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Showing posts with label Lifestyle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lifestyle. Show all posts

2018: FINDING BALANCE

January 7, 2018

If you have been following my blog for a while you know that every year I pick a single word to focus on for the year as my New Years Resolution. 2016 was my year of "YES" followed by 2017 which was my year of "ME" - you can read more about that HERE.

Which leads me to 2018... I sat around a lot thinking what I wanted my word for 2018 to be and then as I was sitting at Dinner with my parents at Chilis (I know what you're thinking... but my family can't turn down their 2 for 1 Margarita deal). I decided my 2018 New Years Resolution to be "BALANCE". 

I'll try to use a balance beam example as a metaphor to why I chose the word Balance for 2018. When you're a little kid and you're walking on a balance beam for the first time time you might sway to the right or sway to the left and fall off, however, after you "practice" a couple times you're GOLDEN! Next thing you know you're strutting across that 4 inch beam like it's your job.... All it took was a little practice to PERFECT your balance. 

I like to think this is the same in regards to "balance" in our personal lives. No one really "practices balance"... they might sway one way and then sharply sway the other way. I often see this as well when people say they are gong to start working out... all of a sudden your friend has done a 180 they are saying things like "I can't eat grains, dairy, berries, sugar, meat, etc." and in your head you're left thinking "well what does that leave... air?" and then you see that same friend in 3 weeks and more often than not they are right back to their normal eating habits. I like to think the reason a lot of people fail in goals sometimes is because they try to achieve them with no reference to balance. What I love about people that can achieve true balance is that sometimes they might fall one way or the other but in the end they find themselves back at equilibrium.

Which leads us to 2018....  am I going to get it right and have the perfect balance between all aspects of my life "i.e work, family, friends, health, travel, etc." probably not... but I know that if I make it a priority and practice balance and focus on being more cognitive when I am swaying to the "left" or "right" I will catch myself more often than not and in turn end 2018 as a person who has much better balance between all aspects of my life.

If you have never tried picking a single word for your New Years Resolution I challenge you to do so! In my mind it is so much easier to focus on one consistent word/theme for a year versus trying to juggle multiple goals and resolutions and in turn losing track only a few months in.

I just have this feeling that 2018 is going to be my best year yet! 

BEGINNERS GUIDE TO ESSENTIAL OILS

October 8, 2017
If you know me you know that I talk about Lauryn Evarts from The Skinny Confidential at least once a day. I honestly talk about her like we have known each other since childhood haha. If you have never read her blog head on over and send her some love! I promise you won't regret it!

It was through Lauryn that I was introduced to the idea of Essential Oils so when my Aunt randomly gifted me an Essential Oil Diffuser at Christmas you would have thought I had died and gone to heaven! Low key think Mama Wynne thought I was 100% losing my mind when I immediately began RAVING about all things essential oils... she was probably like "Where did my daughter go and who is this hippy in my house!"

You can purchase the Essential Oil Diffuser my Aunt got me HERE. I personally love this one because it has a timers of 30-minute, 60-minute, 120-minute, or 180-minutes making it perfect for when you want to run essential oils before bed. It also has 7 color-changing lights - I personally love turning it to the red lighting option which is so relaxing and perfect for unwinding after a long day.

Fill Essential Oil Diffuser

Add drops of essential oil to diffuser

Turn on oil diffuser and relax

Recently, I have been posting my essential oil diffuser on my Snapchat and I've honestly lost count of the amount of people that have reached out asking "What is that?" or "Where did you get that?" So I thought I would do a Beginners Guide to Essential Oils! I'm still learning so much about all the different types of oils and their unique benefits but wanted to share a few of my personal favorites with you all today.

If you are just getting started with Essential Oils I would get this starter pack from Amazon HERE. It has all the basics and they are the perfect size to get you going and help you learn what you like.

Eucalyptus
  • Eucalyptus is probably my favorite essential oil. I suffer from bad allergies and love diffusing this to help open up my sinuses.
Lavender
  • Lavender is probably the best essential oil for beginners! It is great to diffuse right before bed and helps your mind and body relax!
Eucalyptus + Lavender
  • I've been getting a little fancy and mixing a few drops of my eucalyptus and lavender oils together at night and it has become my new favorite!
Tea Tree
  • Tea Tree Oil is great to diffuse if you want to clean the air in your home. It has antibacterial properties that help sanitize your space. Due to its antibacterial properties it can also be used for acne that is developing! I just add a tiny drop on any acne I feel coming to the surface and it gets the job done! 
Peppermint
  • Peppermint is great for headaches! You can either add a couple drops to your temples or diffuse with your diffuser! 
Sweet Orange
  • Sweet Orange is a new love of mine! I have loved starting my Sunday's with Sweet Orange in my diffuser. It is the perfect oil to start your day with - I also love it because the orange scent reminds me of Florida and I'm partial to anything that reminds me of my hometown! 
I hope you found this post helpful and I've made the idea of entering the world of essential oils a little less intimidating!

WHY I'M WAITING

September 24, 2017

If you read the title of this post and your first thought was that this would someway be related back to me waiting to have sex until I'm married... don't worry it's not! That boat sailed a long time ago... (sorry Mom and Dad)

However, it is about why I'm spending my 20's focusing on myself before getting into a serious relationship. I think it's easy for both girls and guys to feel pressure when they start seeing their life long friends begin the next exciting phase of their life... but I'm here to tell you it's completely OKAY if you're just not there yet! Hell... I'm not and I feel like I'm living out the best years of my life!

I want to spend my 20's...
  • discovering what passions drive me to stay up to 2 AM because I too excited to stop what I am doing
  • finding what gets me out of bed at 6 AM with the energy to take on the world
  • focusing on growing my career
  • traveling the world 
  • discovering what television shows can make me smile after long days at work
  • going on so many "girls" trips that my stomach hurts from laughing so much
  • being selfish and putting myself first 
  • being 100% financially sound on my own
  • decorating my apartment in all things glam and girly
  • going back and getting my Masters Degree
I think you get the point... so while everyone else is out swiping right and going on endless bumble dates... I'm going to be taking my sweet time and doing me and I hope my future boyfriend/lover/hubbie/soul mate is out living his 20's to the fullest as well!  

2016: MY "YEAR OF YES"

December 23, 2016


I remember back to last year when I was thinking about what I wanted my 2016 New Year's resolution to be - I knew I didn't want it to be something that I would look back on after a month of starting and say - well that lasted all of two seconds, better luck next year... I decided there would be no resolutions of working out X times a week etc., eating healthy Monday - Friday, you know the stereotypical goals everyone sets and I've yet to see someone stick with an actually accomplish. Instead I wanted my goal to be a mindset change. Hence, my 2016 New Year’s Resolution turned into my year of "YES!”

So you might be wondering what a year of “Yes” entails. Well I first heard about a year of “Yes" during a Ted Talk I was watching of Shonda Rhimes (shout out to all my #TGIT gal pals out there) - you can watch the Ted Talk HERE...she also wrote a book called Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person that you can purchase HERE (I haven’t gotten around to reading it but it’s on the top of my list for 2017). While Shonda's "Year of Yes" was a year of saying "Yes" to all things that scared her, I wanted my "Year of Yes" to be something a little different. I decided my year of "Yes" would be saying "Yes" to any and every opportunity that was presented to me. If I got asked on a date - instead of finding any and every excuse not to go (I had a tendency of being pretty great about saying "No" in regards to this topic) I was instead going to say "YES". If I was asked to hang out with a group of friends I didn't normally hang out with... I was going to say "YES". You're starting to get the picture... when I started to think back on the past 21 years of my life I felt like I had lived a lot of my life saying "No" to things or opportunities that were presented to me. I still haven’t been able to pin down why I had a tendency of saying "No" but the only explanation I could come up with was that if I didn't commit to anything than it always left a window open for something better to come along – I know that’s a horrible mindset to have… trust me I lived it.

So where did my year of "Yes" take me - well to start it introduced me to a wide range of individuals that have now become close friends, it helped me take the plunge and move to Chicago - a city that I knew nothing about or a single person living there, it encouraged me to push through the first few months of wanting to move back home, it took me to visit my two best friends in Houston and LA, and it ultimately ended up making 2016 one of the best years I have ever had.

I can't tell you how refreshing it is to look back on a year and know that you took and ran with any and every opportunity you possibly could. Did all “Yes’s” lead to rainbows and butterflies… absolutely not but I can say wholeheartedly that I will never think back to 2016 and have “What Ifs?”

So where does 2017 take me... well I'm declaring 2017 the year of "Me" and while this likely sounds like a very conceited resolution, I can assure you it is anything but. For me 2017 will be a year of focusing on and developing myself as person... I want to be better about volunteering, I want to learn how to sail, I want to work on my patience, I want to learn how to love my body more and not be so critical of its beautiful flaws, I want run a 5K, and most importantly I want to end 2017 a better version of myself than when I started. I don't think I am always going to get it right and I don't think that I will be able to knock everything off my list of things I would like to accomplish but if 2016 taught me one thing it was that – a simple mindset change can have a much greater impact than you could have ever imagined. 

I hope you all have an amazing Christmas and a Happy New Year! 

NOTHING WORTH HAVING COMES EASY

July 31, 2016

It's crazy to think this Thursday will mark 3 months in Chicago and while I don't think I was ever truly prepared for a move this big... I'm so glad I took a leap faith. If I had to explain to anyone how these past couple of months have been it would go a little something like this - graduating and moving across the country by yourself and not knowing anyone feels a little like someone tied weights onto your ankles and then threw you in the deep end of the pool. I know... I'm dramatic but that is truly what the first couple of weeks felt like. I don't think you are every truly ready to grow up but somehow you just start going through the motions and before you know it  you are going through your days, paying your bills, cleaning your apartment, and you wake up and are like "Holy crap! I did it! I'm figuring out this thing called growing up one day at a time!" A couple of things I've learned since moving to Chicago.
  1. Use a gas powered stove
  2. Navigate public transportation like a #BOSS
  3. Set up auto pay for bills #NoLateFees
  4. Build IKEA furniture
  5. Set up an internet router
  6. Enroll in benefits
  7. Be responsible for another being beside myself... I love you Doak
  8. A/C is expensive - opening your windows is free
  9. Sometimes you just need a 2 hour phone call with your best friend  
  10. Leaving everything you've ever known is never easy but "Nothing worth having comes easy"
Chicago, I can't wait to learn everything else you have to offer and thanks for being the best decision I ever made for myself. 

xo,
Lauren

IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE

May 10, 2016

It's amazing to think that I started this blog over three years ago when I was going through a break up and needed something to focus my time and energy on. Although I've ignored my blog off and on for the past year or so... I never forgot about her (yes I refer to my blog as a her - we have shared a lot of personal stories together lol). There have been plenty of times that I would log on, type up a blog post about what had been going on in my life, and it would end up getting saved as a draft and never posted.

While it saddens me that I haven't had the time to give my blog the attention it deserved, it also excites me as I am about to enter an exciting time in my life and I can't wait to share it with you all. I recently graduated from Florida State University and decided to pack my bags and head to the Windy City of Chicago to start what I think will become my dream job! There has been so much change in my life over the past couple months from finishing my senior year of college, having an internship with HSN, going back to FSU to graduate, and ultimately packing my life up and road tripping to Chicago. I can honestly say it is so nice to know that I am here to stay and have some consistency in my life again!

As you all know, when I started this blog I was a 18 year girl trying to find her voice - I was obsessed with makeup, clothes, and any other girly things I could get my hands on! Well here I am now 21 almost 22 and I can honestly say I have grown up a lot in last 3 years - and with that means its time for my blog to grow up as well. Thus, new posts might not be what you are used to if you have followed my blog since the beginning.

Since it has been awhile since I have updated you all I want to share a little about me and what I'm currently obsessed with. I absolutely love minimalist design and learning more about how to live a minimalist life. I have also grown to have an interest in learning about clean eating and transitioning over to completely vegan and cruelty free makeup up and beauty products. So while these might not be the topics that I would have talked to you all about in the past they are topics I have grown passionate about and can't wait to share more with you.

For those of you that have reached out during my break from blogging I will be forever grateful for you!

WHERE HAVE I BEEN?

September 25, 2015
I just want to preface this by saying... I had no clue it had been almost 8 months since I have been on here until I logged on the other day and saw the date of my last post! 

So much has happened since that post that I figured I would give you all a quick little wrap up on my life happenings!

When I left off back in February I had just become the Editor-In-Chief of Clutch Magazine "FSU's Premiere Fashion Magazine". Well little did I know but that position would come to take up my entire spring semester and leave me with practically no time to do anything else! Don't get me wrong I love my job and am still the Editor-In-Chief today but the time commitment was definitely not something I was expecting and left me with little time to log-on to here and talk to you all! 

You can actually check out our Spring Issue by clicking HERE


Once school ended in May I had a month off before I headed to New York City for my internship with Ross Dress for Less. I left on May 29th and was in New York until August 8th! Truthfully my time in New York deserves an entire post of its own because I came to realize that maybe New York wasn't for me even though I had been dreaming about it since I was at least 14! I'll include some of my favorite photos below from New York incase you don't follow me on my Instagram: xfashionistagirlx.










Once I got back home on the 8th I had less than 24 hours to unpack and repack for my 21st birthday in LAS VEGAS! I got to spend a week at the Venetian with two of my best friends and still to this day I could not have asked for a better way to celebrate being 21! 

We got back to Orlando at 7am Friday morning and then I packed my car and headed straight to Tallahassee for sorority recruitment! Recruitment lasted a week and we brought back the most amazing pledge class ever and I couldn't be more excited to call them my new sisters! I'll include a link to our bid-day video below for anyone that has an interest in watching that! 



Nope, I'm not done yet... you can see why I haven't been able to sit down and find the time to type this out for you all now can't you!

My senior year of college started on August 24th, which was a whirlwind of emotions. Tallahassee has become my home away from home and the thought that I have less than 8 months before I walk across the stage at graduation is still not something I have been able to fully grasp! 

Like I said before I am still the Editor-In-Chief of Clutch and working to complete my last issue as Editor-In-Chief which is set to be realized in Mid-November. I can't believe how fast time has flown by and I thank you to my readers that still reach out from time to time... or to my new readers that message me asking anything from dorm advice to sorority advice (these are personally my favorite emails to get because I get to talk about some of my favorite experiences from college and share them with girls that are just starting their journey!) 

I look forward to getting back into the swing of things and posting on here more regularly!

xo,

Lauren Nicole

LIVING A SIMPLE LIFE

January 10, 2015


Simple Living: encompasses a number of different voluntary practices to simplify one's lifestyle. These may include reducing one's possessions or increasing self-sufficiency, for example.

In 2015 I want to simplify my life in all aspects! I began this idea of simple living back in 2014, yet it wasn't until this winter break that I really took the first step to make a change! If you would like to see my first post about wanting to live a simpler life click HERE. I recommend reading that post to understand exactly how I intend to achieve a simpler lifestyle since I go further in depth in that blog post!

When it comes to possessions I want to only keep the necessities and purge anything that I no longer use or have purpose for. I have already began this process in my room at my parents house and I feel so much better about myself after going through all the nooks and crannies of my bedroom. I donated  two full bins of products to my mom's office full of Bath and Body Works lotions, sprays, body washes, etc. It was actually embarrassing seeing how many things I had stashed away in my bedroom and bathroom. My mom said "If you never bought another lotion in your life you would have still had more than a life time supply" so knowing that someone else will use find purpose for things that have been sitting under my sink for years makes me feel extremely refreshed! 

I also took four bags of clothing to Goodwill that I had at my parents house! For those of you that don't know I live in Tallahassee 75% of the time and only at my parents during the winter and summer! However, knowing that I would be spending this summer in New York I decided it was finally time to get rid of the majority of the clothing that I had been holding onto and storing at there house. Am I the only one that has a hard time getting rid of clothing... I feel like I'm always sitting there going "Well I might wear this one more time?" 

I am currently spending my Saturday at my apartment in Tallahassee going through all my belongings up here and getting rid of anything that I no longer see fit! 
I will be doing updates throughout the year on how my journey of a simpler lifestyle is going!


 Will you join me in my journey to live a simplified life?

FAVORITE MOMENTS OF 2014

December 31, 2014
I thought I would share with you my favorite moments of 2014 because a lot of things have happened and I didn't get the chance to share them all with you!


- In January, FSU won the National Championship!
- In February, my dad's favorite NFL team -The Seattle Seahawks- won the Super Bowl! 
- In May, I went on a cruise with my Big and my parents to celebrate the end of the school year!
 - In June, I traveled across the ocean and spent a month studying abroad in Paris and London!
- In August, I started my 3rd year at the best school in the nation! Ah only 1.5 more years to go!
- In November, I received an Internship with Ross Dress For Less as an Assistant Buyer for the Summer of 2015! Can't believe I am moving to the city of my dreams!
- In November, I also became the Editor in Chief of FSU's premier fashion magazine CLUTCH! You can check out our blog and past issues by clicking HERE!

I hope you all had an amazing year and I can't wait to see what both you and I accomplish in 2015! Let's make this one the best year yet!

SINGING IN THE SHOWER

December 29, 2014
If you are anything like me... you can't shower without some from of music on in the background! Recently I have been jamming to T-Swift's new album 1989... I just can't get enough of it! 

Side Note: Since you all know I am a student at FSU, I have to include my favorite mash up of T-Swift + Florida State! I really don't think it gets any better than this! 

Click HERE to watch FSU Shake It Off Video 

Now let's get back to the real purpose of this blogpost... In the past I have used my phone for music when showering, but recently I have started rethinking that due to the fact that I like hot showers and with hot showers comes a lot of steam (I live with both boys and girls in my apartment at school so I have to keep the bathroom door closed while showering...when I am at home I leave the door open so the steam doesn't accumulate) which means my phone is sitting in a "wet" environment for around 20-25 minutes multiple times during the week and I can only assume over pro-longed periods of time that this can't be too good for my phone. So recently I have been going with out music in the shower in hopes of protecting my iPhone from any potential damage. Let's just say my showers just haven't been as enjoyable without music!

Well my aunt must have heard my unanswered prayers because for Christmas this year she bought me the Bop H20 Wireless Speaker from Brookstone. I used it for the first time last night and I'm sold! It was so easy to connect to my phone and since it uses a bluetooth connection I was able to leave my actual phone in my bedroom, free from the steam of the bathroom! Bam! When you thought it couldn't get better than that... you can answer phone calls from it as well! Double Bam!

I know it's all been your life long dream to talk on the phone while you're in the shower... well now you can!

Yes it really is that bright in person! However, I don't mind I think it adds a pop of color to my otherwise boring shower... I mean how exciting can a shower really be!



I hope you enjoyed this quick post!

And for all my fellow singing in the shower girls out there, you keep singing at the top of your lungs, it's good for the soul!

ALL THAT'S LEFT IS A MEMORY

December 16, 2014
I just found this way way way down in the drafts section of my blog...and the girl I was months ago when I wrote this would have never had the guts to post this but I know I'm not the only girl to have ever gotten her heart broken and I think there is something to be learned so that the next girl knows it's not like this forever! I want to post this to show you all that life gets better and no matter how far deep into the hole you think you are that you will find a way out and that you will be stronger than you ever thought you possibly could be! If it was not for getting my heart broken I wouldn't be where I am today... I'm a 20 year old girl, that is going to get to move to the city of her dreams this summer, working at a dream internship, with the best friends a girl could ask for! 

So without further adieu...here is a personal look into the brain of a 20 year old girl that at the time never saw an end to her own "Personal Hell". I hope this also serves as an explanation as to why I did not post on this blog for such a long time! 

Okay so I think we all know that Taylor Swift song "Red" and if you haven't heard this song please stop reading and go listen to it on YouTube or read the lyrics before continuing to read the rest of this...

There is one lyric in this song that I literally for the life of me cannot seem to get out of my mind... "Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met"... 


Now before I get all sentimental on this blog I know this blog is supposed to be all glitter and rainbows and about me chasing my dreams but when I originally created it, it was seriously just my place where I could put my thoughts and share my ideas and just escape from what seemed to be a world that at the time was collapsing on me.

I started this blog a day after the boy I have been truly head over heels for since the day I met him on my senior homecoming told me there was someone else in the picture. Not just like "hey there is this girl I met" no I am talking like "this girl has been in the picture the past 4 years and I can't keep splitting my time between the two of you". This blog was created to literally give myself a distraction from my thoughts and my reality! I wanted to create this perfect place where I could log on with a few simple clicks and be happy... where everything for once seemed right.

However, the more I come on here and try to put on this happy face and forget about someone who at one time or another meant so much to me it puts me down even more... I know I am literally sounding like a druggy right now acting like this blog gives me a temporary high before I crash again but that is seriously how I feel.

Rewind back to the Taylor Swift lyric... I truly don't think I could have said how I have been thinking better myself. I'm truly having to get my brain to forget someone that I never thought I would have to. It's even funnier because me and him once said to one another that the reason we kept coming back to each other even when things didn't work out or we would fight is because trying to forget about one another was way harder than not having each other in our lives.

This feeling that I go through everyday seriously is one of the shittiest feelings I have ever felt in my life and I have had days where I seriously think back and wish I had never introduced myself to him on that rainy November night. I know my life at this moment would be so different if I hadn't said those simple words "Hi my name's Lauren" yet I can't tell if it would be a good different or a bad different and I think that is what haunts me.

The only reason why I felt the need to type this was because I hate seeming like one of those girls that has all her shit together... because in reality if I tried to draw out what my life seems like to me right now it would be me laying in an empty room on the floor trying to figure out where to go from here...

Who knows if I will ever have the guts to post this too the world but for now it was the best form of therapy a girl could have ever asked for...


So if anything I hope this post shows you all that I truly am a real person with real feelings! If anything I am forever thankful for my first heart break because it finally gave me the motivation I needed to start focusing on myself and my dreams and stop focusing on someone that didn't give a damn about me! I would by lying though if I still don't have a fantasy of running into him one day at the Grocery Store in my Louboutins looking like a straight up Bad Bitch...because that girl is going to blow him a little kiss and then tell him he can kiss my perfectly toned ass!

LN93 - DAY 3

July 9, 2014
Let's just start off by saying today was the longest day of my life... a word of advice to all my fellow friends and family "DON'T GO OUT UNTIL 4 AM WHEN YOU HAVE TO BE UP AT 6AM THE NEXT DAY"... now that we got that out of the way, we can get into the serious stuff.

Want to know what lead to today being the longest day of my life...Check out yesterday's blog post by clicking HERE.


We have been doing so much walking in Paris and I think my feet and going to fall off before I even make it to London. I already have a massage, pedicure, and an appointment with a chiropractor lined up for when I get home. No but really I don't even know how I will make it to the end of this trip. I would have inserted a picture of how my feet look (blisters and all) but I will save you the horror out of the kindness of my heart.

We started off our day by looking at Gallerias and Arcades around Rue du Royal & Champs Elysees! I fell in love with Dior's black and white store display! Personally, I would love to have a job developing the interiors of designer stores but I can't fulfill all my passions or I would never be able to sleep! I'll just stick to interior design in my own home one day!




After we walked around all the designer storefronts we went to the original YSL Fashion House. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take any pictures inside... but I can only tell you just how stunning it was! We got to see his original design room and sketches, which is something that are usually locked up and not viewable to the average person stopping by! His designs were so flawless and have definitely inspired me in looking at silhouettes in a new and fresh light.


This was his design room that we were able to get a tour of which was extremely cool! 



At this point I was having a break down because I had been up for like 30 hours straight! Jordana, Grace and I marched our starving butts over to this amazing little cafe and had the most delicious sandwiches! The French fries over here are literally the best things I have ever tasted and they literally serve French fries with every meal! My kinda place! 


We walked back to the Champs Elysees after our lunch and then were free to walk around. Jordana, Grace, and I decided to walk up to the Arc de Triomphe and had a mini photo shoot in the middle of the street! The picture is worth the danger ;)




We decided to stop in the Louis Vuitton store on our way back down the Champs Elysees to the Laduree store! I literally walked around the store for a couple minutes before realizing I wouldn't have even been able to afford a shopping bag from the store... One day Lauren... One day


 Jordana, Grace and I thought it would be super cute to go get macaroons and then walk to the Eiffel tower and eat them in the grass lots in front of the tower! I have had one of Laduree's macaroons in New York City, but they are nothing compared to the fresh ones made directly in Paris.



Look how gorgeous it is in here!!!


I could've eaten them all!! 


We then made our way to the Eiffel Tower which ended up being like a 45 minute walk! But once we got there I was so taken aback by the beauty of it that it didn't even matter!






This had to be one of the best days of my life! Sitting under the Eiffel tower just talking about life with new friends and enjoying each others company is something I will remember for the rest of my life!

LN93 - DAY 2

July 8, 2014
It's our first official day in Paris! Wooohooo!

Miss Day 1 posts check them out HERE and HERE!

Today we had quite the schedule but I wouldn't have wanted it any other way! I am so glad that our teachers and the International Programs (IP) office have set us up with such amazing excursions throughout our duration here!

For our first excursion we visited Lectra's headquarters. Lectra is a "Multi-national company, involved in integrated technology solutions for the textile, home interior, automotive, marine and aerospace industries." Of course we focused on the textile and fashion side of Lectra's business. The amount of integration Lectra has created for fashion companies is truly remarkable! In general terms now when the pattern maker edits something in one program it is updated on all other platforms as well and sent to the rest of the design team so everyone is in full communication with each other at all times.


 The most interesting piece of software I believe Lectra has created was their 3D textiles software. Basically a designer can import their designs and the software allows them to see how that garment would lay on a 3D model. They have absolutely every type of fabric imaginable in the system and with the click of a switch you can see how that garment would lay on the body with that fabric selection. This 3D software also helps when it come to the fitting and grading of fabrics but I won't go into that because unless you are a fashion major like me I can assure you that you would not find that interesting at all! Lol!

You can click HERE and HERE to see videos produced by Lectra that further show the use of this incredible 3D software! 

After visiting Lectra we visited the Galaries Lafayette (which to the average non fashion student would be considered a really fancy mall) and went on a walking tour. I was truly taken aback at the stunning architecture! I love how everything here is just so much more beautiful and artistically enriched.


These are two of the original twenty glass elevators. Only four of the original twenty are still left, those being, 15, 16, 17 and 18.


The visual merchandising in Paris has been absolutely stunning!








Hands down the best part of the walking tour was when we ended up on the rooftop and far off in the distance you could see the Eiffel Tower! This was the first time we had even spotted the Eiffel tower during our time there and I'm pretty sure it was the biggest group freak out I have ever seen! I have to be honest though when the tour guide was like okay we are now going to walk up 5 flights of stairs to get to the roof I was like "Oh hell no!" Thankfully though the view was so breath taking it made every step worth it!




That night it was Tati's 22nd birthday and we decided to go out to a club approximately 15 minutes from our hotel. Well let's just say that we didn't realize we weren't going to be able to use our iPhone maps app due to lack of internet connection, and in turn ended up getting lost in the middle of Paris. I always say everything happens for a reason though because we eventually ran into other Americans and found a street lined with bars and continued to bar hop until 4 am in the morning. Word of advice when you have to be up at 6 am for school the text day do not stay out until 4 am the night before because you will basically feel like the walking dead. 



This is Jordana and Grace and they have basically become my partners in crime and I love them!



If you want to read all about my day post less than 2 hours of sleep the night before click HERE lol!

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