Any kind of topic that's about animals is super sensitive to me and to many other people all around the world. We talked about cruelty-free products and animal testing, hunting, endangered species, pollution, forest reduction.. The list goes on and on about the threats that animals have to face when a human is involved. The circus is not an exception.

Circus has been around for a very very long time and it's understandable that it's hard to change a human habit of being entertained. But fuck, are we still paying to see animals being tortured for the laugh?  It's disgusting enough that labs are still testing on animals and using them as props in irrelevant situations but circus really drives me insane. There are just the kind of topics that trigger you from the inside and you can't help but to speak up your mind. We've seen facts and pictures of how animals are being treated in circuses. Physical abuse, starvation, small spaces for big animals, cages. Do I need to even say more? 

As always, it's hard to change something that's been around for ages. It's always easier to create something completely different than to change someone's mind about anything (same-sex marriage and family, women rights, equality - you get the idea). However, Germany seems to be taking effort, time and energy into changing something about the entertainment of circus. 

German circus came up with a way of using holograms and light shows instead of live animals. Where has this been earlier?! We have human-looking robots but animal holograms are only now a thing? (I mean Night at the Musem 2 did it first in 2014 but still) 

'Cruelty-free magical experience' - that's how the article describes it and I totally agree. I'd much rather go to this kind of a show than sit in a dirty circus tent watching elephants being chased by monkeys. 

A lot of thought has gone into this production: the lasers, the techniques, the lighting. It must have cost a fortune therefor it's definitely worth it. The details are incredible and super realistic, the colours are vibrant as if the actual animal was there and thank God for the person who came up with this idea for the Circus Roncalli.

The topic seems to be triggering to a lot of people, including me. I’ve been blogging for more than 5 years now and as many bloggers, I had to transfer to Instagram to get new readers and naturally, I started to grow quite a generous audience of +4K followers. I started working with brands and engaging with other bloggers. Does that make me an influencer now? Because I’m fine if it does. An influencer is not a bad thing.

It’s possible to argue about the goods and bads of an influencer from the consumer's point of view and actually being one. In this era, it’s easy to earn money online and, maybe, even build a career out of it and people need to accept that. In my home country Lithuania, people are still judging influencers for what they do, to the audience they’re stupid and unconcerned. Sure there are those ‘useless’ influencers but most of them are smart, they have goals and they worked hard to be where they are now. How can you judge that? Is it jealousy that other people get free stuff? Is it the free events? Or is it the amount of money they make? Either way, it will take some time for people to accept the way influencers live their life and it’s okay. But the Instagram era has been around for more than 2 years so how long will it take for the hate to vanish into thin air? 

Some are being accused of photoshopping and building unrealistic everyday life. The photoshop thing has been around since people found out they can manipulate the body or a face just by finding the right angle and lightning. Every influencer, blogger or a regular human being uses some sort of a photo editing technique. A photograph is just an image. Of course, it’s not realistic. Of course, no one walks around with a bodysuit, a hair towel and some sunglasses around their house. But that looks aesthetically pleasing and people like aesthetically pleasing content. 

Do I use photoshop aka Facetune? Yeah. I am guilty of getting rid of pimples/smoothing my skin. I am guilty of making my eyes a bit bigger or my nose a bit smaller. And there were times where I altered the way my hips look. But I know the boundaries and what a balance is. I photoshop a picture because I like the way it looks and so do my followers. I know what kind of content brings me good engagement that is to hard to receive with the algorithms. 

There has to be a balance and boundaries when it comes to editing a picture. I know people who do it subtly and people who go way too far with it.

The main issue that people have with photoshopping is that it brings unrealistic standards and makes other people feel insecure about themselves. This may sound harsh but it’s not my fault you have self-esteem issues. I’m just doing my thing. And if you can’t find the difference between a subtle photoshop and a toothpick thin waist then that’s your problem. 

Comparing yourself to others is a mental problem that I have too but I don’t go around calling people out for photoshopping their content. If you don’t like that content or it makes you feel bad about yourself - that ‘block’ button is a blessing. 

My main point of this post is to express the anger towards the hate that influencers receive. It makes me sick just thinking about the amount of hate girls and guys receive because they're living a different lifestyle than most of the human population on earth. Am I defending them because I'm in that world too? Maybe. But that still doesn't change my point of view. The world right now is based on someone making an influence so I guess at thhe end of the day, you pick what influences you and what doesn't. If a person doesn't do you any good - say goodbye and move on with your life.

Collaboration in a marketing world is crucial and really important in creating something different and  unique. It's a way of spreading awareness about certain things, a source of inspiration and motivation. For my final year project, I chose to do a collaboration between two brands, Timorous Beasties and Byredo. While I was making that choice, I began to wonder, what are some of the most iconic collaborations in fashion, beauty or accessories?

Another inspiring collaboration in the fashion world is Nike x Off-White. Virgil Abloh is the patron saint of the self-made social media set, and his Nike collaboration epitomizes our modern obsessions with making it big and making it our own. Virgil is known for being inspirational besides his creations but these sneakers are very unique, exceptional. This collaboration was very succesful making the sneakers the 'most coveted sneakers of the year'. 

Another shoe collaboration that completely changed the game for sneakers for good. The Jordan brand for Nike. Is it a collaboration or a full-time partnership? By the looks of it, it's now full-time thing but I'm pretty sure that at first it was just a collaboration. And that makes it to the list of iconic collaborations. 

Another collaboration that was extremely hiped up is the Louis Vuitton x Supreme. A lot of celebrities were raving about the pieces, posting them on social media and featuring in their day-to-day lives. 

The story of how the collaboration happened is quite funny actually. Way back inthe 2000s, Supreme used LV logo and got sued by Louis Vuitton. All of this resulted in the collaboration later on for the menswear Autumn/Winter 2017 runway. 

On Tuesday, 28th May Gucci Spring/Summer Resort 2020 show went down and the fashion world is excited. At this time of year, all major designers are releasing resort collections and it is a hectic time for the fashion people. (Not as hectic as Fashion Week but still).

Whenever we hear that name, we know it brings us diversity and excitement as the woman behind that name herself - Miss Rihanna Fenty.

Rihanna is launching her own clothing line 'Fenty' with LVHM and is the first woman of colour to do so. She's already broken records with her makeup brand Fenty Beauty, the lingerie brand Savage x Fenty and she has no intention of slowing down anytime soon. We all already know that this clothing line will be just as successful as everything else that Rihanna does. And when the first previews of the clothing went up online, it became clear that success is Rihanna's nickname as everyone went crazy over it. 

The full collection lauches online on 29th May and the pop-up store in Paris has already opened its doors on the 24th. 

“Women are forces of this earth. We are multifaceted, complex, vulnerable yet bulletproof, and FENTY speaks to all of our intricacies. Some days I want to be submissive, many days I’m completely in charge and most days I feel like being both….so it was imperative that we created a line versatile enough to embrace and celebrate us in that way. The collections are easily worn together and meant to be staples in our wardrobe." - Rihanna 

"Inspired by a worldwide community beyond traditional boundaries, FENTY embraces a fundamental freedom: a freedom from convention and rules. This marks a new evolution in luxury – created from simple yet elevated materials, engineered with a modern take on classic silhouettes. " - LVMH

The pieces are incredibly modern and minimalistic, just as described. When I first took a glance at them, it occured to me that they look exaclty like what we've already seen Rihanna in on the streets caught my paparrazi and I love that. I look at the clothing and I see her. The colour palette, the design, the styling - it's HER. 

The reviews online were warm and supportive as well. However, some expressed concerns that the clothes wouldn't look good on normal body sillhouetttes (short and more curvy women). More tall and curvy women might be able to pull those off but petite and short ones could have a hard time making the pieces look good on their body shape/size. These are just specullations and opinions but as soon as the brand is up and going, we will see more pictures of ordinary people wearing them and the concerns will be yesterdays news. With the revolutionary Fenty Beauty and the diversity factor in it, I understand where some people are coming from. But knowing Rihanna, her beliefs and values, it's hard to believe that she would prioritize tall and skinny models over more 'normal' shapes and sizes. 

On Friday my friend dragged me to the opening of a new exhibition by Lis Rhodes in Nottingham Contemporary called Dissident Lines and I'm grateful that she did. 

"Lis Rhodes is a pioneer of experimental filmmaking and a major figure in the history of artists working with film in Britain. Enabled by the Freelands Award 2017, Dissident Lines is Rhodes’ first-ever survey and will span almost 50 years of work. Significantly, this is the first time that Nottingham Contemporary has ever dedicated all of its galleries to a retrospective. The exhibition will span Rhodes’ entire career, from iconic pieces such as Dresden Dynamo and Light Music to a specially commissioned new work. Dissident Lines will be accompanied by a comprehensive monograph." - nottinghamcontemporary.org

The visuals were truly contemporary - very trippy, dark and experimental. By far, my favourite exhibit/room was the film installation Light Music (1975). I could spend hours in there walking around, dancing and looking at my shadow on the screen. It was therapeutic in a way even. But still fun. I felt like in a movie, and old cinema. I love those installations that I can be a part of, the ones that allow me to move and shape myself into a piece of art. It's calming, inspiring, motivating, refreshing, stimulating...

"Formed from two projections facing one another on opposite screens, Light Music is Rhodes’s response to what she perceived as the lack of attention paid to women composers in European music. She composed a ‘score’ comprised of drawings that form abstract patterns of black and white lines onscreen. The drawings are printed onto the optical edge of the filmstrip. As the bands of light and dark pass through the projector, they are ‘read’ as audio, creating an intense soundtrack, forming a direct, indexical relationship between the sonic and the visual. What one hears is the aural equivalent to the flickering patterns on the screens." - tate.org.uk

Another installation that touched me emotionally was the wall with the list of thousands documented deaths of refugees and immigrants due to the restrictive policies of "Fortress Europe". It was interesting but horrifying to read at the same time. Children, women, men and their deaths, it's all written on there: their age, the region of origin, the cause of death. I had to stop myself from imagining all these poor souls going through such a traumatic journey only to be dead moments later. 

This wall was leading to a room where a movie was played explaining the agony, the pain of women and men who suffered domestic violence and forced labour. Even Lithuanians were mentioned, my people.. thousands of them tortured physically and mentally to work without the identity of their own.

All in all, the exhibition was exciting yet terrifying but the Still I Rise exhibition I visited back in October still remains my favourite I've seen so far. 

It's no secret that the fragrance market is a highly competitive field and one brand gets shadowed by another one quite often. That seems to be one of the main issues facing the fragrance market. 

COMPETITION. According to ImgoenMatthews.com, 2,095 new fragrances launched globally in 2016, in comparison to 581 in 2003, which is absolutely insane. Looking at these numbers, it's easy to understand why competition is such a major factor in this market. Not to mention that this information is 3 years old, therefore that leads me to believe that in recent years, the numbers have increased even more. Brands need to focus on quality rather than quantity. They need to focus on the storytelling, the marketing and it's crucial to find the right way to reach their existing and potential consumers. Already, too many brands offer the same uninspiring product and overall experience so what differs each and every one of them?

UNINSPIRING RETAIL EXPERIENCE. That is exactly the kind of thing that would differ one brand from another. Various research have shown that people nowadays seek an amazing shopping experience, especially when it comes to fragrance. Seeing as though, perfume is a powerful product that triggers the emotions, it's self-explanatory what people are expecting. Many brands offer personalisation and aesthetically pleasing pop-up stores all around the world but I've noticed that those are not very accessible to the majority of people. All we see is influencers being a part of these incredible events. But where do ordinary people go? I mean they're supposed to be the targeted consumers, right? And yet, they're missing from those memorable experiences. 

"For a product that’s so full of glamour, mystery and delight, the perfume retail experience is largely underwhelming – rows and rows of similar looking and smelling fragrances that are only differentiated by name" - dalziel-pow.com

CELEBRITY FRAGRANCES. Every source is speaking differently about celebrity fragrances: some say it's old news and everyone's over them, yet some argue that it's only growing to its full potential. I could say that it's nothing new about celebrity fragrances but it's debatable. Let's look at Kim Kardashian-West fragrance line KKW Fragrances. It doubled the profits and sky-rocketed the sales within minutes of launching. Now is it because it's Kim K or is the product genuinely amazing? I would say it's both: the packaging looks incredible yet it's not unique as many brands have body shaped bottles  (but it's a true copy of her own body so it can be intimidating to some); the price range is decent ($30-$60), marketing strategy and aesthetics - A+.

When it comes to celebrities being a part of a marketing strategy for perfume, that is not going anywhere as famous faces still remain the most influential part of our society. 

The first Monday of May. The most important fashion event of the year. The most iconic night. The most iconic fashion. The Oscars of fashion. What more needs to be said. Oh right, Camp! The theme for this year was Camp: Notes of Fashion. A lot of people got confused by the name, and to be fair, so was I when I first came across it. In all honesty, looking at the pictures, it seems that a lot of designers were confused as well. Now I'm no serious expert when it comes to fashion but I am studying it, so my opinion is a bit more 'educated' and dare I say 'reasonable'. In one of the Vogue videos on Youtube with Lady Gaga and her level of camp, she quoted the essay by Susan Suntag Notes on "Camp" and perfectly understood the meaning of this year's theme. 

"Camp is who you are. It's not who you TRY to be."

The majority of designers and celebrities understood Camp as being as extra as you can to the point where the garment looks costumey, tacky. And that's exactly what Katy Perry brought to the pink carpet. Yes, she looked insane and definitely original but to me, her outfit looked like a very expensive Halloween costume. The chandelier looked glamorous (I actually did like the chandelier) but the burger... That was definitely a costume, not Camp. Yes it was weird, funny and crazy but there has to be a line where Camp ends and costume starts or am I missing something? If I touched on costumes, some may argue that Zendaya and her Cinderella fantasy was also a costume and that's correct. But her entrance, her whole aesthetics was Camp. The performance that she put on with the fairy dust and the light up dress, her body language itself was glamorous and she breathed with elegance. That's the thing though, I'm disappointed that Katy didn't do a dramatic entrance, she just came in and stood there. The performance wasn't LIT. (I had do)

I could get into my faves and hates of the night but that would be boring as we all have seen the photos at this point. I'm writing this post as more of a personal opinion on this whole shebang in general. 

Last year, all I cared about were the outfits and the beautification of the look but now, when I'm more mature and can form an opinion based on research, I am more into the idea of that Gala, the meaning of it. 

On Sunday, I watched the documentary The First Monday of May to get me even more excited about the event. Looking at the rooms and exhibits that I saw myself when I visited New York back in January was incredible to the point where I started to tear up. News flash, I am a sentimental cry-baby. But the documentary was inspiring and eye-opening, for the first time I looked at the Met Gala not only as a red carpet event full of beautiful dresses but as an event with purpose and meaning, with a story. I looked into the exhibit, I started following the official Instagram accounts of The Met and got insights that prepared me for the carpet, that gave me a base to form an opinion from. And really, it is just all blown up in this modern era, a few decades ago it truly was all about the purpose, but now, everybody only cares about the outfits. And that 's something that celebrities, designers and organizers have to start spreading awareness about. Maybe, dressing famous people in outfits that don't quite represent the theme is their way of forcing people to look into what the theme actually was? Yes, everyone understands Camp differently but if there's a certain description of how it's supposed to look and you still don't do it, there has to be a reason for it, right? 

As you know by now, or if you don't, Dior is one of my favourite designers and fashion houses in the entire world, and I look forward to every show and every product that they release. Therefore, I was really looking forward to this 2020 Resort show. Did I watch the live stream? Hell yes. Did I keep refreshing the Vogue Runway page waiting for a review? YES. 

They all say change is good but is it true?

Yes. Definitely. It may result in a bit of a downfall or it could lead to a rise. That's the intention of brands when they decide to rebrand their aesthetics. Many of them have done it by now. Name me one O.G. label that's stayed the same since the establishment. 

Some consumers are a fan of the new look, some prefer the old one but as my mom says 'you can't fullfill everyone'. I actually like the new Balenciaga and Saint Laurent image. Those two have always been the ones with unusual designs and disruption of the market, therefore, the new font sort of fits with the aesthetics. The font is one of the most important factors of a brand image and story. Before all of this, each brand was different, you were excited to see beautiful fonts and designs in a label. 

What a lot of people have noticed, is that a lot of brands go for the simple, not ground-breaking font. The reason behind this, is that a research found that people react more quickly, easily to these simple fonts. Is this true? We can only wonder. That change leads to all of them looking very similar if not the same. But we don't notice that in particular because the products differ from one another like day and night. And when you put those names right next to each other, that distinctness is no longer visible. 

I was a fan of the old fonts, it gave a certain 'umph' to a brand, it was alluring and unique. Some brands need to understand, that rebranding is not an alignment and remaining a unique image is crucial.

For our new brief, we got a chance to create our on fragrance on 1st April and no it wasn't an April Fools joke.  

A British perfumer Sarah McCartney paid our uni a visit in order to help us to create our own fragrance brand by giving an insight on the market and her own accomplishments as well as her brand 4160 Tuesdays. This day was honestly one of my favourites this module, mainly because, I enjoyed creating our own perfume. Yes, we created our own perfume. We mixed ingredients together,  we put drops of this and that into little bottles and all those other processes that lab people do when they're creating a fragrance. 

Information about our created fragrance is on my sketchbook. This is mainly my thoughts about the day. activity in general.

Sarah McCartney herself seemed like a very sweet and kind lady. She's confident, wise, friendly and was truthfully willing to help us out on this brief. Once each of our little groups created the perfume, she went around the tables and showed interest in our product and gave her initial thoughts. 

McCartney also told us stories about her own brand, her story, the aim and how the market works and that was very helpful for us who had zero to little knowledge about the whole thing at that point.

As much as I adored her as an individual, I was not a fan of her perfumes. Well, to be fair, she only showed us two or three scents, but still, none of them knocked me off my feet. On her website, (https://www.4160tuesdays.com), she does have many choices and seeing as though the brand is an indie brand, and not a very huge one - that's congratulating. 

During our second module, I  got to go to one of my favourite cities in the whole world, London. On the 28th April, we packed our bags for the day, as usual, I put on the outfit I wanted to be photographed in, and we left for the capital. 

As for some who doesn't come to London that often, I fall in love with that city whenever I go there. The architecture, the little boutiques and the designer shops/window designs.. It all leaves me shook to my corbs. 

I mean look at this Dior and Fendi window displays. Two of my favourite brands ever slaying the shit out of the streets of London. I felt like a tourist capturing every corner of a street, honestly. Window designs is something I've always been fascinating by and, maybe, I would consider going into that direction when I graduate. I love creating visuals, especially ones that communicate well with the recipient, the customer. And even though the whole point of this trip was to do research for our upcoming fragrance brief, I managed to squeeze window displays and fragrance into one. 

Research of fragrance displays, bottles and everything else is on my sketchbook.

The Vogue House.. And the archive.. Where do I even begin?! Everything about this place was incredible. Did I get a typical blogger pic in front of the building? You bet your ass I did. 

I wanted to buy a magazine from that little 'shop' but, honesty, I felt super overwhealmed that I couldn't pick one. So I spend those £5-10 pounds on food. Typical..

• They speak the Internet language. These days, GIFs are a part of meme culture (this is incorporated in this modern era's DNA), therefore, these visuals are highly relatable to the Gen Z. "Despite the changes in content and communication through the years, brands can still be rewarded when keeping up with the times." 

Currently, we're working with one of the biggest brands in the world - Levi's. It's a life brief, meaning that the client is real, the feedback will be brutal and the product has to be real and possible to execute, not flying dragons wearing Levi's jeans holding up a sign '20% off with UniDays' (believe me, I'd love for that to happen).

For this brief, we had approximately 3 weeks and in the middle of those three weeks, Levi's associates came in to give us a lecture and spread awareness about the brand, its achievements and history. 

One of them was Molly McGarry, Fashion Communication and Promotion graduate at Nottingham Trent University aka a former fashion graduate that we all aspire to be (or at least should). She's super adorable and friendly, we could all relate to her and her experiences as a student, therefore, that's what attracted most of us towards her. Her presentation was truly insightful, useful, helpful to all of us. Molly broke down the importance and key elements that make up a great group work and that's exactly what we all needed as we were in the process of working in one. 

Another person that attended this event is Richard Hurren, Vice President of Levi's Europe. Now how do I put this nicely... I didn't like one bit of his presentation, honestly. Yes, his information was insightful and somewhat helpful but he did not seem genuine towards us. Most of his sentences did not cooperate with other ones, it felt like he's lying about some elements and he kept arguing with himself and, most importantly, us. 

At the end of his presentation, we all got a chance to ask him questions and that's where it went downhill. He couldn't manage to answer one single question honestly, he either kept avoiding the truth that was crucial to us or he changed the meaning of a simple question like "What makes this brand American?". His answer to that was awfully useless: "We're not an American brand, we're an International brand". I get what he was trying to say but that just seemed illogical seeing as though that every aspect of Levi's history points that they're an American brand.

Conclusion: it was an interesting day. It was insightful and helpful but it changed the way that I look at Levi's. If at first, the brand seemed genuine and loveable, now it doesn't feel that way at all. It may just be the way that Levi's are in Europe and I hope that it's different on the other side of the world.

All the love,

Karolina x 

As you all know, Fashion Week is officially over and that does make me just a tad sad. I'll miss the feeling of waking up in the morning and checking the FW calendar to see what kind of shows are on. I'll miss opening up the Vogue Runway app and going through all the recent collections and reading the reviews. I'll sure miss the breathtaking fashion shows like Saint Laurent, Dior, Louis Vuitton, Off-White, Fendi and of course Chanel.. 

But all of that leaves me even more excited for fall and the month of September for SS20

When it comes to FW, I just love looking at the street style. It just gives me the wave of inspiration that stays with me for quite some time to the point where I feel the sudden urge to update my closet and shoot my own looks. 

New York Fashion Week (Feb 7 - 15, 2019)

What's there more to say? It's all so fucking fabulous and it's only in the first week! But I mean, it's New York... I feel like everyone there dresses fabulously and so daring. People were wearing many more layers and thicker coats due to the freezing breeze, but it turned out super chic and effortless. When I was in New York in January, I was overwhelmed with the fashion and the way how passengers on the streets seemed unproblematic and unbothered in their puffer jackets and CELINE handbags..

LONDON FASHION WEEK (Feb 15 - 19, 2019)

London was amazing in its own way. I still noticed heck loads of bright colours, puffer jackets, but Londoners seemed to choose more comfortable garments than chic dresses and high heels. But that's just the way London is: comfortable, practical yet super fabulous.

MILAN FASHION WEEK (Feb 19 - 25, 2019)

Fashion in Milan differs from New York like day and night. It's way more chic, sophisticated and toned down in colour. There still were bright pops of colour every here and there, but neutral and earth tones seemed to rule MFW. The Fashionistas were way more dressed up and put-together, more elegant. 

PARIS FASHION WEEK (Feb 25 - March 5, 2019)

La Grande Finale was undoubtedly the most exciting in its shows and in its street style. Paris always leaves me breathless with an open jaw. The fashion there is honestly on a whole another level, there's just pure sophistication on every corner. If New York has a tension of being comfortable, layered and contemporary, Milan and London know how to perfectly balance the comfortableness and sophistication then Paris is all about sophistication, fabulousness and chicness. We had colourful looks, we had earthy tones, we had the browns, we had strappy dresses and gowns, we had chunky boots and high heeled sandals. Conclusion: Paris, you swiped the ground from my feet.