What it Really Means to be a Fashion Editor, Stylist & Consultant

Photo Credit: @felipeespinal — Photo Credit: **@felipeespinal**

Since leaving my 9-to-5 job, and going out on my own to become my own boss, more than ever I'm faced with the question, “so what do you really do?” Now, don’t get me wrong, I'm happy to answer the question, but, it’s harder than you might think. Especially for those who might not know that much about the fashion industry and its inter-workings, describing what I do to a say, a family member or someone I meet out in the city can be super difficult. Below, I’m breaking down what it means to wear many different hats in this industry, and what each one does.

Fashion Editor

My background is in fashion editorial, so I will forever take a piece of those experiences with me wherever I go. Now that I am freelance though, I am able to collaborate with many different magazines as an editor, and on a greater level. Recently, I’ve written articles for Real Simple and Guest of a Guest, but now that I work for myself, I get to put my own unique spin and voice on the pieces I write. And my work with magazines doesn’t stop there, I also now get to partner with these publications on a social media level, taking over their accounts for big events and attending special events they host, which I wouldn't have been able to do while employed by another magazine.

Aside from my work with other publications, I am, as you know, the editor here at MakingManhattan.com, where I write and edit all of my writers content. I also look over their pitches and work with them to help develop their ideas. This part of my job is super rewarding because I get to help coach my writers to reach their full potential.

Stylist

I recently went into detail about how I started my career as a stylist here. Since that experience when I was still in college, I then went onto work at Teen Vogue and InStyle, so my styling career sort of took a backseat. Now that I am on my own though, and since starting MakingManhattan.com, I not only get the great opportunity to style editorial articles for the site, but, I've also styled stories and covers for different publications. I also work with a few young celebrities, styling them for red carpet events, such as movie premieres, award shows, and Comic Cons.

Consultant

Now, this tier of my career is maybe the most confusing to people, just because it does so many different things. As a consultant, I work with brands to help them "brand" themselves properly. Through social media collaborations and partnerships, we discuss how they want to target, market, and portray their brand to the world. I’m then in charge of producing content that meets those guidelines that they can then share across their social media accounts.

Here, I’ve really only still scratched the surface of what I do, but, at least the next time I’m out and someone asks me what I do, I can just show them this article and hope it will suffice!

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