Business Cards

As part of my Final project at University I need to complete a Business card which will be available to consumers at Graduate Fashion Week in London which will take place next week at Earls Court.

My Business card will be square in shape and feature the logo squares of my dissertation concept. This is because I want people to take the cards and when they look back at it be reminded of my idea and more importantly myself. Information on what course I am due to complete along with my contact details are crucial for prospective employers to be able to contact me.

This is my Business Card which will be alongside my Dissertation at Graduate Fashion Week in London next week. The dimensions are 5.5cm x 5.5cm to ensure it will fit in consumers purses and wallets.

My dissertation work will follow in a post shortly I just need to take pictures of it at University tomorrow.

As well as designing a business card for Graduate Fashion Week I decided to produce a regular sized business card which will coincide with my Curriculum Vitae colour scheme, this will be what I will hand out to perspective employees I may meet by chance or at industry events.

Above are a range of my Business Cards which coincide with my C.V colour scheme.

It's my final hand in day tomorrow for all my Promotional work such as my C.V, Business Cards and and example of a Covering Letter. My C.V and Covering letter were produced using Indesign. I find this programs easy to use now as I have had alot of practice with my dissertation. Layout of work can be arranged easily.

Crazy Horses

I popped to Matalan today as it was a dreary, horrible Bank Holiday Monday. (Typical English weather)

I purchased this rocking horse necklace seen below. I brought it as I love vintage looking jewellery. I also usually wear long necklaces so decided to opt for for a shorter necklace as it's different and will go with all my cute Summer dresses when the Sun actually arrives.

There is meant to be a heat wave this weekend so fingers crossed for that sunny weather. :-)

Barnardo's Boutique

I was reading my local newspaper on Thursday night - The Express and Star - and saw an article about a new Barnardo's Boutique shop opening in Wolverhampton. So Yesterday I decided to check it out.

The store has a great layout and the visual merchandising is brilliant with little displays throughout the shop.

Brands sold in store include French Connection and Per Una from Marks and Spencer. This price points are a little higher than normal charity shops but you can get the designer labels here.

The store is in Queen Street, Wolverhampton. (Next to BANK clothing for all you local people.)

The newspaper article from the Express and Star.

Picture taken from the front of the store.

Colour Blocking

Going back to the navy trousers I brought from New Look. When I saw them it instantly reminded me of an article from Look magazine which I had read about the new colour blocking trend.

I will wear these trousers with bright pink and orange tops contrasting wih the colour of the trousers and belt. I really feel I need a style overhaul and my style at the moment is sometimes a little boring so I hope to stand out from the crowd in this attire.

Above are examples of what tops I can wear with my new trousers. Bright colours contrasting the blue colour will look great. These are tops from Dorothy Perkins. Check them out at www.dorothyperkins.com

I love a good Bargain...

As I discussed in my last blog I went to Wolverhampton on Friday to have a look round the market. The market takes place on a Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday within the indoor market. The outdoor market takes place everyday day apart from Sunday.

Wolverhampton Indoor market.

I had a good look round at the various material stores but couldn't find anything suitable to make my maxi dress from, hopefully I will be able to have a look round Birmingham this week after University and find something there.

Slightly disheartened I decided to go shopping. I usually wear quite dark or clothes that aren't bright and I wanted to change this so wanted some bright clothing. Firstly I popped to Compton Hospice charity shop - I always like to find a bargain. I found this little gem below.

I have seen this style of top in many High Street stores and managed to bag it for a fraction of the price. I can wear it a number of ways too, either loose or I can tie the bottom of the blouse into a knot for a more retro look.

I then ventured into New Look where there were having a sale, I found these trousers for less than half price and will be great with bright coloured tops for the Summer (Hopefully we will begin to see signs of sun soon.)

I love the brightness of these trousers and they can be worn with alomost anything.

Nailed it!!

I recently seen some amazing nail art work in various magazines and blogs. Using vibrant colours and

eye-catching designs, can make you stand out from the crowd.

Super hero inspired

Tutti Frutti

I love painting my nails in  pastel and matte shades however I think I might be trying out this trend it looks so cool.

I can't afford to get a manicure done though so I will be heading to the high street to purchase products from the Andrea Fulerton range at Superdrug.

Andrea Fulerton is a world famous nail artist who I was lucky enough to meet when in London completing my placement at Ruby and Millie.

With the collection consisiting of nail tattoos and gemstones it is great to experiment with, at the same time not breaking the piggy bank.

Check out the Superdrug blog http://superdrugloves.com/ where Andrea regularly keeps me up to date with the latest nail trends and tips.

 Images of nail art taken from ASOS Magazine - July Edition

Images of Andrea Fulerton range taken from http://www.superdrug.com/

Dress Envy

I was reading my latest Look magazine yesterday (the 23rd May edition) and saw this absolutely stunning dress Uma Thurman wore in Cannes recently.

I love the cut out detail on the back of the dress contrasting with the feathers. The dress is by Versace.

Personally when looking at clothing I like things that stand out and are structured well. I really want to buy a Maxi dress with a cut out detail on the back or backless altogether. I have not seen one yet so any suggestions please let me know. :-)

I have also been thinking about making one myself as I know how to construct clothes from my college course. So I am goin to pop to Wolverhampton market later to see if there is any material so I can get going on it.

To be in the know with the latest trends and beauty must haves check out http://www.look.co.uk/.

Favourite Modules

Over the past week I have had to discuss what I have enjoyed on my course and the modules I have enjoyed the most, So here they are:

Visual Merchandising:
- Showcased my creative side by designing a window for Luxury store Harvey Nichols. Had to incoroporate food and clothing sold within store.

The theme for this module was Summer Holidays

Marketing
- Looking at the Marketing Mix to understand a brand message in this case it was Levi's

- Producing a recyclable denim bag using an old pair of Levi's jeans (as seen below we actually made it!)

Product Development

- Putting together an event to raise money for Alzheimers

- Promotion of the event crucial to ensure maximum monies for the charity

- Nostalgic- Love- a-fayre was the event concept holding an outdoor fayre

As you can see we had the weather on out side for the day, it was a great event at St Paul's square Birmingham

Me with the Hoopla stand we created.

Final Presentation

Today I had to present my final PowerPoint presentation at University.

Over the three years I have become a very confident speaker and I am able to get my point across successfully.

Front page taken from my final presentation.

Today's PowerPoint involved discussing our skills and what I have learnt from the course. I can honestly say I have learnt a variety of skills such as:

• Organisation - Planning work
• Analysing the market through research thoroughly using the Marketing Mix
• Analysing society today using the PESTER Factors, ensuring a product will suit consumer buying needs.
• Using Indesign, Photoshop programs for various modules.

I have devoloped a very professional manor over the years which I will take through to the work place.

Say Cheese...

Today I have been looking through some old magazine pages which I had taken out of various Look and More magazines.

Looking back at them I realised why I had saved them, the photography was just amazing. The way the makeup and clothing has been captured is striking and love the contrasting colours.

These images are what make me love fashion and makeup so much so enjoy...

Look and More magazine are available to buy weekly from any good retailer and are great for showcasing new trends.

The End is Nigh!

What a day!

I received my marks for my final project at university today and to say I was pleased is an understatement.
I got a 2.1 overall with a first grade for my written work.

Pure happiness is what I felt when I found out, I worked so hard and it really paid off. I'm so proud of the work I completed.

Now just the final module to finish and I will find out my final grade eek!

Going GAGA!

Well today is the day, Lady Gaga has launched her new album Born This Way and it certainly doesn't disappoint. I brought my copy through iTunes and puchased the bonus track version. I love the upbeat tracks like 'Edge of Glory.' It certainly is a mood uplifter.

Music is one of my favourite things. I listened to a lot of different kinds of music while writing my final project for University.

Other albums I have been playing none stop are:

Bruno Mars - Doo-Wops and Hooligans

Rihanna - Loud

Adele - 21

Friendly Fires - Pala

I love a range of different music and certainly makes me feel instantly better.

Images taken from http://www.amazon.co.uk/

Digbeth Delights

Hi all,

Had a great day of retail therapy yesterday, went to Birmingham with my friend Sonya. Originally we wanted to go to Retro Brum, a vintage fair held in the Custard Factory but sadly it was cancelled last minute. It's been rescheduled for the 4th June so i'll pop down to have a look.

Images: left, Flyer for The Vintage Fair - 4th June 2011 and right, the custard factory entrance.

Nevertheless we went to Urban Village and Cow which are vintage stores in the area and had a good look around for a bargain. A good day altogether shame about the weather though.

Above images: Inside Retro Birmingham, loving the cool bunting hanging from the ceiling of vintage brands. Shop window is of COW vintage in Digbeth.

While walking back to the train station we noticed some interesting graffiti on the walls (below) made walking back in the wind a slightly better experience. 

Busy Bee

Hi all,

Sorry for not writing this week, I have been a very busy bee with my University work.

My Final module for my course is a career package. One of the tasks is writing a C.V which I finished yesterday, honestly I found it so hard putting everything onto just two pieces of paper, but I cracked it eventually. I can't believe it is nearly the end of my course, three years have gone so fast. It has made me realise what I want to do my future career though so good end result.

Will have more posts over the weekend and I will get some pictures uploaded as well.

Ta ra for now

Hello Blogging World !

Hi I’m Nicola and I have decided to jump head first onto the band wagon of blogging.

Through my posts I’ll talk about a range of topics that I’m interested in such as Fashion and Makeup. I hope you like. You’ll have to be patient though as I’m new to this game.