Department of Textiles, Fashion Merchandising and Design
TMD Fashion Study Tour to London and Paris, January 2006
In early January 2006 Dr. Abby Lillethun and fourteen TMD majors traveled to to London and Paris for a fourteen-day fashion study tour. We arrived in the early morning, tired but ready to take in London’s sights. We began our tour at St Paul’s Cathedral.
The students in front of St. Paul’s. Standing, l to r: Monique Manivanh, Laurel Noveck, Amber Eaton, Jennifer Tarantino, Julia Maxwell, Mirissa Frick, Maria Inelli, Annick Gouin, Danielle Panza, Cieloazul Godden Seated l to r: Jennifer Simpson, Jillian A. Tremblay, Stephanie Agin, ‘Julie’ Chiao-Yin Hsu |
We learned much about London history during our trip, including that dragons are the ancient City of London’s emblem, and that they ‘guard’ the corners of the City of London proper. This is one example! |
 The
historic Liberty of London department store artfully displayed both
unusual antiques and hot trends in home furnishings and apparel. Among
these were African wax-print pillows. |
 One
of our London appointments was with Zhandra Rhodes’ assistant Ben. His
presentation on the history of the company, production methods, and design
development fascinated everyone
Ben and (l to r) Mirissa, Stephanie, Jillian, Amber, Laurel, Maria, Julia, and Jennifer T. |
 In addition to our time in London , we made a day trip to Bath where the galleries of The Museum of Costume at Bath display important historic garments. We also visited the ancient Roman Baths where the exhibition included extant Roman era jewelry, tools for garment making, and leather fragments from shoes.
Mirissa at the edge of the Roman bath |
 Eventually, our
time in London
came to an end. We had visited the forecasting company
WGSN, the exquisitely modern Marni store, the Vivienne Westwood boutique, and
learned about couture hat making. We went to the V & A, saw an exhibition of
Lady Diana’s evening gowns, and more! We’ll
all remember the magnificent department stores––Harrods!
Harvey Nicks! Selfridges! |
(l to r) Amber, Monique, Laurel , Jillian, Annick, Stephanie, Cieloazul, Jennifer S., Danielle, Julie, Julia, Mirissa, Jennifer T., and Maria
|
While we
missed London
immediately, we were soon awed by the River Seine, the
Notre-Dame, the Musée du Louvre, and the wide boulevards and bistros of
Paris
. We enjoyed seeing the
Yves
St. Laurent
Museum
where the exhibition covered
his historic ‘Le Smoking’ in all its variety. A fashion show at the famous
Galleries Lafayette showed the newest fashions for fall 2006. During free time
many in the group made a stop ( or two!) to the recently opened Louis Vuitton
store on the Champ- Elysées. At the Paris
American
Academy
all paid rapt attention to
Madame Pico, Madame Grés’ firsthand, as she explained the basics of couture
foundations and demonstrated the Grés pleating technique.
l to r) Mme. Pico with Amber, and Julie who are practicing stitching pleats. |
 At the
charming studio of designer Alain Lalou we learned about the current bridal
market.
Amber Eaton with Alain LaLou |
 On our last
day we toured the Musée d’Orsay, where works by great nineteenth-century
artists––including Courbet, Degas, Gaugin, Matisse, Renoir, Seurat, van
Gogh––moved many of us. Seeing art previously seen only in books left some
speechless!
A night visit to the Eiffel Tower was a treat during our free time! C’est magnifique |
Our study tour had to end! But, we had also been to the Karl Lagerfeld boutique, the leading store Collette––where Guillaume Salmon explained the store concept––and had seen the exhibition at the Musée des Arts de la Mode at the Louvre.
| Off
to the airport for our last minutes in France!
(I to r) Jennifer T., Julia (front), Maria (wearing new Chanel sunglasses), and Lauren. |
l to r) Annick, Julie, and Stephanie |
We traveled
by Euro-star through the Chunnel to 
