Alvanon: Growing Careers and Changing Lives
14-11-2024
Three Fashion Enter bursary awardees openly talk about their fashion journey…
Alvanon, the global innovations company specialising in fit and sizing for the apparel industry, has provided Fashion Enter / FashionCapital with continued support by offering learner’s bursaries and donating a range of Alfaform technical fit mannequins. Over the last few months three Fashion Enter learners were fortunate enough to gain an Alvanon bursary, here we find out about their progress and their future fashion plans…
Gabriela:
“I was very happy to have joined the second level Stitching Academy course thanks to the Alvanon bursary. I’ve enjoyed enormously practicing with such fast machines and being able to use them properly thanks to the practical tasks that we do at the Academy. I particularly enjoyed the insertion of invisible zips, it felt quite nice to be able to sew it properly. Industrial sewing machines have many ways to make the construction process easier and faster and I’m very grateful that I was given the opportunity to explore this.
“I have always been fascinated by the fact that a roll of flat fabric combined with a lot of patience, can be transformed into a beautiful garment.
“Once I finish this course I’d like to continue onto additional courses and continue with my plans: To keep on working on short films and the two features that I’ve been invited to collaborate in next year as a Costume Designer.
“I would also like to contact some companies because I think it would be beneficial to do a month as an apprentice with flatbed sewing machines. I would not expect to be paid, but I know the experience of doing something like this would be invaluable. This may have to wait until September, since my son Nicholas starts his summer holiday very soon and he will return to school at the beginning of September.
“I would also like to start a little company to make some t shirts. I’ve been researching images of Mexican culture for some time and I have a moodboard that, once I finish this course, would like to start producing some samples, open an e-shop and see what happens!
“Thank-you very much Alvanon and Fashion Enter for this opportunity.”
Cee Cee:
“I honestly love fashion, from making dresses for my dolls to bespoke dresses for family and friends to soon gaining a wide range of clients. As a young female entrepreneur wanting to expand my brand, gaining practical knowledge is vital to me in so many different ways. I completed the ‘Perfect Patterns’ Level 1 six-week course last year and learnt a lot in that short amount of time. Since then, I have been able to use the skills I gained on the course.
“Completing ‘Perfect Patterns’ Level 2 will be an amazing opportunity for me, I am excited to learn different techniques that I will be able to take with me to the next level in my career. Realising my strength in designing, I am working towards building my portfolio so that I will be able to be a designer to various fashion houses and brands. This will make me an asset to the companies. This course fits perfectly with my career aims and goals, I want to soon disrupt the fashion industry!!
“I am working towards my own clothing brand for the everyday women, this course will help me to be able to spot and identify but also rectify any problems that I may come across. I do have degrees, but honestly you can have qualifications behind you and still not be able to develop functional patterns properly. The facilities that Fashion Enter has is second to none, with the real-life workplace approach they take showing what actually happens in a manufacturing company day-to-day is something to aspire to.”
Nike Sanni:
“I’m so happy to have been awarded the bursary to further my studies at Fashion Enter. I’ll be using this fund to pay for additional courses (Stitching Academy Level 2 & Pattern Cutting).
“My appreciation goes to the entire management team of the Academy for considering my application in the first instance. A Big thanks also to Alvanon and to my tutor, Ana, thanks so much for believing in me.
“My first day at the Stitching Academy only proved one thing; ‘The best decision of my life!!’ I told my tutor the same. Perhaps she had already heard that from some of the students, but I meant every word of that statement. I’m a qualified accountant with over 10 years’ experience. I came from that background where parents usually make career decisions for their children, which informs the course they choose to study at university. I studied accounting and finance up to professional level and I actually grew to love the profession over time, I could say financial management has become second nature. But there is an overriding part of me; my passion – I love creativity, and this is reflected in everything I do and the way I dress, especially for occasions as I receive lots of compliments.
“My accounting career was going well until I was diagnosed of breast cancer in 2008. My treatment phase lasted for about two-years. I was diagnosed again in 2014 and during the treatment phase, additional tests were carried out and it was concluded I may have to undergo mastectomy following healing from my treatments. It was a scary decision but I needed to be alive to take care of my family. The mastectomy was done in 2016. I was happy I made the decision as they found some cancer cells again and for this reason, I had to go through another chemotherapy treatment phase again, making the 3rd treatment within a space of 8 years.
“I made every effort to go back to the corporate world but my career break and the reason behind the break seemed to work against my getting a job. It was at this point that I made up my mind to start something that I can call mine. I choose fashion as that has always been my passion. I’ve attended some taster courses in the recent past to give me a feel of what is involved on the industrial side. I’m determined to excel in this career line and so prepared to learn from scratch to that level that can bring out the best in me. While searching online for training courses, I found FashionCapital, made some enquiries, paid a visit to the Stitching Academy, liked what I saw and enrolled for the Level 1 Stitching Academy and began my learning journey.”
A big thank-you to Alvanon and their continued support for the FTA learning facility and its students.
To find out more about the Fashion Technology Academy and all the courses currently available please click here.