Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

Mark Twain
(via justinthailand)

In a few hours, my cousin Justin will be hopping on a plane to Thailand to teach English abroad for 6 months. When he brought up the idea to me awhile ago, of course I encouraged him, but he really took it upon himself to do research on the different programs and make it happen. I’m very proud of him and his decision to go through with it. From my experience studying abroad in England and moving from Norcal to Socal, then Cali to New York, I’ve definitely become more independent, adventurous, and pretty damn fearless when it comes to exploring on my own. But I’ve also become more social in terms of meeting new people and open to trying new things. It’s not easy stepping out of your comfort zone, but it’ll help you grow and learn more about yourself and others, get exposed to and immersed in other cultures, and just become more open to the world and what it has to offer.

Just wanted to say Bon Voyage to my eversodearest bffcousin, Justin. Good luck and safe travels!  Thankfully, we’re all just a phone call, text message, e-mail, video chat, tweet, instagram, or facebook away. I know that this is going to be life-changing not only for you, but also the children you’ll be teaching and working with. Thanks for inspiring! Cheers to shooting for the stars! ;) I love you!

Follow his adventures at justinthailand.tumblr.com :)

So here’s my last and final post for nyfw (my bad for lagging). Stopped by a few events just for fun: Fashion’s Night Out at Billionaire Boys Club, the Launch of Richard Chai for Original Penguin hosted by Nylon Guys at Bloomingdale’s, and Rag & Bone’s Fall Launch Party at Bergdorf Goodman. 

Really owe it to BBC and Nylon because they were the first to open doors for me in NY. :)

For the Rag & Bone event, I went with two people I had met while working at Diesel during Fashion Week: Third, who just moved here from the Philippines, and Junita, who’s from Australia and is also planning to move here to pursue fashion. And that’s one outta a gajillion reasons why I love New York— you constantly meet people from all over the world. 

Fashion shows by day, then other events at night.. 

Tiring, but if you love what you do, it doesn’t ever feel like work.

Like I had mentioned in one of my previous posts, I was even more excited to be working a few shows in the Lincoln Center tents.

I linked up with a casting duo I had met last season, and they brought me on board as their assistant. On the days of the shows, I was in charge of checking in the models, making sure they got their hair and make up done, doing run-throughs, and lining them up. Seems like an easy job, but if you’ve ever watched the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show on TV, you probably saw it get really crazy backstage. When it’s actually showtime and they have less than a minute to change into the next look, it’s a lot of pressure to get them in order or it could throw off the whole show. During each one, I was standing right behind the designers backstage as they were watching the models go out onto the runways from the live TV. I really felt the energy, and can only imagine that sense of pride and relief they must’ve been feeling. 

Here are saw some pics I snuck backstage at the Ruffian, Gerlan Jeans, Giulietta, and J. Mendel shows: 

I actually had the opportunity to work with some big name models.. some of which were featured in this “Empire State of Mind” video!

Contrary to popular belief.. they were really, really nice! & yes, they eat real food too! Haha. Gotta hand it to them though, they were all always running from casting to casting, fitting to fitting, and show to show.. I respect the hustle. 

If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook, you probably got a little taste of what my week was like: jam-packed, hectic, and incredibly inspiring. I spent the majority of it being a part of the Pre-Collection team at Diesel Black Gold, and there I got to assist in various aspects of the production process prior to the show.

From working closely with DBG Lead Designer Sophia Kokosalaki and French Vogue’s Fashion Editor/Stylist Marie-Amélie Sauvé…

to cutting and piecing together mosaic-like pieces of a dress…

to model castings and fittings…

to pulling and putting together looks then organizing the run of show… 

to working with Diesel’s International PR team, making and delivering invites.

Before we knew it, it was the day of the show. Here are some of my pics from backstage:

Pulled an all-nighter in the showroom the night before the show, so please excuse my no sleep look. Haha. But really though, early mornings and late/sleepless nights were all worthwhile, being able to work with an amazing group of people, then watching all our hard work unfold before our eyes. 

Just three more days till the start of New York Fashion Week, and I’ve been counting down since my first experience with it last February. I’ve always been into event planning, but in a larger scale, I’m really interested in learning more about and gaining experience in producing fashion shows. I was determined to get my foot in the door, and scoured the internet to find fashion show production companies, pr agencies, and people that could possibly lead me in the right direction. I reached out to them, and was able to assist three shows: Band of Outsiders, Style 360/Elle Magazine, and The Blonds.

I did everything from organizing and steaming clothes, to dressing and lining up models, to setting up seating arrangements and checking in press. It was honestly one of my best experiences in New York. I was able to meet the designers, stylists, and production managers, one of which reached out to me to work with him again (just goes to show the importance of networking, especially in the fashion industry). In addition to the days preparing, this week I’ll be working five shows, some of which are at the Lincoln Center tents..a first for me so I’m even more excited this time around. My dream wasn’t ever to have a coveted front row seat at the show, but to actually work behind the scenes, and I’m incredibly grateful to have this opportunity again. So my advice.. you could continue to dream or take the next step.. make it into a goal, and put it into action. The impossible is often the untried.

*Side Note: Band of Outsiders just released their Fall lookbook featuring Rupert Grint and Tom Felton from ‘Harry Potter.’ Super cool to see the clothes, seven months after, from runway to lookbook.

pics from my blackblurry (Feb. 2011):

pics from the official lookbook (Sept. 2011):

Ok, ok.. so aside from some fallen trees, the damage in my neighborhood from the hurricane wasn’t as bad as we expected at all. Needless to say, there were a lot of places that did get a hard hit from it, and my prayers go out to them. I gotta say though, I really, really appreciate everyone that checked up on me to see if I was safe and everything was okay. I probably got more sleep than my parents did that night, with the news keeping them up and all. 

But yeah, the day before the hurricane was an even crazier experience. Just imagine the madness of an after Thanksgiving sale, but at your local supermarket (well, without all the pushing and more of a sense of camaraderie). People were on panic mode, scrambling to buy food, water, batteries, flashlights (which were all sold out by the time I started looking), and things to help keep us occupied in case we had to spend days indoors without electricity (i.e. drinks, board games, magazines..). I regret not taking pictures of the empty shelves and ridiculously long lines, but that was the last thing on my mind at the time. So after Irene came, we saw and conquered. For all those complaining the media overhyped it, c’mon now.. it’s better to be prepared and safe than sorry. And at least I stocked up on a good amount of nonperishable foods and bottles of wine. :)

At the end of the weekend, it was nice to get on the roof, and just take it all in. Guess it was just a reality check for all of us—nothing’s ever promised tomorrow today.

Went on one last run to buy some wine and magazines. As I was walking back to my apartment, I asked the building doorman what time he gets off work. He said 2pm, but since the trains and buses all stopped at 12, he can’t get back to his home in jersey. As much as he wants to leave and be with his family, he felt the need to take the shift all night to make the extra money. I stayed to talk, and learned that he was 68 years old, and moved here a year and ten months ago from the Philippines. This was the dream he always longed for, and during those 20+ years since he was petitioned, he said he always prayed and never lost hope. He went on to ask about me, my family, my faith, and what brought me to New York.

Everyone has a story and a struggle to tell, and you can learn a lot from it if you just take a time out to listen. With that said, I don’t think random encounters are ever just random. Gotta accept everyone you meet along the way as a teacher.

Had to post this throwback “Tribute Set” I performed with Common Ground at Vibe XII. Check out the Aaliyah piece at 4:20 (choreographed by the amazing Chris Bitun). Can’t believe it’s been 10 years since her passing. I truly admired her confidence, originality, and seemingly endless talent. r.i.p. babygirl <3

On Saturday, my friend Albert and I headed over to South Street Seaport for the PARKED Food Truck Festival. There were lots of people and over 30 food trucks, carts, and booths. Surprisingly the lines weren’t too long, except for the Korean taco trucks (which I guess isn’t that surprising). Although we wanted to try everything, our stomachs and pockets didn’t feel the same way. Haha..

sangria + red velvet & nutella macaroons = happy steph :)

With the exception of a few, like The Cinnamon Snail from NJ and The Fojol Bros, who took the long drive from DC, most of the trucks at the event were based in NY. But one that I especially love seeing out here is The Coolhaus Truck.

When I attended UC Irvine, I was actively involved in a pre-professional student organization called P.A.S.S., Pilipino-Americans in Social Studies (which is a whole ‘nother post in and of itself ;). Anyway, we collaborated with the Advertising Club at UCI to create “Pursuing Your Passion: The Culinary Industry.” In a nutshell…

“Pursuing Your Passion” is a quarterly event created by PASS at UCI that exposes students to unique careers and allows them to network with professionals and gain more knowledge about particular industries. Guest speakers cover topics such as childhood dreams, educational background, job experience, entrepreneurship, and any obstacles they may have faced along the way..as well as share words of advice and provide tips on what students can do to prepare themselves for success within the field.

The guest speakers featured at the event were Daniel Woo and Jeromy Chan, co-founders of Sushilicious, Joono Choi, founder of Sugarbird, and lo-and-behold, Natasha Case and Freya Estreller, co-founders of The Coolhaus Truck.

I remember Natasha saying she studied architecture in UCLA and later became a Disney Imagineer. When she got laid off from her architecture job, she decided to fuse her love for ice cream and architecture, which is how the Coolhaus Ice Cream Sandwiches came to be. 

She and Freya bought an old truck from Craigslist, fixed it up, and took it to the streets. Around the time of the event, their trucks were roaming around Southern California, but they mentioned that one of their goals was to take over nationwide. And that is why I get extra giddy when I see it around New York today. :) 

I’m sure it isn’t easy to move forward after losing a job, but in Natasha Case’s case, she saw it as an opportunity to do her own thing. I’ll probably say this over and over again on my blog, but I really do believe that everything happens for a reason. Just gotta stay positive, and view obstacles as opportunities.