And how lucky am I? Another great update, but this time from Sam!

Sam Towner January 28 at 8:25am Report

Hey Gayle, missing you and hoping you're well! Thought I'd give an update of how things are going.

We're currently working with Hannah Marshall, along with journalist Paul Tierney and our design tutors on the 'modernity project'. We were required to find vintage/second hand garments that inspire us and eventually develop an outcome produced in all black. The project is presented through 5 deadlines over 5 weeks: samples of developed ideas/concept all in black, sketchbook, final garment(s) with final illustration, essay (40% of mark), and final article intended for a magazine of our choice. We've also started a print project, combined with a jersey project with a designer by the name of Paul Bosley (his work is incredible). With regards to the essay, Paul Tierney has stripped the brief down and wants it to be less academic. If you read any of his work, I understand what he values as a good piece of journalism... However, he is amazingly bloody eloquent!

We are currently up to the making of the garment and I'm going to traipse around London, searching for 12 metres of fabric that won't send my student loan packing. Hannah is incredibly helpful and I'm learning a lot from the project overall. We've recently had reviews with our tutor, Hilary. I've been made to slow down, and you'll be pleased to hear that I've been in every day since we've been back (even when we haven't had lectures). As a result of my review, the current project, and working with Hannah, I've started to re-evaluate my whole approach to the research and development of my work, presentation, and evaluation of details. Hannah has also introduced me to mentoring sessions run by vauxhall fashion scouts: I recently attended a PR and press mentoring session with Jessica Bumpus (online editor for Vogue), Blow magazine (PR and editor), and the co-owner of Tank magazine, Caroline. The advice they gave was really helpful and i Iook forward to future sessions. You can also propose ideas for future sessions. The use of controversial fabrics and production methods was on my list! One of friends, Rachel also gained an internship with Tank out of the session, and on another note, one of my second year friends, Arron has just got a payed internship at Burberry for the next year, and he'll joining us in the second year again, next Christmas. !!! Also got some more gossip... Our tutor, Hilary received a phone call offering a full time pattern cutting job, 50K a year at McQueen... She just said, 'no thank you' and put the phone down. Her reasoning being that she likes to teach (and doesn't fancy working 24 hours a day)!

Well, I best be off now as I'm going into the studio, but I'll be in touch soon and keep on following your blog to see what everyone there is up to.

All the best,

Sam

An update from the lovely Hazel!

Well I had written another entry quite a while ago now but it got lost in cyberspace so I`ll incorporate a little of that one into this. :)

The main reason I picked Derby was for how in the first semester, fashion and textiles are mixed together, we were on a 3 week rotation of the areas of study. So by that I mean in the first week I had, Private study, Pattern cutting and manufacturing and Professional studies. In the next week I had, Visual research (drawing), Professional studies again and Knit. In the final week I then had Life drawing, Professional studies and Print. This idea of trying everything out was great fun! It also helps to widen our skills so when we come to design for ourselves we aren’t limited by our knowledge of only one specialised area.

In my previous lost entry I instructed Gayle to try and get hold of a knitting machine asap as they are great fun, however after trying to complete four samples I have some what changed my views on them. The frustration of dropping a stitch on an otherwise perfect piece of machine knitting is unbearable for the perfectionist that I become when it comes to my work.

Print was separated in to two parts, screen printing and heat transfer press. Both of which I have tried before but further experimentation and finding out the ways things are done at uni was useful.

For each area of study a sketchbook or folder needed to be created so every sample is put to use, but this also means constant gathering of magazine cut-outs and designer research needs to be done!

I'm going to admit that I've fallen in to the same trap as I’m sure nearly every first year uni student does and didn’t kept up to date with my work. This did involve a practical all nighter the day before hand in, however being kept company by boyfriend was much appreciated!! My advice ... just do the work as you get it. Even though I’m usually little Miss organised I let it slip then had way too much to do. Hand in at this stage was such a relief and a great excuse to start the pre Christmas drinking.Not that students should be consuming excessive amounts of alcohol on degree.....! 

Over Christmas we were given the start to our new semesters project, it revolves around illustrators. This has given me a chance to look again at some of my old favourites like Kathryn Elyse and Sarah Singh but also find some new inspirations. Take a look on I Illustration for something new and different. My particular favourite find is Connie Lim with her amazing illustrated playing cards:

I really just want to say how impressed I am with how Gayle is keeping so up to date with this blog. It’s always looking good and full of interesting bits and pieces so super big well done to you on that Gayle and at this precise second you’ve had 11,193 views. WOW! Ahem - it's a few more now!!!

So until I have something interesting to say (or get bored)... bye xxx

Bodhisattva in metro - just to make you smile......

This NEVER fails to make me smile - or laugh, and I am always amazed at just what an impact we can make as individuals if we truly put our minds to it. Nuff said!

Anna Houser

Anna is another ex-student of mine and currently studying knit design in Leicester - have a look at her blog - very her!
http://squirrelwinter.wordpress.com/

A trip up the M3, M25 & the M40....

So, there is this AMAZING degree course, if I was 18 again, oh god, actually, no,  I wouldn't even go there again - not my best period, maybe late 20's, I would beg for a place! The tutors are great, the work that is produced is  impressive and the town - High Wycombe, err, well it's rubbish - but you're close to London, so that's got to count for something hasn't it? Anyhow, I was visiting last week, like you do, you know keeping good relations burning - we want them to take lots of our girls you see, and as well as being greeted with tea and cake (!) lots of my lovely ex-Alton lovelies were there to say hi and show me around.... G came too and Nancy was already there with her Mum having her first interview - could anyone look more scared.....

Lou and Charlie - relaxing with a cuppa - Look at all those swishy books - I want, I want, I want!

Sarah Moss - an unnaturally tidy desk.

Sarah and her sketchbooks.

Now here's a desk I can identify with!

Lou - its owner!

Technical dye books - hmmmm, maybe we need technical files - then I wouldn't have to repeat myself so often - actually come to think of it, maybe I could do one for how to clean our home - then Ivan (Mr Bicknell) would know what to do ......

Fashion illustrations - sorry Lou - terrible photo - but just so you all know, they are pretty impressive!

Charlie - a rreal sweetie - a knitter these days and the individual who encouraged me to crochet!

Sammi - looking miserable for absolutely NO reason - but she was always stupidly tough on herself!



A trip to the big smoke

For some unknown reason, we again, escorted our delightful first years on a trip to London - twice in as many months, are they spoiled or what? And have we lost our minds or what?! Happily the skies stayed clear and the light was perfect for snapping away at the architecture. Unsurprisingly their new project is all about big, tall, buildings, it can go in any direction but historically the work from this project tends to lean towards the graphics and illustration side of things, which is great, as I don't often get to escape the world of textiles in the classroom, and well, a change is as good as a rest!

So just to show willing here are some of the staff photos from the day....

Cheery in the city.

That's it - the attention spans have depleted!

Is it wrong to be more drawn to these than the architecture.....?

Meringues in Ledenhall market - oh those lucky city folk - actually the thought of eating these sets my teeth on edge, but aren't they pretty!



It isn't all work, work, work...

This particular textiles teacher does have a bit of a life - not too much in term time, but a bit none the less! The weekend before last Ivan (Mr Bicknell) and I drove down to Wales to visit our lovely friends Rob and Tess - Rob was going to be 50, which makes my impending birthday suddenly seem a little less horrific, and we were booked in to help celebrate surprise styley! We met Rob some years ago now in our other lives as intrepid explorers when he accompanied one of our teams to central America and he and Ivan (Mr Bicknell) got on like a house. So we have stayed in touch and try to meet up as regularly as possible. The best thing about Rob is that he loves a good musical so not only is he a man's man, he also knows how to appreciate the more fun things in life - a fact that almost kills Ivan (Mr Bicknell)! The party itself was a great success and saw Rob doing a brilliant impression of being the drunkest man I have ever seen, so in a bid to clear heads we took a stroll the next day right out of their back door - and oh my, what a view!

A bit of spontaneous art? Richard Long eat yer heart out!

Hmmm, yeah, dial 999 for help? Well I would but the only available keys are 1, 2, and 3 - ahh the Welsh, you gotta love'em!

A champagne birthday picnic - in January, the sun shone brightly!

Cheers - here's to another 50!

The university interview - the season is upon us once again.....oh joy!

So, here we go again, although this year it is a whole new ball game - not only is it just as stressful as usual with all the students doubting their own capabilities and often losing the powers of speech and general co-ordination, now we have the added bonus of about a million other would-be students applying and becoming extra competition for my lot now that the prospect of putting it off for "another year" is a non-starter given the imminent fee increase - OMG - have the government REALLY thought this through I wonder, and what pray tell, will out future be here at Alton when nobody can afford to go anymore??? But so long as we are still giving bank bosses six figure bonuses and sending our innocents off to war....

This month's inspiration board pic from Brooke kind of sums our feelings up!

Even more so considering it is all about the print this season!

Along with the prospect of the interview comes the mock interview - a part of my job which I generally find a bit emotionally draining, as my charges are ordinarily rather stressed already, and having to go through the torment of this with their teacher - who they (apparently) want to impress and prove to that they are worthy of up-holding the (brilliant) Alton college reputation  - proves to be a step too far for some! Generally too, in my experience, it is the outstanding students who beat themselves up the most and tears almost always appear. What to do? Well,make the mock such a challenging experience that the real deal seems like a walk in the park is always a good bet- to hell with being sensitive and nurturing I say! So with Jenny on Friday I put the theory to the test, not only did I ask the questions and go through her folio, but my entire 1st year class did too! Great practice for her and brilliant for them to not only get an inkling as to what they have ahead of them (fees pending of course), but to also see how the the projects they are currently undertaking can be successfully translated into an interview folio - even if they are staggered by it initially, it makes them think about the importance of good practice even now..... The photos are rubbish as my battery was running out of juice - but here's the evidence....

So tomorrow I will find out how the real one went.....



PIP PIP!

Pip is a relatively new student to me - he is in the first year group that I currently share with Annie, and is proving to be a bit of a fashionista - oh how I LOVE seeing a boy get stuck into the fashion side of things, makes a great change from the graffiti and they add such a lovely sense of calm to an otherwise frantically female environment - and this is why I miss the lovely Mr Towner so much!! Pip is super sweet and super dedicated and I really am looking forward to being his tutor next year - who knows, he could follow in the talented Mr Joe McCombe's footsteps and make my next wedding dress! Ha! Only kidding Ivan (Mr Bicknell), one student gown is enough - not planning on doing it again! Here are some of Pip's own photos from their recent recycling project - ahh, takes me back to the 80's!

Lovely styling don't you think? Makes my photos look a bit shocking!





Meanwhile the first years have been busy.....

So  how would you cope if you were given one of these objects and told to base a six week fashion project on it? These guys did pretty well.....

 



Not a bad effort huh?!