Central Park in October November 2, 2009

Fall happens to be my favorite season, so I knew from the time I got here that I wanted to see Central Park while the leaves were changing colors. I heard from a native New Yorker that in the next week or so the leaves will have fallen off the trees, so I decided to head out on October 31st to take some pictures before the inevitable happens. It ended up being the perfect day to go because it was clear and about 58 degrees. Here are two of my favorite photos:

The Lake with Manhattan in the background

B-B-beautiful

Drum roll please… November 1, 2009

The much anticipated 2009 Halloween costume reveal:

Buddy the Elf! Don't worry, the cab was sitting at a red light. (I was sort of scared anyway though.) PS. My mom made the costume!

The movie Elf  took place in NYC so it was a lot of fun to be all decked out and spend Halloween in that very same city. I would say that about 50% of people knew who I was and were very excited about my costume. From the other 50% I got, “Luck o’ the Irish to ya!”, “Hey, Great Peter Pan. Really great.” , “Are you a gnome?”, “Are you a dwarf?”. These people obviously need to catch up on their cinema classics. C’mon.

The night started off on an interesting note when my friend Melinda and I decided we should go check out the New York Village Parade that goes down 6th avenue. Big mistake. Huge. There was an unbelievable amount of people on the side-walk. There were people pushing on us from every angle, and nobody was moving. It was actually sort of scary, which is why we saw a woman having a panic attack. I mean if I had dropped something I never would have been able to reach down and get it. If there was an emergency…I can’t even think about it! This picture doesn’t capture how terrifying it was. 

These were just the people on the side-walk. We couldn't even see the people in the actual parade.

So we quickly went back to my apartment to wait until we were leaving for the Halloween party at Gallery Bar. It was a lot of fun, and the people watching was pretty incredible. Favorite costume award?

She's a Lite Brite! Genius I tell you, genius.

The night wouldn’t be complete without the irony of my roommate getting clotheslined by a guy dressed as an American Gladiator. If I had been fast enough I would have taken his freaking baton thing and beat him with it because he seriously could have knocked her out. Not cool, Nitro. Not cool.

Sketchy. October 28, 2009

I’ve been told a couple of times now that I should have more hand sketches in my portfolio. Which is completely logical. If I were interviewing people, I would want to know the thought process behind their finished garments too. The main problem with this is that I only brought a few sketches with me to New York. I have a whole binder of sketches I did for my final line and other projects that are just hanging out in Seattle. 

As luck would have it, I happen to have some spare time on my hands here in NYC. Today I decided to take the first step towards changing my portfolio. I’m not sure if these will actually make it in my portfolio, but here’s what I’ve been working on. 

I took a photo of the sketches, so they're kind of blurry. My deepest apologies.

The photos are from Seattle Fashion Week, and I already have a page in my portfolio with these images. Now I just have to add the sketches to the opposite page.

Chelsea Piers October 28, 2009

*Supposedly* when a sunset is abnormally bright and colorful it’s caused by air pollution and smog. (Don’t ask me the details…I have no idea how it works). I don’t want to believe that because it sort of ruins the whole idea of it, so I’m just going to pretend it’s a myth and continue to call my brother a liar. 

Last night I went for a run at about 6:30pm and ended up at Chelsea Piers:

Visual!

I knew there was a running path that goes along the Hudson River, and since it was a clear night I thought I’d check it out. I was surprised to find this gem at the end of the pier:

The sky is on fiiirrrrrre

I took this picture with my phone! It has not been altered in Photoshop! Behold the power of nature (pollution, whatevs)!

PS. The run I was on went really well until I almost stepped on a rat that decided to bolt directly into my path. I had my headphones on, so I’m not quite sure exactly how loud I screamed.

Husky Bar! October 25, 2009

I have spent my 3rd consecutive Saturday with fellow UW alum’s in a magical little place called Rattle N Hum.  It is pretty amazing to be all they way across the United States and have all that Seattle energy in one room. (When 520 came on the screen people actually cheered.)

 

This was the best of the last 3 games since UW actually beat Arizona.

If you’re in the New York area and want to watch UW vs.UCLA on November 7th, Rattle N Hum is on 33rd and Madison. Check out their website here.

“Deposit slip”? I don’t know what you’re saying. October 24, 2009

Well. It’s been about a week since the last j.o.b. update. Obviously because I don’t have one yet. I’m still truckin’ along at my internship (and absolutely loving it), applying to various positions and hoping that a paycheck will make it’s way into my bank account soon. I do have two interviews at fashion-specific staffing agencies next week, as well as an interview for a non-design related position. The reason I’m excited for the non-design related interview is because the company is very reputable and somewhere that I would love to work…and put on a resume. Also because it would be a great way to have some dolla’ dolla’ bills, health insurance and let’s be honest – a way to feel important again (it’s amazing how a paycheck can make you feel like a real person). I was very hesitant at first to even go for the interview because the reasons I came to New York were to 1) Experience the city and 2) get a fashion-related position (in that order). But I feel like if this opportunity is good enough, I could still intern somewhere on Saturdays or something. At the very least I can sew in my spare time to get my creative fix!
I have a few friends who have been trying to get fashion-related positions here in NYC and their efforts are not being rewarded. One friend waited over the course of 5 weeks only to go in for the 2nd interview and have it last 6 minutes. SIX. I won’t go into details, but when I relayed what happened to my boyfriend he said if someone treated me the way my friend got treated he’d “find the interviewer, call her a B and punch her in the face”. (Dont worry, I wouldn’t date someone who would actually do that. He’s just being protective). Another one of my friends waited 4+ weeks only to find out she didn’t get the job (and from what I’ve heard about how the hiring process works here, 4 weeks is not long to have to wait). Do I think this means I won’t be able to find something? Absolutely not. I just don’t want said job to come a day late and a dollar short. youknowwhatImean? 

 

Did I just take the time to create this check in Illustrator? Uh yeah. What? It's New York - it's not like there are things to do on a Friday night.

PS. I don’t actually have Disney characters on my checks. I may have run out of those and purchased The Wizard of Oz. But don’t tell anyone important that.

Pro Run sightings! October 23, 2009

I have now seen two of the contestants still remaining on this season’s Project Runway walking the streets of NYC. I saw Nicolas a couple of weeks ago, and then today I saw Althea. I almost said “Hi” to Althea because for a split second I thought I actually knew her. I suppose that’s what happens when you only watch one TV show. Nicolas, Althea, Logan – we’re like the closest of BFF’s.

 

Boy. Someone needs a tan.

New Celebrity Crush? Jason Ritter y’all. October 21, 2009

Why? Because he’s adorable, nice…and because he talked to me. 
I had the pleasure of attending the after party for the premiere of “The Perfect Age of Rock and Roll” tonight. I won’t lie. I felt pretty cool. 
I was invited to the premiere of the movie and the after party by my friend Erin (check out her blog here). The venue (Norwood) was incredible, and the people watching was even better. 

 

This is one little nook of the place.

If you have cake, you pretty much win me over automatically. But add free beer and good company to the mix and I’m sold.

Cheap finds! October 20, 2009

Today I went to a fabulous little place called Lulu’s. It’s a bar/restaurant in Greenpoint (which is in Brooklyn) and get this. Monday-Friday from 6pm-3am, if you buy a drink you get a free pizza. An entire pizza. For free! Behold the magic for yourself:

 

Amazing.

And the beers aren’t even expensive. We’re talking $5 for a Stella. It was like being in Seattle, except I got a free freaking pizza. 

After I finished my pizza, and finally wrapped my mind around that fact that I didn’t have to pay for it, a couple of my peops and I walked around the little shops in Greenpoint (where I found the boots I’m going to buy the second I get a j.o.b.). We ended up at a restaurant called Tai Thai, where get this (again) you can get a glass of white wine, red wine, bud light or miller light for $2.50.  TWO. FIFTY. That’s half a latte! That’s a one-way subway ticket! You bet your bippy I’ll be going back there. 

PS. Lulu’s is located at 113 Franklin Street. From what I hear, Alligator lounge is owned by the same people, has the same awesome pizza deal and is located at 600 Metropolitan Ave. Check it out!

Saturday strollin’ October 17, 2009

I went on a run today to Mood. Mood Fabrics from Project Runway! How many people can say that they can run there? Okay, probably a whooole lot, but you know what I mean. To be honest, my “run” turned into a walk by the time I got to 34th street because it was so ridiculously congested with people.

visual!

Unfortunately, I failed to do my research before leaving my apartment and discovered that Mood had closed 20 minutes before I got there. Good thing I don’t have a job and can literally go back at any time in the next 5 days. (Preferably during business hours next time.)

This is where they hide Mood:

Sneaky disguise, Mood. Veeery sneaky.

The funny thing is that I was at this exact location last week for my internship and didn’t even know Mood was in the building. Probably because I was (understandably) distracted by the fact  that I had the *very* important task of transporting fabric.