Reflective Journal. #fcp

I found task two a challenging task due to the low word count however, this has now provided me with the skill to cut down sentences and just show the important facts. I found creating the mood boards for this test very exciting as I knew in my head the exact consumer profile so I knew the type of images I wanted to include in the board. Doing small drawings to include in the task 2 report has made me look at drawing in a whole knew way. I found that the most effective drawings are the simple sketches that only have a small amount of colour on them to make the outline pop. Also the less detail on the drawing the better to make it look more visually attractive. Creating the mood boards and visual consumer profiles widened my creativity skills as I had to think about the colour, the font, they type of images I wanted to use and the layout of the images which will help me in future products. My group have chosen to create a mist that can be worn in the sun as a perfume as when perfume is worn in the sun it can create very serious burns which can then lead to skin cancer. Not many women knew about this so we wanted to make it more known to protect the lifestyle of others. Our big idea is to prevent women from burning in the sun die to perfume. We know women like wearing perfume as much as possible to disguise their natural scent however, at this point perfume can’t be worn in intense sun as it increases the risk of sun burns and skin cancer by a huge amount according to doctors. I customer insight is ‘I want to feel protected in the sun while smelling great!’ this body mist will give women the confidence they need while staying away from burning skin. Our product insight would be fruity SPF mist that is natural, non alcoholic and protected against ultra violate. As an extra we were thinking of making the design of the bottle and the smell link to different cocktails to give the brand and product a summery, holiday feel. Creating task 2 has now prepared me for this next task as I know more facts about the perfume industry and also about the effects of wearing perfume in the sun. At this point I need to concentrate more on my writing as I feel as though sometimes I can write too much about one thing so it seems boring when I could just get to the point quicker and save myself the spare words. I also need to keep practicing with my drawings to make them stand out and relate to the product.

London Bound.

The other week I was lucky enough to visit one of my favourite places with my boyfriend. I love going to London and seeing all of the beautiful buildings and sights and exploring the culture. For anyone that is planning on going to London I definitely recommend going up the Shard. For Christmas my boyfriend and I got a gift certificate to go up the Shard and I can honestly say it was one of the best experiences I have had. The view of London on that sunny day was incredible. Being able to see all of the buildings and sights that you had only seen in movies was breathtaking. They also had a 'where's Wally' game for the children to play, where the characters from the book were painted onto some of the buildings below the Shard, and you had to find all of them to then win a prize, which I was so tempted to play until I saw that everyone who was playing was about 10 years old! 

As well as shopping of course, after spending some time up the Shard and taking some beautiful pictures we went sight seeing to Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament and Big ben. How could you not go and see them while you're in London! I have to say, eating a van bought waffle outside of Buckingham Palace was definitely one of my favourite moments as well as watching a street dance show outside the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square. 

I can't wait to go back to London and see all of those beautiful places again and eat all of the amazing food!

Shelby xxx

Design In a Nutshell.

For anyone who has any interest in the major design movements, I really recommend you watch these short animated videos to widen your knowledge.

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2013/06/11/design-in-a-nutshell-open-university/

There are six short videos including one on Gothic Revival, The Arts and Crafts, Bauhaus, Modernism, American Industrial Design and Postmodernism. 

The video that I found the most interesting was Modernism, as it showed me how history is interpreted today. Modernists looked at film, music, art, graphic design ect, to find ways on how they could improve it. Artists such as Picasso, started to look as his world differently and portrayed his thoughts in his art. Monet, who was an impressionist, started trying to paint light. Architecture’s were finding more modern materials to build with such as glass and steel as the modernists thought that they could design a better society. 

Please watch these videos which are found on the link above as they really do make you think differently about the world of design in the past, present and future.

Shelby xxx

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