Exposed: Confessions of a Fashion Marketing Student

I love the exposure I have received the past two years of being a fashion marketing student...actually in a way all this exposure has me confused on what I actually want to be when I get into the industry.

Before coming to The Art Institute of Charlotte I had dreams of moving to Miami, Florida and opening a swimwear boutique with my swimsuit collection and brand. Now, after being exposed to so much, I want to be so much. Some days I want to be a creative director at an existing fashion magazine, or one that I've created. Other days I want to be a fashion stylist, visual merchandiser and even a fashion show coordinator. But in the end, I loved that I was exposed to writing a business plan, designing store layouts and window displays, re-launching fashion lines with new marketing strategies, blogging and designing fashion magazines.

Although at times I do not like my school, I love the teachers for exposing and believing in me!

The Perfect 10: DimePiece

The Perfect 10 clothing line is a lifestyle brand aimed to all the H.B.I.C., who make a positive impact and consistently turn heads. The line encourages women reconsider their role in the game, to be in control, and to appeal to an audience with genuine swag. The DimePiece

female is SEXY, and you know what she is all about through her dress.

The purpose is to make a statement. It translates to independence, swagger, boldness, and appeal.

DimePiece is a lifestyle brand that sells graphic t-shirts, bottoms, leggings, and hoodies/jackets.

These products are sold at 56 stores worldwide and can be purchased online at: https://shopcultist.3dcartstores.com/DimePiece_bymfg_7-1-1.html

To learn more about the designers behind DimePiece visit: http://www.dimepiecedesigns.com/PERFECT10/ (under PRESS)

Retro Rockstar: The M.A.C. Heatherette Collection

Good girl gone bad. Retro and Rockstar. “Fashion is like a disco ball, it’s like magic, it’s like a unicorn running through the forest,” stated Richie Rich.

Heatherette designers Richie Rich and Traver Rains have collaborated with M.A.C. Cosmetics to create the Heatherette Collection cosmetic line that is everything glamorous and over the top. If you like to stick to neutrals for eye makeup and lip color, this collection is not for you!

Sparkle like a rockstar with the new collection featuring, lipstick, lip glass, eye shadow, dual-edge eye pencils, glitter, pigment, beauty powder, nail laquer, and false eye lashes. All the products are cased in a hot pink compact with holographic foil decal featuring the Heatherette logo.

The Lipstick is priced at $35.00, which comes in:

• 1. Lollipop Loving (clean mid-tone coral with subtle green iridescence)

• 2. Fleshpot Light (satin neutral beige)

• 3. Hollywood Nights (satin clean fuchsia pink)

• 4. Melrose Mood (amplified clean pastel pink)

The Lip glass is priced at $34.00, which comes in:

• 1. Bonus Beat (sheer yellow beige with gold pearl)

• 2. Sock Hop (soft mid-tone coral)

• 3. Style Minx (clean fuchsia pink)

• 4. Starlet Kiss (clean pastel pink)

The Eye Shadow x3 (Limited Edition) is priced at $70.00. The first trio comes in:

• 1. Mood Ring (pastel mint green)

• 2. Cloud Burst (True black with subtle green pearl)

• 3. Hoppin’ (clean pastel peach)

The second trio comes in:

• 1. Baby Petals (pastel pink)

• 2. V.I.P. (clean mid-tone yellow pink)

• 3. Cassette (blackened eggplant purple)

The Dual-Edge Eye Pencil is priced at $35.00, which comes in:

• 1. Black Funk/Pop Blue (true black/turquoise with silver glitter)

• 2. Phone Me/Text Me (charcoal grey/metallic silver with silver glitter)

• 3. Nighthawk/Front Row (coffee brown/neutral peach with gold glitter)

• 4. FAB Orchid/Dash Lily (jewel-tone purple/mid-tone lavender with silver glitter)

The Glitter is priced at $29.00, which comes in:

• 1. Reflects Gold (translucent glitter with gold reflection)

• 2. 3D Silver (multi-reflective silver)

The Pigment is priced at $39.00, which comes in:

• 1. Jardin Ave (gilded peach with silver reflect )

• 2. Pink Pearl (mid-tone pink with blue reflection)

To learn more about the complete collection visit: http://beautyiq.adorebeauty.com.au/index.php?news=211

The M.A.C. Heatherette Collection is sold at M.A.C., Sephora, and the M.A.C. flagship Pro store.

Rock the Vote: Obama Style

Rock the Vote this year in the biggest Presidental Election to ever hit the USA. Show your Obama pride by rocking the OBEY OBAMA PROGRESS t-shirt. This t-shirt can be purchased at Urban Outfitters for $28.00 in either black or white. Beyonce has one, and I own one too!

Closet Insider: Top 5 Essential Items For Your Wardrobe

Five essential and fabulous fashion garments can be transformed easily into three different distinct looks that can be worn from work, evening, and weekend.

My Top 5 Wardrobe Essentials:
1. Solid Color Tank
2. Dark Blue Skinny Jeans
3. Solid Color Blouse with Ruffles
4. Printed Dresses
5. Black Pencil Skirt

This is how to make it work:

Work
Throw away the boring black blazer and pin stripe skirt suit…Bring some color into your work outfit. Just because work may be dull, doesn’t mean your wardrobe has to be. Take a simple black pencil skirt and pair it with a solid color ruffled blouse. To add more color to this ensemble pair it with different color shoes and a clutch that is a different color from your blouse. Depending on your style wear silver or gold jewelry.










Evening
Strike a pose for the camera (click click click). The evening is your time to shine, and you will never…I repeat NEVER go wrong with either a simple black mini dress or a dress with animal print. Take a animal print (cheetah) mini dress and pair it with gold or tan four inch heels and a black clutch with gold jewelry to accent the outfit. Now get ready for the paparazzi.




Weekend
The weekend for some is a time to relax, wear flats and kick back, but for others like myself, getting dressed up for the weekend is more important than getting dressed on the weekdays. Take a simple solid color tank top and pair it with dark blue skinny jeans (or even high-waisted jeans). To add more flavor to this outfit pair it with black/white stripped, peep toe 4 inch heels and a gold metallic tote. Keep all your jewelry black and simple, like a bangle and beaded necklace. For those who can’t deal with walking in heels on the weekends, switch the four inches for cute black gladiator sandals.


To get more of these looks featured and more visit the following stores or websites:
Wet Seal
Forever 21
Charlotte Russe
Steve Madden
AMI Clubwear
Bakers Shoes

Cool & Quiet: Fall 2008 Color Trends

Pale tones and Bright hues are the chosen color palette for this fall season…so move over black and grey, because this season is represented by the Cool and the Quiet.

The Cool:

Fiery corals, icy blues, and lemon lime yellows and greens inspired the bright color palette. Color combinations like these are not often seen for the autumn/fall seasons, but color forecasters have stepped out the box and took color for the usually dark seasons to another level.

The Quiet:

Dramatic purples and lavenders, sapphire blues, and pale Easters egg greens create the “quiet before the storm” color palette. Not only are these colors a big trend for the fall, but incorporating animal print into your outfit is as well. Whether it’s your shoes, clutch or belt, cheetah print can create a fierce and fun appeal to your outfit.

Mixing and Matching Spring and Fall Wardrobe:

Spring 2008 color palette featured deep purples and eggplants, rods of gold, and princess pink. Icy blues and pale greens were also a big color trend in the spring. For those on budget or who are looking to create more looks from existing clothes, but still want to be trendy for the fall can easily mix and match hues from both spring and fall. If you still have shades of purple, eggplants, gold, icy blue and greens from last season they will still be popular to wear for the fall season. Add a few new color hues from the Cool and Quiet palette and you will be runway ready.

For Those Who Can’t Leave Black Alone…this is for you!:

If you must always wear black and other neutral colors, but would love to add some color to your wardrobe, the easiest way to do this is to add color your handbag, belt, or even your shoes. It’s not to overpowering, but it’s classic and simple at the same time.

Sagging vs. America: Stereotypes

The Confederate Flag, racism. Middle-Eastern man with a turban, terrorist. These are all sterotypes that have shaped our nation into thinking negatively towards other ethnicities that have made the U.S. such a unigue country.

Just recently another formed image or opinion has been made about “sagging pants.”

Sagging pants as we know was popularized in the early 1990’s, which can be attributed to the hip hop culture and its artist. This saggin style is worn by blacks as well as a few white males. Ever since then the African Amercian man has been plagued by this stereotype. Thug, criminal, convict, and ignorant are just a few words that are associated with the stereostype of saggin pants.

“I was at work and someone that I work with came up to me and tried to act as if I was ignorant and had no college education because my gym shorts were saggin,” stated Renondo Wilson, a student at The Art Institute of Charlotte. Since it is mostly African American males that choose to wear saggin pants, some feel that it is racial profiling when some cities put a ban on saggin pants. Some councilmen and other government authority (mostly oldheads) feel that it is offensive to see young men saggin. Because this is primarliy worn by black males some feel like it is targeting black males as if “we” (black people) are not targeted enough. Of course we all know the orgin of saggin pants started in the jail system when they would take the immates belts away so they would hang themselves. It has since then carried over into the hip hop culture. Many rappers we see also sag, but is it really indescent exposure if you can not see the buttocks or the underwear? Is it really necessary to associate jail time and a fine with saggin pants? Studies show that when some of these same African American men go to college there is a lack of saggin, because these men mature and realize that they wanted to be apart of the fad. In essence sagging pants are just a fad, the same as bell bottoms and hot pants. In the words of King David “This too shall pass.”

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