April Wishlist

So this month has been a busy one so far, already almost half way through, I've been juggling uni work along with my job and squeezing in a couple of fun days and nights with friends to take the edge off the looming deadlines! Just as well I've been skint really otherwise shopping would definitely have distracted me from all the work I need to get done and I probably would have stress-shopped and spent far too much!

Just under a week til my student loan and I've got my eye on the following items, actually can't wait. I am mega excited about the 70s vibes at Topshop right now and am definitely on board with the flared jeans. In love!! Bring on the fringing, culottes and fingers crossed the sunny weather. 

Black Suede Patch Crochet Vest - Topshop - £48 Shop Here

Black Satin Back Crepe Culottes - Topshop - £40 Shop Here

Khaki Plunge V Neck Top - Topshop - £16 Shop Here

Moto Jamie Flared Jeans - Topshop - £40 Shop Here

Dino iPhone Case - Skinny Dip London - £12 Shop Here

Invader Sunglasses - Quay Australia - around £30 Shop Here

Norah Black Ankle Boots - Vagabond - around £100 Shop Here

Thanks for reading!
Laura Olivia xoxo

Colour Scheme Designers

I've recently learned that a way to find a colour palette of complimentary colours I can use a tool such as the Adobe Kuler. In my practice of work I have always used colour boards and the eyedropper tool to select colours from an image and choose them by how I think they look. I do enjoy making colour boards but now I will be able to select colours that I know work well together.

This is an example of a contemporary colour scheme where all the shades compliment each other. This could be used for anything from a web layout to a clothing range colour scheme.

Another tool is Paletton, which looks like this

Laura Olivia

NCI 510: Developing A Negotiated Brief. Market Research Survey

As part of my initial research for this module I've created a survey for females about clothing shopping habits, so that I can establish what people want from the market. It is in 2 parts as survey monkey only lets you have 10 questions per survey as a free member. Please take a couple of minutes to complete my survey if you are a lady! Thank you millions in advance

Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey , the world's leading questionnaire tool.

Thank you again!
Laura Olivia xx

My February Wishlist

Every month I'd like to share with you the things I'm eyeing up to be in my life. This month I've selected a few random things I'd love to pick up. I did *try* to make it not just Topshop! But with working there on top of the obsession I have already it's hard to steer away to other shops! Here are my picks:

1. MA1 Parka Coat Topshop £50 (reduced from £75)

2. Silver and 14k gold dragonfly charm Pandora around £150

3. Beville Blend Active Very.co.uk £25

4. Grey sleeveless jacket Topshop £42

5. Fujifilm Instax Mini 8 Jessops £69.99

6. Pleated PU skater dress Topshop £10!! (reduced from £50!)

7. Sleeveless white jacket with D ring details Topshop £48

8. Textured knit tube skirt New Look £17.99

9. Metallic pink sandals Topshop £46

Thanks for stopping by

Laura Olivia xx

Miss KG Sunglasses

Recently I visited Boots with my Mam to pick up some last minute holiday bits and I came across these gorgeous sunglasses. (Unfortunately I'm not the one going on holiday! She's gone to Tenerife with my dad for a well deserved break.) I have always had an obsession with sunnies - maybe because I always had to wear glasses until the age of 13 when I could get contact lenses, I'm not sure.  These ones make me super excited!! Usually I find they can be ill-fitting on me, far too big for my face and the arms far too long and sticking out from behind my ears for like a mile, which does not look good with a pixie cut! The price of these is great as well, all around £35 which I think is definitely worth it for the quality and how good the designs are.

I found these selling online at www.redhotsunglasses.co.uk and www.houseofbath.co.uk as for some reason they aren't on the Boots website! But they had a great range in store so I would recommend popping in and giving them a try!

I actually can't wait for summer to style some of these with cute outfits and have some colour and pattern and a tan in my life. Although the winter sun is blinding when driving lately so that may be a good excuse to get some right now. Possibly the round mirrored lens pair with the gold frames? Swoooon

Thanks for reading!

Laura Olivia xx

Setting Future Goals

As my second year of this course is well under way I'm going to reflect on what I have already done in my first year and last couple of months, and set goals for the remainder of the year.

 Last year I learned a lot in terms of how to create range plans and illustrated reports on InDesign. I was able to create my own style of work and I was happy with the outcome of most of my projects, although I did have to rush some of them at the end to meet deadlines, which is something I need to work on.

Some strengths I think I have would be:

• InDesign skills
• Web design knowledge (HTML, setting up a website)
• Writing skills
• Moodboards
• Fashion retail experience
• Drawing
• Visual merchandising experience
• Photography
• Organisation

Some things I would like to improve on:

• Time management
• Photoshop and Illustrator skills
• Confidence in my ability and my work
• Practical skills such as the marbling that I have recently done

During this year I would also like to gain some visual merchandising experience as a placement so that I can gain more experience in that field, which would benefit me in the future and in the career path I hope to take.

I have also completed a PPD skills, knowledge and Abilities Diagnostic using the PPD online module. This shows that I need to improve my knowledge in the following areas:

• Entrepreneurialism 
• Intellectual Property Rights
• Career Planning
• Culture and Etiquette
• Job and Interview Skills
• Analysis of Data
• Research and Referencing

Using the online modules I hope to improve these areas and be confident in them by the end of my course in April.

Laura Olivia

NCI 510: Developing A Negotiated Brief

As it's now the new year we have been given our final project for the level 6 course. For this project we have a lot of freedom as it's self directed and this is something I've never had the chance to do before. The first thing I did in searching for ideas was to look at trend forecasting on WGSN for spring/summer 2016. One trend in particular really caught my eye and that's what WGSN call the Sartorial trend, which is comprised of bold floral prints mixed with pattern and geometric shapes too. So much going on in one trend and one look! From this I comprised this Botanical themed mood board, really focusing in on the tropical side of this trend.

I'm really happy with the way this board turned out and I definitely want to encorporate some ideas from this board into my final work, whatever that may be! I will keep you updated as things progress!

Thanks for reading
Laura Olivia xoxo