Credit: BeYourself Photoshoot
I am so excited to share that I have made it to the top 15 of the Maxim Cover Model Competition!
Please vote to keep me on the top 10 to make it to the next round! Please vote daily if you can!
You can vote here: https://maximcovergirl.com/2019/elizabeth-tam
I have officially put my hat in the ring for the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Search 2019!
I would love to join the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit family and all the amazing things they stand for - diversity, inclusion and women empowerment.
I have always tried to push myself to be the best I can be and to break barriers and stereotypes. For example, I feel that I bring beauty and brains, earning my MBA at 22 years old, I was one of the youngest, if not the youngest in my graduating class, and currently work at a Fortune 50 company. In addition to doing this, I also won the title of Miss NY despite being asian and petite, which is not the typical standard.
I hope that by joining the rookie class this year I can encourage other women believe in themselves. You can do anything you set your mind to and not to be afraid to take a risk and go for your dreams!
Keep your fingers crossed for me!
Perfect 10 for attire!
Today was the New York Edge's Annual Step Competition "Rhythmic Step," hosted at York College in Queens, NY. I had the honor of judging at this highly competitive step competition for the 5th year, one of my favorite events of the year to attend! For those of you who have never seen stepping in person, it is definitely something you must see in person - the energy and movement is simply amazing.
Stepping is a synchronized group movement, with lots of stomping and clapping. All of these students rocked the stage and impressed me, I definitely would not be coordinated enough to do what they do! One step team even stepped blindfolded!
While I am not a top notch stepper, I was able to judge on attire - right up my alley!
Check out some photo & videos from this year’s competition on my instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/BwHigQ3AV4o/ Can’t wait until next year!
These ladies were stepping BLINDFOLDED!
Winners of the advanced competition
Today, I had the pleasure of volunteering with New York Edge at the annual Girl Redesigned, hosted at Adelphi University in Long Island. At this event, students designed, sewed and modeled their own designs! It was very impressive to see these K-12 students see their designs through from beginning to end.
The designs were very creative, as were the performances. Each school had a different theme, from what do you want to be when you grow up to athletic wear.
I am no designer, but I was able to assist the students with my runway experience and teach the students how to walk, pose and own the runway with confidence!
In addition to volunteering with New York Edge, I also sit as co-chair of the New York Edge Young Professionals Council, which I also helped to co-found!
If you are interested in getting involved or learning more, feel free to reach out or visit: https://newyorkedge.org/
Today marked the 25th Anniversary of Sports & Arts in Schools Foundation, the largest provider off free after school programming in NYC and a non profit that i hold near and dear to my heart!
SASF serves over 125,000 students in over 130 schools across NYC. I first got involved with them in 2013 when I was Miss NY, I absolutely fell in love with them and all that they do. Now in their 25th year, they have re-branded and will now be operating as New York Edge.
As President of the SASF Young Professionals Council, I have definitely had the opportunity to see all the progress and phenomenal accomplishments they have made over the years as well the tremendous growth my board has undergone as well.
Congratulations to the winner of the Legacy Award Nico Elmaleh and Gold Star Award winner Matthew Petrula!
I look forward to seeing all of SASF/New York Edge's continued success in the next 25 years!
I had the pleasure of shooting with photographer Nephi Lim, hair stylist Jon Chao & makeup artist Alani Rasheed in Bushwick (Brooklyn, NYC). Nephi had the brilliant idea of creating dual persona for me, starting with an innocent, sweet girl persona turning into a dark, goth persona. The team did a fantastic job making this happen!
Photo Shoot Team (L-R): Elizabeth Tam, Alani Rasheed, Nephi Lim, Jon Chao
Photo shoots serve many purposes, one of which is a way to be creative and express yourself. Photo shoots may seem glamorous, with the wind blowing in the model's hair and the flashes shooting; however there is a lot of work that goes into getting the perfect shot. From the preparation (styling your hair, getting your makeup done and finding the right outfit) to the actual shoot (working on those poses/expressions and snapping the right angles) you are looking at a few hours of work, not to mention the photo editing afterwards.
This shoot was by no means a quick shoot, we had started around 7 PM and shot until 1 AM, but definitely worth it - check out the final product below.
For the first look we went with a sweet, innocent look. We kept the makeup and hair minimal, not to seem too glamorous.
For the second look we went with a dark, goth look. We used dark, heavy makeup and gave the hair more volume and scruff.
Nephi & Lani used their creativity to take this look to the next level - check it out!
Let me know your thoughts on the photos, concept or photo shoots and modelling in the comments section!
New York Fashion Week - Spring 2018 has officially come to an end.
NYFW has changed a lot over the past few years, in fact this year a few major NYFW designers opted out of the official NYFW schedule, including Alexander Wang, Public School Rodarte, Proenza Schouler, Altuzarra and Thom Browne to name a few.
Budgets for NYFW have gotten smaller and smaller as have the crowds and celebrities attending. I noticed that the events open to the public and promotion events declined this year. Designers appear to be taking a stance and changing their marketing approaches through:
I think these methods, will provide designers to reach their customers more effectively with more relevant/timely collections and brand ambassadors. Despite all of the changes, I still love getting glammed up and checking out all of the new designs and what everyone is wearing (on the runway and off)!
Last week, I was lucky enough to attend Sherri Hill's NYFW Fashion Show, where she showcased her new Spring 18 collection. Needless to say, her collection was filled with pastels and SPARKLE!
Sherri Hill and I on the runway after her NYFW show!
As a pageant girl, you could imagine how much I loved being there and seeing all of the new designs and all of the models, including the reigning Miss Universe Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters & Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach!
After the show, I head the pleasure of meeting Sherri Hill! She was so sweet and genuine, which was very refreshing!
Can't wait until next time!
As part of NYFW, Apple hosted "Live Art: Runway-Inspired Portraits with Holly Nichols" as part of their "Today with Apple" series at Apple Soho.
One of my favorite fashion illustration Artists Holly Nichols spoke to the audience on a range of topics from how to launch your business, social media and her favorite designers to draw. After the Q&A, Holly walked us through a hands on step-by-step lesson on how she makes her gorgeous sketches using Apple's iPad Pro, Apple Pencil and the Procreate app.
Holly's workshop was very informative, I learned a lot about her techniques, how to effectively use the Procreate App - from the brushes, to layering and how to draw hair! This was my first time trying out the new Apple Pencil, it was a pretty handy tool and great for drawing, painting & sketching my masterpiece with.
On a personal note, Holly is one of my favorite Fashion Illustrators. Her sketches are fashionable and stylish meets confident and bold.
I am not the best artist, but I really enjoyed the workshop and would definitely recommend taking advantage of the workshops Apple offers if you have time.
Check out Holly's fantastic sketch below on the left and my attempt at a sketch on the right.
Not the best, but not bad for my first attempt at a fashion sketch and on digital media, nonetheless! Now if only I could sketch as well as Holly does!
Congratulations to the Super Blow LII Champions the Philadelphia Eagles!!!
If this journey does not scream MOTIVATION MONDAY, I do not know what does! The Eagles have come a long way as underdogs to Super Bowl Champs and it has been a long time coming (at least that is what my co-worker tells me).
In honor of the Eagles winning the Super Bowl last night, here is a shot from my photoshoot in Philly with Bill of Echelaeus Inc!
I was actually in Philly for a charity fundraiser for New Leash on Life USA. New Leash on Life, also a great Motivation Monday related non-profit, works to both save the lives of dogs at shelters by placing them with inmates, which in turn gives the inmates a chance at redemption, helping both the dogs and the inmates. It was a very moving cause.
But enough about football, what motivates YOU?
My goals & motivations this month are to:
Share your motivations in the comments!
Today I wear red to support National Wear Red Day, a day to raise awareness of heart disease.
Cardiovascular disease in the U.S. kill approximately one woman every 80 seconds. The good news is that 80 percent of cardiac events may be prevented with education and lifestyle changes.
To learn more about Wear Red Day, visit: https://www.goredforwomen.org/wearredday
Today I had the pleasure of shooting with Babs Photography and had my makeup done by Selma Makeup NYC!
We shot in studio in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Things to know when shooting, always be ready for anything, and know there may be a long wait time in between shoots!
Barbara and Selma were amazing, I can’t wait to shoot with them again!
Outfit:
Dress: JCrew
Shoes: Marc Defang
Jewelery: Swarovski
I am so happy to finally launch my website today!
I have wanted to start my own website for a while and am happy to have finally gotten around to it!
This year I am hoping to focus on branding and growing myself!
