Live from New York…

Tomorrow (Monday) starts the third week of my internship. My dad said I should be more specific in my blog about my job, so here it goes. The company is called Business Journals, Inc . They are a publication company that also organizes fashion trade shows, which is my department. The shows are Moda Manhattan (women), Accessories the Show (accessories), Fame (young contemporary), and MRket (men). Most of the designers that exhibit in the shows are found in boutiques or smaller specialty stores. Specifically I work for the guy in charge of the international accounts for each of the shows. What I do on a day to day basis changes (which I like), but basically I work with him on all international accounts. I have spent a lot of time researching the latest in fashion around the world, so it’s been interesting. My homework is to read fashion news, so my job is a perfect fit.

I am very thankful for my visitors. My dad came in for two days and my roommate from Knoxville came in for a long weekend. It was her first time in the city so I was the amateur tour guide/tourist (part tourist because I still take pictures in Times Square). We went down to Battery Park to look at the Statue of Liberty and walked by the World Trade Center Site. We went to see a musical on Broadway, had cheesecake, and went to the top of the Empire State Building one night to look at the lights. Before she left we took a walk across the Brooklyn Bridge which also gives an awesome view of the city. We had the most fun exploring. We walked around various parts of the city just to see what we could find. It was fun and it was free.

My blog has a new addition! I now have a photos page (at the top) that links to my photo albums on facebook. It is so much easier to upload pictures to facebook; uploading here is more time consuming. More stories (and more pictures!) to come.

-M

And so it begins.

After my first week on the job, I finally feel like I am getting in the swing of things in the city.

No more wearing heels on the way to work. The number of blisters were increasing each day, so my first purchase was a bigger purse from Filene’s Basement. Now I wear flats for my morning commute and carry the heels in my bag to change into at work. Maybe not always as stylish, but my feet are grateful.

Figuring out the subway has been easier than I thought (I haven’t gotten on the wrong train yet!), but still an interesting experience for a girl from the country. There are of course lots of people, lots of noise, and lots of action. The trains sound like thunder, and with several levels of trains, it’s like a thunder storm (wind included) all around. It starts with the distant rumble, then a light at the end of the tunnel, then the train speeds by and screeches to a halt at the platform. Those trying to get off are in the way of those trying to get on, so it’s chaotic at times. Work is one stop away for me on the D train and my apartment is a ten minute walk from the station, so it’s convenient.

My internship has been great so far. My favorite thing to do is look at samples from designers applying for the trade show. Last week we looked at a few purses from a designer with a crocodile farm (yikes!) in South America. The purses were made of crocodile skin and will likely retail for several hundred dollars (some over a thousand) and they were amazing. Amazing not because I want a crocodile bag, amazing because of the experience.

I have also made it a small mission of mine to see the Olsen twins this summer. Strange, I know, but their clothing line’s office is in the same building where I work. Apparently I missed Mary Kate on the elevator by about 5 minutes last week. There was a limo parked in front of my building for awhile today, but still no celebrity sightings for me.

On a slightly unfortunate note, I haven’t done much shopping yet (even though everything is so cute!) because West Village is expensive to the point that I am considering a fashion fast (kidding, of course). I guess window shopping can be fun sometimes.

I can’t believe I have only been here a week and have already seen so much. I look forward to writing more soon!

-M

My First Day

To be completely honest, I don’t really know where to start.

So I will start at the beginning.

I woke up at 7 a.m. (well, hit snooze at 7 a.m.) to allow myself plenty of time to get ready and commute to work. I was ready by 8:15 and looked outside to find rain. Since I packed only the necessities and what I could fit in the three suitcases, my umbrella didn’t make the trip. By the time I got to the subway my hair was frizzy from the drizzle. After I got off the subway, I got a free newspaper to use for an umbrella and walked into a Starbucks close to work. I walked into the bathroom to survey the damage the rain had done to my hair and noticed a black mark on my face. The ink from the wet newspaper had gotten on my hand and had since smudged on my face. I am at least thankful that I noticed it before going into work with my “inkstache.”

That rest of my day was much better. Everyone I work with is very friendly. I sit in a cubicle with a computer and phone, but I have a window! Through the window I can see into the building across the street where they are busy sewing clothes. A view of Central Park would have been outstanding, but at least I have a window.

I ate lunch with my new boss where we discussed everything from our families to fashion. He let me sit in on conference calls and attend a meeting with him. His office is around the corner from my cube but he messages me on Skype when he has something else for me to do. I ran around all day with a notepad so I could make notes on EVERYTHING, from what the business is about to what I had to say to the next person I had to call. So I made a few phone calls (to New York and Brazil?), sent an email to India, and scheduled a meeting with someone in Belgium. Or maybe that was Columbia. All in a day’s work in international fashion I suppose.

So I love my internship; it’s a dream come true. I’m sure I will love it even more once I get the hang of it, and when I get an umbrella.

-M

Soon to be an intern…

So I thought I should start my blog with an update of what’s been going on in my world.

I have been saving and researching for YEARS about internships in New York City. Since my freshman year of high school, I have wanted to be in New York. Probably not forever ( I would miss the smell of fresh cut grass, the lake, my dog and many other things way too much!), but just for a summer or something.

I began applying for internships in January like it was my job. From about 12 a.m.-2 a.m. every night I was researching companies and sending resumes. I had a few responses and did a couple phone interviews, but I wasn’t sure anything would come out of it.

To make a really long story short, I went to New York and scheduled four interviews in one day, all of which were about two hours apart. (Thank goodness for flats! I wore flats as I rushed around the city and switched to my heels right before each interview.) I knew going in that regardless of the outcome, the interviews would be a great experience. I felt like I was in a fairy tale all day. And I wasn’t even nervous about interviewing after the second one.

So I got an internship. I am moving to New York May 25 and I am very excited! Thoreau said “Our truest life is when we are in dreams awake”, and I have reached one of my dreams.

And I am still working on the blogging thing. Hopefully my next entry will be sooner rather than later.

-M