I've been here for about a year and a half now and just thought I'd dedicate a little post to places in london that all fashion students should know about, well, the ones I know anyway. I doubt I've covered even half.

Note: All images are from google maps.

Fabrics.

Berwick Street is probably one of the most common places people go for fabrics, if you can afford the slightly pricier price tags that come with the fabrics. There are quite a few fabric stores in the area, my personal favourite to go to for fabrics or even just for inspiration/swatches if you're not buying any fabrics.

Nearest tube station: Oxford Circus

• Misan Fabrics (http://www.misan.co.uk)

47 Berwick Street, London W1F8SJ (Open from Monday to Saturday 9:30 to 6:00, 10:00 on Saturday)

One of two cloth house stores, this one specialises more in organic fabrics, cottons, linens and has a slightly bigger selection of bindings, buttons, ribbons. There are two floors. Allowed up to 3 or 4 free samples per student.

• Cloth House 

98 Berwick Street, London W1F0QJ (Same opening times as above)

The second of the two stores, one of the reasonably priced fabric stores that offer a great selection of quality fabrics as well. You can find all sorts of fabrics such as silks, japanese polyester fabrics (which feel amazing!), georgettes, tulle, velvet, silk chiffon, jersey, tailoring fabrics, wool, neoprene and many more "experimental" odd, textured fabrics. There are two floors, the first floor mainly stocking silks, japanese fabrics and some trimmings while the bottom floor has all sorts of tailoring, wool, stretch, jersey and neoprene fabrics. Decent prices, I believe the japanese polyester fabrics range between 15 to 25 pounds, silk jerseys are about 30+ pounds, wools are around the 40 pound range. 10% student discount.

• The Silk Society (http://www.thesilksociety.com)

As you can probably tell from the name, the store specialises in silks. Quite an expensive store, I remember asking for a sample of an amazing fabric which cost 125 pounds. Good selection of all kinds of silk fabrics from the plains to the extra jazzy ones. They do offer a few samples.

• Broadwick Silks (http://www.broadwicksilks.com)

• BiddleSawyer Silks (http://www.biddlesawyersilks.com)

Another of my favourite stores that offer a really good selection of beautiful fabrics although it can be quite expensive. There are two floors stocking all sorts of fabrics from silk organzas to silks, printed fabrics, jazzy print linings. Last time I asked for a sample of a gorgeous silk embossed fabric for a project, the price on the card was 85 pounds so it definitely isn't the cheapest option. Free samples are offered.

• Borovick Fabrics (http://www.borovickfabricsltd.co.uk)

I don't recall visiting this store so I can't really comment much on this one. 

• The Berwick Street Cloth Shop (http://www.theberwickstreetclothshop.com)

Do not judge this store based on its exterior shell. The window displays may look a little scary and the insides may look a little cluttered but it does have a rather good selection of fabrics as well, such as printed silks, plain silks, laser cut fabrics, embroided and embellished fabrics, velvet, lace. You can request a few samples (and they do rather large samples too!). Price of a sample of a plain washed sort of stretchy silk I asked for last trip was 59 pounds. 

Edware Road does have a couple of fabric stores as well though I haven't been there myself.

Nearest tube station: Edgware Road.

• Joel & Sons Fabrics (http://www.joelandsonfabrics.com/)

I haven't had a chance to visit this store yet, it was recommended by a friend that is one of the most amazing fabric stores she's been into. It's amazing if you're looking for inspiration however be warned, they are quite expensive. I was told they are about 120, 130 pounds. They offer all sorts of fabrics from linen (which I've been told is good), silks, jersey, mesh, jacquard, viscose, wool, everything really! From what I can see from their site, the range and collection of fabrics they have do look stunning. 

• Jason Fabrics (http://www.jasonsfabrics.com)

Found this online while I was searching for Joel & Sons. From what it says on their website, there are two floors selling designer silk prints, french lace and printed cotton voiles. Some designer brands include Valentino, Gianfranco Ferre. From their pictures on the site, the store does look rather impressive, and possibly expensive.

Shepherd's Bush. I think this one goes without saying that it's quite popular amongst fashion students including myself if you're looking for a more affordable option. I often go there for toile fabrics or if you're looking for plain georgettes and crepes, they are much cheaper. Of course there are stores where quality is questionable so often you'd have to do some digging and searching amongst all the stores to find the best bargain and quality fabric. There are fabric shops on both sides of the road, quite a number of stores with a big selection of fabrics although many stores often sell the same products. I once got cheap lining for a toile for 1 pound, satin fabrics for about 3 pounds, polyester chiffons for 2/3 pounds, sand washed silk for about 14 pounds, crepes are about 5-10 pounds depending on what you get. They also sell calico for a very reasonable price. Amongst the fabric stores, there are one or two stores that have a second floor stocking threads, ribbons, needles, zips, bias bindings, hooks, anything you need to construct a garment basically. Also keep in mind certain stores might not accept cards unless it's a pretty big amount. They do give out samples but only on weekdays and often the samples are quite tiny. 

Nearest tube station: Goldhawk Road.

I'm sure there are plenty more places for fabrics in London, all you need to do is a google search and there'd be a billion results but these are the ones that I have heard of and know a little more about. I know that other possible places for cheap fabrics could also be Brixton though the quality could be very questionable. 

Haberdashery.

• William Gee (https://williamgee.co.uk)

Nearest tube station: Dalston Junction.

Discovered this place while I was on placement at Antonio Berardi. They sell all sorts of threads, sewing equipment (needles, unpickers, scissors, anything!), bias, binding, shoulder pads, boning, webbing, some basic fabrics, zips. Prices are fairly reasonable, Moon threads for about 1.10 pounds, they also have guttermann threads. 

26-28 Cambridge Heath Road, Whitechapel, E1 5QH (Open from Monday to Friday 9:30 to 5:30, closed between 12:45 to 2:45 on Friday)

Nearest tube station: Whitechapel.

Another haberdashery store well stocked with all threads, hooks, fastenings, zips, dyes, anything you need. They are a wholesale store so basically, threads are cheaper to buy in a whole box (of 10 I think). Gutterman top stitching threads are about 3+ pounds.

Other places worth a visit.

The spitafields/shoreditch area is a good place to visit when you're bored on a nice sunny day with nothing to do. There are some interesting artsy/fashion stores that are tucked away. Definitely visit art galleries and museums whenever there are exhibitions on, the good (and obvious) ones are the V&A, Somerset House, Tate. Camden Town is a good start as well, although certain bits could be a little dodgy, it's a nice place to explore on a sunny afternoon. Saville Row, as intimidating as it is, is a must go to place for all fashion people, great street dedicating to bespoke tailoring. 

So there you have it, hope that's helped the people out there if you were like me when you first stepped foot into UK, absolutely clueless about fabrics, going into first year of fashion design at university. Good thing is you build on the knowledge as time goes by just from speaking with people, friends, tutors, a little self exploration and internships (they send you on these errands and you'd be amazed to discover all these new places!)

 the manic backstage.

 line up before the show (left) and the dressing area (right)

It's done. After five days of work and a very early morning, Antonio Berardi's autumn winter 2014 show is done. All I can say is there are absolutely no regrets, it was by far probably the most amazing experience I've had. I don't think there are any such words to describe it.

Day 1. 

The studio space they rented was amazing. Big, spacious with these massive windows so all the light came through into the studio. Lots of space, white and white flakey bits falling off the top of the ceiling.  Already it was a breath of fresh air from the tight space I've been stuck in the past few weeks. 

Ran a couple of studio errands, picking up some breakfast and lunch and unpacking of all the garments to hang them up onto the rails. My face when I first feast my eyes upon the collection must have been just popping right out of the sockets. Absolutely stunning and fabrics that were out of this world. I don't think I've seen such beautiful clothes. If I could, I would've grabbed the rails and just wheeled them out of the studio, I wanted every piece. Even though the gowns would drown me completely.

So then it's moving onto unpacking, arranging all the looks in the dressing area onto the rails with the shoes and look numbers. Since us three had the most complicated looks, we were assigned the area closest to the runway, literally, right behind which works just fine for me! Took a little peak at the runway in between the packing and oh man, the feeling when you walk onto a runway for the first time ever.

I had two look changes for my model, both a trouser and shoe change which is -, we'll just say it's evil in a time crunch. As if that wasn't enough, there was "trouser and shoe change, be fast!!!" written on my board. Ah, a lovely reminder of the amount of stress I'm under. Those boots are evil, they are laced up in the front, zip on the side and laces that tie around on the top. And we all know how the zips like to play out during stressful situations. They are never nice. 

The first look was a purple jacket, green trousers and a printed top (photo seven). Just in time, I got the look on and the model was called for the line up before walking out. It didn't really help with all the press in there, cameras going off, flashes going off, big photography things in the way but hey ho. The show started at about 9:15, 9:30 I believe and backstage was definitely thrown into the typical fashion show frenzy with people running about, models getting clothes ripped off them and chucked into another look. And there I was thinking, ah look 16 and 37, I'd be fine I've got so many looks in between to get her changed. How wrong I was.

Of course, naturally, the damn boots decided to act up and the zip was not going up or down and I could barely pull the shoes off her. Two more people popped over to help get them off while trying to get the trousers and jacket on her, zipping the boots up, tying the laces… basically, about 5 people working on that one look and then her name was being called while I was still grabbing onto those laces trying to tie them up, it was insane. 

It very well could have been a minute or two for the outfit change but it felt more like 5 seconds in that manic rush. But after that, it was done. Finished. The atmosphere backstage as everyone was squeezing around the TV trying to get a glimpse of the show, while clapping and cheering away at the finale was amazing. First experience at a proper designer fashion show, backstage and it was just so surreal. 

So where should I begin. It's been about 2 weeks now since I have moved into a tiny flat on Islington High Street, right above Vegas. That's right, I live above Vegas. It's like moving from the countryside straight into the heart of the city. Lights, people, cars. Every hour an ambulance goes by, the bus stops outside, people yelling, occasional crazies on the street. It takes some getting used to yet at the same time it's almost a love-hate feeling with the place. 

I love the fact that Sainsbury's and Waitrose are only 2 minutes away, M&S is right down the street along with a couple of charity shops. There's a Chinese takeaway directly downstairs which actually for once, serves pretty decent food. Chipotle, Tortilla, Byron and I am sure plenty others, are just close by. A cinema's just about a 2 minute walk away and Angel station is just opposite. Really I remember a couple months back when I was still in Chatham, if I realised I'd be living in this kind of a place, it'd be heaven with everything just a walk away. 

Don't get me wrong, it's great to be in the centre of everything but at the same time, when I went back to good ol' chatham yesterday, I can't believe these words would never come out of my mouth but I did miss it. Not the winds or hill though. 

It's been a rough 2 weeks so I'm hoping the days forward will be better. Ever since I moved here (temporarily), there were so many plans to go to every single corner of London and yet I never had the time to do it. Finally, today, I decided to get out of bed and move. And trust me to pick the day when the tube strikes are still going on. Let's just say, that supposedly 22 minute bus ride turned into a 45 minute bus ride down to Tottenham Court Station. It wasn't the best of experiences. The ridiculous rain and gloomy, dark weather with the freezing cold did not help either.

So I decided to take a little trip down to my usual shopping spots in London - Tkmaxx at Charing Cross Road. It's been awhile since I've been back there so I figured I might as well have a little go see, if I'm lucky I might find something. What I did not expect was for me to spend almost over 3 hours at the store, digging for some treasures. As I was about to leave empty handed, shockingly, I actually ended up making a purchase. 

I had probably gone through the Contemporary and Gold Label sections about 7 times while I was there and often it was either the question of how much I was willing to stretch the wallet or they did not have the sizes. What I found (and eventually bought) was - I'm still quite stunned. 

Calvin Klein Collection (Lana Wool and Silk Collarless Jacket) 

 

I have never seen one of these odd things before and neither do I have a clue what it is. Oddly enough, I don't mind it at all. In fact it seems to add a little life into the jacket and make me love it even more. So that was the only purchase I made today yet I walked out of there with the biggest grin on my face, until I realised how freezing cold it was which then I probably had the most ridiculous "cold" face on.

So then it was back to finding the bus stop to head back. There I was standing on the side of a street right to a makeshift "bus stop" stand waiting for the bus to arrive while balancing an umbrella in between my neck and shoulder, and texting away. Finally the bus arrives.