As I stood there in front of the mirror umming & aahing over my ensemble I wondered if I looked 'InStyle - appropriate'. How does one sum up their style aesthetic in one outfit - classic.urban.glamour-with a twist! I decided to go for a black and white combo - CLASSIC - a velvet blazer & satin bow tie - GLAMOUR - & studded trainers - URBAN! Done and done! Bag in tow I made my way through the winter air and onto the tube to the Bluefin Building - home of InStyle. As I got off the tube & made my way to the building , which I could already see in the distance , I queued 'Suddenly I See - KT Tunstall' on my iPod and made my way through the revolving doors and into the building feeling very Annie-Hathaway-in-Devil-Wears-Prada!
As I entered the long sleek lobby fashionistas made their way through the entrance , swiping their passes. Suddenly I was surrounded by every autumn winter trend possible - capes , shearling , faux fur and suede a plenty. As I made my way I was complimented on my trainers and with that I was in the elevator & on my way to 7th Heaven (aka 7th Floor home of InStyle)
Greeted at the door by one of the Fashion Assistants I made my way into the office & into the InStyle fashion cupboard - which I'll be calling home for a little while. Surrounded by clothes I was officially in fashion heaven. Chloe, Chanel, Valentino, Dior hung beside shelves of Louboutin, Zanotti and Choo! On my first day I met most of the team - it has to be said that the Devil-Wears-Prada expectations of rude , cold , bitchiness is nothing more than a stereotype , or at least so can be said for the InStyle crew. Everyone is lovely , warm & welcoming and made me feel at home. Day 1 included mostly sorting through the cupboard of beautiful clothes , sending back outstanding samples , organising new samples sent in on each editors/assistants rail. After just spending one day in an office where proffesional conversation included "I'm thinking Erdem will be perfect for our Helena Christensen shoot" I finally realised 'This is where I belong - I'm home' - I wasn't sure how long I would have to sort through samples, but I was willing to do it for however long it took to get to work for this fashion institution. As I walked out of the building on Day One I felt an overwhelming sense of this was my chance to prove how much I want this. Day Two came along and it was a slight milestone for me - today I would be meeting my styling hero the amazing Natalie Hartley - Senior Fashion Editor - getting dressed on Day Two I tried to keep up with my signature look and went for a grey knit layered over a white shirt , some black skinny's with a leather & metal Chanel-esque chain necklace , adding my signature oversized black beanie for that touch of urban street style! London was covered in snow and I made my way to the train station feeling nervous yet excited for the day! I spent the first few hours of the day sorting through designer samples in the cupboard feeling very Lauren Conrad & Whitney Port interning at Teen-Vogue on The Hills...
As the day went on one of the interns came over to me 'Natalie's just walked in' she said - the previous day after being asked by the interns why I wanted to intern at InStyle I explained to them how much I admire Natalie Hartley and how she was my favorite stylist. As soon as her name was mentioned I felt my cheeks go rosy red and butterflies in my stomach - Its hard to explain but when I look up to someone as much as I look up to her , meeting her is the equivalent of meeting a celebrity. I quickly-yet-casually checked myself out in the mirror and before I knew it she made her way into the cupboard to sort through samples she shot the day before. "Hiya , I'm Denis" , "Hey, I'm Natalie" - and with that introduction the conversation begun. What impressed me more than her 'urban-chic' ensemble featuring an olive knit sweater , denim skinny's and Nike High-Top trainers (lined with shearling) - was how down to earth & genuine she is, chatting & laughing about with the interns. It made me admire/respect her even more!
...the following day while Natalie was out on a shoot we had a minor crisis at the cupboard. We were waiting on a Marc Jacobs runway look to be delivered to the office so we could send them straight to Natalie's shoot - however with London under full throttle snow and all of our couriers on severe delays , someone needed to deliver the Marc Jacobs to the shoot and that someone was me. Before I knew it I had a box of MJ in one hand and my tube pass in the other and made my way over to the studios where the shoot was taking place. As I walked into the space Natalie and the camera crew were breaking for lunch "Hiya Denis..." she began & as I listened I stopped for a moment to think 'she is calling me by my name' , the blushing school boy inside of me couldnt help but feel overwhelmed. As I walked into the studio space and towards Hair & Make-Up , rails of clothing a multitude of shoes and tables of accessories were laid out to be used! I took a look at some of the shots they had done earlier in the day and I was blown away with awe - as always the master at work styled up amazing fashion in the coolest way that only she knows how! As Natalie wished me well I made my way back to the office & as the clock struck 6.30 I made my way out of the office into the snow and out onto the weekend!
As the weekend came and went Monday Morning arrived , I woke up open my wardrobe and inspired by Chanel & Paris I opted to yet again pair my favorite combination of black & white mixed in with stripes for my first Monday at InStyle adding the beanie again for an urban twist!
The day proved to be crazy busy , with all the returns to go back from Natalie's shoot on friday , we had a chance to chat about Christmas , New Years & my Australian origins. As the day drew to a close the Editor-in-Chief of the magazine made her way into the cupboard to select an outfit to wear to an event tomorrow night. I met the Editor , on my 2nd day while she was doing a run through with our Fashion Editor for the Helena Christensen shoot - following my InStyle experience so far she too was a truly sweet down to earth genuine woman who definitley recieves respect when she enters a room but by no means fear - ala Miranda Priestley - as she decided what to wear to the event , selected a black Roland Mouret shift and some neon yellow Miu Miu shoes she looked around the room 'now what accessory does one wear with neon yellow shoes' - immediatley I remembered a bag I saw on friday, upon its arrival at the office it had myself and all the girls in a flurry of ooh's & aah's it is one of my favorite accessories of the season - with that in mind I Immediatley said (in an almost thinking out loud tone) 'You need the neon Celine' and as I reached through our returns I pulled out
the neon yellow Celine python clutch and with a giggle she said ' that is the quote of the week' after showing her the bag she gasped 'oh yes that is amazing' , she walked around the room asking for everyone's feedback and my accessory choice was a hit with the whole team! "Thankyou , this is amazing , just what the outfit needed, its perfect" she exited the cupboard to show off her ensemble and returned with a pat on my back "Thankyou again for that" - as I walked out of the cupboard I heard her & senior member of staff say 'He's so cute' - and with a dose of Celine I think I made a good impression! I left the office today feeling so honoured to be in the presence of such genuine , down to earth , and incredibly hard-working team of proffessionals brought together by their love of fashion! Let the journey continue...xoxo Deni
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