London Life - Week 1: The Big Move

It's finally happened..after a lovely five day break in Reading with Blaithin, Sunday the 5th July had arrived and it was time to make the official move. After a quite comfortable train trip and an awkward tube journey with 30kg of luggage, I arrived to my new apartment on Leman St, East London.

Paddington Station

The House Hunt Experience:

So somehow after months of extremely stressful accommodation hunting and multiple failed plans, my nerves were gone and and I had very little time to sort something out, when.. (extremely long story, short) I found this student complex with a student desperate to sublet her studio apartment for two thirds of it's price, so she could travel for the summer. So here I am in a beautiful, 8th floor studio apartment, all to myself, with only a fifteen minute walk to the studios. With a free gym and dance studio for use 24/7, it couldn't be more ideal! So accommodation was finally sorted and I was all set to start a 12 week internship with none other than GILES! Still doesn't sound real!

Apartment View

Monday: 

So the day had arrived, day 1 of 60 that I would spend in the Giles Deacon Studios and nerves were most certainly present. If there was a time where I truly experienced fear of the unknown it was right then. To my absolute delight, on my arrival, I learnt that there were two other interns starting the same day as me, as well as three other interns that were already there (and another two interns on holidays). I was quite relieved that there was a bunch of us in the same boat, it made the whole experience less daunting. So the day began with embroidering samples from an image that would inspire the Spring Summer 2016 collection! Then myself and Shannon (one of the interns who started that day also) had to bring patterns and leather to a tailors about fifteen minute walk away and then after lunch I went back to that tailors with another pattern and to collect a coat that was finished! When we weren't running errands, we would continue embroidering samples. We finished up early and headed home, all in all, it was a great first day, my nerves had been settled and I was beginning to get comfortable and confident in the studio.

Tuesday:

Day two was pretty similar to the day before, we continued sewing as well as running a few errands, I also pinned lining and cut it for lining some cuffs. Had to run to a DIY store to collect some fabric glues also. We got out early again and I was really starting to find my feet, loving the studio and the people by day two, I was feeling pretty good about the start of the adventure and excited for what was yet to come!

House Goals!

Wednesday:

Didn't have much time to embroider on day three, as I was kept pretty busy all day! I got to pin and mark some printed fabric for some garments, tacking lines to mark the pleats and hems. I went back to the leather tailors to collect a pattern that we left there on Monday, little did I know that he gave me the wrong pattern and he didn't realise until I was nearly back at the studio, so had to do that trip again. After that, I bonded some fabric samples in the heat press, continued embroidering, tidied up and headed home. 

Thursday: 

So today I got a little bit ahead of myself and left the apartment without evening noticing the time and ended up in the studios, fifteen minutes early. So I made a start at the routine cleaning and it wasn't long before the rest joined. First task of the day, was to pack some garments for shipping to Italy along with some more embroidery sampling. Now here comes a first... I had to run an errand into the city centre for the first time, but of course, it was the day of the tube strike, so I prepared myself for madness. So the buses were all packed and when I finally managed to get onto one, it decided to change destination half way, which resulted in me getting off and walking the rest of the way, as I was walking faster than the traffic anyways. In town, I had to get some button and eyelet samples and buy some corset lacing also, which was all just off Oxford Street. I made my way back to the studio on a slow but steady bus. Due to the traffic, I took a late lunch, embroidered for my remaining time, tidied up and headed home to make dinner and go meet Stacey and Eimear for cinema and a catch up.

The Gherkin Building

Friday:

So Friday took off at a speedy pace with an errand first thing to Battersea, to get some dresses fixed before they were shipped, thankfully the traffic was majorly improved from the day before and I was back in studio by lunch time. I continued embroidering for a while and then cut out some templates for leather patterns, followed by taking lunch. The day had flown by and was practically over, all I had to do was deliver one more parcel and the weekend would begin, so off I took from Aldgate East Underground Station, west on the Hammersmith and City line to Shepherd's Bush Market, delivered the parcel and made the return trip to Aldgate East. So I got home from that run, made some dinner and headed off to meet the girls from college for some drinks and a night out in Shoreditch.

The Tower Bridge

Saturday:

After a somewhat lazy morning I got myself up and ready to head into London, met the girls at the London Bridge and after a bit of wandering, we settled in 'The Scoop' beside Tower Bridge, to watch the pretty impressive Women's Singles Final of Wimbledon, with some strawberries and a scorching sun. After this we sunbathed in a park for a while, got some delicious ice cream beside Borough Market and then came back to mine for a Chinese and Harry Potter.. like when is it not a good time to watch Harry Potter.

The Perfect Saturday

Sunday:

So today has been a bit of lazy day, yet a productive day all the same. I put the bins out, did the laundry, made some lunch and watched the Men's Single Final while finishing off this post for my first week in London, there's not much else to say really. The weather isn't great today, so just trying to get myself organised and top of things.

London City

So that's all for this post guys, the first of twelve. I hope to post every Sunday/Monday, documenting my week for you guys, that might be interested in what it's like to live in London and experience an internship, but also for me to look back at and reflect my own experience, because by the looks of things the next eleven weeks are going to fly by in a blur, so at least, this way I'll have something to remember it by.

Just a random pub..

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Thanks,

Barry T.

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