Girls In Tech

“Now who says fashion isn’t an intellectual discipline?” Jennine asks her readers who are devoted to Coveted. Not many would disagree that there’s much to be said about Cynthia Rowley’s resort collection, or if anyone will be gutsy enough to rock a head dress, and how a buy/sell/trade store can be a treasure chest of finds. Although Jennine advises, “… it’s not worth it to buy used Forever21…even though I have done it.”

She is not a designer at Karl Lagerfeld’s studio writing from lofty industry knowledge. Her honesty, candor, and some self deprecating humor has pulled readers into her world of fashion which is relevant, relate-able, and fun. Her captivating and witty writing style along with her knowledge of the industry (mainly through being a shopaholic and world traveler) makes readers feel like they are like minded fashionistas too with the same realities. “I knew I wanted to wear makeup as long as I could remember, but applying it was always another story.”

Jennine has taken a life long passion and grown it through the beautiful, intricate, and accessible world of technology. The Coveted has been featured on Glamour, IQONs, Modepass, and Pronto and she has since founded the Independent Fashion Bloggers Network. It is what can happen when you combine passion, talent, and technology and it could be you! Fashion Police and Fashion Criminals alike will benefit from learning about Jennine’s path to blogging success.

She has a chronic dilemma though “….muffin top! Every time I wear jeans, it always boils down to a choice between muffin top or saggy bottom.” Jennine’s dedication to denim has inspired another blog called Eat Sleep Denim. Where will this end? What is the future for Jennine? How will she scale her business? I’m excited to find the answers at the Girls in Tech event July 21^st. Are you?

A special thanks to our hosts Sandbox Suites, Bay Area’s premier provider of affordable, flexible, on-demand shared office space for entrepreneurs, independent professionals and small businesses.  What better place to corral a group of budding entrepreneurs?

Blogger Spotlight: Jennine Jacob of The Coveted

Wednesday, July 21, 2010 from 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM (PT)

Sandbox Suites 123 10th Street, San Francisco

Get all the details and buy your tickets now by clicking HERE

Tags: Bloggers, blogging, designers, eat sleep denim, entrepreneur, entrepreneurs, fashion, fashionista, glamour, San Francisco, shopping, Terra Khachooni, The Coveted, women in tech, writer, writers
Posted in Girls In Tech, San Francisco, Silicon Valley | 2 Comments »

This weekend was the first annual Fashion Camp LA.  Fashion Camp is a weekend-long conference that brings together members of the mainstream fashion, independent fashion, and technology communities. Participants explore the future of fashion through workshops, panel discussions, and presentations.

Anyone with an idea is welcome to present, lead a workshop, or organize a panel discussion. One of the main tenets of Fashion Camp is that everyone is expected to participate by presenting, volunteering, or by being an active part of a discussion.

Fashion Camp LA 2010 covered a range of topics from Developing QR code campaigns, augmented reality and wearable technology, to digital lookbooks, the legalities behind fashion and the new rules of fashion PR.  Stay tuned for more events from Fashion Camp in your city.

Visit the website for complete details: http://www.la.fashioncamp.org/

Laurel Kaufman, Esq.
Managing Director Girls in Tech Los Angeles

www.ak-cg.com

Tags: 2010, augmented reality, camp, fashion, fashion camp, girls in tech, laurel kaufman, Los Angeles, QR, tech, workshop
Posted in All Chapters, All Chapters, Girls In Tech, Los Angeles | 1 Comment »

By: Kayla Zerby

Years ago, you’d be crazy to think that a no-name blogger could ever rub elbows with the editors of Vogue or Harper’s Bazaar at a runway fashion show.

Today, it’s the norm.

And, as New York Fashion Week descends upon NYC’s Bryant Park next week, the industry’s shift from traditional media to social media will be more apparent than ever.

For an industry so heavily reliant on networking and word-of-mouth buzz, it’s no wonder that so many in the fashion world are turning to social media to build their brands.

Chictopica, for instance — “the most valuable online resource for style inspiration and shopping guidance” — is tackling the social media trends in the fashion world head-on during NYC’s fashion week. From February 13-14, more than 300 bloggers are expected to attend the “Social Influence Summit,” a two-day conference featuring presentations from the CEOs of Polyvore and Modcloth as well as online tastemakers, fashion and retail executives, brands and media.

If you’re not able to make it to the Chictopia event, you can always follow this fantastic list of the “Top 20 Fashion Sources You Should be Following on Twitter” to help you stay in-the-know.

And a testament to just how far the fashion world has delved into social media, check out the first-ever Fashion 2.0 Coalition Awards, sponsored by sample sale site ideeli and blogging network Style Coalition. With seven different categories ranging from Favorite New Social Media Site to Best Twitter Account by a Fashion Designer or Brand awards, this is the first time big-name fashion designers and brands will be recognized for innovatively connecting fans through social media. (Hurry! Voting ends on Feb. 8, 2010 at 11:59 p.m.)

What’s your favorite chic geek fashion site or fashion Twitterer? Post a comment and let us know!

Tags: Blogger, Chictopia, fashion, Fashion Week, New York City, Runway, social media
Posted in New York | No Comments »

What happens when fashion and personal style meets social media?  You get Chictopia, a fashion destination website and social network for fashionistas.  I recently met Helen Zhu, co-founder and CEO of Chictopia, while on the Geeks on a Plane tour in Asia, and her combination of style and substance struck me straight away.  While on a late-night, post-club stroll home in Shanghai, we bonded over our shared passion for the start-up life.

Although Helen had always wanted to combine her talents and personal interests to launch a company, it was Time Magazine’s Person of the Year 2006 cover article that struck a nerve.  Time Magazine’s 2006 person was You.  Time applauded people’s creative contribution to changing the landscape of global media and social interaction through blogging, social networks and sites like YouTube and Wikipedia.  2006 was about the power of individual contribution in the new digital democracy.

Helen and her two co-founders launched Chictopia in April 2008 as a place for trendsetters and fashion devotees to connect and share their personal style with others.  The site allows people to rate styles and encourages users to upload photos of themselves in their favorite outfits so that others with similar shapes and taste can learn from and be inspired by real people like themselves, rather than get ideas for fashion from what supermodels are wearing in magazines.  Ranked as a top 4 style site by Nylon magazine, Chictopia is already profitable, thanks mostly to their focus on revenue and growth.  Rather than start from scratch, Chictopia looked to sites like Facebook, Yelp, and Catster for inspiration when they started building the site.

Jump into the world of Chictopia – and while you’re there check out the newly launched fashion contest sponsored by Forever21, including a 10% off Forever21 promotion available exclusively to Chictopia members.  Congratulations to Helen and her founding team for delivering a unique offering and inspiring us to follow our passions!

Tags: Chictopia, fashion, Helen Zhu, social media, Tina Tran
Posted in All Chapters | No Comments »

Guest blogger: Alexis Stack

            Alexis Stack

Photo Credit: Tyson Foods Hunger Relief Site (on location in DC)

Tags: brands, Business Development Institute, diary of a labellover, fashion, hunger, lifestyle, marketing, nyc, smashing darling, Social Media Breakfast of Boston, twitter, tyson
Posted in New York | No Comments »

Strolling along South Park in San Francisco one day on my lunch break, I ducked into a small coffee shop for a quick breather before heading into Jeremy’s on the corner to check out any new goodies they have in stock. I got my coffee, walked over to add some sugar, and then my hand hit a stack of those post cards that are left randomly all over the place. Normally, I’d just walk away, but this one was so pretty, antique floral looking, with pink roses and blue lace background. All it said was ‘Thecoveted.net’. I had no clue what it was, but I took one, stuffed it away in my ‘Mary Poppins bag’ (as all my friends call it) and left the shop.

A few weeks later, I was rummaging for an old receipt, and found the cute postcard, went to my computer and typed in ‘thecoveted.net’ and anxiously awaited what was to show up. There in front of me, was my new favorite, obsessive, ‘must read’ blog that I have not missed one day of since that lovely spring day of 2008.

I was new to the world of blogs, twitter, Facebook, everything Web 2.0 related. Fresh out of fashion journalism reading WomensWearDaily and W, I was now following ReadWriteWeb and TechCrunch, so adding The Coveted to my daily blog reading made me smile so sweetly and look forward to the scoop posted by Jennine, Kezia or Sonja on vintage clothing, emerging designers, sustainable fashion, beauty tips and my favorite,  the weekly Links a la Mode.

I drool over Jennine’s impeccable flair for unique style and relish in her every day ensembles. Her smarts have grown from creating the Coveted, to then founding Independent Fashion Bloggers, an online community started in 2007, aimed to enlighten other fashion bloggers about monetization, advertising, networks and blog improvement.  She has taken her readers on a ride of world fashion while giving us a glimpse of her life, her move from San Francisco to Germany, her long hair, her short hair and her flirtation with bangs.   I sometimes forget that I am in Tech and show up to events inspired by what she wears and designers she features.  But, I am after all, a Girl in Tech, and if I show up at an event in my fabulous frocks, the techies shouldn’t be surprised and I know Jennine would be proud (if she knew who I was!)

Tags: Allison Bethurem, fashion, girls in tech, pop culture, San Francsico, The Coveted, thecoveted.net
Posted in San Francisco | 1 Comment »

Starting an online magazine at the age of 15 and spending at least 75% of my day behind my 17-inch mac book pro–one can only see how much my life revolves around the Internet.  With the holiday season coming around, I thought I would start looking for gift ideas for my young nieces and nephews. I didn’t want to follow the most obvious route of videos games and barbie dolls.  Instead, I went online and came across a site called My Handwork Studio.  My Handwork Stduio is a new, safe virtual needle arts and fashion community where kids can be creative, learn new crafts and share their designs with new friends.

The reason this particular site caught my attention was the online aspect of something that was known to be an “offline” activity.  The online site allows kids and teens to do some pretty cool activities such as:

Create an On-line Persona: Kids can create their own on-line character (avatar) –  including customized outfit, skin and eye color — and profile by sharing favorite hobbies and activities.  Send and receive messages from fellow Studio kids, even add friends to the personalized Studio page.

Learn Cool Crafts: “Kid Educators” provide “how to” video instructions on knitting, crochet, embroidery, hand- and machine-sewing, and needle crafting.  After watching the videos, print off detailed instructions and templates to make the projects at home. When done, upload a photo to your profile so all of your Studio friends can see it.

Play Games: Earn “Studio Dollars” by playing fun, on-line games.  Redeem by buying virtual accessories  — iPods, cell phones and pets — for your character.

Shop for Crafting Supplies: Our on-line store allows you to buy crafting supplies, books and materials on-line and have them shipped directly to your home.

Seek On-line Crafting Help: Need more information developing these new crafting skills? The Retailers section allows you to type in your zip code and see all of the local craft stores in your community where you can seek additional help.

The website will also be launching a “kit of the month club” that integrates the online aspect of the community with offline crafts delivered straight to one’s doorstep. This is definitely a great gift idea for the upcoming holidays—especially for me (I am known for bringing the theme of the “Internet” in everything I do).

I think My Handwork Studio is going in the right direction.  The average store front businesses are embracing new technology and reaching a much larger audience in more innovative ways. For more information, check out their website at http://myhandworkstudio.com

Tags: arts, crafts, fashion, network, online, social, store front
Posted in Los Angeles | 1 Comment »

Nothing makes an outfit like a fabulous pair of shoes, a beautiful set of pearls and a sleak-looking handbag. Well how about a PC? During New York’s Fashion week this month at the Vivienne Tam show, was revealed the new fashion accessory – a digital clutch. 

HP has partnered with world-renowed designer Vivienne Tam to create a special-edition notebook. HP’s 8.9-inch 2133 Mini-Note has been a great success, so it only makes sense that the company would want to expand the line and target a specific demographic. This is the first time a computer company has partnered with a well-known designer to create a PC that combines fashion and technology. Not to mention that this represents the modern woman who is as passionate about fashion as she is technology and innovation.

From being able to choose your favorite color iPod, to all the different designs that came out for the T-Mobile SideKick, it only seems right that one should be able to buy a PC that represents their personality. This first unveiling represents Vivienne Tam’s Chinese culture with the red color and the peony flower, which is the national flower of China. However, it’s also what the flower represents – beauty, prosperity and happiness which for Ms. Tam also represents the modern woman.

It will be interesting to see how sales will do for this digital clutch. However I know one thing, a woman can never have too many accessories. The HP Vivienne Tam Special Edition Notebook comes out early next year.

Also to note, HP and Tam along with Glam.com launched a fully integrated virtual experience. It’s to inspire fashionistas around the world to find design inspiration online. Go to http://tech-chic.glam.com/, find your best pic and have fun!

Tags: 2133 Mini, fashion, Flower, HP, PC, Peony, Red, technology, Vivienne Tam, Woman
Posted in Los Angeles, San Francisco | 1 Comment »