This post is part of Laura Brandon’s Fiery Fashion Series. Read her overview of each year on a Fashion course. First Year. Second Year. Third Year.
Hello again 🙂
Firstly, I must apologise for the long break between posts but my business is taking off now, so you can imagine how crazy these past few weeks have been! I won’t bore you guys too much with the details, but it’s all exciting stuff.
The Third Year on a Fashion Course
The third year on a Fashion course will be the most difficult and the most stressful one. I’m just going to throw that out there now and get it over and done with. There is no easy way round that, I’m afraid! Most students will have dissertations and essays to write, whereas with most Fashion courses, there will also be a final collection to do as well.
It will be hard work, and there isn’t any way around that. You might find yourself pulling a few all nighters! The best advice I could give for the third year is to “plan plan plan”, although that’s easier said than done in a creative course. I sometimes find myself inspired by something in the middle of the night, and then can go a few days without any ideas and I know that’s the case for a lot of people who do creative courses and jobs. I’d recommend that you have lots of other work to do when you’re feeling less creative. Whether it’s something technical, research of some kind, or even working on a written piece.
The Final Collection
All universities will have a different system when it comes to a final collection and the final year. At my university, we had to submit 4 finished outfits, with shoes and accessories on models, and paperwork including layout plans, final illustrations, etc. It’s hard to comment on what you should do specifically, because, as I said before, all universities have different systems.
The best piece of advice I can give you, future third-year students, is: “don’t ever make or design something you are not comfortable with, because you may be put under pressure by people”. I’m not saying “be stubborn and reject all pieces of advice”; be open-minded to suggestions and improvements, however, this will be your work and your collection ultimately, and the worst thing you can do is be stuck doing something uninspiring. I made this mistake in my third year, and really regret it. I caved into pressure and tried to please everybody with different ideas and ended up designing and making a collection that I wasn’t happy with, and absolutely hated, meaning I lost all passion for it. Pretty please, don’t make my mistake 🙂
Be Organised with Your Dissertation
Dissertation-wise, again – be organised! Make sure you find a subject that really sparks your interest, and that you can stick with, without it becoming too draining. But likewise, try and find a topic that you can find a lot of information and different opinions on, from different sources, and are able to analyse in depth. My dissertation was about gender in the Fashion industry and trans-gender models. While I found the topic fascinating, it was a fairly new topic, it was difficult to find a wealth of information about, so make sure you find the right balance. Start to research as soon as you can, and don’t be surprised if your idea and topic change several times before submitting (don’t change it at the last week though, totally not a good idea!). Dissertations can be daunting and scary, but don’t freak out – it isn’t that bad! Just don’t make the mistake of thinking it can be written quickly, make time for it and stock up on biscuits and tea! Make a chilled out playlist (I recommend Hans Zimmer, and Ludovico Einaudi) and you might even start enjoying yourself…maybe.
I’m aware that I’ve made the third year on a Fashion course sound incredibly scary. It is hard work, it will get stressful and you will cry, I can’t sugar-coat it. However, don’t forget to have fun and enjoy your last year. It might be hard, but if you organise yourself properly, there’s no reason why you can’t have a few cheeky parties every now and then. I hope this helps anybody who is feeling apprehensive, or a little confused about their third year. As always, if anybody would like to chat, please feel free to email me at lauracbrandon@yahoo.com Good luck!
This post is part of Laura Brandon’s Fiery Fashion Series. First Year. Second Year. Third Year.
