Emma Box

PRINT DEVELOPMENT

2011-11-14T17:36:00.000-08:00

BEEN A WHILE...

2011-02-06T18:27:00.000-08:00

SHOOT CREDITS

PHOTOGRAPHER: ALEXANDER JORDAN

MODEL: JESS WILLIAMS

HAIR&MAKE-UP: ALISON CAMERON

THE SHOW CONTINUED

2010-09-29T00:15:00.000-07:00

Blogging from the airport in Bratislava...its a pretty dead airport but it has free wi-fi so I can keep the boredom at bay by finally updating properly about the show on Sunday night!

So of course like always I was pretty nervous before the show (understatement) I always find the build up so nerve wracking! However I did feel a lot better about this one as for the first time showing this collection I was finally allowed to be backstage. The day before I took some time out to look around the designers stands and to watch a show to check out the venue and get a feel for what to expect at mine...this made me even more nervous. When I got back to my studio I checked my emails to find Tillman Kaisers name in my inbox! (After discovering Kaisers work at his exhibition 'Hallucination Engine' in London I decided to use it as the inspiration for my collection!) After researching his work so much and doing so many presentations on it at uni it was quite surreal to read an email from him. Tillman said he was coming to my show so I arranged some VIP tickets to get him and his wife on front row, which again made me even more nervous!

The day began with a long four hour fitting with all the models in the chaos that was backstage but it all went smoothly and there was only two minor alterations that had to be made. There wasn't much time to get all the models hair and make-up done before getting them changed for the show as the break between each designer was only around 40 minutes so it was a mad rush getting everyone ready but luckily we did it just on time! The show went really well and all the models looked amazing! When it was finally over I wanted to do it all again!

I am yet to receive my photos from the show but there a few floating around on the internet so I will post a couple more as another preview.....

I was helped by the lovely Josephine R. Magno who is the lady behind the label MRJ producing hands free bags! I met Josephine when i was over in Vienna earlier in the summer for 'Fish and chips, Twice Please?!' and as her label had a stand at the fashion week we thought it only made sence to collaborate and have some of her designs on the runway as well! So she got to work on bags for the collection merging our two styles together to work for the show. Here is one of her hands free bags below...

THE MONTHLY PROGRAM

2010-09-28T03:27:00.000-07:00

Spot my work around the Museums Quarter in Vienna!

THE SHOW

2010-09-27T14:46:00.000-07:00

Yesterday marked the end of the MQ Vienna Fashion Week and I was lucky enough to take part and showcase an extended version of my graduate collection. It was a busy, nerve wracking and hectic day but I had so much fun! I even got to meet the artist behind the inspiration for the collection!

I have had a nice rest today and I will blog about the show in more depth tomorrow, for now here is a preview shot I found online from the show last night.

MY ARIVAL IN VIENNA

2010-09-25T06:39:00.000-07:00

So I am here in Vienna once again for the final time to showcase an extended version of my graduate collection at Vienna Fashion Week!

I'm now all settled in to my studio which I will be in for the next few days and making the final preparations for the show which will be taking place tomorrow in the Museums Quarter at 9.00pm. The show is presenting quartier21's fashion design artists in residents who have been working in the studios here over the past couple of months.

Above is the programme advertising the goings on in Quartier21 during September, which includes a picture of my boned organdie dress which was shot by Alexander Jordan. You can pick up a leaflet around the Museums Quarter in Vienna.

Wish me luck for tomorrow!

WE ARE HQ

2010-09-19T11:42:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I was interviewed by the lovely Tiffany Baron for the online magazine and store wearehq.com

You can check the interview out HERE

VIENNA FASHION WEEK 10

2010-09-17T06:54:00.000-07:00

The guide for Vienna Fashion Week is out!

You can check it online here

NOTION MAGAZINE

2010-08-30T13:21:00.000-07:00

Everyone should go out to their nearest WH Smith and buy the new copy of Notion magazine!

It features a spread about 'Fish and chips, twice please?!' and it includes a nice image of my new designer showcase taken by the lovely Alexander Jordan.

VIENNA FASHION WEEK

2010-08-30T13:04:00.000-07:00

I will be showing at Vienna Fashion Week on Sunday the 26th of September!

For invitations please email me on contact@emmabox.com

CUT CLICK

2010-08-18T07:42:00.000-07:00

Check out Cut Click magazine, the graduate issue which features some images from the catwalk of my collection and many more talented individuals!

View the magazine HERE

ESVIE

2010-08-05T08:48:00.000-07:00

Take a look at ESVIE a fashion and lifestyle website who recently used some of my pieces in a shoot with new girl band TEN

Shoot Credits:
Production and Make-up Artist: Sabina Ventriglia
Photographer: Mark Leach
2nd Make Up Artist : Emily Jane Williams
Hair Stylist: Marcus Scott
Wardrobe Stylist: Thom James

NJAL CELEBRITIES

2010-08-04T02:48:00.000-07:00

Not just a label have launched a new celebrities feature on the site showcasing its designers whose work has been worn by celebs such as Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Cheryl Cole and many more.

My page has been linked to via the outfit worn by Rachel Stevens, go check it out.

CATHERINE DAY

2010-07-29T14:05:00.000-07:00

Last week I sent away some samples to be photographed by a lovely photographer Catherine Day and I have just received the images today.

I love the black and white styling! Model is the fabulous Cyan Cheung. These are just two of the images, to see some more check out Catherine's blog

LIVE PHOTO SHOOT

2010-07-28T17:01:00.000-07:00

So a while ago I styled a live photo shoot during 'Fish and Chips, Twice Please?!' and i'm happy to say the images are finally out! The photography was done by Alexander Jordan who once again did an amazing job...

Above is the image of my work in the exhibition space the model Roksana from LOOK was such a great model and was perfect for the concept of the shoot.

This image I think is my favourite and features the work of Scott Ramsay Kyle, NOKI and Dashing Tweeds. To see the rest of the photo shoot and to read more about it visit the 'Fish and chips, Twice Please?!' blog.

CREDITS

Photography: Alexander Jordan

Hair&Make-up: Britta Tess

Model: Roksana @ LOOK

Stylist: Emma Box

BROCHURE

2010-07-25T05:34:00.000-07:00

My pages scanned in from the 'Fish and Chips, Twice Please!?!' exhibition brochure.

ARTIST IN RESIDENCE - quartier21 / MuseumsQuartier Wien

2010-07-22T14:54:00.000-07:00

Read about my time in vienna on the 'Fish and Chip Twice Please?!' BLOG.

The exhibition I was showcasing in received their 10,000th visitor today! Congrats to all the people involved in the project!

NEW DESIGNER SHOWCASE

2010-06-24T11:47:00.000-07:00

Here are some better photos of my work in 'Fish and chips, Twice please?!'

We carried out a live photoshoot in the gallery today again with an amazing team! Images soon to come from that once all edited and retouched!

BLOGS

2010-06-22T05:50:00.000-07:00

Here are a list of links to blogs my work has been mentioned, appeared or featured on after GFW and 'Fish and chips, twice please?!'

SHOOT

2010-06-22T05:32:00.000-07:00

A while back now I did a photoshoot with a lovely team of people! I recommend checking out their work via the links below!

Model: Alison King

Photographer: Alexander Jordan

Hair&Make-up: Alison Cameron

Stylist: Lucy Emma Harris

'FISH AND CHIPS, TWICE PLEASE?!'

2010-06-21T06:45:00.000-07:00

After my show at GFW on the 7th of june i headed over to Vienna with my collection to take part in exhibition 'Fish and chips, twice please?!' located in the heart of the city's Quartier21. The exhbition is here to showcase the design talent from the UK, introducing something a little different to what the Austrians are used to!

Work is featured by designers Emma Bell, Scott Ramsay Kyle, Louise Amstrup, Charlie Le Mindu, Louise Gray, Piers Atkinson and Shoe Designer Nicolas Kirkwood and more.

I was lucky enough to be included in the new designer showcase section where i got to show pieces from my graduate collection. The Exhibition has proven to be a huge success with hundreds of visitors each day! Below are a few snaps taken on my iphone...

My collection in the 'New Designer Showcase' section

I will get some decent pictures taken to post up soon! Be sure to check it out if your in the area!

WEBSITE

2010-06-19T11:15:00.000-07:00

Updated.

EMMABOX.COM

Lots of updates still to come...

AMELIAS MAGAZINE

2010-06-13T02:15:00.000-07:00

Check out the illustration of my collection by Lesley Barnes featured on amelias magazine.

Wicked illustration with a little review of my work go check it out!

GFW 2010 UCA ROCHESTER

2010-06-08T13:51:00.000-07:00

UCA ROCHESTER FASHION SCHOOL PROSPECTUS

2010-06-07T00:52:00.000-07:00

My garment was photographed by my uni for the fashion school prospectus a while ago. They have now all been printed and here is my dress scanned in!

Its always interesting to see how other people shoot your work.

TOMORROW IS THE DAY

2010-06-06T16:44:00.000-07:00

Today saw the start of Graduate Fashion Week, which means in 24 hours I will have shown my collection in front of judges and press at London's Earls Court. Scary...but equally exciting!

I haven't posted in a while as its been a mad few weeks getting all my portfolio done for my final hand in at uni. Its a weird feeling knowing that uni is now officially over and I'm about to enter the real world, the harsh reality that is the fashion industry! Heres a few images of bits of work I've been producing...

My business cards

My portfolio

Laser cut perspex clothing tags and sketchbook cover.

In the early hours of wednesday morning I will be flying over to Vienna to take part in the exhibition 'Fish and chips, Twice please?!' which launches on the 10th June! I will be exhibiting my work under the new designer showcase section a great opportunity to have straight out of uni which I'm really very excited about!

I will post soon with Images from another shoot I did the other day with an amazing team of people! Also to update on GFW and Vienna. For now though I must get some zzzzz's I have a busy and exciting week ahead of me!

RACHEL STEVENS IN PRINT

2010-05-18T17:38:00.000-07:00

So after calling around to see if someone had or could get hold of a copy of the mirror i managed to get a hold of some. Pretty crazy when I think how many of these magazines have actually been printed! so here it is in magazine format...

I'm really pleased with the image i think it looks really great and shows it in a really commercial way which different to how I would shoot it for my personal style Its great to see how other people work with it.

BECOME A FAN

2010-05-18T01:09:00.000-07:00

Become a fan on facebook and LIKE my page!

Lets get the ball rolling!

NOT JUST A LABEL

2010-05-17T14:25:00.000-07:00

My new NOT JUST A LABEL page...

Check it out and have a look at the other designers it has to offer, in a couple of months I hope to have a few items for sale on there so keep a look out!

PRESS - THE SUNDAY MIRROR - RACHEL STEVENS

2010-05-16T17:08:00.000-07:00

So this afternoon I received a post on my facebook wall telling me my stuff was in a magazine being worn by Rachel Stevens! Totally unaware of this i googled my name with Rachel Stevens and the article came up online! Here is the picture...

I sent around a few txts to see if anyone had a copy and my mum managed to grab the last one at a service station for me to see it in the flesh! You can check out the Article online HERE.

BOOK 77 NOW LIVE

2010-05-11T04:01:00.000-07:00

A while back I did a post on an up and coming magazine Book 77. Since then the girls behind it have been working hard on producing their second issue, and a website to go with it!

Both issues can now be viewed here at book77magazine.co.uk

GRADUATE FASHION WEEK

2010-05-10T09:56:00.000-07:00

Today I found out I had been put through to show at London's Graduate Fashion Week in Earls Court.

I can now say that all of the tears and sleepless nights over the past 8 months have been worth it! I'm happy!!

COLLECTION

2010-05-08T06:42:00.000-07:00

Just received the images from my look book shoot the other day from Alexander Jordan. Model is the wonderful Rose Jocham from Profile. Here are some of the shots! Mixed around some of the garments to show different ways it can be worn like in the first image.

I'll upload some more later but for now i will leave you with these!

DAZED DIGITAL

2010-04-26T15:43:00.000-07:00

So as mentioned in the previous post i will be taking part in the exhibition 'Fish and chips, Twice please!' you can read all about the event on Dazed Digital which includes and interview with its curators Emma Bell and Polona Dolzan.

The article went online today in which i get my very own little mention!

...which i was quite excited about...hence the lame circling of my name. Anyway have a little read and if your around the city stop by and check it out for yourself! Here is a link to the Facebook page to find out more info and you can follow the progress of the event on its Twitter Page so check it out everyone!

VIENNA HERE I COME

2010-04-26T15:20:00.000-07:00

I can now officially announce that at the beginning of June i will be taking part in an exhibition titled 'Fish and chips, twice please' in Vienna's Quartier21.

One of the main curator's of the exhibition is friend and designer Emma Bell. The Exhibition will feature many great british talents including Scott Ramsay kyle, Charlie Le Mindu, Louise Gray, Nicholas Kirkwood and many more! I will be presenting my graduate collection in the new designer showcase section the week beginning the 10th of june!

EXCITING!

COLLECTION IS DONE

2010-04-25T01:20:00.001-07:00

After 8 months of long days in the studio having not much of a life, working hard over a pattern table or sewing machine, 15 garments and 6 outfits later the collection is ready to go! It's been a pretty manic and mental couple of weeks I had very little sleep during this time leaving myself completly exhausted! After my hand in my mum drove me home for a good sleep and now I'm up in a nice hotel inliverpool visiting the boyfriend while he's away on work. A couple of days for recovery then back to work again! I'll write a more indepth post when I'm at my computer. Just testing out the blogger app on my iphone! Here a couple of sneak peak pictures though...

-- Post From My iPhone

Location:St Nicholas Pl,Liverpool,United Kingdom

RANKIN IS SHOOTING MY WORK

2010-04-08T15:25:00.000-07:00

Today i had a phone call from my head of year informing me that i have been selected to send away one of my outfits to be photographed by the legendary photographer Rankin! The model Rosie Huntington Whiteley of the Burberry campaign will be wearing my outfit which is also very exciting! Some unis have been selected by Graduate Fashion Week to put forward 3 students work to represent them. The shoot is Written about briefly on Vogue.com...

At the moment this is about all i know! I can't believe i got selected I'm in shock! but so so happy! Also happy that my two friends Jo Graham and Steph Eyre got selected too! The outfit has to be sent away on monday! Luckily its my finished garments! Anyway its getting late and i still have more work to get done tonight so I will end with that news and update with my progress when i have the time! In the meantime heres a couple of his recent ELLE covers...

ANOTHER WEEK

2010-03-16T14:59:00.000-07:00

Last week wasnt fun it really was quite shit. Luckily my review went fine although we had to have a metting with our head of year yesterday so she could inform us of how worried she is that we are all so far behind!! Im staying calm though. It will all be done on time. It has to be!

Heres a better picture of the shoulder piece on a stand, the straps will be fastened underneath the arms.

Today i managed to complete another jacket! I feel so relieved that this jacket is finished now! It took so long to make and is most definitely the hardest garment i have ever made. I was on edge sewing this the whole time! My blood sweat and tears went into making this bad boy!

Its quite cute as you can take the front piece off to dress it down more and add a little variety to the wearability of it. I also managed to get a meter of my print onto fabric to make the top which features underneath this jacket which should be whipped up tomorrow!

This week is a little more positive than last week! I hope it remains that way! Although i can see it going slightly down hill as we do have a project due in on monday which i am yet to start! Nothing like working under pressure!

SECRET PLANS UNDER WRAPS

2010-03-11T14:37:00.000-08:00

I do have some good and exciting news which I am looking forward to unveiling! A great opportunity has been offered to me which will take place as soon as I finish uni. I can't let slip exactly what it is yet but i have been allowed to say "watch this space for Viennese Juiciness!" Excitement!

KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON

2010-03-11T14:30:00.000-08:00

Thats been the saying of the week i think. Its been a really tough time leading up to this review and i cant even get myself to discuss the printing problems again it would take up my whole blog so far! At least now it is sorted! Half of my stuff is being printed at uni and the rest is being shipped off to some other company who will actually do it in 5 days. So next week i should about have all my fabric.

Heres a sneak peak at one of my small leather jackets / shoulder piece whatever you want to call it. Sewing from hell I tell you. The iphone pic doesn't really do it justice, though thought i would take a quick snap of a bit of it as a little preview as things progress. I managed to nearly finish my more intricate white one today, actually had a break down sewing that beast. Looking good though so it will all be worth it in the end! Its my review 5 tomorrow, not sure how i feel about it. I know its going to go bad as I'm really behind atm due to about a million problems. I just have to be confident and reassure them it will all be fine else i know I'm going to get beaten down! Fun times.

TWO DAYS TILL REVIEW

2010-03-09T15:50:00.000-08:00

I dont even know where to begin with today. Its been so unbelievably shit! every time something went wrong my immediate reaction was to just start laughing! Luckily as somethings went wrong others problems were resolved. I have a couple more meters of my print onto fabric, after the heated roller broke down for a while after melting someones fabric! Yes this was hilarious! My uni is just incapable of producing a print without any hassles. Had my second year helper today which was nice, although i think they may be slightly scared of final year now. I cant even face going over the sagas of the day so i will leave it at that! Hopefully i wont cry tomorrow! 2 days till review... STRESS!

ONE THING AFTER ANOTHER

2010-03-08T13:05:00.000-08:00

Absolutely nothing is going right for me again today, the print I have been waiting god knows how long for was partially put onto fabric and by partially i mean 3 out of the 17 meters! The 3 meters that were printed were printed wrong as the heated machine was not hot enough leaving faded patches, not a good look. So thats another trip to london to get more fabric. So i have to wait another day to print the rest after the machine has heated up properly!

My leather jackets are all still in pieces i have to wait for my printed linings to sew them in as the lining has to be caught in with the facings so this holds me up slightly again! The white long sleeved jacket has a slight problem, where the leather has stretched on the top sculptured part of my sleeve the bottom section now does not match, so i have a couple of different options of how to resolve that. Neither of them I particularly want to do but thats what happens when you don't have the time or the money to toile things up again out of the final fabrics which is what they would do with things like this in industry.

So for my review on Friday they are asking for 4 outfits to be complete, thats 4 OUTFITS not garments OUTFITS. The majority of the class are no where near that mark for some reason with prints taking for ever and mishaps here there and everywhere that target is just not going to be met. Iv had little cry's and nearly puked a couple of times today, but i did have some good news! I was informed that I can use the sewing machines in a factory back home over easter which could save my whole degree! yes there is a glimpse of light! Lets hope tomorrow is a better day.

HALF WAY TO HAVING A PRINT

2010-03-04T16:18:00.000-08:00

So of course my print wasn't completed. Its quite frustrating at this stage when it is completely out of our hands, having to rely on other technicians and technology isn't very reassuring. The majority was printed onto the paper, but with regular interruptions where the machine decided to run out of ink, or just randomly stop for a break. The paper is now rolled up waiting to go through the dye sub whenever that will be. (hopefully soon)

Running around trying to get my print out onto fabric delayed my sewing and still only bits of my jackets are sewn together, proving to be a very time consuming task. I am however quite happy tonight as i realised we have four weeks until easter, rather than the three i thought we had! Anyway im off to sleep. sleep is very precious at this stage. I am however looking forward to getting in the studio at 8 to carry on sewing my jackets! I'll post the progress at the end of the week.

THE FIRST GARMENT

2010-03-02T14:31:00.000-08:00

Today I actually started to sew my final garments. FINALLY. 12 hours and an amazing head ache later i almost have my first jacket/shoulder piece ready for the linings (which WILL be printed tomorrow). It was nerve-wracking sewing the first piece, especially in leather, but I'm pleased with the way its turning out!

With help from the technician the sleeves turned out pretty perfect and hold the shape really well. To achieve this without the bulk from all the seams I lapped the edges which creates a different affect as a finishing.

Its not all there yet but its close! just have to sew the sleeves into the main body and attach the facings and fastenings then it can be sent to the factory for the linings.

Hopefully i will be able to start the second jacket tomorrow which is a more complicated version of this but in white leather. Then as promised my print will also be produced for the dress that accompanies this cropped jacket. Things are starting to progress. Slowly but surely.

FINALISED PRINTS

2010-02-28T17:22:00.000-08:00

Once again I am awake thinking about my collection. I find it hard to get to sleep at the best of times so at the moment Im finding it seemingly impossible what with the endless list of tasks i have to complete by the end of this week circulating round and around in my mind. I have however made another step forward with the finalisation of my print choices. After endless nights playing around with colour and scale i now have 6 slightly different variations of my print which will be made up into a dress, pairs of leggings a top and the linings of jackets etc.

There has been an on going saga at uni the past few weeks with the printing facilities and technicians. Introduced this year was the digital fabric printing machine which is an amazing facitilty to take advantage of, making the cost of printing a hell of a lot cheaper saving some of us a couple of hundred pounds! The disadvantage of it being new is tutors are still yet to learn the ropes properly and problems have occurred, including the print technician telling us a few days ago printing on jersey wasnt going to be an option on the printer as the stretch made it too difficult. Of course almost all of us wanted some sort of jersey so we were not impressed at the delayed announcemnt that this would not be possible as it is too difficult. After a day or two of panicking trying to find a company to print it in time for our deadline, and the money to fund the printing in the first place, lucking a solution was found!

There are two different ways of digital printing onto fabric one is the printer laser printing the ink directly onto the fabric which has to be a specially coated fabric. The second and cheaper option is whats called dye sub, to print using the same machine onto a transfer paper which then goes through a huge heated roller along with a pollyester fabric, once pressed through the heat reacts with the dye on the transfer paper and the fabric soaks up the ink leaving you with a really great quality print. Quite impressive really. Anyway a girl on the course managed to find a lycra that wasn't cheap and shiny and was suitable for the Dye sub which printed really nicely when tested. So with that we sent two people off to go and collect i think 40 meters of this fabric to solve our problem and save us money. So all being well this week i will have my prints. I hope to God i do anyway.

LEATHER

2010-02-24T12:49:00.000-08:00

Today I bought some of my final fabrics including my leather! Lots of leather :) I love leather its my favourite. Going to choose which colours and which type to get was the fun part, I went to a place near Whitechapel called Walter Reginald which had so many different types of colours and styles it was amazing! Leather Heaven. A massive warehouse with shelves and shelves full.

Managed to get about 14 skins in all i think. Its all getting delivered on friday I can't wait to have it and start sewing with it! I need to get things moving rapidly time is running out so fast! More stressed than ever today.

PRINT SAMPLES

2010-02-23T16:11:00.000-08:00

So im lying in bed with thoughts of fabric and print going round and round in my head, over and over. Today i spent the day running in between the print room and the dye lab trying to digital print onto fabric tests for my final print. After problems with the machine and freak outs on the technicians i think i have decided on the final ones. I was also dying fabric which i couldn't get in the right colours anywhere so i have to go through the slow process of mixing dyes to match the the right shade. Not a quick job. But they are getting there.

Now i have plenty of samples I am heading back into london tomorrow to purchase some fabrics and my leather skins so i can match it all to the print. Its going to be an expensive day. The thought of buying my final fabrics excites me, but also scares the shit out of me! There is so much riding on this collection it has to go ok! Heres a snap of the fabric printed today.

I need to start things rolling now my tutor claims to be going grey and panicking for us as the year is so far behind. We are meant to have four outfits sewn up by next week. Most people haven't started sewing the finals yet! God help us.

LFW JEAN-PIERRE BRAGANZA

2010-02-21T08:49:00.000-08:00

Friday saw the beginning of fashion week and it is now well underway, i was lucky enough to get to dress at one of my favourite designers Jean-Pierre Braganza's show. Jean-Pierre used to tutor at my uni but now he just comes very now and again to review our collections progress. It was great to be able to see the clothes up close and take note of the finishing and techniques, they were all so beautifully made. Below are some shots from the catwalk show taken from the l ondon fashion week website. The first model is the one i dressed.

The cutting techniques were so interesting to look at the shapes and structure of the garments really reflected the beautiful prints well. Good job J-P!

Here a few sneaky shots from my iphone apologies for the extremely bad quality the camera on those phones are shit.

It was all really well organised and the prepping for the show went nice and smoothly. The chaos didn't come until we moved the rails backstage two other designers were showing as apart of the same show Felder Felder and Hannah Marshal, whos clothes didn't look too impressive tbh it mainly consisted of black velvet dresses with oversized shoulders and very unflattering leather trousers!

Show was over pretty quickly with one quick change with my model, gotta love a quick change! Then clothes were packed away back into boxes and the shoes (Nicholas Kirkwood ones which were amazing!) were ticked off bagged up and ready to go! Then we were free to leave and finally get some food!

STUDIO FUN

2010-02-21T08:18:00.000-08:00

As i mentioned before i didn't want to reveal too much about my collection before the final garments are produced. Im really enjoying the process of making my collection its really what makes me feel most satisfied and happy, although at the same time it induces a large amount of stress, sleepless nights and a few tears every now and then but thats all part of the creative process!

All my six outfits are toiled up, I'll have a final fitting this week and hopefully if all goes to plan I'll have all my fabrics sorted this week so I can cut out my patterns and send them up to leicester to the factory to be made up! Also my prints need to be finalised, had many test ones printed but still need to play around and make a few changes but they are getting there!

Im so excited to see it all come together and seeing all the hard work pay off. I aim to get in the studio everyday between 8 and 8.30am staying to till closing time at 8, so its pretty long 12 hour days but we manage to have lots of fun and keep ourselves entertained! Often this involves cupcakes to help fuel the day and keep us happy! Lola's red velvet ones from Selfridges are the cup cake of choice!

Inappropriate names for materials provide us with a giggle

When all gets too much calms is our saviour, pro plus keeps us going in times of need and vitamins are needed to accompany the shit we eat in a hurry.

Steph obviously hadnt been abusing the supplies...

Dont worry we saved her from suffication.

So theres a brief update in the world of third year fashion design. I'll try to update a bit more regularly again as hand in is in the horizon (this makes me want to throw up). It really breaks my heart to think this could be the last collection i ever get to make, or if i hopefully do get the opportunity to do more it realistically wont be for a very long time. Why can't i be born into a rich and famous family?!

EMMA BELL INTERVIEW

2010-01-11T16:36:00.000-08:00

As you may know this time last year i carried out a full time work placement with designer Emma Bell, which provided me with some great fashion experience!... along with many funny ones which included flying mugs and two men who go by the name of sun beam and gnome... anyway! I help out where needed from time to time and I got to interview Emma for a section in my dissertation so i thought i would post up a few of the questions on the blog for those fashion students anxious about graduating and the industry that they face.

Since leaving education do you feel you were well prepared for the industry, are there certain areas which you wish you’d have been taught more about?

To be honest when I left Uni I suddenly realised that there was so much more that I should have been taught whilst studying. Yes, you get to leave with all of the technical knowledge and a nice portfolio but all of the things that really matter like experience and networking etc, are the things that are the most important. I think that Fashion courses should put more emphasis on things like brand identity, marketing and how exactly to make those vital links.

Would you ever of considered working for another designer having someone else name on your designs?

Yes and this is something I have done a lot in the past and still do now when it comes to working on freelance or commercial projects. Quite often I do design work for other brands which is most often following their brief so it’s not entirely in fitting with my design aesthetic but it’s good experience and it pays the bills and allows me to be able to work on my own brand.

Do you see fashion as art? Or fashion as industry? What are your opinions on this debate?

I would say it is definitely both in that ‘fashion’ is so multi-faceted that it would be impossible to just label it as one thing. There is no denying that in many aspects there are a lot of designers that are presenting their work as art however at the same time it remains an industry. Commercial design is as much of a sector when it comes to fashion.

Being a young designer do you feel you have been taken advantage of in anyway or guided in the wrong direction?

I think there is a huge amount of pressure on emerging designers and graduates from both the industry and your peer designers. I think its only too easy to be drawn into things that are not necessarily the best starting points for creating a long lasting career that you can maintain. When I was studying I recall it being constantly enforced from all angles that to branch into commercial projects is selling out, which explains why there is that whole Ugly Betty attitude within the industry that sees so many people turning their noses up at something that isn’t considered cutting edge or ‘cool’. When it comes to setting up your own brand the chances are you haven’t had any guidance on how to go about this so I think its only too easy to get sucked into things.

The industry has a very exploitative nature in general from an abundance of unpaid or badly paid jobs, people always wanting something for free and creatives constantly competing for opportunities, so I think young designers and graduates are prime targets. Employers are only too aware of how determined young designers are to succeed so it is very easy to be taken advantage of, which is why it is so important to build up your experience to know your own value.

HAPPY FUCKING NEW YEAR

2010-01-11T13:00:00.001-08:00

Sadly the christmas break is over for my final year of studies, i had planned to do lots of work but i can honestly say over the past couple of weeks I've pretty much done... sweet.fuck.all. It was nice to venture back to my little village although at times rather boring and restraining, that is my own fault for not learning to drive! I've been back in the 41 slum, as me and my housemates like to call it, for a while now and I'm all settled back in (as much as you can settle in to a mouldy mouse infested house) and ready to continue the heart wrenching battle that comes along with creating a collection for a fashion design degree. I'm not too sure whats in store for me in the coming year I have been informed many times by tutors and students from last year that from now it will probably be the most stressful times of our lives! god and i thought it was horrible last term! As much as scaring the hell out of me it definitely excites me and it is definitely going to be the most satisfying year!

FINAL COLLECTION PRINT DEVELOPMENT

2009-12-13T17:20:00.000-08:00

I haven't been posting too much about my collection on here recently! I dont want to give everything away so every now and then ill give a little insight! I really enjoyed developing prints for the river island project so I am planning on incorporating a print into my collection and im currently playing with ideas about how to do it! I think im going to use some of the photos i took for the river island project as the lights can fit in with the halucintation part of my concept and i love them and would be a shame not to be able to actually use them! I want to work on top of this with insect wings and maybe some eyes, Tilman Kaiser the artist im looking at for the inspiration behind my collection has insects and eyes worked into his paintings so its a good reference i can use.

Above is a pattern I'm making with a outlined drawing of a flies wing, i placed each on in different positions which took me ages and sent my eyes funny! I want it to end up being a little trippy though!

Then above and below are some quick examples of how i can incorporate the wings and lights together. I put filters on the edited pictures of lights and took different sections i liked tiled it and added the wings on top to accentuate the shapes.

I dont think these will get used it was just to show the idea and a starting point. I think i need to town down the colours a bit but i think once I've worked on them over the next few weeks i should have something pretty hot! Let me know what you think!

BOOK 77

2009-12-03T04:36:00.000-08:00

I'd like to introduce my readers to a new magazine hitting the internet in the next few months the first issue has been printed and soo will be up online for everyone to access. The people behind the project include my two housemates Imy Smart and Naomi Brown a.k.a Naomi Styles. Below is a sneak peak at the current issue and a few lines about the concept. Make sure to become a fan on facebook to be kept up to date with the online development!

"Book 77 has been created for the decadent and dysfunctional. We aim to shock those who believe they have seen everything and invite those into a world of sexy, rich and obscene. Book 77 is the essential, quirky, classy and British magazine, which effortlessly combines enthralling journalism, fashion, stories, arts, sex diaries, letters and confessions for men and women."

Its a great magazine offering something a bit different for a change! It's perfect for anyone with a dark side!

HANDED IN

2009-12-03T04:33:00.000-08:00

FINALLY! managed to over sleep this morning, woken by my housemate shouting at me to get up in time to make it to the printers before hand! So glad thats another thing done and dusted. Now back to the collection. So much to do never enough time!

YESS I HAVE FINISHED!

2009-12-02T20:02:00.000-08:00

I can happily say that i have now completed the River Island competition print project! Its 4.03 in the morning which is a good time to finish before a hand in i think as I actually get to have some sleep!! Thought I'd upload a few things I'm handing in tomorrow first below are my

illustrations...

My illustrations were created using pen, scanned bits of fabrics, my prints and photos mixed up with some different filters.

My range plan above showing the whole collection and print variations. The gap at the top is wear i will be sticking my fabrics.

Heres another close up of an illustration i really hope i manage to get these printed ok!

and finally above is a quick snap of my book i got printed yesterday which cost me over £100 RIDICULOUS! at least it looks good, i did my layout so i had the print to the left my working drawings on tracing paper which had the print positioning underneath so you can see it clearly with out the drawing on top! (i think thats why it was so expensive!)

Anyway my alarm is set for seven in the morning to get everything ready! i wish i could sleep after but its back to working on the collection as i have an assessed review for that in 2 weeks, and there is ALOT to do! But now sleepy times, Good night.

ILLUSTRATIONS

2009-12-02T12:18:00.000-08:00

On the last part of my River Island project now hand in tomorrow! Trying to finish my illustrations and range plan which I'm going to have to try and get printed first thing in the morning, nothing like some last minute stress before hand in!

Heres one of my illustrations I've been working on today!

RIVER ISLAND

2009-11-30T12:37:00.000-08:00

So this is what I have been looking at the past week, photoshop and indesign trying to complete my print project for the River Island competition and finally I have almost got there!!...I just stupidly forgot to code each design with a production number so I have to go through 293 designs and label them, funnnnnn. NOT. It has been a long and boring process at times and with laptop saga's bringing me to tears with stress I'm finally there! YESSSSS!

After long days and even longer nights trying to get it done so I can carry on with my collection I finally have something I'm kind of happy with! Just have to find a printers that can do it in time for my hand in. So by thursday i will have handed in this project, I've already handed in a 5,000 word draft of my dissertation and then the only thing to left to hand in before xmas is our pre collection development! (i say only, this is a lot of work which i still have a lot more of to do)...oh shit i forgot about 2,000 words for marketing.

LITTLE PEOPLE

2009-11-26T14:02:00.001-08:00

My friend Jenna Morely used my two jackets in a shoot she styled a few weeks ago just got hold of the pictures which look so cute with the illustrations worked into them!

Heres my favourite shot with my Fringed jacket i made last year! Check out Jenna's Blog HERE to find out more about the shoot.

SHOES

2009-11-22T10:02:00.000-08:00

A few weeks back now i styled a footwear shoot which was photographed by the amazing Alexander Jordan. Here are a couple of the shots...

Hope you like! Also If any of you are writers out there and want to contribute to Alexander Jordan's new publication Mythos Magazine, get in touch!

PRODUCTION

2009-11-09T01:18:00.000-08:00

I just got back from a trip to a factory i have some connections with back home in Leicestershire, one thats actually still going! Anyway i took a couple of my toiles to the seamstresses that work there to discuss sewing my final garments for my collection! EXCITING! I'm so happy i have someone who can do that for me i know it will be made to a perfect standard and i have time to concentrate on the other side of my work! The leather work in my collection i will be doing myself though unless i find a leather speacialist cheap enough to do it. We will see.

They have some very interesting machines in this factory! Making socks, tights and jumpers etc something i haven't seen being done before! Pretty cool!

PRINTS

2009-11-06T02:42:00.001-08:00

Last night me and my housemate with the camera went out and took some pictures of fireworks, lights and sparklers in order for me to create a print. Heres a few initial prints i made last night by edditing and playing around with the images on photoshop.

Still going to play around more but i managed to change the colours into some really beautiful combination's.

FUNDRAISING

2009-11-02T12:31:00.000-08:00

Once all of our collections have been made an internal show is held for the judges, who will be selecting 20 students to represent the universtiy at Graduate Fashion Week in London. This costs quite a lot of money to set up there are so many things that have to be paid for and unfortunately the three grand we each pay a year doesn't cover it! So its up to us to get the money together! I think we are expected to raise about £4,000 to pay for a venue and good professional models. So its going to be a long proccess trying to raise that amount of money but everylittle counts at the point!

Today we put on a cake sale in our uni bar and managed to raise £168 to add to our stash! We have a long way to go but we have many different things being planned so hopefully by the end of the year we will have made a good amount!

MYTHOS MAGAZINE

2009-11-01T14:48:00.000-08:00

Alexander Jordan is starting up a new project for an online magazine called 'MYTHOS MAGAZINE' Contributors are needed to write articles for the first issue so if any of you see yourself as a bit of a writer have a read of the brief and get involved!

Mythos Magazine editorial brief: the “issues” issue.

Concept;

I am creating a magazine where the editorial images, be that fashion or portraiture, are included and in reference to the editorial texts and articles contributed to the magazine. To create this work I will need written submissions for the magazine that I can then create visual work for it to be paired with.

Because of this I am looking for pieces of fact based editorial writing, this doesn’t mean that the piece has to be full of statistics but it can not be full of un substantiated claims, other than this you are free to write about anything to do with a current issue and write how ever you like as I want variants in both the magazines content and style.

The deadline for this work is the 20^th of November, as it will then need to be proof read, visually represented and then flat planned before the magazine can be finalized for its launch next year.

Any piece is welcome but not guaranteed to be included due to the concept of the magazine, although I do plan to include some texts without also creating imagery from them. Please send a concept, just a sentence, explaining what you intend to write about before you start to avoid having the same thing being written about by more than one person.

Please email any questions and your concepts to;

mythos.magazine@gmail.com

Thank You,

Alexander Jordan

TOUGH WEEK

2009-11-01T14:10:00.000-08:00

It's been a bit of a slow one this week! My last post was about the start of a dress I was making and the top peice of it wasnt so straight forward as I had hoped! After draping and doing the pattern for it in a day once I had sewn it together I hadn't got the fit quite right!

So it was back to the stand to adjust the pattern! it turned out i had put too much fabric to the center to make it stand out and not distributed it evenly enough so the sides looked too flat with a kind of bluge out the middle...not a good look! I took the seams apart and split a couple of lines into the top to add in some more fabric where needed.

Once the adjustments were made i stuck the paper all together again to check it all looked ok, you could tell the difference straight away the way it stood was a lot better so i hoped that it would all work out in the actual fabric this time!

I decided to make two variations of the dress, one out of standard calico where the rest will be fitted and the other like planed out of the Organdi fabric with the latex dress underneath which will have a more interesting bottom which will flare away from the body. I want to test out both styles as the two different fabric types will make a big difference and its best to be able to see it to decide which works better.

The calico version was pretty straightforward to make i fused the pieces to make it extra sturdy and it stands really well. The sillohuette is pretty different its interesting but still flattering at the same time! I really want to make myself a nice black version to wear out!

The Organdi fabric however was not so straight forward and caused me a lot of problems which to be honest stressed me out a lot. You see the fabric is translucent so the seams inside have to be finished in an attractive way. Normally a French Seam is used but when i tried that out it was just not working because of the curve in the middle. It ended up pulling and puckering and was sooo hard to sew! I know it doesn't look like it but believe me IT WAS!

So after a few different trials trying to make the seams more of a feature on the dress i had to settle for normal seems which i think i will just have to end up binding inside. So with all my faffing around with the top part to the dress trying to get the fit and finishing right i have yet to finish it! but this week it will be finished!

MOVING ON

2009-10-26T10:58:00.000-07:00

My first toile review went surprisingly well which i was pleased about so i now just have to move things forward and carry on! Today I started working on a dress that hopefully will be apart of the collection. I made a dress to go with my jacket last week but that was a more simple garment which was made to show the shape, silhouette and techniques that i will be working with.

I used paper again to get the effect I wanted , you can create structure and shape allot easier that way. I am going to stitch this top half together in calico tonight to check the fit then i will be using a more sheer fabric that has stiffness to it so that the fabric fits in with my concept.

I am using Halucination within my concept, the idea of something that is not quite as it seems, false interpretations, weird yet beautiful. So to represent that i am using structure showing a sharp and strong look but with delicate fabric in a more subtle feminine colour. The Outer dress will be masking what is really there (the natural shape of the body) and underneath it I will be using this amazing latex fabric i found in the cloth house to create a bandage tight dress underneath.

Anyway I'm off to go sew! I shall update later

BETTY SHOOT CONT.

2009-10-26T10:42:00.000-07:00

So on Friday I spent the day with Alexander Jordan and Miss Carla Grima's legs for a photoshoot that will hopefully be going into the next issue of BETTY. Can't show any of the pics yet of course but here are a couple of shots of two of the Locations shot by Alexander Jordan.

The colours and the lighting on these shots were really beautiful.

Oh what we will do to make sure we can return the shoes unmarked!

SHOOT FOR BETTY

2009-10-22T16:38:00.000-07:00

I have just finished packing all the stuff for a shoot i am styling for tomorrow! Havn't had chance to do that in a while so its exciting! I know i am a fashion design student, but i think its so important to explore other areas of the fashion industry to get a greater understanding of all the aspects envolved making yourself versatile and employable!

Anyway I am styling a shoot that will be Photographed once again by Alexander Jordan this time for BETTY magazine. The main focus of the shoot tomorrow is shoes and tights which will be matched with locations and only the legs and maybe parts of skirts and dresses will be shown! I put a quick crop in of some of the tights i have got together, many different colours patterns and textures!

I'll post some "behind the scenes" images tomorrow also i had my first review today! which was scary but went well so i will be writing all about that as well! Right now though i really must sleep!

NEW IMAGES

2009-10-22T16:28:00.000-07:00

Alexander Jordan has just sent my some new retouched images he'd been working on from the Femme Fatale shoot we did many months ago. He managed to get some great close up shots which shows the make-up i did really well. I love the stuff we used on the skin to giver her face a good sheen! Any way here are the images...

I adore the one where she is screaming! Remember to check out Alexander Jordans Blog and Website!

GARMENT ONE

2009-10-16T10:00:00.001-07:00

Its been a hardworking busy week trying to get my first garment made for my first review next Thursday.

It took me a while to get the pattern made for my sleeves but after playing with the paper on the stand and fixing it around the mold i made splitting and spreading the paper to curve around it i was able to place it onto fabric and sew it together. Below is the final shape of the shoulders i created.

Here is the base of the jacket in paper i used a mixture of flat pattern cutting and draping to create the cut which is the way i normally like to work.

It was a long night sewing the jacket together i was in uni for 10 and didn't leave till about 6 had dinner and sewed my jacket until 3 in the morning! i was soooo ready for bed after that! I thought at first id messed up the shape of the arm holes but when i got to uni my tutor told me to put it on someone to see what the fit was like and she was really impressed with how id done it and told me not to change anything. I just need to practice sewing the shoulder pieces better so its neater and stands better. This is just the first toile so for the first attempt its fine...now i just have to decide what im going to make to go with the jacket.

The lovely Alex Oliver id wearing my jacket in the pics above is a quick snap of the back, you can see its puckering a bit in places where i hadn't sewn in the sleeves that great but that's something that will be perfected before its sewn in any final fabrics. The design may well change and develop as its the very first review we don't make any thing for a few months so at this stage its initial ideas.

My fellow student Dervain Batarlo trying to squeeze into the jacket! Ive managed to get hold of a jewelery student at uni who is going to see if he or anyone he knows can colab with me on producing some pieces for my collection. I have ideas i want to develop using perspex to create jewelery using the sculptures as the main inspiration so fingers crossed that will all work out! I shall keep updated. Any I'm off to get ready for my first night out in god knows how long!! i think i deserve it after all my late nights and early mornings! Going into uni tomo though...on a Saturday!!!

STARTING POINT

2009-10-13T15:59:00.000-07:00

So i didnt manage to get up at 6...more like seven, anyway went in a started to drape my jacket properly. I made all the pieces in paper first and measured it all out so the dimensions and lines reflected each other well.

Once i had the body i moved onto the shoulder...

I wasn't too sure how to develope the sleave like my drawing at first getting the measurements and shapes right so it hangs properly without caving or bending in is really hard. After playing with paper I decided to mold the shape so I could drape ontop of it and develop the right shapes from that.

Above is the start of the molding process I had a trip into town to get polystyrene, floral foam and glue and thought id figure it out somehow.

The mess I produced in the process cups of coffee and squash later...

...I got this! I used polystyrene, paper, card, shoulder pads, paper mache and pleanty of tape to produce the shape and now once it has all dried i can mold the fabric around it so I can get the shapes for the pattern pieces then once I sew it together it should stay in this form.

I hope it al works out tomorrow! I have so much to do I cant waste anymore time faffing!!

First Garment

2009-10-12T17:18:00.000-07:00

So the collection development is well underway now and i have my first review next week (shit) and for the review we have to have completed one outfit which should show at least our core shape. The toile will more than likely not be used but its all part of the first stage of development.

Above are a few initial designs for some leather jackets i intend to make inspired by the triangular forms used in kaisers paintings and sculptures. This is just the starting point for them ill then take ideas to the stand and develope them on. I am curently making the pattern for this jacket shown below...

Here is a picture of a rough drape i did on the stand to get the right size and shapes of the features. I hope it all turns out ok not too sure if I'm going to like it but hey its just the starting point!

I have also been in talks about a couple of shoots coming up which i shall be styling for with Alexander Jordan, one for his person projects another for Betty Magazine. I'll post more info on them soon and their progress soon. I have also been in talks with my old friend from college Gemma Pallet who is a wonderful graphic designer! she is going to get started on the branding for my collection and website etc her style is totally fitting with mine and i love all her work so Im really excited to see what she comes up with! I love being able to collab with friends! It's so important to use each other and all the contacts you have to push things further.

Anyway I'm going to get some sleep now i have the basics for my jacket, I've set my alarm for six so hopefully i actually get up then!!

MAISON MARTIN MARGIELA - A.K.A - DISSAPOINTMENT

2009-10-04T11:08:00.000-07:00

I was so excited to check out the new collection by the one and only Martin Margiela at Paris Fashion Week this season and to my disappointment i hate to say it but it was pretty crap!

The usually groundbreaking label produced something kinda pointless i just didn't get it...I don't know what everyone else thinks but i really was not impressed!

SHEPHERDS BUSH

2009-10-02T17:30:00.001-07:00

So collection time has started and fabric sourcing has to get going pretty much straight away in order to find the right sort of thing. Last week i headed to Soho for some fabrics which was quite successful, i managed to find some really nice swatches that were pretty perfect for my collection...

...today however wasn't quite so great. Soho is good but the prices are pretty up there! So normally what i do is; go there to find the kind of thing i want then take the swatch to Shepherds Bush to get a cheaper version! However it sometimes it just doesn't cut it. I mean you can find some nice stuff but everything i found just wasn't right and looked cheap. I just ended up getting swatches for the sake of it to fill my fabric book out but i know I'm not going to want to use any of them. Soho is going to bleed me dry this year isn't it. I need to find a money tree.

SHOWstudio

2009-10-02T15:27:00.000-07:00

I was feeling like rubbish today and i thought what better way to make myself feel better than to go to the SHOWstudio exhibition at somerset house, especially when i found out Nick Knight would be doing a live photoshoot! It is a small price to pay for such an amazing exhibition! Students can get in for £4.00 and you are actually allowed to take photos!!! So if you are planning on going to see it and don't want to spoil the surprise do not read on...

I have to say i think this is the best fashion exhibition i have been to its got so much to see and many different interactive parts its so much fun! I LOVED IT! The first room was a mirrored room which i got quite excited about.

Above is a massive Naomi Campbell that has doodles and messages written by people online or in the exhibition projected onto her.

Top models including Lilly Cole were asked to leave voice mails throughout fashion week on what they were doing which you could listen to through these phones.

All the worlds top supermodels kisses on glass with there signature!

Ohh my fav Janice Dickinson's lips!! and Aggy's too.

Andy Warhol style screen tests of models asked to say their name and stand in front of the camera for two minutes. You'd think it would be kinda boring to watch someone stand there for a couple of minutes but it was really interesting and sometimes funny (Janice Dickinson)

I love these images.

Garments including designers including Galiano, Margiela, Yamamoto and McQueen. Patterns for these garments can be found online, printed off to scale and pieced together to make your very own version.

Pugh's, McQueens and Margiela's work.

Here is the stairs up to the model casting room where you can record a casting that is uploaded onto SHOWstudio.com and so many people will be picked for a shoot...

Here is my wonderful housemate Becky Davison trying out (making a fool of herself)

...and finally here are a couple of snaps i took of the live photo shoot with Nick Knight shooting for Vmen... yes that actually is Nick Knight!

COLLECTION INSPIRATION

2009-10-01T15:32:00.000-07:00

I have been waiting a while to post up the inspiration for my concept as you knowwww i wouldnt want anyone stealing my ideas and all! Sooo im still in the middle of finalising and writing up my concept you know all the deep shit we have to include and what not. But ill put up the visual references I was inspired by so you can get an idea of what it will start to look like..

Just before Summer there was an exhibition at the Wilkinson Gallery called 'Hallucination Engine' already with that title i knew i was going to love it. The gallery was showing all work by an artist called Tillman Kaiser and basically it is from there that i got the theme for my final collection.

Kaiser produces mixed media paintings and space like sculptures which to the eye look strong and structured but is simply made out of cardboard and tape! Anyway Kaiser takes aspects from everyday life and puts them into these amazing geometric, abstract paintings.

He uses toned down colours but even so they still have a dark futuristic edge to it with images like eyes and insects worked into them. It is this along with a concept I'm developing to do with the mind and emotions that will depict my collection. EXCITING.

I chose my two favourite paintings whiped them onto photoshop and cloned different parts of them to get the colours. They really are not colours i would ever think i would have gone for but for some reason i really love this combination. The colours are pretty muted but together mixed with the black and white (i have to have a contrast and a dark side) from the sculptures they appear quite vibrant and fresh! By looking at these paintings i can trace off shapes to incorporate into my designs.

Above are some fabrics i picked up the other day from the cloth house. These scans really cant do them justice but they a really beautiful fabrics. The top ones are this really nice Organza which is pretty crisp and holds its shape really well so its great to produce structured garments but with a sheer light more delicate feel to it to reflect the false look of sculptures below. The swatches on the bottom include a grey jersey and my favourite this weird latex stuff which some how doesnt look tacky at all but could look really cool used in the right way.

The Sculptures above are really spacy looking and is great for getting shapes and inspiration for some really cool jackets i will be taking this shapes and ideas and playing with paper on my stand to create some striking silhouettes and techniques.

Finally above is some different black and white fabrics to fit in with his sculptures. I think i will consider using the white leather at the top its so nice and soft and has a really nice patent shine to it. Its about £70.00 per skin though so i hope my jackets don't take up too much fabric...eeekkk.

So that is the ground work behind the inspiration for my collection I'm so excited to get working on it and im really liking how the concept is coming together so far! Its colourful and fresh but at the same time dark and edgy just how i like it! Wow anyway i think i will leave it there for now! It was really hard trying to explain that in as many little words without blabbing on and boring you and im feeling really ill with a cold so if it doesnt make much sence illl blame it on the fact im sick and im tired.

Hope you all like. I'll keep you updated.

EXCITMENT

2009-09-26T16:36:00.000-07:00

I really want to reveal the concept and plan for my collection...but im not going to jussstt yet. Maybe tomorrow! I've speant alot of time at my desk today, where the magic happens...

I'm so OVERLY excited about the collection now! I've had things down for quite a while but the past few days I've been taking everything from my sketch book and working it properly and clearly into separate sheets on photoshop, explaining and illustrating the concept. Everything is falling into place perfectly and is making so much sense! Seeing it all pinned up on my wall above my desk coming together makes me feel so happy! It's totally me but not really what people would expect of me which is good. I came up with a name for the collection tonight with the help of my housemates! group brainstorming sessions are always fun! I see everything together as a final image the shoots the video the show everything when i can see it all that far i know its right. :)

THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE

2009-09-24T15:58:00.000-07:00

After months of waiting for this film last night i finally got to watch it! It's typical that the night i find it online my boyfriend finds it in Asda the next day. But whatever, i got to see it and I LOVED IT!!!

Anna Wintour is surprisingly really likable. Shes not a bitch as everyone makes out shes just doing her job and if your not supplying work that is good enough then why should she make you feel like it is? Its a really good view on the industry and a really nice insight to the people behind vogue, i think even if fashion isn't your main interest its deff worth a watch!

THIRD YEAR BEGINS

2009-09-24T15:28:00.000-07:00

We've had a long 3 months off since we finished second year and we've had a lot of time to recover, think and prepare ourselves for the most important and crucial project of our lives so far...THE FINAL COLLECTION! I've been going over and over my ideas in my head all summer, its something i have constantly been thinking about (and worrying about).

We had our brief today...a long talk about all that is involved and all that is expected. It's ALOT, ALOT of work. ALOT of pressure and ALOT of stress! but also ALOT of fun. I'm sure theirs going to be plenty of high days and plenty of low OMG why am i doing this to myself? where is this even going to take me? am i good enough blah blah blah...days... but hopefully after a cry and a moan ill get over it. Until it comes around again. Which it will.

Of course we are being thrown straight into it and next week we have to present our concepts to our tutors and fellow students, and just hope we don't get torn apart and crucified in front of everyone. The tutors can be very honest and if they think your idea is shit, they will tell you its shit. I need to be organised this year so i sat down went over my brief put it into a folder and made myself a time table of what needs to be done untill my first review in 4 weeks.

I am not going to unveil the concept and theme just yet but when i have finished presenting it clearly and have the feedback im hoping for from the tutors i will announce it.I'm feeling quite positive about my concept I think I have chosen the one perfect for me. I'm excited but I'm also pretty pretrified. The pressure is really on this year!

Fashion Week

2009-09-23T15:07:00.000-07:00

So as im sure you are all aware yesterday marked the end of London Fashion Week for another season. I manged to get involved in a bit of stuff through the lovely Alexis Knox who i met through working with Emma Bell. So after an amazing night at coldplay i had to get up and catch a train in the morning to go and meet Russell a.k.a 'Random Bangle' to help him with the finishing touches on his stuff for Designer Ziad Ghanem.

If you have'nt seen any Random Bangle peices here is an image taken from the previous collection which he did for Ziad Ghanem.

It was great to go and help out and see how Russell makes and constructs his pieces i love being able to see how other people work and what their inspirations are. After a day of cutting and sewing i got back home to get some sleep as i'd arranged to help out at the show the next day. That night i had a call from Alexis needing me to do her a favour as two of her interns had cancelled. The plan for the next day was basically get to the Notion Magazine office for 8.30 am to collect suitcases of clothes that needed to be taken to Birmingham and dropped off for a shoot then get back to convent garden for the show. My alarm went off very early the next morning!

I managed to get to Notion offices dead on 8.30 met the other intern who would be joining me on the trip collected to suitcases and jumped in a cab to Euston. It was a challenge trying to move so many suitcases its quite difficult trying to drag 3 fairly big sized at one time but i created my own technique in the end. Anyway we got to Birmingham jumped in another cab which took us on a bit of a tour trying to find the right place to deliver them to but eventually we found it. Once we handed over the clothes we signed collected the money for the travel and headed back to London for this...

We got to the Vaxhual venue for about 3 o'clock was informed which model i would be dressing and got him into his fist outfit. The show was in collaboration with Fire Trap the denim brand so there was a lot of rewored denim involved! Some amazing shapes were created using triangles and geometric patterns. I know how difficult they are to sew since i used a similar concept in my creative cut project. Ziad used the less conventional models to give more of an impact they all seemed to have that special something about them and a striking look different to what most designers usually go for.

COLDPLAY

2009-09-22T12:54:00.001-07:00

So me and my housemate were bored the other day and jealous that our other housemate Carla just got offered a Coldplay ticket for FREE! Soooo we decided to buy one off ebay as it was for the following day we had to meet the seller at victoria station! Yess we did think it could be dodgy but thankfully it was all fine and the handover went smoothly!

Unfortunatly i left my camera at my friends house so i couldnt take it so i have stolen the pictures from the lovely Deema Zainy who we were with!

First up to perfrom were a band called White Lies Followed closely by Girls aloud! Who put on a very camp performance! I really wish someone would give them a burger or something they have legs that look like they might break!

Then was the amazing Jay-Z, that man really knows how to get the crowd going!!

Wow that is alot of people behind us!!

Coldplay were an amazing live band! the atmosphere was bloody incredible too! It poured down as they came on and we got seriously drenched but somehow it just made the atmosphere even better!

The gig was really visual the graphics were really beautiful! I think my favourite thing that they did was the unleashment of thousands of butterflies that glowed!! ahhh it was soooo pretty!!

VOTEVOTEVOTE

2009-09-03T10:36:00.000-07:00

My good friend and designer Emma Bell has been shortlisted for the British Airways Great Britons Scheme and its all up to the public Vote who wins!

If Emma gets the prize she will be jetting to Tokyo so help her out and VOTE PRETTY PLEASE!!! It only takes a minute you simply register with your email address and click vote! simple!

THANKS ALOT!

BLOG SWAP

2009-08-11T16:28:00.000-07:00

I have just added a Blog Swap section to the page so if anyone is interested in swapping banners just hit me a message at emmabox@ymail.com!

INDIA

2009-08-11T12:48:00.000-07:00

I can't get over how fast time is flying by at the moment. I realized that it is now two years since i ventured over to india to do some work experience at Filaure which is ran by my Aunty. It was an amazing experience for me and at times challenging, i was definitely a little nervous to be flying to the other side of the world on my own! Auroville has some beautiful sites and i met some wonderful people, i thought i'd post up a few pictures as i havnt mentioned my trip on the blog before!

The Two Pictures above were takem at the center of Auroville the huge globe building at the top is called the Matrimandir its an AMAZING building which contains a meditation chamber at the top its an amazing work of art that has taken years to build. The picture beneath that is of the beautiful banyan tree that is next to the Matrimandir the roots grow down from the branches making it look like a group of trees together.

My favourite lizard that i would see running past my feet in the garden most days!

The little tortoise my second cousins managed to find in their garden! i wish i could of brought it back with me as a pet.

Can safely say i didnt want to take this one back home as a pet though!

While helping out at my aunties factory i was able to go and source fabric in the city of Chennai. I had to go to the market where they sold big lots of fabric at extremely cheap prices and select nice ones to take back to be made into garments for the boutique. Above are some pictures of the view from the hotel i was staying in while visiting the city.

Also in chennai is a crocodile sanctuary where they bread crocodiles in their masses! They had some pretty beasty crocs i can tell you! I also go to see hundreds of snakes that they captured for their venom in order to create Anti-venom.

India is one crazy place! I recommend going and checking it out! Its MENTAL!

ZOO

2009-08-11T11:03:00.001-07:00

Being summer and all Alexander Jordan(and his camera) and I decided to make the most of the nice weather and take a trip to colchester Zoo!

Before we even got out to see the animals i found my way to the gift shop! its always the best part, especially when you find hats like these!!

Jordan and his new best friend!

Jordan being the photographer that he is managed to take some good snaps, obv not quite on par with my amazing iphone pics but there alright...

...ok maybe they are better than mine. Not only did he manage to take some wicked pictures, he had to go one step further to better me with this awesome video of the Sea Lions! i did find the music though! Anyway its a really nice little video so i suggest you all have a watch!

caréner from alexander jordan on Vimeo.

Isn't it dreamy? To see more of Alexander Jordan's work check out his website or have a read of his blog.

THE SURVIVAL GUIDE

2009-08-10T04:58:00.000-07:00

About a year ago now i came across this book online i was able to read the 1st chapter and was impressed with how brutally honest and realistic it was! Already in the first chapter it gave a brilliant insight into the industry!

I purchased it a while ago now and have still not got round to reading it properly but i think its time i did! I'll come back with a review of it soon.

THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE

2009-08-08T11:59:00.000-07:00

I can't wait to see this film! Something to look forward to...

WALKING IN MY MIND

2009-08-08T02:59:00.000-07:00

A couple of days ago i had some time to wander around london by myself, id seen the posters around advertising the latest exhibition at the Hayward Gallery, Walking in my Mind and decided to check it out. Before i even got into the gallery the trees along South Bank were wrapped up in red and white poker dotted fabric which seemed to fit in with the image used to advertise the exhibition...

It Started well as i managed to get in for free due to the ticket machine being broken was pretty happy about that as it managed to save me £6.00! (thats like 3 iced vanilla lattes!) I wasnt too sure what to expect but the idea of 10 different artists using art and instalations to represent what goes on in their minds was intriguing to me. I think its really interesting to see how different people interpret the same brief and the with mind being such a complex and broad subject, so personal too each artist, i assumed it would be a varied and possibly quite bizarre exhibition...

and...i was right. The installations ranged from the a sweet little hut containing kitch ornanments, notebooks and drawings with a record player blaring out music showing a sort of childhood nostalgia to a vulgar room packed with what could simply be described as junk representing the mind storing all its clutter, thoughts and experiences... and hard core porn, in no sort of order.

The above picture shows a walkthrough of what is meant to be seen as the brain. It was made out of card and tape creating a sort of cave like room which contained items such as photos, foiled people and books representing the different memories and thoughts stored in the mind.

I managed to sneak a few pictures on my iphone not really the best shots but i had to be discrete! Its an interesting exhibition and i really enjoyed my time looking around it and into creative minds! So go check it out for yourself!

FINALLY

2009-08-06T15:02:00.001-07:00

Managed to pick up the new copy of notion magazine at WH Smiths today! Wanted to make sure i have it in the collection as i was assisting on the Puma Advert featured on the inside!

Make sure you go get a copy!! its a great read and features the adventures of Emma Bell in New York for the Designers Against aids Event which showcased the collection I helped make! Look out for my name in the Speacial Thanks to section as well!!

VIDEOING

2009-08-06T14:45:00.000-07:00

To pass sometime today me and my boyfriend Alexander Jordan decided to have some fun creating a little tribute to Michael Jackson! A quivering bloke, an iphone, and a moonwalk later we got this...

FUN TIMES

RE-VAMP

2009-08-06T14:39:00.001-07:00

I have had a little re-vamp of the blog today neatened it up a bit, a good spring clean! It has taken me quite a few hours messing around with html codes and what not but I think its turned out alright though! I now have links down the side to my C.V, Biography and Website so its now less cluttered down the side! I've been all over the place with this blog recently so having a nice tidy up makes me feel a lot better about it! Hope you all like!

CHANGE OF PLAN

2009-08-04T09:04:00.000-07:00

Im not moving anymore. I figured after all this time id rather keep my followers and stay here. I have a website up! just a simple lightroom layout until mine gets designed! currently waiting for my friend Gemma to design my logo and what not so hopefully have a revamp soon! check out the new website until then though www.emmabox.com.

GETTING THERE

2009-07-15T15:58:00.000-07:00

My website Isn't up and running yet like i hoped it would be. I have the domain emmabox.com and have built a quick basic site up on lightroom untill my final one gets designed (with the help of my wonderful boyfriend). So all i need to do now is find some where to host it. This is the problem when it comes to starting a website i don't really have that much of a clue so if anyone out there knows and good web hosting sites feel free to let me know!

Heres a little look at how the website is coming along as i said its just a basic portfolio to have up until i have a decent branded one made up which all being well should be up my nov/dec.

If anyone has any advice on building websites feedback would be much appreciated!!!

Been a while (shamefully)

2009-07-14T10:51:00.000-07:00

I hate it when people start a post with this but i have to admit I've been pretty poor with the blog updates since uni finished! I have been a bit all over the place with a trip to Malta and various places up n down the country! I do hope to get back on top of things very soon though what with my collection looming close by!

I blogged a while ago now about a Puma shoot i assisted on with Emma Bell for an advert in Notion Magazine, well the issue is out now so here are the final images...

I have also just purchased a domain name for my website! EXCITING! Hopefully in the next few hours i shall have my first (basic until the proper one gets made) website up and running at www.emmabox.com so check it out tomorrow!

I think thats about all i have to say for now!

Blog Lovin

2009-06-14T06:54:00.001-07:00

Follow my blog with bloglovin´

Updates

2009-06-13T06:25:00.000-07:00

I have created a myspace to go alongside my blog another way to promote it and what not! so if your a myspace fan go add me as a friend here

I have also added a page to the blog which shows my portfolio to date. I just edited an old post and linked it at the side so if you want to check it out its a nice and easy click away!

Hopefully get a couple of shoots done soon try out a bit more of this styling malarky! Hopefully get one done with Alexander Jordan soon and also Photographer James Frew contacted me asking if i would like to do something so gonna get my thinking cap on!

watch this space...

Wedding Outfit

2009-06-12T16:42:00.000-07:00

My dad is getting married in a few weeks so i have to dress nice and propper for the occasion. I HATE having to dress like this so going to find an outfit was a right mission.

I ended up going for a dress from Urban Outfitters and the shoes which i do love from Top Shop Boutique.

More Femme Fatale Images

2009-06-12T16:32:00.000-07:00

Just received some new images from Alexander Jordan...

Can't believe we managed to do this in my living room!

Blog of the day

2009-06-11T06:01:00.000-07:00

I just received an email from the bloggers networking site FuelMyBlog letting me know i have recieved the Blog of the Day award how fun!!

Oohhh theres my logo at the top of the home page look!

... and heres my award!

LOVE IT

The Graduate Fashion Week Winner

2009-06-11T03:01:00.000-07:00

On the last day of GFW the gala show is held which showcases the best collections of the week infront of a panel of judges which includes Giles Deacon and Mathew Williamson!

Proudly the winner of the Gold award, and £20,000 to continue with her line, was Mytro Samou from my university UCA Rochester! The bar has definitely been raised high now! I am not surprised someone from Rochester won as their were so many strong collections. Giles Deacon said "we felt her collection had a very strong signature style. It was a cohesive range which could easily be sold tomorrow."

Summer is here...

2009-06-10T10:18:00.000-07:00

So i treated myself to a new pair of sandals for my holiday in Malta

£40.00 from Office i like that there are so many straps and they are soooo comfy!