NYC Fashion Girl

This week went by ridiculously fast. I honestly can’t even believe it is the weekend. Life in NYC has been amazing so far! I am loving my internship and just being back in the city.

This week has been a fun one. One reason being that I finally don’t have to keep any more secrets or watch what I say around two of my best friends, Melissa & Jackie.

You see, Melissa lives in Indiana. She was talking about how badly she wanted to come visit us. The original plan was to visit at some point in May but then we got on the subject of how awesome it would be if she could fly up in a few weeks and surprise Jackie for her birthday. The next day, Melissa calls and tells me that she found a deal on a flight and, after talking to me about it some more, booked the ticket that night.

I have secretly been figuring out all of the details & reporting back to Melissa for two weeks now. This includes making sure Melissa had a place to sleep, how she will get into the city and make sure that Jackie is available Thursday night to have special keke time (yes, we refer to each other as kekes and yes, we do have our own language). This included password protecting my phone. I just couldn’t take the risk that Jackie might have my phone when Melissa texts me and find out. When Jackie asked why I password protected my phone, I lied & said it was just to drive her crazy. Luckily, she believed me.

After much discussion, Melissa & I decided that it would be best just to fill Jackie in on the surprise visit. The details were all pretty much set in stone but it was just easier to tell Jackie rather than continue with the charade. Regardless, I cannot wait because in just THREE weeks I will have two of the girls that I love the most in the same city as me. I am one lucky girl!

I am finally all settled into NYC! It was one crazy week but the move went even better than expected. I’ve already witnessed a few snow flurries, got my eyebrows threaded for the first time, consumed WAY too many cupcakes & found a new hairdresser close to where I will be working.

Thursday night, the roomie welcomed my mom & I into the city with cupcakes in hand. Safe to say, my mom is now her biggest fan!

My apartment has the most gorgeous rooftop terrace (pictures to come). This was a photograph I took of my first NYC home – the New Yorker Hotel. Oh how I miss you & the rest of the #summerinthecity crew!

This past weekend, I managed to fit in the majority of my favorite restaurants including Keste, Southern Hospitality, Local West & Shorty’s. Doughnut Plant was an added bonus on Sunday morning. We got chocolate chip cookie, peanut butter & jelly, and cinnamon bun doughnuts. All three were delicious!

I was tempted to go to Shake Shack this weekend but I am going to try to save that for when blonde keke comes to visit in May! We will see if I am able to wait that long…

Starting the internship tomorrow! I cannot wait to be back doing what I love!

I can’t believe it! These past eight weeks have flown by & the day is finally here – I am moving to New York TOMORROW!! Ahhh! Goodbye Tallahassee, thanks for everything!

+ Living four hours away from my family.

+ One Fresh, Kiku and 101.

+ FSU’s beautiful campus.

+ Watching free movies at FSU’s movie theater.

+ Breakfast for a buck.

+ Being recognized as “FSU Fashion Girl” on campus.

+ College football game days.

+ The people who made these past four years worth it.

+ Walking to class (when it wasn’t 85+ degrees outside and/or raining).

+ Driving down Thomasville.

+ My first apartment & home for the past three years.

+ Attending the FSU Circus ever spring.

+ Spring break, winter break, summer break, etc.

+ Rarely having to check the weather before getting dressed.

To me, life is all about the defining moments, the moments that change your life forever. Good or bad, these moments are what differentiates us from who we were to who we are meant to become. Up until this point, I’ve always considered my life to be composed of three defining moments.

The first defining moment was when I got injured.I danced everyday since I was three years old but the summer before my freshman year of high school, I injured myself. I battled with the pain, doing physical therapy twice a week for two years. With no sign of improvement, even after surgery, I had to finally give up on my lifelong dream of dancing for the Radio City Rockettes. It was my first true heart break. As hard as it was for me to finally give up dancing, my time off made room for other experiences. It was during this transition that I joined the girl’s lacrosse team, performed in the musical “Grease,” and fell in love for the first time.

The second defining moment was when I started FSU Fashion Girl. I had no idea what FSU Fashion Girl would turn into when I launched the website in 2009. It started out as little summer project but once people started discovering it, it took off. It was because of FSU Fashion Girl that I was selected to intern for the Intern Queen in 2010. My time interning for the Intern Queen was invaluable. The connections I made, the people I’ve met, I owe it all to Lauren. Had I never started FSU Fashion Girl, I might not have shown Lauren how proactive and passionate I was despite my lack of experience at the time.

My third defining moment was living in New York City this past summer to intern at a fashion-based public relations company. I’ve always been drawn to the city, even at a young age. But as much as I loved New York, I was unsure if I would actually enjoy living in the city. Visiting New York for the weekend and living there are two completely different things. I chose to intern in New York last summer in order to figure this out before I graduated college. It was honestly the best decision of my life. Everything I experienced, the friends I made, just reinforced that I am destined to be there.

This weeks marks another defining moment: the last week of classes, the end of college. How will this defining moment change my life? I am not exactly sure yet but I am anxious to find out!

+ The people, the conversations.

+ People watching in Washington Square Park.

+ Walking out of the office & into a movie premiere, a concert, a skatepark, etc.

+ Keste, Southern Hospitality & Shake Shack.

+ The view from a rooftop terrace or bar.

+ Cupcakes on EVERY corner.

+ Getting anywhere in 15-20 minutes.

+ Frying Pan Fridays!

+ How you would meet every one in the most random way possible.

+ 24 hour stores & delivery.

+ Trader Joe’s!

+ Free Saturdays with my best friend.

+ Never having to drive (I love driving, but I don’t miss it).

+ Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week!

+ Celebrity sightings in SoHo on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.

+ The fashion. The clothes.

+ The ENERGY.

Hello & welcome to my latest project – NYC Fashion Girl.

For those of you who have been following me for a while, you may know me better as FSU Fashion Girl. With graduation just around the corner, I wanted to branch away from the college world and start documenting my new journey. In less than a month, I will be finished with classes and moving to New York to complete my last internship with Iconix Brand Group. From there, I will be on the hunt for my dream job in the city that stole my heart.

I should note, however, that this blog will be different from FSU Fashion Girl. For me, this blog will be much more personal. It will tell the story of me moving to New York, finding my first full-time job, apartment hunting, and everything in between. There might be times when I feature a restaurant, store or event, but that is not the sole purpose of this blog as FSU Fashion Girl was. The sole purpose of this blog is to tell the story of a twentysomething girl moving to New York to pursue her lifelong dream.

I hope you will all enjoy reading this blog as much as I will enjoy writing it. Thank you so much for all of your support throughout the years. Really, without you – who knows where I would be today.