii y blazer, and a silk tank top. Simple, safe, and sweet.

Too bad almost all of the other 258 girls were in sky-high heels. I regretted this when I was staring up at a particularly tall girl at one of the sorority parties I attended. Too much neck strain and not enough poise.

So for the next round, I found myself wearing six-inch heels. My feet were bleeding by the end of the night.

I was naive. I didn't know you could get cut from the recruitment process. "Keep your phones on!" we were told. No one ever mentioned that you had to keep your phones on just in case you didn't get any invitations from any sororities.

Luckily, I didn't have this problem -- but the next day, I started realizing that the selection process was, well, selective. You could only get invited to up to three sororities in the next round. I got invited to three, but I knew some girls who only got invited to one.

When the invites came out, my stomach churned. "Why does this feel worse than college decisions?" I asked out loud.

"It's because we're judged on our personalities here," replied a girl standing next to me. "And looks," I thought to myself.

"Ugh, you're so popular," said my friend, who just confided in me that she only got invited to one party. Yet, I didn't feel popular. I didn't get invited to my first choice, after all -- a sorority that many of my friends were invited to.

The next morning, I was filled with anxiety -- more anxiety than I wanted to experience from sorority recruitment. In the grand scheme of things, we have other issues to worry about.

I quit that night. For some reason, the sorority recruitment process made me feel bitter and resentful. It made me feel insecure. It made me feel like I couldn't dress the way I wanted to -- and trust me, that's a big issue for me. I had heard that the sorority sisters had stalked us on Facebook and knew more about us than we could see behind those pearly smiles and luscious lashes.

Sororities aren't a bad thing at all. They provide a sense of community and group identity. They're fun. They're full of nice accomplished girls. They're a great college experience to have and I know many of my friends who are in Greek life at their respective schools.

But I wanted to join a sorority because I wanted a family. I didn't realize that, well, I already do. I already do have many families I love. I have my parents in California. I have my biological little sister who I consider to be my best friend. I have my friends from high school who are still friends with me after those awkward and traumatizing years. I have my friends in college who brought me medicine and cough drops during orientation week -- before we even knew each other as well as we do now.

And truth be told, I will always choose fashion week over formal dances.

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Miss Couturable

New header by Sara Rabin

2010-01-15T02:27:00.003-05:00

Ladies and gents, Miss Couturable is about 2.5 years old and it's changed quite a bit since I began writing it as a junior in high school. With that, I present to you a new header -- because I'm too tired to revamp the entire layout.

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The current header illustration is drawn and painted by the amazingly talented Sara Rabin of inks. She approached me a year ago to inquire about my experiences as a high school intern for Seventeen, because she herself had procured an internship at Seventeen as a high school student (and if you visit her blog, you can easily see why -- she's brilliant). All I can say is, high school students put me to shame. Merci beaucoup, Sara!

Maybe I'll get around to editing the layout when I have time.

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Miss Couturable

Why you should pursue an internship during the school year

2010-01-13T19:57:00.000-05:00

Having a part-time internship and taking a full courseload in college (I'm taking five classes each semester) is doable -- but not without its sacrifices. While many of my friends are romping and frolicking late into the night (er, morning) on Thursdays, I have get to bed by 11:00pm because I have French class in the morning and a fashion internship at Town & Country magazine immediately afterward. I once went to work after pulling an all-nighter, but I had two Red Bulls to "sustain" me. Not a brilliant idea.

"Is it worth it? Not being able to have fun on Thursday nights," asked a friend.

Yes, it is -- and I'll explain why it's a good idea to have a part-time internship with a full courseload in college:

You don't need to party three days a week to have a fulfilling social life. Well, perhaps I enjoy curling up in my bed with a novel a little too much, but for the weekend, I make an effort to go out and have a jolly good time for one night and then study hard the other night. 'Tis better to have one fantastic night that you'll never forget (or remember, if you prefer) than to have two mediocre nights. Besides, I make sure to meet up with friends for meals and study breaks.
You'll learn how to manage your time -- and that looks great to employers. If you're getting good grades on a full courseload and pursuing an internship, it'll show employers that you know how to work efficiently and effectively. You could get good grades if you studied all the time, but balancing work, play, and study is when you show your true abilities.
The connections that you make while you're in school will place you ahead of the competition. Many college students that I know don't want to pursue an internship during the school year because it takes up more time, but you're going to graduate in four years with plenty of references and experience under your belt -- and that's going to save you time when you're looking for a job.
Work experience is especially important when you're pursuing a liberal arts degree. I'm studying Art History and Anthropology, with additional classes in French, film, women's studies, and economics. People always ask me, "What are you doing to do with your degree?" Well, I'm going to know how to think critically with my degree, and I'm going to know how to kick derrière with my work experience. Being culturally intelligent and skilled at work is a deadly weapon.
An internship is an escape from clubs and academia. Let me tell you, I love going to work at a magazine because it is a completely different world from college. And really, I need that to stay ~~sane~~ insane.
It's usually easier to get an internship during the school year than it is to get one during the summer. And with the experience you have during the school year, you can get an internship during the summer. Fewer people are able to and are willing to intern during the school year, so you might as well seize the opportunity.

Hopefully, I've convinced some of you to take a chance and pursue an internship on the side! It's worth it -- trust me.

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Miss Couturable

Every little bit helps

2010-01-12T19:30:00.000-05:00

There have been a few earthquakes in my nook of California, but none have been as devastating as the 7.0 earthquake in Haiti today. The damage is heightened by the fact that the earthquake happened in a country where the average family makes $400 a year. Hospitals have collapsed, shanty houses are destroyed, and according to the news anchor, "People are singing their prayers."

Well, the first thing that crossed my mind when I heard this news was, "I have shoes that cost more than $400." The gross reality hit me like a wet slap across the cheek, and I tried to brush it away.

Yet... It got me thinking. One pair of Dolce & Gabbana wedges can feed two families in Haiti for a year. One Moschino scarf is enough to double the income of a family in Haiti. One Halston dress is enough to build a house in Haiti.
I don't know about you, but I don't even have a closet the size of Jane Aldridge's and I still don't wear all of my shoes.

If we all donated one pair of shoes or one fur coat -- how many lives can we change for the better? How many children can we send to school? How many babies can we vaccinate?

The question boggles me. I wonder why we don't have a worldwide fashionista charitable fund yet, like a consignment store owned by that sweet hippie lady who wears harem pants, but much more global.

Goal for 2010: Miss Couturable's out to find her soul and do something with it.

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Miss Couturable

Feline shades

2010-01-09T13:23:00.000-05:00

I know I've been chirping on about Alexander Wang for the past few days as if he were my long-lost brother (ha! I dream), but I am infatuated with these new sunglasses that he designed for Linda Farrow, to be sold in Opening Ceremony soon enough! Robot cat ears, no?
I used to watch the Jetsons every day as a wee little bird, dreaming of riding in hovercrafts and befriending aliens. I can easily imagine Judy Jetson, with her fantastic snow white hair, in a pair of these shades.

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Miss Couturable

Funds for charity

2010-01-08T23:12:00.007-05:00

This year, I didn't come up with New Year's Resolutions -- but there is something that I need to do.

I'm busy in college. I haven't found the time to do the volunteer work that I came to New York City for. I have a stack of applications on my desk that I have not filled out because I know I don't have any extra time in my week.

But I grew up volunteering, from being the youngest reading tutor at my favorite library as a young child to working with the March of Dimes in high school. I miss it. I need it. Everyone needs it. Everyone needs to do something for the sake of others.

So, this is what I am doing for 2010: I am donating 100% of the proceeds I make from Miss Couturable to charity for the entire year.

And why? I'm a college student with an unpaid internship next semester, after all. I no longer have time for a part-time job. I don't touch the money in my savings account because I want to save up for my first apartment after college graduation.

Well, I can live without another designer purse. I can live without more designer shoes. I can live without more clothes. I can live without French macarons for dessert. Everything that I am choosing to "live without" is laughable.

There are plenty of people who are living without much more than me. There is a reason why I tip more generously these days too -- people are working just as hard for much less.

And just so you don't think I'm a saint, my parents give me a monthly allowance that I live comfortably with. I can't buy clothes with it, but I can fund my Metrocard with it. I always pay my credit card bills on time too. I'll live. It might sound outrageous that Miss Couturable is going to stop shopping, but you know you have other blogs for fashion consumption. I love fashion -- but I don't need to consume it.

So, my lovely readers, every month, Miss Couturable funds will go to a different charity. I ask you, what charities should I consider?

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Miss Couturable

P.S. Or one charity for the entire year?

My school has the best cookies

2010-01-07T21:30:00.002-05:00

{J. Crew jacket, Calvin Klein cardigan, By Francine silk minidress, Wolford sheer leggings, BCBG wedge ankle boots, silver silk scarf}

I returned to visit my prep school years today, coming back to awkward conversations with former teachers and delicious cookies with hot apple cider. I also learned from my friends at Brown University what Emma Watson is truly like in college. Amusing conversation, I must admit.

"You grew!" everyone exclaimed. No, it's just the shoes. I'm still only 5'1".

I've decided to join the alumni planning committee in organizing events from now on. I fell into it because the new alumni director attended Columbia too, after graduating from boarding school. We're going to be having an alumni gathering in New York City in March, which I will be attending and planning! If anyone knows of any student-friendly restaurant or lounges, please let me know.

In any case, it was wonderful to meet up with old friends and professors and know that I will no longer get detention for violating the dress code.

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Miss Couturable

Outfit posts: oui ou non?

2010-01-06T07:31:00.000-05:00

(Photo Credit -- Pauline Darley)

Oh, j'adore blogger Miss Pandora, a.k.a. Louise. Not only does she post the most ethereal photos of herself and her life, such as this Zara cape and these Topshop boots, but also she is studying art history in Paris. Maybe I really should invest in a cape, since I've been thinking about it a lot. Additionally, I need to practice my French, and reading French fashion blogs is most pain-free option I can find.

In any case, I have a lot of respect and awe for fashion bloggers who post photos of their outfits on a regular basis, from the original teen fashionista Casey of Teen Fashionista, to the fiercely independent Jazzi of Jazzi McG, to the ubiquitous Jane of Sea of Shoes. It takes a lot of courage, confidence, and creativity to put oneself out there for public scrutiny. Fashion isn't known for being nice -- and neither is the internet.

My suitemate recently asked me, "Why don't you start posting daily outfits on your blog?" She had enjoyed purveying through my closet on the first day of orientation week. So, I responded, "Well, I don't think my outfits are interesting enough for the internet." She paused for a moment. "Sure they are," she said, "You dress like you. That's interesting."

Well, okay -- I do have a camera and a camera tripod in my dorm. Should I start including weekly outfit posts on Miss Couturable, once the semester begins? Quite honestly, I'm still trying to figure out how to dress for the snow. No more sandals in January for me, unfortunately.

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Miss Couturable

Fangirl for Alexander Wang

2010-01-05T10:01:00.000-05:00

Gilt Groupe had an Alexander Wang accessories sale this morning, and while I was enamored with the sky-high heels and boots, I couldn't bear to buy another pair of potential ankle breakers. Flat shoes are underrated, my loves. I have my fair share of high heels, ranging from a modest 2.5 inches to a life-changing 6 inches, but when you're a college student traipsing around New York City, you'd rather get to places on time than stumble in with a sprained ankle.
So, I bought a pair of Alexander Wang Frankie Creeper Combat Hi-Top Boots -- perfectly functional for the snow, an edgy alternative to my beloved and goofy plum and pink Timberland boots, and an even more practical alternative to my collection of suede boots and ballerina flats. Wang has a talent in making hardware and combat couture appealing to girls like me, who wear mouse faces on shoes and carry frilly parasols in the rain (mind you, my Guy de Jean umbrella has held up on all sorts of weather -- a worthy investment for a California girl).

I have a personal fascination with Wang because he attended my prep school, and I was able to meet him two summers ago. Back in high school, teachers would tell me about what a creative genius he was, and how he loved to take his friends shopping and give them fashion advice. In fact, our school newspaper snagged an exclusive interview with him, the moment his first knitwear collection came out (ah, yes -- the knitwear collection that launched his career). He still remains to be an elusive personal hero of mine -- proving that youth is not an obstacle to success. In fact, it may be a virtue of success in this day and age.

May I dream big and go far, without blisters, in my new combat boots.

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Miss Couturable

P.S. The remnants of the sale may still be going on, if you want to check it out! Click here for an invite.

Extremes of the size spectrum

2010-01-04T16:06:00.002-05:00

I have a problem with the way that magazines are portraying bodies in their "shape" or "size" issues nowadays -- I know fashion is all about the extremes, but I'm sick of fit, "normal"-bodied girls thinking they're fat because they have muscular thighs or love handles. I'm also sick of magazines portraying the opposite of being skinny as having rolls of fat.(Photo Credit -- Models.com and V Magazine)I won't deny that V Magazine's Size Issue, debuting on January 14th, 2010, includes a lot of beautiful editorials that make me rethink my preconceptions of beauty. I won't deny that it is a bold move to display rolls of fat and flabby stomachs in a world that holds models like Sasha Pivovarova to be the epitome of beauty. I also won't deny the fact that 33% of American adults are obese.

However, an exposition of the extremes of size, from prepubescent emaciation to crippling obesity, does nothing but entertain, alarm, and cause controversy and discussion -- I concede that it's not a bad way to sell copies, and that I myself love a heated debate at times.

And yet -- where are the girls with "chunky" thighs because they play soccer every day? Where are the girls with the big breasts that don't match up to the rest of their body (okay, other than in Playboy)? Where are the girls with the flabby arms but fantastic collarbones?

The point is, we mortals all have "imperfections" that don't match up to the airbrushed ideal of perfection, but all we see are the extremes of body types that most people cannot relate to. I'm starting to wonder if we should stop thinking about body types in terms of size, since "big" and "small" just aren't indicative of one's actual shape.

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Miss Couturable

Miss Couturable for G-Star Raw Twitter Reporter

2010-01-03T22:44:00.000-05:00

As many of you may know, I spend an unhealthy amount of time on Twitter -- justifying it with the notion that social media is here to stay, so I might as well learn how to play with it.

Well, I need every form of justification that I can get, so I'm competing to be a G-Star Raw Twitter Reporter at New York Fashion Week. G-Star Raw is the Dutch competitor to Italian Diesel, and they make fantastic jeans and blazers. Clean cut but earthy.

If you're willing to support my addiction to Twitter, please click here and vote for me! All you have to do is enter your email address and confirm your vote by email. You can vote once a day until February 1st if you enjoy procrastinating, for those of you who are starting school tomorrow.

In return, I will continue telling the world about my love for gay men. Merci beaucoup, mes amis!

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Miss Couturable

One last time for oh nine

2009-12-30T17:25:00.001-05:00

Instead of recapping my entire year, I just want to point out that the most important thing I've learned in 2009 is that I wouldn't trade my life for anyone else's. Upon high school graduation, I decided that I could no longer compare myself to my peers. I spent the entire car ride, from the mountain vineyard where I received my diploma to the banquet hall that hosted the luncheon, listening to my parents talk about my illustrious and brilliantly successful classmates. It was the sort of conversation that left you breathless to a whisper because you knew that you had just walked down the stage with some of the brightest -- and quite honestly, most privileged -- 18 year olds in the world.Well, after coming to Columbia University, I met some more illustrious students -- students who didn't share the same area code as me, this time. I remember befriending one of my good friends out of curiosity because he reminded me of Bryanboy (and he's Filipino-Parisian!) -- and befriending Anna Cooperberg Gonzalez, fantastic intern for Purse Blog, who happens to be the sweetest Vera Wang-clad southern debutante (and a fierce contortionist). I still recall the awe in my voice when almost every other student I met was either class valedictorian or a Siemens Competition Semifinalist. I am still amazed at the athletes who get up at 5:00am to work out -- and still make it to class on time, without falling asleep. I fondly remember a recent conversation in the elevator about a girl that my friend was convinced was his soulmate -- she had the women's version of his studded Prada shoes.
Well, these fantastic encounters have made my year. I began this year without a clue about my future. I had just finished my college applications, just as Arabelle of Fashion Pirates is about to accomplish. I was a second semester senior, and I still had to write papers and take exams -- to my frustrated dismay. I was restless. I finally graduated from my prestigious -- and sometimes disorienting -- prep school with an Ivy League acceptance letter. I went from being the strange girl in heels with her nose buried in a copy of Lula magazine at family dinner parties to the Perfect Asian Daughter, thanks to a large white envelope mailed from New York City. Never mind the fact that I never learned to play the piano, I didn't win (or even compete in) any math competitions, and that I didn't take a single science course my senior year of high school. I chose fashion, journalism, cheerleading, and history classes. My parents were criticized by other parents for letting me spend an entire summer in New York City by myself, interning for Seventeen. They looked at my parents with curiosity and pity until the news of my college acceptances spread (and if you didn't know, Asian parents love to gossip).

So, merci beaucoup to Columbia University for giving me a chance. And merci beaucoup to my parents for turning the other cheek when I was pursuing seemingly far fetched dreams across the country and buying clothes from the boys' section at thrift stores off the corner of the road. I know you didn't like it. You still yell at me on the phone, but I've also learned to turn the other cheek.

On top of my suitemate's bed, there is a bumper sticker with J.R.R. Tolkien's quotation, "Not all those wander are lost." Perhaps, as college students, we're all wanderers -- uprooted from the homes we've always known and thrown into a community that forces us to move forward, whether or not we know where we are going. Swim or drown.

Basically, I've had a hard time balancing between blogging and real life this year, and I want to do a better job of it in 2010 now that I'm getting used to college. What do you want to see on Miss Couturable?

Have a terribly delightful new year! As usual, I hope 2010 will be nothing you expected and everything you wanted.

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Miss Couturable

Masquerade ball magic

2009-12-30T09:32:00.005-05:00

Gilt Groupe opened up a fantastic sale of twelve masquerade masks created by some of my favorite fashion designers this morning -- with a portion of the proceeds to benefit the Art of Elysium, a non-profit organization that works with children battling serious medical conditions. Back in high school, I interned for a fashion designer who was preparing her costume for the Venetian Masquerade Ball. We bought fantastic hats and masks -- all ostentatiously yet beautifully decorated with an assortment of feathers and adornments. Needless to say, I have made it one of my life goals to attend the Ball. When mystery combines with beauty, you get allure -- and that's irresistible.

Costello Tagliapietra

Vena Cava

Rodarte

Tory Burch

J. Mendel

Rachel Roy

Peter Som

Catherine Malandrino

Charles Nolan

Erin Fetherston

Brian Reyes

Behnaz Sarafpour

J'adore Rodarte and Behnaz Sarafpour -- but Erin Fetherston's vixen of a panther is tempting too. And Brian Reyes' simple but expressive mask has a charming doll-like quality, no? Which one is your favorite? Click here to join Gilt Groupe if you're not a member already!

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Miss Couturable

Just try not to spill, please

2009-12-29T09:28:00.000-05:00

These four short months in college have taught me a lot about that cheesy cliché known as girl power. I found myself grappling in a community where I was determined to prove myself not only as an individual, but as a woman. There is nothing like navigating your way through a dark brownstone townhouse full of frat boys to make you assertive and more wary of your surroundings. No means no, boys. Supplement that with essays by Edward Said and Judith Butler, and you get a college education.

Honestly, if you spill beer on my Bill Blass jacket, please don't ask me for a second dance. And then spill more beer on it when I say I need to get some fresh air. I know you're tipsy, but I'm the one traipsing around in the platform pumps.

So, all of this "rah-rah girl power" energy combusted when I found these photographs of Jacques Fath dresses by Walde Huth -- yes, a female photographer in the 1950s. She took photographs for top German fashion magazines and various commissions around Europe. In a time when women were still considered to be delicate blossoms, this daring lady was traveling around Europe, calling her own shots.

When I was little, I would don a ~~cape~~ blanket and jump on my bed, pretending I was Superwoman. Perhaps it is time to invest in a pleated organza cape à la Jacques Fath.

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Miss Couturable

Topless thinking

2009-12-28T22:57:00.003-05:00

I haven't been following runway fashion closely for the past few months, and admittedly it's because I've been too busy with schoolwork. Style.com is a great tool for procrastination, but I've been frequenting the website less because procrastination is no longer a viable option for me. I don't even use my laptop in class now that I'm in college.

In any case, I feel as if I am missing a time that I was never a part of. Frequent discussions about feminism in my classes have led me to become intrigued with Rudi Gernreich's topless gown of 1970. Indeed, it objectified women -- but it also provided another outlet for gender dynamics to be explored in a time of uncertainty and monumental social change. 'Twas far from a swingin' minidress.

I just want fashion that makes me think again.

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Miss Couturable

New spring in my step

2009-12-19T13:10:00.000-05:00

I adore my recently purchased BCBG Mendel Wedge Booties, but I've discovered that one needs to walk a lot in college. Even though I thought my high school campus was fairly spacious at five acres and classes spread all around, I was able to wear heels without experiencing the sensation of limping into my eighth period class at the end of the day.

However, here in college, I am constantly walking between various campuses for classes, running down the stairs when the elevators are broken, and running around the city for my internship and various errands. And sometimes, when I am about to be late to an appointment or a class, running in heels appears comical and dangerous.My dear beloved Valentino Polka Dot & Crystal Strawberry Ballerina Flats are finally wearing away; the Swarovski crystals are falling off and the straw is splintering. I still treasure these shoes like nothing else, from their slip-on glamour to their handcrafted bling-bling -- because as you know, I like shiny.

(Photo Credit -- Neiman Marcus)

So, yesterday, while I was shopping at the Marc by Marc Jacobs store in the West Village, I picked a pair of these whimsical Marc by Marc Jacobs Love Mouse Ballerinas Flats. They're more childish than my beloved Valentinos, but they prove to be a worthy flat alternative for days that I'm running from place to place.

And on the most stressful of days, I can always look down at my feet and smile. It's good to be young. And 5'1".

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Miss Couturable

A study break well spent

2009-12-12T22:24:00.000-05:00

(Photo Credit -- Dara Adeeyo)

We have plenty of boutiques in the San Francisco bay area, but only in New York City can you walk into a random store and find the designer there to personally greet you.

Dara Adeeyo of Secretista and I wandered into the Cynthia Rowley store in the West Village today, and to our delightful surprise, the absolutely adorable Mademoiselle Rowley herself was there! She was so sweet and talked to all her customers, and had the cutest daughter in the world.

I asked to take a photo with her in what must have been a deprecatingly shameless tone of voice, and she responded, "Are you serious?" Yes, Mademoiselle Rowley! I adore your simple and sweet designs, books, and the boots that are on your feet right now.

Now, I have two French compositions to write, a Greek drama paper to write, and an art history final examination to study for -- but alas, at least I had a good study break.

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Miss Couturable

One year later

2009-12-10T22:15:00.005-05:00

Today, at 5pm EST, Columbia University Early Decisions came out, and a lot of dreams were crushed, revived, or created.

It brought me back to this time last year for me, when I was slaving over my college applications and too scared to talk to my parents, lest I see the disappointment in their eyes. I had gotten rejected from Yale University -- yes, I am not afraid to admit that. I spent the rest of winter break thinking that I could never, ever, get into college. I didn't even know where I wanted to go anymore. When I got into Columbia, I still didn't even know if it was the right choice for me.

Look, my darling 2014ers, I could tell you that Columbia University is the best school in the world and that you'd be a fool to go anywhere else, but anyone can say the same thing about Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Stanford, Duke, or any of the other "elite" schools.

But, I'll tell you this: Columbia University is the best school for me because I made the conscious decision to come here -- and make the best of it. You can make the best of any school, trust me.

I'm here now, and I'm taking six classes next semester in pursuit of majoring in Art History and a double concentration (our version of a double minor) in Anthropology and Economics -- in addition to pursuing a part-time internship with Town & Country magazine. I have had to make sacrifices here, such as consistent late nights in the library, in order to do the things that I want to do -- and have fun like a normal college student should.

I was scared to come here. Scared because I knew I was going to be pushed. Scared because I knew I was going to push myself. Scared because everyone here has such a spark for learning that I am still trying attain. For example, my co-editor in chief of Hoot, the campus fashion magazine we're founding, is a pre-med Biochemistry major with hopes of becoming a dermatologist.

So, even though I got extraordinarily excited when the fantastic Arabelle of Fashion Pirates asked me for advice before her Columbia interview, I try not to convince people to come to my school. I know these brilliant 2014ers can do well anywhere.

In any case, I hope my fellow 2013ers reading this can look back and smirk a little at how we've changed -- or just became more of ourselves.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Efficient for all the wrong reasons

2009-12-08T21:49:00.001-05:00

(Photo Credit -- New York Magazine)

This is how great I am at time management (not really): As soon as my writing class finished at 3:55pm, I looked up a list of BCBG Max Azria stores in New York City. I called each one up, asking for a pair of the widely coveted and blogged about Mendel Wedge Booties in size 6.5. I wanted a pair so terribly that I was even willing to go for a pair of size 7's.

You see, it's not often that a pair of shoes transforms you, but these shoes did it for me. They add six inches to my height, which means I can say I'm 5'7" when wearing them. They're extraordinary comfortable for six inches because they're wedges, and they coordinate with almost anything at any time of the year. When I wore these to the dining hall, my friend said, "I think three guys just eye-raped you," which I suppose is both creepy and flattering at the same time.

In what must have been a stroke of fate, the third store I called -- the BCBG Max Azria at Fifth and Fortieth, had the shoes in size 6.5.

"Can you please hold them for an hour for me?" I begged the sales associate on the phone. We finally reached an agreement; they would put the shoes on hold for me, but they'd call me if a customer wanted to buy them before I arrived at the store.

I was already walking to my local subway station by then. By 5:25pm, I had already tried on the shoes, fallen in love thrice over, and was headed back to campus.

I then proceeded to eat dinner with my Hoot co-editor in chief at 6:30pm, lead a Hoot meeting at 7:30pm, and immediately headed to the library afterward to write a research paper, where I am sitting right now, equipped with two sugar-free Redbull drinks.

If only I could write research papers as fast as I shop.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Lazy and loving leggings

2009-12-08T09:46:00.001-05:00

(Photo Credit -- Runway Daily)

It's fairly embarrassing. Maybe I'm just hiding the effects of the freshman fifteen. Maybe I just keep forgetting to do my laundry. Maybe I'm just lazy in the mornings, now that I think my 9am French class is too early (how did I do it in high school?).

In any case, Blair Waldorf of Gossip Girl wouldn't approve. "Leggings are not pants!" she exclaimed.

That's okay, Blair. We may share a love of Wolford stockings and we may both be perfectionists, much to the chagrin of our friends, but the similarities end there.

I wear leggings on a frequent basis nowadays. J'aime my Madewell stirrup leggings. J'adore my Wolford sheer leggings. Je chéris my Uniqlo satin leggings. Oui oui, Mademoiselle Waldorf -- I do wear them as pants!

I'm not the only freshman who has resorted to leggings as an outfit staple; I just had a conversation about this with a few of my friends at Columbia. Leggings are sleeker and much more polished looking than sweatpants -- and just as comfortable. I have no problems with slipping on a pair of black stirrup leggings, a cropped jacket, a cashmere sweater, and a pair of black heels -- and going to class or work.

So, answer me: can you wear leggings as pants?

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Dream big with a bigger heart

2009-11-26T21:43:00.002-05:00

Even though I go to school in New York City, I have great respect for Silicon Valley in California. After all, I grew up here -- here, where Steve Jobs could quite possibly be your neighbor (if you live in Silicon Valley) and cascading golden hills push against venture capitalist firms.

For all the differences between New York City and Silicon Valley (fashion sense, for one), they share one common characteristic: the fast pace of life -- there is always something new to discover, something important to do, something to tend to.

During my past three months at Columbia University so far, I've realized that I don't want to be another fashionista behind the desk forever. I've discovered my love of both social media and print journalism -- and I've discovered that I love entrepreneurial endeavors and feeling the blood course through my veins during late nights in the library, as evidenced by Hoot. I love making change. I love working with people with the same passion and drive and insatiable thirst for curiosity.

So, next summer -- I'm getting away from New York City. What will I be doing? I will be interning for a top fashion publication in Beijing or Shanghai, working with a Chinese language tutor to improve my language skills, and visiting Tibet.

I am going to get away from New York City and Silicon Valley for a moment because I want to see what else is out there. I have some ridiculous dreams, of which I shall briefly elaborate on for your entertainment purposes (ha!):

I want to become editor-in-chief of a top fashion magazine. If I want to shape the mindsets of millions of women, magazines are the way to go -- and I will always believe that. I will never forget the impact that opening up my first copy of W left on me. I will always love print journalism and publishing and fashion, and I don't think I can do without it.
I want to found my own company, combining the top entrepreneurial and technological innovators of Silicon Valley to the most creative minds in the fashion and publishing industry of New York City (and the rest of the world, in fact!). The world is changing at a rapid pace, and I will keep up. I will do it.
I want to publish a book. Writing is still one of my top passions and possibly the only way I can ever clear my thoughts at the end of the day. "You have interesting life experiences -- the rest of America isn't like you," said one of my friends. I don't know if this is true, but I am determined to eventually squeeze out what life has smashed into me.
I want to win a Putlizer Prize, like fashion journalist Robin Givhan. And very few journalists ever do win this honor, but I do want to be the best reporter that I can be -- and prove that fashion is newsworthy, fashion is important, and fashion is interesting.
I want to find a cause in this world that makes my heart wrench in passion -- and do something about it. I want something that will change me -- and in return, compel me to change the world.

The young ones are the most idealistic and zealous ones -- and why not? The world does not expect any less of us.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Give a Hoot

2009-11-24T23:47:00.005-05:00

I have been at Columbia University for exactly three months, and I am finally flying home to California tomorrow for Thanksgiving break. It is approaching midnight, but I am currently working on a project that began as a spur-of-the-moment idea during New Student Orientation Week in August -- and grew into a passion.

I'm starting a campus fashion magazine with one of my very good friends here at Columbia.

I met her during New Student Orientation Week. It was an innocuous introduction -- we both liked each other's clothes, simple enough. However, walking back to campus from Broadway one day, we realized that Columbia University did not have a fashion magazine. "Let's start a fashion magazine!" she said with an infectious twinkle in her eye. And that was that.
Three months later, we are Hoot magazine -- Hoot because Alma Mater, the mother soul statue of our university, has an owl hidden underneath her skirt. Hoot because we give a hoot about fashion and creativity within the Columbia University community. Hoot because it sounds like haute.

Within the past three months, we've expanded to a talented team of different but equally fashion-obsessed students, from a society debutante to a civil engineer to a writer for one of the top accessory blogs. Together, we've worked for everything from ELLE to Seventeen to Missoni to Tom Ford -- and I am incredibly proud to be friends and coworkers with such a dedicated and talented team.

We just launched our blog, hootmag.org, today -- and we're currently looking for advertisers to fund our publication and coordinating the production of our first issue, to be published in early February 2010.

We've done some ridiculous things, from making finger sandwiches together at 10:00am in the morning to getting in trouble with the Department of Public Safety. While I may be going home tomorrow, much of my break is going to be spent working on making Hoot a success.

Here's to New York City, serendipitous discoveries and endeavors with new close friends, fashion, and taking risks!

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Daul Kim, you were a doll

2009-11-19T18:18:00.004-05:00

A couple minutes ago, I learned from numerous Tweets on Twitter that 20-year-old South Korean model, Daul Kim, had been found dead in her Paris apartment this morning, reportedly from suicide.

I've always been especially attached to Daul Kim -- not only because she is an Asian model and one of the few girls that Asian girls can relate to in this industry, but also because she wrote a brutally raw and occasionally spastic blog called I LIKE TO FORK MYSELF that I have been following for months. I admire a girl who admits, "shel silverstein... you kinda fucked me up in a beautiful way."

Why do the best die young? Rest in peace, Miss Daul Kim.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Sheer joy

2009-11-14T00:43:00.000-05:00

(Photo Credit -- Rue La La and Style.com)

Winter is approaching in New York City, but I seem to be surrounding myself in sheer fabrics instead of heavy woolens -- highly impractical and certain to make me susceptible to the cold. I recently purchased a pair of Wolford "Voile" leggings and a Hanii Y blazer with organza sleeves, and I'm obsessing over the juxtaposition of lingerie materials and classic black pieces.

I'm wearing a lot of black and white lately, but it would be too simple to say that black and white are the "easy way out" when it comes to dressing in the morning. Spicing up a monochrome outfit by replacing the opacity with sheerness requires balancing skin with fabric -- subtleties that I am determined to master.

In any case, sheer fabrics in their flouncy glory remind me of fairy tale princesses -- and I don't see anything wrong with whimsical touches to classic pieces.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Town & Country in the city

2009-10-21T16:09:00.006-04:00

My French midterm examination is tomorrow, and I am well-aware that my last update on Miss Couturable was more than four weeks ago. While I am still learning how to balance blogging with everything else going on in life, I already have a list of things I want to share with my fellow lovelies -- as soon I finish taking my last midterm examination next Thursday, of course.
To briefly update you on my life here at Columbia University, I am currently a fashion intern for Town & Country magazine. Indeed, I'm back at Hearst! I'm also working on starting Columbia University's first and only fashion publication, so stay tuned for updates on that -- 'tis amazing how talented and dedicated the students are here.

I am also trying to avoid swine flu. Don't worry -- Miss Couturable will be back and running as long as I can evade sickness for another week. Hope you're all doing marvelously well; toodaloo!

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Suit up in Hermès scarves

2009-09-27T20:17:00.003-04:00

If I were a guy, I'd want to dress in Hermès. My parents used to save the Hermès men's catalogs that arrived in the mail for me, and I fell head over heels for the polished well-dressed men within the matte pages -- one of the few moments in my life when I wanted to be a boy instead of a girl.
Today, after purchasing a copy of Star Von Bunny: A Model Tale from the Paper Magazine Mr. Mickey's Celebrity Sidewalk Sale at Screaming Mimi's (100% of the proceeds went to fund the building of the Vivekananda Public School in India), I trekked over to the Hermès sample sale, where I purchased two signature silk scarves -- one in a sweet baby blue to wear to Columbia University sporting events (ah yes, I do have school pride) and one in a delightfully rich Indian rose and gold.
All Hermès silk scarves measure 90 x 90 centimeters and are hand-printed using silk screens. Additionally, they are hand-stitched and can easily be tied around your wrist, neck, handbag, or head for timeless chicness (and this is one of those few times where "timeless chic" truly applies).

I would like to point that I was probably one of the youngest people at the sale today, as I found myself standing in line with grandmothers in cashmere sweaters and corporettes on a lunch break.

Some things, like Chanel 2.55 bags and Hermès silk scarves, are stylish beyond the whims of seasonal trends and age.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Under my umbrella

2009-09-14T14:30:00.003-04:00

At Bryant Park two days ago, I received numerous compliments on my Guy de Jean Cancan Bis umbrella. In addition to its Moulin Rouge-esque froufrou look, it has a sturdy metal frame that has withstood countless strong winds while my friends' umbrellas collapsed under the pressure. It also doubles as a parasol with a sun protection factor of 50+, which is another excuse for me to carry it around all year, rain or shine.

What is your favorite practical -- or frivolous -- accessory?

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Announcements and exhaustion

2009-09-08T17:37:00.004-04:00

I've disappeared from the internet for a few weeks, and in these past few weeks I've moved to New York City, backpacked up the Catskills Mountains, evacuated a hurricane, torn a pair of shoes, spent a night at the emergency room in the hospital (thank you, my dear suitemates!), wandered around the city (with company) late at night searching for questionable videos, and got nerdy (classes began today and I'm so ready to work). I'm actually in the library right now, realizing that I can't finish my French homework because I left my earphones in my room.

As I recover from my phlegm-plagued sickness, I would like to share two articles I wrote for Mochi Magazine:

First, I interviewed the fabulously awe-inspiring and yet-ever-so-humble Susanna Lau of The Fashion Blog to Know: Fashion Blogger Susie Bubble on the Digital World of Fashion. If you're curious about her day job, about online journalism, or about how she got her nickname of "Susie Bubble," check it out!

Secondly, I interviewed the amazing Sheena Matheiken of The Uniform Project: Nothing to Wear? How to Invigorate Your Closet. If you don't know about Sheena and her wonderful efforts to raise money for the Akanksha Foundation, read this article and read her blog. Additionally, there are some great tips about how to spice up a "basic" outfit -- trust me, Sheena knows best.

I'm so blessed to have been able to interview two fashion bloggers who are making great strides in both the online and "real" world. I would also like to announce that I am going to be blogging for College Fashion, along with nine other fashion-savvy college students. If you didn't read College Fashion before, now is the time to start! As my introduction reads:

Noel – Columbia University – You probably already know her as Miss Couturable, but the fabulous Noel is going to be writing for CF this semester too! As a former Seventeen Magazine intern starting her freshman year of college in NYC, Noel will be writing about everything from wallet-friendly versions of runway looks to her adventures budgeting and shopping in the city.

Don't worry -- Miss Couturable will be staying alive, as always! There are two different approaches to these two different blog, and I look forward to getting in contact with everyone in both ways!

Now, I'm off to my next class. Hopefully, your school year is starting off relatively smoothly!

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Ciao, California!

2009-08-25T20:00:00.001-04:00

I found out that one of my favorite teachers from high school, Mr. Near, is dying. He has a few weeks left to live. I visited him on Saturday, and realized how terrible goodbyes are -- for all the goodbyes I have said in the past few weeks, this was the only true goodbye.

Mr. Near once said:

When I first started teaching, I substituted one day at my old junior high. One of my former teachers, upon seeing me and realizing I had become a teacher, actually said to me, "Oh, I always thought you could have done so much more." I guess in her mind I hadn't "done my best." And, maybe by her standard I hadn't. I would suggest that you find a different standard because I wouldn't trade my life or career for anyone's.

So, Mr. Near, thank you. People underestimate the importance of a well-taught class -- how the subject matter can grip you and run in circles through your head. People underestimate the importance of a teacher with a booming voice and a stern stare -- how one glance tells you that something wonderful is being taught. You taught me that a life well-lived is not determined by the number of times your name pops up on Google or the size of your bank account.

As for that booming voice of yours, I was at a loss for words (which I admit, is rarely the case) when I saw that it had become a raspy whisper on Saturday. I miss your voice.

I bid California farewell tonight. After I get off the plane tomorrow morning, I still won't know where I'm going in the next few years.

But as Mr. Near taught me, we might not have the future -- so live now, live hard, love now, and love hard. Mommy, Daddy, and Kathy -- thank you so much for a ridiculous past 18 years.

ex.oh.ex.oh

Miss Couturable

Batucada "Baroco" Bracelet mini-giveaway winner

2009-08-25T02:04:00.001-04:00

(Photo Credit -- Brooklyn5and10)

Before I head off to bed in my own room for the last time (at least, for a few months), I would like to announce the winner (randomly selected) of the Batucada "Baroco" Bracelet mini-giveaway:

Grace, age 18: My favorite piece of jewelery is a multi-strand faux pearl necklace from Forever 21. It's cream-coloured and has gold accents. I love it to pieces.

Congratulations, Grace -- you'll love this eco-plastic bracelet as much as I love my eco-plastic necklace. Please email me with your name and mailing address from the same email you provided in your entry.

I'm off to slumberland!

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Dorm room decorating

2009-08-23T01:32:00.001-04:00

A lot of my high school classmates have already moved into their dorm rooms -- I know this because Facebook albums with billions of dorm photos have popped up onto my Newsfeed. I've seen messy dorms, immaculate dorms, colorful dorms, and barely furnished dorms. Even though all of the dorms are different, everyone seems to have propped up their living space in the course of a day.

However, I don't think I could decorate and furnish my dorm room in the span of one move-in day -- I need more time to carefully pick out my decorations and furnishings. I have a few decorations ready to go, but I want to wander around the city and find pieces that spell out home to me, instead of racking up the Christmas lights and flokati rugs on a quick run through Target.
So far, I have a Breakfast at Tiffany's movie poster. I grew up watching Audrey Hepburn and I want to frame the poster for aesthetic appeasement.

(Photo Credit -- Frye's)

My daddy picked up this table lamp for me -- I like it much better than a plastic clip-on desk lamp. I'm a big fan of organic shapes with modernist touches.

(Photo Credit -- Amazon.com)

Okay, I know there's a mirror in the bathroom, but I need my own vanity mirror. This one lights up, magnifies to different intensities, and has a plug-in at the base for my hair straightener. There are many things I am willing to share, but I also don't enjoy fighting for the mirror in my suite's bathroom.

(Photo Credit -- Target)

For my down comforter, I purchased this duvet cover with a cream jacquard texture. I actually had a secret desire to make my own duvet.

(Photo Credit -- JCPenney)

I found a $100 gift card to JCPenney in my room. I have never shopped there before, but they had some great deals on twin XL sheets, which I was frantically searching for. I got two sets of sheets and pillowcases in bright mango and aqua blue.

(Photo Credit -- flair4all)

In keeping with my attempts to maintain a bright sunny room, I am pasting these crimson poppy wall decals on my wall. It's so easy and typical of me to opt for silvers, black, and whites for my room, but I do believe that a warm atmosphere can foster warm spirits.

I want to tear out pages of W magazine, which is always oversized, and tack them onto my wall. I also want to buy a French memo board and fill it with photos from high school. I'm not sure yet, and I don't think I'll have a "finished" dorm room for at least a month.

So, help me, please -- what are your favorite places for furnishings and decorations and art in New York City (or online)? Where can I buy poster frames at reasonable prices? How are you decorating your dorm? What are your decorating tips?

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

P.S. Okay fine, I admit it. I'm also tacking up a Spice Girls poster.

Sharp words, sharp images

2009-08-21T15:31:00.001-04:00

I felt terrible after selling my copy of Perrine's Sound and Sense: An Introduction to Poetry by to a rising senior who would be taking AP English Literature & Composition soon. I fell in love with poetry through this book and it was only senior year that I began collecting my favorite poems.

So, I would like to share two of my favorite poems with you:

Snow White and the Seven Deadly Sins
By R.S. Gwynn

Good Catholic girl, she didn't mind the cleaning.
All of her household chores, at first, were small
And hardly labors one could find demeaning.
One's duty was one's refuge, after all.

And if she had her doubts at certain moments
And once confessed the to the Father, she
Was instantly referred to texts in Romans
And Peter's First Epistle, chapter III.

Years passed. More sinful every day, the Seven
Breakfasted, grabbed their pitchforks, donned their horns,
And sped to contravene the hopes of heaven,
Sowing the neighbors' lawns with tares and thorns.

She set to work. Pride's wall of looking glasses
Ogled her dimly, smeared with prints of lips;
Lust's magazines lay strewn, bare tits and asses
Weighted by his "devices" - chains, cuffs, whips.

Gluttony's empties covered half the table,
Mingling with Avarice's cards and chips,
And she'd been told to sew a Bill Blass label
Inside the blazer Envy'd bought at Gyps.

She knelt to the cold master bathroom floor as
If a petitioner before the Pope,
Retrieving several pairs of Sloths's soiled drawers,
A sweat-sock and a cake of hairy soap.

Then, as she wiped the Windex from the mirror
She noticed, and the vision made her cry,
How much she'd grayed and paled, and how much clearer
Festered the bruise of Wrath beneath her eye.

"No poisoned apple needed for this Princess,"
She murmured making X's with her thumb.
A car door slammed, bringing her to her senses:
Ho-hum. Ho-hum. It's home from work we come.

And she was out the window in a second,
In time to see a Handsome Prince, of course,
Who, in spying her distressed condition, beckoned
For her to mount (What else?) his snow-white horse.

Impeccably he spoke. His smile was glowing.
So debonair! So charming! And so Male.
She took a step, reversed and without slowing
Beat it to St. Anne's where she took the veil.

Suicide's Note
By Langston Hughes

The calm,
Cool face of the river
Asked me for a kiss.

What are your favorite poems?

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

P-p-p-pockets everyday

2009-08-20T10:57:00.001-04:00

{Batucada "Baroco" necklace from Brooklyn5and10, silk J. Crew belt with feathers, Lamixx wool pocket dress, ankle-strapped wedge heels from Belle International}

You see, I think every girl -- especially every college girl -- should have a dress with functional pockets. Deep pockets for when you don't want to carry around a purse (although, handbags are a basic necessity in my book). However, most of the "practical" dresses and skirts I've bought, from a $600 Marc by Marc Jacobs dress to a $200 BCBG Max Azria skirt to a $30 Erin Fetherston for Target jumper, have fake pockets or flimsy pockets which I don't trust with my keys. Why is it so hard to find a nice looking dress with usable pockets? What if I'm just running out of my dorm room for a quick snack downstairs and I don't want to bring my entire bag?

Enter the wool blend low v pocket dress from Jacqueline Rose of Lamixx. Like an ideal pocket dress, it's versatile and easy to manipulate. Here are five reasons why ladies need pockets too:

We don't always have the perfect purse or clutch for the outfit.
On top of all of the clothes in the hamper, do we seriously want to carry our purses to do the laundry too?
Sometimes, reaching into our pockets is easier than digging around a Balenciaga.
If men carry manpurses (or "murses") nowadays, we can ask for "manly" pockets.
We're prone to carry too much in our purses (well, at least I am).

My friends like this dress -- but they also think that it looks like a potato sack (an attractive one, at least). However, cinch the waist and you get a comfortable wool dress that can be dressed down or up. The wonderful thing about a dress with pockets is that it can be thrown on for a quick errand or dolled up for a night out. It reminds of the loose playdresses I wore as a child. I recall that those dresses had pockets too. I can still have playdates, right?

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

P.S. To enter to win the Batucada "Baroco" bracelet (I'm wearing the Batucada "Baroco" necklace), click here! Entries close on August 23rd, 2009.

Big baubles on bagues

2009-08-19T11:27:00.001-04:00

I like rings, but I don't like the delicate thin kinds. I like them gaudy, ostentatious, and usually big. I only thought about this when my friend Katie showed me her new cocktail rings. Two summers ago, I bought a giant plastic blue ring in New York City and I showed my teacher. "Oh...that's great..." she said, shifting her eyes away. I have to admit though, that was a tacky ring.

My two favorite ring designers are Miss Bibi and Mauboussin -- they not only make beautiful wedding rings, but they also make fun whimsical pieces.

(Photo Credit -- Miss Bibi)

Miss Bibi bagues call out to the romantic fairytale lover within me, from the Mickey Mouse ears to the giant heart.

(Photo Credit -- Mauboussin)

Mauboussin bagues, on the other hand, manage to be both classic and unique. Big colorful gems have never been this sophisticated.

(Photo Credit -- Limoges Jewelry)

But you know, Miss Bibi and Mauboussin rings are far from cheap costume jewelry. A more affordable alternative would be this opal cluster ring from Limoges Jewelry. All of the bling without the big bucks.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

Mini-giveaway: Batucada "Baroco" Bracelet

2009-08-18T18:32:00.001-04:00

{Sara Berman cropped tuxedo jacket, Uniqlo skinny jeans, Sonia Rykiel sandals, Old Navy ribbed tank top, clutch from Silk Street in Beijing, straw hat from flea market, Batucada "Baroco" necklace from Brooklyn5and10}

The remainder of my days in California have been spent packing, bidding farewell to friends, perusing the Iliad, and lounging at home watching Disney movies and eating homemade potstickers. I have packed most of my clothes, and now am wearing a daily uniform of tank top, jeans, and sandals. On the laziest days when I don't leave the house, I am probably wearing a raggedy pair of shorts and a giant t-shirt -- no really, I did pack everything.

(Photo Credit -- Brooklyn5and10)

Since I only have seven days left at home, I am hosting a mini-giveaway for a Batucada eco-plastic "Baroco" bracelet from Brooklyn5and10! As you can see, I am wearing the "Baroco" necklace, which is fascinating because the soft plastic molds to your skin, like a tattoo necklace. Reminds me of those tattoo chokers that were all the rage in elementary school, but much more interesting in an asymmetrical organic sense. It feels like nothing. While I've always been a gold, silver, and pearl snob, I adore the idea of jewelry that I can easily wear while swimming or exercising (the plastic is sweatproof and waterproof). I was actually doing research on "easy-maintenance" jewelry for an article I was planning to write when I stumbled across this collection.

To enter to win, just leave your name, age, email address -- and tell me about your favorite piece of jewelry. Entries close on August 23rd, 2009, and the winner will be announced on August 24th, 2009. Good luck, and more good luck if you've already started school!

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

P.S. Yes, the selection of the winner will be random -- so feel free to enter if you happen to know me in real life.

In facialists we trust

2009-08-13T19:50:00.001-04:00

(Photo Credit -- Getty Images)

I discovered today that I am emotionally attached to my facialist. While I am loyal to my manicurist and hairdresser too, there is nothing like placing your trust in someone who extracts your blackheads (in other words, pops your zits) on a regular basis. It's always important to go to a licensed esthetician -- preferably one recommended by your dermatologist (my facialist, in fact, works with my dermatologist). You can always take a shower right after a bad perm, but the scarring from a bad blackhead extraction can last for a long time.

During my hour-long facial, my esthetician and I talked about college life and our terrible fascination with the students behind the television show NYC Prep. Alas, she ended up recommending the Glytone Flesh Tinted Acne Treatment Lotion with sulfur and resorcinol as a spot treatment for me. It smells like sulfur, but luckily I'm just using it at night.

Of course, after a facial, one's face is generally redder and more swollen than usual -- and more sensitive, as I can still feel the tingly aftereffects. As I bid my facialist goodbye this morning, I felt strangely stricken. I mean, I don't even let myself touch my face beyond my morning and night skincare regiments. I must have a lot of trust in her in order to let her touch my face for an entire hour.

ex.oh.ex.oh
Miss Couturable

SophistiKATEd

2009-08-12T16:55:00.001-04:00

(Photo Credit -- Kate Spade)

Debuted yesterday, the Kate Spade clothing collection is nothing short of a delightful array of whimsical and ladylike frocks and coats -- a slightly more mature version of what Blair Waldorf from Gossip Girl would wear.

With charming names such as the Bisous Lace Gail Dress and the Madeline Paulina Cardigan, the pieces in the collection boast of vivid color, simple lines, and classic versatility for the adventurous lady who prefers dressing up to dressing down.

'Tis no wonder that Kate Spade once said,"I think that playing dress-up begins at age five and never truly ends."

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Miss Couturable

Two weeks until takeoff

2009-08-09T02:11:00.001-04:00

"I wanted out. That was partly why I’d chosen Columbia. I like how the city seethed up against the school, mocking its theoretical seclusion with hustle and noise, the din of people going and getting and making. things that mattered at Princeton or Yale couldn’t possible withstand this battering of raw, unironic life. You didn’t go to eating clubs at Columbia, you went to jazz clubs. You had a girlfriend— no, a lover — with psychiatric problems, and friends with foreign accents. You read newspapers on the subway and looked at tourists with a cool, anthropologicial gaze. You said crosstown express. You said the Village. You ate weird food. No other boy in my class would be going there." -- Old School by Tobias Wolff

There are two reasons why I picked out this passage. First, it embodies everything about Columbia University that I hope to understand in the next four years. I'm thinking about studying Art History, Political Science, and Human Rights in order to gain a wide understanding of culture and society and what I can and should do about it. Second, Tobias Wolff is a beautiful writer and I think everyone should read his short stories, novels, and memoirs. I'm jealous that he's a professor at Stanford University.

This brings me to a topic I've always wanted to write about. Actually, no -- this brings me to a rambling of many topics, some of which I have never told anyone in person. And actually, no -- I didn't envision putting my jumbled thoughts in writing until last night, when I was in the car with a girl friend who would be attending The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania this fall. We started talking about college ambitions, graduate school, good careers for women, balancing family and career -- everything that two 18-year-old girls dreaming of bright futures could talk about.

And then she asked me how much I could make starting off in fashion publishing.

"Well, editorial assistants make around $35,000 a year, I think," I replied. That was about how much our high school tuition cost every year, to put things into perspective.

"You need to find another option then. There has got to be something else for you," she replied matter-of-factly. I stared ahead at the cars zooming in front of me.

Is there something else for me? Possibilities will always be endless -- there very well could be something else out there. Earlier this year, I revealed why fashion meant more to me than a law degree ever could. Fashion -- drapery, embellishment, reconstruction -- makes sense to me. Words -- beautiful, searing words -- make sense to me.

After interning at Seventeen last summer, there was nothing else I wanted to do more than to work in fashion publishing. To write. To edit. To publish. To create. To be in awe.

Sure, I know "money doesn't buy happiness" and I firmly believe that success is not measured by the size of one's bank account, but I want to give my children the best opportunities in life -- just like my parents did for me.

My parents came into this country with $200 in their pockets (borrowed, of course), and they've sacrificed plenty to achieve the American dream. My mommy wanted to be an artist; she would sit on street corners all day and sketch with charcoal. My daddy was a smart slacker who learned to work hard after he graduated college at age 19 (he would have graduated earlier but he skipped class for an entire year). However, both of them entered the United States as starving graduate students and eventually became successful professionals in their medical and engineering fields. My mommy gave up her creative dreams to have a well-respected and stable career -- and to give me the opportunities that she never had.

My parents didn't teach me about how to tie a scarf and they still don't know the difference between Vogue and Elle. My mommy comes to me when she needs to shop for make-up. They definitely didn't push me to love fashion or writing. However, my parents always did push me to be independent, from the day my mommy brought me to the lab and told me that I had to occupy myself with a copy of See Spot Run for the next few hours (I was three and I was teaching myself to read) to the first out of sixty days that they left me alone in New York City last summer. "Shut up and think for yourself," my daddy growled at me when I was six. I didn't learn to shut up, but I did learn to think for myself.

So I began to write. I won elementary poetry contests with rhyming dictionaries and terrible syntax. My first short story was in fourth grade -- about an Egyptian warrior princess. My teacher told me that I had a great voice, but I became lazy at the conclusion. I kept writing. I wrote a short story about fairies in seventh grade. My teacher gave me a "C" on the manuscript. My first "C' grade ever. A month later, I got my short story published in the Stanford Anthology for Youth. "Well, people have different tastes," she shrugged. I was published for the first time, and I realized that the only way I could become a better writer was by writing more.

I don't know where I'm going with this piece, which goes to show that I still haven't overcome my biggest problem in writing: conclusions. My fourth grade Egyptian princess story had a faulty ending and this blog post will also have a faulty ending. What am I trying to say? What have I always been trying to say?

I am surrounded by brilliant schoolmates from high school and college who will achieve great things in their life. All my friends know that I dream of being a published author and fashion magazine editor and Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist and entrepreneur, but as you can tell from the 152 comments under Lauren Conrad's intern blog entry on Teen Vogue -- a lot of impressionable girls dream of the same things as me. My biggest fear is not that I will fall short of expectations for myself (for I always set lofty goals), but that everything my parents sacrificed for me will be in vain.

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Miss Couturable

Note to self: Enroll in a creative writing class at Columbia. Figure out how to make that conclusion happen. And then keep making other things happen. Let the city and the school "seeth" up against you.

Cupcake (not cake) craving

2009-08-04T17:19:00.001-04:00

I've always found Louis Vuitton purse cakes and shoe cakes to be painstakingly fascinating and yet too much of an extravagance for a girl who rarely cuts even cake slices and tends to eat what is in front of her without looking at her plate (I know -- I should change this habit). Cake is cake. The giant confection will be sliced and possibly smeared all over someone's face anyways.

I do like pretty cupcakes though -- while they're relatively simple in decoration (in comparison to a full cake), they punch a lot of flavor and petite glory into a few bites.

(Photo Credit -- Therese Aldgård)

I could write on about cupcakes with the same enthusiasm that I do for fashion, but what prompted these sugary thoughts are these fashion-inspired cupcake photographs by photographer Therese Aldgård and prop stylist Lisa Edsälv. Why not have Vera Wang-inspired cupcakes to complement a Vera Wang gown on your wedding day?

Tragically, the last time I truly enjoyed a cupcake was at my eighteenth birthday party -- from Kara's Cupcakes, to be exact.

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Miss Couturable

Drastic elastic

2009-08-03T01:50:00.001-04:00

(Photo Credit -- Bordelle)

I originally intended to make a giant back-to-school shopping list, but I got distracted by this Angela cage dress by Bordelle. It's not very practical or appropriate for class (even though I was so tempted to add it onto my list), but it is a beautiful deconstructed rendition of a Hervé Léger "body-con" dress. Femme fetale is a look that never goes out.

Plus, I mean, a pair of leggings (and a cardigan) could cover up the dress for class, right?

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Miss Couturable

Alma mater anticipation

2009-07-31T16:00:00.002-04:00

Yesterday, I received my copy of the Iliad by Homer from the Columbia College Alumni Association.

Please accept this gift as a token of our support for the next generation of College alumni — you! (In preparation for your Columbia experience, please read the first 12 books within the Iliad.)

‘Tis a sweet way to frame 270 pages of summer homework. It even comes with a pretty sticker on the inside cover that reads, “Presented to the Class of 2013.”

It reminds me of the day my copy of the Odyssey by Homer arrived in the mail from Amazon, four years ago. And reading chapters from Edith Hamilton’s Mythology over the summer to prepare for freshman English. And spending my entire first semester of freshman year in high school trying to understand Homer’s words, trying to understand the ancient Greeks, trying to understand Odysseus. I was on my own odyssey, trying to figure out where high school was going to take me.

This time around, I’m not starting off from scratch. My high school taught me well to appreciate literature and to appreciate challenges. When I stare at this Richmond Lattimore translation and glance back at the Odyssey and Mythology, still sitting on my bookshelf and untouched since the end of freshman year, I realize that it’s about time that I get my brain juices flowing again. Graduation wasn't too far ago, but August is approaching.

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Miss Couturable

Wake me up when September ends

2009-07-30T16:34:00.001-04:00

There are a lot of reasons why I am super excited for September. First, the month of September always means Fashion Week. This year, for me, the month of September also means starting my freshman year of college and moving to New York City. It also means the release of the highly-anticipated documentary, The September Issue, which actually opens on August 28th in New York City but will expand nationally on September 11th.

The synopsis reads:

Anna Wintour, the legendary editor-in-chief of Vogue magazine for twenty years, is the most powerful and polarizing figure in fashion. Hidden behind her trademark bob and sunglasses, she has never allowed anyone to scrutinize the inner workings of her magazine. Until now. With unprecedented access, filmmaker R.J. Cutler’s new film THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE does for fashion what he did for politics in The War Room, taking the viewer inside a world they only think they know. Every August a record-breaking number of people can’t wait to get their hands on the September issue of Vogue. The 2007 issue was and remains the biggest ever, weighing over four pounds, selling thirteen million copies, and impacting the $300-billion global fashion industry more than any other single publication. An intimate, funny and surprising look at Anna Wintour and her team of larger-than-life editors as they create this must-have Bible of fashion, Cutler explores the untouchable glamour of Wintour’s Vogue to reveal the extraordinarily passionate people at its heart. He takes us behind the scenes at Fashion Week, to Europe, on shoots and reshoots, and into closed-door staff meetings, bearing witness to an arduous, entertaining, and sometimes emotionally demanding process. At the eye of this annual fashion hurricane is the two-decade relationship between Wintour and Grace Coddington, incomparable Creative Director and fashion genius. They are perfectly matched for the age-old conflict between creator and curator. Through them, we see close-up the delicate creative chemistry it takes to remain at the top of the ever-changing fashion field.

Additionally, after September passes, you can purchase a copy of The Teen Vogue Handbook: An Insider's Guide to Careers in Fashion, now available for pre-order on Amazon by clicking here(yessum, I've already pre-ordered). It debuts on October 5th, but you can catch a sneak peak of the book on lovely Teen Voguette Jazzi's blog and in the following video, narrated by Teen Vogue editor-in-chief, Amy Astley:

This sums up my feelings toward the book.

I know, I know -- hopefully we'll all still be able to concentrate on schoolwork too. The Iliad isn't going to read itself.

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Miss Couturable

chickdowntown.com giveaway: Tolani scarf winners

2009-07-29T13:04:00.001-04:00

Merci beaucoup to everyone who entered the chickdowntown.com Tolani scarf giveaway! I had a great time checking out all of your fall must-haves (and adding a few on my list!).

Using a random number generator on my good ol' TI-84+ calculator, I have the selected the two winners of this lovely blue/grey ombre scarf to be:
#51: Amanda T., age 26, who chose a lovely cherry red coat by BB Dakota as her fall must-have -- which, coincidentally, is also from chickdowntown.com.
#79: Carissa J., age 17, who chose this stunning Balmain jacket that I, too, have been craving for months! Fall jacket perfection, indeed.

Please email me your mailing address, Amanda and Carissa -- and to everyone else, please stay tuned for the next giveaway!

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Miss Couturable

Skincare solutions and spending

2009-07-27T23:05:00.001-04:00

I had an appointment with my dermatologist today, and I would like to say that I have immense respect and curiosity for dermatologists. The fact that she prescribes me medication to treat acne scarring while simultaneously injecting Botox into the forehead of the middle-aged peroxide blonde next door is mind baffling -- simply because these are all intimate matters of appearance that a dermatologist must address.
One thing I ended purchasing from my dermatologist today (and oh, 'tis frightening how many facials and creams and lotions a dermatologist may recommend for you) is the Obagi Nu-Derm Clear Skin Bleaching and Corrector Cream. It sounds like one of those whitening creams heavily marketed in Asian countries, but apparently it can be used for any "unwanted areas of melanin hyperpigmentation." This tiny two-ounce bottle cost me $91 -- and I haven't even started talking about the topical gel that I've been prescribed or the blackhead facial that she insists I get before I head off to college.
One of the most popular skincare trends in Asia right now (and Asian countries, obsessed as they are with pale skin, have excellent skincare products) is B. B. cream (Blemish Balm). It is part foundation and part (supposedly) healing cream, and it actually originated in Germany (although Korean brands have picked up on this trend). I picked up a bottle of Missha M Vita SPF 20 B. B. Cream at a department store in China, and the ingredients include everything from caviar cream to vitamin complexes. It actually works extremely well applied, smoothing out the skin without any extra oil -- my Korean-American friend adores it and I can understand why.

I bring these all up because skincare can be ridiculously expensive and complex, making me envy those who were born with blessed blemish-free complexions.

So, tell me -- do you think you're getting your money's worth on the skincare products that you use? And are you willing to splurge for your skin?

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Miss Couturable

I still love you, Marc

2009-07-25T12:30:00.001-04:00

In general, I prefer the designer item to the "inspired" versions or the, er, knock-offs. In most cases, the designer items have better craftsmanship, more detail, and fit better -- so I don't mind spending the extra money if I know it's a piece that can make a statement, the quality is high, it fits well, and I can't find a version I like more. And if I can come up with enough practical reasons for owning the piece (as much as I would have loved to wear the $8,000 Marchesa gown to prom, I could never justify it to myself or my parents).

(Photo Credit -- Nordstrom)

I always thought these Marc Jacobs Bow Gladiator Sandals were very adorable, but not adorable enough for me to spend $897 on them. It was one of those shoes that I would take a quick glance at, place back onto the shelf, and swiftly walk away from before the salespeople could look in my direction.
So, while I was in China -- I found a pair of similar sandals for the Chinese equivalent of $100. They were made of real metallic green leather and I preferred the brass bows on this pair to the leather bows on the original Marc Jacobs version! The craftsmanship on these sandals is excellent -- they're extremely comfortable and high-quality.

This is one of the few instances where I prefer the "inspired" version to the designer original -- even if both pieces happened to be the same price, I'd still choose my metallic green versions from China. However, I am still fatally in love with Marc Jacobs in every possible way.

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Miss Couturable

Time for change (literally)

2009-07-24T12:40:00.001-04:00

I am terribly guilty of stuffing whole dollar bills into my purse without even placing them back into my wallet. I've been doing it throughout my high school career, as my dear friends would gaze at my crumpled bills in half-horrified and half-amused visages. Part of me thinks that it's because I've been using a bulky and beat-up pink wallet from eighth grade. That wallet crumples up my dollar bills too, so why even bother organizing my change?
So, I purchased a blue Fendi long leather wallet. It's big enough to fit my money, credit cards, gift cards, and business cards -- without appearing bulky. It's chic enough for a college girl moving into the big city, while colorful enough to appear playful. Also to note: lizard print just makes everything seem more exciting.

Truth be told, I've been meaning to buy a new wallet for over three years (that's how beat up my wallet from middle school is), so I fell in love with quite a few lovely options, before I purchased the Fendi:

(Photo Credit -- Bluefly.com)

I was obsessed with Yves Saint Laurent "Y-mail" when it first came out, and I'm still looking to purchase a coin purse from the collection in the future. It's very whimsical and I admit that I wish I had that handwriting.

(Photo Credit -- Bluefly.com)

The Chloé Paddington has always been an it-bag classic, and the wallet version carries the same beloved brasstone lock. Plus, I like my wallets with a pop of color.

(Photo Credit -- Saks Fifth Avenue)

I've always thought that the original Prada wallets were somewhat boring, but I like shiny metal. A lot.

(Photo Credit -- Louis Vuitton)

Or maybe I just like shiny in general. Once upon a time, I saw that my friend (or was it her mummy?) had this wallet and it is probably one of the few monogrammed pieces that I don't find overbearing at all. This friend told me that everyone in Korea has this wallet in different colors.

(Photo Credits -- Louis Vuitton, Coach, Yves Saint Laurent)

As for coin purses, my favorites have been these eccentric pieces from Louis Vuitton, Coach, and Yves Saint Laurent. For some reason, I think coin purses should pack a lot of "kaboom" in spite of their small size.

What do you use for your wallet or coin purse? Do you prefer the long ones or the classics?

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Miss Couturable

Giveaways galore

2009-07-23T16:00:00.001-04:00

I know everyone loves giveaways and freebies -- so if you haven't entered Miss Couturable's chickdowntown.com: Tolani scarf giveaway, I suggest you do it before entries close on July 28th, 2009! Read the directions -- it's really simple to enter and the drawing is completely random.

If you have an extra 20 minutes to spare (and I'm sure you do), you should also enter Mochi Blog's Shoebuy.com contest for a $75 gift certificate. That can buy a pair of shoes, you know.

Additionally, if you have a website, blog, or social networking profile, you can win a $200 gift certificate from Lushae Jewelry just by displaying one of their badges. The competition is drawn every month and there are no limits to number of times you can enter! The details are here.

Anyway, I'm gabbing on about giveaways and contests because I just discovered free!gretchen today! It's a database of fashion-related giveaways and contests that you can enter and it's updated very frequently. If you're ever bored, just sign up for some giveaways and cross your fingers! We'll pretend it's being productive.

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Miss Couturable

Meet Madeleine Vionnet

2009-07-22T14:56:00.001-04:00

(Photo Credit -- Apple)

This sounds ridiculously geeky, but I named my new 13-inch MacBook Pro. A friend suggested that I give my future succession of Apple computers a "theme" in which to name them -- so, of course, I chose fashion designers as my theme.

(Photo Credit -- Les Arts Décoratifs)

Because this is my first Apple computer, I chose to name it "Madeleine Vionnet," after an early but extremely influential fashion designer. Vionnet introduced the bias cut to the fashion industry in the 1920s, and she believed in timeless style that accentuated the female body in fluid curves and drapes à la Grecian robes.

(Photo Credit -- Style.com)

You can definitely see the Vionnet elements in another one of my favorite collections, Marchesa.

Additionally, she fought for copyright laws in fashion. What a tough cookie -- hopefully, my new laptop will be one too!

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Miss Couturable

Color poppin'

2009-07-21T16:14:00.001-04:00

(Photo Credit -- Style.com)

I realize that I post about the Christian Dior Haute Couture collections almost every season, and I'm sure that everyone knows I would gladly don bright pink lipstick if it meant I could wear a New Look gown for a day (or, er, eternity).

What I love most about John Galliano's Dior couture is that he creates fashion that revels and explodes in color and vibrancy. I was sorting through my closet last night (pre-college clean-up), and I realized that most of the colors left in my wardrobe were dark in tone. Most of the clothes in my "discard" pile (many were clothes leftover from middle school) were pink, pink, and more pink.

And so as I glanced through the Fall 2009 collection, I lost my breath at the photo above. I had forgotten what it meant to wear color -- and I thank Monsieur Galliano for reminding me again.

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Miss Couturable

Creation, not destruction

2009-07-20T02:00:00.001-04:00

(Photo Credit -- AP/World Wide Photos)

I was browsing through the Mochi Blog when I came upon the post about fashion designer Issey Miyake's op-ed piece in the July 13th, 2009 edition of the New York Times.

The truth is, before reading the piece, I only knew about Miyake through the labels under his name and his truly fascinating research in design (yes, he does research for garment design!) and technology -- the revolution of the pleat, for example.

I did not know that he was born in Hiroshima, Japan, where the atomic bomb was dropped when he was seven years old. His mother died of radiation exposure shortly afterward.

He wrote:

I have never chosen to share my memories or thoughts of that day. I have tried, albeit unsuccessfully, to put them behind me, preferring to think of things that can be created, not destroyed, and that bring beauty and joy. I gravitated toward the field of clothing design, partly because it is a creative format that is modern and optimistic.

I tried never to be defined by my past. I did not want to be labeled “the designer who survived the atomic bomb,” and therefore I have always avoided questions about Hiroshima. They made me uncomfortable.

In the piece, he urges President Obama to attend Universal Peace Day in Hiroshima on August 6th, as a "real and a symbolic step toward creating a world that knows no fear of nuclear threat."

While reading his words, I realized just how important it is to stay on top of current events -- and to never forget the past. And while that can definitely apply to fashion's tendency to recycle the past and reinvent the present, it also applies on a graver scale -- for the sake of others.

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Miss Couturable

Shameless self-promotion: lingerie and eco-fashion

2009-07-16T15:10:00.001-04:00

Between my shoddy attempts at blogging on a regular basis and late nights spent perusing magazines and books, I satisfy my word-hungry soul (developed in a fantastic American literature class two years ago) by writing for various websites and publications that I truly care about -- mainly for their independent spirit and unique niches which one cannot find in most mainstream media.

One such publication is Shut Up! Magazine, for which I am Assistant Fashion Editor. It was founded in college and edited by Sahar Vahidi, a brilliant and extremely hardworking young woman who took a chance on my writing when the only clip I had was a lengthy research report about Coco Chanel and her impact on the prefeminist movement. The quarterly print magazine (and website) covers a wide range of topics related to alternative culture -- including music and fashion (of course!). Subscriptions for a full year are only $12!

I just received a copy of the Spring/Summer 2009 issue, so I've uploaded my own articles. To see more of the magazine (it's the lingerie issue with some nice spreads, so I assume you'd want to see more), you can preview it here.

Flashback: Loulou Loves You

Objets Trouvés by Kate Linstrom

Style File: Gemma Ward

I also recently wrote a piece about eco-fashion for the MochiMag.com blog. You can read it here as I briefly discuss organic/sustainable wear, vegan wear, and vintage wear! The blog and website are also great resources for topics of interest to Asian American girls -- I always have a good time reading the articles.

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Miss Couturable

P.S. Remember to enter Miss Couturable's Tolani scarf giveaway and the MochiMag.com's $75 Shoebuy.com gift certificate giveaway!

chickdowntown.com giveaway: Tolani scarf

2009-07-15T12:22:00.001-04:00

Daily temperatures in my area currently surpass 90 degrees Fahrenheit, but that doesn't mean I haven't started thinking about fall and winter wardrobes! There is something much more comforting about cashmere scarves and wool coats that you can't find in a summer frock.
To jump start your autumn wardrobes, Miss Couturable is giving away a Tolani scarf in blue/grey silk ombre. from chickdowntown.com -- where you can shop BB Dakota or Helmut Lang, depending on your budget. This lovely scarf can be worn on breezy summer nights or on chilly autumn days when you need something luxurious wrapped around your sleepy head.

All you have to do to enter this giveaway is comment below with your name, age, and email address -- and tell me what your fall 2009 must-have item is (pictures or links are a plus!). Please note that this giveaway is limited to United States of America residents because chickdowntown.com can only ship within the states.

Entries close on July 28th, 2009! The winner will be randomly selected and announced on July 29th, 2009. For more giveaways, you can follow chickdowntown.com on Twitter or visit chickdowntown.com on Facebook.

Good luck!

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Miss Couturable

P.S. Up for another giveaway? Mochi Magazine's blog is giving away a $75 gift certificate to Shoebuy.com. All you have to do is write a brief 300-500 word essay about your favorite pair of shoes. Now, I don't know about you -- but I'd write 300-500 words for new shoes. Click here for the giveaway details. Entries also close on July 29, 2009.

Organizers, planners, and agendas -- oh my!

2009-07-12T18:17:00.001-04:00

In high school, I used Google Calendar to keep track of my events and deadlines. I used my laptop in class everyday anyways, and I found it easier to use than the calendar on my BlackBerry. Unlike many of my friends, I didn't use the little green and gold planner that we received from our school every year.

However, some of my friends recently lamented the fact that their respective colleges did not give out organizers to their students. After a brief perusal through an office supply store with my friends, I realized that most organizers were too bulky, too decorative, or too simple for my tastes and needs -- and yet I couldn't always rely on having my laptop on hand to check my schedule.
Instead, I bought a large soft cover weekly planner from Moleskine. It's simple, it's clean, it's much less expensive than a bulkier Kate Spade, and it's big enough to use without squinting and small enough to fit in my purse. I browsed the bookstore for other alternatives (include some chic leather ones), but I've discovered Moleskine planners to be the most practical and discreet.

Unfortunately, Moleskine planners do not come with the colorful stickers that made my high school planners so much fun. I'll miss those.

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Miss Couturable

The modern qipao

2009-07-10T18:00:00.001-04:00

Confession: I know I'm Chinese, but I could never see myself wear a qipao, a traditional and well-known Chinese dress. I think it's because I've seen too many cheap fetish versions for Halloween -- aptly named "Sexy China Doll Costume" or something similar. Hm, no.

(Photo Credit -- Agencies)

However, NE Tiger, a Chinese luxury label, presented its 2009 Haute Couture collection at China Fashion Week with traditional Chinese motifs and modernized silhouettes -- a collection that could represent modern China itself with its oriental and western influences.
Of course, the traditional high-necked qipao is still evident in these designs, but in graceful and elegant frames that elicit national pride -- nothing stereotypical from kung-fu movies (can you guess what my pet peeve is now?).
Modern silhouettes again, but with traditional floral patterns on silk. NE Tiger effortlessly proves that you can embrace modernity and still retain tradition -- a lesson we could all learn.

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Miss Couturable

I am an Anglophile

2009-07-09T20:57:00.001-04:00

(Photo Credit -- Gilt Groupe)

So, my alarm clock woke me up at 11:30am today -- I am almost certain that I would have woken up at 2:00pm had I not forgotten to turn it off last night. Without even getting out of bed, I checked my email and ended up buying this wool tartan miniskirt and crop tuxedo jacket, both from British label Sara Berman, for a grand total of $78. I know I sound like an overplayed commercial, but I calculated my savings and I saved $959 on Gilt Groupe. I'm thinking these structured schoolgirl pieces will be useful for a student who needs to get back to an intense and structured academic schedule soon -- I'm looking forward to reading The Iliad this fall!(Photo Credit -- Neiman Marcus)I also needed a pair of rain boots for the East Coast. Here in California, I was able to get by without a pair, but I've experienced rain storms in the summer in New York City and I'm wary of what they're like in the winter. So, even though I've never been too fond of the print, I purchased a pair of thick Burberry rain boots and checked "buy rain boots" off my to-do list. I never liked wearing these clunky rubber boots, but I have a feeling I'll start appreciating them by winter.

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Miss Couturable

P.S. If you're still not a member of Gilt Groupe (a.k.a., why I can shop before eating breakfast), you can join here.

My first bite out of Apple

2009-07-08T18:07:00.001-04:00

(Photo Credit -- Apple)

So I'm giving in -- and I've convinced my daddy that it's worth it. I'm buying a 13-inch MacBook Pro for college (and hey, it comes with a free iPod touch!) after owning IBM, Dell, and Toshiba laptops for the past ten years -- all PCs.

Why? Well, first of all, my Toshiba is very heavy and I find it more suitable as a laptop for my little sister to have in her room. She doesn't have to carry books and a laptop across the relatively-vast Columbia campus and potentially New York City, after all. I really need a smaller and lighter laptop.

Second, I'm not a computer programmer and I'm not a gamer. I know my way around computers but I can't build one nor can I write software for one. I'm geeky when it comes to web design and graphics, and Macs have a great interface for my obsessive photo collections.

Third, they're not only sleek and pretty -- they're also relatively environmentally-friendly and made of very durable and sustainable material. And I mean, they look nice while they're at it.

Fourth, new school, new city, new life, new laptop. It all comes together.

Fifth, well, I just got my AP scores today, and I've earned fifteen graduation credits out of a maximum sixteen that I can earn from AP exams. I'm even exempted from the foreign language requirement, but I'm leaning towards taking French anyway. My daddy is pleased, I'm pleased -- and I will treat myself.

So, Mac users: Should I get the three-year Apple Protection Plan? Is it worth it? What are some problems you've had with your Mac?

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Miss Couturable

(Photo Credit -- ColcaSac)

P.S. I will probably purchase the ColcaSac sleeve in Red Delicious to protect the MacBook Pro. It's durable, discreet and not tacky, and made of sustainable hemp. Any other suggestions?

Learn Chinese: easy as 1, 2, 3 (and 4 magazines)

2009-07-07T22:11:00.001-04:00

(Photo Credit -- Noel Duan)

China is a country founded on the past and tilted towards the future. Amidst the art deco skyscrapers are sensational ancient palaces and temples in bright colors rivaling those of Missoni prints. All women wear high heels no matter much they have to walk (image is very important over there). Children go to school from 6:00am to 9:00pm in hopes of gaining entrance to the top universities -- for some, it's their only escape to a better future.

My father came from a poor farm village in China, and the question, "Why do all of the children from that village seem so successful nowadays?" was brought up.

My father's friend, also from the same village and now living in Beijing, answered, "Because we were poor and those who have nothing, learn to fight for something." Point noted.

At a local bookstore in Chengdu, Sichuan, I picked up four Chinese fashion magazines: Harper's Bazaar, Elle, Vogue, and Madame Figaro -- all Chinese editions of foreign publications.
It was delightful to see that Madame Figaro enclosed a pattern (with explicit permission) for making a frock à la Parisian designer Gaspard Yurkievich -- complete with instructions in Chinese too! I adore this DIY idea and I wish more American magazines had this feature.

The truth is, I didn't embrace my Chinese heritage as a child. I quit Chinese school in middle school, barely scooped up the skills to use chopsticks in high school, had little interest in the Chinese fashion industry (other than sweatshop research and advocacy), and shunned Chinese pop stars (I now embrace Jay Chou -- and his abs -- with all my heart).

So, as I took the taxi back to my room with these four magazines in my hands, I gave myself a summer goal. A real summer goal, by the way -- originally, my only summer goal was to beat all 34 levels of BrickBreaker on my Blackberry (I am only at level 16 right now).

With my giant Chinese-English dictionary by my side, I am going to improve my Chinese language skills by reading these four Chinese fashion magazines. I will not just look at the spreads and advertisements as I usually do -- I will read the articles. I will appreciate Chinese journalism. I will learn to read Chinese beyond menus and street signs and Jay Chou song titles.

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Miss Couturable

P.S. Speaking of foreign languages, what language should I add to my repertoire in college? Currently I speak English, Mandarin-Chinese, and Spanish. Shall I add French? Italian? Swahili?!

Blocked?

2009-06-20T09:13:00.001-04:00

I'll be in China from June 20th to July 4th -- and I heard China blocked Blogger (why, oh why).

Until then, you can email me while I try to figure out a way to access Miss Couturable (is there a way?). Please have a beautiful summer wherever you are!

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Miss Couturable

College Applications: The Essays

2009-06-14T23:55:00.001-04:00

Junior year, I was told by my darling college counselor to start writing my college application essays over the summer. I had heard far-fetched stories of students who finished all of their essays and short answer responses over the summer and lived carefree lives as seniors for the rest of the year, but instead I chose to write the bulk of my applications during the school year and suffer.

And actually, it wasn't a bad idea. I stressed over my imperfect essays for months, only to finally submit them with three clicks of a mouse and never open up those documents ever again. For those rising seniors who are starting to think about what to write on their college applications, I have a few words of advice (words of wisdom? I'm not so sure about that):

You will change as a person throughout the year, so expect your essays to change too. I never thought my priorities would change in six months, but I knew in December that I was not the same person that I was in July. You might think you're getting a headstart by finishing your Common Application essay in July, but you might think the essay wasn't "you" anymore by September. That's okay -- be flexible.
Reuse essays whenever you can to save time. I used my Common Application essay for my University of Southern California essay by tweaking the words. Just make sure you're always answering the prompt.
Those "Why X School?" essays are a pain, but be sincere anyway. Don't be generic about why you want to attend the school -- be passionate and specific and imagine yourself as a student there. Show them that you belong and will thrive there.
If you have a college counselor or teacher willing to read your essays, please let them. I had a classmate who didn't allow her college counselor to read a single one of her essays or responses. Even if you choose not to follow your teacher or counselor's advice, take advantage of it if it's available to you! I realized early on that my counselors and teachers could provide me perspectives on my essays that I couldn't see before.
Write about a specific moment or event. At least, for private colleges and universities, it's easier to see the "real" you and not a rundown of your achievements if you write about a specific moment that impacted you or shaped you. Everyone likes anecdotes, right?
Don't panic if you don't know what to write about. If you experience something this summer that could potentially become a good essay, jot it down in your notebook! Brainstorming and letting the prompt topic sit in your head for a few days do wonders.
Don't offend the reader. Taken straight from my college counselor's mouth, don't write about the guns you're going to bring into your dorm room or your support of the Ku Klux Klan (I'm totally exaggerating, but you get the gist).
Proofread carefully. Your counselor or teacher or parent or friend or sibling is not your proofreader -- you are. Print out a draft and read over it while marking the mistakes and corrections.
After submission, relax and walk away from the computer. Well, you should still open up the submitted application to check for any errors, but don't keep revisiting the document.

I had a lot of fun writing the college application essays, but I may just be saying that in rosy retrospection. Good luck, m'dears!

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Miss Couturable

The jeweler of Wonderland

2009-06-10T02:51:00.001-04:00

I've been reading a lot of books from my not-so-distant childhood lately, perhaps in a pathetic attempt to recapture the innocence and wonder of an eight-years-old Noel sitting in an eggplant-colored armchair at the Corvallis Public Library. After rereading Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, I am once again both disturbed and intrigued by the Queen of Hearts and the Mad Hatter in the alternate reality that Alice finds herself in.

Alidra Alic is a Danish jeweler who takes inspiration from 19th century Romantic paintings and visionary literary works, such as the floral and tea party motifs in her Alice's Adventures in Wonderland collection. The rings in the collection are surreal with their warped shapes and imperfect designs -- interestingly, Alic admits incorporating alcohol as a theme into this collection.

My personal favorite is the "Drink me" teacup ring. Highly impractical, but Wonderland was never meant to make sense anyway.

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Miss Couturable

Hemp is hip

2009-06-05T02:04:00.001-04:00

I've seen a few episodes of Project Runway, but I never followed the television show as closely as some people might expect me to. However, I adore the season five winner, Leanne Marshall -- who also writes a fascinating blog about the design process and post-Project Runway life. Apparently she's also from Northern California, used to sketch costumes for her ballet recital, and lived in Oregon for a while! Something in common, no?

Okay, I'm stretching it (Northern California is a big place, after all), but Leanne Marshall is like Vera Wang meets Calvin Klein meets Erin Fetherston meets California supergoddess minus the stereotypical surfing.

(Photo Credit -- Leanne Marshall)

In her Fall 2009 collection, she combines my three favorite colors -- plum, gold, and gray -- with organic and eco-friendly textiles in a delightfully elegant concoction of Old Hollywood glamour. Carefully placed drapes and folds manipulate the soft texture of the fabric in a demure manner -- not too structured but not quite Greco-Roman drapery either. Tailored but not stuffy.

(Photo Credit -- Leanne Marshall)

A hemp organiza and champagne silk taffeta gown? Please tell me you want this as your wedding dress someday too.

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Miss Couturable

Logo for Miss Couturable

2009-06-03T11:04:00.001-04:00

Possibly the most relaxed course I have ever taken in my high school career is Graphic Arts -- I spent the majority of the first two weeks drawing squares and circles on Adobe Illustrator. It was a nice way to end my senior year, with a "chill" teacher ("chill" being the only term I can use to describe him) and some new skills under my belt.

I created two slightly different logos for Miss Couturable -- logos that I currently have no use for but may become useful in the future. I am debating whether the bow is too much as a design element.
Which one do you like better?

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Miss Couturable

Airhead giveaway winners

2009-05-31T00:03:00.001-04:00

So, perhaps in compliance with airhead mannerisms, I almost forgot that I was announcing the winners of the Airhead giveaway today!

Once again, the prizes are:
Grand Prize (1): $50 LeSportsac Gift Card, Airhead T-Shirt, Airhead paperback book
First Prize (5): Airhead paperback book

To enter, you had to leave me a six word story and provide me your first name, age, and email! I was extremely impressed with all of the stories -- especially because, well, I failed to provide an example from myself.

The Grand Prize winner is:
Jessica, age 20: "Finance final 8am tomorrow -- tequila drink."

The five First Prize winners are:
Carolyn, age 20: "She loved six word stories, too."
Erin, age 18: "Drunk with beauty, the night danced."
Claire, age 19: "Valley girl: glittery hedonism, in heels."
Lucy, age 14: "If only life were this concise..."
Stacy, age 19: "Should study. Youtube way too tempting."

Please email me from the email that you provided when you entered the giveaway with your mailing address! Congratulations and thank you so much for the fun entries!

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Miss Couturable

Oh my, Jackie O.

2009-05-28T00:17:00.001-04:00

I don't wear sunglasses because 1) I don't like to see things dimmer than they really are and 2) I figure that if I'm trying to avoid the sun, I should just turn around.

However, I've always wanted a pair of round sunglasses like the signature ones worn by Jacqueline Kennedy.
I'm especially a fan of the Christian Dior Josephine sunglasses -- I guess rectangles just aren't my cup of tea.

I mean, in terms of First Ladies, I love Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton, but I still idolize Jacqueline Kennedy. In times of distress, I could just slip on these shades and maintain my "cool", much like the admirable former First Lady herself. I could also use the sun protection.

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Miss Couturable

Even though she didn't go to college

2009-05-26T13:28:00.001-04:00

(Photo Credit -- Sojourner Rivers)

I found this photo of Anna Wintour at the 2009 Columbia University Commencement on the blog of Natalie So, a former schoolmate who is now doing wonderful and brilliant things at Harvard University. If you didn't know, Anna Wintour's daughter, Bee Shaffer, is a member of the Columbia class of 2009.

On a related note, Anna Wintour was the speaker for the 2003 Fashion Institute of Technology Commencement -- and her speech is a witty and insightful read:

Thank you President Brown, Trustees, Faculty, Honored Guests and Students. I am so honored to have been asked to speak to you this morning.

I didn't go to fashion school. I didn't go to college. When I was your age, and living in London, the fashion business was nothing as professional as it is today. I started off as the most junior of junior editors at Harper's & Queen. This was at a time when fashion magazines were widely regarded by one's mothers as finishing schools for girls of a certain background and a certain name. One had fun there, but one merely dabbled in the business in anticipation of marriage and, all being well, a large house somewhere in the English countryside. Fashion shoots were an amateurish affair: I remember once being sent to India for a weeklong assignment with nothing more than 20 pounds (in those days, less than 50 dollars). When I asked my editor, How am I supposed to pay for everything? He said, "Oh, just find a maharajah with a palace." And I think I did.

It was possible for magazines to function in this way because interest in fashion was limited to a very small section of society. People with money and time on their hands wore fashion; everyone else wore clothes. At that time, fashion wasn't streetwear, and it wasn't workwear; it was something you might encounter at a party or on special occasion. When I went to Rome for the couture shows -- back then, couture was shown both in Paris and Rome -- the shows were black-tie affairs, held in the evening in Palazzos. There were no celebrities and no paparazzi. J. Lo might be wearing Sixties Valentino couture to the Oscars now, but she would not have been allowed anywhere near the show where that dress first appeared. It was a narrow, self-regarding cocoon. If a designer was famous, it was only in a small, elitist way. Nowadays, someone like Calvin is a world-famous artist whose name operates as a huge cultural force. The same could not be said for Charles James, a world-class designer who was extremely influential to fashion but labored in obscurity a few blocks from here at the Chelsea Hotel. It seems hard to believe, but there used to be an embargo placed on all sketches and photographs of the couture dresses. This was to stop knock-off merchants from illegally reproducing the designs. Nowadays, as you know, you can simply log on to Style.com and see the shows in their entirety on the very same day.

So you are heading out into a different industry than the one I entered. When Vogue takes Pam Levy and Gela Taylor, the designers behind Juicy Couture, to the Paris couture, they see that Brittany Murphy is wearing Juicy mixed with Dior in the front row, and John Galliano, backstage, tells them that he goes to work every day in their tobacco velour trackpants. So the fashion world is more inclusive than ever, and more in demand than ever. You will not have failed to notice that since you've been in school, celebrities--actresses, singers, TV anchorwomen--have all turned into fashion experts. This is not just about fearing red carpet scrutiny. It's about these women realizing that they can look chic without compromising their professional seriousness or their mainstream appeal. A certain generation of actresses, for example--I'm thinking Meryl Streep, Jodie Foster, Diane Keaton, even Julia Roberts--became stars of great standing without ever venturing much past Armani; and even then, only on Oscar nights. To have asked them about the clothes hanging in their closets would have been inappropriate. (At that time, we had the supermodels to show us how to wear Versace.) The more recent crop of movie stars -- Nicole, Halle, Salma, Renee, --are completely different. Although they're every bit as serious about their careers, they are also serious about their wardrobes. And the two, as you might have suspected, are not unrelated. The truth is that stars use fashion as a commodity: carry a Vuitton Murakami bag to a premiere and you're going to be photographed. Of course, the funny thing is that models, who actually look better than anyone in clothes, these days wander around off-camera in Rogan jeans and Ugg boots.

All of this, by the way, is fantastic for fashion. The fact that actresses love clothes as never before means that more women than ever before will be inspired to take an interest in fashion, and maybe even to wear it. Just consider what Sarah Jessica Parker and Sex and the City have done for the fortunes of Manolo Blahnik and Dolce & Gabbana and Roberto Cavalli! Fashion is now a democratic business. After the recent Costume Institute Ball at the Metropolitan Museum, a few old society types grumbled to the press that the wrong sort of people were now allowed to buy tickets to the premier fundraising event on the New York calendar. I couldn't have been happier to hear about this. I believe that the vitality of the industry (and society at large, for that matter) depends on a constant flow of new faces and new ideas and new stars.

Which brings us back to the FIT graduating class of 2003. As I've suggested, you are part of a society that values design and style more than ever--and I'm not simply referring to new clothes. At Vogue, these days, we don't just cover the collections; we cover style in its many and ever-multiplying incarnations, from the man who designed your Nokia cellphone to the people responsible for those cool new Altoids. We ask questions about what it means to look great for women of different body types and of different ages. And we recognize that the fashion and beauty industries can empower women. In Afghanistan, for example, we're working with an organization called PARSA that trains beauticians. In addition to learning how to style hair and do manicures, women in the program, many of whom lost their husbands in the wars that ravaged the country for decades, will be learning how to run businesses and support their families.

Now I'm not suggesting that you board the next plane to Kabul or Baghdad, armed with a box of lipstick and ideas about how henna can change your life. The point I'm trying to make is that the revolution in consciousness about style that has taken place in the last few years--and which many of you will quite naturally take for granted--is very good news for you. It means that, although there may not be a hiring frenzy out there at this moment, there have, historically speaking, never been more opportunities for those who are determined and creative. If you do not succeed in landing the plum fashion design job that you've long dreamed of, with resourcefulness and self-belief and above all flexibility, you will succeed in the end.

Let me give you some examples. At Style.com, our fashion director is Candy Pratts Price, who some of you may know from her fabulous cameo in Unzipped. After attending FIT, Candy was hired as an assistant at a portrait studio, then worked as a model at Bergdorf Goodman, then became a display director doing windows at Charles Jourdan, then took over windows for Bloomingdales with a team of 105 under her. She's been a set designer for movies, gave Patricia Field her start as a wardrobe stylist, worked as the fashion director for Harper's Bazaar, and then I hired her to head up accessories at Vogue. She left Vogue to become a designer for Ralph Lauren, and now she's with us again at Style.com. Candy's career illustrates that that if you've got style, you can apply it in all sorts of ways. Candy's vision has never wavered; all that has changed is how she directs it.

Rebecca Moses--FIT class of '77--is another case in point. She started as a coats designer for Pierre Cardin; left to start her own brand, a life-style oriented cashmere line, which turned out to be a rollercoaster of commercial highs and lows; then fell in love, got married and moved to Italy, where she designed Genny, a label that was, by her own admission, completely different from her own aesthetic. Now she's the creative director of Pineider, a wonderful old and revered Italian stationery house, where she's very happy making wonderful wicker furniture and incredibly chic desk accessories. Moses told me, quote, "You can never be too broad in your search for challenges. Whether you do clothes or shoes or silverware, it’s all about channeling your creativity.”

By contrast, Michael Kors-another FIT star-always wanted to be a fashion designer and nothing else. When I was at New York magazine in the early Eighties, he would arrive fresh from the subway with garment bags of his designs. He struggled and struggled and struggled - and then he made it. Again, his style never changed; it just took a while for the rest of us to understand his idea of luxury.

Michael, by the way, was instrumental in launching the career of Lazaro Hernandez, one half of the brilliant new label Proenza Schouler. Lazaro was an intern for Michael, and his partner in Proenza, Jack McCollough, was an intern for Marc Jacobs. These young men are part of the next wave of New York fashion, and what I find so smart about them is their focus and their modesty. They don't stage expensive shows or try to do everything, all at once, on a newcomer's budget. Instead, they concentrate their energies on designing wonderful pieces that are becoming instantly recognizable as Proenza Schouler. This is the way to start: with clarity and purpose and flair.

When I was thinking about what to say to you, I decided to tap the brain of the number 1 FIT graduate I knew. I said to him, What should I say to these students that might actually be of use to them? He said, The most important thing is to have a vision.. It doesn't matter what you're doing, just so long as you have a point of view that's entirely your own. Calvin, I couldn't agree more. Congratulations, class of 2003.

The devil knows her Prada.

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Miss Couturable

Save the best for last

2009-05-25T12:15:00.001-04:00

I realize that I didn't post what I actually wore to senior prom this year (other than the dress). The photo of me in the previous post just reminded me.

The only jewelry I wore was a pair of Swarovski crystal drop earrings because the Vera Wang gown had a giant brooch on the shoulder sash. I paired it with a leather faux-crocodile clutch because I didn't want a bag that was as shiny as my dress. I wore four-inch stilettos, making me 5'5" for the night (until I took off my shoes for attempted dancing).

(Photo Credit -- Style.com)

Oh, and indeed, I did get my hair done -- I wanted a giant pouf with loose curls à la Anne Hathaway or Mary-Kate Olsen at the Met Ball. Now, Connie of EverybodyIsUgly prefers to keep her hair casual for formal events (a tip I generally follow because I'm terrible with hair), but I do believe there is a way to get your hair done for prom without, well, having "prom hair". It's simple: Bring in a photo of exactly what you want your hair to look like, ask (and keep repeating) for loose curls instead of springy debutante curls, and stay away from the glitter.
Indeed, my long dress gave me difficulties in getting into the car, which my daddy has on record through photos such as these.

What did you wear to prom? Did you have any wardrobe malfunctions?

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Miss Couturable