​Group Tutorial
Todays group tutorial was really helpful as we were able to sit as a group and discuss all of our research that we had done over the weekend and come up with a plan for what we are going to do over the next week. 

​I spent today doing research for the group project, I decided to look into more of the environmental issues that our world is facing day by day as well as what other companies are doing to try and help the environment. I found it really interesting looking at the brand Everlane, they do a lot for the environment especially when it comes to the production of their denim. Denim is one of the worst materials to produce as it has such a large impact on the environment, it takes on average 10,000 litres of water to make a pair of jeans, but the water becomes highly polluted. Everlane are filtering the water so that it is clean and drinkable when it leaves the factory and with the by-product, they are mixing it with cement to create bricks. I will continue with my research ready for our tutorial on Friday.

Mentor Day
​Today I was working with my third year, this week we were making another one of his toiles, I am really enjoying this project at the moment as the deadline is quickly approaching and with that the collection is really coming together, I have found it really helpful to see how a final collection comes together, I have also enjoyed the challenge and learning lots of new skills and techniques.

Group Tutorial
In todays group tutorial we discussed where we were as a group and how we are getting on with the presentation, i feel that we are in a good place and with the easter holidays we can make sure that we have all the research ready for 
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​Today I was working on my toile, I am aiming to have it finished by Thursday so that I can cut out in my final fabric on Friday, ready to start construction next week.

​Being stuck at home today because of the snow I was able to get on with my paperwork for this unit, I worked on my technical drawing and finished my moodboard. I also worked on my other portfolio boards ready for the deadline next week.

Mentor day
Today I was working with my third year, I really enjoyed it as I got to do lots of different things including cutting out and construction. I am finding the mentorship programme really interesting as I get to see how a full collection comes together, giving me an insight into what I have to look forward to in a few years time.

Toile
today I finished my toile and I am really happy with it, I feel that it clearly reflects my research, and it has been really challenging but I am very proud of the end result. I made quite a few alterations to my first toile to get to where it is now, there are a lot more triangles than I first thought there would be but it helps give a clear sculptural look.

​Today I cut out all of my patterns, I am on track to get everything finished by next week which is really good, I managed to get everything I needed to do done this week, I still have a lot to do but I feel a lot happier about it. 

Cut and Sew- A process used for knitted garments, where patterns are cut out and sewn together much like a woven fabric. (like a t-shirt).

​Globalisation Lecture
I really enjoyed todays lecture, as it was interesting to see just how many journeys how garments have probably been on before they get to us. I have done a post all about this lecture, so go and take a read.

Creative Pattern Cutting
This afternoon we were continuing on from last Monday with creating our own blocks from the mannequin. I had finished the bodice for today's session, so I was able to get on straight away, with deciding where the style lines should go, I found this really interesting, but I struggled a bit when we had do draw the style lines onto our paper patterns, but I am going to work on this next week and focus to make sure that I understand how to do it.

An Introduction to Fabrics
I am currently writing a post all about this lecture and the workshop that we did after and it should be posted in the next few days. I found it very interesting and I enjoyed learning all about the different properties fabrics have and how the fabrics are made, and I know I will now think very carefully about the type of material I am buying so that I can be sure it will give the desired look that I am after.
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Technical Session
In today’s technical session I cut out all of pattern pieces in the fabric that I am going to make my technical shirt out of. I than stitched the plackets to the sleeves, this was a little bit challenging as you had to make sure they were the wright way round and stitched to the correct side of the sleeve as well as making sure that they looked neat and professional. I also topstitched the button stand an attached the yoke, when doing all of this I had to make sure that it was done to the best of my ability and to industry standard. I have never made a shirt before, so it is interesting to see exactly how they are made, even if they are a bit fiddly.

Lecture- Democratization in Fashion
I am currently writing a post all about today's lecture which will be posted over the next few days.

Briefing- Employability and Mentorship
Today we had the briefing on our new project where we are going to be working with the third years to help them with their final collections. I am really excited about this project as I think that it is a good opportunity, it's also interesting to see what the third years are doing at the moment, I look forward to meeting my mentor on Monday and beginning to work with them on Thursday.

Group Tutorial
I found todays tutorial very helpful as I could see what stage everyone else was at, as well as getting help with what I am doing. I have struggled a bit the past few weeks on deciding what should or shouldn't go into my sketchbook, but after today I feel like I understand everything a lot clearer, and I am ready to continue with my sketchbook work, so that I am ready to create designs by the end of next week. I am going to do a lot more sampling and experimentation to fill my sketchbook.
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Technical Session.
Today’s session was all about attaching the sleeves and creating a shell. I finished all the tasks for today, although doing all the princess seams was a bit fiddly, the arm hole especially, but I am really pleased with the result and I am looking forward to finishing it next week.

A term used to describe the way countries are becoming more interconnected both economically and culturally. It means that it is possible to produce a product anywhere, using resources from anywhere to be sold anywhere.

​Technical Pattern Cutting Workshop- The Shirt
This afternoon was very productive as I finished all of my patterns and I am ready to focus on the cuff and placket next week. I really enjoyed learning how to pattern cut a shirt and I look forward to seeing the finished result.

Postmodernism Lecture
Today's lecture was really interesting and I am currently writing a post all about it which will be up over the next few days.

Editorial Tutorial
I found todays tutorial very beneficial as it has helped me to refine my ideas for my editorial piece. I have decided to discuss fur and the arguments for and against. I have gained a better understanding of how I should lay it out so that it is more interesting to read, and I was given lots of pointers that I hadn't thought about, which has really helped me. I have done lots of research and planning and I can now begin to write my piece, ready for my next tutorial in a few weeks. I will continue to do more research as I go along about current issues, but I will also explore the history of fur and how it got so popular.

In today's session we were looking at lines and making our lines more fluid and less sketchy.  I found it quite difficult as I am not the best at drawing, but I know I will get better the more I practice. over the next few sessions I want to work on my proportions and my lines, I want my lines to become more defined.  

Over the next few sessions I shall share my progress in life drawing with you.

Monday
Life Drawing
Today I had my first ever life drawing session, having never done it before I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but I found it quite interesting after I had got past the part of drawing a naked person. I am looking forward to my next session as I know that the more I get to do the better I will be.

Wednesday
​Todays task was to define the word 'Contemporary', when completing this task, it made me think a lot about what the word means to me, I decided to go down the route of sustainability as that is how a lot of companies and designers are going, trying to use fabrics that are good for the environment, but it isn't just fashion that is changing, architecture is changing as well and at a much faster rate which I found interesting.

Thursday
Sketchbook Workshop
Today was an extension on from Tuesdays sketchbook workshop, I can really see designs coming a long after completing this process, and I am going to work on the mannequin next to see how I can go about making the shapes I have designed.
Pattern Cutting Technical Session
For our pattern cutting we were working on dart manipulation again but looking at the ways in which you can remove one dart and add it into another. after we had done that we moved onto adding volume into a sleeve, I found the splitting and spreading method easy as this is the way that I have always been taught, but we also learnt the pivoting method, I found this quite difficult as I felt like I didn't have enough hands but I know that with more practice I will find it easier, and I want this to be the method that I use as it uses less paper.
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Friday

Monday
Drawing
I found today quite challenging as I am not the best at drawing especially drawing quick sketches which was today's task. I am going to go away and practice though as I know that I am not going to be Picasso overnight.

​Tuesday
Today we had a workshop on how to use Photoshop, I found this interesting as I have always struggled with using it, I had never had a proper induction to it I have always had to teach my self so to have a session where we went over the basics as well as some of the more complicated tasks was really helpful.

Wednesday
We had our first lecture today, we were learning all about the history of fashion. We then had to go off in groups and do extra research on a selection of topics and say how they linked. After we had done this we came back to the room and presented our findings, we stuck all our pictures on the wall and turned it into a big timeline, this made it very clear what styles had come around and in which era.

​Thursday
Today I was working on my mannequin, I have found myself with a clearer understanding of the way that I want to take this unit, I have decided to look into the Victorian era. We also had our first pattern cutting technical session, I love pattern cutting so I really enjoyed this, we were going over dart manipulation and it was very helpful to have a session where I could refresh my mind.

Friday
We had our first crit of this unit today, I felt okay about it to start with but found that I really struggled to talk about my ideas, so I am going to work a lot on this and work on my sketchbook so that it shows more of my development and experimentation. I also decided to work on my mannequin so that I could produce more developments.

As part of my course we have to complete a reflective journal and I have decided to do mine as a blog so that I can look back at my weeks and see how I felt about what I was doing that week, I will use it to keep track of my time and look back at how I am finding my course. I am very excited to see how my reflection changes throughout my time at university. I will be posting my reflections every Friday/ Saturday.

​Monday
Today we received the briefing for our first unit. The brief consists of three parts: 
Part 1- Visual Research- Outcomes:

• Final Deconstruct/Reconstruct 3D Outcome
• A3 Sketchbook
• 1 Portfolio of work
• Annotated Research File

Part 2- Materials and Processes- Outcomes:

• Technical File
• Fashion Glossary
• Fabric Research File

Part 3- Reflective Practice- Outcomes:

• A Professional Social Media Presence
• Reflective Journal
• A 1,000 Word Reflective Summary

I am excited to start this as it is something very different to what I have done before. To start this unit, we are going to be given 18 charity shop items to deconstruct and reconstruct into something else.

Tuesday
This morning we got our inductions to all the equipment in the studio. We also had our first crit, I was so scared for this as it was the first time presenting my own work to my new classmates and I was scared for what they would think of my work and the way that I went about completing the summer project. For the Summer Project we had to produce a sketchbook full of research as well as the designs for a 6-outfit capsule collection, I really enjoyed this project as I got to be as free as I liked with it and just go for it. I decided to do a bridal collection inspired by an English garden. I was proud of the work that I had produced I was just very nervous. However once we had started I wasn't as nervous and I began to enjoy it, it was really interesting to see what everyone else had done and how they had gone about completing the task.

Wednesday
This morning was spent looking through examples of how last year’s first years had gone about completing this unit, I found this very helpful as I got to see lots of different ways to go about completing a sketchbook and technical files.

Thursday
we had our first technical session today where we were making samples for our technical files. The samples were an open seam, a French seam, piping and binding. I really enjoyed this session as we were using the machines and learning things that I had never done before. I had never sewn a French seam before, so completing one for the first time felt like a really good achievement, I struggled a bit with the binding but that was just because it was a bit fiddly but overall it felt like a really good and productive session. We also got to choose our charity shop items which we then began to deconstruct, at the moment, I am not quite sure which direction that I am going to take this but I know that the more experimentation I do the clearer my direction will become.