Market Research

 

FORTIES GLAMOUR

This season is much about the revival of the bygone decades, filled with opulent forties glamour. With Gucci and Louis Vuitton going for all out retro glamourwith pencil skirts, pussy-bow blouses, pearls and tea-dresses, it seems the current trend for the lady-like look has been given a winter makeover.

GRAPHIC PRINT

This season is full of bold, mixed prints. The craze started off at NY fashion week and the following weeks saw a flurry of patterns for various designers. Geometric, Kaleidascope, graphic prints are sure to be found on the high street as well as the catwalk. Be bold and try a geometric coat, or go subtle with a pair of graphic patterened tights.

NAVAJO INSPIRED

A new take on the tribal trend- Navajo inspired fashion. with ponchos, fringing and tribal patterns on the catwalk, and more importantly everywhere to be seen on the high street! A very practical trend this one - cosy up in the colder weather in a poncho and a pair of fringed boots and you've nailed it!

BEJEWELLED

Deeply exotic gemstone hues replace last seasons bold fixation. Christopher kanes neon's; seriously citrus and cerise hues and intense colour blocking have matured into glamouurous, deep set jewel tones. With an emphasis on unadulterated opulence, varying texturesbeautifully contrasted in emerald at Emilio Pucci and Diane Von Furstenberg. Garnet garnered serious attention at Celine and Marc Jacobs, whulst citrine set the scene for the months ahead at Bottega Veneta and Valentino. Judgingby this palette, it's unsuprising then that the perenial LBD may just be sidelined in favour of it's mystery evoking, colourful counterpart.

ETHEREAL SHEER

For this season the sheer trend can be seen on the high street as well as the catwalk, but in a much more subtle way, with sleeves being the main sheer feature on sequined tops and dresses. Jhn Galliano, Stella McCartney, Christian Dior, Elie Saab and Junko Shimada are few of many who included a sheer aesthetic to their AW collections. Even thought the winter months can be a  time for wrapping up in that chunky woolen jumper at the back of the closet, a sheer chiffon maxi dress can be just as cosy when layered with other pieces, and your sure to stand Out!

PSYCHEDELIS FUR

In the beginning there were Miuccia Prada's Craze-including candy coloured fur stoles. Now it seems that nearly every designer is making the rainbowconnection and giving their plush pelts - fow, rabbit, mink and raccoon alike -  vibrant dye jobs. Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen's powder bluechubby jacketfor the row, Celine's tri toned topper, and the opulent fur accents at Gucci were just a few of this seasons standouts. And it's not only on the catwalk this trend can be seen, the high street just cant get enough of this phsychedelic like fur. Be brave and dare to bag a skittle like stole as seen in Urban - Outfitters! It's sure to add some character to that jacket you always wear!

Summer Project

I finally got the pattern and this is what I made!

Still Waiting..

So I am still waiting on my 60's dress pattern to come.. should be here any time soon! I've been looking for fabrics anywhere I go that I can manage to find a fabric shop, the only thing is I have no idea how much I shall need, so I have to wait until it arrives to find out. Good thing I havn't found a fabric I've fallen in Love with.

In the mean time the 'Fashion Design: Construction' book that I ordered arrived... so I have some time to read over in advance how to construct the dress I wish to make.

As I'm not too fond of the whole pattern drafting aspect of designing, I am actually quite excited to get started.. all thanks to this book. It's full of great tips and imagery, even quotes from top designeres! Not your typical Construction guide...

Iris Van Herpen - Haute Couture Fall Winter 2011/2012 Full Fashion Show ...

I'm loving this A/W 2011 collection by Iris Van Herpen. There's just something about her designs that create an amazing energy without completely overpowering the woman/model. One of my favourites!

1960 DRESS PATTERN FITTED BODICE , FULL BELL SHAPED SKIRT, FRONT INVERTED PLEAT, 2 NECKLINES McCALLS 5559

1960 DRESS PATTERN FITTED BODICE , FULL BELL SHAPED SKIRT, FRONT INVERTED PLEAT, 2 NECKLINES McCALLS 5559

So I decided to go with this 60's dress, Should be here in the next week or so! Have to purchase the fabric now. I have always wanted the perfect emerald green dress so I'm thinking of making this 'the one'! Will be on the look out for some emerald cottons and lace..

I Love this dress by Valentino, it's between an emerald green and teal.. so it all depends on the type of fabric. But i quite like this fabric also:)

Or I could go for a brighter colour rather than a deep colour like the one worn by Kiera Knightly above, designed by Jaqueline Durran.

1950s PLEATED SKIRT PATTERN PRESSED or UNPRESSED PLEATS VOGUE 7694

1950s PLEATED SKIRT PATTERN PRESSED or UNPRESSED PLEATS VOGUE 7694

I have been wanting one of these midi pleated skirts for a while, this one is just fabulous and comes in all three lenghts, so i'm thinking i'll make it myself... Next is the fabric? Here are some pleated skirts that i love...

Gary Pepper Vintage pleated skirt. I love the mood and the style created with this skirt.

Here I like the colour used and especially the lenght.

The Chloe pleated skirt. I really love the fabric used and the delicacy of the skirt.

1960 LOVELY FULL SKIRTED DRESS PATTERN DRESS UP or DOWN VERY AUDREY HEPBURN DESIGN ADVANCE 9441

1960 LOVELY FULL SKIRTED DRESS PATTERN DRESS UP or DOWN VERY AUDREY HEPBURN DESIGN ADVANCE 9441

I have been looking at some vintage patterns, I really love this design. Will keep looking though, there's thousands!

Stephane Rolland Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2011 Full Show

Everything he creates is just Amazing..

Stripe Project

For the Stripe project I chose human anatomy as my source. I chose this because I liked the idea of finding stripes in something that you wouldn't normally think of. For this I looked at veins, arteries, bones, muscle and also the exterior body such as wrinkles, scars etc. All of which are quite abstract stripes, this was hard as they were not obvious but yet I still managed to be inspired!

Then from this we were given a colour study, Luckily enough the one I was given fitted perfectly into my theme. By experimenting with different fabric techniques we had to create stripes influenced by out research whilst using the appropriate colour study. Here are my final 8 swatches which include shibori, quilting, pleating, gathering (ruffles), and yarn. I also played around with a glue gun to create some swatches, adding yarn, fabric and spray paints, which was very successful because it tied in with the anatomy theme.

Below is my mood board which is very minimal yet effective. The layout was inspired by an original mood board that i had made from a random image I had liked.

For my final swatch I chose the chiffon with glue gun striping ( With coloured yarn through it). I liked how it is delicate and pretty for a theme that is so raw and often gruesome, but it still manages to tie in with 'Anatomy'.

Tribal Tactics

Forgot to mention that for my final piece I chose to make a top!

From my 4 colour studies I chose this one as it fitted in best with my theme. I love the richness yet vibrant colours in it.

As I began constructing my top I decided to leave ut the fringing, it just took away from the structure of the whole garment, instead I decided to add beading to the back  ( a lot f beading) as the whole closure for the garment. I also added rows of beads to the front.

Below is my illustration board, not so great but theres room to improve!

 Taa--daaw!

I was so pleased with my finished piece and so glad i stuck to beading and left out the fringing. I really loved making the garment and how I could change my initial design if it just wasn't working.

RANKING

We were first given a selection of themes to explore; Decay, Electric, Tribal, Enclosure and memories. From these I chose Tribal. I love the colours and the materials they use. From our selected theme we pulled shaped and selected our favourite three to play around with in the mannequine. ( From fabric this time, not paper) 

We also experimented with different fabric mannipulations in order to find one that suited out theme. I really like the idea of pleating because it's structure resembled the tribal neck pieces. And also fringing and beading fitted right in with my theme.

 Here is one of my shapes with my chosen fabric manipulation; Pleating.

Again i played around with different techniques, quilting and adding wadding to create more volume. I also added the fringing with pleating as this is what I had in mind for my final garment.

Some of my sketchbook work, in preparation for my final piece.