I have found that working in this industry, I have had some days that seem to last forever and other days where it seems there aren’t enough hours in the day. Mixed in to all of this are good days and bad days that don’t ever necessarily have to do with how many hours I work, but rather with what happens within those hours.

Today my schedule was full of very diverse meetings, not to mention it was my good friend’s birthday and I had to celebrate. The first meeting to kick off the day was with a stylist I was interviewing for a personal project that I am working on. I plan on creating a calendar and I have a crazy vision, so I need a stylist, or costumer I should say, as bold and daring as I am. I have a very specific vision and I need someone whose style compliments mine and who has the technique to bring what’s on paper to life.

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Today I’m essentially meeting Matt’s entire family because he invited me to his grandparent’s 50th anniversary party. No pressure. I leave in less than two weeks and I’m off meeting the in-laws. Ok, that’s a joke, but this is still a fairly serious situation.

I know myself well enough to know that once I’m in Italy, Filippo or Roberto or Sal or some new Italian man is going to sweep me off my feet (they are very good at the whole romance thing if you have not figured it out yet). So I have to dig through my bottomless wardrobe and find something that is perfect for this event. It has to be tasteful; yet still appealing to Matt, because of course I want him to be thinking solely of me.

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Venice is a floating city of romance. Every corner I turn, there seems to be a couple enjoying their time away from reality. The people of Venice help sustain this reputation by creating a dreamy atmosphere through music in the middle of the plaza, gondola rides through the narrow canals, and lights that light up the bridges that connect one section to another. Even though I’m sure that experiencing the city with my significant other would be much different from my time here with my mom, I was able to get a memorable overall feel to what Venice has to offer.

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Dinner was so amazing last night. I had this lobster and yellow tail roll that was to die for. So yummy, and the ambience was perfect. It was great to see my girlfriends because it had been a while since we all went out together. They looked so good, I couldn’t stop talking about what they were wearing! My friend Carolina was wearing this beautiful yellow Armani dress, which looked so good on her. It was very form fitting and showed her toned body. My friend Christina had this really cute white DKNY suit that just look amazing against her olive skin tone and Kelly was a bit more casual with this beautiful silk blue BCBG jumpsuit. It’s so great to just people-watch at Katana as well, everyone looked so glamorous, and there were so many great styles and fashions!!

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Today was interesting. I had a 7 p.m. casting and afterwards I went to see a friend in a play. I wanted to wear something cute and flirty, so I chose a black and white BCBG mini dress. The casting is near downtown and the show is back in Hollywood. I make it to the casting early and there are already a few people ahead of me so I sit down to wait.

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This week Gabriella introduces us to the concept of “Tabula Rasa.” An idea developed by Thomas Locke that all individuals are born as “blank slates.” We’re all blank slates when it comes to our daily style. Remember, style is all about perception.

There are so many factors that go into walking out the front door: hair, make-up, destination. All of which helps determine our level of confidence as we leave the house and start our day. It’s easy to get caught up in having a “bad” day. Whether it be a bad hair day, a bad skin day (overnight pimples!), or a bad clothes day because, suddenly, you have nothing to wear.

Regardless of the fashion dilemmas we face each morning, it’s always important that we walk out the door with confidence, intelligence and style.

Every time I move, there is a constant variable: the tedious details. Those irking knick-knacks that take the most time to pack and organize, but are essential to my life, much harder to repurchase, and therefore I can’t throw away. Necessities like, nail polish; alcohol; band-aids; candles; tools; office supplies, the list goes on. Luckily, packing my clothes didn’t fall into that category.

The details of packing and the details of dressing are two different stories. Today Gabriella makes a good point about  ”Giving Your Look Personality.” Yesterday, I was going for the look of an ‘Around the Way Girl.’ I wasn’t trying to be too trendy or unconventional: bamboo earrings, fun, eye-catching jewelry, and, of course, my worn out Chucks. When you put the focus on your shoes and accessories, you can play up your personality and free-style with your creativity.

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I am crazy! As hot as it is, I’m still wearing jeans; but they’re so comfortable. I already got my first job with the temp agency, so at least I will be in air conditioning. I will be working at one of the Disney offices in Burbank, checking people in at the front desk. It pays well, but is sure to be stressful. Also, my agent just called me to do a runway show tonight. Translation: A long day and an equally long night.

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I got an email from my friend in Mexico this morning. His name is Roberto and we met in Italia last summer. I went to go meet some friends in a piazza before a night of clubbing and he was a friend of theirs that had just arrived in Florence. I can remember walking through the dimly lit streets of Firenze in my black cocktail dress. It was cotton and had beading in a V down the front of it. It was beautiful and it made me feel beautiful.

Now, Italians are generally pretty forward when they think you look good, but this particular evening a man actually ran after me. It was kind of ridiculous, but hey—that’s what good fashion can do.

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I was shooting until late last night. Thankfully I didn’t have any nightmares. I’m getting better with my horror film phobia, and I’m ready for the next step. My boyfriend is dying to see Drag Me To Hell. Today I’ll tell him that I’m ready. He loves watching horror films, and he always has to watch them alone, so this should make him happy!

I can never sleep past 8 a.m. It irritates me because there are times when I go to bed around 3 or 4 in the morning, especially when I’m shooting, and I still wake up around 7 or 8. Even if I feel tired, I can’t stay in bed. At least this morning I got to try this new class at my gym called Brazilian Body. Not to be confused with Brazilian Booty, this one supposedly works your whole body, not just the booty. I was ready for my brazilian transformation!

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Finally the opportunity to explore the city of Venice! The day started out in a struggle, dragging our heavy luggage from our hotel in Milan to the train station. I wore my dark blue DKNY jeans, my red T-shirt from Velvet and my high-top Chucks. My mom and I had less time to reach the station than we had originally planned, so being in sneakers definitely sped up the process. I couldn’t have imagined running around Milan in heels!

I knew that Venice is made up of water canals instead of streets, and the buildings are constructed on islands, but what I saw as I stepped off the train was something that I would have never imagined. Seeing Venice right in front of your eyes is breathtaking.

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Waking up in Los Angeles felt a little weird. I quickly got used to waking up in San Francisco and the heat of the Valley was quick to snap me back to reality. Coming back home I had a few essential things to care of, like the obvious unpacking, laundry, and the regular getting back in town procedures. I took my time and decided not to make myself crazy, but I did want to do something fun with the later part of the day, so naturally I was still trying to do things quickly.

In the midst of doing the dishes I got a call from Alecks asking if I wanted to have lunch. Although I wanted to, I decided to tell him that I had things to finish up at home and that maybe we would catch up later. He didn’t reply. It was so weird and very unlike him, but I tried not to think about it and figured we would just talk to each other later.

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Do you know how long it took me to buy a pair of Chucks? Forever! I definitely didn’t rock them in high school, which, looking back, makes me sad.

With my apartment all packed up, I left myself two weeks worth of clothes to wear until I get settled in my new place. Moving across country is no small task, and with the airlines charging for each checked bag, I limited myself to two bags max. Of course I kept my Converse as one of my picks.

I don’t fly out until Saturday night, but, since I’m all packed up, all I have to choose from is within those two weeks worth of clothes. I’m not sure this was smart or not, but I didn’t leave myself any jeans to wear. I figured it was going to be so hot and sticky and humid in New York, that my first few weeks would be easiest if I limited myself to dresses. That way I can throw on a dress and, for the most part, my outfit is complete.

Today I went feet first. I really need a pedicure and I’m tired of looking at my old nail polish, so I decided to wear my Chucks. I figured this would be my preview week. I’d experiment with some looks here in LA, that way when I got to NYC I won’t have to think too much about my whole look.

Since I didn’t leave myself any jeans I didn’t have much to work with, when it came to wearing my black, hightop Chucks. I considered wearing them with this cute multi-print skirt, that I always get complimented on, but I decided to stick to black and put on a simple black sundress. It wasn’t that I was playing it safe, I just decided that I wanted the focus to be on my Chucks (I’m still in the honeymoon stage and I always feels so fresh and cool wearing them) and some fun Betsey Johnson jewelry that I love to showcase.

Because I kept only dresses, many of them simple, my challenge is to bring the focus to other parts of myself, like my shoes or my jewelry and most definitely, my make-up. With that in mind, I put on one of my favorite gold-striped giraffe necklaces with long, hanging chains that really drew attention to my neck and face. I wore my gold, hoop, bamboo earrings and played around with my eyeshadow. I was channeling Sex and the City. At least in my head.

The Sum of My Parts = Around the Way Girl.

I’m back to the Hollywood sets today. I’m doing this small part in a horror film and we’re doing some fun, spooky, scenes today. When you’re shooting a horror film, you realize what really happens behind the scenes, so it makes me not freak out as much. I used to love watching horror movies, but about seven years ago, I don’t know what happened, but I couldn’t watch horror movies any more. I get so scared and I can’t sleep at night. I start imagining every situation in the movie, and thinking how the same thing is going to happen to me. Especially films about spirits, those freak me out the most. I believe that stuff, and I’ve had some crazy stuff happen to my sister and me, so I don’t want to play around with any spirit stuff!

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My mother and I spent part of our last day in Milan sightseeing more of the city, and the rest of the afternoon was dedicated to visiting a Buddhist temple. My mother is part of a Buddhist group that meets every other month for Japanese prayers, and this month happened to take place here in Italy. Even though I’m not religious, I decided to explore this side of Japanese culture that I’m not too familiar with and tag-along with her.

I changed out of my more casual tourist clothes and put on a Diane von Furstenberg dress. I wasn’t too sure of the required dress code, but I didn’t want to walk into a Buddhist temple wearing jeans and a T, so I aimed for a more sophisticated look.

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