Kara Manos, 21, from Chevy Chase, MD,  goes to Towson University with me and she is a Senior working on her Journalism and New Media major. She has her own blog and is an editor for College Magazine.

Manos on left

How did you find out about the Teen Vogue Fashion University?

 I found about about TV Fashion U through their magazine. I think it was advertised in a summer issue and it worked out because the application deadline was Aug. 1 so I got my application in on time.

What did u hv to do to get in?

The application consisted of questions like, what are your career aspirations? Where do you see yourself in 10 years? What’s your personal style? Who are you inspired by? etc. They also had [me] submit a couple photos and any sketches or anything fashion related we have done.

How helpful was this trip for you, wat did u learn about the most who else could be interested in this type of event?

The biggest thing I gained from this experience was networking. Meeting the right people and talking to the professionals who have made it to what I wanna be. The trip itself is also really inspiring as well. Just being there made me wants to not only [to] blog about it but work on my resume and send it out to employers. I haven’t even graduated yet. This event was definitely geared toward fashion students who want to break into the fashion industry, design, styling, etc. Also for journalism students, and even marketing and advertising, the business side of the magazine).

Who did u get to meet?

I got to meet Eric Daman, the head costume designer for Gossip Girl and now creative director for Charlotte Russe. Amy Astley, the editor in chief of Teen Vogue plus many editors for the magazine. Julia Frakes, for those who don’t know her she’s a very well-known blogger who now writes for Paper Magazine. And while I didn’t formally meet Diane Von Furstenberg, I’d like to say I basically did because I listened to her speak but she being in her presence was cool enough.

Did u make new friends? maybe a roomate?

Yes! I actually went up to the event with my friend from home because we both applied but I definitely made a lot of new “fashion blogger” friendships. My friend and I stayed at The Carlton.. we were like 10 blocks from Times Square.

Just for kicks, how would you describe you style?

My personal style is really hard to describe because I feel like I can get into these moods where I’m super glam one day and then the next you’ll see me in very polished outfits. I’d like to stay I’m very classic with some type of twist. My style icon is Audrey Hepburn, but I’m really loving this new glam rock with the studs and everything! You will definitely see me taking more fashion risks.

Anyway,  I just wanted to bring to your attention this article I found by Imran Amed on BOF. It just goes to show how important fashion bloggers are. Style Bubble was even mentioned here and I actually follow her. Of course little Style Rookie was mentioned. How good would it feel if someone said that fashion bloggers bring fashion to the masses? Cuz he totally did.

A tip was even given to IFBs. “We should work as professionals, maintain good relatinships and work with integrity if we want to be taken seriously.” I shouldn’t have to mention or remind you to keep your voice in your work and give honest opinions because that is just what we do.

What made you make jewelry?

“Actually, I design sneakers. I create one of a kind rhinestone sneakers for my hip hop shows. I also design for close friends and aquaintences.”

Why do you enjoy it?

” I enjoy creating these one-of-a-kind sneakers because I love sneakers. As a woman, I would like to be the only woman with this style shoe. Realistically, it is very expensive to obtain one of a kind anything, so I buy my favorite sneakers, and I jewel each pair to be one of a kind. I love the idea having the exclusive sneaker.”

What inspires your ideas?

“Bling, ice, and very glamorous objects. Something exquisite or absolutely stunning.”

What do you say to students pursuing fashion?

“Don’t quit your day job.  ”Fashion is a very tough and competitive field to flurish in and it can be very “cut throat”. However, if you set your goals and don’t lose the passion and the drive for fashion, you can get there. It will take a huge commitment: hard work, dedication and passion. It’s just like Al Sharpten said recently,” you only get back what you deposit”.”

Abigail Lorick is currently looking for interns who are available four days a week, for at least a three month commitment. Basically a semester. She is the designer for Gossip Girl’s Eleanor Waldorf.

You need to be hands-on and of course interested in fashion as you’ll be working on everything from design to shipping. And a positive, yet serious attitude will get you far.

Update your resume and don’t forget to leave your personality in your cover letter and send it to info@loricknewyork.com.

Morgyn Curtis, Jennifer Guzman and Danielle Zuckerman all contribute to the fashion world from different angles. Curtis the enlightened designer, Guzman the sophisticated painter and Zuckerman the fresh co-owner of Stella Accessories all share one thing, a deep appreciation for expression.

22-year-old Curtis graduated from Baltimore City Community College and is currently waiting for confirmation from Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. Born and raised in Baltimore City Curtis thought she wanted to study business until the sewing machine found her.

“ I always liked making things and art and drawing but I never thought to do fashion until I found out that my school had a fashion program.”

She signed up for “Basic Sewing 101″ to get out of what she calls boring classes that were killing her. After learning every technique there is to know, she said she can make anything now.

“What really makes my heart beat about fashion is having someone put on something [I] made … and their body glows,” she said “[I] just made that person feel so beautiful, like every women should feel.”

She has made pieces for children and women, from gowns to swim wear. Although she hasn’t found her main inspiration she said school inspires her to keep her moving. For now, she’ll make herself a cute sweater for the chilly winter days before sending her portfolio to New York.

“Never let no one tell you you can’t do it. Stay true to you and know in your heart, mind, body and soul that you are in this for you.”  Her appreciation to express her style and make people beautiful is like gold to Curtis and is looking forward to her future.

This 21-year-old Dominican artist attends Maryland Institute College of Art and is working on her thesis for her last year. She started off with Crayola crayons in her pink purse waiting for the opportunity to make a picture, then her dream come true was to attend MICA and now wants to do fashion illustration.

“ It’s not necessarily about depicting exactly what an apparel item looks like, but more the texture, color and the mood that it carries for the figure, the image, ” she said.

She doesn’t feel like she needs a specific style because she is working on being a well-rounded artist and this is why she chose illustration, because she just loves to create. Illustration can open many doors and she said she loves the freedom to have many opportunities, although it can be overwhelming to have such freedom.

” The ultimate goal, with this pursuit of fashion illustration would be to one day be a clothing designer. It’ s very nice to be able to let myself wonder in to any area of fashion I’d like, ” she said. 

In her journey in finding what she wants has been quite easy because she loves what she is doing. Her basement is full of oil painting, self portraits, portraits of her family and charcoal pieces since high school.

” The number one thing to get you anywhere is your drive and perseverance. Simply do what you like doing. What is the point if you’re not happy?” said Guzman.

This 21-year-old Danielle Zuckerman and three other friends made headbands one rainy summer day and frequently finds herself in shock when a celebrity wears her accessories. Based out of New York, Zuckerman is now co-owner of what is now Stella Accessories.

“We call each other screaming and all run home with the magazine or the picture so we can get excited together,” said Zuckerman.

These all American girls have the best relationship, since June 2008,  for sharing one business. Their different styles are put together for their accessories and the best outcome emerges. So good that Jessica Alba and the ladies from  Gossip Girl are wearing them.

” We started off small with flea markets around the city and at our schools, then slowly but surely we built up a website and started pitching to different publications.  Before we knew it, Stella Accessories was a well-known hair accessory brand, ” she said.

Because of their success and wide range of inspiration, the team is hoping to launch other accessory lines like headbands for children and jewelry. Although this career path took them by surprise, she said they couldn’t be happier.

” One thing I’ve learned from this experience, as cliché as it may sound, is that you really can do anything, ” she said ” it may seem impossible, but that’s what we thought in the beginning also.”

For these three fashion lovers it seems like nothing will stop them from reaching their goals. It doesn’t matter how hard it can get now, they’re looking at the bigger picture.

Remember I told you I would try to get a Q & A in the future? Here’s what you’ve been waiting for.

Stella Accessories

What are your ages and where are you all from?

There are four of us who are co-owners of Stella Accessories.  Me (Danielle Zuckerman), Taylor Sugrue, Alexia Panza and Samantha Vigorito.  We are each 21 years old.  Taylor and I are long-time friends from Manalapan, NJ.  Alexia is from Fort Lauderdale, FL and Samantha is from Monroe, CT.

Could you tell me how this really came about? Maybe mention something that’s not in your “About Us”.

 We are all students at fashion schools in NYC.  I go to FIT and the other three girls go to Laboratory Institute of Merchandising.  We moved in together June 2008 and clicked right away.  Two months later we were just looking for something to do on a rainy, summer day.  Someone suggested making headbands. 

We went to the garment district and bought some stuff and then just started designing headbands for the fun of it.  We started wearing them to school all the time and got really positive feedback from our classmates.  Peers started asking us if we could make them one and they would buy it from us. 

We were sitting there and someone literally said “imagine if we started a business doing this,” and then we did.  It really helped that we all have such ambitious attitudes.  We started off small with flea markets around the city and at our schools, and then slowly but surely we built up a website and started pitching to different publications.  Before we knew it, Stella Accessories was a well-known hair accessory brand.

What do you plan to do in the future with the accessories?

In the future, we plan to venture out to different accessories.  We would love to start designing jewelry and we also want to make a children’s line for the headbands.

What inspires your ideas?

In terms of our inspiration, we really get it EVERYWHERE.  In the beginning, we used a lot of one-of-a-kind pieces of our grandmothers’ and mothers’ vintage jewelry.  We still try to incorporate those things into whatever designs we can because not only are they important to us, but they are so much cooler than a lot of the jewelry out there today. 

We also get inspiration from just living in the city and seeing all of the diverse people around us.  Everyone in NYC really has their own styles and we definitely take that into account when designing our pieces.  The four of us are also very different in terms of our personal styles; by taking little pieces of each of our personal styles, we come up with designs that incorporate so many different looks.  That’s what is so much fun about having four people design one piece.

What do you say to students pursuing fashion?

The one piece of advice we always give is to DO IT.  We never thought we would be in this position today.  When I say we created this brand on a whim, we did.  One day we just took an idea and some ambition and went with it, and look where it got us. 

One thing I’ve learned from this experience, as cliche as it may sound, is that you really can do anything.  Of course it took countless all-nighters and a lot of stress at times, but seeing your design in Teen Vogue or on Jessica Alba’s hair makes it worth it.  If there are any students out there reading this that are trying to pursue something like this, you should definitely go for it.  It may seem impossible, but that’s what we thought in the beginning also.
What were your original plans for career ideas?

It’s funny because none of us had an accessory brand in our plans for careers.  I am really interested in advertising copywriting, Alexia is all about public relations, Samantha wants to work in the fashion industry and Taylor is going to go to graduate school for economics.  As you can probably see, we all had different plans for our future but this all just took us by surprise and we couldn’t be happier about it.

What was the journey like to get this far?

I will not lie, the journey was definitely hard, but definitely worth it.  As I said earlier, we pulled a bunch of all-nighters to complete things on time.  With each of us working or having internships, being in school full-time and owning our own brand, it got stressful.  It was a huge help throughout this whole experience that we had each other.  When one of us would be stressing out, we had the other three girls to calm us down. 

The four of us do balance each other out very well and that is how we got through some of the stress of starting our own business.  At times, we just needed to remind each other and ourselves that the outcome is worth every second spent working hard.  So with a little help from each other and a lot of Red Bull, we got to where we are.  When you have such a strong passion for something, nothing can stop you; I think that’s how we all felt about it.

I couldn’t agree more, what was your reaction to getting so much attention with celebrities wearing you work?

When we see our designs in a magazine or on a celebrity, we still freak out!  We call each other screaming and all run home with the magazine or the picture so we can get excited together.  We were so excited the first time we saw Jessica Alba wearing one of our headbands; it was unreal.  We were flipping through the channels one day and saw our headband on Gossip Girl. 

It is really hard to explain the feeling you get when you see your designs in an environment outside of where you made it.  I still get so excited if I see someone at school wearing one of our pieces, let alone the celebrities.  It’s almost surreal; sometimes we have to stop for a minute and say “wait a minute, that is OUR headband!”  Seeing our pieces on celebrities and in such well-known magazines and newspapers has probably been one of the best feelings we have ever had.

Morgyn Curtis

In your own words, describe what fashion design is?

A fashion designer is a person that can bring out the inner beauty in someone with just an idea…a lot of people in this world are self conscious. We as fashion designers are able the help people feel beautiful through their clothes. Someone with a vision that can create anything with a needle and  thread.

What do you plan to do with it?

Really I plan to make money. Lots of it. In the mean time while I’m not making money from it, all I want to do is make people look wonderful, look like they always wanted, not through any changes but [through] their clothes.

Why do you enjoy being a designer?

This is going be a funny answer, but I love being a designer because I get to tell people what to wear and how to wear it. It’s so fun being able to tell people what to do. I [also] love it because people come to me and ask me what looks good, I love it. What really makes me happy, what really makes my heart beat about fashion is having someone put on something [I] made … and their body glows. Their eyes light up and [I] just can feel it in [my] heart that [I] just made that person feel so beautiful, like every women should feel.

Why did you choose to do fashion design?

I really didn’t choose to do fashion. I just kind of fell in it. I was taking classes in business and I hated it. I was so bored it was killing me. I always liked making things and art and drawing but I never thought to do fashion until I found out that my school had a fashion program. Up till then, I just made stuff for the hell of it. [I] never thought I could do it for real so I really just did it to get out of business.  I started to like it, then I loved it, and now I live it. So like i said, it kind of found me.

What do you say to young fashion students studying design? 
 
That’s a hard one. Never let no one tell you you can’t do it. I know that sounds corny as hell but in fashion, you have to have a mind of your own. You can’t walk into it with one idea and one passion and let someone change it. The fashion world is full of haters and they are set out to be the best. All I can really say is stay true to you and know in your heart, mind, body and soul that you are in this for you. Know that you are the best and only the best.

What is your current project?

Nothing. I just bought fabric to make a sweater for myself for the winter time.

Have you ever been in a store and there was a nice T-shirt you liked, but it was $10 more expensive and only $1.50 went to the charity it was linked to? TOMS shoes is the best example for this. People didn’t believe in Blake Mycoskie’s vision when they heard he wanted to give shoes away, for free.

He depends totally on the generosity of people.

How can you make a business on giving shoes away? Mycoskie, the creator of  TOMS shoes, thought of this genius idea when vacationing in Argentina when he met some social workers.

He was invited to see what they were up to and found that this group was giving shoes away, but they were used and noticed they did not fit properly. This is when the magic happened. He created this successful business because the matter was important to him.

It touched him so much that  later that year McCoskie returned to Argentina with friends, family and staff from TOMS and gave away 10, 000 pairs of shoes.

It was only possible because of TOMS caring customers.

 Reed McCoy, a student at the University of Minnesota, bought a pair of TOMS shoes for himself, his mother and his little sisters.

He heard about TOMS shoes from someone who was wearing a pair and told him about the “One-For-One” movement. He was so touched, that he bought a pair for himself and his family. He got the brown suede leather patch Cordones and wears them with anything.

“I wear them with whatever, I want the leather Cordones–they look pretty fly. My style is not having style,” said McCoy. 

It’s true when they say young people are the ones who make the most difference. Not only did the youth participate at the Equal Rights March this month, but aren’t afraid to wear TOMS shoes as a statement.

Whether it’s a statement of being humble or advertising to get more people in the “One-For-One” movement. It was a refreshing feeling to know that people are taking action in helping others who are less fortunate, while staying trendy.

 This girl was proud enough to wear her shoes at a march for equality. Ironically,  Mycoskie, is aspiring equality in many other countries by giving away free shoes to people who cannot afford one.

According to TOMS website, this international movement has given away over 150, 000 shoes and plan to reach 300, 000 shoes by the end of 2009.

In countries like Venezuela, it is hard to have a second pair of shoes do to so many circumstances. People walk without shoes disfiguring their feet and struggle with avoiding getting robbed for their new shoes in the city, Caracas. 

In a scene from the Venezuelan film, ”Secuestro Express,” a boy gets his shoes stolen at gun point, showing how much a pair of shoes is valued in the slums of Caracas.   

TOMS offers internships to people who want to help Blake Mycoskie help other children.

It was pretty much made of  these “ouchless” Goody brand headbands and decorative flowers.

Basically you choose a beautiful flower, cut at the base and glue it to the band. Be careful to not burn yourself like I did when I made this. I used a hot glue gun. I chose a purple flower because that’s my favi.

Stella Accessories has cute hair accessories and my favorite style is Willow. Hopefully we can hear from the creators soon with a Q&A.

I added more flowers later. Try it.

Anyway if someone can explain that, great. It is made of soda tabs and black yarn. The lining in satin and hand sewn by kayskraft’s. 

Soda tab purse. It's lined too.

I am so impressed on how well it’s made. I would totally buy this.