American H&M

I wanted to see next if there would be a difference between the way the H&M was set out in New York compared to the way it was set out in England. I was surprised at just how many H&M's that we saw, there seemed to be one on every street. They weren't little shops either but all seemed to occupy a huge amount of space.

As soon as I entered the shop I realised that it was exactly the same as any other H&M that I had been in. It was slightly tidier, and the sheer size of the building meant that it was much more spacious. There was more room for the clothes to be spread out which meant that it had lost the jumble sale feel that it has in England.

Personally, I preferred the more organized and spacious feeling of the shop and found it much easier to find clothes that I actually liked without having to ferret around through racks of garments.

I couldn't be dragged away from the underwear department, and though I tried not to, I ended up buying a gorgeous nude set, a delicate bra and pantie set with a waspie that matched. I certainly don't need any more underwear but the H&M prices were very difficult to resist.

I also bought a black waistcoat embellished with gold sequins. It may look odd on it's own, but when styled with a plain black dress and opaque tights, I think it will make a dull outfit look much more appealing.

Can't Resist Victoria's Secret

I headed over the road shortly after the visit to Forever 21 and couldn't resist going inside Victoria's Secret, fully intending not to come out empty handed.

I loved the in store environment and the cleanliness of the store, although due to there being the January Sale, it wasn't as organised as perhaps it usually is. I made my way up the escalator and up to the first floor, admiring how they were also selling make up and lounge wear in an underwear shop.

When I got to the second floor there was much more space to move around and there were less people in there looking for a sale. Here was where the new stock was and that was what I was interested in. I scanned the mannequins and found a bra that was stunning in nude pink, very delicately embroidered and beautifully finished. I found my size in the corresponding drawer and then searched to find some underwear to match but there was nothing. This surprised me as one of my key rules is that I always match my underwear and I think a shop specialising in underwear should be offering matching sets, if only for the purpose of making more money. I scoured the drawers but couldn't find any colours that matched the beautiful nude pink of the bra I had found.

Reluctantly I put it back and settled instead for a coral pink set. The Victoria's Secret is embroidered very discreetly in the middle and it fits beautifully.

Back to Work: Forever 21

After some lunch we headed back down Fifth Avenue and tried to visit the High Street side of things. We had been recommended to go and look at Forever 21 as they were supposed to have a lot of throwaway fashion at low prices.

We went through the doors and were greeted with a shop that looked like a cross between New Look and Primark. There were clothes absolutely everywhere leaving very little space to walk around and to hinder us even more the shop was packed with people. We had to edge our way through everybody to look at the clothes on the racks. The floor was set out in a similar way to New Look, with some circular racks dotted around the centre at waist height and then a veriety of bars at the sides with some other items. However, I did feel like you had to hunt to find items that would work together, which reminded me more of Primark.

I did eventually manage to find a boyfriend style shirt that was pin striped blue and white, it had roll up sleeves and I bought in a larger size than I needed so that I could wear it over more fitted items for a layered look.

My best buy in forever 21 was a sheer pink top with black and pearl embellishment on the neckline. I bought a pink strap top to wear underneath and will wear with black leggings and boots for a smart/casual night out.

I found Forever 21 quite a stressful shopping environment.

A Quick Break for a Horse and Carriage Ride

Before we knew what had happened it was getting on for midday and we had managed to walk the entire length of Fifth Avenue. We found ourselves up by Central Park and couldn't resist having a quick break from retail research and hopping on board a horse and carriage for a tour round the park.

We paid a few dollars each and the four of us climbed into a carriage and covered ourselves with a warm red blanket. We were then taken round the outskirts of the park with the driver describing various sights and locations that had been used in films.

The park was still covered in a thin layer of snow from a few days previously and looked picturesque as we drove by. It was peaceful and quiet with only a few people walking their dogs or ice skating in the rink in the middle of the park.

The driver was really polite and interested in our visit to the city and gave us some information on the best places to eat and drink out. Before long, we found ourselves back at the point we had left off at and said goodbye before heading back to do some more research.

Up Fifth Avenue to Abercrombie and Fitch

We continued waking up Fifth Avenue and our attention was caught by a model standing in the doorway wearing an open black shirt and having his photo taken with some exciteable girls. We realised we were at Abercrombie and Fitch and decided to have a look what the visual merchandising was like in this store.

The music was thumping through the speakers so loudly that the base line made my bones feel like they were shaking. The loud music and the lack of lighting made the environment feel more like a night club than a shop. I had the feeling that I should be on the look out for guys to hook up with rather than looking at the clothes themselves.

There were four stories of this sort of thing and an abundance of scantily clad male models that seemed to guard all of the stairs and the female staff were not exactly dressed for a cold January day either. The lighting was so dark that I was finding it really difficult to actually see any of the clothes that were stacked in neat little colour coordinated shelving compartments. I wanted to find some blue jeggings but gave up after a few failed attempts at picking out black instead of blue from the pile. I had to pick them up and physically move closer to a light in order to see what I was holding.

The changing rooom lighting wasn't much better, I still felt like I was in a nightclub and trying to talk to any of the staff was nearly impossible due to the loud music. I began to feel quite intimidated by the women dancing on the stairs and the topless male models made me feel decidedly uneasy. In the end I had to get out, running into a Father with a look of dread on his face as he followed his daughter inside.

Starting the Research: First Stop - Juicy Couture

In all the rush and excitement of arriving in New York City, we had spent the first day focusing on the tourist side of things, forgetting our real purpose of being there: Research. Our future project will be to write and advertisement brief for an American Brand launching in the UK. We decided to split Manhattan into three sections: Uptown, Midtown and Downtown and we would try to get into as many stores as possible, taking notes on the differences in visual merchandising and the in store environment.

We started to make our way up Fifth Avenue and stopped firstly at Juicy Couture. We were enticed in by the exciting window display that was fitted with a circus theme. There were mannequins styled like jesters with long pointed hats and huge over sized shoes, swinging from trapezes and balancing on tight ropes. There was a cage with mannequins inside with the heads of tigers, peering out through the bars. Amazingly, a huge long legged mannequin on stilts was placed in the shop window that was nearly two stories high, wearing the iconic Juicy Couture sweat pant, specially designed with extra long legs.

Inside the store, the visual merchandising was fantastic, unlike anything I have seen in England. It seemed to be touching on traditional English heritage, whilst playfully adding a twist of humour. There was a spiral staircase with a gold suit of armour guarding in the corner and a mounted deer head on the wall was decorated with Juicy jewellery and make up. The underwear was stored as in Victoria's Secret in an antique looking chest of drawers and there were paintings on the walls of fox hunts and the English countryside.

The staff in store were eager to talk to us when they found out we were Fashion Students and it was a friendly and welcoming in store environment.

An Incredible End to the Day

After finishing our meal at Planet Hollywood, we started to make our way back down Broadway to our Hotel on West 31st and Fifth Avenue. On the way, we approached Madison Square Gardens and decided to go in on the off chance that we might be able to buy tickets for the Knicks game that was about to start.

We queued up and were told that the only tickets left were going to cost us either $120 or $240 each. Disappointed, we began to walk away, there was no way that we could afford to pay that.

We came to the end of the queue and a man in a leather jacket asked us if we had just tried to get tickets, we told him that there were some left if he ran to the queue now, but they were very expensive.

He then took out a wad of four tickets and explained that his children had been unable to attend the game and asked if we would like them instead. We looked at him, puzzled and explained that we just couldnt afford the premier tickets he had in his hand. He looked back at us, just as puzzled and said that he wasnt offering to sell the tickets to us, but as a gift! It was unbelievable! We accepted and before we knew what was happening we were holding four $240 Knicks tickets in our hand for absolutely nothing in return.

To make a great night even better, the man walked us to our seats in the private premier section and then went courtside to find his own seats. We were as close as we could get to the game without being paid to sit there and be seen. It was unbelievable and we felt completely elated.

A waitress came round to ask us if we wanted anything to eat, winked at us, saying we had to order because someone was waiting to buy for us. Not only did we have amazing free tickets to an amazing game, we were being waited on and we had free food and drink being bought for us. The waitress explained that our kind stranger was corporate and very well respected in the Knicks, working very high up.

The game began and we were amazed by the electric atmosphere in the arena. It was nothing like anything I have experienced at a sports game and I couldnt get enough. Every time out we were treated to more exciting entertainment, from cheerleaders to funny games and even a marriage proposal up on the big screen! We ended up getting really into the game and cheering and screaming like everyone around us. Eating free food and drinking for freem it was a brilliant way to end the day.

How to be a New York Tourist

Having never been to New York before, after the visit to the FIT exhibit, I was desperate to visit some of the iconic sights of the city. Firstly, and most obviously, we headed to the statue of liberty.
The three girls and I took the subway downtown and walked the last few blocks down to Staten Island Ferry. The first sight of the statue was nothing like I had expected. From films and renowned photographs of the New York skyline, the statue appears to be much closer to Manhatten than it actually is, from the park, the statue appeared miniature and almost underwhelming.
We caught the free transfer ferry over to Staten Island that took us straight past the statue of liberty itself. As we were approaching, I finally started to see how breath taking it was in real life. It seemed to keep growing from the horizon until we were directly opposite it and could finally take it all in. The deck of the boat was crowded with people pushing and shoving with their cameras, trying to get the best shot. That, added to the blistering cold wind, made me feel like I was going to topple overboard.
I managed to get a few perfect photographs and then decided to give up for fear of frost bite.
Carrying on the tourist theme, we headed up to the financial district to visit Ground Zero. I didnt feel entirely comfortable with this idea but it meant a lot to my friend so we did as we were told. We arrived in the financial district and scanned the skylines to try and see a spot where the sun shone through. It was chilling to see the light hitting the buildings, knowing the reason why it could.

Out next stop was Times Square, I stupidly thought it would be similar to London's Piccadilly circus. I felt sheepish when I saw the amazing difference. The main thing that caught my eye was the huge, flashing and moving billboards advertising huge names brands such as Levi's, Coca Cola and Nivea. We stood outside the American Eagle flagship store and I was stunned by the futuristic feel of the shop front. The static, shop window was redundant and replaced with huge screens with moving posters. There was also and interactive element to the screens. On the Nivea screens for example, you could get yourself photographed with Mr Nivea and the image would then be projected onto the huge illuminated screen outside on Times Square. The idea, is definitely the future.

Lastly, to finish our tourist afternoon in style, we headed to Planet Hollywood, where I placed my hands in the hand prints of Robert Pattinson. :)