Campus Correspondent Check-in: Ada Ciuca

 

 

Romanian-born, Ada Ciuca is one of those people who once she has her mind set on something, she will do whatever it takes to achieve it. Los Angeles, for instance, was always her goal and she would often share her passion for the city and her dreams to end up in the city. As it so happens, Ciuca ended up re-locating to the city after graduating this past December where she is currently working as a buyer for the renown consignment clothing store, Crossroads. 

 

During her time at New Mexico State University, she dedicated a huge chunk of her focus towards the Study Abroad Ambassadors Club and with the University’s Communications and Marketing Services as a student writer. Not only was Ciuca active in the community, but she also maintained Crimson scholar status since her entry into the university up until her graduation this past December. However, despite all the academic accolades and successes, One of Ciuca’s biggest lasting impacts with our university was being one of the original founders for our current Her Campus chapter. Since her leave in December, our following has presence has grown immensely and it only seemed right to check back in with our original co-founder to see how she’s doing.

 

HCNMSU: What activities and academic accolades did you do/achieve during your time at NMSU?

Ada Ciuca: I feel like I was really selective about the things I did in college, just because I’m not the type of person to half-heartedly do something just for the resume. I spent most of my time helping as part of the Study Abroad Ambassadors club and working for University Communications and Marketing Services as a student news writer. My very last semester I co-founded the Her Campus at NMSU chapter, which I’m super proud of today! As far as academics, I was a Crimson Scholar from beginning to end and held the High Achievement Leadership Scholarship. 

 

HCNMSU: What inspired you to pursue a degree in Journalism?

AC: When I was in high school, my mom told me about the opportunity to become a Teen Pulse for the local newspaper, in an effort to get me interested in “worthwhile extracurriculars.” I went to the informational meeting just to make her happy, but ended up just running with it. I just think journalism is such an essential part of life. No matter how much people want to poke fun at us, so much revolves around the world of newspapers, magazines and newscasts. I can’t imagine a world without these! 

 

AC: Excuse the cheesy factor, but I guess I just learned to follow my arrow. With social media, it’s so easy to get lost into what your peers are doing and how much they’re involved in and what their experiences are. But at the end of the day, everyone’s on a different schedule for a reason and what’s a good step for one person isn’t necessarily a good step for you. That took a while to get used to because I’m such a competitive and comparative personality, but letting go of expectations is liberating. 

 

HCNMSU: Since your move to Los Angeles, what have you been up to and what do you hope to achieve during your time there?

AC: Since I got here I’ve been working as a buyer at a retail store in West Hollywood. It really eased the transition of moving to the big city and fed my love for fashion (and my wardrobe). In May I’ll be heading to Europe for a 2-month long trip as a last hoorah before settling down for a while. Once I get back from that I hope to find a full time job as a writer/editor. I guess my ideal job (and sort of realistic for entry level) would be a features writer for a local arts and culture magazine. I’m really fond of writing profiles and helping others discover interesting people and cool stuff, so it seems like a match made in heaven. Fingers crossed! 

 

AC: Tune out other people’s opinions and expectations of where you should be after you graduate. You know yourself better than anyone else. You know where you’re at in any given moment and what your body and mind can handle. 

 

AC: Oh, gosh! Well I started my blog my freshman year of college, in 2012. I did it as a creative outlet and coping mechanism for being alone for the first time. I’m one of those people with an artsy mind but zero hand eye coordination for execution, so clothing became a sort of art for me because it requires zero dexterity. I also love journaling a lot, and will forever be that obnoxious friend with a camera, so blogging makes all that come together for me in one satisfying place. 

 

 

HCNMSU: What has been one of your most exciting experiences since starting your blog?

AC: I wouldn’t say I’m quite at that level of having ‘exciting’ experiences because of my blog, but for the first couple of years I didn’t talk about it and hid it from everyone except for my college roommates. Once I got over my fear of being a laughing stock everything was so much better though! So I guess my most exciting experience has been actually sharing my blog with the world and getting surprisingly positive feedback. My roommate last year went through the entire thing back to 2012 and even showed her mom. And some of my boyfriend’s guy friends are randomly into it. It’s kind of fun to see the types of people that’ll take a few minutes out of their lives to check out my corner of the internet. 

 

HCNMSU: What advice would you give to someone interested in starting a blog?

AC: Stay true to yourself. The blogosphere is so congested nowadays and it gets tiring scrolling through a bunch of perfectly fabricated photos of rich girls wearing the exact same “it” piece. That probably sounded really harsh. One of my rules is to never post something I didn’t actually wear in a real life situation, so I would just say being authentic is important. The world is really cyclical and as a society we’re really starting to strip things down and go back to the basics- authenticity is always going to be appreciated and celebrated. 

 

HCNMSU: Who are your top five fashion icons?

AC: I’m slightly ashamed of this, but I Google-stalk Selena Gomez’s outfits a lot. She just has a cool, relatable vibe. Emma Stone is a favorite, as are Claire Danes and Lupita Nyong’o. And Zendaya is goals! Basically anyone who kind of marches to the beat of their own drum without going overboard. 

 

HCNMSU: Top five favorite brands?

AC: The usual suspects, like Zara, Forever 21, Charlotte Russe and Topshop. As far as pricier things, I’m really liking Bardot and For Love & Lemons. 

 

AC: It’s really difficult to choose just one, so here’s a list: Wendy’s Lookbook, VivaLuxury, M Loves M, Hapa Time. And I’ll throw in a great vlogger for good measure: Jen Im of Clothes Encounters. Her style is really cool! 

 

HCNMSU: Where would you recommend for students to shop for clothing if they’re on a budget?

AC: Forever 21 and Charlotte Russe for basic, less expensive pieces. I think the sales rack of every store is worth a look. I also love the online store Tobi- they put on some really good sales. As far as more middle class brands, I would say dig for gold at thrift stores such as Plato’s Closet and Crossroads for your favorite brands. Not only will it be way less expensive but you’d also be very ethical by recycling clothing! 

 

HCNMSU: How do you take the ‘perfect’ instagram pic?

AC: I’m not really about the mechanics of it as much as I care about it being genuine and cohesive. Good lighting and a pretty background always help, but it’s the feeling and enthusiasm in a caption that ends up catching someone’s eye. Also don’t go too heavy on the filters! 

 

AC: I mean, now that I’ve bragged about my blog and whatnot… go check it out at http://fashamorphosis.blogspot.com/ and maybe throw some constructive criticism (or deep praise, whichever) my way! 

 

Photos by Fernanda Teixeira