Take the Stares : A Westside Story

Welcome to the West Coast Stares Goers. It's now been a little over a month since my big move and I couldn't have imagined a more perfect place start a new chapter in. I'm learning so much, doing even more, and feeling even better.

California is truly a dream state. And even though I'm working a full time job now, I wake up everyday and feel like I'm on vacation. For the summer, I'm living in West LA. It's an area that's catered to a college campus and 15 minutes away from every main beach in Los Angeles. So as you can probably imagine, I'm at the beach on most of my days off. My food options are diverse and endless, even overwhelming to an extent. If you've been around LA before, I'd love to know some of your favorite spots you dined at! The only part of the LA environment that hasn't grown on me yet is the 24 hour traffic. I seriously do not understand where so many people are going at literally every hour of the day.

But the part that made me fall in love with LA at first sight is the fashion culture. When I watch people walking down the street, I always find myself inspired. People seem to hold such a sense pride in catering to the individuality in their style of dress vs imitating the style of others. And as I'm sure you can imagine, it brings an endless array of different outfits on the street every single day. It's very exciting. I had always imagined this is how New York would be. Except a lot colder.

AND. There are SO many stores here. I've been more than willing to give up on my restraint to shop. It's also given me the opportunity to set up some cool projects for you guys. I can't wait for you guys to see what The Stares has put up my sleeve this year.

I also wanted to take the time to share how my internship experience has been with Nordstrom. If you love being a business owner, and you love retail and the art of fashion, this is an experience I highly recommend. I've learned so much about this business, this company, and owning a retail business in such a short amount of time. Not only does the program give you hands on product knowledge and leadership experience, but they also give you the power to be in control of your paycheck. I found a company whose values align with my own, and that's so important when building a career somewhere. And when I say value, I'm not just talking about clothes. I'm talking about what the compnay stands for in the way it treats people - the customers, the employees, and its vendors. And most importantly, I've grown through this program. I've grown both personally and in my craft. It didn't just feel like another 9 - 5 I'm just sticking out for another paycheck. I wanted to be there, and I wanted to learn. I could see myself growing with this company for a very long time. This post is actually the highlights from a project they had the interns do this past week where we were required to style an outfit from our respective departments in the store (mine is Designer apparel). As you can see, fall/winter is already on the way!