Designer Diva

This is my final design that I have chosen to make for the travel themed fashion fiesta at the end of our college year which is due to take place in April. Tickets are available to the public so don't be shy. Our open day is coming up to so if you pop into us for a visit then you'll get to see us working on our designs and making our garment in aid of Aspergers Ireland. I'm really excited about the open day and can't wait to tell all the possible newcomers about what our class has been up to this year. So yeah, this is my design from my Baroque Beauties collection inspired by Paris (which I'll have up for you next week). I wanted to depict an independent woman travelling the world who lived and longed for the more glamorous things in life.

Hope you all have a lovely evening despite the weather and I will have a post up tomorrow about what Valentines day inspires me to wear and do. I'm not the biggest fan of it but it can't hurt to try and embrace it!

Much Love,

Shannon.

xoxo

Military Madness

So this is what I wore for last nights showing of Rent the musical in the black box theater. Needless to say that it was an outstanding production performed by the NUIG GUMS society. Well done guys!

Shirt - River Island €25 (on sale so hurry!)

Skirt and belt - River Island €25

Shoes - Born Footwear €55

Necklace - Primark €5

Managed to pick up the shirt and necklace during the week. The shirt also comes in a dark colour and they both have beautiful detail on the shoulder. The necklace was amazing value in Penneys and also comes in a silver. Have a nice Sunday!

Much Love,

Shannon.

xoxo

What is it that defines beauty?

So I thought that I would do a bit of a more personal post today. There's no doubt that body image has a HUGE role in fashion and has since modelling began. It's really becoming hard to come by a person with a positive attitude about how they look. Being skinny or having all the latest clothes doesn't define beauty. How we view our bodies is becoming a problem and all of its knock on effects, so I am taking this time to try and preach to you all about just how beautiful you are.

There's no doubt that being a teenager is hard. Don't even get me started on secondary school! Surrounded by different body types all day, everyday and having the time to compare yourself to each and every one of them. Speaking from a personal perspective, I still sometimes lack in the whole body confidence department. There may be days where I don't want to be in a photo or go out because I've convinced myself that I feel "fat". We have access to so many things like magazines and the Internet which depict how they think we should look. I'd love to meet the person who made size zero the new beautiful and give them a piece of my mind! I'm all for being healthy but seriously, you're not meant to look like a skeleton. People have been diagnosed with physical and mental illnesses from the stress and confusion caused by having to look a certain way in order to be accepted in society. The most common types are depression, anorexia and bulimia. It saddens me to say that I've known people in the past who have suffered from these due to the pressure they felt to look  like a "normal" person. Thankfully they were able to talk about it and realise that they were fine, just the way they were. But what happens to the people who don't talk? What happens to the people who are even getting abuse from peers about how they look? Who tells the fourteen year old school girl that the people texting her everyday are wrong when they say that she's fat or ugly? WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE WORLD!?!? People shouldn't feel like they have to lie to their parents about what they ate at school when the fact is, they had nothing. People shouldn't feel so bad to the point where, well I don't know, let's say sneak out of the bed at midnight to make themselves throw up that evening's dinner. You have no idea that you are so perfect, no matter what anyone says! Yes, I know that life can be hard sometimes but you do not need to do this to yourself. Look at Marilyn Monroe! She is still considered the most beautiful woman that ever existed and she was a size 14! Look at the poor girl who committed suicide over the abuse she was getting about how she looked and what she wore. We have to stop giving each other such a hard time about how we look. Fashion is most certainly not about looking a certain way and having certain clothes. My belief is that fashion isn't about what you wear, it's how you wear it and how it represents you as you're own person.

I'm sure that you all know by now just how much I love fashion and how I long to be apart of the industry. But this particular subject is one that I am totally against. I fantasise constantly about how when I'm a successful designer, I'll have REAL people modelling for me. I don't want to make people feel that they have to have the "look" in order for me to have time for them. I'm not ashamed to admit that I felt pressured to wear makeup just because a load of other people claimed that I had to in order to look normal. I wear glasses and at the beginning of secondary school, I refused to take them off. They acted as a mask for me and I felt that they distracted people from what the rest of me looked like. I've gotten over it and I now own a fab pair of Gok Wan glasses. I bought them because he does so much for teens with negative thoughts about themselves so I wanted to support him in his mission. Now, I am in my element. I'm doing something I love. And I am no way ashamed to admit that I have an ass, I have thighs, hips, boobs, THE LOT. I am a happy size 12 and I don't plan on changing that for anybody, no matter how much they say I'm not meant to be like this. 

So guys, don't let the people in the magazines make you feel like you look weird or fat. You are neither of those things. You're friends and family love ALL OF YOU! Stay strong and know that you are beautiful. And don't forget to let other people know that they are beautiful too. 

Sites that I think are fantastic when it comes to helping teens believe in themselves or if they just need someone to talk to.

http://www.jigsaw.ie/galway

www.samaritansgalway.ie

Much love,
Shannon.
xoxo

Factory....... of amazing-ness!

Happy Friday everybody! Thank god that the weekend is finally here. Just thought I'd share my Factory experience with you all. It's a new cafe next to Electric. It is seriously cool and totally laid back. All the staff are lovely and there are a few interesting bust boys so get on in there ladies (or gentlemen)! The decor is to-die-for and it is so unique. It's almost like a hipster art gallery. And the best perk is that they don't give you funny looks when you sit there for hours without buying anything...... like Lynches. I was lucky enough to meet the manager and she gave us some free passes for Electric! Head on in and maybe if you're nice enough, she'll give you some too! They're open until late on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays so you can head in there for some pre-drinks before you decide to hit the town. Here are some pictures of the Factory cafe. Have a good weekend!

 Went there with fellow bloggers Adam Devlin and Edel Quinn.

They buy the expensive maggies!

 They have cinema seats!

Shannon.
xoxo

Travel Inspired Collection

Jet Setter

OK so here is the most recent project that we were assigned just before Christmas. Our end of year fashion show is travel themed so we were instructed to design a dress inspired by this theme. We also had to dig deeper and that is where I came up with the title "Jet Setter". I wanted my collection to be about an independent woman with impeccable style, taking on the world. This woman would go from place to place investigating the style and culture of each location. I have decided that my dress and collection is going to be based on the luxurious life of the elite in Paris (it also helped that I had the opportunity to go there myself in December!). I have chosen a baroque polyester material to work with that I have now ordered from Paris. I will have my final collection and dress design for you next week but for now, here is a preview of all my sketches that helped me get to where I am now. Enjoy!

IRELAND

SCOTLAND

PARIS

 AFRICA

 DUBAI

 INDIA

 CHINA

 

Little bit of a home studio going on today. Hopefully ill have a new collection to show by the end of the weekend ;) ♥
Shannon
xoxo

Beginning of a new Collection

Okay guys so here Is a sample design of a dress for the end of year fashion show. I'm stuck between two fabrics, the burgundy and the gold. I myself prefer the gold (and its cheaper) but I would love for you to share your thoughts because at the end of the day I'm not designing for myself, I'm designing for the public. Thoughts anyone?

Shannon
xoxo