Merry Christmas

The Business is Born

So today is kind of a big day for me.

In less than an hours time I have my final presentation on the business idea I have been working on for the last 3 months. It is now finally that all the hard work and effort pays off and the fictional idea I had in my mind is born in to a real concept - a real thing.

It is from now that I will be forever stressed, always working and probably dreaming of holidays I will never have time to go on. If you had told me only 6 months ago that I would be the director of my own company I would have laughed at you nervously and unconvinced that I could ever pull such a thing off. Yet here I am sat at my desk feeling confident and determined, ready to present to a panel of strangers and willing to fight for my business and convince them that this is no longer just an idea, this is a business and it will work. I believe it and I will damn well make them believe in it too.

The main objectives of my business is to connect British Apparel Design and Manufacture. In other words we provide sourcing and design support for companies to get their clothes manufactured in the UK. Our main clients are start-ups or smaller companies who perhaps do not have the expertise or network in place to cover all areas of the manufacturing process. However we also deal with larger companies perhaps looking for limited edition lines or wanting to relocate manufacturing. Due to having a tried and tested network of factories and businesses we take the time and stress out of the manufacturing process allowing companies to concentrate on other areas of their business.

If this is a service you think you may need please get in contact.

BIG LOVE
cycles and spoons

Banter at Bantum

Photoshoot on our roof top in the snow

Working with Simeon Hartwig at Bantum Clothing can be described as nothing more than an 'experience'. A stressful, infuriating and challenging experience!! But one that I would not change for the world and something which becomes strangely addictive that I find myself going back to for more and more.

For a little bit of background info... Bantum Clothing was set up by the one and only rude boy Simeon Hartwig who hit celebrity status when appearing on that cookery programme 'Come Dine With Me'. This is well worth a watch as you can have a good laugh at comments such as 'scallops... isn't that chicken?' and pointing at a picture of Queen Victoria, Simeon cluelessly asks the other contestant if it is a picture of his gran! We can however forgive the boy due to his dashing good looks and charming personality...

Yes this is my 'boss' - I know it is hard to believe..

Anyway... back to the background info... so Simeon set up Bantum a good 5 years ago.. possibly even 6 (he's getting on a bit now) and he did this through The Hive at Nottingham Trent University. The Hive is a hub for entrepreneurship that helps support people in setting up their own businesses. It is in fact the exact same course which I am currently doing in order to set up my business. Now Simeon is... well... he's not the biggest guy you've ever met. So with that in mind he set out to produce a line of clothing for the smaller guys of this world. However Bantum now caters for all shapes and sizes. It is a street-wear company producing brightly coloured and fun casualwear. Check out the website and click on 'Bantum What?!' to get a true understanding of the brand as I feel I can't do it the justice it deserves.

I've worked for Simeon for around 2 years now under the flattering title of 'Bantum Sewing Girl'. The reality is though that Bantum would not be as successful as it is if it wasn't for me.... naaaatttt :) I know though that Simeon has a lot of love for me, he just hides it all inside. I actually first started working for Simeon after a friend recommended me to him. This friend goes by the name of James Huyton. He in fact is another product of The Hive and works freelance as an Illustrator / Artist / Designer - a jack of all trades really. Jim is extremely talented, he's definitely someone to look up to, I love seeing his work and I always feel wowed (and slightly envious) by his sheer talent and drawing ability. So if you need any branding / illustration etc, he's your man! Check out his website for some examples of his work. He also got short listed for the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award at the Midlands Business Awards, so James Huyton is a name to watch out for as I believe he has a very promising future ahead of him!

Jimmy at work

So back to Bantum... we make clothes, go to trade shows and events, make videos and have a hell of a lot of fun whilst doing it. Simeon is a brilliant bloke, I've loved working for him, Bantum is a perfect reflection of his personality - fun, creative, mad, out-going, bouncy and playful and I wish him all the success for the future :)

Simeon thinking he's 'ard with a teddy down his trousers sporting a Big Pocket Jumper.
All big pockets are made by myself.

All jumpers worn are designed by Simeon and made by me
You can't see them properly but this is purposeful as they haven't gone in to production yet and we don't want you stealing our ideas!!

To see a video from this photoshoot click here.

Pattern Cutting in the studio

Another photoshoot of most recent collection

 To see a video of this photoshoot click here. All photoshoots are done by friends of Bantum - Sam Kirby and Anthony Hopwood. Both are brilliant photographers so make sure you check out their websites!

Bantum is all about Trade Shows and Events
Here I am at Pure Spirit Trade Show helping to sell Bantum!

Click here for the video of Pure Spirit Trade Show and the out takes of the trip are here.

If you have a spare few minutes make sure you take the time out to watch all the video's linked in - they are a good laugh and show the personality of the Bantum brand.

Check out my advent calendar jumper I made for a Christmas Social courtesy of Bantum!
In the month of December this jumper does not leave my body!

BIG LOVE

cycles and spoons

Printing and Embroidery

Over the last several years I've tried to help out friends where ever I can, utilising my skills. The two main projects which spring to mind are Laura Green's summer dresses and Scott Heron's embroidered jacket. Laura has a BA Hons and Masters in Textiles, specialising in print. The particular project I helped her with was for her final year project where she designed digital repeat prints using flowers and birds. Using the three printed fabrics she designed, I created three different dresses as shown below.

These dresses were a very simple but effective design with elasticated waist at the back.

In complete contrast, my project with Scott was a lot more dramatic and it pushed my pattern cutting skills. Like Laura, Scott did a BA Hons in Textiles however he specialised in Embroidery. This project was for his final year. We began by making a toile of the jacket and then once happy with the fit, Scott worked on embroidering all the panels separately using machine embroidery. I then sewed them together, including lining the whole jacket. At this stage Scott then added extra hand embroidery to the jacket. He decided to display the jacket at his final degree show as though it was floating in the air due to it's large trail.

Front View

Close up shows revolvers integrated within the embroidery

This is Scott trying on the jacket during a fitting session. 

At the degree show
In this picture you can also see all the lining on the inside of the jacket

Back View

Since graduating from University, Scott has gone on to work for Hand and Lock.


"Hand and Lock is the world's finest provider of hand embroidery, providing specialist and custom embroidery, shirt monogramming and beading work since 1767."


Whilst working at Hand and Lock, Scott has had the honour of hand embroidering the badge which was sewn on to the jacket that Prince William wore for his wedding.

Proud of you Scott!!

BIG LOVE
cycles and spoons

Chicken Pox and Life Lessons

I have never had chicken pox. My mum tried everything when I was younger, even sent me over to friends' houses who had chicken pox, in the hope that I would catch it, but I never did.

Every Monday through to Wednesday I stay in Nottingham at my mate's house whilst I set up my business and I turned up yesterday to find a very poorly Helen with a rash all over her body. Now, obviously being an expert in the field of medicine I quickly diagnosed Helen with chicken pox... with the help of the trusty NHS Online page. Anyway, chicken pox soon got pushed to the back of our minds whilst we watched an hour long episode of 'Made in Chelsea' (Can you believe that Rosie got with Hugo?!?!) and then, beginning to feel myself itch out of paranoia, I decided to read up on the do's and dont's of chicken pox. Sat next to Helen on the sofa I read the following:

It's a very contagious infection. About 90% of people who have not previously had chickenpox will become infected when they come into contact with the virus.

If you have not had chicken pox and you know someone who has the virus. Do not:

• be in the same room as the infected person for 15 minutes or more
• have face-to-face contact with the infected person e.g. have a conversation with them.

It takes seven to 21 days for the symptoms of chickenpox to show after you have come into contact with the virus. This is called the ‘incubation period’.


Basically it is almost inevitable that I have caught it off her. So please prepare yourself now, as in a few weeks I will be feeling extremely sorry for myself and I will be expecting a lot of sympathy and some 'get-well' presents (chocolate and wine will be fine).

Currently feeling extremely sick and trying to convince myself this is all phycological lets press on with my life story.... So I have just graduated and have all the opportunities in the world resting at my finger tips... or not! However, at the time I thought I was extremely lucky to not long be graduated before being offered my first proper job. I was extremely excited, ready for the challenge and keen to impress. The job was working as an Assistant Designer at Sports Direct, which I was offered after entering a competition for them during my final year of university. It used urban influences to inspire a ski / snow collection.

Outfit 1

Outfit 2

Outfit 3

Outfit 4

Outfit 5

Outfit 6

Starting the job in August I lasted a mere 6 weeks before being sacked. Reality hit hard. I was in work by 8.30am every morning and didn't leave the office until at least 8pm every night with no over-time being paid. Commuting for an hour there and back each day on top of the crazy hours made every day extremely long and tiring. After a few weeks into the job I was warned we had our most important few weeks of the year coming up when our factories from China were coming over to visit. We were warned of even longer hours and that the work HAD to be done - no excuses. This would have all of course been fine except that the Head Designer of my section decided to go on holiday the week leading up to and the week of the factory visit. In his section he had me who had worked there for 1 month, another girl who had worked there for 3 months and a young lad who was in his second week! Between the 3 of us we had to juggle 3 different collections and were given impossible deadlines to meet. I was turning up to work at 7.30am and not leaving the office until gone 10pm in an attempt to get all the work finished ready for meetings with the factory. Finally the dreaded meeting came and we had only managed to get about 75% of the work done. This obviously all came out in the meeting... along with me finding out that an email had been sent out cutting the collection in half. I literally could have died. Half the work I had done was irrelevant and had I seen the email I would have been able to get the necessary work done in time.

Now I hold my hands up and admit that we missed the email and yes we should have seen it. BUT the Head of the Department who sent us the email sat about 10 metres away from our desks. I had never replied to that email confirming that I had seen the details of the collection being cut in half, nor had we had a conversation about it for the whole week... in fact she never spoke one word to me. Knowing that I had only worked in the office for 4 weeks, you would think that people would check your work, confirm and reconfirm any changes... after all - when you're new you are bound to make a few mistakes, especially when your Head Designer isn't there to over see your work. It's the process of learning and you should be guided through. However, I was left to it. No-one checked anything I did and so unfortunately I missed one email (by the way I would receive in excess of 50 emails a day).

As you can imagine it was therefore an embarrassing situation to be in when you turn up to a meeting with the wrong work, and only half of the right work completed. This obviously not only looked bad on me but also on the rest of the company as they clearly hadn't checked the work I was doing. To cover their tracks for the fact that my Head Designer who was in charge of me went away on holiday for the most important week of the year and the other designer who was meant to be looking after me who once asked 'is everything going ok?' and the Head of the Department who never asked me anything.... they sacked me... as it was obviously much easier to blame the new girl than to stand up and admit that they fucked up.

For that reason I hate Sports Direct. I tried to dispute the decision as unlawful sacking but they didn't even have the courtesy to respond to my letters and my lawyer said unfortunately I didn't have a strong case due to being at the company for such a short period of time.

Whichever way you look at it I did still gain a lot of experience whilst I was there, working on different ranges including Airwalk, Title, Slazenger, Playboy, Marvel, LA Gear, Ocean Pacific etc.

Slazenger Spec Sheet

Airwalk Spec Sheet 

Marvel Spec Sheet

LA Gear Womenswear Spec Sheet

Ocean Pacific Spec Shet

Slazenger Labels

Ocean Pacific Pattern Artwork

Slazenger Spec Sheet

Title Spec Sheet

BIG LOVE
cycles and spoons
xxxxx

Gandy and Muin

I would like to begin by dedicating this post to a friend of mine - Laura Gandy, who has read every single blog to date and keeps hassling me for the next edition!! It's nice to know that there is at least one person who reads this, which is enough to keep me writing and make the hours I waste on here seem worth while! Little Laura and her BFG - Luke Muin are engaged to be married next year and I would like to take this opportunity to wish them all the best for the future. I've been debating about trying to include a joke here about how their lives are now over... but let's face it... sat in a large house, all alone, with a blanket over my legs, still in my pj's, with knots in my hair... I think there is a bigger argument that I am a bitter old woman, resolute that there is no man stupid enough to even consider spending more than 5 minutes with me... let alone the rest of their life!!!! So instead, I raise my hand, holding an imaginary goblet of champagne and toast 'Gandy and Muin'!

Right... so now that it's finally sunk in that the chances of me getting married are little to none, I am going to turn my attention to work, taking up the motto 'We live to work and work to live'. During my time at university, some how I also managed to squeeze in a few work placements during the summer holidays. These included a childrenswear company called Flyers Group Plc and Topshop. Flyer's Group was brilliant experience - they threw me in at the deep end putting me as an Assistant Designer and left me to produce my own knitwear collection called Sugar Pink. I also designed a coat which was sold into several retailers including TK Maxx. I thoroughly enjoyed working here and the people were friendly, encouraging and supportive.

Example of a Knitted Dress I designed for the Sugar Pink Collection
Spec Sheet 

Spec Sheet Detail of Flower for Knitted Dress

Spec Sheet Detail of Butterfly for Knitted Dress

At Topshop I produced a Boots report for the Head of Footwear and also helped produce garments which went on to be shown during London Fashion Week in their catwalk collection called Uniqlo.

Outfit 1 and 2
On the catwalk during London Fashion Week

Almost finished... this was the day of the Fashion Show

Adding the final touches to the beaded bikini bottoms

We braided hundreds of metres of thread to produce these garments

Work Experience is invaluable and something I would recommend to anyone interested in a career in Fashion. I believe one of the main downfalls of the course at Trent University was that we did not have a Placement Year within the industry. Knowing what I know now, if I could go back in time, I would have found my own placement as these teach you more about the real world and give you true life experience in comparison to sitting in a lecture hall being taught the 'apparent' ways of the world!

BIG LOVE
cycles and spoons

The Castle and The Forest

Returning to my mini life story... and slowly going through the steps of how I began to set up my own business, after my Art Foundation I found myself at Nottingham Trent University. My first choice uni due to it's reputation for it's Fashion courses, I spent the next 3 years getting a degree in Fashion Design.

There is probably room for a debate here about whether I went to Nottingham to study Fashion or whether I went to Nottingham to familiarise myself with the layout of it's hospital... but my bad luck in regards to my health and safety can be left for the time being and maybe saved for another thrilling blog entry in the future. There is no denying though that everything I went through during the three years created a roller-coaster of emotions for me that resulted in University life being some of the best times of my life, but in complete contrast also being some of the most challenging and darkest days I've experienced to date.

To throw in some controversy to the mix - I do not rate the course I did, I do not believe Trent Uni deserves the reputation it has for the Fashion Design course and I received very little, if not no support from my course tutors and lecturers. A memory which will stay with me for the rest of my life is sitting down with the Head of the Course, crying my eyes out, explaining about the brain scans I was having and the cyst on my brain. Due to this I was behind with my work but I was initially told not to worry. About a week later, I saw the Head of the Course again and I apologised that I hadn't been in for a week because I had been so ill with everything. She turned round to me and said 'Sorry, who are you?' ....need I explain how I felt after this? Fashion is known to be full of pretentious and obnoxious people... this is not a rumour, it is true.

Year 1 - Womenswear
Architecture and the Golden Ratio

Year 1 - Womenswear
Inspired by Chemistry and DNA

Year 2 - Menswear
One True Saxon - inspired by Military and Horse Riding
Outfit 1

Year 2 - Menswear
One True Saxon - inspired by Military and Horse Riding
Outfit 2

Year 2 - Menswear
One True Saxon - inspired by Military and Horse Riding
Outfit 3

Year 2 - Menswear
One True Saxon - inspired by Military and Horse Riding
Outfit 4

Year 2 - Menswear
One True Saxon - inspired by Military and Horse Riding
Outfit 5

Year 2 - Menswear
One True Saxon - inspired by Military and Horse Riding
Outfit 6

Year 3 - Take Impact, Make Impact. Final Year Project on Men's Lacrosse
Designed a Magazine containing all my Market Research 

Contents Page

Page 8

Page 11

Page 38

Page 39

Year 3 - Impact Skin
Design

Year 3 - Final Product
Exhibition Space - Designed like a Locker Room

Year 3 - Final Product
Men's All-in-one Active Protection System
Sponsored by Dow Corning

I graduated with a 2:2. I remember opening up the envelop seeing the 2:2 and bursting into tears.... with disappointment you might think... but no, I was happy and relieved. In fact, it was probably the best achievement in my life. I challenge you to go through what I went through, to not drop out of uni, to never give up and to still complete the course even when you missed half of it. I thought I was going to get a 3rd, but in fact I was only a few marks off a 2:1... and I achieved that through sole determination and thanks to no help from my course tutors. Like in sports, I fight for everything, I do not like losing and I will not give up.

BIG LOVE
cycles and spoons