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    Making It in Manhattan: The Beginner's Guide to Surviving & Thriving in the World of Fashion
    Making It in Manhattan: The Beginner's Guide to Surviving & Thriving in the World of Fashion
    Making It in Manhattan: The Beginner's Guide to Surviving & Thriving in the World of Fashion
    Ebook172 pages1 hour

    Making It in Manhattan: The Beginner's Guide to Surviving & Thriving in the World of Fashion

    By Caroline Vazzana

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    About this ebook

    From a modern-day Carrie Bradshaw comes an insider’s guide to making it in the fashion industry.

    From a young age, fashion editor, stylist, and writer Caroline Vazzana knew the fashion industry was where she belonged—but gaining access to the amazing and mysterious world of fashion in the city that never sleeps takes countless hours of hard work and dedication. After making it to some of fashion’s biggest publications, Caroline’s finally pulling back the curtain and telling us her secrets. In Making It in Manhattan, Caroline sheds a bit of light on her journey and guides fashion hopefuls to stand out from the crowd and land the job of their dreams.

    Written in conversational style, in a format reminiscent of a journal, complete with pictures and illustrations (and a little bit of name-dropping), Caroline shares what she’s learned about pursuing a career in fashion and the resources that helped her land jobs at Teen Vogue, Marie Claire, and InStyle magazines. Making It in Manhattan topics include:

  • Exploring your options
  • How to get that golden ticket (to fashion week)
  • What to do if you didn’t attend a big fashion school
  • Building your personal brand on social media
  • And more!

    • From how to get your foot in the door, to making fashion your full-time job, Caroline’s insider advice gives you everything you’ll need for breaking in and making it in Manhattan.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSkyhorse
    Release dateAug 7, 2018
    ISBN9781510732032
    Making It in Manhattan: The Beginner's Guide to Surviving & Thriving in the World of Fashion

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      Book preview

      Making It in Manhattan - Caroline Vazzana

      Introduction

      DEAR READER

      Take a front row seat as I guide you through the ins and outs of the fashion industry. From a very young age, I knew I was meant to work in a creative field. (Well, after I realized that being a princess wasn’t really an option.) Once I finally set my heart on fashion, I wanted to learn everything I could about the industry, from the many career paths, other than just a buyer or designer, to really mastering how to get your foot in the door. Today, this might seem pretty easy with social media and being able to look up everything on the Internet, but back then I didn’t have all of the resources available to us today, so I had to think outside the box.

      As I got older and learned more about the inner workings of the fashion industry (well, watched movies and TV shows about it), I wished and dreamed of what working in New York City and the world of fashion would be like. Unfortunately, though, life isn’t always like the movies (surprise, surprise), and landing an interview or ultimately your dream job won’t just be given to you by a magical fairy godmother—I’m looking at you, Cinderella.

      Gaining access to such an amazing and thrilling industry in the city that literally never sleeps takes countless hours of hard work and dedication. Here, I’m shedding some light on my story and pulling back the curtain on what seems to be a mysterious industry. Everyone has their own story as to how they found their calling and what prompted them to listen, but I believe it’s what you do during your own journey that truly matters and will ultimately lead you down the right path. My hope is that my journey will inspire you to follow your own calling of breaking into the fashion industry and making it in Manhattan.

      Chapter 1

      THE ART OF FASHION

      Growing up, I was surrounded by a family of doctors, so I was sort of the odd ball out. Now, I’m not saying this in a bad way at all! I mean, someone has to be the unicorn of the family, right? While my siblings focused on math and science projects during our childhood, I was usually in my room coloring pictures, cutting up old dresses I owned, and sewing them into different outfits. I never realized that people could actually make a career out of something so fun and creative, and it wasn’t until a few years had passed and many drawings later that I did.

      I’ll never forget the day I found out there was more to art than my stacks of coloring books and 64-count pack of crayons. I was ten years old and went to a private school where your skirt couldn’t rise above your knee and socks had to be folded over once (they actually checked). Though my school may not have seemed the most creative on the outside, the highlight of my entire week was my one-hour art class. Each week we were given something new to draw. In the particular class I’m referring to, we had to draw a cowboy. Since this was my favorite class, I often took too much time focusing on the little details of the picture and couldn’t finish in time. My art teacher, Mrs. Klein, gave me permission to work on my cowboy at home and bring it to her the next day. (My obsession with color and attention to detail started early, as you can tell.)

      My older sister and I both had a soccer game after school that day, so my mom picked us up and drove us over to the field, decked out in our shin guards and cleats. (So chic!) On the way to the game, though, I took out my picture and continued working on it. I remember thinking I did a great job and that my cowboy looked like Woody from Toy Story. (Who doesn’t love a classic?) The next day I happily arrived at school and put my picture under Mrs. Klein’s door, eager to hear what she thought.

      One week later when we finally had art class again, Mrs. Klein started out the period by walking around handing out our artwork, each with a grade on the back. I sat in my desk very content, knowing in my mind I probably did well. (The key to life is confidence.) When I got my picture back, though, all that was written on the reverse side was See me after class. Gulp! My heart started to quiver and my palms started to sweat. Oh no, did I do something wrong? Did she not like my work? Maybe I got detention! All of these and many more thoughts raced through my ten-year-old mind. Well, forty minutes later, a sweaty little nervous girl walked up to her teacher’s desk. I hesitantly asked, You wanted to see me? Voice trembling. Mrs. Klein looked at me with a warm smile and said, Oh yes, your picture is very good.

      I couldn’t believe it, was something I did actually that special that it needed this much attention? Mrs. Klein proceeded to tell me that my art skills were above those of someone my age and that I should look into taking after-school private art lessons with her if I’d be interested. My heart leapt with joy, I couldn’t believe it. But before I could give her a decision, I rushed home to ask my mom; I was only ten, after all. My mom was so proud and said I could, of course, do the lessons if I wanted to. From that moment on, my world revolved around art. My mom and I immediately went to Michael’s and bought a bright red painting smock, which I instantly splattered paint all over, of course, to make it unique. (I never liked to blend in with the pack.) Then, each week on Thursday I would rush to Mrs. Klein’s paint studio after school for an hour of what I would call heaven. From watercolors to acrylics to charcoal, she let me try everything.

      As time moved forward, I painted more and more, even winning a contest or two. I knew what my calling in life was: I had to be an artist. But in 2004, when I turned twelve, something changed, and I realized there was more I could do with my love of drawing and painting.

      Being surrounded by positive people who believe in you is the key to success. If it had not been for Mrs. Klein, I might never have found my love for art, and if my mom and dad had not encouraged me to pursue that love, who knows where I might be. Wherever you go in life and whatever you may be doing, make sure to surround yourself with people who want to see you succeed and reach your full potential as much as you do.

      2004 was the same year that popular TV show Project Runway came out, and every kid across America with a pair of scissors and a piece of fabric thought they could become a fashion designer, myself included. My love of fashion and clothing grew with every season until finally I got to college, where I could actually explore what it might be like to work as a designer. During my first semester, I signed up for my first sewing class, Fashion Design 101, or something like that, and as much as I tried to make myself like it, I hated it. It just wasn’t for me, but with this realization, I thought to myself, if you don’t want to be a fashion designer, what else could you do in the world of fashion?

      Sometimes in life you'll dream and wish and believe that something is meant for you. I have to be a fashion designer was what I used to tell myself, but it's important to always be open to other options. Life can often throw you an unexpected curveball but you have to be ready to knock it out of the park no matter what. As the saying goes, when life gives you lemons you must make lemonade, drink it, and move on--so I did!

      Chapter 2

      EXPLORE YOUR OPTIONS

      Once I realized that fashion design wasn’t my forte, I was at a fork in the road. My first option was to suck it up and somehow still become a designer, which wasn’t necessarily ideal. My second option was to pursue another career in the fashion industry. (As you can assume, I went with the second.) I didn’t know any better at the time, but as I eventually learned, there is so much more to the fashion industry than just becoming a designer or a buyer, which I (for some reason) originally thought were the only two career options. I set out with a goal in mind to learn what my other career options were—but how? I didn’t want to just read about them online, I wanted to experience them firsthand, so I decided I had to somehow land my first internship.

      When I was applying for my first internship back in the day, I didn't have all of the incredible resources we have today, like Ed2010.com, FreeFashionInternshops.com, Fashionista.com, as

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