The FdA Cordwainers Accessory Design course is situated in the School of Design and Technology and is for students who want to design for the fashion accessories industry. Accessory design includes design for products such as bags, belts, body pieces, purses, and key rings, and these may be made from leather or a variety of other materials. The course teaches you the skills for accessory design, together with the professional, communication and business skills you will need for successful employment in today’s global fashion industry. You will acquire broader academic skills which allow you to see the context of accessory design in the wider perspectives of fashion, society and the environment. The College has strong links with the fashion accessory industry, which gives students opportunities through industry-based projects during the course, and for employment after graduation. High-achieving graduates from this course have the opportunity to do a third year of specialist studies to gain a BA Honours degree. 

FdA Cordwainers Accessory Design is based at Golden Lane, on the edge of the City of London and very near to the Barbican Arts Centre, with its exhibition gallery, concert hall, theatre, cinema and cafes and restaurants. Clerkenwell, Hoxton and Smithfield, with their interesting mixes of shops, creative businesses, galleries, cafes, bars and clubs, are within walking distance, as is the Museum of London. The Barbican Estate is an excellent example of post-war urban architecture, and the nearby Whitecross Street has a very good lunchtime food market during the week, where you can select hot or cold food from a wide range of different cuisines.

Course Units

Year One     Stage One     Level 4     120 credits 

Term One: Introduction to Study in Higher Education (20 credits); Design and Communication Skills (20 credits);

Term Two: Introduction to Cultural and Historical Studies (20 credits); Technical Skills for Accessories (20 credits);

Term Three: Industry Brief (WBL) (40 credits);

Year Two     Stage Two     Level 5     120 credits

Term One: Cultural and Historical Studies (20 credits); Design Development and Range Planning for Product (20 credits);

Term Two: Portfolio Development (WBL) (20 credits); Progressive Technical Applications (20 credits);

Term Three: Final Major Project (40 credits);

Course Outline

Year One

In the first term you will study two units.

Introduction to Study in Higher Education gives you an understanding of your personal and professional development at university, with three core purposes: to introduce you to the necessary learning skills for undergraduate study; to show you where you are situated within the College and the University; and to help you understand what you will learn on your course and how you will develop your skills.

Design and Communication Skills introduces you to the subject of accessory design. You will undertake a series of practical skills that a designer must work through when developing new ideas for an accessory product. Research and inspiration, initial ideas, design development and design finalisation will all be explored, and you will learn the skills of communicating your ideas to others. You will be inducted into the techniques and machinery used in accessory production, and this will enable you to design, sample and communicate realistic design solution ideas and featured details.

In the second term you will study two units.

Introduction to Cultural and Historical Studies introduces you to key concepts and ways of thinking about fashion and its context in society and culture. You will attend lectures, seminars and workshops, and do a significant amount of reading of academic texts in order to complete a formal academic essay for assessment.  Completion of this unit will allow you to make an informed choice of subject for study in the second year Cultural and Historical Studies unit.

Technical Skills for Accessories gives you the opportunity to build on your knowledge and introduces you to further specialist skills and techniques used in accessory production. You will learn about materials and processes, pattern cutting, construction methods, production techniques and prototyping skills for accessories through a series of workshop demonstrations and your own practice.

In the third term you will undertake the Industrial Brief (WBL) unit. This gives you the opportunity to undertake work-based learning through an industry brief, where you will understand, practise and demonstrate the essential skills that the accessories industry requires from accessory product designers and developers. You will undertake market research in order to fully understand the company / brand ethos and its existing and potential customer base. This research will be undertaken in small teams, as it is essential that you develop team working skills in preparation for working in the industry.

Year Two                                           

In the first term you will be able to study a Cultural and Historical Studies unit of your choice that will broaden or deepen your learning of areas relating to your interests in your chosen field. You will have the opportunity to participate in lectures, seminars and workshops with students from other courses within your School, and will read relevant academic texts and complete a formal academic essay for assessment.

Also in the first term, the Design Development and Range Planning for Product unit gives you the opportunity to build on the skills acquired in your first year and equips you with the additional professional knowledge that is required when entering the industry as an accessory designer. You will identify a brand and carry out detailed market trend and positioning research to fully understand what is needed at the design development stage. You will then move into trend and inspiration research, design, material sourcing, 3D sampling and range selection. Finally, you will present your selected outcomes as a professional range plan. This will illustrate exactly what will go into production and what options will be included. The position of the brand within the retail environment must be considered, as well as the desires of the brand’s customers. You will learn IT packages to support the development of professional presentation and communication skills.

In the second term you will study two units.

The Portfolio Development (WBL) unit gives you the opportunity to undertake work-based learning through a brief that may be industry-set, or a national or international competition, or an internally-assigned, skills-based project. This project will enable you to build up your portfolio, and you will develop appropriate and creative design solutions to the brief through the evaluation of research, drawing, design generation, 3D sampling and product production. The professionalism of your portfolio will help your progression into the accessories industry.

The Progressive Technical Applications unit will build on your existing practical skills and introduce you to the more advanced techniques and skills used in accessory production. Through workshop demonstrations and your own practice you will learn about new materials, techniques and processes, and you will have the opportunity to take one of your designs through to production.

In the third term you will undertake the Final Major Project unit, which will give you the opportunity to write your own negotiated brief and demonstrate your design and technical skills. You will undertake market point identification, market research, design inspiration research, design development and experimentation, design selection, pattern cutting, sampling, prototyping and production of a final range of products. Your 2D and 3D work for this project will demonstrate your skill and individuality as an accessory designer for the industry.

Future Careers and Graduate Prospects

High-achieving graduates from this course have the opportunity to do a third year of specialist studies to gain a BA Honours degree.   

Many graduates prefer to seek employment as soon as they have completed their undergraduate studies. Recent graduates are now working with Reiss, Globetrotter, Burberry, Preen, Nicholas Kirkwood and Dunhill in London, Christian Louboutin and Celine in Paris, Judith Leiber and Carlos Falchi in New York, and H&M in Stockholm. Others have set up in business as designer makers and have shown their collections at London Fashion Week.

Developing your skills

All our undergraduate courses are concerned with the development of your personal and professional skills. On your course you will evolve from learning basic skills in your discipline through to a position where you are an independent creative thinker capable of making an effective contribution to the relevant sector of the fashion industry. PPD (Personal and Professional Development) skills are embedded in all units on every course. Speaker programmes with contributions from alumni, members of industry and others are a part of many courses, as are work placement opportunities in industry. Where relevant, students have the chance to attend trade fairs, enter industry competitions, visit exhibitions and go on field trips and visits. The central position of our John Prince’s Street site in the West End affords students easy access to all sectors of the fashion retail market. In addition, our position as a constituent College in the University of the Arts London means that our students have access to the wide range of activities and events that occur in all the Colleges and at the University’s centre. Last but not least, being in London gives every student opportunities to explore and be inspired by the cultural, intellectual and social life of one of the great capital cities of the world.

Resources

Our excellent resources for educating our students are two-fold: people and premises. People includes everyone at the College who contributes directly in some way to your education, whether as a subject tutor, a technician, an Open Access Officer, a librarian or a study support tutor. Premises include the buildings and the facilities contained in them, such as specialist machinery, design studios and workshops, lecture and seminar rooms, and the library.

The Cordwainers accessories courses have excellent facilities that allow students to understand the accessories business and the technical aspects of making accessories. The first class workshops and skilled technicians provide students with the opportunity to realise their designs to a professional level, and understand what is required to be an accessories designer.

Details are currently being updated for the Course Leader for FdA Cordwainers Accessory Design. Updated information will be available on the LCF website as soon as possible.

Details are currently being updated for the Programme Director for the Design and Craft group of courses, including this one, within the School of Design and Technology. Updated information will be available on the LCF website as soon as possible.

Rob Phillips is the Creative Director for the School of Design and Technology and his career started in fashion womenswear, menswear and illustration. He worked at publishers Benjamin Dent as Fashion Editor for International Textiles magazine, and as Creative Director of Fashion Forecast magazine, where his progressive work promoting young fashion talent garnered him much acclaim from industry. Rob continues to nurture talent at LCF across all courses within the School, preparing students to develop their full potential and make their unique contribution to the fashion industry. He furthers the work of the College through many routes, including the recent collaboration between LCF, English National Ballet and the V&A. He also curates the School’s fashion shows and exhibitions, and is fully engaged with all external events and competitions.

Showing your Work      

All final year students are given the opportunity to profile their work online using the Showtime section of the University and College websites. London College of Fashion can make no guarantee that your work (either in sum or in part) will be shown, exhibited or profiled in any way as part of your course. All student work appearing in College organised events, catwalk shows, exhibitions and other forms of showcase, is selected by a panel of senior staff and, in some instances, external industry judges.

Course Entry Requirements

This course requires portfolio evidence.

Opportunities for All

We are committed to making university education an achievable option for a wider range of people and seek to recruit students from diverse socio-economic, cultural and educational backgrounds. We are committed to supporting all our students in achieving their potential both during and after their courses.

Student Selection Criteria

Entry to this course is highly competitive: applicants are expected to achieve, or already have, the course entry requirements detailed below.

One ‘A’ level pass at grade D or above (80 UCAS tariff points required) PLUS passes in three other GCSE subjects at grade C or above

OR

BTEC National Diploma in a fashion-related subject PLUS passes in three other GCSE subjects at grade C or above

OR

NVQ level 3 in a related subject PLUS passes in three other GCSE subjects at grade C or above

OR

A one year Foundation Diploma in Art and Design PLUS passes in three other GCSE subjects at grade C or above

OR

Access course in a relevant subject PLUS passes in three other GCSE subjects at grade C or above

OR

Equivalent awards. For International qualifications see the International Qualifications Guide [PDF - 1.9mb].

Preferred subjects include Art, Design, Textiles and English.

This course requires a minimum 80 UCAS tariff points.

Exceptionally, applicants who do not meet these course entry requirements may still be considered if the course team judges the application demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence. This might, for example, be demonstrated by: related academic or work experience; the quality of the personal statement; a strong academic or other professional reference; or a combination of these factors.

English Language Requirements

All classes are conducted in English. The level required by the University for this course is IELTS 5.5 with a minimum of 4.5 in each skill.

For more information, read the University's English Language requirements page. 

What We Look For

The course team seeks to recruit students who can demonstrate:

• a current awareness of fashion accessories and fashion in terms of material developments, new designers and fashion trends
• a potential to achieve a high standard of technical manufacture
• an ability to record and develop design ideas through the vehicle of drawing
• the ability to work as a member of a team
• the ability to work independently to develop your own knowledge and skills acquired on the course

This might, for example, be demonstrated by: related academic or work experience; the quality of the personal statement, a strong academic or other professional reference; or a combination of these factors.

Portfolio and Interview Advice

For this course your portfolio should show evidence of: an ability to present ideas visually; a level of research, experimentation and development; technical and practical ability; effective presentation techniques; and contemporary fashion and cultural awareness.

Applicants will be expected to demonstrate the following at interview: a current awareness of fashion accessories and fashion in terms of material developments, new designers and fashion trends; a potential to achieve a high standard of technical manufacture; an ability to record and develop design ideas through the medium of drawing; the ability to work as a member of a team; and the ability to work independently to develop your own knowledge and skills acquired on the course.