AMAZING!

Some pictures to show the amazing fun we all shared in Paris!

Sharing some cold times together

Barnes got cold feet!

If I had to describe Paris in one word then I have to say AMAZING!! (Sarah B).

We all had such a good time. Particularly the twelve of us. So many of us, but it worked. We made some good friendships and got closer too!

Overall I had a really good time. When can I go back?

After PARIS!

So whilst in Paris both FMB and FCP were given a brief to do for the duration of Paris. Ahh it wasn't too much hassle. :).

To put it simply we were asked to gather trend information and stimuli for menswear whilst in Paris. We were then required to produce a five minute presentation and a mood board to show the findings.

This information was then collected in Paris through photographs, leaflets postcards, sketches, samples, observations and purchases.

The specific areas that we had to focus on was fabric/ fabric technology, street style, advertising, media, in store marketing and merchandising. We also had to take into account influences from cultures, historical and popular culture. This can be taken from visiting museums such as the Louvre, Galaries Lafayette, Palace De Tokyo, Colette, Baccarat and many more.

These are a few of the slides on my presentation. The first two were the identification of trends noticed on the high street and the last one is just a little collage for the last page just to bring all the slides together.

Jour Six

Travelling Home.

0715am

Au revoir Paris!!!

After an early start I thought it would be sensible to try and get some more sleep. I think I managed a good 4 hours overall. The daylight restricted my sleeping. So we watched Legally Blonde, I am Legend and 500 Days of Summer. I slept through the last one. Movies are the best way to pass time.

It was such a relief to arrive back in the UK. So so tired. I still don't think that I have fully recovered.

Jour Cinq

Friday 12th February

0745am

Premiere Vision. Wow! My pass above that I had scanned all day long. It was such an amazing day!! It was long and busy, But oh well I made the most of it. The only let down is that we weren't allowed to take pictures :(.

FORUM GENERAL ABOVE

Forum General gave an overview of the fabrics and key trends that could be identified through out the show. This area would include Regenerated Tailoring, Cheeky Opulence, Sparkling Nonchalance and many more. One main area that I took an interest in was the Seduction area. This included different laces & chiffons with coutre-style bulky looks.

SEDUCTION BELOW

I really enjoyed this trip. Towards the end of the day I must admit that I was very tired having been on my feet all day. Nevertheless the experiencing was overwhelming and very educating. I feel that I got so much from this visit.

In particular a textile company from Italy known as Lanificio who provides fabrics for Paul Smith, Nicole Fahri and Burberry Prorsum. Amazing. What a great start to the day. There was no way all 12 in the group were likely to stay together. So easy enough we separated. I spent most of the day with Rachel, Georgie, Kirsty and Hayley. A good small group. Anyway back to my story. One man Mr Daniele Sanzeni. He stood out, he was so inspiring and a pleasure to spent about 40minutes with. At first we were quite intimidated, but we soon relaxed.

Mr Sanzeni was so amazing. He told us about his career. From travelling to Hong Kong and China at such a young age. This weekend I am making it a necessity to send him an e-mail. I hope he remembers me? Anyway I really enjoyed listening to him and spent the rest of the day satisfied.

So for the rest of the day we explored the show with trend forecasting such as WGSN then moving through to Pantone and other company's to have a look at.

After a long long day, where many had already left we all made our way to the coaches at 1600pm. On return to the hotel we all had a few hours to relax and pack. All twelve of us made our way to Cafe De Ville for our last celebratory meal followed by drinks. The burger, OMG it was mouth watering! I was slightly disappointed from the turn out of everyone for group drinks. Ah wellll! We had fun all the same.

Then it was some pretty funny times on the Metro back to the hotel and then to pack a little more and then sleep!

Jour Quatre

Thursday 11th February

0900am

In the morning our group of twelve split into two groups of six. Kirsty, Sarah B, Sarah L, Kat, Jess and myself made our way to Galeries Lafayette. It was pretty amazing!! The centre of the building was surrounded with so many make-up stands. The decor and nostalgia of the building was really cool. Lunch consisted of a small pastry place down the road with an amazing chicken salad baguette. Yum Yum! It was only 4euros. I am really glad Miss Sarah B knew about Lafayette to visit. This is where we all managed to get a few snaps of menswear street style.

I also noticed that there were huge banners hung around advertising the collaboration and launch of Kate Moss's new handbag range with Longchamp. It was really cool to see with the different variations of adverts as well as the products themselves.

So after our visit to Lafayette we took a quick visit to Colette where we bumped into quite a lot of friendly faces from both FMB & FCP. We then left and managed to meet up with the other group and become a twelve again!! We met them in the Louvre. This was cool. We knew how big the Louvre was so we decided to head straight towards the famous Mona Lisa. Do excuse the cheesy picture of me with Mona. This day was so long!

After a rest in the Louvre we walked to the Notre Dame Cathedral. It was so beautiful and peaceful. I loved it. It was so tranquil. I really enjoyed seeing the cathedral. After this we then found a cute Cafe. Where we all indulged into Nutella Crepes. Yum. At this point a few of the girls received messages from there friends with the breaking news of Alexander McQueens unfortunate death!! We were all so shocked and couldn't believe it! Lets hope he is in a happier place.

Seeing as we couldn't access the Eiffel Tower on Wednesday, five of us from the group decided to make the most of our Thursday evening by visiting the Eiffel Tower. I was joined by Hayley, Rachel, Georgie and Sarah L. We were successful. OMG it was freezing & so so windy. We were only on the first floor as well. All the same the views were amazing with everything lit up. We were also fortunate to experience the Tower lit up with sparkling lights too. It was amazing.

We then took the Metro back to the hotel.

I feel our group made the most of each day and managed to squeeze so much into them. At this point we were so tired. Early night was on the cards for the early start for Premiere Vision the next day!! Night night.

Jour Trois II

Street Style

Menswear Trends

Here is a few snippets from the street styles that were recognized when wandering the streets of Paris.

Smart shoes.

I love this brown pair. Excellent choice.

Again this black pair of shoes was paired with a casual trouser.

Man Bag

This trend was definitely identified frequently on the high street.

These two gentlemen were approached by twelve FMB girls. I can imagine quite daunting. We pulled our cameras out in the hope of a few snaps. We got lucky. There was a third, but he got camera shy! I love the guys choice of clothing. Trainer shoes that are worn remind me of Fred Perry's on the left. Both sporting a denim casual look, which is also quite smart. Particularly with the guy on the left. I love the specs! Big fan.

Again young consumers adopting the pump type trainers which give quite a smart look rather than the normal white trainer. Not a fan of the style of the guy on the left! Or really any of them. To be nice. They're ok.

Such sneaky pictures!!

I unfortunately only managed to get the back of these men. However there is a distinct trend with the man bags reoccurring. They both looked so cool, but I didn't want to be too rude. They both sport long tailored smart coats. Tailoring is a forever growing trend increasing the smart element of the clothing. This was also reinforced at Premier Vision. I love the addition of the scarf and the cute hat! Scarves are very popular too, particularly with the cold weather.

Jour Trois

0830hr

Exploring

First on the agenda was to visit Baccarat. First impressions amazing! Just how I pictured it. When we were being briefed before the trip pictures were shown. I managed to get similar ones. The best part? The toilets of course! They were so cool! The picture in the bottom left hand corner of Sarah is the seating area in the toilets. They were like a boudoir. The light fittings were extravagant and beautiful. The glass wear in the cabinets were amazing and were taken from different periods of time and go as far back as the 1800's. They were so delicate and intricate. I loved this visit it was definitely worth it!! Whilst in Baccarat it began to heavily snow. Bad times. I definitely wasn't prepared or thinking straight when i decided to wear my doll shoes. Wet and cold feet.

On our list of things to do next was to visit Palace De Tokyo, however it wasn't open until 1200hr. So we managed to occupy ourselves by walking through this French market. I loved it. Snails anyone?

Afterwards we toured round Palace De Tokyo. Unfortunately there were not many exhibitions on. However I found the book shop with plenty of magazines to look through interesting. We also visited another museum next to the Tokyo, however the name has conveniently slipped my mind. The museum contained art work from artists like Picasso and Robert Delaunay. From here we could see the Eiffel Tower. Woooo!

After Palace De Tokyo we had a bite to eat at a cute pastry place. We then made our way to Arc de Triomphe. I loved it. There were many complaints of how cold it was, however I was not too bothered. I wanted the pictures more than anything. Big smiles. Nearby we went into a museum with an amazing book shop containing some really cool magazines. I could have stayed hours.

To finish off an extremely busy day. We all visited the Eiffel Tower. So many picture opportunities. I loved the Eiffel Tower. Unfortunately the Eiffel Tower was closed due to the wind and icy conditions.

Jour Deux

Tuesday 9th February 2010

0745am

Versailles

Ohh dear. Waking up was a killer!! Breakfast help wake us all up with a selection of jams, croissants, French sticks, ham & cheese, cereal & yoghurt's with plenty to drink.

Both FMB & FCP got onto their coaches and began the journey to Versailles. To ease the journey the film Marie Antoinette was played. This helped everyone understand the story of the French Revolution and Marie Antoinette's role. When I saw Versailles it felt amazing! Greeted with towering golden gates and structured, powerful palace. We managed to get in free, benefits of a student!

The images above are just a snippet of what was experience in Versailles. Amazing? Yes! I absolutely loved the luxurious furniture the intricate detail on the walls, doors and even the marble fire places. The ceilings were of great interest, the paintings were spectacular and the same with those hung upon the walls. The light fittings were so beautiful with such detail. All objects including candle holders, clocks, book cases to the feet on the furniture. I strolled slowly through Versailles reading the details of the paintings and regularly loosing everyone in the group.

I gathered a few leaflets with information, it was just how I imagined and more. It was spectacular, beautiful and just AMAZING!

A decision was made to return to the hotel earlier than planned due to the weather conditions. It was a shame to not see the gardens of Marie Antoinette. Ohh well! Upon return to the hotel our group of six turned into a group of twelve where we headed to Cafe De Ville for evening drinks. Prior to this we all found a place to eat dinner before making our way for drinks. The turn out was not too bad. I opted for a Kiwi Cooler! Yum Yum.

I really enjoyed the night. We all got on amazingly and shared lots of laughter & getting to know one another. Games were played such as our chicken game, sign language was exchanged and the group were asked if were on the programme ladette to lady. The cheek of it!! When leaving for the evening we all gave ourselves a number from one - twelve. I was one. Just a check to see if we were all their. So so funny. Something where you 'have to be there.'

We returned to the room where Barnes, Lawson and myself fell asleep!! Having two Sarah's proved to be very difficult! :)

Jour Un

Travelling

Monday 8th February 2010

1230 hr

During Paris..

Nottingham Trent's FMB & FCP students began their journey in the early hours of Monday morning. The journey went perfectly. I woke up a couple of times, but managed to sleep most of the way! Hallelujah! We soon arrived at the hotel in good time at half past 12pm in Paris.

Even though we were all exhausted we split into a group of six which consisted of Jessica Earland, Sarah Lawson, Sarah Barnes, Kathryn Brown, Kirsty Givelin and myself where we decided to make the most of the trip. With Miss Barnes excellent skills on the Metro we headed straight for Sacré Coeur and the Moulin Rouge. The view from the Sacré Coeur was amazing, it's a shame about the weather. Rain. We continued to explore and then later find somewhere to eat. OMG one coke 7euros!!! I opted for the tap water.

Afterwards we returned to the hotel with wine. Not a fan. The only equipment we had to open was a fork. Thanks to commitment and numerous attempts the bottles were finally opened. Bedtime was early, the start tomorrow would cause great shock to our systems!

Day 1 was a success with sights already seen and an experience of the French culture.

Bonne Nuit!

Au Revoir!

Bye Bye!!!!
Saturday when I return I will deliver a report on the exciting things FMB got up to!!!

30 minutes!

With Sarah and Jess!!!
YAY.
Hair to do!

XXXXXX

1 hour to go!

Today has been so busy.

Leave boyfriends, Pack a little! Netball at 3. Earn some dollar for an hour!

Busy busy busy!!

Made food, packed food! Too much? Definitely not.

I thought I was organised. I was.

Now I'm rushing. 45 minutes to go.

Will I sleep? Who knows.

Desperate Housewives amazing!!

I can't wait!

Sarah, Sarah and Jess making their way over soon. YAY.

Triple Boudoir.

Friends forever.

I love these girls.

YAY! I'm so excited. Midnight feasts and lots of photos to be taken between the three of us!

Also very pleased we are living together next year! :)

I'm so happy to share the room.

Woooooooooooooo!

Photographs.

An unfortunate event occurred last Wednesday when my poor Fujifilm had to be replaced. With so much excitement the camera dropped to rest.

However..

meet,

my new friend!

Lets get snapping!!

So its Saturday?

Ohh yes its that time!

Just put my suitcase on the bed.

A pile of clothes waiting to be ironed & another wash to put on!

Definitely excited now!

Sunday tomorrow!

Means PARIS.

Our course leaders have provided us with a well structured itinerary to keep us busy and guide us to use our time in the best way possible. Not a suck up or anything but think I definitely picked the best course!

Day one.

Travel Day

Arrival time 13:00hrs Monday 8th.

Chanel anyone?

Day two.

Tuesday 9th.

Versailles.

7:45am start. Sympathize much? Ohh well. OMG! I am so excited for this trip. A Levels I studied the French Revolution with Marie Antoinette and Louis XIV. I'm so excited. All I've experienced is text books and paintings. It will be such an experience to visit as I will really understand the background of Versailles. So excited to visit here!

Following this social drinks will be on the cards.

De La Ville Cafe: 34 Boulevard De Bonne Novelle.

Dress to impress.

The famous & outrageous spender Marie Antoinette.

Ohhh lala. Amazing. Versailles and the gardens. Beautiful, really cannot wait.

Day three.

Wednesday 10th.

Musée Baccarat.

Afternoon.

Fondation Pierre Berge Yves Saint Laurent.

Plenty of time given to explore the out skirts of Paris & travel on the Metro. Cooool!

Moulin Rouge would definitely be a place I would like to visit.

Day four.

Thursday 11th.

Major Museums to choose from.

Musee D'Orsay, Pompidou Centre and Louvre.

Day five.

Friday 12th.

Premier Vision.

7:45am crazzzy!

Long long day! Definitely will be worth it!

Drinks for the last night. Same place.

Day six.

Saturday 13th.

Travelling home.

Time will fly by.

Just in time for Valentines day. <3

:(

I never bought that top.

A few days to go.

But I have to order if I want discount.

Student budget.

I'll leave it.

Rather spend it in Paris.

Ohh well.

:):):)

Two more sleeps to go...

Just about to go out and grace my presence in the Nottingham scene!

Tomorrow is the day packing will begin.

I went to the shops today to get a few bits and pieces.

Food galore.

I think I'm prepared.

Soon Paris will be on the cards.

Photographs will be documenting my experiences.

I can't wait.

Definitely got my Euros too.

Will it be enough?

I have no idea.

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday!!!

Jour Six

Ahhhh! Six Jour.

The countdown is still going.

It's distracting me from my visual essay. Blogging is definitely constructive.

I can't wait until Paris.

<3

Organised?

Bonjour!

Voici..

Passport, Check!
Information book, Check!

Passport.

I will definitely be needing this!

I heart. <3

I bought this last week as I was in need of a new bag. (That's what I told myself)! Love student loan. I saw this and thought it would be perfect to travel with and take everywhere around Paris. I decided to do a few shots this morning of a couple of necessities that I will be taking for the build up of Paris.

Of course some of my BarryM nail varnishes will be experiencing Paris.

Blue is currently my favourite.

Top was purchased last week. I love it.

I really like the stripes.

Connecting hearts.

Just a sneaky peak as to the few things that I have been wanting to pack already!

With an hour to go we will be arriving in Paris!