Thursday, March 29, 2012

Had a lovely time at the Blush lingerie launch at Bloomingdales SoHo

Hey Girls,

Had a lovely time at the Blush lingerie launch (@blushsocial) at Bloomingdales SoHo this evening. I met Carson Kressley, so sweet, hilarious, witty and charming (follow him on twitter: @carsonkressley ) I told him there needs to be another show like How to Look Good Naked and that he should write more books and also I gave him a copy of ALMOST 5'4" (I hope he enjoys it) and bought some BLUSH panties of course and got a free gift with my purchase: a sexy lingerie coffee table book. It was a little heavy to carry home but it will look hot on the table or bookshelf.


 The lingerie models were tall, pretty much giraffes, but they were also diverse, not super stick thin but realistic, and they rocked the lingerie well, it was sexy and pretty on them.

These are my new BLUSH panties! whoo hoo! And awesome Second Skin lingerie book!

~Isobella

Isobella Jade quote: be patient with yourself while you strive

Sometimes our goals can stress us out, everything to get done to reach it can seem overwhelming, so be patient with yourself while you strive, set little goals for the day and throughout the week to keep yourself gliding :) Isobella Jade

My Rant about Vogue's Weight Watcher feature

Hey,

Incase you missed my Weight Watcher rant on my petitemodelingtips.com blog, here it is. :)

http://www.petitemodelingtips.com/2012/03/my-thoughts-on-weight-watcher-in-vogues.html

Get your kids active, and they don't need dessert every single f'ing day!

~Isobella

Reed Krakoff should write an inspirational book


Hey Girls,
Last week at the French Institute Alliance Francaise FIAF listening to Reed Krakoff, designer of his own women's ready-to-wear and creative director at Coach, talk about his design journey he mentioned how important it is to allow yourself to fail. I liked that he said that. I was struck by how inspirational his way of describing his own journey was, every sentence out of his mouth sounded like a title of a book or a chapter in an inspirational book.
Failure, and the good of it, was a main pin point of the talk.
And I could relate.
We all want to succeed and have that successful feeling, we aim high and have that vision of glory but things can't be rushed and allowing yourself to fail translates into allowing yourself to bring out the best of you, trial and error, discovering, crafting and falling in love with your pursuit/s. Reed Krakoff also mentioned the importance of letting yourself grow with your work.
I could relate again.
Allowing yourself time to grow and really letting yourself, project, company or goal evolve is what forms the feeling of success and helps you clarify what success is to you and leads you to it. Even in this fast pace want-it-now world, some things shouldn't be rushed, and in the words of Reed Krakoff, "Nothing replaces time."
Isobella

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Pre-historic baby slings and finding petite baby carriers?

here I am enjoying my snugli

How did cave-women carry their kids? They might have used a piece of animal fur to create a baby swing or carrier or used a thick piece of bark from a tree tied with pine tree branches, maybe? Today while talking to my mom about the history of baby carriers the word papoose came up. When I was a baby my mother used a snugli baby carrier. It's cool to think about how much of what we use today are actually advancements from the beginning of time. And I love being thankful for what we have now. But if I had to go back in time I might use a bow and arrow like Katniss in Hunger Games and use the squirrel skin as a swaddle for my newborn-to-be. Here's some insight on where the stuff we see at Babys R Us probably aspired from.


Interested in prehistoric baby slings and how they might have increased our brain size check out this article out: http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/history/prehistoric-baby-sling-made-our-brains-bigger-2071291.html
cool right!
~Isobella
p.s: Also, being petite I'm on the hunt for a baby carrier that is petite friendly, many are cute and safe and snug but seriously do not fit a petite frame, it goes down past my crotch! And before the belly grows bigger I'd like to try a few on but all I see are sizes that really make me look and feel ridiculous. I might have to seriously make my own!

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

In the dressing room trying on maternity jeans-petite pregnant lady


Hey Girls,

Stickinggg out belly. In dressing room at Pea in a Pod today and Destination Maternity on 57th and Madison. I was there earlier this week quietly thinking about it and yesterday I went for it and after tried on a bunch went for AG Jeans Charlotte -very comfy and nice fit (just will have them hemmed). I do plan to wear dresses and skirts quite often though.

~Isobella

Friday, March 16, 2012

Exciting news to share!!



Okay, omg, my sweet and lovely readers, it's time to tell you all!! I have some exciting news to share with you! This weekend I enter my second trimester! I'm pregnant!!! And here is a recent ultrasound image of our little one!! ♥ ♥ ♥ so I'll be posting now not just about modeling tips and upcoming books and favorite little things but also my experiences being a petite pregnant lady! :)

xo, Isobella

Monday, March 12, 2012

Reader Special: Signed copy of Almost 5'4" for $17


Hey Girls,

Spring is in the air and it's a beautiful day in NYC!

This week I'm holding a reader special for my modeling memoir Almost 5'4" for $17.

Price includes shipping and handling in USA and personalized signed copy of Almost 5'4", and also a personalized note with my top modeling tips for self-made models of all sizes and levels (just let me know what type of level you are within your modeling pursuits, the early stage of a model’s pursuits, the growing stage of a model’s pursuits or if you've already booked work with brands and magazines and are a working model but want some tips on getting more opportunities and self-marketing. I'll share with you how to strive and get opportunities no matter where you live or your size).


To order contact me through my website www.isobelladreams.com

Since it's personalized, please let me know who (name) to sign the book for.

Read an excerpt of the book here and read about how I wrote it at the Apple store here.

If you'd rather read Almost 5'4" as an ebook you can find it on Amazon and BN.com and on the iBookstore too. 

This Limited Promotion starts today and ends Sunday March 18th.

Remember height isn't everything so aim high and strive on!

~Isobella

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

3 extra skills that can help an aspiring model book work

This blog is for YOU, it's free and there is ton of advice on it, things I've lived through, so search through it and I hope the articles inspire you to grab ahold of your potential and give yourself a chance with a marketing mindset and belief in yourself~IJ

Hey Girls,

Recently I read about a casting for a well known retailer looks for a spunky girl with a tone body but that wasn't it. Must be skilled with teleprompter, the casting also read. Modeling and acting couple together when it comes to booking commercial work and also print work. Print modeling involves using your personality and having an approachable and engaging persona. A girl recently wrote me telling me that her mother wants her to take acting classes since she is too short for high fashion modeling, the girl was kinda upset about this, but I told her that acting classes are actually a great thing to take, being on-camera comfortable and having the skill for reading short lines and bringing your personality to the camera is important for print modeling too.

So keep in mind, acting classes would be a benefit for an aspiring model and make you better prepared for print modeling and commercial opportunities.

Putting to use what you already are skilled at can also lead to modeling work.  Another girl wrote me that she was a good volleyball player and wanted to start modeling while in high school and she didn't know where to start. After sharing with her some tips on creating some marketable photos I also told her, well you already have the skill of volleyball why not put it towards your modeling pursuits. Why not get some professional photos of you in your fitness gear and approach a local sporting goods store and ask them about if they use models for their promotion and local advertising?  Just because you live in a smaller city doesn't mean you can't book some good local modeling work with brands based in your town or regionally.

(Remember having professional photos and the basic print modeling photos are key to booking work, sometimes when you work with an agency already they will ask you for digitals, natural shots with a digital camera to show clients the candid you, but shots like these are not acceptable when you are trying to get in the door with the agency and introducing yourself to the agency. You need professional photography. Professional photos does not mean cake on the makeup and over do the glam, it means still being natural, the real you--plus the real you IS the perfect look for print modeling anyways -think of your senior photos, smiling, personality, the real you and taken by a professional photographer. Photos are key, they represent where you are going and your professionalism. Don't think someone else will be ontop of this, it's up to YOU to manage your photography as a print model.)

So keep in mind, what you already excel at could be an asset when booking modeling work.

Being a savvy self-marketer can also lead to work. You might think the modeling agency makes it happen, but this isn't 100% so. Maybe your short, too short to work with the agencies in your town, well that doesn't mean modeling is over. You do need the right photos, a comp card and a protfolio (which will grow in time) but you also need a marketing mindset. Be clever, think broad, be bold. Who is in your circle already that might be able to help your modeling pursuits and get you some experience? Does your friend or a family member have a small company and might need a model for it? What about a new hair salon opening in your town that might need a model? Any tradeshows or craft shows coming up in your area? Start building your network and contacts. You aren't just waiting for things to happen, you're getting stuff in motion. Maybe your too short for the catwalk but who cares, those girls don't even get paid much anyways-most get nothing-and height isn't everything. Who says you gotta be a certain height to model jewelry, hats, handbags accessories?  Put your own effort into your pursuits and make something happen! If you believe in yourself go get the belief of others with your savvy marketing approach. You might not get paid the big bucks...just yet, but you will be gaining experience and remember that's the point, because your modeling pursuit is a journey...so you gotta start somewhere and you might as well make that somewhere happen for yourself.

BTW, Get 20% when you spend $50 at dEliAs's until thisThursday!

~Isobella

P.s: Another skill for an aspiring model to have is to have some do-it-yourself ability and know how to adjust photos in Photoshop, Paint, etc. I don't mean making the photos look airbrushed I'm talking about simply cropping the image or setting the photos to be 300 DPI, which is print size for printing professional photos, or setting the image at 72 DPI for web size, when sending new images to your agency when they ask for them or you have new shots to share with your agency. Also/Or before your photo shoots make sure you will get the images at 300 DPI to save time.

Do you know what print modeling is?
Small town model marketing tips.
Putting that modeling comp card to use!


Sometimes things don’t always go perfect on the job, but you keep working for the best result. Having patience for myself and forging past the moments of anxiety and mistakes showed me once again that being a model takes an attitude of perseverance.
~from my book Short Stuff: on the job with an x-small which is available in print and as an e-book!