Oh! How Studious You Are!

The first day back from France we went down to Central St Martins which is one of the most prestigious fashion colleges in the world and has graduated designers such as Stella McCartney, John Galliano, and Alexander McQueen. We got to walk around to different rooms and see collections from undergrad classes in fashion design, marketing and all of the design major have a minor in communication and have to make look books and business cards which I thought was great. The most amazing part is that we also got to see the graduate collections. To graduate in fashion design from central St Martins is an amazing feat because every year they reduce the class size by half to cut the program down to ten final students, hence why the graduating class from here is always so successful.

Then we headed down to Carnaby St which I have already talked about, but most of the class hadn't experienced yet. We also went to Liberty which is at the top of Carnaby street and is a very different type of department store. You would never even realize that it was a department store if you were walking by. It has five levels but we only made it through the first until we had to meet up with the group. I really want to go back though because the different departments were separated in a way that made them each feel intimate and warm.

Wednesday we were off to Oxford!!! First we made a pit stop by Blenheim Palace where many famous movies have been filmed. The grounds were beautiful and we got a quick tour of part of the castle but had to cut it short to make it on time to the lecture. The class we got to sit in was called the future of retailing and it was really interesting. The teachers were engaging and switched off lecturing so you don't fall asleep from hearing the same voice all class. I wore a "nerdy" little get-up with a blazer and my fake glasses and was taking notes like a mad person on my computer. Oxford was not quite as I expected. I thought everyone in this MBA class would come in suits or talk in a proper way, but it felt like being back in class at OSU. People still wore casual clothes and tennis shoes and a few students walked in late with coffee with out reprimand. I am so grateful I got to be a part of this because I am seriously considering going back to school to get my MBA. i wish we could have got to walk around and see more of the campus, but there was not enough time. But I did get to go to the school shop and get some souvenirs! On the way back Chelsea and I had a dance party on the bus... which is always a good time.

Birthday and Beaches

On Friday, my birthday, we took a train down to Nice which is in the South of France. The train was 5 hours but not to miserable as there was a very scenic countryside to stare at and daydream. Then on the way from our train to our hotel we heard, "Chelsea, Katy!" Much to our surprise it was a girl we went to Ohio State with (so crazy to see her on a random street in Nice). So we of course made plans to catch up later in the evening! Our hotel ended up being VERY small but everyone was very helpful and it was nice to have a room to ourselves! We then set out to find a good place for my birthday dinner. Sounds like an easy task, but when you're starving and I had a migraine and the street is lined with hundreds of restaurants to chose from this task can seem very daunting. We finally settled on a french restaurant that ended up being very expensive and not very good food.... Or at least not food we are used to..... I ordered the Shrimp tempura with squash mash. the shrimp came fried with their shells and heads completely on, eyeballs and everything, I couldnt bring myself to eat the heads as much as I tried and I believe I ended up offending our waiter and/or the chef. not a good experience :(

But the night did get better we met up with our friend we had ran into earlier and went out to a pub called waynes!! I wore a pink birthday sash and everyone was very interested in what it was for (because of the language barrier) and it even got me some free drinks! At one point in the night we were all doing the "buckeye bounce" (it is an OSU football tradition for those of you who are very confused right now) and got some very questioning looks but it was a good time. I also found out that I apparently look like the president of France's wife (I did google her maybe a little resemblance) which is not a bad thing when you are celebrating in France.... And I ended up having a very fun birthday in Nice!

Our second day in Nice was by far the most relaxing day of my time over seas... we slept in (didn't even have to set an alarm woo hoo!) then walked down to the beach and lounged all day. It was so nice to be at the beach, swim, and get some sun; I was getting a little pale with the London weather.... Then we had an amazing and carb filled dinner at La Favola!! Chelsea and I couldn't even decide on what to get so we split 2 dishes and then went back the next night and split 2 more!!! It was delicious!!!! Then we went back to our hotel, had some wine and gave our selves pedicures that were much needed.

Our last full day in Nice was basically a repeat of the second with some shopping added to the agenda! But after dinner was when it really became an adventure.... We set out to find a wine store that the guy working the front desk at the hotel told us about. On the way we stopped and had gelatto... the perfect end to our dinner. The wine shop was at the top of the street and beyond this point it turned into an alley that looked sort of like a ramp. We were in the mood to explore so we followed this alley all the way up and ran into an old church... We continued this hike up the hill of Nice (not an official name but sounded fitting) after many flights of stairs we reached some amazing panoramic views of the city and got some great pictures. Then we heard a waterfall, we had seen it from the beach earlier in the day and had been commenting on how high up it was. So we decided to make the climb up to see it when we heard loud whistles... a policeman approached us shortly after but spoke no english. We thought he was telling us a road was closed off or something of that sort so we pretended to leave and then continued our quest to the waterfall. On our way down it dawned on me that we had come through a gate to get to the top of this hill/mountain. We ran down to the gate and it was LOCKED!!!! We proceeded to run to all the other gates we had seen but no luck they were all locked!!! Chelsea was at one gate crying for people to help us.... one couple stopped and called the police but they never answered, apparently nothing bad happens on Sundays in France.... An old lady in an apartment up above heard us and sent us to the "yellow house" which was the park keeper. When we approached the house there was a huge German Shepherd outside the door... Chelsea was ready to leap on the car behind my and I slowly made my way to the door which was no help the "keepers" spoke barely any English and sent us down to a road in the opposite direction of where we had come from... Again the gate was locked!!! but this gate had a way around it, even though this way consisted of climbing around a concrete column that was almost the width of my wingspan that had spikes on both sides, not to mention the 20-30 foot straight down drop to the ground! I somehow made it around (and in a dress!) then held on to Chelsea with a death grip as she made her way over!!! It all seemed like a bad horror movie at the moment but we got out safely with some great pictures and have a story we will never forget. We walked the town after that in shock of the events that had just occurred and then had the wine (that had started this whole journey). The next morning we set back off for London (6hr train ride to the Paris metro to another 2 hr train ride) which was a very long day of travel. But we made it back safe and sound!!

I see London... I see France...

Soooo it has been awhile since I've gotten to blog but I'll start where I left off at the beginning of Paris. The trip was really easy and only took a little over 2 hours on the train. We immediately went on a bus tour around the city and got to see all the famous sites which was very nice but we were all very hungry by the end of it!! Our hotel was small, family owned and adorable. There were chandeliers in the waiting rooms and the rooms were cozy with light blue bathrooms and small but nice beds. After settling in we went in search for food which was very unsatisfying as everything was super expensive and nothing looked very appetizing. We finally chose a restaurant and were not very happy about it... but the day did get better after a little nap we walked in the correct direction.... towards all the food and nightlife and had wine and cheese and people watched (3 of my favorite things!)

On our second day in Paris we took a tour of the Opera house (where phantom of the Opera is based on) and it was amazing! The were grand stair cases made of marble, mirrors, and chandeliers everywhere!! Plus gorgeous painted ceilings and we got lucky enough to be able to sit in the auditorium and see where everyone in the old times sat and where the phantoms booth was. The seats were red velvet and there was a chandelier in the middle of the room that weighs 3 tons!!! It actually used to be lit by hand every night!!

From the Opera house we went over to Printemps (a major department store in France). They gave us an amazing tour.... we got to see the restaurant on the roof top that had a panoramic view of the city and they even had a special presentation set up for us with tea and little snacks (delicious). I couldn't even believe the speakers that presented had taken the time to sit down with us.... Cynthia Roussel, the head stylist of Printemps (she basically tells the company what the trends are going to be for the next season, they develop each season a year ahead of time) was first to speak. However my favorite was Aymerie de BECCO (questionable spelling, I am having a hard time reading my own hand writing) who is the Chief Buying Executive. He strategies how to keep the store turning over merchandise at the highest level possible. His main points were quality of the offer and Performance of the offer... I would go into detail of what this all means but I'm sure I find it much more interesting than most of you but if you want to know just ask!

After Printemps we decided to have a little picnic at the Eiffel Tour.... We had a bit of a detour trying to make it there and for the most part we were hungry and grouchy. But when we finally got there it ended up being a wonderful night with cheese, wine, bread and other little bits of food! At one point the Eiffel Tour started sparkling which was an amazing sight to see! We ate so much I actually said that I can never eat cheese again.... that only lasted about a day!

Day 3 in Paris was quite eventful.... The day started with a trip to the famous Chanel where Coco spent her last days, then the ritz where Princess Di was before her fatal car crash, and then a little concept store called Colette. From here the group split up and a few others and I took a scenic (monuments and also a very expensive fashion street) to the YSL- Pierre Berge collection at a little art museum. It displayed pieces from the 70's an 80's lines. We also picked up some souvenirs here!

This was also an amazing day because a girl from FIT stopped me in the street to take a picture of my outfit for her blog! (She was studying fashion in Paris)

After the foundation the day got really interesting!!! We were walking to take the metro and we heard bomb-like sounds and the police were shutting down the street to traffic.... Curious by nature Chelsea and I decided to walk towards the commotion and take pictures. there were smoke bombs going off, flashing lights, loud music, people rioting down the street; we even saw one lady curdle up on the ground with the paramedics around her. Then when we finally got to our under ground station the rioters were packed on the trains and flooding the station. Chelsea was a little freaked out to ride but we survived and made it to the CATACOMBS!!!

The catacombs are basically huge under ground graves where the French put the bones of people when they ran out of room in graveyards. The line was at least a block long but it was completely worth it! We had a little entertainment in line when a mini van trying to park backed into a mini-car numerous times and smashed the front of it! They didn't even leave a note (how rude)!! And plus the one-footed pigeon that had me distracted for quite some time trying to get a picture of it. Anyways.... the catacombs barely seemed real there were at least thousands of bodies in just the small part section off to tour and skulls were arranged on the walls in the shapes of hearts and crosses. Chelsea and I had to stop and take some "spooky" pictures and the make shadow puppets and take pictures of those!! It was a really good time for me and Chelsea can brag that she made it through!

Later on in day 3 we moved to our hostel which was the best one I had ever stayed at!! It was on a canal, had a full bar downstairs, the beds even had little curtains so everyone had there own space!! We walked the canal and found a really cute restaurant to eat at and i had to get apple pie for my birthday (which was the next day). When we got back from dinner we went to the bar and had some drinks, we had the most delicious margarita martini ever!! The bartender even did some magic and made the straws stick to the outside of the glasses... Then, of course they embarrassed me and put on he birthday song at midnight and a nice couple from Texas bought me a flaming green shot.... all in all it was a very full but fun day!

My major impression of Paris is that it could've been more fun had we had more time to sightsee and that it is very dirty and smelly and dogs poop and pee as they please.... Everywhere!!! But it was an experience and made me really appreciate the cleanliness of London!

Prudence Millinery

First of all today we had of group street style presentations! Our group had the Mod tribe (hence the research on Carnaby Street). I think that the presentation went really well; the information Chelsea and I gathered from the retailers on Carnaby was more than we could have asked for! And not to mention we all tried to dress up like Mods, Chelsea had my favorite outfit as a tribute to Twiggy with a mini-skirt and her new gorgeous patent-apricot pumps!!

After the presentation we headed down to Prudence Millinery. The shop wasn't what you would expect from a designer who makes couture hats for some of the worlds' most reputable designers and has been featured on the cover of Vogue Italia numerous times. It was a tiny room with a design table and 3 chairs, one for her and two for the students helping out at the time. Prudence was one of the most alive people I have encountered in my life; she talked a million miles an hour and when asked where she gets her inspiration from she responded, "I don't know I just am". She later came up with some ways that she has been inspired after talking to her husband Sam who is just as fantastic as she is, Sam handles the business side of their duo.

For Vivienne Westwood's husband, Andreas

Vivienne Westwood runway show

Prudence is also one of the only Milliners (hat makers) left that makes all of her frames by hand. She uses vintage tools, barely any of them even use electricity, to create these unique forms and when she needs to replicate them many times she sends the canvas forms to be made into wood. She told us that there are only about four people left in the world who make the blocks by hand now. She also has a much harder time finding quality materials these days and often uses left over fabric from collections she has done in the past; she showed us one that was made of pineapple fiber! The intricacies of her hats can barely be reviled in the world of manufactured hats today, she called these people "hat makers" not true milliners. Most of her apprentices pay to work for her for three weeks, she says after that people become too comfortable and take her for granted. I don't understand how people could do this after seeing the unique and beautiful designs she has created in the past and is still creating today.

Some of her most notable works that we saw today were all the new collections for Vivienne Westwood, some of the hats in the Sex in the City movies and the covers for Vogue. The most interesting advice she gave us was, "never to look at what is in the stores today, because that has already been done." She actually said she never buys Vogue or any magazine of the sort unless she is in it and needs a clipping because then you start to second guess yourself. I keep thinking this trip can't get any better but if we keep meeting people like Prudence then it has no where to go but up.

Carnaby Street Feast

To do a little hand-on research for our Street Style projects we head down to Carnaby Street were the MOD movement flourished. This area still carters to the Mod scene today with shops like Ben Sherman, Merc, Lambretta, and a more vintage shop called the Face. This Mod movement really did a lot for men's dress and Chelsea and I are trying to bring back some things that may catch on back in the States, yes Aaron if you ever read this that means for you. After talking to some fascinating people that either lived through the revival of the Mods in the early 1980's or young workers who were just very knowledgeable about the history of the tribe, we decided to stop and eat at a place called The Diner.

The Diner was amazing and we had a feast!!! We both had chicken burritos (had to because of the Mexican food withdrawals we are suffering), and split the baked macaroni and cheese and diner fries both of which were incredible! The atmosphere was also very intriguing with decor being more mod and the staff seemed a mix of punk, mod, or a combination of those two style tribes. All in all besides being very slow to get seated this was a very good pick for some girls craving comfort food.

Not having anything relevant to do with Carnaby Street..... Later on that night Chelsea and I ran out of bottled water, not wanting to drink the tap in a foreign county or walk to the store at 11 pm, I told her to just boil some water and we would cool it off in the fridge. She gave me a look and said,"that seems a little old country," or something along those lines. I have encountered an electric kettle before which boils a good amount of water fairly quickly and assumed Chelsea had too. However, I learned that was not the case when I walked into the kitchen five minutes later and she was boiling water in our pot (that maybe holds two cups) instead of the electric kettle. We both got a good laugh once I explained what I had meant when I said boil water. Oh how I wish I had a video or picture at least of that one....

Electric Dreams of Platform 9 3/4

Pregame outfit

This Friday night we went down to a

night club near the London Stone that has a punk tribute night called Electric Dreams. It was not what I expected, it turned out even better. Not too many people were dressed-up to the extreme exc

ept for our very own Cydney and Laney (sorry girls if those are spelt wrong) and a man wear a really cool orange and white checked jacket. The music was up-beat 80's and there was a bubble machine for the dance floor! Not to mention we had a great crew including Chelsea's sister Laurel, my friend James who I met in Australia, and our teacher Erin (who let Cydney do her make-up, sort of). The night turned out to be a blast with us all dancing until the club closed.

(a brief shot of my Vivienne

Westwood sweater)

The next day we made an executive decision to stay in and rest. We sadly missed the queen's birthday parade but it was worth the sleep and we have Erin to recap every important moment for us- thanks Erin!

However, we finally made it to take our (again yes, touristy I know) Harry Potter Platform 9 3/4 picture!

World's End to Harvey Nic's

For those of you who don't know, which I certainly didn't before taking this class, World's End is the original Vivienne Westwood store were the birth of punk street style took place. The store is still in original form with crocked floors, no AC and not even a bathroom for the workers. The pieces still make people stop and look at you which was the idea around punk style at the time, but now they have the backing of her very respected name. To get to be in this story and see all that history was just amazing and I bought a very one-of-a-kind sweater on sale!! And wore it to our "punk night-out"

Starbucks junkie....

After our walk of World's End we strolled along the Borough of Chelsea. This is a very cute little area where we saw an art gallery called Proud that was featuring an Audrey Hepburn exhibit <3. We also had to stop and get some froyo at a place called snog, which we found out means kiss, that was absolutely adorable! It was pink and even had a little photo booth that took your "snog picture".

Then we made our way up to Harvey Nicols, another department store that puts the USA ones to shame. The highlights of this trip were the sushi conveyor belt (yes you sit at a bar and the sushi come by on a conveyor belt and you pick up what you want) different colored plates were different prices; it was definitely an experience. There was also a special line of coke bottles designed by Karl Lagerfeld, the designer for Chanel, that we had to take pictures with (they were pink and polk-a-dots).

Harvey Nics did have a lot of great fashion, but in my opinion hasn't caught up with Harrods. However i would say they had some more affordable items which is always nice for us, on top of their luxury departments. They also had remarkable contemporary men's department that I may have to be revisiting for gifts! A couple very notable things for the ladies were the botox bar and denim specialists that will help you find your prefect fit of jeans, and for any of us that have worked retail we know that can be a feat!