This time last year, when I was getting myself ready for the move to university, I was doing a lot of research beforehand to better prepare myself for the new chapter in my life. Whenever I approach something new, I always feel at ease when I know that I am somewhat prepared, and I did find hundreds of articles and videos about what you should pack if you are moving away from home, but I never found anything relating to my course. I had absolutely no idea what sort of stationary and supplies I needed and wish that I had found an article that gave me a better understanding of how the course was structured.
As a disclaimer, I should mention that each university might have a different structure for this course title, which means that everything featured in the post may not be applicable to your specific course. It would be quite helpful if you already know what modules you will be taking, so if they are the same as the ones that I did, then this post might be of more value to you as I cant imagine that the work will be much different.
My modules were:
- Fashion Industry 1
- Fashion Writing and The Media
- Digital Fashion Promotion
- Fashion and Costume: History and Contemporary Context
1. A4 Project Notebook: One of the biggest things that I relied on last year was my project notebook. I only had one notebook for the entire course and used it to jot down all of the notes that I had taken during lectures. In order to keep my notes organised, I used the little dividers that separated the book into little sections and dedicated each section to one module. The notebook lasted me the entire year, which was fantastic because it was very lightweight and simple. I wasn't carrying around 4-5 heavy notebooks in my bag all day and didn't have to worry about forgetting one because I always had this one with me.
2. Lever Arch File: The little plastic dividers in the notebook also had wallets which meant that I could keep all of my notes and loose papers that I had been given in one place. At the start of each term we would receive our briefs and I kept them in these wallets as well until I had handed in my work. Then any old sheets and briefs that I no longer needed went into my lever arch file to avoid mixing them with new ones that I was currently using. I also didn't want to throw them away in case I needed them for future reference, so it was ideal to have a place where they could all be stored and not take up a lot of space. It definitely ensured that my desk area stayed clean and organised, and the folder never left my flat as I only used it when the time came to file away papers.
3. Coloured Pens: These aren't particularly essential and I didn't use them last year, but I included them because this post is also explaining how I will organise my work this year, unless anything changes with the structure of the course. Although I always write my notes in black ink, its always nice to add a bit of colour now and then. Even if thats just writing the headings and topic names in a different colour. The contrast of colours makes it a lot easier to section your notes so that they are easier to read or revise from. I'm also planning on using them in my student planner and critical journal (which will be explained below).
4. A4 Sketch Book: For my Fashion Industry module, I was required to create a critical journal as one of my main assignments. This was basically an account of what was current in the fashion industry, which had to be updated for an entire year. It also included a lot of gluing and sticking because my main source of news came from magazine publications and newspapers, and because of this, I needed a book that had good quality paper. Sketch books are fantastic for this sort of work because they are specifically made for all that artsy stuff.
5: Patterned Card Sheets: These are also a new thing that I picked up this year, but when I came across them in Poundworld, I immediately decided that I wanted them for my critical journal to add a little bit of colour and decoration.
6. Stickers: As well as my little card sheets, I also picked up these stickers which I will also be using for my planner and notebook. I admit, I'm not as big of a sticker fan as I once was when I was little, but I think these will just look fantastic in my books. I initially bought the rectangle shaped ones to stick at the top of my project notebook dividers so that I could write the module names on them. Making it easier to find each module section, but then when I saw the other two packs, I couldn't help myself. I don't think they will be going into my critical journal as much as the card sheets, but I can see myself going CRAZY with them inside my planner. I've always been intrigued by the concept of sticker planning, especially after watching Elle Fowlers videos, so I'm excited to try it out for myself.
7. Wall Calendar and Student Planner: In terms of planning, I like to have a planner and a wall calendar. A wall calendar will give you a full overview of the entire year, which is a good way of visualising how much time you have until a deadline or exam, for example. Then in a student planner, you can go into further depth and planning of how you are going to approach these deadlines with a day by day plan. As well as deadlines, I will also jot down my to-do lists, appointments, homework, assignments, notable dates and basically any plans I have for each day. Whereas, on my wall calendar, I will just jot down the main appointments of the day, as well as marking any monthly bills or payments, so that I have an understanding of whats coming in or getting taken out of my bank account.
9. Small A5 Notebooks: This is another thing that I never used last year, but I do wish that I had. This year I plan on carrying a small A5 notebook in my bag, which will basically be my homework diary for any homework assignments that get set in class. In my planner I will have a brief outline of what the homework task is and when it is due, but in my homework diary, I will be able to jot down further details about what is required. You generally find that when teachers or lecturers set you a task to do before your next class, they normally give you a bit of guidance on how you could approach it, so to avoid cluttering your planner, you can keep all of this in a separate notebook. It's also great space to jot down any ideas or thoughts that you get during class to avoid forgetting or writing on your class notes.
I hope this helped guide anyone who will be starting their Fashion Communication and Promotion studies this September and put your mind at ease about what sort of stationary supplies you need. Throughout the year as you are set projects and assignments, there will be required supplies that you may not have, but for now, I would stick with the basics that are featured in this post (except the stickers and cards, of course, and maybe the sketch book if you haven't been told that you will be creating a critical journal). It will save you a lot of money if you wait until you know what you need, rather splurging on supplies that you might not even use.
For those who aren't already aware, I will be moving into my second year in September and I'm expecting to receive a lot more work than I did in my first year, so I'm not particularly sure whether the structure of the course will change. I am doing the same amount of modules that I did last year, but two of my modules now have different names. If my organisation methods happen to change this year, then I will be sure to write another blog post explaining how I organised second year.
