Day one of three completed.

It was a long day of hard work (don't laugh, I'm serious) and my feet hurt, but I'm feeling very satisfied and thankful.

I get to stay with my friend Lois, who is also modeling at the Bridal Market, who lives literally a couple of minutes' walk from the Merchandise Mart where the show is. What a huge blessing: the ease & convenience of that is incredible, and Lois and I are having a great time together.

I did my five runway shows today. They went great. It's fun-happy-flirty-smiley runway, which is super-easy. In a show, which lasts about 45 minutes, six of us models rotate through about 15 dresses each (that's almost a hundred dresses in 45 minutes). It's constant, fast-paced walk-change-walk-change. I'm working with a few of the same Maggie Sottero people from last fall, which is cool, and then a lot of new people. Always meeting new people in this business. Lois, Ashley D., and I ended the day with a relaxing visit to Starbucks.

Last night on my Amtrak ride up here, I sat in the cafe car and talked the entire trip to this precious, little, old Japanese lady who was on her first leg of a trip back to Japan for her sister's funeral. Words cannot describe the experience. It was so unique and wonderful. She is a practicing Buddhist, which led to engaging conversations about our faiths and life stories. She shared great wisdom from her life experience. We both had an amazing time listening to each other and both were very fascinated and impressed by each other. She lives in a small town near Macomb (she married a GI during the Vietnam years) and we exchanged contact info in hopes of getting together again.

Bridal Market.

This weekend (Saturday - Monday): The National Braidal Market in Chicago.

I'll be modeling prom dresses in mini-runway shows for the client Maggie Sottero.

More to come.

Google Reader.

I've been using & enjoying the new Google Reader for about a week now (see my "I read these" in the sidebar).

I'll let Chris explain it to you in this video (he knows a lot more than me, and he's pretty precious).


I also just discovered the "Next >>" button for your toolbar! This is my favorite thing with Google Reader yet! This button automatically takes you (every time you push it) to the most recent unread post from the blogs you are subscribed to! Then you can easily go to all of the recently updated posts from all your favorite blogs on their actual site (so you can easily leave comments if desired), not just in your Reader. Love it! Install Google Reader and the "Next >>" button on your toolbar today! ;)

Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps.

I've recently gotten into Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps. Dr. Emmanuel Bronner was a crazy revolutionary/master soap maker/Jewish German. His bio is fascinating.

I didn't know before what soap really even was, and I could not understand how the Dr. Bronner's soaps were made with simply natural oils, so I did a little research. Here, on the website is a great explanation. Honestly, after learning about it, I don't know how soap could get any better than this.

Also, here's a video about their recent effort to get all of the olive oil they use in their soaps from organic & fair trade sources in the Holy Land.

Al Sears Jazz Festival.

Today: The Al Sears Jazz Festival & the Gazebo Art Festival here in Macomb.

Al Sears was a legendary jazz saxophone musician from Macomb (pictured).

Keith, Ali, my friend Nancy, and I are about to head over to Chandler Park for the festivities now.

Keep in mind this annual Macomb event for future visits!

Hired.

I was pretty sure that I was supposed to hear back from Il Spazio mid-last-week, so when the week ended and I hadn't heard from them, I completely let it go. My pride was a little hurt, but it was good to work through that with God. I had asked him to have his way in the matter; only he knew what would really be best for me. The series of events around me applying for the job had seemed very spirit-led, but my thoughts are not his thoughts. If I didn't get the job, he was in control of that. So I released the illusion of pride once again, and was submissive and content.

So two days ago, as I was sitting in a Starbucks in Chicago with Ashley D. & Meredith, I got a call from Steve at Il Spazio asking if I was interested in working as a barista at the coffee bar in the restaurant. "Umm...yeah, sure!" We made plans for me to come in and meet him at 10:00 Friday morning.

I just got home from that. Steve gave me a tour of the whole place (it's going to be amazing), we chatted about coffee, espresso machines, farming, employee management, past work...and he told me to consider myself hired.

What a turnaround! I had so let go of that! But I'm so excited about it now. I really do love working in coffee. It's a skill set that I've acquired and I love the whole coffee culture.

So if all goes as hoped, I can work there in the mornings, be at my parents' in the afternoons to spend time with Alison after school, and then still have the evenings free. When I need to go to Chicago on a day I'm scheduled to work I can call around to my coworkers to find someone to cover my shift. I told Steve that that may happen from time to time, and he was fine with it as long as my shift is covered.

So I'm back in the coffee business!

Modeling update: the past three weeks.

I had been requested for the casting for the first-ever Burberry Prorsum Fashion Show in Millennium Park in Chicago, which would have been quite a show to get--Burberry is one designer that I actually really like. But alas, it was the same day as my dear friend Chad's wedding. Chad & Rachel's wedding was definitely more important than any fashion show! They had a lovely wedding in Greenville and I was so happy to be there for their beautiful day and see Chad's family. Keith had a game in Iowa, so I made the trip by myself. I also got to hang out afterwards with my old friend from Bushnell, Lisa, who is a student at Greenville. She gave me a campus tour. Thanks, Jill Hartman on Facebook for the photo. I had forgotten my camera.

Last week (3rd-9th) I had two print castings: Tuesday for Office Max and Wednesday for a medical uniform catalog. Also on Wednesday was small group with the other Christian girls with Elite. On Tuesday I had super-encouraging times with my friend Alli from Moody before the casting, and my friend Mireille from Elite afterwards. Then on Wednesday after the small group, I had coffee with Elise & Meredith, and that's when Elise gave me my silk wrap dress (for doing the print job for her)! Here is the dress (this isn't me modeling in these pictures). It can be worn endless ways! Mine is this beautiful blue-green color that is not shown.

On Wednesday after my casting I stopped in at the agency to drop something off, and my runway booker, Alyssa, had this list of things for me to do for the next two weeks. She hadn't heard anything from the print division about my new plan. *sigh* Communication.

So I was back up Friday for a runway casting. Also on Friday I got a bang-trim, and got tea with Lois, a newer friend of mine at Elite who's part of our small group. I'm amazed at how God has richly blessed me with friends who love him.

So, this past week I had to do the two jobs that Alyssa had booked me for, but I skipped the other casting because it was for a job that would not pay enough. The jobs she had booked for me were Monday and Saturday, and basically the same job both days. It was a show & "informal" at Saks Fifth Avenue on Michigan Ave. for their "Want it!" fall campaign, showcasing "fall's most coveted trends". Each floor at Saks had four models showcasing a new trend. The audience moved from floor to floor with a woman named Nena from Saks who explained the trends. I was on the second floor and we were "the cropped jacket". I wore a Zac Posen skirt/jacket/blouse combo in olive green (second from right in the picture below). On Monday we had two of these shows, and then yesterday there was one.
The rest of the time we did informal. Here is a modeling lesson: An "informal" is a job where you walk around a department store in designer clothing (essentially, living, walking, talking mannequins) often holding a small sign displaying the designer's name whose clothing you are wearing (example, right). You usually spend about 30 minutes walking around per outfit. Thanks to Meredith for taking this photo and the one before.

The last outfit I wore for the informal yesterday was this breathtaking dress (left) by Alexander McQueen. I loved it. It was so well-made, and beautiful, and it was my color. I seriously felt ready to walk down the red carpet. Thanks Elena (model to the right of me in the two previous photos) for taking this one in the dressing room with her iPhone.

Nena at Saks wanted all the models to have tons of makeup on-- "smokey eyes" with false lashes and red lips ("drag queen makeup", my runway booker calls it). I am not a makeup artist. I am not good at applying very heavy makeup. So Meredith was walking with me up to Saks, and she suggested that instead of doing my own makeup in some public restroom (which is pretty much what I always do in Chicago) that I stop and get it done for free at a makeup counter in a department store. GENIUS! I would have been too timid (or scared of being pressured into buying something), but with Mere's encouragement, I went to the MAC counter in Marshall Field's (I'm refraining from calling Field's by its new name) and got it professionally done for free. And Faith, the makeup artist (She was super-cool. She's an artist & works for MAC part-time.), didn't even pressure me to buy anything! MAC was even hosting an event about the smokey eye look that day. Smokey eyes with false lashes & red lips done professionally for free: check. Definitely going to remember that for future jobs I have to do my own makeup for. (And readers, remember the makeup counters in department stores when you want to get your makeup done professionally for free.)

Meredith spent the whole day with me yesterday! When I arrived at Union Station in the morning we met at Corner Bakery for an oatmeal date. Then she hung out with me while I got my makeup done, and watched the show and some of my other informal modeling at Saks. Brandon also met up with us there, because I had texted some Chicago friends about the show. After the job was over, Bran, Mere & I had dinner together at Bella Luna Cafe before I (barely) caught my train back home.

Ending the dualism.

Friends, thanks for your feedback. What Meredith said-- "I just don't want you to have yet another thing that makes you deal with your whole dual life issue." --really made me reconsider just focusing in on one aspect of my life. Because I really do feel like that's something God is doing in me right now--ending the dualism between my two worlds of Chicago and Macomb. And not "dualism" in some evil sense. Just in the sense that I feel torn between the two worlds. And when I'm trying to play this part of a model, it's hard to feel like myself.

Because, for example, there's a lot in me that hates mainstream fashion...hates heels...hates expensive or uncomfortable clothing...hates promoting myself...how does hating that stuff fit into being a model? I know that a person's external appearance doesn't matter at all. And yet, that's what I'm selling. But somehow, I think those things can fit into being a model...I know that sounds crazy. But I think it just means I am a different kind of model. Like, as Christians, we do what we are good at doing, but we do it in a different way--the way of Jesus. I'm trying to figure out how to bring the gifts & values that I feel like God has given me and cultivated in me into this crazy world of fashion modeling. And in that dark place I can be light. In that tasteless place I can be salt.

And to a certain extent, that's what I've been doing there. But there's so much more that God wants to work out inside of me so that he can impact the darkness around me to a much greater extent.

It's like first I had to figure out how to be a model. Now it's time to figure out how to be a different kind of model.

Getting this all worked out inside of me is hard. But it's good. Lord, have your way.

I couldn't handle it.

I couldn't handle my own face so intently staring at me whenever I looked at my blog.

So the header picture is gone. For now.

Still going through the blogging identity crisis. Will be resolved soon I hope.

New Heading?

What do you guys think of the new heading image? Narcissistic? Be honest.

It's an image from Elise's website--she's the super-cool local designer I met through Meredith. I did the print job for her in July. She only has this one picture of me up right now (until she launches her new site!). I really like the whole style of the picture though--hair, makeup, of course wardrobe (her stuff is beautiful), the black & white, etc.

Tell me what you think about my heading. Be honest.

Under construction.

As you can see, I'm playing around with the layout & look of my blog...

I'm wanting to make it more themed--make my posts more centered around the crazy modeling journey. When I think about writing about life in general, it's really overwhelming, because--like everyone I'm sure--I have so many thoughts about so many different things. I can still write about other things, but the modeling stuff could be the main thread throughout it all.

After all, that's the news that many people really want to hear about anyway. The rest of my life is probably either too boring or too personal.

What do you think?