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!