Hooray for Hand Ins!

So finally my first hand in is complete! With an absolute nightmare just a few days before the deadline, where my hard drive decided to give up on me and I lost some of my work! ahh!,  I couldn't have been more pleased of myself to actually have got my head down and completed it all on time. So after having a few days to relax after the manic week of trying to get it fixed and then redoing the lost work, I have had time to reflect on the past few months at university and the course in particular. 

I hate to admit it, but I did find university very difficult at first. Although I am just over an hours drive from home, living on your own is such a shock to the system, and I didn't adjust amazingly to start with. With some of my best friends still at home, my boyfriend at university in Sheffield, and with weekly commitments to travel back to coventry for my competitive cheerleading team each wednesday night, I felt like I couldn't fit in the time to see everyone I wanted to and do all my work at the same time. And with no job, something I'm 100% not used to, I found the financial part really hard, but I've learnt a lot and now really enjoy my new friends and my university lifestyle. 

Never doing a course like FCP before, I also wasn't too sure on what to expect, but I'm really happy I chose this course in the end. I love how the lecturers and briefs give you so much freedom to express your own creativity and personal style whilst still giving you the guidelines and boundary descriptors you need in order to get a good grade. I also like the session layouts, teaching you new things, but also giving you the chance to go away and research more about you personal areas of interest. I'm pleased with the work I have produced, and even if the grade does not match my expectations, I think it's all a learning curve. I hope the course continues in this way, and as a way to improve myself, I have used the 'Stop. Start. Continue.' exercise which will hopefully help me in my future modules. 

Stop

• Worrying too much on what other people on my course are doing. I need to focus on my own work and ideas. Even if they are completely different to everybody else's work, it's about experimentation and individuality. 
• Getting over-stressed about briefs. Break them down into separate pieces and make notes on each brief. Getting stressed about what I have to do will not help!
• Being scared! Ask people for help. Not just course leaders but other people on the course. They may be able to give me a simpler explanation of what I need to do. 

Start

• Interacting with new people. I've started this a bit more since the New York trip, and have began making some really good friends on the course, but it would be nice to get to know even more people on the course. 
• Making contacts in the industry. This is really useful for after university and internships. It would be a great idea for me to start taking part in competitions and writing for small newspapers and magazines to get myself more experience needed for this competitive industry. 
• Venturing! Visit new cities or exhibitions. It's a great way to learn more about the industry and get inspiration, whilst also makes interesting posts for this blog! I would love to do so much, and think that if i budget better I'll be able to afford to do more of this!
• Backing up my work! Since getting a new laptop with Indesign and Photoshop on, I have been working off a hard drive to go between my two laptops. And when this broke, my whole 'next big thing' brief was gone! I have definitely learnt my lesson and do not want the stress again, so I will 100% be backing up all my important files over the next module!

Continue

• Writing on my blog. I think I have done quite well with keeping up with my blog, writing on it at least a couple of times a week. However I would like to make my content more individual and interesting, not just course related. I'd love to add more personal aspects to it. 
• Balancing my work with social aspects. I know university is meant to be a very social experience, and I love this aspect of it. But the most important reason I'm here is to get a degree. I feel like I've began to learn to balance this well, and this is something I hope I can continue with as the years go by.

#fcpreflection

NYC Photo Diary: Day 5

NYC Photo Diary: Day 4

NYC Photo Diary: Day 3

NYC Photo Diary: Day 2

NYC Photo Diary: Day 1

Portfolio Attempt Uno

So my deadline is fast approaching (arghhhhh!) and it comes the time where I have to put all my work I've done since September into one professional portfolio. Over Christmas, we were asked to think about what sort of design layout and composition we would like to achieve, whilst also begin to think about the type of motif we want to use as a consistent factor throughout the whole portfolio. Although I did think about this throughout the break, I could never come to a definite conclusion, and so focused on the other factors of my work rather than the portfolio. 

But today in our lecture and seminar sessions, we were asked to actually begin to produce these portfolios, something which I really struggled with under pressure. But with a few ideas popping up from these sessions, I came back to my bedroom and got to work on different ideas. Finally, I decided on a colour scheme and layout which I feel really reflects my personality and work style. Using shapes and a motif created from my initials, I was able to create a house style across my portfolio pages, and I'm pleased with the outcome. 

I understand I need to alter it in some ways to ensure it's the best possible, but as a first attempt, I'm really pleased with myself! Just thought I would share what I've done so far on here!

#fcpreflection

Next Big Thing

As part of my hand in on the 22nd January, I have been given a brief entitled 'The next big thing' where I am required to research and create a visual case study about the brand or service I decide to research. The brand for this task needs to be compelling and innovative, a service that is ahead of the trend whilst really connecting with its target market. This brief really got me thinking about all the amazing companies I could talk about, as there are so many which could fit within this brief, and so researching all my options was what seemed the best way to make a decision. 

Whilst researching, I came across an American brand I had never heard of before, which really stood out to me. 'Rent the Runway' is a designer rental service which offers customers the option to rent designer dresses and accessories for as little as 10% of the retail price. This offers aspiring fashionistas the option to wear beautiful gowns for special events at a fraction of the price, really offering a new experience for the fashion industry. 

The brand also offers consumers the option to post their own photos wearing the rented items and look at other peoples looks through the 'Our runway' section of the page. This service allows customers to enter their height, bust size and clothing size, in order to look at other happy customers who have used the site, showing what dresses they have ordered themselves, therefore giving an accurate representation of how it will look on your personal body shape. I think this offers a whole new personal shopping experience which many retailers don't already give consumers, and really makes it stand out against other clothing services. 

The company also has a few stores located around the US where you can book appointments to view possible rental items. Two of these are located in NYC where I will be visiting on Monday (exciting), so hopefully during my stay I will be able to have a look for myself!

I can't wait to learn more about this company, and this has really got me excited to complete this brief, and of course go to New York!

#fcpreflection