Small town, pretty girls and big ideas

Banbury, the grim little town whose residents hope the OX postcode can deviously fool any outsider into thinking that we have similar status to that of the trendy cobbled streets of Oxford. When in fact, we have one club renowned for its sticky floors and a nursery rhyme I naively believed to be famous, despite only being known to my fellow townies. Alas! I am a lover, not a hater of this place I call home. Although I cannot lie about actively job/house hunting for a crib in the big city, I am proud to say I am a Banbury girl at heart, and Banbury holds a few gems.

What I hear you cry?! Well for starters, that nursery rhyme! "Ride a cock horse to Banbury cross...", where the fine lady on her white horse is covered in rings. As a ring hoarder myself I am clearly a product of my surroundings, and my surroundings are surprisingly artistic. After attending a visual arts sixth form and art college I was lucky enough to meet many clever clowns who not only see the world in pretty pictures like myself, but can draw a bloody good picture too. Now since it would be wrong to include myself in the category of 'Banbury's Finest' and I am still waiting to be discovered, here is a snap of one my fellow fashionistas from Banbury and a dab hand with a biro.

Anais in denim with her hand drawn Alice in Wonderland customisation (2013) by Amy Duffin 

The work behind the illustrations.

You may remember (and if you don't gogogo and scroll down the page), a few months back I posted you a little teaser of my Chloe competition illustrations. I cannot lie, third year definitely made being a new-be blogger a little tricky for Miss Perfectionist over here, and at crunch time I may have chosen a couple of hours sleep over updating you with my work, doodles or random ramblings. But, finally! Here it is in full, my first of three portfolio competitions for my final year work. A complete contrast to my second competition work shown below, with a clean, simple and feminine style from start to finish.

Future Optimism

"We declare that the splendor of the world has been enriched by a new beauty: the beauty of speed"

- The Manifesto of Futurism

Transformers is debuting the Spring/Summer collection, glorifying future optimism for this years FAD competition and my third year portfolio work. The design brief stated the need for a forward looking focus, embracing both the advances and the pressures of modern life. My inspiration comes from The Futurists, last summer's Thomas Heatherwick exhibition and the hit film, The Transformers. It's all about a love of speed and a need for change. We used to be content with loving men with fast cars, now we women want in on the action. We need everything now. We should have been there ten minutes ago. Or we need to be in two places at once. We don't just need one handbag for the day, and lets be honest, it's naive to think even two would suffice. We need to be adaptable, transformable, and beyond all else, damn right HOT! This is a luxury capsule collection of evening wear with a Sports Lux feel combining fun, beauty and practicality.

All the work featured is my own and I welcome any enquires.

Sex on Legs.

Unoriginal caption, but shoes like that really don't need any explanation. They just need drawing.

Everything will be alright if we just keep dancing like we're 22... Uh oh!!

Yes all credit to my main gurrrl Taylor Swift. She is one hell of a woman. A woman who does not deserve the slating she gets for falling in love as often as Londoners catch the tube, and I for one am all for her attitude to life. She is 22, so am I, and now I have officially graduated from Nottingham Trent University with a high 2:1 in Fashion Design I have every intention of falling in love. ALOT. However, while she's out falling in love with billionaire strangers, I will be and admittedly have already started, falling in love with almost everyone and everything my eyes flicker upon. The main objects of my affections being, in no particular order, shoes, white shoes, cocktails, of the strong, strawberry kind and bunnies. I really, really want a bunny. 

So here are an array of snaps by the Duffin family and I, all showcasing a love of life, from designs, graduation, life long friends, furry creatures and tourist fun.

"Love the life you live and live the life you love"

Translucent B

Well, well, well... Today is THE day.

First I think it right to tell you "Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa" and now that is out of my system it is probably best to follow that up with, it's hand in day, I've had less than five hours sleep in the last two days and some minor tantrums, like every other fashion slave, but we made it. And I am loving life!

So to minimise the risk of 'ify' sentences and spelling mistakes galore, I'll keep it short and sweet. As follows is one of three of my projects being handed in in my swanky white portfolio today. My Fashion Product work/final major project to you non Trent goers. Translucent B is the brand I have created that represents the changes undergone for a caterpillar to become a butterfly, in form, texture and behaviour and is also a metaphor for the development of a girl into a strong, sassy woman blooming with confidence. A capsule collection of three high end dresses were designed, pattern cut (I type those words shuddering), and manufactured, by Moi, before shot in an incredibly fun, real photoshoot in London town, and then combined with my own illustrations, some super soft pig suede, and an encapsulated dead butterfly to become an illustrated novel. Voila! Blood, sweat, tears, laughs, swear words, and one of the most fantastically ridiculous experiences of life later, we have all systems go.

This is the first day of the rest of our lives (slight cringe and grin all rolled into one)... So with a few hours to spare before the deadline, I'm going to get a sunbed!

Progress. Progress. Progress.

One of my paintings for my Illustrated Book for the Degree Show.

Thursday 23rd of May.
Nottingham Trent Fashion Design Degree Catwalk and Exhibition.
Newton Building.
Come Along! Employ me!!!

The caterpillar and the butterfly are but one.

A few snaps of work in progress...

Beauty in Despair.

"I only ask to be free. The butterflies are free." - Charles Dickens

(My own illustration of my cocoon dress, a cheeky preview from my final degree work and my own photo of the caged butterflies from the Butterfly Farm in Stratford Upon Avon.)

*And thanks to Dave Jobbins, who accompanied me in photographing and pretended to enjoy it.

Chloe.

Cool, understated and blissfully simple.

Chloe Designs and Illustrations.

Just a little taster of one of my third year competition works.

Men At Work.

Feeling a little bit sentimental after a skyping session with the little brother who has recently begun his Freshers Fun (work time, if this is my Mumma reading this) at Manchester Met University. Very excited for him, and know he will succeed in developing and cooking many masterpieces in the future, both near and far and I'm sure be more than to blame for my inevitable weight gain when "Oh, I'm just trying it to make sure it's safe for you to serve!". But for now, here is one of his other talents, when he was modelling for our group project for the live George at Asda comeptition brief during second year.

Final word from me (only for a little while of course) and not wanting to braaag, but this is my own illustration, I made the blue shirt, and then the jeans teamed with the red, with yellow trim hoodie (sported dashingly by my younger sibling) and the photographs were taken by Jake Turney.

Go sock it to 'em TomTom.