Another office...

At first I just sat down to do some more research before I was asked to do some more fabric sourcing and labelling for a new project, I then had to steam all the garments made in these fabrics which took a toll on my right arm as a few were cotton and held the creases.

This meant I got to see more of the pattern room, watching all the sewers on the machines and people draping on the stand. This was my kind of heaven!
I had to be careful however when steaming to not to steam the pleats on some of the garments as this would make them lose their shape and be wary of the types of fabric I would be steaming.

Today was very busy as people kept asking me to do things during other tasks however I was glad that I always had something to do. I had a lot of t shirts to fold up neatly too and to put away all the hangers. I also had to help move garments from the showroom down stairs to our design room for fitting.
I was then asked to go to the finance office in a different building in brick lane to hand some paperwork in and collect a ID card, thankfully brick lane isn't very far and it was a nice sunny day. As I like going to brick lane at the weekends and have been here for our past degree shows I found it very easy to get to however finding the office its self was a little different as there are no signs, not even on the door of the building.

swatches

There were a few tec packs that I could not find yesterday and a few more added to the list that I was given to complete today along with some pricing up of fabric samples.

I was also taught how to measure up garments to see if they are measuring to the specifications before being put on the fit model. This involved taking measurements from the top to bottom, hem length, back cross measurements ect.

Whilst I was doing all of this around me models were being fitted in different garments for the new season. This was really interesting to see as this whole process is new to me, all the garments are measured and are slightly adjusted by pins to get the perfect fit and for the garment to move in the correct way. This is a long ongoing process as garments are altered by 0.5 of a cm at some points.

I was then given a big pile of fabric boards which needed to have swatches cut from and put onto designed sheets whereby I can write up all the information for that type of fabric. This was a very long task as my scissors were very blunt and I had a wide variety of fabric types to cut into a very specific size square. 

   

Round two

I woke up very tired on day two not being used to working till 6 and having to get in at 9 again.

I was immediately given a different task today that involved sorting through a list of all the tec packs and finding them and printing them out. This took a long time as I had to do mens and womens wear. 

However it kept me busy and this I something I preferred as I knew it would be helpful for the team too. In doing this I also saw how working drawings are done in industry and the amount of detail usually added. by going through all the tec packs I got to see the different styles that will be out next season and just notice how many variations there are and these are just the garments that were chosen for the buy. I was also shown how to use the K drive where all of All Saints staff save their files so that each member can see what they are working on and share files. 

I was also shown to another room where the printers are kept, feeling all a bit like im in a maze office.

After this was completed I then went and did more research looking at mens jersey, polos and tees. I went outside to some of the local shops and did some research into what styles were already on sale and what is on trend. 

  

My first day

First day at All Saints started at 9.30 with a tour from HR girl called Katie who showed us the whole building and all its stair cases and corridors as well as the sections we would be working in.

I was shown to the design team where I would be working and introduced to Thomas and Charis who are head of the department for menswear and work experience.
Set up on the light box I was given a laptop for my use during the three weeks here. Thomas gave me some guidance on what to research for the new menswear collection being started for aw/15.
As this was my first day I mainly spent it doing research although I was introduced to the rest of the department.

I wasn’t sure after my first day how I felt about interning at All Saints however I did have to remind myself of the less interesting tasks I did at hand and lock in my first few days there.

What one week off does

To give myself a break from interning before my next one at All Saints I decided to take a week off.

Before this I had been working hard in the evenings to find accommodation for myself and 2 other girls, ready for when we start back at university.
It was pretty tough because I had to consider the location and more importantly the price. I had a very specific price range given to me and this needed to include bills.

During the week, I had arranged to go to Coventry and see 6 houses. Each were very different and some a bit disappointing when we viewed them. After a very long and tiring day we still hadn't found the house for us all. Luckily one of the landlords had another house in the same area which looked good and was in our price range.

This was a huge weight lifted as I could finally stop worrying about my accommodation for September.

I would recommend anyone to plan this before you even think about taking a gap year, I had difficulties finding people from my course who had taken a year out and hadn't gotten any housing. I was unfortunate in the aspect that my previous house mates would be graduating and not need a house in September.

I also had some time to explore London and the wonderful sewing machine shop in Lewisham. It was cluttered and bursting of sewing machines, industrial, vintage, embroidery, all different makes and brands. It was my kind of heaven which understandably meant I also couldn't leave without buying something of my own. A rare German hand crank vintage sewing machine which would sew perfectly if I can find a replacement handle.

Right now I am just enjoying researching into my machine as much as I can and also looking at the other brands of vintage machine. I feel it is quite apt to own one now that I will be starting my internship at All Saints soon.