All photos courtesy of the Style Guru team.
This week, we had the opportunity of interviewing UCLA’s team of College Fashionista Style Gurus! These campus celebrities are constantly on the prowl, looking for the best and most stylish outfits to photograph and write about. The Style Guru team is made up of Emily Adams, Polly Fong, Jenna Gulick and Anna LaPlaca. Learn more about these fashionistas by reading our interview with them below.
HC: How did you get involved with College Fashionista?
EA: I previously wrote for Nordstrom and as a blogger, I maintained ties with my co-writers. One went on to write for College Fashionista at her university and I followed suit.
PF: To be honest, I’m actually not entirely sure how I stumbled upon College Fashionista. I think I had a mini life crisis (which sums up college pretty well, in my opinion) about what I wanted to do in the future, and in a frazzled, anxious state, I started researching different types of careers and potential internships that was focused on something interesting, like writing or fashion. It was perfect because I ended up on College Fashionista’s page that was devoted to careers and internship opportunities. Ironically, it turned out that I ended up discovering College Fashionista in my search for a different internship opportunity!
JG: I met Anna through a mutual friend and she made College Fashionista seem like such a great opportunity for getting articles published and gaining some fashion experience during school. I applied over the summer and was so pumped to hear back!
AL: I saw that an older girl in my sorority was writing for the website so I asked her a little more about it and she recommended that I apply. I always love admiring the creative sartorial choices of everyone on campus, so being able to document it all seemed really enticing.
HC: Can you tell us a little bit about your role with College Fashionista?
EA: My role at College Fashionista is different than most writing gigs I’ve had. We represent the company, headquartered out of NYC and Chicago, from countless campuses across the country. Specifically, I cover UCLA’s fashion scene. As a style guru, I interview and photograph Fashionista/os I spot at school and later compose an article summarizing their look. We introduce UCLA style to the greater, College Fashionista fashion scene on our website, where you can see the different looks varied from school to school.
PF: As a Style Guru (along with the rest of the lovely UCLA College Fashionista gurus), I act as a channel between the corporation and UCLA. The way I see it, I’m contributing to two things at once. By reporting on student trends and campus styles through photography and writing, I get to be more involved at UCLA, meet new people, and pretty much solidify how great this university really is; but at the same time I am also playing my part in contributing to College Fashionista content. I think a really prominent role as a Style Guru is to represent your school and represent the beauty that you personally experience. It’s all about sharing that perspective with others who may or may not go to UCLA and who are potentially also interested in style and fashion.
JG: As a contributor, I write weekly articles on various fashion topics and stylish students. This involves taking photos around town and participating in a lot of community interaction, whether through social media, video projects or campus events.
AL: My role began as a Style Guru intern submitting weekly street style photographs with accompanying fashion and trend reporting articles. After my first semester I became a Head Style Guru for the UCLA campus, meaning that on top of submitting the weekly articles, I do more promoting and marketing for the website on campus. I have to present to a couple clubs and organizations each semester, organize meetings with the other writers and put on fun little events like an impromptu photoshoot or a promotional video. Right now I’m working to put on a student blogger panel with the FAST club on campus that will happen this week. It’s a lot of fun to be able to spread the word about a website that I love working for so much!
HC: What has been your favorite experience working with College Fashionista?
EA: Personally, I like that the internship requires me to write once a week outside of my school work. With so much reading and academic writing, I lose my creative voice from time to time. However, this job keeps me on my toes, making me set aside time to explore and write about something I love: fashion.
PF: Each experience and interaction I have with a stranger with awesome style (that I’ve encountered, at least) is completely new and unbelievably interesting. These interactions are all different, but my favorite part about working with College Fashionista is that I get to put myself out there, compliment random strangers, and get to know new people. I have yet to meet a Fashionista that isn’t interesting; it’s actually pretty incredible. Working with College Fashionista gave me a necessary nudge out of my comfort zone, and this kind of opportunity allowed me to appreciate how diverse and beautiful UCLA really is.
JG: I’ve loved meeting UCLA’s other contributors! They’re so hard working and fun, a great representation of what it’s really like to work with team members in fashion.
AL: My favorite part of interning for College Fashionista is having the space to discuss trends and document the unique styles of my fellow Bruins. Fashion is something I like to research in my spare time anyways and so I love that College Fashionista has allowed me an outlet for this creative interest of mine. And, you know, getting to have my photography and writing published online isn’t so bad, either.
HC: Considering your active involvement in spotting fashionistas on campus, describe UCLA’s fashion scene in 3 words?
EA: Minimalist, grunge, summery.
PF: Vibrant, classic, innovative.
JG: Bohemian, trendy, youthful!
AL: Laid-back, eclectic, on-trend.
HC: Are you in any other extra-curricular activities at UCLA?
EA: Yes, I am the starting goalie for our club water polo team, a sports writer for our the Club Sports Club house, and a prose editor for our literary magazine, Westwind.
PF: Yup! I’m currently in the club Bruin Partners, which is a tutoring and mentoring program for students who live in a community that are unable to provide many resources for personal and academic development. I’m also involved with FAST at UCLA, which is a student organization with the interest in fashion and student trends on campus.
JG: I write and photograph for UCLA Club Sports, which has been a super cool experience to work with talented athletes in sometimes new sports to me, like rugby. I also co-run a blog called What’s Been Bruin and work with editing the school’s literary journal, Westwind.
AL: As far as extra-curriculars go, most of them are fashion-related unsurprisingly. I’m the Events Director for the Fashion and Student Trends club, the co-Managing Editor for Denizen Magazine which is an online fashion and lifestyle website that’s totally student-run and a campus ambassador for Chinese Laundry shoes. I’m also part of a sorority here on campus!
HC: What are your career aspirations? Has your experience with College Fashionista shaped these in any way?
EA: I adore fashion editorial work and will always want it to be part of my life, for example through freelance contributing, but ultimately I aspire to be a comedic writer. My dream job would be to join the writers room at Saturday Night Live in NYC. I know I want to surround myself with creative, literary people and the comedic world gives me the opportunity to meld my skill set with my long-rooted interest for sketch comedy. CF has expanded my ability to write, which diversifies my talent, a necessary practice for aspiring writers.
PF: You know, I actually don’t particularly know what I’d like to do in my future career. I have a certain direction that I’d like to follow, but to be honest I don’t have a set preference. I’m interested in so many things it’s kind of ridiculous; but that’s where my experience with College Fashionista comes in. I like to try different things that interest me and see if it’s something I’d like to pursue. I wouldn’t say that being a part of College Fashionista has dramatically shaped my career preference, but the experience I’ve gained while participating with this corporation is definitely a great tool to help me gage and possibly narrow down potential career paths!
JG: I would optimally love to work in fashion or any editorial position that involves making people happy and showcasing their passions. I work part time now for a fashion start up called Your Style Unzipped and will be working with Who What Wear this summer! College Fashionista made me believe a career in fashion is very feasible.
AL: Before interning for College Fashionista, I thought I wanted to be an environmental or social worker but through the internship I’ve realized that not only to I enjoy working with fashion somehow, I’m pretty good at it too. So as of right now, I would love to have a job as a fashion journalist or style editor for a prominent print publication. I ultimately want to play a lead role in creating the beautiful editorial spreads in fashion magazines–I find them to be pieces of art all their own! So, yes, this internship definitely shaped my career aspirations.
HC: Who is your current style muse?
EA: Oh goodness. I don’t know if I can pick just one. Right now, I am emulating Emma Stone. That girl just does it right. Her daring pant suit at the Golden Globes defines her taste: classic, daring, and individualistic. I try to keep those three things in mind when dressing myself.
PF: Karlie Kloss. Her style is absolutely perfect.
JG: Kendall Jenner is crushing it right now. She tests out trends but doesn’t ever forsake looking put together. I love her simplicity!
AL: My current, and let’s be honest, forever style muse is Leandra Medine. There’s no trend too outrageous for her and I wholeheartedly admire her fearless style and ability to never take herself too seriously. Man repeller, indeed.
HC: If you could only wear one outfit for the rest of your life, what would it be?
EA: I cannot live without simple, pegged skinnies, heeled sandals and easy breezy crop tank tops. It’s such a California silhouette but I like the way it flatters my body.
PF: Wow, this is a tough one. This is kind of specific, but I have it planned out. I think I would have to go with a loose, white boyfriend button down shirt paired with black jeans and rustic flat shoes (I can’t decide between loafers, oxfords, or ankle boots; this is a problem). For accessories, I’d carry a fairly small, rectangular burgundy cross-body bag and decorate my fingers with a couple minimalistic sterling silver rings. Yeah, I could probably live in that for the rest of my life.
JG: I’d probably go with my cuffed blue jeans, chunky tan ankle boots and a flannel with some cool rings. It’s just the easiest uniform and makes me look a little cooler than I really am!
AL: This question is SO tough. But if I could only choose one outfit for the rest of my life, I would have to go with simple and refined: a slightly cropped pair of black skinny jeans, loafers or oxford shoes, a breezy white oxford shirt and a killer leather motorcycle jacket. All basics but all so versatile.
Don’t forget to check out the UCLA College Fashionista blog to see what Bruin Fashionista are wearing!