Through the easter break I have been concentrating on getting all my illustrations done and as much sewing done as I could without help from tutors. I have managed to finish all my final illustration and I’m pleased with the standard of the work that I have produced. The sewing has taking me much longer than I originally planned so I am slightly behind on this part of my work. However I have managed to finish all the knitting of my garments. I have managed to get all my written work done except a report for WBL but intend on having this finished by the end of the week.Tonight I will be working on my shirts and i hope to finish my trousers in tomorrows lesson.
Reflection on week beginning 22/03/2010
This week I have been practicing making a fly. I have done this many times before but can never seem to remember how to do it. This week I wrote down in my diary a step by step guide to producing a professional looking fly. I drew diagrams so that I could remember how to do it in future.
I also managed to make up my skirt in calico and cut out my fabric for my skirt. I managed to make some of my patchwork fabric up for my dress however I am fining it difficult and a very long process as my design includes lots of very small pieces. I have also realized I will have to create a lining for my dress as the seams are very ugly and very visible.
I have been altering my CV to make it a creative CV that will catch the attention of a future employer. I think it still needs a little work but I have improved it a lot by simplifying it and adding my own imagery that i have made in illustrator.
I have also been working on my technical file for Studio Practice and Production. I have been filling in costing sheets, spec sheets and continuing in making my flats for my final range. This has given me a better understanding of what would be required of me in a real life working situation and has helped me confirm that this is what i would like to do in the future as i find it really interesting.
I think this week has been a fairly productive week as i have also finished knitting one of my jumpers for my final mini collection. I am very proud of the result and am hopeful about how the rest of my knitwear will turn out.
Reflection on week beginning 15/03/2010 using a template.
The incident or reading which started this train of thought;Recently i have been getting plenty of work done and have been very productive with my work. However over the last few days i have been getting a constant headache. This is starting to make my concentration poor and making me produce work at a slightly slower rate.
Questions-self;
What are the reasons for me getting this headache regularly? What can i do about it?
Questions-others;
What have i read about stress management? What would others have to say about the reasons for my headaches?
How do i intend to proceed from here?There are many different reasons i could be getting headaches regularly. The ones i can think of are drinking too much coffee, not eating properly or not getting enough sleep. Therefor i should cut out caffeine from my diet for a while to see if this makes any difference. I know i need more sleep so should try getting earplugs so that i don’t get woken up in the night. I think arranging times to eat during the day and setting an alarm on my phone may help me get more of a routine so that i have the time to eat the right foods.
When asking my friends and family about my problem my dad gave me some exercises to do that relax your eyes so you don’t get eye strain if you are looking at a computer screen for a long time. My friend told me to suck sweets if i can feel myself grinding my teeth and they all also said a bit of rest will help me a lot.
Therefor i intend on trying to get more fresh air and sleep than i am getting at the moment as i know that overdoing it and pushing myself too much is not helping me in the long run.
Reflection on week beginning 8/03/10 using story telling method.
I live in a flat with three other people. I usually work solidly between sunday and wednesday on my uni work but take a few hours off a few times a week to leave the house to get a break. This week i was unable to get out because my friends kept canceling on me. This meant that i kept getting tired and reverting back to my knitting, rather than doing work that required more concentration. This meant that by wednesday i hadn’t got enough sketchbook work done. However, i was ahead with my knitting for my final collection. I think if this was to happen again i will go to my parents house for a change of scenery or go into town to give myself a break as i am a little frustrated with my progress this week. Next week i really need to focus on my pattern cutting and final illustrations. I may go to my parents to get this done as they will be out during the day and i will get peace and quiet.
Reflection on week beginning 01/02/10
This week i have got quite far with all my projects. I have finished knitting one of my scarfs for the Cool Britannia project and as it has been successful i have started my second one. I have also completed all my annotation in my sketchbooks and done all my mood boards and research. This preparation has made it easier for me to start drawing my rough designs from. I have been able to use techniques i have tried out in my sketchbook for my final designs. This experimentation has helped me as i don’t think i would have thought to use some of these techniques such as patchwork if i hadn’t already got the samples in my sketchbook.
Reflection on week beginning 22/02/10 using Model for Structured Reflection.
Looking In:
Last week i began altering my trouser block to make the pattern i wanted to make for my trousers for my Cool Britania project.
I felt very confused and rushed as i hadn’t finalised my designs for this project with my tutors. I felt like i had to start making a pattern that i was unsure of because otherwise i would run out of time. I felt slightly panicked and stressed.
Looking Out:
We were left to get on with making garments for the Cool Britannia project. The issues that seem significant are that i didn’t get much done.
I was trying to start cutting out patterns for my Cool Britannia project but i responded quite negatively. I think i responded this way because i was panicking about the amount of time we had left. The consequences were that i was very stressed without telling anybody and i probably confused one of my tutors Julie when trying to explain my design. I am not sure how other students were feeling as everyone was getting on with their own work and i did not ask about how other people felt.
I think i felt this way in this situation because i didn’t talk to anybody else about how i was feeling and made the situation worse for myself by letting my emotions build up. I did not act the best way i could. My emotions got the better of me. If i had discussed this with other students then maybe my mind would have been put at rest as i think i was comparing myself to how far along other students were.
This experience relates to previous experiences as i have panicked in the past before, over things such as presentations. I could have handled this better by talking to my tutor or friends. I could have been more prepared with flats of my final garment designs.
I feel that the this experience was so stressful that i will do a lot more to avoid being in that position again. I can support myself and others better in the future by being more open about my work and discussing my project with others.
Reflection using Gibbs- Reflective Cycle
This week i have been developing my research for my WBL project and my Cool Britannia project. I have been researching into my two different themes and have researched into the types of people i will be designing my ranges for. I have begun to develop my research and start drawing and creating samples inspired by the research i have done. I have not had any negotiations or discussions with any of my tutors as this time has been self directed study.
I have been thinking about how important these two projects are and have been driven to work long hours to get the quality of work that i want.
I have completed most of my research and feel that it has given me plenty of inspiration for my designs for my collections.
I enjoyed working on these projects as i feel like i am learning and developing my skills on both the computer and by hand. The only bad thing about my experiences this week is that i have spent no time with my friends or family and am starting to feel guilty that i am spending so much time on my own. I think i need to allocate my time with my family better and put my work away so i am not tempted to pick it up and continue with it.
I have found that i am spending too much time on certain projects and need to spread my time out in a better way.
I couldn’t really have spent anymore time on my work this week as i only stopped to eat but i could have allocated more time to my family as i now feel like i should spend the whole weekend with them. If this situation arose again i would draw up a plan of my free time in the week and allocate it better. I would then stick to this routine that i had written down.
reflection on CAD
Last weeks CAD lesson was very useful as we were tought how to scan our designs onto the computer and convert the hand drawn image into points in illustrator. This will help me to create successful illustrations on the computer and refine my hand drawn work. I feel like this lesson has been valuable to me as i think i have understood the process and will be able to do this on my on without too many complications. I feel my skills are improving on CAD and these lessons are making me more employable.
Reflection using “second chance” method
What really happened.
Presentation on my work.
I managed to get through my presentation and speak clearly and confidently about my work. I was rather nervous so found being filmed quite uncomfortable. The presentation didn’t go smoothly as i hadn’t practiced going through it using the slide show button. I found finding the right pages in my book took a while and that it made me even more nervous when i couldn’t find them quickly. I felt embarrassed and uncomfortable after the presentation.
What might have happened.
Presentation on my work.
I had prepared the night before by practicing my presentation and timing myself. I had placed post-it notes on the pages i needed to show and had labelled them clearly.
I had turned up 10 minutes early to the presentation to sit down and relax before i had to do my presentation. I then got up and introduced myself clearly and proceeded to give a clear and well timed presentation. I felt much prouder of my performance.
Reflection
I think that my progress this semester has been good. I feel i have learnt alot of technigues in CAD and pattern cutting especially. I still feel like i need to do alot of work on Illustrator to be at a good proffesional standard but feel i am on my way to getting there.
I feel that this blog has been effective at helping my review my progress. I didn’t honestly think it would be as useful as it has been but it has really helped me evaluate my progress this Semester and i intend on using it for next Semester too.
