As promised in yesterday's blog post, today I will share snippets of all the fun extras that
Vogue Festival goers could enjoy. The talks took place in two large auditoriums at the South Bank Centre in London, but in the atrium joining the two halls together, there was what I will call, the "festival fashion hub". The fashion hub was an incredibly exciting place to be. It was the perfect opportunity for outfit inspirations, and fashion lovers could indulge in some beauty therapy, whether that was Dior smokey eyes, YSL gorgeous lip colour, or the incredibly popular
Vogue braid bar. All of these beauty indulgences were totally free with any talk ticket!
Unfortunately I didn't have time to indulge in these freebies as I was busy enjoying another pop-up activity in the festival fashion hub... as I had attended Behind the Scenes of a Vogue Cover Shoot, I simply couldn't resist the chance to make my very own Vogue cover photo! Although this experience cost an extra £10, it was such a rare opportunity, and I just had to have a go! My make up was touched up by a professional Chanel make up artist, who decided that I should try Chanel Rebel on my lips (it was so bright, but I loved it!), she touched up my cheek bones, put minimal liner and shadow on my eyes, and made my eyebrows darker. I loved sitting in the make up chair being pampered - it was something I could definitely get used to! The next step was to chose some Chanel props for the shoot, and I just had to go for the sparkly Chanel jacket! The super friendly stylist also dressed me in Chanel pearls, sunglasses, and gold cuff - I couldn't believe I was wearing so much Chanel all in one go, and dread to think of how much all those accessories cost. At this point I should let you all know that I am really not comfortable having my photograph taken, and I was so nervous to have all those fashion professionals staring, so I just had to try and have fun with it (but ended up looking quite stiff and serious!). But... here is my attempt at a Vogue cover (!):
Other fun elements of the festival was the chic Vogue café and the exclusive Vogue Festival shop. I simply couldn't resist splashing some cash in the shop and came away with the Vogue Festival t-shirt, £20, which was made to look effortlessly cool by the Vogue staff, and a collectable book called Vogue on Coco Chanel, £15.
The final, and truly novel, highlight of my Vogue Festival experience was the Fashion Journalism Panel that was put on to provide unique advice for any budding fashion journalists at the event. I was incredibly privileged to have a one-on-one chat with Sarah Harris, British Vogue Fashion Features Director. I thought I would use my time to simply ask her about her job and how she got there, and spent most of my time listening to her every word to try and gain as much advice as I could. Her journey into the industry was blessed by the fact that from an early age she knew exactly what she wanted to go into, and she had the confidence and intelligence to go for it. I told her that for a large proportion of my life, the fashion industry was one that seemed as though it was in another dreamlike world, and that in was an intangible concept to me. However I shared that recently I had realised that perhaps it wasn't so unreachable, and if I could, I would really love to have a good crack at being a fashion journalist. She could see that I had the drive, and I am confident that my writing is strong enough, and so she advised me to enter the Vogue Talent Competition. It is something that I will definitely enter, I just need to decided whether I want to do it this year or next. She also said that an incredibly important part of any features contributor is having the ideas and creative imagination.
My experience of the Vogue Festival 2013 was a truly inspiring one. It made me realise that the fashion industry is actually a lot more welcoming than it may first appear. There really are many people within it who are willing to share their experiences to inspire and cultivate the next wave of potential industry contributors. When my day was over on Saturday, I only wishes that I had bought a ticket to come back for more on the Sunday! Next year I am most definitely going to purchase a weekend ticket, and I strongly advise that you do too!
Love Lucy x
