2015 FASHION RESEARCH +DEVELOPMENT

2015 FASHION RESEARCH +DEVELOPMENT

FROCK ME VINTAGE FAIR

Frock Me! is the original London vintage fashion fair with a huge cult following, held at Chelsea Old Town Hall. It had over 50 stalls of the finest vintage clothing, textiles, accessories and haberdashery.

I was lucky to be able to visit one of London famous vintage fashion fairs -  OMG I was dreaming and wishing that I had more room in my suitcases!! Yes I would have purchased two wardrobes worth of goodies! I was in vintage heaven :D

LIBERTY IN FASHION EXHIBITION - LONDON FASHION + TEXTILE MUSEUM

Liberty in Fashion - This exhibition explores Liberty’s impact on British fashion, from Orientalism and Aesthetic dress in the 19th century, through Art Nouveau and Art Deco in the early 20th century, and the revival of these styles since the 1950s.  Liberty has been at the cutting edge of design and the decorative arts since 1875. Liberty in Fashion celebrates the 140th anniversary of the company.

VICTORIA + ALBERT MUSEUM - FASHION EXHIBITION
Fashion exhibition - spanning four centuries, the V&A’s Fashion collection is the largest and most comprehensive collection of dress in the world. Key items in the collection include rare 17th-century gowns, 18th-century ‘mantua’ dresses, 1930s eveningwear, 1960s daywear and post-war couture. Plus a growing number of pieces from 21st-century designers.

SHOES - PLEASURE OR PAIN EXHIBITION

Shoes: Pleasure + Pain exhibition held at the V &A Museum.
This exhibition looks at the extremes of footwear from around the globe, presenting around 200 pairs of shoes ranging from a sandal decorated in pure gold leaf originating from ancient Egypt to the most elaborate designs by contemporary makers. It considers the cultural significance and transform...ative capacity of shoes and examines the latest developments in footwear technology creating the possibility of ever higher heels and dramatic shapes. Examples from famous shoe wearers and collectors are shown alongside a dazzling range of historic shoes, many of which have not been displayed before.

* NO CAMERAS ALLOWED - I was sneaky enough to take shot of these beauties!

WEEKEND ONE - PARIS

OFF TO PARIS FOR THE WEEKEND
Packing my mini suitcase especially making it easy and portable for me as I need to catch tube ride to Heathrow airport terminal 5 which is 1.5 hours away.

So I made sure I was ready to be leaving at 12pm lunchtime giving me plenty time for transport, check in, security and customs when I got to the airport.

I arrived at airport by 2pm and check in and at the gate by 33:0pm to depart by 4:15pm. We had only just boarded the plane and got up into the pilot announced our arrived into Paris.

Below is a birds eye view of Paris at night time taken from plane window.

After check in, security and customs I get out of the airport at 10:30pm as Paris has a 1 hour difference from London.

When I arrived and walked around the airport and there was not many people around and I didn't have to line up for security or customs. When I looked around there was no military or police officers/security around the airport and I didn't get patted down at security which every airport I entered.

Once I was at the exit of the airport,  I was looking around there was nothing open at the airport to organise transfers to hotel or purchase a French sim card as I had no phone reception from my UK sim card. I wanted to try and catch a Uber or figure out the bus/train transfer into the city centre. No one was around to help or could speak English.

Its around 11:50pm and after 30mins trying to figure out what to do... I had to catch a taxi to my hotel an hour + $74 euros later - I was not a happy woman! :-( I arrived and checked into Hotel Peyris Opera around 12:30am on Friday night. I was absolutely exhausted!

The view from the front of hotel

The view of my hotel room

24 HOURS IN PARIS
The next day woke up 6am to have breakfast downstairs and roam the streets at dawn before my epic day of exploring around in Paris. This experience was extra part of my international fashion research of fashion history + development.

PALAIS GALLIERAM
First stop Palais Gallieram... Paris Fashion Museum

This exhibition proposes to discover the wardrobe of Countess Greffulhe whose legendary beauty and elegance inspired Marcel Proust and the greatest designers of his time.

For the first time, the Palais Galliera exposes the exception wardrobe Countess Greffulhe, born Elizabeth de Caraman-Chimay (1860-1952). Cousin Robert de Montesquiou, passed to posterity in the writings of Marcel Proust in the famous novel -In Search of Lost Time.

* NO  cameras were allowed inside :(

The Countess Greffulhe whose legendary beauty and elegance inspired Marcel Proust and the greatest designers of his time to produce some incredible and one of the most fabulous  haute couture wardrobe of the early 1900s. Designer Marcel Proust was ahead of his time. I wish I could have taken some photos of how everything is being redesigned + copied in this century as well  as how preserved these garments were that are from the 1860 - 1950s.

PARIS FOOD MARKETS
Next stop on our 24 hour trek around Paris was the Weekend food market.  I went around food markets trying out food left+ right - testing and tasting that I didn't get too many photos because I was eating heheehhee

The smells of the different delights and the eye full of colours everywhere from the food market are one of a kind and I will miss the smell of baguettes!

 

MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ARTS

The next stop - Musee d'Art Moderne...

As a setting for the first European showing of Shadows (1978-79) in their entirety, the Musée d'Art moderne de la Ville de Paris is devoting a remarkable exhibition to Andy Warhol (1928-1987). Comprising over 200 works, Unlimited highlights the serial side of the Warhol oeuvre – a crucial aspect of his work – and his ability to rethink the way art should be exhibited.

Hehehehe there was security staff in each section... but I was sneaky + naughty and took some shots of the exhibition!

At the museum, there was a cool option to do a Warhol digital painting...I thought be real serious in the photo just like Andy (missing the sunglasses) :P

EIFFEL TOWER
Next stop the Eiffel Tower... Every time I visit Paris I always need to visit the Eiffel tower. There is something about it, the iconic symbol of the city, that draws + pulls you into her. Next minute, I thought fuck it I am going to walk to Eiffel tower and have a explore of on the way through the streets of Paris.

Here's a lucky quick shot of the hustle of the street at the Eiffel Tower

LUNCHTIME

It was around 3:30pm and about to burst down with rain plus I was little exhausted (been up since 6am) and getting hungry so I went to a little deli café and got baguette and took a taxi back to hotel to have a little recharge.

Here's a beautiful shot of the streets of Paris near my hotel

GALERIES LAFAYETTE

Next stop was Paris top shopping called Galeries Lafayette. The Galeries Lafayette is an upmarket French department store chain. Its flagship store is on Boulevard Haussmann in the 9th arrondissement of Paris.

After exploring around Galleria Lafayette I caught a taxi and I went back to the hotel. After refreshing, I went downstairs walked down the street to find a cute small bar where I ordered a glass of red wine and small cheese platter, then found myself a lovely spot outside and watched the world go by in my last night in Paris.

GOODBYE PARIS

I had to go to bed by midnight, as I checked out at 4:00am of Hotel Peyris Opera. I pre packed and ordered a taxi to be picked up at 4:30am.

I arrived at the airport at 5:30am and my flight was at 7:45am. I walked around the airport and there was not many people in the airport, I didn't have to line up for security or customs, there was no military or police officers/security around the airport and I didn't get patted down at security which every airport I entered I was searched each time. I found lots of lacking of concerns especially from a city that had been mass terrorists attack only 2 weeks prior to me arriving in Paris.

After 30 mins flight back to London, 1.5 hour Tube train ride transfer back to apartment, London bridge, I was happy to be back at the London apartment. Re-group + re-ground myself and make sure I get ready for meeting on Monday.

Stay tuned for more behind the scenes of 2015 British Council - ACCELERATE program for next 2 weeks!

Keep working hard, believing in yourself + never stop dreaming!

TJ xo

2015 ACCELERATE - LONDON, UK WEEK 2

2015 ACCELERATE - LONDON, UK WEEK 2

UK ORIENTATION

Orientation around central London - Trafalgar Square to organise everyone's phone UK sim cards, Oyster card for the Tube, train tickets around UK.

MEETING WITH HILARY CARTY

We all met Hilary at lovely British café down the road from our accommodation called The Garrison.

Where we had a private room to listen to Hilary Cary speak to us all about Cultural + Creative Industries in the UK.

Here's a great behind the scenes shot below which includes
Angela Flynn, Marcus Corona, Hilary Cary (L - R)
Emma Logan,  Erica McCalman, Carly Sheppard  (L - R)

MEETINGS WITH BRITISH COUNCIL

We all went to the head office at British Council in London UK.

Where we had a private meeting room where we had 20 mins back to back meetings with staff from British Council to speak to us all about Cultural Diversity + Creative Industries in the UK.

MEETING WITH BRITISH COUNCIL - HELEN THOMAS

Here's a great behind the scenes shot of our meeting with Helen Thomas with 2015 Accelerate crew.

MEETING WITH BRITISH COUNCIL - FIONA BARTELS - ELLIS

Here's a great behind the scenes shot of our meeting with Fiona with 2015 Accelerate crew.

MEETING WITH BRITISH COUNCIL - KENDALL ROBBINS

Kendall Robbins is British Council's UK Programme Manager, Architecture, Design and Fashion. Kendall will talk about the work of the Fashion team and how you can collaborate with the British Council on fashion projects. 
Kendall programmes and curates architecture, design and fashion events and exhibitions across the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia as well as in the UK, and advises on the British Council’s fashion work internationally. Her expertise is in curation, emerging fashion, craft and cultural heritage, fashion and technology, fashion image and presentation and fashion design education.
Kendall has been integral to some of the British Council’s major exhibitions, including Reconstruction: Cultural Heritage and the Making of Contemporary Fashion, Venice Takeaway: the British Pavilion at the 2012 Venice Architecture Biennale and Dressing the Screen: The Rise of Fashion Film, the first ever UK exhibition of fashion film. She has also devised programmes such as Fashion Image-Makers in Indonesia and Fashion DNA in Nigeria. Kendall has delivered lectures on fashion at various institutions, including the National Museum of Georgia, the Indus Valley School of Art and Design and the LaSalle College of Arts Singapore.

My meeting with Kendall was the starting point and what an amazing meeting. Her connections with the UK fashion industry helped open doors to networking while in London. After our meeting, she sent out a mass explosion of emails to her networks and open the doors to new pathways.

DINNER OUT IN BOROUGH WITH THE LADIES
After huge day of meetings for all of us we decided to all meet up and go out for dinner so we headed out to borough markets but they ended up closed. We ended up finding a pub near by to have a drink + debrief.

2015 FASHION REVOLUTION
Next day I am off to Nottingham - Ive got a 2 hours train ride to my destination!
Here a great shot of St Pancras train station

2015 FASHION REVOLUTION - UK ART SPEAKER TOUR
NOTTINGHAM, UK



The Arts and Speaker Tour will focus on different thematic areas impacting the fashion supply chain in the global south at each event. Topics will include inequality and human rights; the role of women and girls in the fashion supply chain; climate change, including water, chemicals, carbon footprint; decent jobs and sustainable livelihoods. New research has been carried out specifically for the tour to give valuable new insight each theme.
 The programme will include an overview of the European Year of Development’s 2015 programme, which will inform the panel discussions, ideas about how to get involved in Fashion Revolution, and ways to inspire young people to become part of the solution.

GUEST SPEAKER: ORSOLA DE CASTRO

Each event will also include a documentary film screening (The True Cost, Traceable and Udita), a panel discussion and a photographic exhibition on the subject of sustainability and development cooperation in the textile and fashion supply chain.

After the screening and panel discussion, I went down the stairs to meet the panel. I waited patiently in line to meet the one and only, "Queen of upcycling" Orsola De Castro the Co-Founder of Fashion Revolution, From Somewhere + Reclaim to Wear.

I tried to give her my business card but she declined and said to send her my details to her email (which she starts saying out loud + quickly that I was so nervous and shaking too much that I couldn't type anything into my phone. It was too late to ask her to repeat herself so I told her I would research on google. Then I went in for the kill and gave her my 2min fashion pitch, which she was very receptive and impressed that I was amazed + shocked at the same time. Orsola immediately started thinking times/dates then she said lets try set up a meeting before you leave the UK. So I said I would contact tonight to confirm meeting next week. Then I asked for a "selfie" photo - so I have something to remind her of me when I email her. Look at how excited and nervous I am! :D

Next back its back to London from Nottingham and Ive got a 2 hours train ride, then 20 mins tube ride back to my apartment... But it was all worth it!

Stay tuned for more behind the scenes of 2015 British Council - ACCELERATE program for next 3 weeks!

Keep working hard, believing in yourself + never stop dreaming!

TJ xo