Claire Haranda went from the relaxed island life in Honolulu, Hawaii, to the fun-filled, fast-paced fashion world. As a styling coordinator for Nordstrom, she takes care of and organizes merchandise for photo shoots. How cool is that?
Check out Claire’s hair!
She says her two favorite things about her job are (1) she gets to learn from and work with experienced stylists, and (2) she gets to see clothes before they’re even on trend. That’s right—one of the perks of Claire’s job is having an omniscient view of the future of fashion! Fabulous? Claire thinks so, too. She says, “I hope to eventually work with Red Godfrey [vice president, Nordstrom Fashion Office] and her team of trend forecasters, traveling the world, people-watching and searching for the trends that are brought back to Nordstrom for fashion direction/research purposes.”
In addition to being a styling coordinator for Nordstrom, Claire also works as a freelance stylist. Here’s a rundown of her styling process:
- • First, she gets details about the overall vision for the shoot.
- • Then, she asks questions like “How many shots will there be?” and “How many outfits do I need?”
- • Finally, she selects clothing that fits the design of the shoot and “keeps it fluid” by making sure everything runs smoothly and the models are comfortable.
In the fashion world, where the styles are forever changing, Claire says she doesn’t like to pigeonhole herself when it comes to her personal look, which is influenced by whatever kind of music she’s into. Lately, she’s been mixing it up with retro mod style. One constant, though, is that she loves to wear black. She makes it super-cool by adding different textures and types of black—and, of course, a red lip. When it comes to her fashion philosophy, Claire says it’s important to “stay very true to myself and what inspires me and leaves me with a sense of fulfillment.”
I had a blast interviewing Claire. Maybe she’ll style me sometime?
XOXO,
Aya
P.S. Look out for more about Claire soon! That’s right, Part 2 is on the way!
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