GLSEN Lounge Hosted by Elle Magazine

During Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week this season I was invited to attend the GLSEN lounge which was hosted by Elle magazine at the Empire Hotel. It was very special for me to come to the lounge as it brought back great memories of filming All On the Line with Joe Zee the Creative Director of Elle magazine a few months prior. 

My first stop at the lounge was the Braid Bar by the famous John Barrett Salon. It was an incredible experience getting my hair done by such talented professionals. I will be writing a detailed post about the final look shortly. 

 

After getting my hair done I stopped by the Motorola station to recharge my phone and test out the latest Motorola products. I ran into Miss J who I've always seen at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week but never had a chance to properly meet until now. She was so fabulous and it was really an honor to finally get a chance to meet her in person!

After meeting Miss J I took a few pictures by the Motorola backdrop which coincidentally matched my outfit. My black sunglasses matched the black background and my red and white outfit matched the Motorola logo colors. I swear I didn't plan it but how ironic! I would make a great candidate for Motorola's next spokesperson, no? 

Lounge amenities were provided by smartwater, Baked by Melissa and popchips. I sampled a few of the Baked by Melissa mini cupcakes which were just beyond delicious! 

 

 

After all the excitement I decided to take a little breather and relax for a bit until my next fashion show in the tents. Below is a shot of what I looked like without my signature black sunglasses. This was probably one of the only photos where I wasn't wearing them that day. 

 

  

Here is my look from the other day of the lounge where I also had my hair done at the John Barret Braid Bar. This time they created a fishtail braid which was so pretty!

 

The lounge was aimed to raise awareness for GLSEN's upcoming National Day of Silence taking place on April 20, 2012 where students across the country take a vow of silence to call attention to the silencing effect of anti-LGBT bullying and harassment in schools.

 

After taking part in all of the fabulous amenities of the lounge I went over to sketch a message of support for GLSEN's upcoming Day of Silence. Joining me were countless other fashion peers, celebrities and fashion designers. 

When it was finally my turn to draw my message of hope I took a few minutes to think about what this really meant. As I stared at the blank canvas in front of me I envisioned a quote by Winston Churchhill which said "Never, Never, Never Give up." 
If I'm ever discouraged I always remind myself of this quote and it gives me strength to keep pursuing my dreams. My wish is that this message serves the same amount of hope to another person during the GLSEN Day of Silence where I believe these drawings will all be featured. 

 

After I was invited to do a mini photo-shoot with my finished sketch in a private photo studio. The photographer was so fun to work with and knew exactly the kind of picture he wanted to take.  

After a few shots the final picture came out really great! It was nice seeing my photo featured among many other drawings of hope and support on the GLSEN lounge Facebook page.  

For more information about GLSEN visit www.glsen.org