I know it's been terribly long since my last post!

In mid June, I visited my good friend Veronica in Miami. The week-long getaway from work included some dancing, lots of drinking, relaxing days at the beach and of course laser tagging! I did come in last in the rankings, but maybe because I wore a white shirt (not advisable if there are black lights everywhere)... or maybe because I suck at hiding. More importantly, the occasion was Veronica's engagement party to her long-time boyfriend, Saul.

I got back to a hectic office. On a rainy Saturday, we vanned it to Bonnie's parents house in Long Island to shoot the Spring/Summer 2010 look book. The outfits looked great, but the weather put a damper on the schedule, literally.

My dad bought me a new MacBook Pro laptop which came free with an Ipod touch. I also bought the Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince computer game. The graphic quality of the Mac is brilliant, but I think the geniuses at Apple should enhance sound clarity. The Harry Potter game, however, is incredibly dull. Waste of 30-something bucks.

I am also lazily looking for apartments--- so if you know anything, let me know!
Plus, am hooked to the show, the Tudors.

The Bonnie Young fashion show

Going to the Hamptons in about 6 hours for...
More pictures to come...

My new job

I started working at Bonnie Young yesterday. I interned there from August 2008 to April 2009. Bonnie was at my thesis presentation, and soon called me for an interview after.

She does high-end children's clothing and is based in the SoHo district of New York City. Her collections are regularly featured in publications like Vogue Bambini, WWD, Earnshaw's, Cookie Magazine and Baby Couture. It sells at Donna Karan's Urban Zen, Harvey Nichols, De Groene Wolk and other European boutiques. She has her flagship in Aspen.

I do the production of garments (from creating samples to mass production), work with Bonnie on fittings, shoots and shows and visit factories for embroideries etc.

Static Show, Saks Fifth Avenue, Graduation!

Some wonderful things happened after the Designer of the Year celebrations...

1.My work was displayed in a 'Static Show', an installation showcasing some 40 designers from our graduating fashion class... great exposure (I was mentioned in FWD, WWD, NYTimes and soon to be in Earnshaw's... seen on Getty Images, Patrick McMullen), met tons of industry professionals and members of the press. Too bad I had to stand in my heels all night.
2. One of my pieces is on display at the Sak's Fifth Avenue flagship store in Manhattan! It is in the front and center window, along with fellow Designer of the Year's Robert Fitzsimmons and Azumi Nishizawa.
3. Graduation at school with an after party at Sak's in 24 HOURS! Bought a dress from Macy's.

Cipriani & more

The past ten days have really been a pay off for the past four years at Parsons.

Had a blast at Cipriani, Wall Street (and at the after-party) with my friends and teachers. Super proud of our batch.

Oh yeah, I WON Childrenswear Designer of the Year...!
These are all the nominated designers with the wonderful Simon Collins. The 18 of us showed our collections at Cipriani.
(L to R): Esther, me, Veronica, Sara... all dressed up! My favorite Parsons peeps.

The past two weeks...

...have been pretty intense... 

1) We did the photo shoot for my thesis (pictures in the previous post)

2) A line sheet was created. 

3) I submitted my collection the next day. The auditorium was abuzz with students and their collections, teachers. The scene was set for the following thesis review week.

4) A website for my thesis was created:

http://dash-dash.me/anika

5) I watched the presentations of my peers throughout the week. This is my friend Sarah's presentation. (http://breatheinbeautiful.tumblr.com/)

6) Worked on my portfolio and croquis book. This is a page from my croquis book. Personally, I feel I could have done much more with it. I had lots to show, but edited it down the last minute. 

7) Created a look book for the panelists and teachers. This is a page from the book. 

8) Presented my thesis collection on Monday, April 20th, at approximately 11.30 am, in front of some excellent panelists, who had some insightful comments. I'm thankful for everyone who showed up. 

9) Waiting with bated breath for the results now... I can't wait to find out who the semi-finalists for women's and the finalists for men's are. 

Thesis Photoshoot

Today, after months of passing out at my sewing machine, I managed to pull off a photo shoot for my garments with the help of some important people and the 20 glasses of caffeine-infused drinks.
Location: SVA Photo studios @ 214 E 21 NY

Photographer: Azhar Chougle (www.thedailysunrise.com)
(Great photography student at SVA. His street photography is amazing.)


















Model: Christian
(My teacher's son who is also the fit model in class)














Here are some candid shots from my very horrible camera. Final shots yet to come!