FRAGRANCE: WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

Alongside our group fragrance project brief presented to us this semester, another task we were recently given was to produce a fragrance trend booklet.  This was an individual task in which we had to use the software InDesign to create our 12 page, A5 booklet.  I found this brief to be one of the most exciting ones I have worked on since starting my course at uni as I felt it gave me the freedom to express and further my design skills.  Having used InDesign on a very basic level previous to this brief, I found I was learning and discovering new areas of the software the longer I used it.  

I focused my trends around 4 areas, props & styling, casting & model, location & place and the shape and silhouette of the fragrance bottle itself.  Within these areas I found micro trends that I feel will take over the fragrance industry in 2015, my favourite trend found within the casting and model category was 'The Bearded Man', after researching into campaign imagery from various fragrance and fashion advertisements, I found the rugged 'mountain climber/ biker man' is slowly but surely taking over from the impeccably dressed sophisticated business man. 

As part of Thursdays seminar we were asked to bring our trend booklets with us, we were then presented our work to our groups of 8.  When presenting our work we gave others an insight into our trend ideas and how we feel they will be used successfully in 2015.  Our booklets were then exchanged with another group and we were given the task of critically analysing 3 positive points and 3 areas they could improve.  Following on from this we were asked to select our top 3, these were then handed to another group where they were graded and then whittled down further to select the most successful trend booklet.  

I received a high 2:1 and my booklet was chosen as part of the top 8! I was so thrilled with how well my work had done in the peer assessment, with one of the main strengths of mine highlighted being my design and layout, something I spent agessss working on!  My booklet came second out of my seminar group of around 60 fellow students and I couldn't have been happier!

I found this session to be extremely beneficial as it highlighted the weaknesses in my work and how I can improve, the feedback I received from my peers was extremely constructive and enlightened me about areas of trend research I hadn't thought about when doing my initial research. 

I would appreciate any comments anyone has on my work, I'm always looking for places to improve.

becky x

THE BEARDED MAN

After being set the task of creating our own fragrance trend booklet using In-design, I started to gather my research into what I felt the new trends of 2015 will be within the fragrance industry and mainly their campaigns.  

The first thing I did was take to Pinterest and look at the most popular campaigns of 2014 and the key elements that run throughout.  The first thing I wanted to look at was casting, I found that in nearly all advertisements whether that be for fragrance or apparel, the male casting was following a clear trend.

Men with beards, you know the ones I mean, the outdoorsy looking kind, the ones that look like they should be driving a pick up truck in the day time whilst still being able to pull off that classic cut Armani suit.  

I even found a sub trend that sparked from ‘the bearded man’, beards adorned with flowers.  Who would have thought it? A facial asset associated with being a stereotypical ‘rugged man’, has now been accessorised with a feminine flare. 

I have to say though I am LOVING this new trend in facial hair, with a Mumford and Son’s vibe and hairy biker meets urban outfitters, what’s not to love about these beautiful males? I know I cant fault a man sporting a barnet that i’m all too jealous of! 

becky x

KANYE X ADIDAS

 

Mondays lecture was focussed on endorsements and collaborations, one collaboration that we’ve seen taking over the press in this past week is Kanye West and Adidas Originals.  This was a show in which we saw a new and interesting twist on the sportswear brand, with military inspired street wear taking the catwalk.

This is not the first time Kanye has collaborated with a sportswear brand, he has also worked alongside rivalry brand Nike, however after having restrictions put on his creativity, he chose to leave the brand.  This is something that doesn't seem to be apparent in his new collection with adidas, as we see the rappers style reflected throughout each garment and definitely over shadows adidas’s usual brand style. 

This collection is affordable and also accessible due to Adidas’s high street location.  This is something Kanye believed strongly about as he wanted his collection to be desirable to people from all walks of life.  I believe Adidas benefit massively from this collaboration, although the brand symbol is difficult to locate, they are still gaining a large amount of press and public awareness that they aren’t familiar with. 

I for one, am loving this collection! The androgynous apparel and minimalistic almost dull colour scheme is something I find desirable as a sportswear concept. Plus, how can you not love something when you see another one of the Jenner sisters sporting it so fabulously. 

Overall, the show seemed to be a huge success with the frow being taken up by the likes of Kanye's other half Kimmy K, Anna Wintour and Queen B herself, how could you not love a collection supported by those fabulous women?

becky x

TOM FORD: IN THE NUDE

After a relaxing 2 weeks off from the world of fashion and 9 am lectures, today was my first day back and i’m so relieved to be back in the swing of things. Never did I ever think I would say how boring it is having nothing to do!

Our first seminar was an interesting one as we were introduced to our new module of work.  FASH10106, will this be a good one? 

Our first task of the module was to bring in 20 fragrance advertisement tear out sheets, we then sat in our groups and discussed the pro’s and con’s of the most successful campaign of our choice. My group chose Tom Ford’s new campaign staring Cara Delevingne showcasing the fragrance, Black Orchid.  We found his ad promoted the brand successfully, with a strong theme of sensuality running throughout whilst still remaining in keeping with the humour and originality of the brand.  The purple hues running throughout the print represent luxury and wealthy alongside sexuality, this is then exaggerated through the nude figure, showing off all of her desirable curves. 

After finishing the seminar feeling like my knowledge of fragrance advertisements had risen, I then came home and started researching further into the world of Tom Ford. 

This is a brand I had rarely picked up on in the past in terms of their fragrances, although after seeing other campaigns i’m baffled as to how I managed to miss them?! Never before have I seen so many naked bodies being used in such a different way, who knew they could never get boring… 

The risqué nature alongside the humour and kitsch is present in every single ad and allows each one to remain in keeping with the strong brand identity, I think its safe to say that Mr Ford isn’t shy of controversy!

Happy Monday

becky x

A/W: 2015 - BARE TO BE BEAUTIFUL

Bare faced beauty looks and natural nudes are in... and isn't everyone as pleased as I am? Gone are the days of slapping on thick foundation and layering up the 1960's esque eyeliner.  Admittedly, I am extremely lazy when it comes to my make-up routine so this is a perfect trend for me and my early morning lectures.

As NY Fashion Week comes to a close and we welcome the emerging trends into London, I decided to take a moment to recap on the beauty looks seen so far in A/W 2015.  The images shown above are ones that I selected from a large range of designers, from the likes of Jason Wu, Rodarte and Narcisco Rodriguez to more well known brands such as Michael Kors and Vera Wang.  

With the main focus of this seasons beauty being dewy, luminous skin and a subtle hint of a rose pink on the lip, one of my main tips for recreating this seasons look would be to show off your natural complexion, let your pigments shine through and leave the foundation behind.  A small dusting of highlight to lift your cheek bones will leave your skin looking radiant and enhance the pink tones of the lips and the apple of the cheeks. 

becky x

WHEN THE WORLD ZIGS, ZAG.

As part of my reading week activity list we were given a book to read entitled 'Hegarty On Creativity; There Are No Rules'.  When we were initially given the task of reading a book, I had sooo many doubts before I had even read the first page.  Me, being me, the best procrastinator you'll ever meet, decided that doing this task last would be best, as I thought it would probably be the most boring but how wrong was I?!  I downloaded this book to the kindle app on my laptop as I didn't think it would arrive in time but after completing it on here, i've decided to buy a hard copy to keep with my collection as I found it so inspiring and something I can just pick up and have a flick through whenever i'm feeling slightly demotivated. 

"You will be different.  You won't be one of the crowd.  You won't be one of the flock."

I found this such an inspirational quote, I believe that far too often I spend my life worrying about how other people will perceive me and whether i'll be judged by the work I produce.  I've grown up constantly worrying about standing out from the crowd, however, since being at University i've found that I have to stand out or else where will I end up in life?  I have talents and I should be proud of my hard work!

If you're feeling a lack of inspiration and creativity then I would highly recommend buying this book, its an extremely light read and full of illustrations and quotes that will help to spur you along and make you realise that everyone has been in the same boat as you at some point

'By looking in the opposite direction, you might just find something new'- Hegarty

becky x

90's BABY

In addition to the required reading we've been given, we have also been set a task which involves us finding an iconic fashion movement and creating a mood board around our chosen era.  After plenty of deliberation I finally settled on the 90's.  Being a 90's baby myself, I've always felt a strong connection to this era, mostly due to my love of 'FRIENDS'.  90's fashion trends saw a come back in 2014 with the revival of mom jeans, over sized flannel shirts and greasy hair, all of which evoke comfort and laziness, something I'm happy to promote! 

becky x

STOP, START, CONTINUE

University is a huge step for everyone, mostly due to the constant lack of money and delicious food in the fridge that we're all too comfortable with at home.  Nevertheless, my firs term at uni was everything I expected it to be and much more.  After meeting some of the best friends I could have hoped for and successfully managing to complete my first module of work, in addition to bagging ourselves a house for next year! I am still extremely surprised at how well I've managed to balance going out, doing work and sleep... even if 9am lectures are sometimes a struggle.

After completing my first module, finally! We had a seminar to discuss the up and coming reading week activities.  All in all I am really happy with all the work I produced for my visual awareness briefs, in particular the mood boards and the exploration into brands.  This is an area of fashion and communication that was new to me before I started this course, i'm really excited to see what the next module brings and the new skills i'll learn.

In the seminar we were given a task entitled, 'stop, start, continue'.  This was a self analysis task asking us to define the areas in our life we would like to keep and the others we would like to change.  

STOP

• Napping in the day...  My ultimate downfall of uni life 
• Leaving things until the last minute.. I need organisation!

START

• Reading... Our reading lists are growing weekly and I need to start making time in my week to fit this in, even if its an hour before I go to bed or breaks between lectures. 
• Organising myself! When I started uni I bought myself a diary and promised myself I would organise my life...I'm still yet to start.
• Drawing... Since leaving art foundation i've done very little drawing, I need to get back to doing what I love and making time for small personal projects as well as uni work. 

CONTINUE

• Balance... Balancing work, sleep and socialising is never easy but I seem to be doing quite a reasonable job at it.
• Spending... Like everyone at uni, I'm a very poor student and living in my overdraft has become the norm.  I used to spend days worrying about money but i've began to realise that we're all in the same boat and life is way to short to be worrying about money at 19! 

Since I'm recapping on past work and I didn't really do much blogging throughout January, I've rounded up my month through my favourite Instagram photos... 

Follow me at @beckymurphy95

Thanks for reading!

becky x