A Week at CSM

A good month or so overdue but what's a fashion blog without being a little behind schedule, ey? In that gorgeously sweltering month of July - can you feel those mournful undertones of longing now that autumn is just around the corner? - I spent a week at the fashion education temple that is Central Saint Martins. 

Throughout the year CSM runs short courses for students of all ages and abilities covering subjects as diverse as Haute Couture Embroidery to Transatlantic Trendspotting. There were so many courses that had me tempted - City Photography in London and Barcelona anyone? - but in the end, I settled for an Introduction to Professional Sewing Skills and boy, it didn't disappoint. 

Starting from scratch, I learned to thread up the machine and wind the bobbin. However, before long I had progressed to trouser zippers and shirt collars, with seams, hems and pockets all picked up along the way. The course was lead by Arly Torcelino, who has worked at CSM for nearly a decade. She was a wealth of expertise and always ready to help me out in the inevitable event that I'd gone a few stitches too wrong. Arly put together step-by-step guides for each technique, which enabled us all to progress at our own pace, choosing to learn the skills that would benefit us most. All in all, it was a thoroughly enjoyable week and I was amazed at how much I'd learnt in such a short space of time. If you're looking to do a sewing course - or indeed, any course of the creatively inclined - then I'd highly recommend checking out what CSM has to offer.

Note: I also had the chance to watch the fashion show for the Fashion Knitwear course, which I have included photographs of below. Just three weeks earlier, many of the members of the course had no idea how to knit so I think the results were pretty impressive.