NEWS. A Very Mod Summer.

Well, it's official. Not only did I finally land an internship, but I definitely got the internship of my dreams!!!! Over the weekend I received the best news ever -- I'll be working with MODCLOTH over the summer in San Francisco! Can you believe it?! I still can't. 


I've been working on trying to score this internship for a while now. Back and forth e-mails have been sent since about January. I've had to participate in a skills test, a Skype interview, and many phone interviews. And let me tell you, the ModCloth team is as sweet as you can imagine them to be. They were all a delight to work with during the selection process. Always so polite, helpful and encouraging. You wouldn't expect any less from ModCloth though would you? Well, I finally got the news on Friday and I have been on cloud nine since. Now let me share with you my ModCloth love story.


When I sometimes get stuck trying to find my place in this huge apparel industry, I always get drawn back to ModCloth, the company that restored my passion for apparel merchandising. The fashion world can be intimidating and sometimes exudes the impression that fashion can only be executed and enjoyed by an elite few. ModCloth removes that intimidation factor, creates an atmosphere that is fun and engaging, and promotes a message that I stand behind, one that states that fashion can be enjoyed and perfected by all, no matter what your background, style, or self expression ("wear watcha want and work watcha got," remember?). ModCloth's customers feel appreciated and celebrated, which in return results in loyalty and sales. The entire democratic process is brilliant, and creates a complete win-win situation for the customer and the retailer. These characteristics are what I believe in fashion for. This is what it's supposed to be about! 


A little more details on the gig: 
I'll be working with the merchandising team. Some of my duties will include merchandise categorization (putting items together like this),  inventory monitoring, sample management, and pricing. 
I will be return from my field study in New York on May 28 and have to be in San Francisco on May 30th! I'll be there until August 12th. There are so many things I have to do until then, and I am in complete overdrive! I catch myself on Craigslist 10x a day trying to find a place to stay for the time I'm there. If any of you San Francisco locals or experts have any advice on where I should be looking, please let me know!! I am a mess.

Thank you so much for sharing the excitement with me, and I can't wait to see what's next. I am anxiously awaiting May 30th. That date can't get here soon enough!!


So please, if you have any advice, tips, or tricks for living in San Francisco for 3 months over the summer, don't hesitate to throw them my way! I will be ever so grateful. :)


EEK! I can't stop smiling.


x.o. Mattie

Ruffian Swap

Now you know where I'll be Thursday, April 28th. If you are in the area, you should think about coming out! This will be my very first swap event, and I'm pumped! For more information visit Ruffian Swap.

Do any of you have any experiences with clothing swaps? I'd love to know!

x.o.

Pool Day With The Boone Dog

This week is spring break for me. I'm using this week to take a breath from all of the projects and tests I've had the past month and trying to gear up to finishing the semester off in the next few weeks. It's nice to just catch up. I snapped these pictures of Boone yesterday while I was hanging by our pool. He loves the water. He didn't always though. Last summer my family, Luke, and I went to our friend's fishing camp for a few days. It was the first time Boone had ever been around a big body of water. He would tip toe as far out as he could without letting his feet slip, and then quickly turn around for the bank. Luke ended up getting this blow up floatie and convincing Boone to sit on it and let us drift him out into the water while he was on the float. It was quite hilarious seeing him sitting up on that floatie. Once he fell off the float and realized it was all ok, we couldn't keep him out of the water! I have some pics on my other blog (that I hardly update anymore) if you want to check it out. The pics of Boone on the floatie are so precious.

Hope you're having a great week!

x.o.

Zhang Jinga--Fashion Photographer

Most of you know by now that I am a college student studying apparel merchandising. I sometimes am a little ashamed to tell people that ask me what I'm school for. Apparel merchandising ("fashion merchandising" as some like to call it -- even though that's not what it's called (at LSU at least)) is often viewed as a bunch of materialistic girls that like clothes and shopping. Yes, we like clothes. Yes, we like shopping, but that isn't what all it's about. One of my professors refers to us as dirty little mechanics that keep the glamorous car running. Our job is sometimes far from glamorous. We have our good times, but most of the time it's the hard work, behind the scenes stuff that people don't realize.


Which leads me to my next idea. I hope to find people in the fashion biz, and highlight them here on Odelma. Expose to you their behind the scenes job, and give you just a little insight into what they do and what it takes to produce the fabulous fashion you love. Meet Zhang Jinga.



Zhang Jinga is a photography from Singapore. Her work is breath taking and I can't wait for you to see more of her pictures. I'll let her about me (taken from her site) tell you a little more about her background and who she works with.


"At only 22, her portfolio has expanded to include names like MontBlanc, Canon, Lancôme, Pond's, Wacom, Random House Publishing, as well as Elle and many other international publications.

The success of her work has brought her to shoot in Paris, London, New York and Tokyo in just the short span of three years since turning professional.

In April 2010, in conjunction with the annual fashion festival and supported by Canon, 50 of Jingna's works were displayed in a large-scale street exhibition in Singapore's premium shopping district—Orchard Road. The exclusive showcase marked the first of its kind in Singapore."

Bravo!

Find more of Zhang Jinga's work on her site, facebook, blog, and twitter