Mr. Roe – Health & Medicine

Let’s get one thing straight – to be a fashion designer you’ll need to possess a formidable range of skills and personal qualities. Be honest with yourself, evaluate the extent to which you possess these skills and qualities otherwise you’ll eventually run into obstacles in your attempts to be a fashion designer.

First and foremost you need talent. This encompasses a wide range of skills including drawing, sewing, research, vision and creativity. Without a high level of natural talent you can never be a Joules fashion designer.

The fashion industry is tough and competitive – you need to be prepared to use your abilities to give yourself an edge over your rivals. This only comes through having the confidence to truly believe in what you’re doing and the assertiveness to deliver.

Without a high level of ambition and the necessary commitment to achieve that ambition you may struggle. You have to be prepared to work hard yet remain open to learning. Displaying high levels of flexibility and using criticism from others in a positive way will allow you to adapt in what is an ever-changing environment.

Effective communication skills are a must. If you can’t explain, listen, negotiate or delegate you’ll struggle. Likewise organisational skills – if you can’t plan and co-ordinate you simply won’t finish jobs on time. Part of this comes from being able to make quick decisions and accepting responsibility for those decisions.

If you want to be a fashion designer then you need to accept the fact that you’ll also be running a business. That means being able to spot opportunities as well as carrying out the more mundane tasks that are part and parcel of running a business. You’ll need to be able to show leadership and be prepared to take a few risks if you want to achieve real success.

On a more artistic level you’ll need to be imaginative and creative to generate new ideas. Without a genuine ability to visualize, draw and paint in two dimensions you won’t be able to deliver innovation which is the energizing force of fashion design. Joules Clothing The same can be said for color sense and the many practical skills that go into making a fashion designer.

To be a fashion designer means being prepared to work as part of a team. You’ll need to enjoy group activities and recognize you’re only part of a bigger picture that draws from the input of many players. This calls for a friendly, calm temperament, patience, humour and at times a little bit of humility.

The one personal quality that pulls all of this together is having a real passion for fashion – without this the other skills and personal qualities become undermined and you’ll find it difficult to be a fashion designer.

If you feel you possess these qualities then don’t give up until you cover all the steps you need to take to become a fashion designer.

With winter wear well and truly banished to the back of the wardrobe, it’s time to stock up on fabulous summer fashion. From footwear to headwear – and everything in between – it’s all change as this year’s new lines start to hit the high street.

In 2007 big shoes are expected to make a big hit! It’s time to mothball those delicate, feminine heels because it’s chunky wedges and platforms that will feature this year. During the day, rope-wrapped espadrilles will be ‘de rigueur’ and for that glamorous night out, the step up to sexy, evening platforms will be the norm. But, what will you be wearing on top to match footwear that makes such a statement?

With 42% of the average UK women’s wardrobe consisting of entirely black items, its bad news for your bank account but great news for your shopping alter-ego, as you head to the shops for this summer’s super colours. With most designers choosing bright and bold colours incorporating vivid blues, yellows and poppy reds, you’ll need to find the perfect match for you in terms of both the latest fashions and the spectacular colours on show.

For the mega-bold, neon clothing screams ‘dare you to wear me!’, while for futuristic fashion, the space age look is set for a meteoric rise – with metallic silver becoming the ‘must-have’ colour.

But, if you think those colours are just a tad too bold, then fear not. Grey will still feature heavily this year, thanks to stylish ranges from most of the high street fashion stores. And although it may be frowned upon on its own, black is definitely on the racks this summer – mostly when combined with white. Everything including swimwear, accessories and dresses will carry this bold combination in prints and solids, stripes and checks, and dresses and two pieces.

Designs showcased on the catwalks during fashion week highlighted the return of 80s power-dressing. So prepare yourself – shoulder pads are coming back, but hopefully they won’t be accompanied by endless re-runs of Dallas and Dynasty! Also quite bold, but less obtrusive than the pad is the puff sleeve, also favoured by designers and guaranteed to be in plentiful supply throughout 2007, both on tops and dresses.

Denim accessories will feature heavily this year; whether its handbags or shoes, all are designed to be worn with this season’s colours. But, also expected to sell strongly this season will be the evergreen denim shorts, both as hotpants for the bold or on-the-knee versions for the more conservative amongst us. Whilst we’re on the subject, leg-fashion is most definitely back, with the mini-skirt expected to feature heavily in this summer’s must-have fashion items, alongside the recently revived leggings look. With zig zags, panels, pinstripes, pleats, flannel check and countless other designs, you’ll find mini skirts in abundance, while many high street stores will carry extensive ranges and with a similar, massive choice in leggings, you won’t be left wanting.

So, it’s good news if you want to stock up on summer fashion. But, while there is plentiful choice, the secret to making that ideal look will come down, as always to shopping around, trying on all the styles and seeing exactly what suits you!

When you find that your wardrobe is no longer fitting all your clothes, it is time to think of something to solve the problem. One such solution is a clothing rack. This can alleviate the problem and there are actually many uses for a clothes rack.

You can use a clothing rack to store clothes which you may not be wearing at certain times of the year, such as summer clothing or winter clothing depending on the time of year. If you have a rolling clothing rack you can cover it with a canvas cover and then roll it into a storage area such as the garage or basement to help free up space in your wardrobe.

You can find clothing racks with a variety of storage rails or you can place clothes on special hangers such as trouser hangers or skirt hangers which can hold a number of skirts or trousers. These will allow you to save even more space. Some clothing racks come with shelves also, which will allow you to store items such as shoes, hats, jumpers, t-shirts, etc. This is a great space saver as the shelves can hold many such items. Some clothing racks also come with canvas covers which have pockets at the front; these will allow you to store smaller items.

Some people use clothing racks within their homes as a laundry aid. Clothes can be hung or folded neatly on the clothing rack when they come out of the tumble dryer and then put in a spare room until needed. This will reduce wrinkles and creases and make ironing that little bit easier.

For those with a spare room, you could simply use your clothing rack for hanging special clothing such as suits or dresses for going out in, or to house your work clothes. It can help to have clothes separated and will make it much easier for you to see all your items as sometimes clothes can get lost at the back of the wardrobe!

Another use for your clothes rack could be to hang clothes for sale at a car boot sale as it will be much easier to sell clothes which are hanging on a rack than clothes in a big pile on a table. Experienced sellers at car boot sales will know that clothing racks can be a big draw when selling clothes and those displaying clothes for sale on racks rather than tables will find it much easier to shift their unwanted items.

A clothing rack can have many uses so it is a great addition to your home, whether you use it to help you with the laundry or whether you use it to make some more space inside your wardrobe.