Hey Nat.. I agree with Sinead 100%! I think you really need to carefully think this through 100%. When is the project due? Is there anyway you can finish it or are you completely screwed? Also, is there a possibility that you can do what you need to do in school in time to hand it in and then revamp and work on your portfolio a little bit more when you are lessed stress.
I dont' want to say don't defer... but I know its a lot harder to get back into it when you're not doing it everyday in classes and everything. Thats why there are tons of PhD canadites out here in the US that never got their PhD because they kept putting off their dissertation (trust me.. I know a lot more than you'd ever imagine in this situation). Granted I know you have good reasons to defer.. think carefully if you'll really do any better next time (which maybe you will.. but also think about whether its worth the wasted time and money)