Parisian Chic Fashion Show.

On 22nd March I was lucky enough to be a model in my Mums Parisian Chic fashion show held at The boot in Lapworth. The whole event was for moonwalk for breast cancer and she raised over £2000 for the charity which is a huge success. 

"It went really well. Everyone enjoyed the evening, the models were all very professional and looked amazing in the clothes. The evening raised £2000 for charity which was great" Viv Gough (owner of Parisian Chic) 

I found the whole event to be extremely fun and professional. The customers were enjoying their two course meal with a seasonal catwalk show in between each course. They enjoyed the music and the charity raffle which was held at the end. 

I love this brand and I think the clothes are amazing and exactly my style. I am very lucky as I can get some of the items for free or a discounted price as it is my mum who is selling them. But, the prices are very reasonable anyway with dresses starting from only £10!

There will be more fashion shows and parties in the future so please all attend! The clothing is beautiful and different from anything else you will find on the high street. 

Please sign up to her website to be emailed all the upcoming events and offers.
http://www.parisianchicbyviv.co.uk

Thanks guys! 

Shelby xxx

Parisian Chic by Viv.

Recently, my Mum had successfully created her own company called Parisian Chic, where she sells clothes that are hard to find on a typical high street. 

I spoke to my Mum about the reasons why she set up her company and this is what she said “the inspiration for business came from lady I met on holiday who did something similar in London. Ever since I was a little girl I have loved fashion. My French Mother used to dress us beautifully. I have worked in retail management in my past career so quite experienced. I have had loads of shopping experience!! With a sister in Paris I thought I could go & buy stock from there & sell in a party atmosphere. Like Tupperware or Pampered Chef. Therefore not having overheads of a shop & able to work part time. I absolutely love it.”

I am very proud of my Mum for creating this company and so far she has been doing really well and selling a large amount of her stock at her own events, parties and selling to parents at school fairs. 

My Mum is a perfectionist which I think is what makes her business so successful. She makes sure that every item she buys is top quality for her customers and the events she holds are ones to remember! 

Please sign up to her website, you will love it!!! I will leave the link below! 

http://www.parisianchicbyviv.co.uk

Shelby xxx

Fashion History.

Today we had a seminar on the history of fashion and we had a look at some of the worlds previous fashion heroes. 

Juliette Récamier (1777–1849)

The lady we looked at was Juliette Récamier (1777–1849). She was famous for her beauty and came to represent her generation. The painting below of her was a very popular one due to the confidence shown while wearing little clothing and portraying her unique style. She is very post revolution and i would say her style in the previous generation was Mary Antoinette. Her style in the paintings show punk, bravery and danger which highlights her personality. The fact that she is almost nude conveys a sensual vibe yet her pose shows her lazy, not bothered personality.
In this generation I would say the modern day Juliette Récamier is Kate Moss due to her daring personality and sensual pictures.

Beau Brummell (1778 – 1840)
Beau Brummell changed the direction of fashion completely and created the new classic look. He showed himself to be a prince who took charge during the regency period. He would wear the modern male suit and would have his boots washed with champagne to show his power and wealth.
I would say the most modern Beau Brummell is Russel Brand as he has a very unique style that no one can really pull off or match as it relates perfectly to his personality.

Cleo de Merode (1875-1966)
Cleo de Merode was the birth of photography. People would collect her postcards which just had a picture of her on them because of her sensual yet elegant look. People would constantly be copying her haircut as everything about her was considered the most attractive and the most beautiful. She was called the beauty of the bell and she had a face that could sell anything. She had such a unique style and could get away with wearing anything. She wore a lot of head accessories to highlight her facial features.
I think the modern day Cleo de Merode would be Lady Gaga as she has a different style to anyone else which I think definitely increases her fame.

Task 1, Presentation. #fcp

Today we had a group presentation which was our first task in our fragrance project. The task was to find our story which meant we were required to demonstrate an understanding of the context of the scent market. We had to present 3 potential opportunities/ insights that we have identified through research and find new narratives, future brand messages and innovation.

Our first idea was to create a scented mist that can be worn in the sun as women want to be able to wear perfume on the beach and around the pool without getting sunburnt from it. Unfortunately perfume attracts the sun to your skin and can burn the skin very badly even with sun cream on top.

“Prescription drugs, over-the-counter pain relievers, herbal remedies such as St. John’s wort, perfumes, exfoliating skin care products, and even some sunscreens can increase sensitivity to the sun” (Elizabeth Lee). People get really serious burns because of applying perfume directly to the skin and then exposing it to sunlight due to the chemicals and oils that are used in perfume. 

This perfume issue is increasing health concerns of sun burn leading to cancer. After doing a survey we received many positive responses about having a perfume that worked as a sun cream as many other women have experienced bad sunburns just from wearing perfume. 

Women said that the experience of burning due to perfume had ruined their holiday as they had to wear a t-shirt over their burn and also they experienced their skin peeling on their chest due to the perfume burn. 

Our second idea  was to create a fake tan that smells like a perfume as 89% of consumers complain about the distinct smell of fake tan. Results from our survey showed that 29/66 people wanted their fake tan to smell of their favourite perfume. Everyone that we asked stated that they disliked the smell of fake tan as it is a giveaway that its being worn. Consumers also said the smell of the fake tan puts them off purchasing which obviously harms the companies income. Fake tan has become a huge trend across Britain and the consumer’s demand has increased vastly over the past few years.

St Tropez is one of the leading self-tanning products in the UK and sells three bottles of bronzing mousse a minute around the world. Nowadays, 41% of women use self-tanning products which is  very high percentage. Websites such as vouchercloud.com search for fake tan increased by 243% over the past 12 months. Although there are products out there who have claimed to have masked the notorious scent, masses of online reviews and answers from our peers show that there is still a gap in the market for our idea

Our final idea was to create a sporty fabric softener that reacted to the smell and feel of sweat. The trend of having a healthy and active lifestyle is very popular at the moment as more people are attending the gym, eating healthy and following healthy lifestyle pages on social media. Most women that we spoke to said that they are afraid to go to the gym because of the way they will smell and sweat. Fitness bloggers/Instagramers are creating many opportunities for sports brands and sports products so we thought we would have a go at one. In April 2015, it stated that 63% of users agree that long-lasting fragrance is the most important product attribute and 42% of deodorant users agree that deodorants do not last as long as they claim to. Deodorant brands have already tried to target the sports market with long lasting sprays eg. 48 hour protection, although not for clothing only for the skin (armpits). 

We found that our perfume that can be worn in the sun was our favourite idea as we knew it would benefit many people and we knew out consumer profile straight away.

A blog about task 2 will be up soon so keep checking out my blog! 

Shelby xxx

An Introduction to Perfumery.

Here's a few science facts about perfume.... A sense of smell is in my opinion underused as smell can define a taste, it can trigger memories and it can remind you of certain people or objects. You can only smell something that evaporates into your nose and you smell with something called the olfactory bulb. The reason we can smell is because impulses flow to the brain via the hypothalamus. Perfume today is 95-99% synthetic and natural due to the popularity of using natural ingredients that smell fresh and new. 

What is fragrance? 

It sounds like a simple question when in fact its much more than what you think. Fragrance is a way of communicating without words. It's a way of triggering memories that have been lost for years. These memories then create a range of emotions which then cause reactions. So a fragrance isn't just there to make you smell nice. It can be anything from the terrible smell of cow poo that can trigger the best memories or the beautiful smell of a candle that can trigger the worst. 

We were told that when creating our fragranced product we needed to think if it reminded us of something which will then help us create the promotion around the idea. It is very important when it comes to communication and promotion to use words that others can understand because if no one can understand the main word, then no one will buy the product so the words must be kept within out target market. 

Perfume is formed in notes. The top note, the middle note and the base note. The top note is the first impression of the fragrance. This evaporates most quickly off the skin and is the selling point as it is the first impression. The middle note is the heart or characteristic of the fragrance. This includes smells such as rose, jasmine, herbal and floral. This stays on longer than the top note. The base note gives body and longevity to the fragrance that includes smells such as coumarin and vanillin. This note is synthetic and smells a bit like ice cream. 

I hope you enjoyed reading this blog post about perfume. There is more to come.

Shelby xxx

My Opinion on the Anastasia Beverly Hills Cream Contour Kit.

When I went to New York, I purchased the Anastasia Beverly Hills cream contour kit from Sephora in shade light. I have to admit, I am not 100% satisfied with the product but that could just be because it doesn’t work well on my skin, it’s obviously going to be different for different people. I find the application of the make up quite challenging as I find that when it is on my face it is hard to blend in and when it is blended it doesn’t give me the look I want, but maybe that’s just because full contour doesn’t suit me, I don’t know. 

In some ways I do wish I got the powder contour kit, as I have found out that powder works better with my skin, and I find it much easier to blend powder. However, after applying the product then applying my usual powders after, the product left me with a beautiful contour finish which I am extremely happy with, as now it defines my face more than it does using just my powders. I definitely think I just need to practice more and watch more tutorials on how to use the product as I am not going to lie, I’m not the best at doing make up. 

I do recommend this product, as the colours are great for contouring however, I do advise people to either ask someone in the store to help you choose the right tone and whether to choose cream or powder or even test it on your skin first before buying it. I have no regrets on buying this product and it is a great kit I definitely just need practice with it. 

I hope you found this useful! 

Shelby xxx