A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A FASHION STYLIST

A random Tuesday in the life of a stylist - Today is like this, but tomorrow, guaranteed, will be different

What has become a common question is what a typical day looks like, for me, as a fashion stylist. I’m the first to admit it’s not easy to explain - every day is quite different from the next. Although there are similar rhythms, each type of styling project taking on certain qualities that can be repeated, I am constantly cycling through different clients, from advertising to personal styling to costume design while also juggling much needed fulfilling personal projects on the side, which may include anything from writing essays to conceptualizing and producing a fashion film.

I work with new and different people, alone, with my styling team and with large crews. I work in various settings, including my home studio, on location, in hotel rooms, in my wardrobe trailer, on sets and in studios all over the city and in different cities. Some days I don’t leave my house, as I research, conceptualize, do virtual pulls and build creative decks, at my laptop for hours. Other days, I won’t even look at a computer as everything is hands on - coordinating and prepping looks for whatever project I’m working. There are also spans of time between client projects that look very different than being on an active styling gig, with work still to do, whether on an active project or not, those days are filled with research, writing and updating my styling business processes so that future projects can run smoother.

Because there is no one answer; everyday is an answer in and of itself, I’ve created this series, “A Day In The Life Of A Fashion Stylist.”

6am: I wake up to my alarm, a soft crescendo that is set to the same time Monday through Friday regardless of whether I have an early morning obligation or not.

I’m specific about my alarm, it has to gently whisper my wake up call until I answer, anything more and it feels like a drill sergeant has forced me from bed which leaves me in a lingering mood for far too long after.

If left to my own devices, I'd naturally wake up somewhere between 7am and 8am, but I have a morning routine that is sacred to me so I only wake up on my own on sometimes Saturdays and always Sundays (unless I’m working).

I have to be alone for my routine to get the full benefits and so need to get it all in before my chatty kiddos are up, bless their hearts, which is why sometimes I even try for a 5am wake up regardless of the day’s plans.

I drift out of bed slowly, not entirely ready to say goodbye to the coziness I’m leaving behind. I find three things to be grateful for, which always helps me feel better about being tired and having to get out of bed; Tony Robins (love him) taught me this years ago. Find three things close, simple and easy to be grateful for.

1. Thank you for giving me two legs to get out of bed and a body that is able to move where I want it to

2. Thank you for having a bed so comfortable that it’s hard to leave it, and a safe space to rest my head each and every night with my life partner next me

3. Thank you for the coffee I’m about to have, that my loving husband leaves ready for me every single day

I already start to feel better and more awake as I make my way quietly downstairs.

I'm not technically booked today and I have no "obligation" to be anywhere at a specific time, but regardless, I always wake up to an alarm during the week.

As an artist, alone time is as much a necessity as water and to guarantee I get at least a portion of my preferred daily intake, I choose to take my guaranteed alone time in the morning, when I'm fresh and nobody is around, in case I don’t get a chance later in the day.

My husband wakes up at the crack of dawn early and leaves just before I get up so there’s one less person to avoid in the morning (sorry honey) while I meditate, journal and plan my day.

6:10: I'm downstairs heading towards my kitchen island to pour the coffee my husband left for me. On the way out of my room, I've picked up a couple of eye patches, black reusable silicone ones I leave on my vanity next to my eye cream, and attach them to my face so that it can soak in the Bobbi Brown eye cream while I run through my morning routine.

Shadows under the eyes are a side affect of the job and a family, so I've incorporated this daily habit to combat them. I like to set up what I call “habit traps” to make things easier on me (like always leaving things accessible and ready to go). Now I do it without thinking.

Under my eyes the patched will remain throughout my entire morning routine until I head into the shower.

6:15: I sit down on the corner of the sofa that I do all of my morning reading, journaling and planning at, lean over to the side table which holds all of my things stacked and ready for my morning routine and pick up the book I’m reading at the moment, ”The Creative Process” by Rick Rubin.

Weekday mornings I read non-fiction. It always makes it easier to wake up early knowing that first thing, all I need to do is read; it eases me into my day.

I fight the urge to check my email as I find where I left off.

I read this particular book in excerpts, not chapters, taking the time to reflect on each one.

6:40: I've finished my coffee (which I’m trying hard to replace with matcha) and having finished and reflected on the Rick Rubin excerpts, am now journaling in my moleskin which I’ve labeled “Morning Pages” and then planning my day.

I use my remarkable digital notebook to brain dump and then organize my thoughts turning them into tasks that I schedule and time block into my day (around any already existing obligations).

7am: I hear my daughter's alarm go off: Quiet time is about to end and I still haven't gotten through my entire routine; meditation is a major part of my routine and I still haven’t gotten to it. I decide to keep going with my planning and will multi-task - meditate while in the shower.

I’ve got about 15 minutes to wrap up before my bubbly girl comes downstairs.

7:15: Mom duty. Another thing to be grateful for.

8:20: Baby girl is at school and I’m back to just me; I wrap up my morning routine and get ready - no matter what; whether I work from home or not; I always get ready - it just makes me feel better. I do a quick meditation in the shower and keep my makeup and hair simple - bb cream and hair pulled back into french pins (so that I don’t get the weird pony tail crease from an elastic).

9am: Official start to the day - I like to have some structure to my wfh days so strive to start as close to 9am as possible even when working alone - I start by responding to any emails that came in overnight, fire off correspondence, catch up with clients or my team regarding any ongoing active projects and take care of anything that needs immediate attention. How long this takes depends on the number of projects at the moment.

Sometimes this mode lasts the entire day. That’s the worst.

Today - I’m not on an active client project - My last project is completely wrapped and my next one doesn’t begin until a little under two weeks - styling is a project based business - sometimes I have 3-5 client projects running simultaneously but right now I have a gap between gigs that I’ll use to work on the business; there’s always something to do.

9:30: I’m caught up on immediate correspondence and head into admin tasks. The night before I saw an ad online that I had styled and also a few nights ago, a commercial on television that was mine as well. I make a list of the last projects I’ve worked on so that I can ask my agent / agency to track down the work and add it to my book. It’s not good if too much time lapses before requesting reels or work, the longer it’s been, the more difficult it is to track down.

I’m probably the last represented stylist on earth to maintain my own website, but I do; I like to have aesthetic control and since I work in multiple cities and in multiple mediums it’s important to me to have one HQ - I make some updates to my website.

I check my personal projects calendar - I always have personal projects on the go, including photo shoots, fashion stories, essays, etc - I see that I have content due to share soon for SOAAS, I work on this - it’s important that I prepare content in advance because things get busy quick and bookings can completely take over my life when they come in one after another.

I do some more admin tasks:

I read, sort through and add recent assisting requests and resumes to the database for future reference.

I sort my business receipts and file them for my bookkeeper and then classify my business drives on my phone.

I update a template that I use to manage large commercial projects with multiple talents - I remember on the last television commercial I worked on, my team and I had some miscommunication so I add a tab that should stop this from happening in the future

3pm: I worked through lunch without noticing - I heat up some soup and make a quick smoothie, then head out to my vitamin b12 injection appointment - a lot of being a stylist and business owner is self care; ensuring that you are available for your clients when needed - there is not a lot of opportunity to ‘call in sick’ - if a lead stylist is needed on a project, there really isn’t a replacement, so I make sure that I am doing everything that I can to maintain my health; taking time for myself means I have more time for others.

After my vitamin b12, I drive straight to a hot pilates class, come home, shower and then head online to catch up on fashion collections and news - I always peruse new arrivals at certain retailers, like SSENSE, not to shop for myself but to see what’s hitting, how things are styled, emerging brands, etc. I scroll BOF (business of fashion) for the latest and read a few articles, then check out VOGUE Runway, and catch up on all the pre-fall collections (Ferrari has me excited) and spend some time scrolling archive collections, vintage VOGUES and pinterest for inspiration to use on future projects. I save images I like and categorize them; print the ones I want on my long standing moodboard and pin them up.

Another spin around my email, I send my replies - one email from a PR agency offering new designer samples - I add the designer and PR person to my roster of contacts so that I know who to reach out to should my team need to request - then shut my laptop for the day

7pm - It’s been a quiet day in terms of phone calls and emails - so I’ve been able to really move the needle on some tasks that needed to get done

Putting out fires before they start - like creating and updating templates that can be used across a styling team to keep all the project information together and the team on the same page - is how a styling business continues to run smoothly.

And time spent researching is never wasted. Knowing what to use and where to get it, before I need it is ultra valuable, especially on last minute jobs (which there are a lot of).

Because I took the time today - tomorrow’s client project will run better

Now I’m going to share a glass of wine with the hubby and watch Friends with my daughter after we finish up a little late dinner. I might even get a chapter or two of my book in before heading to bed no later than 10pm.