Date for the diary

Next Wednesday, Sussex Style (the society that I run at Sussex) and Sussex Arts Soc are collaborating for what is set to be a fab event in our industry speaker series. Gabi Mind will be talking about her career as a fashion buyer and the role of illustration in the fashion industry. 

Gabi graduated from London College of Fashion in the 1984 after studying Fashion Design and illustration. She worked as a Fashion designer for Bill Gibb in the 80”s and worked as a Fashion Buyer for Fenwick of Bond street in the 90’s. Gabi has worked as a lecturer in Fashion Retail at University for the Arts London and is now a lecturer for BA Fashion Design and Printed Textile design at the University for the Creative Arts. She will be giving a lecture titled ‘drawing is at the heart of everything we do’. This lecture will offer an insight into her experience of being a designer, buyer and teacher in the high-octane world of fashion and how drawing shaped her career. The talk will be followed by a fashion illustration drawing workshop. 

If you're in Brighton on Wednesday please do come along - this should be a great event and everyone is welcome!

More details can be found here.

Hot Tub Cinema

40 degree water, champagne and good movies, all on a rooftop in central London as the sun sets – what’s not to like?

One of my friends found out about hot tub cinema a couple of weeks ago and I can't wait to check it out over summer but I couldn't resist sharing it in the meantime! Hot tubs are great at the best of times but this experience sounds incredible. Classic British film, views across the city and a hot tub filled with friends sounds fairly perfect to me! The company was only established last year, evolving from a private party. It appears to retain an element of exclusivity and is certainly a novel idea! A unique and immersive cinema experience by all accounts, just check out the pics below!

You can find out more, and check out the next events here.

London Fashion Week #2

London Fashion Week started today and as I'm at uni, degree over taking my life (how is it that students always seem to have less time than when working a full time job; it makes no sense?!) and unable to attend at all, I've been busy reading all of the press surrounding it.

For me, two of the best things that I've seen featured are the #devilpaysnada campaign that is being endorsed by UK Fashion Intern (they're only advertising paid internships throughout fash week - see Twitter!) and the London Fashion Weekend articles on careers in the fashion industry.

I want to go into events or PR post degree. Fashion massively appeals but the amount of unpaid internships that you have to go through to get there is ridiculous so have chosen to focus my attentions on the lifestyle side of things, at least for the time being and until I have a lot more experience/ have had at least one job!!

This article was featured today on the LFWeekend website. Its always interesting to see the career paths that people take (Topshop are very good at it too, see blog post to follow!) and Piers Harrisson's reccomendations will be good for anyone looking to break the industry.

The article was initially featured here and there's a lot more on the website that may be of use!

how to get ahead in fashion part 2

In the second of our two-part feature, we talk to a Fashion Events Producer and a Fashion Photographer about their roles on either side of the catwalk.

Piers Harrisson is a project manager for fashion events company, Bacchus Studio. Piers and his team produce and manage some of the most creative catwalk shows at London Fashion Week and Vodafone London Fashion Weekend.

How?

I took a slightly circuitous route career wise to get to where I am now, but my events background rests largely in catering, across all types of projects. I spent some time working in India, and a good deal of time working as a chef. Food is a big passion of mine so I wanted to learn about it from a professional perspective. I ended up in fashion production after a brief stint in PR. The atmosphere of being on site at an event has always attracted me. The array of different people that you're brought into contact with as a result of being there is the best thing about it.

An average day?

One of the great things about the job is that no two days are the same. It could be anything from doing research for design ideas, to meeting with clients, sponsors, and stylists, working out a technical problem with a supplier, or writing a logistics schedule. Happily, my involvement in Vodafone London Fashion Weekend involves all of the above, so it keeps me on my toes!

The Art of Vintage

The term vintage was borrowed from wine making and evokes the art of fine living. Vintage fashion, introduced to the Oscars’ red carpet by Julia Roberts in 2001, has grown into a full-fledged, multi-generational trend. But what do the teenager on the look out for a worn leather jacket to match her jeans, the elegant beauty who adorns her curves with a suit from 1900, and the chic matron, proud of her 1957 Kelly bag have in common? The art of fine living. Vintage has become something of a statement for the (many) women and (fewer) men who want to set themselves apart from mass consumption and to revisit the history of elegance.

On Sunday 10th Feb (a week this Sunday) The Vintage Fair is coming to the Brighton Corn Exchange and its a great event for anyone in the local area. The vintage fair showcases the UK's finest collectors and traders spanning six decades, covering vintage clothes, homewares, collectible s, jewellery and accessories. There's also a vintage tea party to top up on tea and cake from fine china teacups and a salon for vintage hair do's. You can find out more on Twitter, @Brightonvintage, or on Facebook, www.facebook.com/Brightonvintage. The blog is also worth checking out, www.thevintagefair.blogspot.co.uk. 

40 Winks: Bedtime Story Nights

I’ve just found out about a fab event in London’s East End. My gorgeous (and very pregnant!) sister came to visit for the weekend and a couple of weeks ago and she bought with her a bit of insightful London knowledge as she always does to our little bit of secluded Suffolk countryside!!

Situated on The Mile End Road, David Carter, the eccentric proprietor of exclusive Hotel 40 Winks, offers nights of story telling to adult guests combined with Hendrick’s gin and canapes. The only stipulation is that you must know the riddle (sent out by email a few days before) and arrive wearing pyjamas!

Bedtime Stories is an idea that Mr Carter came up with a few years ago and has proved to be a huge hit. Around 30 guests arrive at 7pm in time to change into their pyjamas and nighties - you can be as glamorous as you fancy or so I understand. Hendrick’s is served from teacups and guests then retire to cushions to relax and listen to professional storytellers. The night winds down with a musician playing a few pieces once the stories have been told.
Fashion Beyond Fashion describes the event as follows:

The new-dandy customized boutique hotel 40 Winks, based in the vibrant area of East London – included in the Sunday Times Travel magazine list of the fourteen most amazing things to do in the world – continues to develop catchy happenings in the realm of fashion and literature. Bedtime Story Nights – a series of events and performances involving readings by the award-winning story-teller Rachel Rose Reid – is the last initiative launched by its owner, the interior designer David Carter. A successful chance to share the delights of literature.
http://fashionbeyondfashion.wordpress.com/2010/01/10/40-winks-bedtime-story-nights/

[All images courtesy of www.40winks.org].

There are prizes for the best dressed guest and the charms of the eccentric host are said to very much add to the atmosphere of the evening. My sister has luckily got some of the sought after tickets for July’s event and I can’t wait to go and see what it’s all about, as well as explore the curious house. I look forward to sharing the stories!

If the Bedtime Story Nights in a boutique setting appeal to you then contact David on the email address below.

Bedtime Stories £25 per head

To book, please email info@40winks.org