Sunday report

Sunday was sweltering. As we approached the venue it was tempting to stay outside and enjoy the sunshine in one of London's most gorgeous parks which overlooks the Thames. Once inside, the team gathered forces in the press office. Katy Tyrell who was on-board for the day to shoot video, is a first timer with us and also new to our GFW crew is Gabrielle, David's assistant who will be providing us with her own documentary-style vision of the Week.

New to the crew: Katy Tyrell

Impressive knits: Hannah Risdon

Super styling: Aaron Dowie

Top marks to the organisers for catering so well for us press. Cold drinks, online computers, air conditioning and food. Graduate Fashion Week is easier than London Fashion Week to cover because you are in one venue and can get fed and watered. Everyone in the press room was talking about the great food and very appreciative of it. We bumped into Piers Atkinson, fashion editor of Disorder and one of the editor's of the daily Graduate Fashion Week newspaper. He asked me to be an 'industry' vox pop and have me photo taken and give some comments on what makes a good collection. Piers, who also works with Mandi Lennard PR, is really lovely so I was happy to oblige.

At the first show of the day David lamented having forgot his ladder. After dashing around I found a step ladder in the press office which belonged to a photographer called Bettina. I had a brief description of her, found her in the pit and asked if we could borrow the ladder. She kindly agreed. There is more of a sense of camaraderie amongst photographs and journos at GFW than LFW, and we caught-up with many colleagues we've come to know through the show circuit. Media Consultant, Stephen Mahoney was out scouting for talents and we were delighted to see a student from the University of East London whose presentation work really impressed him. Her name is Felicity Joy Gower and he said some interesting things about her work. We had a chat and a nosy around the stand which was decorated with Swarovski crystals which tutor Helen Carter told us had been donated.

We also met one of the original founders, our friend and legendary show producer, John Walford. He was eager to give his opinion on the 'size zero' debate and shared his experiences of working with models across the world. Like John, photographer Chris Moore is also a GFW veteran. He is also a real gentleman and a delight to see at any fashion show. He was enjoying trying out his new camera and took time out to have a chat.

It's impossible to cover all of the students' work on show - it would be great to be able to, but a mix of quick judgement and luck led us to three outstanding students. Fashion Knitwear designer Hannah Risdon impressed us with an elegant collection of scooped and asymmetric dresses, knitted trousers and elegant gloves. Fellow Nottingham Trent student Aaron Dowie offered a knock-out collection of menswear with beautifully-tailored jackets, trousers, waistcoats and shirts. Particularly noticeable was his styling - every detail of the collection conformed and the rolled-up trousers bottoms and red laced shoes all helped seal his vision.

Lucy Ibrahim is graduating from Bristol UWE and, for the first time we've encountered, won the approval of her fellow students and tutors to be given the task of designing and creating the university's stand, tickets and booklet. It's a huge achievement and her work efforts will hopefully be well rewarded. The stand features doors that resemble bookends displaying each graduates' work and a spacey tiled floor that gives maximum impact in the limited space.

Tomorrow we are going to check out some more students' work, on and off the catwalks and try to speak to some more of the tutors whose guidance and commitment help realise their students' dreams.