.Houses of Parliament.

I’ve had some great opportunities recently to work backstage at some brilliant, high profile events; the first being a fashion show at the Houses of Parliament. The room for this event within the Houses of Parliament was the River Terrace, this room definitely reminded me why I love London so much; I spent the day overlooking the London Eye, and the River Thames.

The view.

This event was to showcase outfits produced by graduate fashion students from many Universities across the UK, to members of Parliament, as well as guests from the fashion industry such as Hilary Alexander. The purpose of the event was to emphasise the importance of the fashion industry to the UK and its economy. As I feel like I constantly have to justify my choice to work in the fashion industry to peers and friends that study more “academic” subjects, this event was in some ways inspiring to be involved in.  

Some items.

Some fashion graduate outfits.

Models showcasing graduate fashion outfits.

Models showcasing graduate fashion outfits.

Models showcasing graduate fashion outfits.

Not only did I gain more experience in backstage production and dressing, it was a really fun event to work at because it was on a fairly small scale. Therefore, there were only about 8 of us running the show; we were all fully involved in the complete production process, from fitting models, organising make-up and hair, and then backstage dressing. Once again I got to network with some interesting and high profile figures such as Hilary Alexander, members of Parliament, and Barbara Hulanicki.

It was such a fun event, with a lot of experience gained and a glass of wine on the terrace to finish off the evening. Being a fashion intern definitely has its perks!

.Vogue Festival 2014.

Again I've left my blogging a little longer than planned but I wouldn't want to bore you with my uni assignments, however I have been somewhere which is slightly more interesting... VOGUE FESTIVAL. After reading the constant tweets, Instagrams and articles from the festival last year, and wishing I was there, I decided I couldn't miss out again. Luckily enough I have a very thoughtful mother that got me front row tickets to the 'So you want to work in fashion?' master class, for my birthday.

Vogue Festival 2014.

The talk was as I imagined, so interesting and insightful on many aspects within the fashion industry. The guests for the talk were Alexandra Shulmun, the Editor of Vogue, Lisa Armstrong, the Fashion Editor for The Telegraph, Daniel Marks; the Founder of The Communications Store, Sarah Burton; the Creative Director of Alexander McQueen, and Louise Wilson; the course director for MA Fashion Design at Central St Martins. Not only didI get an insight from Daniel into my aspired area of work; PR and marketing, but I also found out about fashion journalism and design, and what these individuals, that are high up in their career, look for in applicants and interns.

The guests at the talk.

There is so much to do other than the watch the talk, you can leisurely visit the Harrods Juice bar, the Champagne bar, and the Cafe for refreshments, as well as get a make-up tutorial and shop at the Vogue Store (I couldn't resist buying a Vogue top). There is so much to do and I felt like I was in a mini vogue heaven!

Inside the Vogue Festival.

Style at the Vogue Festival.

Inside Vogue Festival.

To top the day off I couldn't resist stopping at the bar on the way out and having a cocktail on the Southbank terrace (one of the many conveniences of the Southbank centre location). It was such a fashion-filled fun day out that definitely motivated me more to work in the fashion industry. Would definitely recommend it to any aspiring fashionistas like me.

Vogue Pin-ups.

My Vogue Pin-up.

.Fashion Scout LFW AW14.

London Fashion Week is always a busy time and this AW14 season seemed to be a blur of models, look boards, trains, running orders and early starts. Kicking off the LFW period by working at The Show Space Re-Treat was a great start and it only seemed to get busier and better after that. I was lucky enough to work back at Fashion Scout during London Fashion Week as a backstage supervisor. I started pretty much straight after I’d finished working with Show Space and worked as part of the build team, responsible for transforming the beautiful Freemasons Hall into a London Fashion Week location fit for shows, designers, models and sponsors. We had three days to create makeup + hair rooms, help build the catwalk halls and assist with the model casting. During the countdown to the shows, we spent a fair few hours making goody bags, putting lightbulbs in mirrors and watching over 300 towering models strut their stuff to designers in the hope they get chosen for some of the shows taking place at Freemasons Hall.

Model Casting.

These tasks, although seem simple, were actually more challenging than we first thought and at some points were overwhelmed by model cards, heels and clothing rails. Once Friday came around we realised that the days were only going to get busier, and we couldn’t wait…

5 days of shows showcasing some amazing and beautiful AW14 designs from designers such as Lulu Liu, Felder Felder, Zeynep Kartel, Hema Kaul, and Ashley Isham. This season was even more exciting for me than last season because I had the responsibility of being a backstage supervisor; organising interns, assisting the production of some shows, managing a hair + makeup room, carrying out a model register, and help produce a running order were all part of my job role this season which meant I didn’t really stop.

Name badge.

Working backstage gives you an exclusive preview of some of the beautiful collections before they are shown to the guests, and I assisted in the production of some of the catwalk shows for designers such as Felder Felder, Lulu Liu, Ong Oaj-Pairam and Hema Kaul.  

Although I was mainly busy backstage, I did get a chance to have a sneaky look at some of the shows from front of house, and the ones I watched certainly impressed. After last season, I had pretty high expectations of designer Pam Hogg’s show, and it didn’t disappoint with even more bold colours, prints and silhouettes ensuring her collection couldn’t be missed and was the talk of Fridays shows. Ones to watch also attracted a large audience, with the four designers, Carrie Ann Stein, George Styler, Hiroko Nakajima and Sarah Ryan all showcasing very different, unique collections. I also got to watch a bit of the Pinghe show which had an audience with a few familiar faces including Amy Willerton, presenter Becca Dudley and Ashely Roberts.

I could go on forever about my experience at Fashion Scout London Fashion Week but instead here are some pictures from the week…

Backstage at Felder Felder.

Lulu Liu Model Board and Look Board.

Backstage at Lulu Liu.

Backstage at Lulu Liu.

Backstage.

Ones to Watch show.

Ones to Watch show.

Ones to Watch show.

Ones to Watch show.

Pam Hogg Finale...

.The Show Space Re-treat 2014.

I was fortunate enough to be chosen to work at The Show Space Retreat 2014 which is a pre London Fashion Week event, where select guests from models, stylists, bloggers and journalists can get pampered and prepared for the busy LFW period with complimentary hair and beauty treatments.

Complimentary treatments available include massages, hair treatments and styling, manicures, make overs, eyebrow threading and male grooming; all making sure the guests look their best for the fashion crowd during LFW. This year the brands that attended were ORLY nails, Sleep Makeup, Elemis, Sebastian Hair, NIOXIN, SP Wella, Browhaus and French Connection. As well as treatments the event was a cool hangout spot for people in the industry; with a bar serving Red Bull Smoothies (I was a pro at making these by the end of the event), a ping pong table and a photo booth, where models weren’t shy about getting in front of the camera and taking some funny snaps.   

Red Bull Smoothie. 

I was on a team of around 10 people responsible for making sure the event ran smoothly, working with the people that work for the brands, and interacting and looking after all the guests. Over the 2 day event I worked with and met some great people and there were some familiar faces that popped in, including Oliver Proudlock.

Model Board

Oliver Proudlock.

Some guests.

The event was held at the super cool venue the Red Bull Studios by London Bridge which is the perfect space for such a relaxed and fashionable event…

Red Bull Studios.

Red Bull Studios bar area.

Red Bull Studios. 

I feel pretty lucky that I got to work for Show Space and be involved in such a fun event, it had a super relaxed vibe and not only did I get to network and meet really interesting people, but I also really enjoyed myself! 

Guests being pampered...

Alastair Guy getting a hand + arm massage.

Becca Dudley, MTV presenter, getting a manicure.

Massages. 

Massages.

French Connection S/S 14.

Goody Bag.

Josie and I in our uniform supplied by French Connection.

To see Tweets and pictures from the event:
Twitter: @TheShowSpace
#ssretreat2014
Instagram: TheShowSpace

.Clothes Show Live.

Another late post, I know... I went to the Clothes Show Live on December 8th in Birmingham. I've been in previous years so I had high expectations, and this year didn't let me down. I am always overwhelmed by the scale of it and never know where to start because there are so many great brands that you just don't want to miss any out!  The make up brands such as Fab brows and Models own particularly caught my eye this year because of the great prices. The make-up bargains were too tempting and most of the brands stock was sold by midday! Apart from the make-up deals, there were of course great clothing brands selling both on-trend clothing as well as some more interesting pieces.

Some interesting pieces at the Clothes Show.

Every year the clothes show seems to get better, but the catwalk show was particularly amazing. Presented by designer, Henry Holland, and MTV presenter, Becca Dudley. The show captured your attention from the start, and the models, dancers and visual affects all combined to showcase stunning fashion pieces.

Here are some pictures I took at the show...

The opening of the Catwalk Show.

Swimmers theme.

'A day in the countryside' theme.

Models.

The Finale.

I have enjoyed every year so far so I'd definitely recommend going, for tickets for next year or if you want to take a look and some more pictures from this year, go to:

http://www.clothesshowlive.com/

.Life of a Press Office Girl.

I’ve been lucky enough to spend the last week rushing around London and running errands for the Debenhams Press Office team once again. Leading up to the busy period of Spring/Summer Press shows and the launch of the new flagship store on Oxford Street, the Press team needed some extra help, and I’m pretty fortunate to have been top of their list.

Working with the Debenhams Press Office team is always a pleasure, and every time I learn more about the industry, the company, and PR in general.

Being an intern, I get to experience the many benefits that come from working in the Press Office and being involved in all areas of the company,  it’s always something different. I sat in on a beauty talk by a brand that will be new to the Debenhams portfolio and was sent home with a bag full of freebies- who doesn’t love a freebie! And darted across London from the head office to the flagship store, helping out with events, in-store promotions and picking up items for photoshoots and gifting.

At the end of the week, I was so glad to have even got the opportunity to go back and help, but like that wasn’t enough, I also received a pretty special thank you gift from the Press Office team…

It was good timing that the Oxford Street Christmas Lights switch on, was on at the same time so they gave me two VIP tickets to watch the lights being turned on. It topped off such a fun week, the lights were amazing and it added a touch of Christmas spirit to my mood before I had the reality of deadlines and work that hit me when I went back to uni. The event and getting to watch Jessie J, Connor Maynard and James Arthur perform ended the already amazing week on such a high.

Jessie J performing on the Selfridges stage.

The Oxford Street Christmas Lights.

Freebies, VIP tickets to events, and non-stop travelling around London… I could get used to the life of a Press Office girl.       

.Debenhams Press Office Work Experience.

I haven’t blogged for a while because I’ve been so busy with Uni work, but this last week I had to blog about!

Recently I got to opportunity to gain more experience within the industry by interning at the Debenhams Press Office for a week. I have previously interned at Debenhams, in the Marketing department, so I knew how lovely the team that work there are, and I’m so lucky I got to go back.

Debenhams had their Spring/Summer 2014 Home Press Show on Tuesday 29^th October, so I arrived at the Oui Studio, just off Oxford Street, on the Monday to assist with setting up the show. It was great to see the processes that go into setting up a Press Show, and I also got a preview of the S/S14 Home collections that were to be revealed to the Press. The day of the Press Show was so exciting and fast-paced, I got involved in all the different aspects and met journalists from a variety of Publications such as Elle, Ideal Home and The Daily Mail.

Setting up the studio.

The collections that were part of the Press Show were by designers, Julien Macdonald, Betty Jackson, Ben de Lisi, Ashely Thomas, Josh Rocha, Matthew Williamson, Jasper Conran, Abigail Ahern, and Debenhams own collection. Each collection had a different feel, with different prints, colour palettes and shapes. All of the items were beautiful and the way they were displayed within the studio made me want them all in my home.

It was strange thinking about Spring/Summer 14 so far in advanced but it also made me excited about what the season will have to offer. By the looks of the collections, it will be bold colours and busy prints contributing to an exotic theme, as well as calmer tones and nature patterns. Judging by the collections, upcoming shades that will be popular for S/S14 are blue and purple tones. These trend and colour forecasts are likely to be reflected within fashion, so I’ll be looking out for it in fashion retailers next year.

Butterfly by Matthew Williamson.

Rocha. John Rocha.

At Home by Ashley Thomas  and Jasper Conran collections.

Abigail Ahern collection.

Being involved in a press show for such an established company was great experience, I learnt a lot and put my networking skills to the test. I also got to meet some of the designers, Julien Macdonald, Ben de Lisi, Betty Jackson and Ashley Thomas, and got some great snaps of them with their collection...

Julien Macdonald and Ben de Lisi with their collections.