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