Here are one of the few things I brought whilst I was having my retail therapy in Central London :)

  

A white bobbles knitted jumper by Mink Pink at Urban Outfitters. First it was £60 and now it's £20 + student discount £18! Bargain :) I found this jumper when I was doing my Topshop Competitors research and thought this jumper was so lovely but it was £60 at the time - not a price I would be willing to pay. So glad I brought it on sale! 

This is another jumper I brought (left) with the cables and the stripes which is from Topshop. This was originally £45, but also got this for £18 with discount :) 

My first purchase of Oh Comely magazine! Issue eight. Here are some pages I took pictures of inside the magazine. I think the photography and illustrations is lovely :')

I brought some watercolour pencils from WHSmiths for half price £7.49 :) which will help to continue with my new year's resolution to draw more. I've never used watercolour pencils before. 

This is my sketchbook, drawing some calligraphy and typography :)

A Good Ol' Retail Therapy.

I went to Central London last weekend and had a good old retail therapy :) There was a good sale going on too and I just love a good bargain! I took some pictures along the way.

This was in Topshop - I love the concept of the mannequin sitting on the flamingo. 

3D giraffe shape heads. 

This blurred in my first attempt to take this picture, but now I think it kind of looks like an bad attempt at bokeh!

These pictures below were display windows for Selfridges:

Architecture at Canary Wharf.

Sharing some pictures I took at Canary Wharf awhile ago! They had great architectural buildings, which was perfect for my Architecture project when I did my Art Foundation :)
Hope you like these :)

The Royal College of Art Exhibition at the V&A.

There was a exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum I went to back to 2010. This was showing graduate's MA final collections. This exhibition was about final design process. It's said that every year, about 3000 graduates enter the fashion industry and working against the odds, they enter a competitive industry where skills and ideas are imperative to success.

The show displays the work of 2008 fashion graduates, many who now work in the fashion industry. This reveals the aspects of student's important design process: research, development and the technical skill.

I was going through my old Dell computer when I found my old file of these pictures I took at the V&A! I really loved this exhibition, it really inspired me. I was in my foundation in Art & Design: Fashion Textiles in 2010, and it was interesting to see the design process - how you'd start an idea, find your design identity and develop technical skills leading to the final collection. I especially loved the detailing of the garments, I thought they were beautiful :') I love embellishments.

             

Gorgeous lace detailing and beautiful trimmings. 

         

Inspiration and samples in student's sketchbook. 

A student's sketchbook work

 

This boxy dress (right) was my favourite piece from this exhibition!

Beautiful prints. 

Gorgeous shoes, aren't they?

 

 

There are four main elements, which are:

Concept - A cohesive and exciting catwalk collections needs a strong central idea. This will influence the colour, cut, decoration, materials and function.

Form - In transforming their designs into 3-D garments, fashion designers enter a problem-solving stage. Traditional methods of making, as well as innovation and experimentation with materials, cut and construction, are vital to this process.

Technique - In creating their collections RCA fashion students have to develop their skills. They attend lectures and workshops in subjects such as dyeing, sewing, computer-aided design, knitwear construction and tailoring.

Detail -  Detail, whether hidden, decorative or functional is an essential aspect of fashion design. Customised fastenings, decorative stitching, jewelled embellishment or a delicate print can make a garment truly unique.


Source: V&A: Royal College of Art