Ahh.. the therapy of blogging.

[WARNING: this post may a get a little sentimental.]

 I am a pretty big advocate of the blogging-is-separate-from-journalism camp, but over the past few days, I have realized one way in which blogging may be better, believe it or not.

 Now, I do not quite know how to preface this, because an outpouring of sympathy is by no means what I want or need. This past weekend wasn’t the best. A close friend of mine from the University of Chicago died in a car accident Saturday night. Seems unrelated, but here’s what it made me realize about BLOGS:

 1. They are supportive and therapeutic: whether it is through supportive comments or just going on the site to read everyone else’s posts (which I have done about 29583723 times in the past few days). I would absolutely not go to a highly journalistic news website to cheer me up or find support.

2.  They let you express how you feel. I can’t pretend that I am giddy and hyper and happy right now, so I can’t right a post that sounds giddy and hyper and happy (which, unfortunately, I think I usually do—yikes). Blogs can be about anything and express whatever emotion they want at the time. News cannot.           

So, while I still stand that blogging and journalism are completely separate entities, I have a new respect for blogging. I feel like in all our discussions we have felt a need to make one ‘good’ and the other ‘bad,’ but really, that is not the case. Blogging and journalism serve different social functions, and right now, I’ve turned to blogging.

 Thanks for keeping this so entertaining, everybody!                                             

Another great form of multimedia

I accidentally discovered another kind of multimedia this week, all thanks to my Dad.

I wasn’t sure anyone still used snail-mail until I moved into my own apartment at school and started receiving—literally—weekly (sometimes bi-weekly) letters from my dad. They rarely have any real message in them, but just one or two newspaper clippings that reminded him of me. (I’m not sure my dad knows how to go online yet actually, but hey, he’s supporting print newspapers!)

One of the articles he sends every week is a Sunday New York Times fashion column by Bill Cunningham. Cunningham is actually a photographer, but, as we know will be required of us when we find jobs, is multi-tasking by writing the column that is surrounded by his photos.

It was just this week that I realized there was a URL and keyword at the bottom. I checked it out, and every week, Cunningham produces a ‘narrated slideshow’ of his photos. So here, a fashion photographer is still doing what he loves, but also writing the column and narrating a compilation of his photos. So don’t give up hope!

The slideshows are pretty interesting, if you like fashion. If not, I’m sure theTimes online uses this feature in other areas of interest. Here is a link to one I just watched: Cunningham talks about how fashions changes in direct relation to how the economy changes.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/01/10/fashion/20090110-street-feature/index.html

Here’s what it looks like in print, courtesy of my dad, possibly the only snail-mailing newspaper reader left:

The Future of Journalism

Newspapers, magazines, Web, photo, video, graphics, slideshow, TV, advertising, multimedia, blogs. If you thought the world of communications was limited to print, TV and Web, think again.

 In an interesting series of discussion in my Online Journalism class (the class for which I created this blog about fashion at DePaul), we have pulled apart the different forms of media and what they mean to a journalism student contemplating her future career. The ultimate conclusion we have come to is this: to transition into today’s journalistic world, we better figure out how to combine two or more of those forms into one big package of talent.

 Many journalists today are doing more than one thing: photographers are taking video, reporters are making feature photo albums. A few weeks ago, we had a speaker named Chris Booker come to our class. His website is linked below. Booker refers to himself as a multimedia journalist, and has created kinds of journalism totally unlike what we are used to.

cgbooker.com

 Everyone has a different opinion about what journalism is becoming. Some people love the prospect of creating new projects; others value traditional print papers. What do you think? 

Favorite Sports

Note: Sports may seem a little unfitting to be on this blog, but I will stray from my normal topics for awhile to fulfill requirements for another class. This could be interesting!


Although it may not seem like it, I am actually quite a sports fan. I played lots of different sports in high school, and my favorites by far were soccer and cross-country. I still love to run (although my awkward knees and lots of physical therapy have practically ruined it for me!).

I love to watch soccer and especially baseball. Recently, though, I have been forced into loving to watch football, as I have a lot of friends on the University of Chicago team. I never watched it before (and still don't fully understand it) but I'm slowly starting to like it. (I hope those friends don't read this!)

My roommate bought me a Snuggie for Christmas this year. As soon as they come out in maroon (right now only sea-green, royal blue and (I think) purple are offered--I'm sorry I know that), I can't wait to show up to UofC football games in it! I'm sure that will be a big hit. (See, I knew I could incorporate great fashion into this post!)

Interview with a Student Fashionista II

I interviewed sophomore Anna Marie Pemberton about her classy sense of style:

How would you describe your style?

It is a little bit of everything, I have some expensive clothes but a lot of really cheap clothes. I really like to wear skirts and dresses. Not even to dress up, but because I like to look really feminine. I like feeling like a girl.

Where do you shop?

Urban outfitters and Forever 21 are big staples, but I am a big window-shopper, so if I see something I like I go in; so I end up shopping at lots of random places.

Has your style changed since high school?

No, I’ve always really liked to dress up. The biggest change is probably practical shoes, because we have to walk a lot at school.

Summer or winter clothes?

Summer, for sure. I like being able to throw things on and go out the door. In the summer it is easier to look put together without actually being put together.

Costume Design and Technology

Interview with a Costume Technology student at DePaul's Theater School




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jx7bbYDl5Ak

Photo Essay

Katrina Kopeck, a sophomore at DePaul, washes her 'colors load' at the Coin Laundromat Thursday. The laundromat is on Lincoln Avenue, not far from Kopeck's apartment, but far enough to warrant the use of a wheeled cart (foreground). The cart fell over only once during this trek, which Kopeck said is good.
Even with clean laundry, Kopeck finds it difficult to decide on an outfit to wear Friday evening. Kopeck was preparing for a date: dinner and a movie. When the decision was finally made, her bedroom floor was covered with rejected options.  Choosing her outfit put her behind schedule on getting ready, and she still had to prepare conversation topics for dinner!
Kopeck employed the help of friend and roommate Mary Nolan, also a sophomore, to style her hair. Here, Kopeck explains to Nolan what she would like done to her hair: straight, but with a little more volume. The girls' makeshift 'salon' is the bathroom of their apartment, located on Lincoln Avenue.The sink in Kopeck's bathroom is littered with the supplies she and roommate Nolan are using to get her date-ready. Make-up, various brushes and Ben and Jerry's ice cream. Kopeck said the ice cream was essential to calming her nerves, the make-up and brushes only secondary.
Outfit chosen and hair styled, Kopeck adds a scarf from Anthropologie, her favorite place to shop, and  leaves her apartment for her date Friday night. She was meeting her date at the AMC Theater on East Illinois Avenue downtown. The two saw "Grand Torino," Clint Eastwood's latest movie. 

Sale!!

                                               

Although it seems crazy to shop in (economic) times like these, and for winter clothes (when winter is half over) nonetheless, I assure you, it is not. All the stores have great deals right now, and if you're looking for a great place to shop, here's a quick guide:

Art Effect, on West Armitage Avenue, a store usually on the pricier end, is advertising a 70-percent-off sale. 

Mint Julep, at 1013 Armitage Ave., consistently stocks their store with half designer pieces and half bargain clothing. The deal there: 50 percent off any already-marked-down items. 

Department stores! John Delacruz, the visual merchandiser at H&M Clothing Store on Michigan Avenue, had this frugal tip: "Go to any department store, like Barneys. They have to get rid of all their winter stuff, so their sales are huge." Another idea: go to a department store and try things on for size. Then go home, and type the item into EBay--most likely, it will have exactly what you are looking for. 

H&M: Buy one/ get one FREE on winter coats. (This is only for a limited time but they continue a similar deal for longer.)

 

Forever 21, now with a second location on Michigan Avenue; always cheap. 

(Look for an extended version of this article, and more tips, in the DePaulia next week!) 

Interview with a Student Fashionista

 I asked Stacie Wolf, a fashionable sophomore at DePaul, some questions about her style:

Who or what influences your style?

Stacie: I'm an art major, so I am particular on unique avante garde textures and structure. I love clinched waists. I love the late 40s look, I love New York; I love street fashion. I love ethereal and slightly sexy/romantic touches. 

Where are your favorite places to shop?

Stacie: SHOPBOP[.com], vintage stores, and Neiman’s, and H&M is awesome for well-priced, very trendy, quality pieces.

Has your style changed since coming to college/DePaul/Chicago?

Stacie: Yes, college and the city have influenced how I dress, not DePaul though. I was cut off from my parents for spending money on clothes, so I am now very much interested in investing into practical nice items rather then impulsive silly things. My roommates and friends also made an impact.

Flashbacks

A few weeks ago, I went to a ‘high school’ themed party. One of the party planners said they chose this theme because they had little time to plan and this theme “was easy for people.” This makes sense: I see a lot more high school gear being sported around campus than I do DePaul gear. Is it a trend, or just easier/cheaper? I’m willing to guess the latter (this excludes the sort-of-trendy fad of wearing “vintage” t-shirts from the Goodwill or Salvation Army that advertise high schools the wearer didn’t even attend). 

But the question is… is it acceptable? Of course we all do it, but by wearing our high school apparel, we’re holding onto memories that we say  we’d rather die than return too. Remember going to Applebees after basketball games on Friday nights? Remember sneaking out and drinking in friends’ basements? Remember prom?? These may be parts of our past that we don’t talk about, but our shirts and sweatshirts are screaming it.

  Although no picture is necessary this week—you can all go in your closets and multiple high school shirts, I’m sure—I decided to include the front side of a particularly ridiculous t-shirt my class had made for junior year basketball season:

Front: putting the nasty…

Back: back in dynasty.

(Note: we barely won a game, let alone created a dynasty. How terrifying.)

They still make these?!

I came upon the idea for this post while at a sleepover—yes, a sleepover—this weekend. (Hold the laughter/judgment/whatever, the ‘sleepover’ was a sorority retreat, and it turned out to be the perfect break from sometimes-stressful college life. I found that sleepovers are underrated—I encourage everyone to give them a second chance.)

 Anyway, Saturday evening, thirty-some girls trudged through the snow toting blankets, pillows, midnight snacks and overnight bags. We changed into our pajamas almost immediately, and one of the girls, Lauren, shocks us all with one piece, zip-all-the-way-up, feet-attached, patterned fleece PJs. (Lauren, by the way, is not a toddler. In fact, the PJs were a present for her 21 st birthday.)

 Now this might not be worth mentioning for any other reason than its pure hilarity (see for yourself, picture to the right)—however, I have truthfully heard quite a few people mention these one-piece outfits lately. Is there some charm to them? Are they really that comfortable?! (I imagine I would feel very constrained in them, not to mention going to the bathroom would be an ordeal.) There must be something to these PJs, although, as of yet, the only people I know that own them are Lauren and the four-year-old I baby-sit.

 I think they might catch on, so I’ll help you get ahead of the fashion curve. Check out these sites for tons of adult footed pajamas:

Pajamacity.com (this site lets you shop by height)

Thepajamacompany.com (solves the bathroom dilemma with some drop-seat options)

Footedpajamas.com

As for the fashion and trends at DePaul, it seems that all there is to talk about is sweaters, coats, gloves, boots and everything else students are wearing to combat the extreme cold. If we can't actually be warm, though, we can at least talk about it! Sure, we still have a good seven weeks or so, but it is never too early to start thinking about Spring break. In fact, a company called Pantone* started thinking about it last Fall. They released a document predicting popular colors for Spring 2009, gave interesting reasons for each pick, and spotlighted a designer who is featuring that color in his or her Spring line. 

The 1o colors are pictured to the left; for full descriptions, go to: 

http://www.pantone.com/downloads/articles/pdfs/PANTONE-FCR-sp2009.pdf

*Pantone is a really interesting company that deals solely with color. They develop and predict color trends, then put that knowledge into the creation of paint, fashion, home wares and especially graphic design. 

**Also, a question: Where are people going for Spring break this year? It could have a major effect on what you wear..

Have everyone's hands disappeared? Because it has been at least a month and a half since I have seen anyone's as I walk around campus. Pockets, gloves, mittens and hand warmers have completely taken over. In-public texting, for one thing, has decreased significantly because of the serious health or injury risks associated with exposing bare fingers--people are forced to talk to one another on the sidewalks and in-transit! My personal habit of constantly picking at my fingernails has also rapidly decreased because of the mitten-created blockade to my hands--unfortunately, though, no one can see my much-nicer-looking fingers. 

It is interesting to see how people make due with such dilemmas: the risk-takers wear finger-less gloves. I recently read in the Tribune and online that these are a big trend this year. But in sub-zero temperatures, even those are dangers. Most people stick with the tried-and-true types of gloves or mittens--ones that render all hands unmovable. 

Yet there are ways to make due with the weather, and to look cute at that. Next week, I plan to lay out some of those ways (not to mention on a college budget). For now, pictured here is Evelyn Loomis, a sophomore at DePaul who bundles up more than anyone I know, yet somehow manages to look significantly better than the Michelin Man (whom I keep confusing puffy-coated students for on campus!).

Myth Busters: Is everyone really wearing Uggs?

Over the course of this quarter, I will be making posts to the blog about fashion, trends and fads seen around campus. Let's face it, though: at first glance (or second or third) DePaul might not look like the fashion capital of the college world. But I plan to uncover the hidden world of fashion at DePaul for everyone to see and be inspired by, but let's start small.

Over and over again, I hear people talking about the (annoying, they say) prevalence of Ugg Boots on campus. "Every girl wears them!." they say, but is it just perception, or is every girl really wearing Uggs?

I arrived at the Loop an hour before my 10:10 a.m. class to do some research. During that time (I sat in the DePaul Center Starbucks), I saw 15 pairs of Uggs (three of which I noticed right in front of myself—also Ugg clad—in line for coffee), a few questionable pairs of knock-off Uggs, and, fortunately, zero Man Uggs. It is worth mentioning that I noticed quite a few other brands of boots as well: North Face, Timberland, etc.

When I noticed a pair of high-high-heeled boots (at 10 a.m., really?!), I thought how glad I was that those had not caught on. I don't know who (Australia?) made Uggs 'the thing'—as my research found them to be, myth un-busted—but I'm glad they did: it isn't all the time that something so practical is made fashionable. Someone should tell the lady with high-heeled boots.

Coffee: Classic or Fad?

Aside from physical fashion—clothing, shoes, etc.—there are obvious trends among DePaul students. Headphones, for instance, seem as much a necessity as food and water around campus. Well here’s another one that I’m sure you’ve noticed: coffee. It seems to have become so much of a staple among students that it’s practically a fashion must-have to have a cup in hand at all times.

The trend is not limited to Starbucks disposable cups: with the current uphill climb towards ‘green,’ many students are seen with thermos’ and other types of re-usable mugs. In fact, whether to save a little money or in a moment of pure fashion victimization, one of my roommates actually just bought a thermos that looks like a Starbucks cup.

Only an occasional coffee drinker myself, I need to know: have I just been oblivious or are more and more people drinking coffee lately? Is it really that good, or do people actually feel a little trendier with a mug or to-go cup in hand? I’m going to give DePaul the benefit of the doubt, it’s Winter (and the coldest week of Winter!). Being all bundled up takes away some opportunity to show off real fashion, so people are holding it in their mitten-ed hands. Will the trend let up by summer? We’ll have to wait and see..