It's finally starting to cool down here in New England, which is awesome because sweaters and boots are coming back! I'm so sad that September is already winding down but it reminded me that it's still back-to-school season. In honor of that, I'm dedicating this post to my personal college experience and a tip that might help those who are unsure if they want to pursue a fashion degree.


Let's start with some background.

From a young age, I knew I loved fashion. I wanted a glamorous career. Mind you, this was 12-year old Jenn's ambitious thoughts. As I got older and I was about to graduate high school, many of my teachers asked me if it was wise to study such a specialized field like Fashion Merchandising rather than a broader field like Business. Truthfully, I was so stubborn and set in my ways that I went ahead and entered a school known for its fashion program.


The four years I spent there were great. I learned a lot about the fashion industry. I did many presentations covering fashion history, sustainability, economics, whatever. I participated in fashion shows. I learned how to draw flats and design clothes. Photoshop. Fashion photography. Everything was exciting and fun. I gained a lot of experience as a result. However, so did my friends. Those who went to bigger universities to study Business or Marketing landed amazing jobs as well. I realized by the end that it was not about what I studied but how I used that knowledge to my advantage. It was upsetting because I finally understood how limiting a specialized major can be, especially if you decide you want to do something else by the end.

So here I am now, going back to grad school to get a degree in Communications.

My lesson and tip to you isn't that all specialized majors are bad. However, as a high school student or even a college freshmen, research, research, research. Talk to someone you know who has majored in the field you're interested in. Get their opinion about how beneficial the degree actually is. Talk to some professors from various departments and listen to their personal life story...how did they get to where they are now? The more you know, the better off you are to make a good decision. Because let's face it...college isn't cheap. I wish I had done this when I was in high school but I was too busy focused on my own agenda. So if you decide you do want to pursue a fashion career and you want a fashion degree, make sure you are absolutely passionate about it.


I hope that was helpful to some of you. If not, pass the tip along to someone you know who might need the advice! Let me know what college/university tips you have down below!



Bye for now,
Jenn

Greetings to all! Fingers crossed that you guys are having an awesome Monday because I definitely am!

I know I haven't written anything in like two weeks and I assure you, I weep tears on the inside because of how busy I am. Luckily, I have a few hours to spare today so I'll be putting some posts scheduled for this week :)

As the title suggests, today I will share this article about H&M that I recently found on Styleite.com. You can read about it right here!

H&M has this big project going on that involves opening a chain of retail stores called "& Other Stories" in select European cities. Basically, rather than selling clothing, which they're most known for, these & Other Stories stores will concentrate on the accessories, beauty, and lingerie bits of a woman's wardrobe.

So, needless to say, these stores are going to be targeted at women.

The whole concept behind this chain is about bringing everything a woman can wear into one place because H&M believes that those accessories, beauty items, and lingerie are just as important in an outfit as the clothes. Makes sense.

The chain will launch Spring 2013 so if you're somewhere in Europe, lucky you!

I personally wish they'd bring it over here to America so I can satisfy my curiosity as to what H&M is going to do with these & Other Stories stores.

What do you guys think??

~Jenn

As a lot of you guys know, I returned to college this week (blah!) and was inspired by my Visual Merchandising class to do this post.

Prior to this, I never paid much attention to window displays and who was the brains behind the whole process but if you think about it, it's quite fascinating. For higher end stores, visual merchandisers can afford to play around a little more and let their creative noggins loose. However, if you're taking a stroll around the mall, many window displays are kept simple and usually a bit boring.

But do they do a good job of getting you to come into the store, regardless of their simplicity?

Here are a few pictures I took today for a project. Which one stands out the most to you? Can you recognize the store even without the name?








Let me know what you think down below! Have a great rest of the week :)

~Jenn

EDIT: Hello all! As promised (sort of), I'm going to post the names of the stores if you haven't already guessed.

1. Bath and Body Works
2. Champs
3. Club Monaco
4. Gap Baby
5. Louis Vuitton
6. Pottery Barn Kids
7. PB Teen

H&M revealed that their new face for the fall campaign is Lana Del Rey!

Nylonmag only shows a couple of pictures of her sporting a mohair sweater and skinny jeans, both in a lovely peach color. Her hair has a bee-hive-esque look with the extra volume at the crown but is worn down.

Full article.

The images are supposed to scream "L.A. noir", according to Donald Schneider, the creative director. Along with this, Lana will be releasing a version of "Blue Velvet" on H&M's Youtube channel so look out for that!

Other than the fact that I love H&M, the reason I even made this short post was to point out the mohair sweater. I have been dying for one because they look ridiculously soft and perfect for fall! Is it a trend? No idea but it could become a staple in my closet, paired with some classic skinny jeans and black flats. Super love.


Until next time,
{kissies}
~Jenn