International Style Institute Recap
There is nothing better than seeing a group of budding stylists together in one room, story which is exactly what happened this past weekend, Friday, October 2nd thru Sunday, October 4th, at the International Style Institute at The Grove! Host and partner, Celebrity Stylist Anita Patrickson, gave a 3-day bootcamp style course and taught attendees the best ways to get their foot in the door, brought in experts from all different aspects of the industry, held a photoshoot to give the students a hands-on styling experience, and even one of Anita’s clients, model Chrissy Teigen, showed up for a Q & A session! The students came from all over the United States and from all different walks of life — some were recent college graduates, others have always been interested in the styling world, and a few were giving up their careers altogether to pursue their dream of being a stylist. After a long 3 days, everyone walked away from this style-filled weekend with valuable knowledge, a network of connections, and an unforgettable experience to jump start their styling careers!
The weekend kicked off at the Pacific Theaters at the Grove, where attendees settled in with their fellow soon-to-be stylists and had a get-to-know-you session with Anita! Linda Koopersmith, of Beverly Hills Organizer, was the first to stop by and gave attendees the low down on her career as an organizer for some of the top celebrities in LA. The next wave of guest speakers included Juliana Pires, VP of VIP Services for SHO+CO, and Andrew Weitz, Men’s Stylist Consultant of The Weitz Effect, who each gave their insight about breaking into the industry and advice on the importance of networking. Erica Gray, Celebrity Publicist at Viewpoint, and Amy Sabel from The Wall Group also stopped by to share their expertise on working with celebrities, gaining representation as a stylist, and the do’s and don’ts of being a celebrity stylist. The information-filled day came to a close with members from The Grove’s social media team, Chris Baccus and Sarah Dunn, giving their tips on how to further your success through social media and Elizabeth Castellanos and Jennifer Loura, Chrissy Teigen’s Glam Squad, explaining how a stylist works with a hair and makeup team to create an overall stylish look!
The following day was an exciting one for the International Style Institute students, as they were given a chance to put the knowledge gained during the previous day to the test! Attendees paired up and got to know each other, but this wasn’t just a casual chat. Instead, the students were actually having a conversation with their very first client! So, after getting to know their partner’s style preferences, they headed out on a shopping spree with a budget of $75 to find the perfect outfit to fit within their clients needs. Once they had found them a new look, they headed back to style the pieces with jewelry, shoes, and even had a say in their client’s hairstyle. The students then shared their masterpieces to the class and received feedback from Anita on what worked, what didn’t work, and how to learn from the styling mistakes they had made.
Day three was the last, but most definitely not the least exciting of days. Students were first briefed on the creation and execution of an editorial shoot by Kelly Atterton, West Coast Contributor for Allure Magazine, and were then challenged to create looks inspired by BoHo, Bold, and Denim themes! Lighting, photo equipment, stages and props provided by Crate & Barrel, and Jiffy Steamers (Use promo code STYLEINSTITUTE for a 10% discount at Jiffy!) were set up to attain a professional photoshoot setting, and the stylists got the opportunity to style models in clothing, jewelry items, and consult with PRIV, an on-demand beauty app, to create cohesive looks using their hair, makeup, and beauty experts! The whole day wouldn’t have been possible without the photographers Corina Marie Howell, Chris Fortuna, and Jack Belli, who snapped pictures of the budding stylists’ looks to create what was, for many of the attendees, their very first shoot to add to their portfolio!
Overall, the entire weekend was an overwhelming success, but we couldn’t have done it without Allure, PRIV, The Grove, Dripbook, Panasonic, and H2Rose, which all played a role in making this weekend so fantastic for all of our attendees (Who, by the way, walked away with an awesome gift bag filled with an Allure Beauty Box, a portable Jiffy Steamer, and tons of beauty essentials!).
So, watch out world: These up-and-coming stylists from the International Stylist Institute are coming in hot! We know that each and every one of our Class of 2015 stylists are going rock whatever styling career path they choose to follow because not only did they learn from the best of the best, but they also have all of the knowledge, connections, and tools to launch their careers!