Jennifer Cooper, E!If you've ever wondered what it's like to be the fashion director for a major glossy, then you'll love this week's edition of Trendsetters at Work.
We had the opportunity to pick the very chic brain of Siobhan Bonnouvrier, Allure's fashion director extraordinaire.
So, keep reading for her savvy career advice and find out how she went from working retail in La Jolla, California as a high school student to scoring her dream job in New York City.
What was your very first job?
Working in retail. I worked in a bathing suit store in La Jolla, California when I was in high school. It was tough. Selling bathing suits is not easy.
Who are some of your career heroes?
Without question, the fantastic people I've been lucky enough to work with and learn from, including the fabulous Paul Cavaco (Allure's creative director who just received the CFDA Media Award in Honor of Eugenia Sheppard), Linda Wells (Allure's editor in chief), and Sarajane Hoare (stylist and a former fashion editor at British Vogue and Harper's Bazaar.)
What's a typical workday like for you?
It really varies depending on my shoot schedule. I might be prepping an upcoming sitting, working on boards, locations, and models. There are tons of departmental-associated things I could be doing, too. Overseeing our font-of-book pages, pitching pages to designers, or going out in the market on a re-see. It's a totally different story if I'm shooting.
Describe your office décor. What was your inspiration?
My office décor inspiration is very much Conde. It's very specific. I am completely OCD. Occasionally I go on a cleaning frenzy complete with latex gloves. I will stop what I am doing, and clean.
List five things that are on your desk right now.
1. A giant calendar (I cannot seem to give this up no matter how paperless I get!)
2. A miniature yellow Labrador that Paul Cavaco gave me because it looks like my dog, Bonnie
3. My ziplock bag of daily vitamins
4. An assortment of photo books
5. Flowers
What do you typically wear to work?
I tend to favor minimal sportswear: blouses, skirts, pants.
What are your favorite stores to shop for work clothes?
Depending on the season, I gravitate to Celine, Chloe, Balenciaga, and then love mixing in lower-priced items. Zara is always good.
What's the best piece of career advice you've ever received?
Do the thing in front of you, rather than thinking it is not the right thing. Try it, and see where it takes you.
Finish the sentence…
Today for lunch I had…kale salad.
The first website I log onto every day is…CNN to find out what happened while I was sleeping.
The beauty product you can always find in my purse is…Aquaphor and an eyelash curler.
My must-have work gadget is…iPhone to stay connected.
My usual Starbucks order is…tall soy latte.
If I need a quick break during work, I usually…check out allure.com or The Cut. I would take a walk outside on a nice day, but Times Square is too much. Perhaps that will change after the move to WTC. I am counting down the minutes.
If I wasn't doing this job, I would be…living in the country.
The best part of my job is…having the ability to constantly see new beautiful things. It's amazing.