Developed Knitwear

As I was shopping around and hunting around for a few birthday presents around Oxford Street on the weekend, I remembered New look have menswear. As I was moseying around the Ox Circus branch I noticed to cropped knitwear pieces for the menswear range.

They were nice pieces in very pastel shades, though I found cropped knit pieces were a bit different for mens, but it all depends on how it is styled; Styling is a very key thing to making and item of clothing look good on. Come to think of it I can imagine cropped knitwear will be popular during the Summer, when it arrives! I will admit they're easy pieces to wear and are not too expensive, around 20 quids, student discount's also available! ^.^

ooh I have such a big lusting for atm, I want some Dr Denim Snap Jeans, black Skinnys!! I know i've already purchased a pair of Jeans from Uniqlo; love them to bits but there's too much elasticity in them, I need a harder pair I can break into.

Talking about Jeans, I'm likely to have to do a bit of garment teching in the denim department, it will be interesting, more skills under the belt; Thank God the order isn't until mid May.... crap thats not long!

hmm I seem to blog a fair bit about Menswear, good for the guys, giving them an insight. Girls I will post something Girly!!!

Manning the Fort!!

Holly crap!

I've started off having a bit of a bad Monday, as some of you might have seen my distressing on the FB status, I had a Black Monday! As the other main garment tech has gone on holiday, Junior garment tech (me) mans the fort!

It's overwhemlming in how much stuff we both do and mange to send out! I even had to have a major sit down e-mailing session to the customers and factories, chasing up samples bits and shit like that! Doesn't help getting driven insane but this warbbling speaker sound outside the office been going on everyday! :@ driving me NUTS! I suffer sensitive hearing!!

Nearly the Easter weekend now, can't wait! needed a major break so heading to the Shires!

Will babble more but back to manning the fort bare samples to send to customers!

Really feeling a bit of glam music from the Leg End that is David Bowie!! ^.^ Don't know why!

Some garments they should really not bother

I really can only seem to Blog once a week, but that is still good, along with working 5 days a week and other activities, though I shall be limited activity wise these 2 weeks, as I have a wager with a friend of only allowed out partying once in 2 weeks; should be no problem as fashion week has come and gone!! Hehehe!! But I suppose this will do me good in saving some pennies towards holiday & do more moseying around London to find inspiration ^.^

Swiftly on to the topic of the week

Right as most people know there is good fashion and bad fashion, garments that are made well and successfully, some that just fail. In this occasion my colleague and I encountered some of the most HIDEOUS leggings that were put on his dest as Inspirational pieces! Whoever created these legging things, WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!! Big Faux pas! So cheap, tacky and plain nasty

Next thing on the list I’ve been working on this week, Coil ruffle tops, and such a pain in the arse to measure, as the ruffles keep moving about since the memory wire moves about!

But as I was creating a Spec (specification sheets with a photo and illustration of the garment with points of where's we're measuring the garment) for this style, I noticed the finishing were damn awful!!! Why in the world would you put such ugly thick WHITE binding into the seams where the wire starts and finishes?! Of course you will need something to prevent the wires poking out of the garment; either using thicker wire or even having caps onto them! Then our boss comes to us and says, “do you really expect couture on a £4 garment?” there has to be a way of making this work

I bet my shoe collection when the customer comes back to us with comments on these garment that they’ll want a nicer finishing on these garments!!

Ooh I've been introduced to some really chilled out music by an artist called Nujabes, Japanese Hip Hop Producer that is so creative, creating such beautiful music that has elements of Jazz in it. Perfect evening music to unwind to

Who knew!

I am Subscribed to a fashion website called Cocosa only started this year, selling designer clothes upto 65% off.

Last week I saw they were selling A/W 09 collection for womenswear & they interviewed the Designer. Who knew they were going to show some of the illustrations.... mine!

Man, come to think of it felt like long time ago I was interning @ Unconditional. Things have changed for me

Cocosa is a really good website if you can afford it, I'll stick to sample sales at the company's studios or wherever they're held; I'm actually doing pretty well in the shopping ban i've got on myself!! ^.^

FAIL TO BAGS!!!

Haha don’t worry guys, I’m still sticking to my wager of shopping ban for 3 months, but I couldn’t help myself getting all these bags, I could of taken more but I got tired, what happens with 6 hours sleep, partying the night before and a big lunch!

Well fortunately the bags were free as I went to Pure London over at Olympia. Some of you who don’t know, Pure London is a biannual fashion trade show where suppliers, and brands show their work to buyers from all around to buy up and sell at their stores, separated in 4 sections, Accessories, womenswear, young fashion and footwear.

I couldn’t say no to free goodie bags, though most were empty, but it’s all-good they’re useful for shopping and carrying things I admit to possessing a lot of crap!

Some of you may guess I ended up checking out the footwear and Young fashion! Was more exciting compared to the boutique clothes that were more for the mature customer

I was quite surprised to see some brands I wouldn’t think would show, like of Baby Phat, Pepe Jeans, there was a label by Usher as well, forgot the brand. Of course there were some pretty stall particularly one very white chic looking & the had topless men giving away roses, being Valentines and all, but their clothes, made me want to throw up! Too girly & candy coloured for my liking!

But there were some stalls that were a bit too snooty, only letting buyers in and only gave a damn if you were a buyer; yea I had an exhibitor’s pass but it’s all good! Saves me paying £20 entry! But fair enough with these companies need their customers than people like us designers, fellow salesman, etc!

Fast Fashion

Holy Crap, I didn’t realise High Street are so quick moving with things, maybe there is a bit of naivety to me, but hey, I’m still learning the traits of this fashion world!

So here’s the thing, as I was shopping this evening after work, (Ok I know I’m suppose to be banned, but I have a wedding to go to in the weekend so need a top to got with my skirt!) Trying to find a top so of course first place I’d hit is Primark! Man that place is still crazy even after Christmas. Moving on from Primarni I move to the next alternative, New look! My God! That place has so many rails devoted to Leggings & Jeggings! It’s like a supermarket for them especially the way they’ve merchandised it!

So No luck over in New Look, Popping over to Next, thinking they’ll do nice smart things suitable for a wedding, as I went in I noticed a long top that looked really familiar…. It was the smart top I was measuring at work today! I know it was since the gaudettes on the dress are a pain in my arse to measure! Exactly the same thing, and same thing for a production sample I was checkin with Jane Norman (image at the Very Top)

Then over in River Island the have the exact same top too! Ok so I work for a supplier, of course the style isn’t one of a kind marketing for High Street.

Buyers buy similar styles but with different designs such as prints wash.

But this made me realise it doesn’t take long for an item to hit the shop floor once the item has approval from production samples! Fro example this same top, I measured it for Jane Norman last week & it was approved so delivery of it and making doesn’t take long!

Fast fashion IS FAST; it can only take 2 weeks for something new to hit the shop floor. For example I’ve been doing some work for a High Street Company (Ok this is revealing a bit of the garment tech world to you guys!), sent them their samples and what adjustments they’ll want from the sample via e-mails.

We amend the measurements and send them to the pattern cutters to adjust patterns & our office up there will send us the next fit sample for the buyers to OK, takes 3days for that to be done.

Once the buyers approve we need to send that sample to the lab and get it tested of fibre content, wash & print tests etc usually takes 3-4days, results get sent to buyers and technologists for approval. Once that’s OKed we get the labels for the garment inc wash cares another 2days & they get sent to the factories who make the style.

Production samples get sent to us to double check they’re the right length, have all labels, basically what will be on the floors in how it’ll look. When production samples are approved making gets done, God Knows how many 1000s of the garment. Then hey presto! The clothes are on the floor!

Well opens eyes to other aspects of the fashion industry aside from the design, catwalks and photoshoots! I know the pictures aren't so crisp as I'd like them, lacking photoshop as it's temporarily failed me! >.<

I’ve still got hell of a lot to learn within this Industry, I’ve only worked with this company for nearly 2months!