Coutura's Five Personal Highlights of 2010

As I'm creating my vision board for 2011, I started to think about all the great moments I've experienced in the past year. (Btw, you already heard about one of my BIG New Year's Resolutions to go natural...excited!)

Confession: I'm always moving so fast that sometimes I forget to slow down, breathe and marvel in all the amazing blessings that have come my way in the last twelve months.

So...with that said, here are five highlights and the lessons they taught me in 2010. Take a look and tell me yours in the comment section.


1 - Becoming a director of a website

When I started this blog, it was soo a way to express myself and my obsessive love for all things Fashion. Little did I know, it would pave a career path. Since leaving The Magazine, I have been blessed with so many opportunities in the digital space, primarily due to this blog, which makes me overwhelmingly proud we took the risk to get it started.


2 - MET Gala

After attending the MET Gala this year, one of the writers I look up to (who has an amaze blog, Black Bridal Bliss) said it was on her bucket list. It was that comment that made me slow down from all the impending deadlines and assignments to say, wow something amazing just happened.

I partied with people that I have always admired from Karl Lagerfeld to Oprah Winfrey to Sarah Jessica Parker to Anna Wintour. The night was so magical I still can't even believe it happened. The lesson here: live in the moment!

3 - The Glamazons Blog

Omg, I love this blog! This year, we saw record numbers in traffic (woot!) and next year is opening up so many opportunities including a site makeover we're so excited about it!

From waxing poetic on our career dramas, to dishing about parties we attend (Glamour Women of the Year Awards, Why Did I Get Married Too? Premiere above) to interviewing our favorite stars (Kandi, Chrisette Michele, Ameriie, Fergie, Letoya Luckett, June Ambrose, Sessilee Lopez!) to going on trips (ESSENCE Music Festival, Ford in Atlanta) Glamazons is truly a labor of love.

This year also saw us recognized by other media outlets and fashion brands like Rachel Roy, iVillage and WEEN. I'm excited to see where 2011 will take us!

 

4 - Penn Station Outreach

The beginning of this recap should, in no way, make you think life in New York City is easy. For every moment of excitement where Ferocia and I are literally living our dreams, there's some struggle to bring us back to reality: almost being evicted, lead/bed bugs/mice taking over our apartment (true story!), getting laid off, writing for sites and not getting paid, those moments where you strongly consider going to Jersey/Texas to a warm home with food and a regular day job.

But none of those rough times compare to that experienced by homeless people here in the city, especially in the Winter. The Penn Station Outreach helped drive that point home for me. Just a few trips offering warm food and beverages, and coats/gloves to people in Penn Station, and to see how touched they were by kindness from a random stranger, made me grateful for the apartment and life I do have. I definitely want to do more, and give more, in 2011.

5 -  The Word 'No'

Another reality check that quells all talk of life in NYC being easy? The word 'No.'

It was at the Black Girls Rock! Awards when Raven-Symone matter-of-factly said, "If someone tells me No, I just say: you're not the person I should be talking to." A light bulb went off on my head then. To accomplish something great, you often have to stand on a ledge and do things people have never done, or never thought possible.  

Ferocia and I have already been blessed with opportunities that most people don't expect this early in the game. And every time we've had doubts or second thoughts about pursuing a goal, the thought comes in our heads: "Well, the worst they could say is 'No' ... and even then, we can find another way."

And the funny thing is, most times, they DO say Yes. One of the most important qualities to have when trying to succeed is resilience. That was one of the lessons I learned in 2010 and now, in 2011, 'No' is no longer a dream crusher, or a roadblock, for me.


What are your highlights, and lessons from 2010? And what's on your vision board? Tell me in the comments.


Kisses,


Coutura

The GAP, Anna Wintour and M.I.A.? The Democratization of the MET Gala

What do M.I.A., Alexander Wang, The Gap and Anna Wintour have in common, you ask? They are all participating in this year's Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute Gala. And I couldn't be happier about the seemingly odd mix of fashion icons.

Stay with me.

The theme for this year's Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute Gala is the American Woman. And you can't pay tribute to the American Woman without discussing democracy. For example, our First Lady, Michelle Obama, the quintessential American woman, regularly mixes high and low-end designers in her wardrobe from Alexander McQueen to J.Crew.


So it's fitting that affordable retail chain, The GAP, is sponsoring the MET Gala this year with Patrick Robinson, Oprah Winfrey and Anna Wintour as co-chairs.

But that's not all.

GAP is collaborating with past and present CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund winners to design gowns for the MET Gala worn by today's celebrity fashion darlings. The result? True democracy.

Designers, Alexander Wang, Rodarte, Sophie Theallet and Thakoon are creating gowns for The Gap as part of this unique collaboration.

And as for the fashionable celebrity muses, Alexander Wang will dress M.I.A. and Zoe Kravitz, Thakoon will design for Kerry Washington and Riley Keough, Sophie Theallet will outfit Jessica Alba and Vera Farmiga and Rodarte gets Kirsten Dunst and Jamie Bochert. (See a few pics of the starlets below in their past red-carpet splendor. I live!)

Love it! Starting May 5th and spanning the entire month, Gap will display the gowns at their pop-up shop at 680 Fifth Avenue at 54th Street. Gap is also hosting a silent auction of the gowns at www.gap.com/gownauction with all proceeds benefiting The Costume Institute.

Since I am in no place to bid on an original, one-of-a-kind Alexander Wang gown, I'll be looking out for the Gap's limited edition t-shirt collection in celebration of its sponsorship of the MET Exhibition: "American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity."

The styles blend Gap's classic aesthetic with the unique fashion sense of celebrated American women past and present. Here's what Patrick Robinson had to say about the t-shirt line:

"As I worked on the collection of t-shirts with the team, we were very inspired by how relevant the themes of the exhibition are to the way women dress today, even though they celebrate women's style from the past. It's a collection that takes the simplicity of that classic American piece of sportswear – the t-shirt – to a new level that is still very easy to wear."

Styles include The Heiress, The Haute Bohemian, The Suffragist, The Patriot (shown below), The Flapper and The Screen Siren. (I'm going for the Haute Bohemian, I'm in a free-spirited, boho mood this summer). The t-shirts range from $34.50-$44.50 and are available at Gap stores and on Gap.com.

How fabulous! Can't wait to see how these gowns turn out! And I'm thrilled to see the industry leaders (aka Anna Wintour) democratizing one of the most elite traditions in Fashion.

Now true democracy would be giving The Glamazons an invite to the event, but I am totally content and psyched to attend the afterparty! (One step at a time, Glams). Especially if it means I get to see M.I.A. in Alexander Wang for Gap in person --- that's all I need to be satisfied, hehe.

What collaboration are you most excited for, Glamazons?

Kisses,

Coutura

Photo Courtesy of The Gap.