Happiness In Bed

It was weird that I should across this, because it was just the other day I found myself twisting and turning in bed to try and achieve some sort of way of being able to read my book, however ensure that my arms did not get cold and then, feeling slightly annoyed that my idea of getting into bed a bit earlier than normal to read my book was, well, a lot colder and not quite as cosy as I had hoped.

Low and behold I came across something so simple, yet the answer to my problems... the blanket with sleeves! Aptly named Happiness in Bed, the blanket basically does as it says. Not yet on sale, however is high up there on my wish list for sure.

Two Plates of Calamari are Always Better Than One

Yesterday I headed to Manchester for the day. This is where I went to uni so have quite a soft spot for the place and look forward to going back when I can. However, this time I was not going for the usual social reasons, but to meet the make-up artist for my photo shoot, Jodie.

This was the first time I had met her, as up until now we have only talked via email. We wanted to get together so we could talk over all of the ideas each of us had for the shoot. I showed her numerous tear sheets of make-up styles that I particularly liked, so she was then more aware of the image I wanted to create in the look book. In addition, I took along my scarf samples so she knew exactly what Lucy Jay was about and the style I want to create for my label. Jodie's work is perfect for what I want, so I am really excited for the day and seeing what we come up with. We have talked about big hair and bright lips; in combination with my print designs it is all going to look pretty good!

My next stop was to meet Sarah, a good friend of mine and also the photographer for the shoot. After a few cups of coffee throughout the morning and not a regular coffee drinker I had quite a caffeine buzz by now, so we did get slightly side tracked and end up having more of a catch up, however managed to tie up any odds and end about the shoot and have a chat over some additional ideas. Again I pulled out some of my trusty tear sheets to ensure I am keeping her updated on my ideas for the day. Sarah, or Patel as I call her, is the most organised person I know so has done all the test shots and preparation for the shoot and is ready and raring to go. We are both looking forward to having a bit of an experiment on the day with lighting, composition etc.

All this talk about the shoot got me really excited about it, I am really looking forward to it and cannot wait to see it all done. My mission now over the next few weeks is to sort out a good variety of clothing samples for the day so that we can mix and match to create the perfect style. I have managed to persuade one of my other friends to help out with the styling, as she is what my mum would say 'one of those people who has a good eye for stuff like that'.

All in all I feel pretty organised for the shoot and (I am going to say it again) really excited to see it all come together.

And Finally...

This is my friend Nia Jones, I want to thank her for treating me to the super dooper tapas meal we had in our favourite restaurant La Vina. What we learnt last night was that two plates of calamari are always better than one, maybe next time we should make that three plates of calamari. They are sooo good! Thanks Jonsey and sorry I didn't help you get the massive spider you were screaming at in the bath this morning, it was half six after all!

The Low Down... The Wiggle... The Squirrel

... I have been working on Lucy Jay gradually since I left uni in the summer, well after I had got my holidays and graduation celebrations out of the way. I came up with the idea after I had designed and made large printed silk scarves as part of my final collection. Since then I have basically been developing on this idea and creating the world of Lucy Jay, slowly but surely!

Before Christmas I was juggling designing the scarves at weekends and evenings with placements at a Fashion PR company and magazines... tiring, however completely worth it as I gained an insight into different aspects of the fashion industry, enabling me to develop on what I had learnt on placements prior to those which I had done while at uni.

And then? Well the ball began to roll a little faster after Christmas, as I could devote all my time to the design process, while drinking ridiculous amounts of tea and being thankful that I had finally got Spotify on my computer to keep me going. So creating prints and occasionally singing along to ABBA when I needed a pick me up, I designed, designed, designed and printed, printed, printed....

So now where am I up too? Well the scarves have been printed and finished and look super and all ready for the photo shoot in a few weeks, so they can be put to rest for a bit. But no rest for the wicked, I have since been spending my time on developing my website designs. I have been working with the lovely people at Wirral Biz to help me do so. Wirral Biz is a support program set up for residents of the Wirral (aka the paradise peninsular/the wiggle/the squirrel) who are setting up there own new business'. I attended a total of eight sessions over four weeks were myself and a group of other Wirralites learnt about topics I was otherwise clueless about,such as, tax returns, business plans and promotional techniques... exciting stuff! So with their much appreciated help I have been working on not only the start up of my scarf label but also the website, which will be coming soon..

My plans for the next few weeks involve producing a look book for the current scarf collection, along with working on the companies identity and promotion, two very important aspects to a new business... so watch this space!

LUCY JAY

Lucy Jay... Digital Printed Silk Scarves