it has been way too long.

Oh my gosh. I just realised that my last blog post goes all the way back to Feb?? Wow I'm either really busy or lazy (I think it's a mixture of both. *oops*).

So I will be doing an update. I think I shall split it into two. This post will all be words, and the next one will be with more pictures (: So basically this post will be more personal and the next one will be about school and other fashion related stuff. I guess this is me giving a nice heads- up to people who are here just for my updates about school and  fashion stuff - you can move on to the next post later.

Let me begin.

What had went on for the four months I went into hiding? Well school definitely happened. And work (internship) too of course. My birthday went by - uneventful as usual. And that's about all. Seem like a pretty short summary.

At work, opportunities arised for me to find out some ugly gossips. It decreases the mystery surrounding my higher authorities (in office) and of course in the process my respect for them lessened. Gossips are gossips of course. But they just answered some baffling issues I had been having in the office (like the way they work etc). Office gossip stays in the office. Shall not elaborate too much on the details. 

As some would know, this is my first birthday (in four years) to spend it alone. Actually, like the Valentine's day, it actually feel good to be single. No expectations towards anyone (not even my friends, because over the years, no one ever celebrate it with me on the day itself). It feels good that I do not have to end the day with disappointments since I never started the day with any hopes. But this year, there was an exception. My two new-found (and pretty close) friends surprised me with a cake and my favourite macaroons! Love it. Haven't had such a nice surprise in a long long time.

One night a few weeks ago, me and my lovely friend had a girls' night out! For your information, she isn't a local. She's an African. That explains why we were at this club that night. Given my height is pretty average here (or slightly above average), I found myself being towered the entire night! All the foreigners from all over the world! I half-regretted not wearing heels (remembering my last night club experience in my wedges, I'm half-thankful I'm on flats). But oh boy! The atmosphere was good! Everyone was so nice! Not trying-to-get-you-in-my-bed kind of nice. But sincerely nice! It felt so good. I haven't been surrounded by SO many nice people in a small space and in a night! It was a very pleasing experience. A flattering one too. Haha. It was an eye-opener. Given I haven't travelled much and far, my knowledge of foreigners has been limited to just Asians. I was reminded how kind and sincere and honest people can be.

For instance, I was very drunk by the time I left. I was alone (I was too tired to stay on). I was conscious but dead drunk. A nice man from India was waiting for a cab like me, and we started a conversation. Then the events turned and he didn't need to leave the location. But he decided to stay on with me till I catch a cab. It took about 10 to 15 minutes. Despite the state I was in, he didn't take advantage and was very gentleman the entire time. It totally changed my bias opinion about Indians. This guy was very courteous and nice all the time till I got into a cab. I have heard alot about how foreigners think that Singaporean girls are so easy to get, or that people you meet after 2am and at the club are only nice to you to get into your pants. But during this long night, I didn't meet a single person like that. How wonderful if I can meet such people everyday. Then I'm sure I won't be as bitter as I am now. Haha!

Anyway this is my last term doing my course. I have one of the tougher module left to complete, and I am "so lucky" to have this "super wonderful" teacher. I'm SURE I will be able to pass this module. Given that it's my last 3 months, I start to worry about my journey out there alone with no framework to follow, no guidelines to ensure the pathway to success. I need to start polishing my work to compile a portfolio. Tonnes of work ahead of me.

Wish me luck!

My very first personal project!

After much procrastination, I finally started on my Chinese New Year dresses about 1 month before CNY! I  made the effort to do everything from scratch. I designed it, drafted it, cut it and sew it all by myself. The first dress I started on, I abandoned it after drafting. It looked too ugly. I started on the next design. And when I lay the pattern pieces out on the fabrics to cut, I found the fabric combination don't go well with the design. Both these 2 dresses were abandoned as I found that it doesn't fit my own requirements for my dress!

So I went on to shop for new fabrics (even though I have many potential fabrics at home, none were suitable as a CNY dress fabric cos they aren't red/orange enough). With my new fabric, I had new inspirations!

This was a design I quickly sketch in my Fashionary Sketchbook =)

And it became this!

One thing I learnt from this experience, was mostly about the drafting proportions. Also, I removed too much dart and added too much ease to the waist. Thus I needed to add a sash at the last minute to "tie it all up". Haha. But also because of the time constraint, I skipped interfacing my facing pieces. Which also turned out to be a nightmare for my front neckline. Oops! Lesson learnt. The hard way as usual.

I've wore this dress to school once and I got quite good comments about them! It makes me really happy. But as always, I see the flaws more than I see the beauty in it. So I'm not 100% happy with my work.

This dress was a last minute decision. I found this soft (and a little stretchy) linen at a really good price. And the weight it has gives it a good drape! Thus the decision to make a simple tube dress with it. This dress was literally finished on CNY eve (I even had to go through a mad dash to spotlight to buy elastic thread as all other shops are closed! And I was hand stitching the hem at the reunion dinner). Good thing is that I learnt to do shirring with this dress!

But as I was sewing, I started to regret it because the linen is so heavy! I was so scared of exposing myself in this dress cos of the weight! But luckily, with sufficient shirring, the elasticised portion at the bust area could hold the weight of the fabric. Thank goodness I didn't have to use the ugly straps I made!

I'm really happy I was able to make my own dresses for this CNY! Even though I can't go visiting still, people who come to my grandpa's house gave me good remarks about them (: 

Making clothes is a very long and tedious process. One thing I learnt is that whatever looks good in sketches, may not look good on the person wearing it. For instance, I didn't have the height and the waist of a model. Thus, some dresses turned out to be more frumpy than I'd envisioned. Also, this personal project also teaches me some lessons about judging the right fabrics for the right design.

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A friend commented that she love how I always challenge myself in everything I do. I don't take the safest route, sometimes even routes that she (who's more advanced in sewing real clothes) don't agree on. But so far the decisions and the challenges I make seem to surprise her in a very good way. 

In the drafting project that we're working on now, we had to make formal pants and jacket (aka a blazer). I chose crepe fabric and in contrasting purplish-blue and off-white. My fabric and colour choice was met with some doubts from some people. But seeing how my pants turned out, many people were surprised that the end result could be achieved by a fabric and colour contrast like that. So now that I'm working on my jacket, no one questions my decision in the areas that I would like to use contrasting colours on (as it's a suit, I'm using the same colours and fabrics as my pants). It actually makes me feel a little good that finally people can see that my visions and decisions can turn out to be good.

Hearing that comment (challenging myself in whatever I do) from my friend just brought that point to my attention. I never intentionally seek challenges. I guess it's my own principle never to stick only to the things I know. In everything I do, I want to know and to see, that I've learnt something from it. That's where I get my sense of satisfaction from. So it became a habit I guess, always to try new things.

Step out and learn even more

Last term, when we were given the list of fabrics we needed to buy for our next term's sewing class, Jenny ( my sewing teacher) threw me a challenge: to use see-through fabric for the dress . She forbid the entire class to use such fabric, except for me and my friend (who's much more experienced in sewing than us beginners).

The trick is that I had to do french seams for all seams that the class is to overlock. Everyone who sews know that french seam is tedious. Alot of pressing, extra few steps, and extra neatness and care is needed for a proper french seam.. My choice of fabric didn't help either as it was very "slippery" and "fragile". Basically it slides under the footer very easily, and any rough pulling of thread or needle produces big holes easily. For the three classes, I described myself as in a state of meditation and zen with my fabric/sewing/sewing machine. I was handling the fabric like its a 1mm-thick glass, and the entire time I was in my own bubble as my sewing steps are different from the class. I felt no rush of competition for speed, and never felt I was falling back. The three classes pushed me to improve my sewing skills and attitude drastically.

Today, as I was back sewing with a comfortable stripped cotton (for men's shirt), I realised I was fast, neat and much more accurate than some of fellow classmates. It was only then did it dawn on me the impact of my french-seam dress.

I'm happy I succeeded pretty well in the challenge that Jenny and myself threw at me, and I'm really glad I stuck to it till the end. Instead of staying in my comfort zone as a safe choice, I stepped out. And guessed what happened? (:

It was a really good learning lesson.

Finishing first term with a smile (:

The first term of school ended in 2012! I'm actually into my second term. A little late for a complete update of term 1. But better late than never right?

I shall share all my final projects here. I'm proud of my work. But they are really amateur so I have my own criticisms about it. I'm just proud of the fact I did it all myself from start to end, and that they look pretty good.

Let's start from Drafting 1. The final project consist of a skirt and a (matching) blouse.

I picked my skirt from Max Mara.It's a pegged skirt with gathers at one side. So that makes it an asymmetrical skirt. However I must clarify that I think the actual skirt is symmetrical (with gathers on both side). But me and my lecturer decided to go with the picture.

My first attempt was a disaster. I used poly sateen, mid weight. Turns out I had slashed too much in my drafting that the weight of the fabric made it look like a bandaged skirt or something. Simply a disaster. Too painful to even see it.

 Thus, given I have a few days left to submission, I decided to scrape the entire thing and draft it all over again. This time I found a lighter weight poly sateen. But I absent-mindedly forgot to make it a pegged skirt. There wasn't enough time to redo so I just submitted this blue skirt.

Conclusion:
I had belittle this skirt. From the picture I thought it was a simple one. Only when I started to draft it then did I realise the nightmare I got myself into. It's a freaking asymmetrical skirt! I was the only one in class to do an asymmetrical skirt. Nightmare in the drafting. But important lesson learnt was that the weight of my fabric could make a world of difference in my drafting decision!


Now for the second part of my Drafting 1 Final Project.

I chose a blouse from Red Valentino. A cute denim short and puffed sleeved blouse.

 To match this blouse to my skirt, I chose a floral poly sateen fabric. I had a hard time thinking about the type of fabric to use to make this design look good and yet match my skirt. And I actually dream of my solution! Amazing.

Conclusion:
I'm very very proud of this garment! I had so much fun in the process. Even though the sleeves gave me a bit of problem (my draft made the sleeves too big that it droop like a droopy breast), I had fun in using the buttonhole function of my sewing machine! Love the pearl-like button too.


Draping 1 project require us to drape and sew a skirt.

I picked something from Max & Co.. This skirt has two layers of peplum. So I thought it would be a challenging lesson to learn in draping.

 This is how my draped skirt look like.

And the Final submitted skirt look like this. Someone comment that it looks like a cute octopus. Can't decide if it's a compliment or insult.

Conclusion:

Turns out the double layer of peplum was not only a challenge in draping it, but also sewing it together. Also by that time, money was running very very low (my allowance was 2 months late). I tried to use a fabric that I already owned. Later than I recall that this was one of my more pricey fabric that I was saving for a long maxi skirt for myself! Back to the topic. I screwed up the length of the lower peplum. But to deal with the submission time, I had to just solve it as a sewing problem - I eased in the extra. Proud of myself for thinking of that under the circumstances. And when I was taking the photo then I realised my zip was done very poorly. And the darts don't seem to sit well. I haven't figure out what was wrong. Need to wait till I get it back.


Sewing 1 Final project wasn't exactly like a project. It felt like just another of our in-class assignments.

We are suppose to sew a Men's Bermudas. But the style is so out of fashion.

Conclusion:

Nothing much to conclude. We had 3 lessons to do this with Jenny's guidance. It wasn't that bad. But definitely not perfect. I still have to work on being able to sew my seams properly without he existence of a magnet guide.


That concludes my first term at this school. It's a hectic schedule with make up lessons everywhere (especially when we had drafting on Friday, Saturday and Tuesday - it just make our deadlines very close and make our life a living hell). In addition, my allowance from e2i was 2 months late (3 months later than my anticipated date). So with savings depleted and small loans from my family, the last 1.5 months was very hard. I even came to the point of having only $20 a week to survive - half of which needs to go to my ez-link card. I learnt a harsh lesson this time round. But I'm glad I survived it. I did the best I could under those circumstances and carried the pressure well.

Oh please visit my facebook for better pictures of all the above work: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151179212977285.444891.704612284&type=3

Well this term starts off on a good foot. But it's hard to kick off into work again cos the 1.5 weeks of holidays leave me craving for a longer holiday. So far I only had one module. This new teacher is nice yet strict. At least she maintains some sort of discipline and order in drafting class. And thank god I did not get the teacher(s) I dread! If not it will be one nightmarish term. I'm keeping my fingers cross that I will get Jenny again for sewing, and hopefully the same nice teacher from drafting, for draping. Oh did I mention, we're doing tailored garments for ourselves for drafting! Yippe! I can make clothes for myself and I can finally learn how to make tailored clothes (and to learnt o make adjustments to make sure they fit)! I'm excited!

In need of a gd rest

It's been 2 full weeks of school. And I'm thoroughly exhausted! What I'd done in these 2 weeks felt like what I would have done for a month in the earlier institution I was in!

I'm going to come down with a bad sore throat and I hate feeling sick. Urgh.

Classes here are intensive. Lesson plans are well arIranged and time is fully utilised. And I mean FULLY utilised - I don't even get any breaks for some classes that could stretch from 5-8hrs long. This is especially tiring when the drafting needs so much brain work from someone so greenhorn.

BUT I'm really happy and motivated. I see the pictures in my head (well maybe except for draping class) and I am living my dreams! Well the first part of it actually.

Friends are envious of my situation. But not many people can see the sacrifices I have to make and the negative side of the entire thing. I think most people see it as a fun, glamorous, creative thing. They only get the creative part right.

A friend told me how her friend was saying that there is this attitude about fashion design students here. And we have seen it with our own eyes. It's really unpleasant. But I guess we can't be blamed. Given the rigourousness of this school and course, and the nature of this industry, I think some designers just have to be like that. The environment molds us in a certain way.

Anyway! I don't have pictures to share cos I was too busy Trying to understand the demonstration and getting my work right.

Excitment and anticipation!!!

Completed my intern job orientation. 2 days and the experience is good so far. The culture of the workplace enable me to do my designing properly without much disruption and stress. I guess most of it comes from being an intern - they don't chase after interns for deadlines.

Was tasked mainly to create fabric patterns for bottoms, and some colour blocking for some clothes. While trying to create another design, I accidentally made this: (it could make a very good logo for my own clothing line if i ever have one!) (FYI AJ stands for Ariel Jin Yen)

School orientation tomorrow! Excited to meet my classmates! Because of the nature of this course, I'm pretty curious what kind of people (and the age group of course) that would take up this course. (:

Oh and in just half a day, I picked up some basic skills in illustrator and also roughly figured out how to use a Mac! Oh my. I am a mac convert now. HAHA.

Putting my gears on

There may be people who are fully content with living their life for the necessity. But I'm not.

I've asked myself over and over again if pursuing this dream is really what I want. Then I look at the life I'd tried to lead - one that is without a drive everyday. Just going through the momentum of going for work for the sake of the money. No I don't want that. The world has sufficient people leading this kind of life. One more or one less makes not much difference.

I'm going after my dreams.

It seem so surreal. And so far away. And so impossible.

But I'm going to prove to myself and to everyone that it is possible.

A friend once told me that my strength and my weakness is that I'm strong. I've seen how my strength could be my weakness. But I'm going to utilise it to my advantage now.

To those who are waiting for me to give up - be prepared to wait a lifetime.

I'm not giving up till I'm there where I'd envisioned myself to be.