Many high school students at Palo Alto High School dream of taking part in the fashion journalism world. However, to work in such a tough business, one must have a passion for fashion as well as a will to work. This is exactly what Natalie Lin possesses. Lin, a Paly alumnus from 2010 is now a junior at New York University (NYU) and former intern at Nylon, a fashion and lifestyle magazine.
Lin first fell in love with fashion during her sophomore year at Paly and has since been infatuated with fashion culture.

“I realized my interest in fashion when I went to Paris to study French for a month during the summer of my sophomore year [at Paly],” Lin said. “Before my trip I didn’t care what I wore, but on my trip I saw how the French people were all effortlessly well dressed, they made plain t-shirts and jeans look so good.”

After high school Lin went on to attend NYU. During her [1st semester junior] year at NYU, one of her friends made her aware of an internship available at Nylon Magazine.

“One of my good friends from NYU is friends with the [then] Features Editorial Assistant for Nylon, Caitlin Smith,” Lin said. “My friend heard from [Caitlin Smith] that Nylon was looking for interns to help out in the Editorial Department.”

Lin applied, interviewed and got the internship at Nylon and was able to see what it is like to work for a real fashion magazine.

“I was an editorial intern,” Lin said. “I fact-checked articles, as well as transcribed interviews and put together profile packets about various artists for the writers.”

Lin also got the chance to write for Nylon magazine. She wrote an article about the Brandy Pham jewelry line that came out in the November 2012 issue of Nylon Magazine.

As an intern, Lin had the good fortune to assist with a collaboration show with B Collection at Nordstrom. She was asked by Nylon to model Miss Me jeans. Her picture appears in this years March issue of Nylon.

Working as an intern at Nylon also gave Lin an interesting perspective on fashion, culture and the arts world while getting to be there during all the action.

“It was interesting experiencing fashion in a different light—like in a magazine, as opposed to actually working with the brand—and since Nylon is a fashion and lifestyle magazine, I was able to find out news about what musicians, restaurants and various artists would be featured in an issue before it actually came out,” Lin said.

Though her internship at Nylon is over, Lin still finds herself inspired everyday just by walking around the streets of New York City.

“[Living] in [New York City] influences how I dress even more, encouraging me to wear whatever I want since many people here wear very eclectic [styles] and make it work,” Lin said.   

Lin was able to pave her way into the fashion journalism world, but it is not an easy road to travel.

“If you want to be in the fashion and journalism world, I would say be mindful [of] where you want to go,” Lin said. “If you are interested in fashion or journalism, you should consider going to school in a place that really encompasses all the options in those particular fields.”

In addition to the great knowledge she gathered from her internship, one of the most valuable lessons Lin gained from her experience was the realization that one should find out what they love and pursue it even if it takes time to find out what that something is.

“I’ve learned that internships are pretty important to have during college, because they allow you to edit out your interests before you have to commit to one,” Lin said.

Lin is a junior at NYU, and adding more experiences to her extensive Fashion Journalism resume. Who knows, maybe someday this Paly alum will be the Editor-in-Chief of a huge fashion magazine, but until that day Natalie Lin will keep pursuing her passion: fashion.