Class of 2016: BA (Hons) Fashion Design (Part time)

BA (Hons) Fashion Design (Part-Time) is designed for students who don’t wish to study full-time.  The course allows students to work while they study, and gain skills in design, research and experimental pattern cutting.

As part of our Class of 2016 showcase, we spoke to three students – Alberto Pereira, Katy Gladman-Tomillero and Clair Napierski – who have spent the past four years at LCF studying BA (Hons) Fashion Design (Part time), to find out about their experience.

Tell us an interesting fact about yourself…

Alberto: Mmmm…don’t think it would be appropriate here!

Clair: I’m also a DJ and have been DJing since 1998.

Katy: Before moving back to London, I worked with the Scottish Society for the Prevention and Cruelty to Animals. My career direction has taken a bit of a u-turn, which just goes to show – it’s never too late to follow your dream.

Talk us through your final project:

Clair: My final BA collection  is called ‘Believe’ – it questions authenticity, beliefs (such as superstition and magic, rituals, symbolism and religion etc) and questions the workings of the human mind. It looks at the parallels between sustainability and the stigmas surrounding mental health. 

Katy: To develop my final collection I looked at cabinets of curiosities, medical specimens, decay and imperfections of the human body such as deformity, disfigurement and other abnormalities. I loved the research process!

Alberto: The collection is called ‘Aberration’ – and is about the false ideologies that Media impose on women.

Final year project by Alberto Pereira

What techniques or theories did you use to create your final piece of work?

Alberto: Fabric manipulation, cording and deconstruction.

Katy: My collection displays a lot of cuts and slashes.

Clair: I’ve combined quite a few techniques in this collection including digital print, up-cycling, laser cutting, hand embroidery and beading, and machine embroidery. In this collection I’ve up-cycled reclaimed leather and other fabrics, mussel shells, upholstery trimmings and beads from damaged jewellery.

Upcycling Mussel shells for embroidery by Clair Napierski

Describe your work in five words…

Katy: Independent, quality, personal, oversized, asymmetric.

Alberto: Raw, experimental, non-conformist, challenging.

Clair: Emotive, seductive, gothic, thought-provoking, intricate. 

What do you love about what you do?

Katy: Always being inspired.

Alberto: I always challenge myself to create something which challenges the everyday norms.

Clair: I love getting out of my comfort zone and questioning myself, the world in it’s many forms and everything around us. Creativity is addictive!

What’s the best thing about LCF and your course?

Clair: LCF is the only institution that offers a part time degree, which is imperative for those who need to work to support themselves. Doing the full-time degree wasn’t possible for me, so if this option didn’t exist I wouldn’t be living my dream now. The flexible course includes students from a range of backgrounds, which really makes for really interesting classroom engagement and out of the box thinking, which I’m really grateful for.

Alberto: The best thing about LCF is the tutors and the library. The best thing about the course is the ability to work and study at the same time.

Katy: I love the libraries at LCF. My fellow classmates are my favourite thing about the course – they are fantastic! We are such a tight unit, always there to offer help and support to each other.

Have you won any prizes?

Katy: We had the opportunity to collaborate with VOLVO and the other courses (BA (Hons) Fashion Business (Part time), BA (Hons) Fashion Media (Part time) and BA (Hons) Fashion Visual Merchandising and Branding). We were all mixed up and each group had to design an innovative product idea, that VOLVO would go on to choose and take forward into the next stages. My group was runner up – that was exciting!

Alberto: Yes – I won a student award for 2012-2013.

Clair: Yes I’ve had several successes! I’ve just won the Silk Bureau Digital Textile Print competition with a prize fund of £1000, and the opportunity to spend the day with them printing. As well as that, I was project manager and designer in the winning team for the Volvo and LCF Collaborative Project, where we designed a wearable tech Cycling Safety Jacket. I won a runner up prize in the Shishedo competition with LCF, and I was shortlisted for the Kering Award 2016 and the Amnesty International Competition with t-shirt design.

Final year project by Katy Gladman Tomillero

What advice would you give to someone wanting to study your course?

Alberto: Focus on what you believe you are good at.

Katy: Be prepared – mentally, financially and remain focused and organised throughout.

Clair: It would be so easy to bypass the idea of doing a flexible degree, but this really is a golden ticket for anyone with a dream who has lost hope of ever finding a way to realise it. Yes it’s hard work and it’s a huge commitment, but you will NEVER regret it. Follow the magic – if your heart is reaching out for something then take your chance. I was so insecure about my lack of knowledge when I applied and really didn’t expect to get in – I almost didn’t even bother to apply – but your path is waiting for you to tread it, you just need to have faith. Follow your dreams!

• Find out more about BA (Hons) Fashion Design (Part time)
• Check out Katy, Alberto on Showtime, and Clair’s wesbite
• Find out more about other undergraduate courses at LCF
• Find out more about postgraduate courses at LCF
• Find out more about all courses available at LCF
• LCF Open Days and Events
• More LCF News stories
• Course places available on UCAS Extra