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On Thursday, April 17, 2014, I was blessed with the memorable and empowering opportunity to celebrate my 22nd birthday in New York City as press for Her Campus at Glamour’s Top Ten College Women event. My birthday was a dream turned into a reality, including a day full of fabulous events — a glamorous haircut at my favorite Japanese salon, a delicious lunch at a Japanese restaurant that’s oh-so New York, a meeting at a PR firm with business partners of a jewelry brand, press passes to Glamour’s Top Ten College Women event, late-night dining at my favorite French café on Park Ave, and crashing at the Empire Hotel (better known as the hotel from Gossip Girl!). Accompanied by Her Campus VCU member Kristina Hipolito, I loved everything on that special day, especially my inspiration from Glamour’s Top Ten College Women event.
To prep for the big day, we arrived in the city and went straight to a Japanese hair salon. I was so excited to finally get my haircut at a salon I trust. Ever since I was a little girl, styling my hair at a Japanese salon has been an essential part of my beauty up-keep. I love going to a Japanese salon when I’m in New York because I trust that the stylists are not only fashionable and trendy New Yorkers, but they know exactly how to cut and style Asian hair. The stylists are always fantastic at layering and contouring facial shapes, and they always know the latest and most trendy of styles. As expected, Kristina and I loved the results of our new hair!
After an hour or two at the salon, we treated ourselves to a delicious lunch at a Japanese bbq down the street. I sipped on a Lychee Martini over an interactive lunch where we cooked our own meats and veggies at the table. The food was delicious and the atmosphere was lively and upbeat—so very New York! It was the perfect spot for Kristina and I to share all of the dreams, feelings, and thoughts that New York City inspired in us.
Our next venture was to meet up with two amazing partners from eff.Y.bee jewelry, Alyssa Kuchta and Jordan Pagonakis. We met up with them at a PR firm to discuss a partnership I formed with Alyssa while I was searching for sponsors for the Her Campus MidAtlantic InterCollegiette Conference. It was such a pleasure to meet her and Jordan, and Kristina and I walked away from the meeting so inspired by their stories and entrepreneurial spirit. Alyssa even gave both of us an adorable bracelet from their collection. We were absolutely charmed!
The next move after our meeting was to finally check-in to our room at the Empire Hotel on the Upper West Side. The hotel was dimly lit, very modern and hip, with leopard print chairs and sofas in the lobby. I adored my surroundings and I couldn’t get over the fact that I was staying in the same hotel that Chuck Bass fictionally owned in Gossip Girl. I was also treated upon check-in with a box of Godiva dark chocolates from my amazing boyfriend Eisa. I felt so special and blessed and couldn’t imagine a start to a better birthday.
Surprising enough, we even had a little over an hour to primp and prepare for the Glamour event. With our hair already done, all we needed to do was dress to impress. Somehow, I was really empowered and confident (probably because this wasn’t my first time attending a big event thanks to Her Campus), and my goal for the night was to introduce myself to at least one person I would be proud to meet. As for my outfit, I wore high-waisted Yves Saint Laurent jeans with a preppy and white Forever 21 sleeveless collared top, which was tucked into my jeans, with my black Zara motorcycle jacket and black heels from South Moon Under.
When we arrived at the event, we were greeted at the door by Glamour’s staff and checked-in as press. We sat on the second floor balcony with a handful of young women from universities and companies mostly based out of New York. I chatted with a few of the girls and everyone seemed really excited for the host Cindi Leive, Glamour’s editor-in-chief, to come out and introduce all of the incredible college women being honored that night. Everyone was also excited to hear from the very special panelists like Orange Is the New Black’s Danielle Brooks, writer, producer, and star of the upcoming How I Met Your Father, Greta Gerwig; executive producer and founder of Makers Dyllan McGee; Healthy Soul With Gina Keatly host and chef Gina Keatle, and former 30 Rock writer Colleen McGuinness.
Once Cindi Leive walked on stage, everyone directed their immediate attention to her. She first introduced the topic of How to Land Your Dream Job and talked about how personal today’s women define their dream jobs. Then she proceeded to announce and award Glamour’s incredible Top Ten College Women. It was truly fascinating to learn about their achievements—from solving social problems and empowering women, to engineering projects for NASA, and more. Read more about Glamour’s Top Ten College Women on Glamour’s website!
1.“I don’t think anyone can really have it all, but you can have what matters to you.” – Cindi Leive
2.“Saying no is how I find balance” – Cindi Leive She said this in reference to how she finds balance by saying no when she realizes she reasonably can’t take on every project or opportunity available to her, helping her to avoid overwhelming herself.
3. “True success is achieving it and being able to look at yourself in the mirror and like what you see inside.” – Gina Keatly
4. “What keeps me successful is doing what I love and touching other people’s lives” – Danielle Brooks
5.“Envy is one of the only deadly sins that isn’t a lot of fun.” – Greta Gerwig
Once the panel was over, there was a reception to network and somehow I ended up standing next to Cindi Leive! To my delight, I shook her hand and introduced myself as press for Her Campus. I was beyond excited to meet her; and I wish I had the chance to hold an actual conversation with her! However it was hard enough to introduce myself in the midst of all the admiring girls around her. Honestly, it was an honor enough just to shake her hand. And as weird as it may sound, I secretly hoped some of her success rubbed off on me when we shook hands. Heh, who can really blame me?
Later that night, Kristina and I rested in our hotel room for a few hours before ending our night at my favorite French café on Park Avenue. I took that time to reflect on the day’s events, concluding—for the millionth time—that ever since my earliest memories, my experiences in New York City have uplifted and rejuvenated me in the most spectacular of ways. I reflected on my day, from how blessed I felt for such an incredible birthday, to how inspired I was after Glamour’s Top Ten College Women event, and I couldn’t imagine a better 22nd birthday.