Fashion Week for the Every Girl, Part One

*This post is sponsored by Old Navy.
A few weeks ago I was asked to pitch an idea for a fashion week story. 'Fashion week for the every girl' rolled off my tongue and into an email faster than most ideas that I have. This surprised me two ways; that I thought of a pitch at all and so quickly, and that I was confident enough to not think it through before hitting 'send'. Perhaps this was in part due to the fact that most of the time my ideas are braver than I am and also, when I pitch an idea it usually gets tweaked by whomever I'm collaborating with. It's best I don't get tied down to an idea or stuck in a one-line story. Much to my surprise within a few minutes I get an email back saying 'perfect, let's go with this. You're headed to NYFW on behalf of Old Navy.' I blinked twice at the response and thought what have I just gotten myself into.
I've been to fashion week a few times -- well, let me rephrase that -- I've been to New York during fashion week a few times. Once for an in-store event and once for a conference I was on a panel for. No shows or parties, just being in the city during the time was enough for me to feel inspired. In fact, I've never seen myself as one to have a foot in the door of the world of high fashion. I am happy to consume what designers and artists create, happy to watch and see what others curate and style, and happy to be inspired by whatever I can from the fashion industry from street style to editorials to designers collections. As someone who loves personal style and helping others find their own, I've always found the other side of style (fashion) to be intimidating. Intimidation is a cruel but inspiring thing. One way or another I was jumping in because I had a non-refundable ticket to New York and a job to do. No one in their right mind would turn that opportunity down. Thankfully the first night was easy -- the Old Navy x Joe Zee launch party. Parties? Oh yes, parties I can do. I didn't go to college for nothing, did I? READ FULL POST »