5 people that I believe are successful/inspiring...

1. Rachel Zoe

2. Pamela Skaist-Levy and Gela Nash-Taylor

3. Heidi Klum

4. Cheryl Cole

5. Ralph Rueben Lifshitz

Pamela Skaist-Levy and Gela Nash-Taylor

Why do you consider them to be successful? Pam Skaist-Levy and Gela Taylor founded their hugely successful Juicy Couture clothing company out of a one-bedroom apartment in Los Angeles, California. They made the 'tracksuit' sexy and went on to earn $90 million from the success of their company, without borrowing any money from the bank.

How did they get to be? They worked extremely hard and believed in their brand.

What drove them? The need for a brand where you can be running around doing daily eerands in comfortable clothing yet look and feel sexy.

What can you learn from them? To be creative and follow your instincts, be street smart and believe in your product.

Ralph Rueben Lifshitz

Why do you consider them to be successful? Ralph Lauren was born Ralph Rueben Lifshitz in the southern New York City borough of The Bronx to Ashkenazi Jewish immigrants in 1939, his company Ralph Lauren is now valued at $4.3bn (£2.1bn), in 2007.

How did they get to be?
Ralph Lauren studied business science and served time in the army before breaking into fashion • Ralph Lauren's empire was founded in 1967, after he opened his first ever tie shop, with no formal design training. Next came menswear and, in 1971, Ralph Lauren introduced his women's label• The brand floated on the US stockmarket in 1997, and now includes Polo Ralph Lauren, Polo Sport and the Ralph Lauren Collection.

What drove them? His brand and vision was to become a guardian of the all American dream, albeit a Wasp-y upper class Ivy League one which, in theory, included polo playing as a hobby. His ubiquitous polo shirt with its horse and rider logo has never really gone away throughout 40 years of designing - and every few years it's revived by young cool kids.

What can you learn from them? That you do not have to have formal training in order to follow a certain career path, if you have the skills and determination all you need is to practise and to perfect your craft and gain as much experience as possible.

Rachel Zoe

Why do you consider them to be successful?From red carpet dressing to design collaborations, advertising campaigns to editorial shoots and runway shows, stylist Rachel Zoe is the go-to force among “It” starlets, fashion houses, beauty firms and magazine editors looking for a dose of effortlessly chic style. Zoe’s strength lies in a commitment to bringing out the best in the individual women she works with, including many of Hollywood’s A-list leading ladies.

How did they get to be? Rachel Zoe Rosenzweig, born September 1, 1971 in Millburn, New Jersey, came from a family of art collectors. At the age of 13, Rachel’s mom took her to Paris, where she fell in love with fashion the moment she bought her first-ever Louis Vuitton bag. Although Rachel Zoe studied sociology and psychology at the George Washington University and graduated in 1993, she started off a career in fashion by working in magazines around the 1990s. During this time, Zoe worked for YM, styling teen pop stars like Britney Spears.

What drove them? Her passion for bringing out the best in the individual women she works with.

What can you learn from them? To follow your dreams and turn them in to a career.

Ralph Lauren

Ralph Lauren has been an established brand for many decades and the childrenswear line is becoming just as popular as its preliminary design area of men's and womenswear. The colours used throughout the the childrenswear collection is an array of pastel coloured rainbow tones and the designs always feature the classic Polo Ralph Lauren branding logo of the polo player and horse. This usually is positioned on the front left hand side of the garment, in front of the human heart and is coloured to compliment the garment colour.
The Childrenswear line consists of Polo Shirts, Polo Dresses, Shorts, Skirts, Knitwear, Swimwear, Shoes and Accessories.
Ralph Lauren has a very strong image when it comes to Brand Identification. The Polo Player can be identified anywhere in the world and the quality of the clothing is perfection, yet at an affordable price.
I love the range of pastel and bright coloured tones used within the SS10 colour palette and the way they incorporate pastel checks into the collection.
I feel that Ralph Lauren is a great example of an Iconic Designer and I have chosen this brand as inspiration with my Professional Project.

Something I have become good at....

I feel that my skills within Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop have improved significantly within the past year. I feel confident within using these skills and feel that I can achieve a professional finish to any piece of work when using this media.

I think it's a fantastic piece of media and I have used it throughout my previous project as well as within the logo/brand design of my Professional Project.

A learning experience that went wrong...

Last year for our end of year project I worked for On/Off at London Fashion Week, whilst there I visited Berwick Street to purchase fabrics for my end of year Professional Project. I found the perfect fabric that suited my swimwear illustrations perfectly, as it was really out there and different. I didn't think of the technicality of the fabric and purchased 2 meters costing a total of £120. Once I returned to University and showed my tutor the fabric she advised me that I had made it extremely difficult for myself as, as the fabric was embellished with sequins, I would have to hand pick off the sequins in order to sew through the fabric. After various attempts and other technical difficulties, including the fabric having very little stretch I had to completely scrap the idea of using it and stick to the cheaper metallic lycra that I had purchased in order to create the outcome that I hoped for.

So there for I learned a lesson to never buy expensive fabric on impulse, always do your research and look at the technicality and functions of it and your designs, else you end up wasting a lot of money!!!!

Christian Dior

Dior's childrenswear has a beautiful and individual style that is very classy and luxurious. They use the 'D' logo throughout the collection as well as highlights of bows and pretty finishing's. They stick to a classic colour palette of mainly White's with highlights of various pastel colours for their SS10 collection.
Their campaign is always very classic looking and their accessories section follows suit.

Something I feel good about......

My job as the Womenswear Buyer at work has made me feel good about myself as I feel that my life now has a bit of direction. It has made me feel reassured that I have a full time job (that I love!!) in place for when I finish this course. It has given me so many fantastic experiences and opportunities already and I really look forward to my London showroom trips!