Throwback Trip: Attending the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2014

In honor of the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show next week I started reminiscing about my past experience of attending the show last year. I actually didn't even know if I was attending the show or not until a few days before it was supposed to happen. I had already purchased plane tickets to London but my return date was before the show. When I learned that there was a real possibility I could attend the show, my friends urged me to change my return date just in case. This meant taking more time off work even though I had just returned from a two week trip, but if I didn't do it I would've definitely regretted it.

My friends and family at home were anxious to hear if I was able to get in and all of them were very pleased when I finally had my tickets in hand the day-of and started posting all the amazing pictures. All the events leading up to the show were chaotic and stressful but the actual show was an amazing experience and truly a memorable night.

Where was it?

The Victoria’s Secret shows usually take place in the U.S, almost always in New York City where they began. However in 2014 they decided to take the show across the pond to London for the first time. So not only did I get to attend the show, I had to travel to London for it!

In terms of my work, I actually just returned from a two week trip to Taiwan & Hong Kong. Luckily the VS fashion show was in the first week of December so it cut into Thanksgiving time. I was able to travel during the holiday and not use too much of my negative time off (except when I extended my trip :)

What did I wear?

Another first for the VS fashion show, they required this event to be strictly black tie and requested only black or white attire. We spoke to many past attendees as well as the show organizers and all of them told us that the previous years never had any sort of dress code. It was only this year in London that they decided to jazz things up a bit. Little did we know that this dress code would become an obstacle for both of us.

I actually didn’t get the memo about the black or white attire until about two weeks before my flight. I did have a formal dress in mind already but it was a red dress. When I found out about the black and white color code, I had to scramble to several different malls almost every single day in that two week period to find a new dress.

Luckily two days before my flight, I found the perfect dress that was both black and white and had an insanely cute mini maxi flair. Finding that dress was one of those rare love-at-first-dress-sight moments for me. I was really fortunate to find that they only had two dresses left and one of them was actually my correct size, although the dress was still a bit long for me so I would need to get it rush altered. At this point I really hoped to get my tickets for the show because I went through all of that headache shopping for the perfect dress and actually found one. Now if I didn't get into the show I wouldn't even be able to wear it.

Harrison on the other hand already had a nicely tailored suit that he brought with him to London. However, the night before while we were attending a pre-party for the show at the Chiltern Firehouse, everybody started talking about the tuxedos they were going to wear. This freaked Harrison out a bit so the next morning, on the day of the show, we got up really early and went tux shopping in Covent Garden. He actually ended up buying a tuxedo the day of the show at Hackett. Not renting, buying! And not just a suit, a tuxedo! We couldn’t get it nicely tailored to him in time but the store was nice enough to stitch it up for him really quick just to hold for the night.

Arriving on the pink carpet

There are two tapings for the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, one in the afternoon and one in the evening. That way they have double the footage to work with in case anything went wrong in either show. Anyone remember Ariana Grande ducking to avoid being smacked by a model’s wings? There are pictures of it everywhere although it didn’t end up in the actual show. Other nuances include Hozier only having one tree on the runway as opposed to two so the models didn’t keep forming a traffic jam to avoid running into the trees.

We showed up at Earl’s Court about thirty minutes before the show started. The venue was beautifully decorated and all the attendees were looking their best. The pink carpet was brightly lit, celebrities were strutting their way down it and flashes and shouts of admiration went off every few seconds, it was such organized chaos!

With all the attendees at the show, it seemed like everyone was someone. Even when we made our way to our seats we found that we were sitting next to Alessandra Ambrosio’s cousin.

The Fashion Show

At the beginning of the show an announcer stepped out onto the runway and told us that the Victoria’s Secret Fashion show is unlike any other fashion event. There are no buyers or analysts present to make business decisions. It’s not a quiet or serious show where you carefully consider and contemplate the fashion and politely applaud at the end. The entire show is like a lively concert with the models smiling and waving, pumping up the crowd that’s already cheering and applauding the entire time. The whole event is supposed to be fun and whimsical and that’s exactly what it was.

The musical guests were Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Ed Sheeran, and Hozier. All of them were amazing and performed very well, often times interacting with the models strutting around them.

From the oversized fluffy wings to the bedazzling 2 million dollar fantasy bras, all of the models were exactly on point. They strutted on queue to the music, one right after the other in perfect symmetry. Blink and you’ll miss one already making her way to the end of the runway. Focus on one, and you’ll completely miss the two that were right behind her. With models zooming by, lights flashing from all directions, our seats throbbing to the bass of the beat, it felt like all of my senses were being stimulated at once and next thing I know the show was over. Giant balloons and confetti fell from the ceiling and once again the models and musical artists came out to the runway and started dancing and cheering. The entire show went by really fast, it was maybe around 40-45 minutes total.

The After Party

Everyone was clearly still on a high after the show ended, and luckily we still had an after party to attend to release some energy. The after party was in the same venue and had a wide open dance floor and several open bars. It was really fun lounging with our friends and chatting about the amazing show we just witnessed. In case we needed a reminder, there were several projectors in the background replaying the show again.

In the middle of the room was a bunch of lounge chairs circled together and reserved for the models and other celebrities. The only two I managed to snap a picture with were Ed Westwick and Tyson Beckford. Both of whom are super nice and unbelievably charming.

We drank, ate hors d'oeuvre, and danced the night away. It was the perfect end to an overall incredible experience. The Victoria’s Secret fashion show was like one giant party and I’m very fortunate to have been able to party with them. I can't wait to watch the show this year!