#fidm alumni

[fidm]

Kelsey Farrer is Eternally en Route

After graduating with an Associates of Art degree in Merchandise Product Development from FIDM in 2013, Kelsey Farrer worked as a designer a multiple brands before packing up and moving across the world to Bali, Indonesia to pursue her passion for blogging. Keep reading to learn more about her journey. 

With her degree in hand, Kelsey began working at GUESS? as a Fashion Designer before moving over to Pacsun. She then changed course and became a Content Creator & Marketing Manger at the sustainable swimwear and lingerie brand, Hot As Hell. But a year ago, Kelsey decided to follow her dream of traveling the world and blogging, so she packed up and set off. 

Over the past year Kelsey has been traveling around Southeast Asia with her homebase being in Bali, Indonesia. She has been able to visit countries including Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, and most recently, India. During her time in India, Kelsey visited Jaipur, known as the “the pink city” as all of the walls are a stunning pink color. While roaming around the city, Kelsey learned how locals created block print fabrics, traditional Indian pottery, weaved rugs (which are made with natural fibers and natural dyes), and opium. Kelsey even spotted some wildlife during her time in Jaipur such as leopards, monkeys, and lots of birds! 

During her travels, Kelsey has been able to capture stunning moments which has created a beautiful blog and Instagram. She shared three of her main tips for travel photography: 

1. Be the first one at the location, sometimes that means at sunrise. 

2. Coordinate the color of your outfit with the backdrop. 

3.Act natural, tke in the environment... try your best not to pose in every photo. 

Now onto her top travel tips: 

1. Book your flight using an incognito browser window to get the best price. 

2. Search for hotel deals on Agoda & Booking.com

3. Always bring lots of snacks - you never know if you’ll have a flight delay or long car ride. 

4. Research the culture to make sure you pack appropriately.

5. Get a local SIM card for your phone so you don’t have to rely on Wi-Fi. 

Even though Kelsey is traveling the world and blogging, she also works at the same time. She works with hotels around the world to create content for them and with brands to style herself and promote their pieces. Make sure to check out Kelsey’s blog, Eternally en Route, for more of an inside look into her travels! 

If you dream of working in the creative industry, check out FIDM’s Merchandise Product Development Program, as well as the Bachelors of Science in Business Management degree.

Follow FIDM to see into the FIDM Life and to learn more about the college majors and students. Make your dream a reality: http://fidm.edu/

Instagram:@fidm

Facebook: @FIDMCollege

[fidm]

FIDM Beauty Grad Jasmine Haffar Gets Hired at ColourPop Cosmetics

After graduating from FIDM with her Associates of Art degree in Beauty Industry Merchandising & Marketing, Jasmine Haffar landed a product development internship at ColourPop Cosmetics which soon turned into an actual job in the product development team. Keep reading to hear from Jasmine how she landed the job, what her day to day looks like, and how FIDM helped her get to where she is today.

Persistence is key! This is a phrase that helped Jasmine land her role within the ColourPop Cosmetics product development team. It all began with her attending the Beauty Innovators Study Tour with FIDM, where she got a behind-the-scenes look and a chance to meet executives from marketing, product development, creative, and sales who shared their advice on landing that first job or getting an entrepreneurial idea off the ground. During this, the FIDM students toured many beauty headquarters, including ColourPop Cosmetics, which is when Jasmine knew she wanted to work for the company. After sending in her resume and personally contacting the Product Development Manager at ColourPop Cosmetics, Jasmine was offered an internship to learn all she could from the Product Development team. At the end of her internship, Jasmine was offered a full time job as a Product Development Specialist for ColourPop Cosmetics.

As a product developer for ColourPop Cosmetics, Jasmine’s day to day work includes submitting lab requests, learning how to evaluate products sent front the lab, prepping for meetings, trend and competitive research, and develop possible new launches for ColourPop. For instance, she is currently planning the assortment for ColourPop’s holiday 2018 collection!

Jasmine is an extremely passionate and motivated individual which is how she got to where she is today. During her time in the Beauty Industry Merchandising & Marketing program, she says that all of the education and knowledge that she has gained has helped her so much in the industry and it has given her a greater appreciation. By expressing how much she wanted to learn and grow, opportunities came her way which led her to ColourPop. Jasmine’s advice to anyone who wants to work in the industry is to work hard and do everything you can to get to where you want to go in life.

If you want to work in the Beauty Industry one day, check out FIDM’s Beauty Industry Merchandising & Marketing Program, as well as the Advanced Study Program in Beauty Industry Management.

Follow FIDM to see into the FIDM Life and to learn more about the college majors and students. Make your dream a reality: http://fidm.edu/

Instagram:@fidm

Facebook: @FIDMCollege

[gloriaa11y]

[krislamchin]

I attended FIDMs Career Connection Event this morning! It was great to be back on my stomping grounds and helping current students. I just love being able to shed some light on what they should expect post graduation because it’s not always what it seems, haha. I met a lot of great people and saw a lot of familiar faces who gave me warm hugs. It was a lot of fun and I’m so happy I was able to give away some waffles :) Email me at [email protected] if you have any questions! I’m always here to help! 

[krislamchin]

I’m going to be at FIDM

FYI :) 

I’ll be at the Alumni Career Connections speaking to a few students and giving them some advice on what to do as a current student and how to prepare for the real world! 

July 29 at the FIDM LA Campus from 8:30 - 11:30

But yea, just in case I had any FIDM followers. 

[theslyth]

Spoopy Soul Seller

I have officially sold my soul to be big corporation.... You are now looking at a Full Time Visual Merchandiser for Forever 21!! Thank you fashion degree!! You are finally paying off!

[krislamchin]

This is MY story | I am a Graphic Designer | COHI & FIDM Alumni

On Friday, I was asked to come into the very same classroom where my passion for design started to hopefully inspire a few aspiring designers such as myself 5 years ago with my journey post high school/college and what it was like to finally jump into the real world.

My presentation included:

My portfolio, which showcased projects from school, my full time jobs as well as any freelancing projects & case studies. 

I touched on the importance of utilizing your tuition (asking your professor tons of questions, going to the library, getting involved, printing 100 trees [since it was "free"] essentially exhausting every resource, etc.) and getting every bang for your buck since design school isn't cheap. 

How working really hard and taking your portfolio extra seriously could lead you to an amass of opportunities. 

I also shared my experiences from my jobs, both past & present and explained to them what you'll learn in those years that you won't ever get in school. How you'll learn to be in the professional world. How to take critiques from clients. And especially how strong of a designer (and overall person) you'll get when transitioning from one job to another.

And all that other fun stuff, including the fun you'll get researching with nerf guns to the endless amount of waffles in the freezer!

More importantly, after all that has been said and done... 

I shared that none of this would of been possible if it weren't the motivation, the passion and the pursuit of my dreams. (And of course, the amazing support system I had from family & loved ones). That even if design isn't your niche, you have to go out there and find something that you LOVE to do and make it something you'll never get tired of. At the end of the day, when you love what you're doing, you won't even realize that your "at work" or that your "working"and the money will just follow. And while right now my accomplishments isn't anything compared to those designers who have made a name for themselves, they are MY accomplishments and I am proud of each and everyone of them. 

I know that someone in one of those classes will walk away happy to know that there is more to come than what high school has to offer. That there's a WHOLE world out there that will pay you money for your passion. I hope in the next 5 years I can return in the same classroom with more stories to tell because I know that for me, this is only the beginning.

Special thank you to: 

Dr. Oduro for giving me his time to listen in on one of my presentations. 

Big shout out to David Moriya who is an amazing friend, talented & motivated film maker who came in to listen to my presentation (as well as gave a great speech that piggy backed on the importance of following your dream) & took photos/videos! Thanks David! :)

And of course, a big warm thank you to Mr. Dahms. Without his class and his guidance I have no idea where I'd be.