Winter blue

2014 had come in with a vengeance.  Hail storms, gale force winds and flooding.  Living in the South of England has put us in the heart of all the destruction, but thankfully, we are in a great place and its all just seemed to unfold around us.  This year's resolutions have taken a while to unfold, in fact I am still working on them!

Being the perfectionist that I am, I have decided to put a hold on selling my designs.  Despite graduating my Fashion degree with a distinction, I am still not completely confident with my level of technical ability in my sewing.  I have decided to spend this year perfecting my technical skill and experimenting with design.  This will give me a chance to achieve the second part my resolution: lose some weight.  In the last two years of my degree, I met my wonderful boyfriend.  He was a great cook and introduced me to delicious meals whenever we met.  As we met more often, the meals became more regular and the pounds started packing on.  This year I intend on reclaiming my original comfortable size.  The size where I certainly do not have a double chin!

In the meantime I whipped up this little number as part of my autumn wardrobe.  Its one of favourite colours and I loved the drape of the fabric.

After happily ever after, what next?

In the afterglow of showcasing my final collection and graduating my Fashion degree, the stark reality of what do with my life was a little too scary to contemplate, so I hibernated for a few months in the summer under the pretext of 'recovery'.



 As Autumn leaves hit the ground, there was no alternative but to bite the bullet and face the question, "What next?".  Living in a bustling seaside town, close to the wild and beautiful Dartmoor in England, Fashion was hardly the life blood of the city.

 

As luck would have it, just before I began to pull my hair out with worry, word of a lecturing position came my way and a few weeks later I began lecturing fashion and textiles at the Art College I graduated from.  I was over the moon, but still had to consider what I REALLY wanted to do with my life! 

 

My collection was much more than the manifestation of my fantastical world in 'Romy' land. It was the culmination of years of change and self-development.  It was the manifestation of how much I had achieved, and an attestation of the happiness and fulfilment I had finally found in my life.

 

Reptile eyes digital print design on silk chiffon

 

Archaic Medusa digital print design on silk jersey

 

For me personally, fashion has been an evolution from following trends to developing my own style.  What I really design everyday, is what I want to wear.  The reality of fashion and style for me is more than the flashing lights and catwalk shows, its about the average woman standing before her bulging closet of ill-fitting clothes and yet this season's trend must haves, sighing, "I have nothing to wear!".

 

As a curvy thirty-something year old, I am beginning to realise that trends have nothing to do with style, and certainly almost never suit every shape and size.  What do I want to design?  Clothes that I want to wear.  Clothes that fit me.  Clothes that flatter a shape that closer to a cocoa cola bottle than a chopstick, and thighs that make a chicken's look like gazelle's. That's what I want to design.  Real- woman clothes.

 

So what's this blog about?  Its a fashion blog showcasing my design inspiration, my production journey and when complete a styling blog to show you how I would style my garment. Lets get started..