Interviews.

Remember, they are not as scary as you think.

I look at it from the prospective that someone just wants to get to know me and see if I would fit into his or her company well. Prepare for any interview, otherwise you can be very easily caught off guard. There are only so many questions you could be asked in any interview.

·      “Why do you want to work for us?”

·      “What are your strengths and weaknesses?”

·      “Where do you see yourself in five years time?”

Possible Questions.

Easy and effective ways to prepare for an interview is to Google commonly asked questions, and try and come up with a few bullet point answers. By answering a variety of questions off the Internet, the format of the questions will differ which will mirror your future interview.

Research.

If you don’t know too much about the company and the history of it, it is really important to spend some time building up a bit of knowledge. I also found building up knowledge of the products available also helpful as they might refer to them in the interview as examples.

Remember. 

Be on time

Be polite and friendly- To absolutely EVERYONE, you have no idea who is who and what role they play in a company

Monitor what you put online as they do have a quick Google of your name!

With physical interviews it’s a good way to get a feel of what working for the company would be like. Down to the commute route, the office space and the feel of the general working atmosphere. You can start to imagine what daily life would be like. Not every company will be right for you, and vies versa.

One of my physical interviews, I loved the environment. I sat in reception watching the hustle and bustle of people going about their daily business and I personally loved the hype of activity. It’s not much to go off, but like an interview it is all about first impressions. 

Thoughts on using Lace in Swimwear?

Swimwear is starting to change, slowly. The use of lace seems to be re-occurring as a progression from the popular choice of crochet.

 

For Love and Lemons have stunning swimwear that includes a lace/crochet panelling, bridging the connection between crochet to lace. And it looks incredible. This brand could not be more on trend with their spring/summer collection in regards to colour and the use of lace.

   

My experimentation with lace in swimwear is below. I think it’s a bold look and certainly different to what’s mostly on the current market and I think it looks pretty cute.  However with it being so new the only problem I’ve found is sourcing lace with all the chemical protection your regular swimwear has such as chorine resistant.  

 

Will anyone be purchasing a little bit of lace in their next piece of swimwear? 

Finding an Internship.

• ·         Alter your cover letter for each company so it’s extremely relevant. I altered mine dependant on whether I was writing to a swimwear company or a lingerie company.

• ·      Create an online portfolio. I would send a link to every company I contacted. They might be very impressed with your skills and level of work completed.

• ·      Send your CV in a PDF attachment. I downloaded a font from “Dafonts” and created a banner with a small logo that mirrors the banner on my portfolio. As it’s a downloaded font it could change when opened by someone else who doesn’t have this font on his or her computer.  Ensure the layout is perfect! Check the spacing between paragraphs and bullet points all line up. It needs to be visually immaculate to mirror an immaculate Intern.

• ·      Be consistent. You can mirror your portfolio, cover letter and CV so they all link visually together. Small touches can make a big difference.

·     You can also search for internships on www.fashionworkie.com 

“The power of social media” is a reoccurring phrase used widely today and all for good reasons too. I read this week in The Business of Fashion how fashion brands now rely mostly on social media for advertisement, but to also interact with a their customers, instead of expensive advert campaigns. They suggested it’s not about how many followers you have but the quality of the follows in order to project your brand or work.

I decided to tweet companies about Internships. Social media is crucial to spreading a brand across the world, fast. Therefore, using it could also show that you are adapting to the industry too.

The company JCrew are a really good example of how social media is being used to good effect as they have an area with a separate careers account, I got a response in a day. Have a look to see if the company you wish to contact has an employment account, and ensure you use that so it looks like you’ve researched into the company.

Check your bio is up to date if you are tweeting. I added the university I am at in mine just so they can gain a better understanding of what I do/ study. I think getting a balance between professionalism and showing off your personality is really important when using social media too.

So while searching for an Internship I was lucky to go to Salon de la Lingerie in Paris in January this year. Despite being a major buying event, as a student and being a little sneaky, I got a ticket to enter. While stands weren’t busy I was able to talk to some of the stands and enquire about possible Internships. This was great to gain a couple of contacts and create a good opening to a cover letter. 

The chances of going to an event like this while searching for Internships is slim, therefore other suggestions that I used in finding an Internship are below.

Writing to the company directly by email or snail mail if you prefer a lot of companies won’t advertise company emails in regards to hiring unless there is a role they are wanting to fill. Unfortunately, Internships aren’t often advertised. I often emailed through the websites general enquiry, however there is a large chance that your email may not be seen. I’ll admit I haven’t had many companies respond back.  When contacting companies through enquires always ask for your email to be forwarded to whom it may concern. I found it could take a couple of weeks for your email to reach the correct person so be patient. It can be frustrating as you are completely in the dark as to whether anyone is reading your emails.

It is important that your cover letter stands out and the opening sentence has something quite catchy, such as “After speaking to… at Salon de la Lingerie” or “After basing my last project on [Company Name]”. 

It’s also worth spending some time searching for an enquiry page about employment and careers as some have a separate web page and email address.

From a very British tourist currently in Memphis, Tennessee 

Internships. 

 

The reason why I thought I really would like to give blogging a go was because while searching for an Internship as part of my degree in a sandwich year, it would have been so helpful to have an insight into someone else's journey. Therefore..... Mine will be documented here! 

I'll be documenting how I got my Internships, one in London and one in New York and the process behind it all. More importantly all that you need to know for the early stages of visa applications as my friend especially had a nasty surprise with her application. I'll be offering my tips into finding a place to live, cheaper ways to travel and I'm also hoping to learn how to travel lightly when heading out to the USA with a baggage weight limit! (For most of you that didn't see how much I took with me to uni, feel free to *laugh here*.) I found just finding the placements difficult and I am sure that isn't going to be the hardest part of this year. Next week I will cover how I found my Internships and how I made my portfolio. 

Working with the Industry.

Showing a glimpse into the design process of designing luxury nightwear for Coco de Mer, an industry project set by my university.  Using gifs to create interactive and more interesting mood boards I believe helps communicate the feel to the nightwear. I did this using Photoshop, and using the 'Timeline Window' and 'Frame animation'. I taught myself how to do so with the little skills I have already accumulated and youtube. There is a link to the tutorial I used below.

                 

Pantone colour referencing is used in the fashion industry. By having a code for every single colour in the world, regardless if someone is looking at the shade on a computer screen or on a printed version, they will know exactly what colour you have selected. Pantone is used when fabric and components are dye/ coloured. In lingerie, this is so all the components and fabrics all match the exact same shade. However, when dying different fabrics, despite being in the same batch of dye they can come out different shades due to their fibre content. To resolve this, multiple samples called lab dips would be dyed to match the original Pantone colour- Hence Pantone is really important.

Final Photoshoot. 

Using 100% silk and lace trimming, the sheer fabric imitate the translucent qualities of the sense of touch creating a sensuous desirable feel to the luxury nightwear. This fabric had a beautiful shimmer hint when it hits the light replicating that of ice crystals.

Designed by Sophie Beet
Photographed by Holly Shackleton
Modelled by Ramune Mickeviciute
Make-up by Sophie Reeves