Michelle O's Dress

I love how I refer to her on a first name basis as if we were friends. Narciso Rodriguez designed her election night dress--say what you want about it but I think she needs a break for once! As soon as I saw her walk out with him and their daughters, my eyes opened wide at the sight of her dress--I didn't think it was her best look. BUT, everyone just needs to back off and give her this one free pass. Yes she could have worn something way better but before Tuesday night, she was on the ball with her chic-yet-politics-appropriate outfits. She's the next Jackie O., that's the bottom line.

Plus, a fashionista is allowed to slip only once right? Err, I think...well just ONCE!...only because I like Michelle.

BARACK OBAMA IS THE PRESIDENT-ELECT

When did you ever think we would have a Black president in office? It was so weird to even think of, now that has changed. Barack Obama has now shattered through every racial boundary that has existed and in a major way he has opened the door for future potential presidential candidates of other races to have the opportunity to run. This is truly a watershed moment in American history and I'm so glad it occurred in my lifetime!

Last night exactly at 11 pm, I had just finished watching Real Housewives of Atlanta when my brother comes through my door uninvited and says Obama had just won. I kind of did get tired of following CNN so I switched to Bravo and had totally forgotten to switch back. My instant reaction was to yell at him and told him to get out of my room, but he looked real serious. I immediately turned to CNN to see he actually had been elected! Being the over-emotional person that I am because I strongly believe in "capturing the moment" I stayed up watching all the coverage and woke up this morning at 6:30 am for class. My sister, brother and I were so excited, I really still can't believe he will be president. I'm literally one who believes in making a big deal of life's simplest occurrences and how much more this historic event! Hours before Obama was announced as the president-elect, my sister and I were talking about how crazy it was that we had just voted a couple hours ago and within a short time after, history literally took place.

Yesterday was the first time my two sisters and I voted, along with my old, cute grandma. She literally speaks no word of English but she wanted to vote for Obama since she became a citizen not too long ago. Maria, my sister took her to the poll and actually helped her--it was the cutest thing ever! Watching the entire coverage, I literally shed SOME tears, I'm not too too emotional and I was fighting sleep to see him speak at Grant Park. When I heard John McCain concede to Obama, I honestly felt for him because he did express some lament. But, I think we all knew who had it in the bag. It also seemed like it was new years, cities around the country were being broadcasted...the whole world was watching! Hopefully everything we want to see change in will happen, not in "one year or even one term" but eventually.

ELECTION DAY!

Today is such an awesome day! I am sitting here on my bed watching CNN and they have just announced they cannot yet say who won Virginia's vote....aaahhhh! it's so nerve wrecking!

I literally just voted a couple hours ago and yes-it was my first time and I'm super excited to have been a part of such a historic election. Polls literally closed 37 minutes ago and I'm super anxious to find out the results! I guess I'm a little too excited because I'm in the DC area and I'm looking forward to attending the Inauguration, regardless who wins. One thing I'm so sure of is, who ever moves in the white house--we will definitely have a super stylish first lady. Something the nation has not seen since Jackie O.

It's time for a major change (not to imply Obama :)) not only in issues that affect all of us as Americans but this country needs a first lady in office who will break out of the typical Washington conservative look. Speaking of DC fashion, I absolutely HATE the conservative look-not to mention the navy and black suites many wear while wearing sneakers on the metro! Thanks to the Greater Washington Fashion Chamber of Commerce who is TRYING to create fashion awareness in the district, we have DC Fashion Week...but still it's not enough to make the area a fashion capital.

Why must everything I touch base on turn into fashion? Because EVERYTHING can somehow be related to fashion-yes, even politics. My eyeballs are literally stuck on CNN right now-we will just have to see who turns up the winner!

New York, NY

Wow...it's been a while since I paid a visit to my own blog to create a post. I've just been so busy with school and work and applying like crazy to magazines that its become so overwhelming leaving me with no time to keep up with this, but I'm trying!

I was in New York on the 3rd and being in the city was great, I absolutely loved it. Although those who know me, know my absolute favorite city is the city of angles, I have always had an infatuation with NYC. See, I love being in California specifically L.A. because of the environment and the scene and I just have so many great memories of the place that it has a special spot in my heart. I'm not a fan of the people though...everyone is going for the same thing, making it difficult to stand out and there's nothing but blond, skinny tanned chicks with over sized Channel shades (how predictable) around town. On the other hand, New York City has the coolest most different style compared to L.A. When I was there, I people watched more than anything. New Yorkers are so independent style-wise and are already wearing their trench coats, knee-high boots and thick sweaters-I love it! The weather was super cold compared to here though, which I totally went unprepared for.

I resorted to L.A. in the first place since I didn't get into FIT... blah blah blah, I left to Cali but I secretly always wanted to be in New York. I think I never voiced it simply because for some reason I always thought of it as something impossible to do, I mean going to school there is a million times more expensive and although it's only about 4 hours from here I just always thought of it as "oh maybe one day, I think, possibly, maybe, hopefully?? but who knows because I already have plans set in stone to move back to L.A." sort of thing. Being there again made every aspiration I ever had about being in design school in the city come back again, it was a nostalgic feeling. I think one day though, I'll probably become bi-coastal and have two fabulous places in both cities...who knows, lately it seems that everything I wish for has been coming true :)

Tom Ford For Prez tee

I finally found the only tee shirt I would ever wear...Romeo+Saint are the designers behind the tee that got everyone wondering how to get thier hands on one after watching Blaine from Project Runway wear it. Blaine, who co-designed the fabulous creation was one of my favorites before getting booted off :( I literally looked every where for the tee until somehow I came across it...check out thier site http://www.romeoandsaint.com/ to buy one. P.S. how hot is Tom Ford?!

30 Days of Fashion

It might be a little late because September is almost over but check out the following--its literally 30 days of fashion that includes giveaways, tips, events and insider blogs!

http://www.30daysoffashion.com/

Super cool opportunity

I LANDED AN INTERVIEW WITH CosmoGirl in NYC!!....How amazing is that?
For a very long time now I have been searching for internships, here and there. I have done my research and have emailed top magazines and even local ones from DC but nothing, no "thanks for applying but we're no longer in need of interns," nor "we received your resume and we'll contact you if you meet our needs" :(

I check my email daily, and its the first thing I do every morning, sometimes up to 5 times a day! So the other day I check my inbox to find a REPLY back from CosmoGirl and that was enough for me to die! I don't want to get ahead of myself but I'm beyond excited for an opportunity to even meet with them and have the chance to be considered for a fashion intern position :)....I'll be saying a prayer every single night until I leave to New York and hopefully I'll intern soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*sigh*... dreams come true, slowly but eventually!

NEW YORK FASHION WEEK IS HERE!

Ok--so while I'm not in the industry I'll probably never sit front row, but I love following what happens at the shows and being informed on Spring 2009 trends. New York Fashion Week is the Superbowl of fashion in the states along with Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in L.A. which happens in October....which by the way my fabulous friend and I want to volunteer for although it might be too late...but there's always early next year in February.


So far Diane von Furstenburg's collection is to die for. Ok, here's the schedule:

September 5-12, 2008
Day 1: BCBG Max Azria, Yigal Azrouel, Fashion Rocks
Day 2: Lacoste, Charlotte Ronson, Abaete, Rock & Republic
Day 3: DKNY, Herve Leger by Max Azria, DVF, William Rast
Day 4: Carolina Herrera, Proenza Schouler, Marc Jacobs
Today: Monique Lhuillier, Matthew Williamson, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Narciso Rodriguez
Tomorrow: Michael Kors, Oscar de la Renta, Marchesa
Thursday, Sept. 11: Vera Wang, J. Mendel, Calvin Klein, Zac Posen
Friday, Sept. 12: Project Runway, Ralph Lauren, Donna Karan, Badgley Mischka, Baby Phat

Getting into the tents for the shows is by invite only which sucks because all I can do for the moment is go online and see what's going on :(....ahhh, one day!

Fabulous Fall Must Haves

I was away on a mini vacay and just came back... while laying out getting a gorgeous tan I was thinking about how I couldn't wait for the weather to cool down a bit and have September roll around again. Although I like summer I must say that my favorite season is fall. I love the colors-- the reds, oranges, yellows and browns that are everywhere but most of all it's because of the clothes! From boots to sweaters to jackets and everything in between.

Plaid is in and tweed is back--these Badgley Mischka plaid trousers from the 2008 Fall line are super cute paired with a tight top to balance the loose fit....take it from me and you'll look great. I'm super excited about tweed being in this season...I love how a pair of thick tweed pants
can look with a turtle neck and a long black and white tweed trench can look with skinny jeans. Ahh, super pretty!

Less is more--Clean cut designs to architectural tailoring are setting the trend. Everyone from Doo. Ri to Yves Saint Laurent are showcasing the idea that the minimal design can speak loud and be ultra chic.

Nothing makes me feel more sexy and confident then a wearing a form fitting trench with a high collar and a pair of killer heels and this season expect to see the "superhero" look, which includes pieces like tough leather jackets like this Haider Ackermann and futuristic looking trends.

Things to remember for Fall '08:

1. Warm neutral colors (greys, browns, purples, beige etc.)

2.Skinny jeans

3. You must have tights!...I think I'll go shopping for some myself. Go for black, grey, burgundy and if you're daring enough try a yellowish-mustard color ( paired with a black sweater dress and flats--trust me, its super cute

4. Leggings....I'm not a fan of them unless I wear my flat knee-high suede boots with a long, lean top.

5.Scarves

6.Ankle boots

7.Jackets,trenches and sweaters for those super chilly days...check out Express plaid motorcycle jackets.

8.Dresses....who says you can't wear them in the fall?....Sweater dresses that is as long as they're thick enough to keep you warm, oh and turtle neck dresses too! You gotta love fall!!!!!!

9.Ripped up jeans...yes, they're in!

10.Vests

A Dropout's Life Story

First off, I would like to introduce myself....I'm Jessica Martinez, 21, live in Northern Virginia and I'm a fashion school drop out. I started blogging because I can't contain my passion for fashion-very cliché and corny I know, but every die hard aspiring fashionista has at least used the term once. On a serious note, I really began this to simply put my ideas out there and hopefully get people interested in what I have to say and most importantly to network with people who have a serious interest and dedication to anything related to fashion.

I'm someone who actually wants to get into the industry and design-not just someone who jumped on the fashion bandwagon. I can truly say that my earliest memories as a little girl was putting "shows" together (I would get my younger sister and cousin to model my moms dresses and shoes while I sat in the "front row"). I have memories of always wanting to be a part of the fashion industry and I have never lost sight of that. Long story short, I’ve always had big dreams and ambitions to pursue a fashion focused career, In 2005 I left for school in Los Angeles only to return not too long after because to be very honest, I couldn’t afford living downtown and tuition was crazy. I should’ve thought of that way before I left but I packed my life and left believing this was my only shot at actually making every dream reality.

I now attend George Mason University in Virginia and I’m majoring in Communication with a concentration in Journalism-very odd right?? I’m using what I’m doing now to my advantage, communication is not related to fashion design at all but after I graduate I plan to move back to California and pick up where I left off and possibly use my degree for a career in fashion journalism. I will eventually design, but at the moment I’m also trying to teach myself how to. Who says you can’t follow your crazy and out-of-touch with reality dreams? I’m a huge believer in doing anything you have to in order to get where you want to be, just pay your dues and never lose sight of what you want.