Princess and the Pea...

I started to create some artwork inspired by the fairytale, 'Princess and the Pea'.  I was inspired by the mattress that features in the story, I was trying to re create the different layers of the mattresses within my prints, each one with a different colour and pattern.  Also looking at the pea within the story, I initially thought of polka dot prints.  I have experimented with hand techniques such as paint as well as digital ones through Photoshop to create these initial print designs.

Inspired by the moodboard on the left.  Looking at bead work within a bag, the circular embroidery reminded me of the pea.  Working with a linear drawing and developing it into Photoshop.

Layering polka dots using acrylic and gouache paint on a background of blue ink.  I like the colour story in this print..

Again working with layering polka dots but using the media of ink and bleach, then pink glitter glue over the top.

Inspired by a floral print on the left using Photoshop and then another polka dot print on the right.  I experimented bubble wrap to create a messy polka dot background then a collage of green and blue spots over the top.  The spots are cut from the Princess and the Pea story.. 

Developed this in Photoshop, more layering of polka dots!

Finally inspired by the mattress in the story, I created different stripes (both horizontal and vertical) each filled with a pattern.  I think I am going to work with stripes horizontally because the vertical ones remind me of deckchairs!

Experimenting...

I found this piece of artwork I created successful because it was quite spontaneous.  I was just playing around with a line drawing of a castle I created and then thought of different ways to add colour into it.  Using a watercolour paints as a base I created a quick background of different sections of colours for the castle to sit in.  Then I drew a black fine line castle on top of the background, and finally using the tube of paint as a brush I painted dots of acrylic onto sections of the castle.  I like this because it looks quite messy as the paint has not stayed within the lines.

Original drawing..

Scanning the drawing into Photoshop, changing the colours and the scale.  Also distorting the image to create more of a quirky style castle...

Scanning the line drawing into Photoshop and playing around with simple, contrasting colours.  I really like the line drawing as well as the painted version.  I think both of them sit together nicely if they were to be combined on a garment.

I think this linear approach would also look nice as an interior fabric or a wallpaper because it is simple but there is enough detail to attract attention.

Drawing and Experimenting...

The project for semester one is to design and make 12 textile fronts for Premier Vision exhibition in Paris.  They will be on sale in the 'Indigo' section of the fair.

I am focusing on six fairytales: Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Hansel and Gretel, Snow White and Princess and the pea.  So far I have been roughly sketching and painting imagery which features in most of the stories.  Castles, stars and hearts have been my basic inspiration at the moment.  My plan is to focus on more specific imagery for each fairytale as I progress through the project, for example my Hansel and Gretel designs will feature the gingerbread house as well as simple trees which are inspired by the forest.

Here are some images of my initial drawing and sketches for my fairy tale inspired 'Indigo' project.

I started thinking about my colour palate, I wanted to include bright colours as well as darker colours for depth.  I was inspired by the colours that are associated with the stories as well as the Disney films.  Each design will have different amounts of colour used within each one.  For example 'Little Red Riding Hood' will feature a lot of red whilst 'Princess and the Pea' will include lots of green etc..

Creating some simple shapes using collage technique onto different backgrounds.  I think stars are a really simple but effective pattern.  I experimented with different scales...

A quick sketch of a flower, I really like the colours and textures of the flower.  I then thought about dissecting each piece of the flower to create a pattern rather than a copy of an actual flower.  For example I created a stripe pattern from the flower by using small sketchy likes and dots.

Quick line drawing of the iconic princess castle in Disney land.  I love working with just a fine line pen, the result is a detailed drawing with different amounts of shading.  A nice alternative to using colour..

A watercolour painting of a more simple castle with hints of gold glitter glue to add sparkle.  To take this further I can scan the original painting into Photoshop and play around with the different scales and repeat.  This could make a nice border print or a placement print.  To add sparkle to the design I can use metallic transfer foil..

Pop design study day...

Back in October I went to the POP! Design study day at the Fashion and Textile Museum in London.

'An exploration of design, culture and fashion from 1956 to 1976 in the presence of the designers, artists and retailers who helped create British Pop Culture.  The themes for discussion are 'fashion and pop music', 'the silk screened image', styling the self', 'pop boutiques and the new retailing' plus 'pop materials and the legacy of the throw away culture'.  Speakers range from key designers whose work features in the exhibition to curators and academics.' 

I decided to go to the study day because I was interested to see what was going to happen.  I had previously   seen a little bit of the POP! exhibition whilst working at the museum in the Summer, but I didn't have a proper look!  So I thought it would be a good opportunity to see the exhibition as well as meet some of the key designers whose work features.  The day was divided up into discussions hosted by different people.  My favourite discussions were 'The Silk Screened Image' and 'Styling the Self'.  'The silk screened image' included designers Natalie Gibson and Sue Timney.  This was so interesting as they spoke about their life stories, influences and careers as well as showing some of their own work.

'Styling the Self' included discussions by Justin de Villeneuve, Andrew Logan, Marsha Hunt and Keith Wainwright.  This was a great talk because there were discussions from every view point - the view of a designer and the view of an iconic hair dresser.

It was great to be around such influential people and in such an inspiring environment.

Sue Timney and Natalie Gibson speaking about their work.

I found it really interesting to see two designers speak about their different work.  Even though I am a big fan of using colour, I love Sue Timney's work, the use of just black and white is amazing. 

Ciment Pleaters

I love the different pleating techniques that can be created by the company Ciment Pleating.  The designs range from a simple pleat to a very intricate one but they are all amazing.  I was fascinated to hear how they craft each design in cardboard by hand using different folding techniques.  I am definitely thinking about using some pleating within my final children's wear collection, I especially love the designs called 'Pineapple', 'zig zag' and 'zig zag coral'. 

My wall space...

This is my inspiration wall at Uni.  I like to have lots of imagery and colour surrounding me whilst I work, although it can sometimes get a bit distracting! My inspiration includes lots of floral, graphic prints, birds, repeat patterns and sparkle!  I have also included some samples of gift wrap that I have collected over the years...I knew they would come in handy some day!  I am looking forward to creating my own repeat prints using both hand printing techniques as well as digital printing.

Beginning of the 3rd Year, my thoughts and feelings.

Finally after months of being away from Uni, I am back and I am very excited to start my third and final year of my degree!  I have been thinking all summer about the final major project (as well as the dissertation!) and I have finally decided to focus on Children's wear for little girls, primarily textile based.  If anyone had asked me at the beginning of the first year what I would like to specialise in by the beginning of the third year I would never have said Children's wear!  Not because I don't like it, (quite the opposite I have always loved children's fashion and textiles) but because it had never even crossed my mind that it was something I would be able to do..I am so used to seeing high end women's wear and men's wear on the catwalk not children's wear. I was determined that in my third year I would create a textile collection for interiors or possibly fashion, how that has changed!

Over the summer I have been keeping an eye out on anything suitable for children, from fashion to textiles and even stationary, gift wrap and cards (The highstreet store 'Paperchase' has been a popular choice on my shopping trips!)  I have also been doing work experience at the children's wear design company Paul Dennicci (they design clothing and accessories for the supermarkets and high street stores)  this is a great experience for me as I would potentially like to work within the children's textile industry.  So overall my brain has adapted from women's fashion to children's!

Many themes for my children's wear collection have been flowing around my brain, but I have now chosen the final theme...it is 'Fairytales' inspired by the original Grimm's stories (but not as gruesome!) rather than the popular Disney versions.  Looking towards the final major project rather than the 'Indigo' project in the first semester my idea at the moment is to create a six outfit collection for Autumn/Winter 2013.  The collection will be high end fashion rather than high street and will have a very special and luxurious feel.  Each outfit is inspired by a fairytale: 'Sleeping Beauty', 'Cinderella', 'Snow White', 'Little Red Riding Hood', 'Princess and the Pea' and 'Hansel and Gretel.'  Although the collection is inspired by fairytales it is very important for me to stress that it is not a fancy dress collection!  It is simply inspired very subtly by the original fairytales that I grew up reading.

So that's all my thought's for now..I have many prints and patterns running around my head right now, I just need to start getting them down on paper and working with them!

Here is a sneak peek of some inspiration fairytale boards!

Zandra Rhodes - Gibraltar Fashion Week 2012

In my previous post I wrote about Zandra Rhodes new Spring/Summer 2013 collection for Gibraltar Fashion week.  Ever since that afternoon where I modelled her clothes whilst she discussed styling factors such as shoes, head pieces and jewellery I have been dying to see the final results on the runway!  However this has proved difficult as there does not seem to be any information about the fashion show, and pictures are limited!  Saying this I have trawled through the internet determined to find some images of the garments that I loved...I have found a few pictures from blogs but no professional ones, which is a shame.

An overall view of Zandra's collection.  Here you can see glimpses of her designs on the models.
Image sourced from: www.smarttailor.com

These dresses were some of my favourites because the cut of them is so flattering!  I love the pattern detail, the silver squiggle over black is so simple but just so wearable..

Below: a contrast to the black and silver dresses above.  This vibrant kimono/poncho style dress is very exciting with gorgeous colours and sparkling prints!

Images sourced from: www.crocsareawful.wordpress.com/2012/10/08/gibraltar-fashion-week-2012/

Whilst searching for these images I can across a blog (crocsareawful.wordpress.com) which highlighted the collection at Gibraltar Fashion week, the blogger asked one of the models how it felt to wear one of Zandra's creations - 'she looked down and said, "It feels amazing, like I am a piece of art."  I love this quote because I felt exactly the same when I was trying on her garments.  They are not just clothes, they really are unique, wearable pieces of art!

Work experience with Zandra Rhodes

I was lucky enough to gain work experience at Zandra Rhodes print studio in London.  Her studio sits above The Fashion and Textile Museum and is where all her creations happen.  I worked within the studio for two days amongst the print designers and the pattern cutting designers and it was such a surreal experience!  It was the first time I had experienced working within a fashion atmosphere and it was so exciting.  Zandra is still very hands on with her studio and likes to work amongst everybody as well as meeting with clients to discuss private orders.
Whilst I was there I dealt with phone calls, organised post and invitations to events as well as helping out with whatever they needed me to do.  Unfortunately I could not work within the print studio because other interns were in there doing their two month placements.  But I still got to see the end results of the screen printing, as well as results of digital print designs.
I loved the layout of the studio; there is a big pattern cutting room one end and a big design room the other end.  Each room is filled to the brim with Zandra's old designs and pieces from previous collections, there are splashes of colour everywhere and boxes overspilling with hair pieces and anything brightly coloured.  The print room is filled with lots of different screens which house every single hand painted print Zandra has ever designed, the screens are only ever exposed once so once it has been used it stays there forever.  It was fascinating!

One of the days I had the privilege to be Zandra's model for her new Spring/Summer 2013 collection which is showing at a fashion show in Gibraltar at the beginning of October.  I spent four hours in her penthouse trying on the new collection so that Zandra could style each look and see which pieces were going to be worn together and what should open and close the show.  She also organised what jewellery, glasses and head pieces compliment each outfit.  This was such a great experience and something that I only could have dreamt of!  The new collection is amazing and the colours, fabrics and textures are so exciting...you will have to watch this space to find out which pieces made it into the Spring/Summer collection!!

Even though I was only there for a short amount of time, I learnt so much about the industry and how busy the studio can be!  I also took some of my own textile work with me to show Zandra and she spoke to me about it and gave me her opinion on what she thinks works well and how to improve the hand printed effect.  This was amazing and such a once in a life time opportunity!  I am hoping to go back there next summer to do the print internship for two months.  

Here are some pieces from her Autumn/ Winter 2012 Collection:

I love the colours within this collection.  The prints are gorgeous, so vivid and eye catching!

Images source: http://www.zandrarhodes.com/collection_2012_autumnwinter.html

http://nowfashion.com/29-02-2012-zandra-rhodes-ready-to-wear-fall-winter-2012-paris-show-1810.html

Work Experience at The Fashion & Textile Museum

Last week I did two days work experience at the Fashion and Textile Museum in London.  I love this museum, it is small but quirky and as it only exhibits one show at a time there is a relaxing atmosphere and you can take your time to look around properly without getting distracted by other things.  As well as having an exciting shop where you can purchase design books and unique gifts it has a great cafe with lovely cakes!  Whilst I was there the 'POP! Design . Culture . Fashion' exhibition was running.  It was so interesting and inspiring to be surrounded by such a great collection of things each day.
Whilst working behind the scenes of the museum, I experienced lots of exciting things.  I got to unpack and sort out a suitcase of vintage couture garments for the upcoming exhibition 'Hartnell to Amies: Couture by Royal Appointment.'  This exhibition runs from 16th November 2012-23rd February 2013 and 'celebrates the timeless elegance of London couture and explores how the Queen's patronage of ground breaking British designers helped put London on the international fashion map after the Second World War.' 

Image sourced: http://www.ftmlondon.org/exhibitions/future/detail/?ID=77

Once I unpacked the garments, I photographed them for the reference file in the museum.  This involved me handling each garment carefully and then placing it on the mannequin and photographing it from each angle to show the condition it arrived in.  This was so exciting to do!!  There was a wide selection of garments from tweed two piece suits to satin, pleated opera coats to exquisite ballgowns.  It was fascinating to think what the story was behind each piece; who wore it and for what occasion!  Some of the garments were so tiny I struggled to fit them onto the small mannequin!  

A few sneak peaks of my favourite garments...

This gorgeous ball gown was one
of my favourite pieces, the pleating and
little pin tucks on the bodice are lovely.

Another lovely ballgown with a full skirt.
This one has such a luxurious feel to it and the
design is quite structured which is interesting, especially the neckline.

This was one of my favourite two
piece suits from the collection.  The
tailoring of the jacket is so flattering for
the figure and the contrast of the velvet collar with
the silk fabric looks so nice.

A couple of samples of embroidery from the
garments.  The design detail on both is amazing and
quite inspiring for me as I love creating textures
through embroidery.

 Overall the two days were a great experience.  It was interesting to be behind the scenes of the museum and see how everything is organised and run such as the study groups as well as press releases for upcoming events.

Orla Kiely Collaboration with Uniqlo

On Thursday 6th September I went to London's Fashion Night Out with my friend.  We didn't really know what to expect from it as it is based all over London, not just in one section.  However we stuck to Covent Garden and then made our way onto Oxford Street.  The atmosphere around was buzzing with music, free champagne and goodie bags.
We had heard that the shop Uniqlo was hosting a big night of fashion including a collaboration with the famous textile designer Orla Kiely.  She would be there doing a signing and an opportunity to purchase pieces from the Autumn/Winter 2012 collection.  As we both love Orla Kiely's designs we decided to go and have a look, not really knowing what to expect.

We were not disappointed! Once we were in the shop we saw the huge queue for the signings, but we decided to bypass this and head straight for the collection.  It was amazing! As you would expect there was a lot of people there trying to buy their favourite pieces, the atmosphere was bustling, everyone was excited to see what they could buy.

There were cute little dresses with peter pan collars, loose tunics, hoodies, long sleeved tops and scarves.  There was a real retro feel to the designs, inspired by the sixties era.  The prints and colours were gorgeous and included small floral and ditsy repeat prints as well as the well known repeat prints of Orla Kiely.  I purchased a few pieces for my winter wardrobe which I cannot wait to wear! 

Little bouquet of flowers and Orla Kiely postcards from the free goodie bag!

Orla Kiely doing the signings..

Here is a small snippet of an interview I found from Grazia magazine with Orla Kiely about her collaboration with Uniqlo:

Grazia Daily: What made you collaborate with Uniqlo again?
 
Orla Kiely: After such a successful collection for SS'12 I was really happy to do another collection with Uniqlo. I really admire their philosophy and classic style but also their attention to good quality materials. The price is great and it definitely feels like the ‘less is more’ approach to styling which is very modern.
I love the Japanese aesthetic and so it has been great collaborating with such a popular and cool brand.

Grazia Daily: What is it you love about Uniqlo?
 
Orla Kiely: Uniqlo is quite a unique brand. You rarely see such a focus on quality in high street retailers now, and I think UNIQLO own this market. Their prices make the quality accessible. I was delighted when they approached me because it was an opportunity for our brand to be seen and appreciated by a wider audience. It was an offer I couldn’t refuse.’
 
Grazia Daily: What is your inspiration behind the collection?
 
Orla Kiely: I was excited about doing a collection for Fall/Winter this time as I wanted it to feel very different to the last season. We were really keen to introduce some new shapes that had the 60s vibe yet were still in keeping with the Uniqlo aesthetic. I think they look great.
  
Grazia Daily: What is your favourite print and piece in the collection?
 
Orla Kiely: I love the scarves for Fall/Winter as they are such a great quality and the prints look fantastic on them, especially the Acorn Cup print. Something that I always try to do in my collection is combine large scale prints alongside the more ditsy prints and this was equally important for this collaboration with Uniqlo. I also love the cute jersey dresses.

sourced on 22/9/12 from: http://www.graziadaily.co.uk/fashion/archive/2012/08/17/orla-kielys-second-collection-for-uniqlo-is-coming-watch-this-fab-video-in-antic.htm

I have discovered Pinterest!!

A while ago I signed up to Pinterest but I never had the time to create anything myself until now.... It's safe to say that I am addicted already...I love it! I haven't been able to stop looking at it and spent quite a few hours of yesterday (and into the early morning)  creating my boards.  I think it is a great way to source pictures, colours and inspiration for future projects as well as browse and come across new and unique ideas! 

For example, whilst browsing through many pictures of cake (one of my other passions apart from textiles!), I found this...A rainbow cake!  I had never even thought of doing this until now, it looks yummy as well as pretty so I think that I will have to try and give this a go at some point!

Image sourced:

http://pinterest.com/source/blog.notonthehighstreet.com/

Take a look at my Pinterest 

http://pinterest.com/anirose1/

Welcome to my blog!

I have finally decided to bite the bullet and create a blog for the final year of my Fashion and Textile Degree! This is where I will reflect on any print, pattern, colour, texture and imagery that I find inspiring, as well as experiences of my final year.