Running In Heels: Homework

Joanna, Nina and Zanna are heading to Fashion week in Europe. But before the leave, Joanna wants to sit down with the interns and get their opinion of recent issues of the magazine.

The girls are excited and nervous to have the opportunity but Talita isn’t thrilled at the idea of have “homework” after a 12-hour workday. Samantha is Patty Positive about it and Talita mocks her. Ashley sulks and rolls her eyes. Per usual.

“Do you ever think about anything realistically?” – Talita to Samantha.

“I don’t see what’s wrong with being positive. We got an assignment, I’m gonna work hard at it, not just complain like Talita.” – Samantha

I’m going to have to go with Samantha on this one.

Abby, a fashion assistant, is preparing for European fashion week. She’ll be going with the editors but instead of attending the shows, she’ll be running a satellite office from her hotel room.

That night, Ashley and Talita are back their apartment and Samantha is still at the office preparing for their meeting with Joanna. As they eat dinner, Talita and Ashley talk shit about Samantha.

The next morning, Samantha is still reading back issues while the other two get dressed.

“Does it even take that long to read?” – Ashley

At the office, the Meeting begins with Samantha saying “I love this issue, I’m not trying to suck up or anything.” Talita rolls her eyes and Ashley sulks.

Joanna responds with “you can suck up, sucking up is good.” Well, if the Editor In Chief says so, I’m going to say it’s fine.

Talita and Ashley both give positive feedback about the issue they are discussing but then Joanna asks them to share what did they didn’t like. Dun dun dun!

“I have a lot of those.” – Ashley.

Don’t think that was your best move, Ash. But then she gives fair constructive criticism of a fashion piece and Joanna agrees with her that the spread did not have variety in the clothes and diversity in the women. This becomes their next task. In 5 days, the interns have to create a page featuring a current trend and a real woman.

“We keep on getting harder and harder assignments and more and more work to do, this internship is harder than I thought it would be.” – Talita

“ I’m not going to admit it to the other girls but, I’m actually pretty glad we got this assignment. Its’ my chance to finally show j what I’ve got.” – Ashley

Samantha may be smarter than Talita and Ashley are giving her credit for. She gets samples from the fashion closet for their assignment and has a fashion assistant model the clothes. Things get a little emotional when she tries on an outfit and it doesn’t fit. Jeremy, a fashion editor, reminds her that sample sizes are 2 and 4 and that she shouldn’t be upset.

Later, Ashley asks Zoe for advice on their assignment. Good move seeing as Zoe is the editor for that page. Ashley truly seems nervous and admits that she’s a huge procrastinator and that she probably wont do anything until the last minute. How very college of her.

Talita hits the streets of Manhattan to hut down women in vests. Talita asks the art interns to help her layout her page.

They meet with editor Lucy to update her on the status of each of their pages and Ashley is late. Her excuse: she gave her last dollar to a homeless man and that dollar was her dollar for the subway. Uh, really Ashley? First of all the subway is $2.00 and, second, I thought you ladies rolled in cabs.

Ashley finds out that Talita had the art interns to design the page and she plans to call her out on it. I think this was fair. It’s not like the editors design each page in the magazine, the art department does.

Two days before the project is due, Ashley still hasn’t done anything and instead of working she talks to Zoe about how Talita “cheated.” Zoe doesn’t think what Talita did was out of line but she does say that Ashley will look better if she does her entire assignment herself.

Joanna and the crew are back and it’s time for the girls to present.

Samantha had a poorly cropped photo on her layout.
Ashley’s page was unfocused.
Talita had spelling mistakes in her copy. When is this girl going to learn?

“I don’t think any of you have spent any time really looking at magazines.” – Joanna

“I thought that Samantha’s trend was awful, Talita’s, she cheated on her project and Joanna still didn’t like it. – Ashley

“I hope that Ashley and Samantha have learned their lesson and that next time they worry less about me and focus more on their own projects. – Talita

“I don’t think it can get any worse” – Ashley

"I'm Running in Stupid Heels"

Faulty internet, an annoying television and my beyond pathetic Monday night bedtime have prevented me from posting my The City recaps every week. For that, I apologize. I know many of you enjoyed those posts but they have officially been retired. But, I've decided to take up a new weekly television show: Running in Heels.

Running In Heels premiered Sunday night on the style network. The eight-week docuseries will follow three interns and the staff of Hearst's Marie Claire. I feel better about following people who actually work where they say they work. So, Working Girls, here we go.

The 3 Interns

Ashley from Washington, D.C.
"I'm always trying to be the stand out one of the interns"

Talita from L.A.
"I believe I have the talent of Fashion. I think I was just born with it."

Samantha from Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
"I'm a little nervous because I don't know much about fashion magazines and how they work."

According to Ashley, the magazine gave her the names of the two other interns, they decided to live together and Ashley found the apartment that the three girls are living in online. False and false. Granted, they only have one bedroom and there are bunk beds. But still, when I was an intern I paid $2,000 to live in an NYU dorm with five other girls.

Immediately after introductions, there is drama already boiling. Ashley doesn't like Talita because she's very L.A. and Talita thinks Ashley is standoffish. Samantha, in true Midwest form, likes them both. So far, Talita and Ashley have nothing bad to say about Samantha. I give it 10 minutes.

The Staff

Joanna Coles - Editor In Chief
"It is stressful but i love it."

Zoe Glassner - Senior Shopping Editor
"Positions in the industry are limited"

Lucy Kaylin - Executive Editor
"Nothing gets in the magazine without going through me first."

Zanna Roberts - Senior Fashion Editor
"It's definitely not all glamour but it's fun and I love what I do"

The First Day

Ashley, Talita and Samantha take a cab to work. Shouldn't interns be taking the subway or the bus?

Zoe greets the girls, gives them a quick tour and then offers them her advice.

Zoe's words of wisdom are:
1. Don't speak unless spoken to.
2. No gum.
3. No flip-flops.
4. Wear appropriate underwear
5. And don't forget "there are hundreds of girls who would kill to be you."

I think I've heard that last one somewhere before. I just can't put my finger on it...

She also gives them their first week assignments:
Talita - assist the beauty department at fashion week.
Samantha - tend to Joanna Coles and newly hired Nina Garcia.
Ashley - assist Zoe in the fashion department

Talita and Samantha are beyond excited by their assignments. Ashley is not and she should be. Zoe has worked at Marie Claire for eight years. I'd guess she knows the ins-and-outs of the magazine more than most. If Ashley were to preform well in assisting her it would be very helpful for her career. Throughout her assignment she's sulking.

We get our first real glimpse of Nina during a fashion department meeting. She is channeling Miranda Preistly. I like it.

Down in the studio Zoe is also hardcore and I like it. Ashley does not. She did not pack up items from a photo short correctly and Zoe is not having it. Zoe says, in a voiceover, that internships are all about learning and that if you don't know how to do something, you need to ask. Ashley says, to the camera, that Zoe didn't tell her how to pack the times, so she shouldn't be mad. Who's side are you on?

Sergio, Joanne's assistant, gives Samantha her first assignment. To pick up designer outfits for Joanne. And before we know it she is literally running in her heels. On her way back to the office, she tries to hail a cab. "I don't know what the lights mean," she says about the cabs.

(A quick NYC cab lesson from WG1: if just the lights in the middle are on, the cab is available. If no lights are on, the cab is taken. If just the "off duty" lights are on, the cab is off duty. If the "off duty" and the middle lights are on, the cabbie might take you were you need to go if he feels like it.)

Talita's assignment is to go to the Rock & Republic fashion show and interview models backstage about their beauty secrets. When she arrives backstage she looks totally lost. I can't blame her, it looks beyond overwhelming. It's stressing me out just watching. The following Monday, Talita meets with a beauty editor to discuss her assignment. According to the editor, Talita didn't get enough information and had several spelling mistakes in her draft. That's a huge no-no.

While Talita was doing a bad job backstage, Sergio called the intern apartment and gave Ashley tickets to the show and she did not invite Samantha. After the show and back at the apartment Samantha confronted Ashley. Ashley was not sorry for not inviting Samantha and this upset Samantha. Drama, drama, drama.

Later, Zoe is passing out assignments again. For the Nina Garcia party, Samantha gets to work the red carpet, the glamorous assignment, while Talita and Ashley are working on event planning (read: gift bag stuffing duty). And obviously Ashley is sulking about it. She thinks she should have the more glamorous assignment because she has more experience.

After the Party

"Never would I ever have the audacity to walk around a party, with Nina Garcia, during fashion week, barefoot, with a glass of champagne in my hand, as an intern." - Ashley.

"It was very clear tonight that Samantha doesn't know what shes doing." - Talita

"They were looking at me like I was the biggest idiot" - Samantha about Ashley and Talita.

Upon first meeting the girls, I thought I was going to hate Talita and that Samantha was slightly annoying. Ashley appeared to be the perfect intern. She was experienced, poised and polite. Those last two didn't last long. Perhaps she has the most experience but she needs to cut out the competitiveness and realize that each opportunity during her internship will be helpful. Even it is stuffing gift bags and packing up photo shoot items.

I began rooting for Samantha, the nice girl from the Midwest. But, I was right, she's annoying and "green" as Talita put it. As an intern or even as a full-time employee working the event, you should not be seen eating the food or drinking the drinks while the party is going on. Nor should you take of your heels.

Talita, while she made some mistakes with her first assignment is the most mature intern so far. She stayed out of the drama between Ashley and Samantha and only reacted to Samantha's actions at the party. We'll see how long she remains drama free.

(Editor's note: I apologize for the lack of photos. As previously mentioned, my internet has been faulty lately and pictures are just not going to happen for this post.)