Graduate Fashion Week – The Illustrators

Graduate Fashion Week was a definite highlight of 2017 for me and it completely blew up on social media! From the run up to the event I connected with so many amazing designers, illustrators and creatives on Instagram making my feed so inspiring and creating so many new friendships in the process.

I wanted to do a post giving credit to the two talented illustrators who took their time to illustrate some of looks from my final collection. I was overwhelmed with how gorgeous the images were and think they definitely deserve some love. Illustration has always been something that I struggle with so I really do appreciate the time, effort and skill that it takes. Both of these talented ladies deserve some attention!

Kayleigh Hilde – Website : www.etsy.com/uk/shop/hildestudio – Instagram : @kayleighhilde.illustrations

Kayleigh is a Fashion Design Graduate from Newport University and a freelance fashion illustrator based in Cardiff. Her ultra feminine illustration style captures the delicacy of this look perfectly, especially the embellishment on the bralet and the tulle detailing. She attended my runway show at the event and illustrated straight from the catwalk!

Georgie Ravenscroft – Website : www.georgielr.wixsite.com – Instagram : @georgieraves

Georgie is a Fashion Illustration Graduate from the University of Brighton. Her quirky and unique style is shown throughout her colourful fashion illustrations. The image was inspired from another image captured from my Cry Baby Club studio shoot, I love the details on the tear drops on the coats and the facial features!

Heres to hoping there will be many more opportunities to inspire Fashion Illustrators with some more of my work in the future!

Alice Jane Potter – Cry Baby Club – Graduate Fashion Week 2017

Catwalking.com

Never did I expect myself to be discussing my collection from the catwalk on my blog but here it is. I’m still overwhelmed that I was even selected for the Graduate Fashion Week runway, never mind being one of the chosen top 5 selected from the UCLan show to be put forward to the Gala show! This is the best way to give everyone a fully detailed description of what pieces made up each individual look as a whole, from the fabrics to the details of what you may not have been able to see just from photographs alone.

Catwalking.com

LOOK ONE

Oversized panelled blue felt coat with a variation of lasercut teardrop shapes all over the garment, structured raglan sleeves and a deep v shaped fully encrusted Swarovski section going around the neckline.

Underneath is a power mesh nude long sleeved stretch top worn with high waisted blue silk knickers with a high leg cut including eyelet fastenings tied with organza ribbons on either side. Knicker details include hand sewn and glued encrusted and embellished details covering the surface of the entire garment with a range of sew on crystals and Swarovski’s.

Clear perspex chunky heeled ‘Jaya’ heels with gathered tulle lengths along the back ankle strap with additional Swarovski crystals glued on for extra detail. Including the same detail across the toe strap of each shoe. Shoes gifted from University of Central Lancashire footwear sponser Public Desire, Runway photographs sourced from Catwalking.com.

Catwalking.com

LOOK TWO

Double layered blue silk bralet with hand sewn and glued encrusted and embellished details covering the surface of the entire garment with a range of sew on crystals and Swarovski’s with hook and eye fastenings. Worn with matching blue silk extreme wide leg trousers with fitting high waist features and deep trouser pockets. Chunky trouser cuffs embellished with a range of sew on crystals and Swarovski’s.

Oversized crinoline shoulder piece with extreme length raglan sleeves with trapped gathered tulle down the lengths of the raglan seam with a blue chunky silk ribbon fastening at the front. Floor length arm bands with adjustable velcro fastenings to secure onto the top of the arm, with hanging layers of lasercut felt teardrops in a range of sizes with hand glued large stone embellishments.

Catwalking.com

LOOK THREE

Full length hanging tulle skirt with D ring strap fastenings to attach to jacket, silk blue band with large sporron detail with hanging layers of lasercut felt teardrops in a range of sizes with hand glued large stone embellishments. Blue double lined silky jacket with high neck fastening and open front detailing. Cut out sleeves with D-ring fastenings and organza ribbon running through them to adjust the tightness on the models arms.

Underneath is a power mesh nude long sleeved stretch top worn with high waisted blue silk knickers with a high leg cut including eyelet fastenings tied with organza ribbons on either side. Lasercut felt knickers with latex lining with hand glued Swarovski crystals covering the surface of the entire garment outlining the lasercut shapes.

Clear perspex chunky heeled ‘Jaya’ heels with gathered tulle lengths along the back ankle strap with additional Swarovski crystals glued on for extra detail. Miniature embellished felt face attached across the toe strap of each shoe. Shoes gifted from University of Central Lancashire footwear sponser Public Desire, Runway photographs sourced from Catwalking.com.

Catwalking.com

LOOK FOUR

Oversized crinoline panelled gown with 30 metres of gathered tulle sewn and trapped into the seams around the sleeves and back. With mid length raglan sleeves with trapped tulle along the sleeve hems and tulle along the surrounding dress hem. Underneath double layered blue silk bralet with hook and eye fastenings worn with matching high waisted blue silk knickers with a high leg cut including eyelet fastenings tied with organza ribbons on either side.

Blue felt choker neck piece with adjustable velcro fastenings to secure on the neck, with hanging layers of lasercut felt teardrops in a range of sizes with hand glued large stone embellishments. Accessorised with a blue felt double sided vinyl printed cry baby face clutch bag with embellished details with hand glued Swarovski crystals.

Catwalking.com

LOOK FIVE

Oversized panelled cropped blue felt coat with a variation of lasercut teardrop shapes all over the garment, structured raglan sleeves and hand glued Swarovski’s outlining each lazercut teardrop detail. Accessorised with a blue felt double sided teardrop shaped bag with one side fully embellished with hand glued Swarovski crystals, with oversized eyelet fastenings and silver chain running through.

Underneath is a power mesh nude long sleeved stretch top worn with high waisted blue silk knickers with a high leg cut including eyelet fastenings tied with organza ribbons on either side. Over the knickers sit a pair of crinoline wide leg culotte trousers with a chunky high waist fitted detail and hand stoned teardrop Swarovski shapes around the trouser hem.

Catwalking.com

LOOK SIX

Oversized crinoline panelled gown with 40 metres of gathered tulle sewn and trapped into the seams around the front and back. Including extreme length raglan sleeves with trapped tulle down the lengths of the raglan seam and a large felt embellished cry baby face on the front of the gown. Hand glue Swarovski’s cover the exterior of the face and are included along the blue silk fabric panel covered in hand sewn and glued crystals to separate the tulle overload on the gown.

Underneath is a power mesh nude long sleeved stretch top worn with high waisted blue silk knickers with a high leg cut including eyelet fastenings tied with organza ribbons on either side. Along with sleeve length arm bands with adjustable velcro fastenings to secure onto the top of the arm, with hanging layers of lazorcut felt teardrops in a range of sizes.

Fashion Degree Over – Blogging Break Over

A Fashion Design degree has got to be one of the most demanding, time consuming and draining processes. Expect to have no money. Expect to have no spare time. Expect not to see your loved ones half as much as you’re used to. But if you go into the process with this in mind and the ability to be selfish then the rewards will come. I am so insanely happy now that the process is over and the fact that in a few weeks time I’ll be graduating with a first class honours degree, never in my life did I expect that to happen.

If you keep up to date with me and my blog then you’ll have noticed that I’ve taken a massive break from being here whilst completing the final semester of my degree. It was a hard decision for me to have to make but I wanted to keep up with the standard of my posts and the time that I was used to putting into them. I felt like if I had rushed through posts for the sake of posting that it would have been a dis-service to myself and the lovely people that read my blog! Surprisingly I have continued to gain a following and to keep up my views throughout the past few months which has been a lovely compliment – if you’re new here then Hello, I have returned!

For most people returning to University for their final year, they’re looking forward to meeting deadlines and graduating. Of course this was the obvious goal but for my course Show Selection day was a lot bigger than that. We all went into the process of knowing that less than half of our years collections would be given the chance to be on the Graduate Fashion Week runway and even if we were given the opportunity to do so it wouldn’t be as simple as getting in and having nothing to change.

The problem with creativity is that it’s completely subject to peoples personal opinions, you could put 20 collections in front of one person and ask them to select half and then do the same with someone else and get completely different results. This was probably one of the hardest aspects of show selection, if my collection wasn’t to be chosen it wasn’t because it wasn’t good enough, it was just down to a group of people and their collective opinion of it as a visual stood in front of them.

I was overwhelmed to be one of the lucky 18 people selected for my collection to be shown on the runway. I couldn’t even explain how many emotions I was feeling when I was told, never mind the few weeks that followed getting everything sorted and ready for London. Having my work on the runway was completely life changing. In the past few weeks I’ve been in The Times newspaper, all over Instagram, Social Media and Blogs and I’ve even had attention from celebrities for possible collaborations. Having all of my hard work pay off has been insane and I’m so grateful of everything that this opportunity has brought me and can’t wait for the future.

810 Photograph sourced from Vogue

Cry Baby Club is collection of six creative and unique looks that sit together as a range and Couture collection. I wanted to create a collection of looks to make women feel empowered and beautiful when wearing them. The collection as a whole is ultra feminine with layering techniques of different weights of fabrics including oversized sheer pieces with lingerie detailing sitting underneath them. The concept of the collection is to embrace the sensitivity that women are portrayed to have, we are sensitive souls and that’s what makes us human.

Details include lazorcut felts with double top stitching finishes and silky lined garments and highly detailed surface techniques from hand sewn and hand glued Swarovski crystals to create heavily embellished timeless pieces. The versatility of the collection allows everything to work well as the six individual looks but can also be split apart to create a range of different looks and endless possibilities from mixing and matching the pieces around.

Here it is, Cry Baby Club on the Graduate Fashion Week runway, I’ll never forget this moment. For the next two weeks I’ll be dedicating my posts to the experience of Graduate Fashion Week so if you want to see more then you know where to check!

Fashion Week Favourites – Spring/Summer 2017 Ready-To-Wear

Fashion week kicked off as my final year at university began so I’ve been juggling a few things at the moment, I’ve promised to put time to the side to continue to blog as it’s the one thing that actually keeps me sane! The Spring/Summer 2017 collections were just as incredible as I had expected but 5 collections from this season completely blew me away and I just had to share them in a post! All photographs were sourced from the V ogue website.

Reem Acra – New York Fashion Week – Take a look at the full collection here

This collection is just completely stunning. I expect nothing less from Reem Acra but it seems that their collections just continue to amaze me from season to season. I loved the mixture of the sheer fabrics, the floral embroidery and 3D flower decoration on the garments. The collection is a mixture of colour pop prints and gentle toned embellished gowns.

Simone Rocha – London Fashion Week – Take a look at the full collection here

This colour palette is everything. The pop of yellow accents just brings all of the looks together, I loved the range of looks in this collection but this particular group was my favourite. The collection runs from colour to colour and is beautifully done, if you have time then definitely check it out on youtube! The contrast of light and dark really helps to highlight the frills and sleeve work throughout.

Gucci – Milan Fashion Week – Take a look at the full collection here

I literally can’t stop thinking about this collection, I’m completely in awe from the coloured silks to the crazy tailoring. The mish mash of everything just inspires me in so many different ways, I think anyone could find something that they loved from this collection, it’s completely diverse and is definitely something that will stick in my mind for a while.

Marchesa – New York Fashion Week – Take a look at the full collection here

SO BEAUTIFUL – as per usual. I simply cannot fault a Marchesa collection and this one gave me serious feelings, this is literally what my dreams look like. The mixture of soft colours and jewel tones is absolutely stunning and they have completely slayed the gowns once again. If someone can get me into one of their catwalk shows I will die a very content lady.

No 21 – Milan Fashion Week – Take a look at the full collection here

Pastel pinks and sparkly golds give this collection a serious feminine edge with some gorgeous muted Barbie doll vibes. My favourite thing about this collection in particular is the mixture of fabrics used and the way that the garments are smartly layered on top of each other. It really gives the summer vibe without a huge burst of in your face and obvious summer colours.

Spotlight: Elie Saab Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2016-2017

Once again Elie Saab has broken me, this collection is so ridiculously stunning and decadent. The contrast between the dark jewel toned pieces and gentle pearl toned gowns is so interesting to see, as always the high detailed stoning/jewel work on the gowns and the jewellery accessory pieces aided in bringing the entire collection to life. This collection also included some matching childrens wear pieces that were so gorgeous. All photographs are sourced from the French Vogue website.

The video really helps capture the collection of delicate fabrics used this season, the dark toned velvet and silk were favourite materials of mine in these particular pieces. I loved the belts incorporated into most of the garments, this helped with the full shape of the gowns, below are my favourite 25 looks from the collection.

Spotlight: Zuhair Murad Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2016-2017

Zuhair Murad is becoming one of my all time favourite designers, I have been blown away with every collection they have produced I’m consistently excited by them every season. I loved how the spectrum of colours changed throughout the running order of the looks and how the looks completely transitioned from one colour block to the next. All photographs are sourced from the French Vogue website.

The video does the collection so much more justice than the photographs, the way that the beading, embellishment and sequins on each garment catch the lights is absolutely incredible. I am completely in awe of the gowns and how they moved down the runway, below are my favourite 18 looks from the collection.

Haute Couture Favourites – Autumn/Winter 2016-2017

Back to my favourite time of year, brand new Haute Couture collections to squeal about! Here’s my 4 picks of my favourite designers collections for this season, I’ve also picked my top 3 to do larger detailed posts about this week. All photographs are sourced from the French Vogue website.

Alexis Mabille – Autumn/Winter 2016-2017 Haute Couture – Take a look at the full collection here

This is the first collection that has stood out to me from this particular designer, the mixture of intricate pleated silks and pastel colour scheme give a dreamy elegant concept for the entire collection.

Dolce & Gabbana – Autumn/Winter 2016-2017 Haute Couture – Take a look at the full collection here

Dolce & Gabbana have absolutely stunned me with this collection, a mixture of mens tailored suits, gowns dripping in jewels, vivid prints and outrageous headpieces combine to make a decadent collection with the authentic D&G vibe.

Fendi – Autumn/Winter 2016-2017 Haute Couture – Take a look at the full collection here

If you’re yet to see this collection then you must have been hiding under a rock as it has exploded over social media, the glass runway was set over Rome’s Trevi Fountain taking everyones breath away. This 90th anniversary collection spilled out the most stunning capes, coats and jackets onto the runway including large appliquéd panelled dresses to bring everything together.

Giambattista Valli – Autumn/Winter 2016-2017 Haute Couture – Take a look at the full collection here

Cold and hard hitting Ice Queen realness down the runway, this dramatic collection of florals and crazy sleeves is enough to make your jaw drop. I love the little hints of colour in the looks and the black to draw everything in, this is definitely one of my favourite collections that I’ve ever seen from this designer.

Milan Fashion Week Favourites – Autumn/Winter 2016

And now for Milan Fashion Week, all photographs are sourced from the Vogue website.

Gucci – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

A major colour block explosion onto the catwalk. From the exaggerated garment shapes to the hints of fur, silk and patterns, this collection really stole the show at Milan. The bags, glasses and hats really brought the garments all together as looks and I wasn’t surprised that Gucci had again created another jaw dropping collection.

Alberta Ferretti – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

Keeping to the every popular lingerie and pyjama trend of the Summer catwalk but with a formal and evening wear twist. From silky slips to laced panels this collection adds some Couture and romance to the catwalk showing the world something they have never seen before.

Francesco Scognamiglio – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

The frills just made this entire collection for me, you can only imagine how they would have moved down a catwalk, adding some body to the sleek shaped garments and some incredible detailing.

Luisa Beccaria – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

So so beautiful. The details and the craft of the garments are so unique and the collection of fabrics really draws everything together. A real modern day princess collection that is so stunning.

Dolce and Gabbana – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

Major floral goals. The mixture of flowers, patterns and sparkles make this collection one of my all time favourites that I have ever seen from this designer. They are always upping their game and revolutionising the catwalk. This collection is everything.

Bluemarine – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

Sleek and gentle yet so captivating. The pastel shaded colour scheme is so perfect and the fur coat has to be my favourite piece from the collection, what I would do to own such a beautiful thing. I love the simple tailoring and the simplicity of this collection and can’t wait to see more from this designer.

London Fashion Week Favourites – Autumn/Winter 2016

The collections just continue to get better and better, heres a look at what London had to offer! All photographs are sourced from Vogue.

Alexander Mcqueen – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

So dreamy and sleek, a softer side of Mcqueen that I absolutely adore. With nude silks and organzas oozing femininity and high detailed embellishment work for a dramatic finish. Any of these looks would be so stunning for an event and I love the mixture of the the soft pinks to the dark side with hints of maribou and fur on specific pieces.

Mary Katrantzou – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

This collection reminds me of Russian dolls! The pop of colours mixed with the fine details scream out Mary Katrantzou and I love how her collections are always fresh and really stand out. The embroidery and embellishment just excels all expectations and the modern and charming english styling and headscarves bring it all together perfectly.

Preen by Thornton Bregazzi – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

This is the first collection I have fallen in love with from this particular designer, I love finding new artists and seeing how they create looks in completely different ways to other. The sequin pink pieces made my life. So gorgeous and unique and bringing in velvets and silks to the garments added to their character. The black edged fabric frills were so charming and I can imagine they looked incredible as they moved down the catwalk.

Ashish – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

Wigs. The wigs were everything. I loved the simplicity of the coloured wig, lipstick and court shoes combination with every single look. A mixture of shiny latex fabrics to the heavily embellished garments worked so well together and each piece stood out equally from the next. Such a magical collection that transports you to a rainbow land.

Gareth Pugh – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

This collection definitely screams ‘Bad bitch at the office’, ultimate girl boss goals. Nudes, leathers and structured tailoring give the looks so much taste even with restricted face masks that are very popular to accessorise Gareth Pugh’s collections. I have loved this designer ever since I started to explore high end fashion and I’ve never been disappointed with anything they’ve graced the catwalk with.

New York Fashion Week Favourites – Autumn/Winter 2016

After an exciting month of fashion weeks I have hand picked my favourite stand out collections from the New York catwalk shows. All of my photographs were sourced from the Vogue website, feel free to take a look at them all in detail as I literally spent hours lusting over these collections..

Marc Jacobs – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

This left me absolutely stunned, from the dark Victorian styling and layered garments to the raven feathered details on some of the garments I am completely in love. The gothic and slick styling of the models and the outrageous chunky soled heeled boots made it an absolute spectacle. With Kendall Jenner and Lady Gaga absolutely slaying the runway this collection is an absolute dream and has to be one of my all time favourite Marc Jacobs collections of all time.

Marchesa – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

Breathtaking, I had no words when I first saw this, the details from the jewels, the embroidery, the fabrics, the flowers and garment shapes just make it absolutely flawless. I am always blown away by Marchesa collections but they’ve really outdone themselves this season. The sultry glamour would make anyone wearing these pieces feel like complete royalty, I just can’t get enough of it.

Naeem Khan – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

Naeem Khan’s collection made me so excited, I loved the difference in range of looks and that they all still worked perfectly together, I will definitely be watching this designer for future runway collections. The models looked like live dolls coming down the runway, I loved the overly volumised cropped hairstyles. The rich colour scheme from the silvers to the purples to the golds and the jewelled details added to the overly expensive look of the garments.

Dennis Basso – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

The neutral colour scheme of this collection is so effortlessly beautiful, the use of leather and fur in the pieces really worked for the garments. I’m obsessed with the full length gowns and the printed fabric details, the leather gloves really brought the looks together and accessorised them perfectly.

Reem Acra – Autumn/Winter 2016 Ready To Wear – Take a look at the full collection here

I love the dramatic looks from this collection, Reem Acra is a new designer for me to look at and I’m loving what I see. The sheer details and use of strappy panels really stood out to me and the garments would have looked amazing walking down the runway due to the weight of the fabric choices. The models styling was effortlessly beautiful and I can’t wait to see more from this designer in the future.