Gabriella Ferreira at Teen Vogue Fashion University
It was a long wait for Gabriella Ferreira but in the end it was well worth it. The Huntington High School senior recently participated in Teen Vogue’s Fashion University, continuing her journey down the road toward a career in fashion.
Ms. Ferreira began realizing she wanted to pursue a fashion career in September 2008. She saw an advertisement for “Fashion U” but soon after discovered it was too late since applications closed on August 1. “So I decided to wait until the next year's sign up,” she recalled.
Near the close of her junior year last June, Ms. Ferreira saw another ad for one of Teen Vogue’s signature events. “I had to choose six photos that show my passion for fashion, which included the high-waisted skirt I had made earlier this year, a Venice-patterned sundress I made the year before and four scans of sketches I had made at Fashion Institute of Technology’s Summer Live,” she said about the application process.
Ms. Ferreira was required to answer four essay questions, including ones that asked “Who or what (celebrity, family member, painting, etc.) inspires you most to be involved in Fashion?” and “What career do you want to pursue?”
“They took me some time as I wanted to perfect them, even though they were very short, but it was worth it,” she said. “So I sent it out, finally complete, on my birthday, July 29th. In the beginning of October they contacted me again, telling me I was accepted. I was really excited - ecstatic - and I felt pretty awesome as there are thousands that apply but only 500 people get chosen.”
Although Ms. Ferreira couldn’t attend the Friday night party at Juicy Couture, the next two days of the program were packed. The classes she took were held at either the Hudson Theatre or Teen Vogue’s headquarters.
Met Gossip Girl Stylist
The first session provided Ms. Ferreira with an opportunity to meet the Gossip Girl stylist who recently launched a line for Charlotte Russe. “Everyone got a free necklace, too,” she said. “Funny enough, when I went up to take a picture with him and a girl I befriended there, he saw a book I had in my bag called Collection of Four Plays by Jean-Paul Sartre and he said he wrote his college graduate thesis on Sartre, a playwright and philosopher. We had a moment of coincidence and I felt really special.”
The next session involved a Q & A with Teen Vogue editors. “It was really awesome,” Ms. Ferreira said. “I asked them this question: ‘Would there be time to go to school, have an internship and a job at the same time and still have time to have a social life?’ and the editor-in-chief's (Amy Astley) response was ‘Anna Wintour (Vogue’s editor-in-chief) once told me ‘Be as busy while you can with what you love.'’ I thought that was some really helpful advice.”
Time spent with designer and traveler Cynthia Rowley proved to be quite valuable. “She was the sweetest person and I liked her down-to-earth talk,” the Huntington senior said. “She is a hard working mother and wife and I like how she sustains a ‘double life’ and is totally happy and content in it.”
Fashion Bloggers
A session with well-known internet fashion bloggers Lauren McGrath (goodbones.com), Arabelle Sicardi (Fashion Pirates) and Julia Frakes (bunny bisous) was insightful, too. “All three of them are under 22 years old, so it was different to talk to people almost my age but it was entertaining, as they have our age humor,” Ms. Ferreira said.
She was able to ask the bloggers, “Do you fashionable girls ever dress-down?” Ms. McGrath responded “Oh yeah, I dress in sweatpants and a comfy t-shirt all the time!” Ms Sicardi said “I wear jeans sometimes and people from school think I'm sick and ask 'what's wrong?’” Ms. Frankes answered “I dress down when I'm going to a sleepover.”
All Fashion University participants participated in a seminar with famed designer Diane Von Furstenberg. “She told us her life story from when she got married in the 70’s to her rise and her famous wrap-dress to the present day,” Ms. Ferreira said. “She even had photos of when she was young projected onto the screen. I can't believe I saw her live. She was just 100 feet away from me!”
Mass Screening of Documentary
Another mass session involved a live screening of “The September Issue,” a documentary focused on a year in the life of Anna Wintor, Vogue’s editor-in-chief, and her staff.
“I thought the movie was very enlightening to a person who wants to go into fashion like me,” Ms. Ferreira said. “It showed both the downside and the upside to the fashion industry from the inside-out. There really is a lot of work to make a magazine issue, especially the biggest one of all time. It was over 700 pages long.”
Huntington High School’s fashion program is happy to claim Ms. Ferreira as a student, teacher Kristin Singer said. Huntington fashion alums are now studying at a number of prestigious colleges here and overseas. Their ranks could soon be growing.
“Teen Vogue Fashion U was worth every penny and they even gave us a Le-Sports-Sac bag, which I wear almost everyday now because it’s just my style,” Ms. Ferreira said. “I also met some pretty cool people.”
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