I was supposed to be in a draping class this week, but life doesn’t always work out the way I plan, so I have a few days off. Taking this time to catch up on emails I owe the people I love and plan for a few very exciting upcoming adventures, including employment. More on that later. The upside of an unplanned week to myself is that I have time for a proper progress report.

I’m now at the point in the summer, where I only have a few weeks left here in London and I am decidedly unhappy about it. I have loved living here, and school has been more than I could have hoped for. Fifteen year old me just yelled NERD, but it’s entirely true.

Since I last checked in, I have done a lot of work. My Fashion Design Sumer School course was four weeks, with a different project every day, which means I have a very heavy portfolio at home and I’m glad we used recycled paper. I shared my final small collection with you last week, but so much more went into it than I could show in a post. As I have learned here, it’s all about the process and in my recent experience, the first draft sketch of a piece is a mere shadow of the final product. Life around me has been the most inspiring part of living in London and the things I see here change my designs. Museums, music, history and architecture are all great to draw from, but some of the most interesting details in my work usually come from someone I saw on the tube, the way a dessert was presented or the constant mix of old and new. The photos here are a CliffsNotes version of the last few weeks, and a mix of work and adventure. There are SO many more photos that I want to include, but let’s not break the blog.

In probably-not-chronological order, my life here.

The window display at Selfridges, student art at CSM, Shoreditch graffiti, a paper dress I made with my class partner

St Pancras, a dress at the V & A that I have taken 4 photos of, a dress I didn’t buy, school project: invent something

School supplies and sketching, best visitors from Oregon, Irish Sunset

A purse made out of garbage, 3D art project, cheeky graffiti, the London Eye at night

Latte art staying power at Monmouth Coffee. Happy, Dickon?

Inspiration to remember, pretty colors at the V & A, life-changing honeycomb

Whitstable, a pretty lady and a borrowed baby, Mast Brothers chocolate, kid being awesome

                                                     The king of England, and my heart