DESIGN DEVELOPMENT AND TOILE

On these pages I have further a possible final design idea. I have chosen this one because it is very on trend, very wearable for my customer and her occasion, and when well made, can be a couture garment. To start with, I tweaked my design, to the best suited. I played with the length of the skirt, ruffles, culottes and neckline. I think that the first or the fourth design will work well, and I will consider this if this design becomes my final. To experiment with how I would go about making the skirt and what techniques needs to be used would be helpful when choosing my material and how difficult it would be to do. I started by drawing around a mini manikin skirt block, adding in the darts and sewing up the seams, then putting it on the manikin for sizing guidelines. I decided to take up the hem by 7.5 cm, and replace it with ruffles the same length. I added 5cm onto each panel, adding an extra 20cm, I cut this out and sewed as usual. I went about the best way of creating subtle ruffles, by turning the machine stitch to 4, not back tacking and pulling the thread to gather. I then sewed to my garment. I will experiment with this further, changing the lengths of the skirt and the ruffles, depending on how I decide to make my culottes.

My second design development is use of the ‘kakurenbo’ hide and seek technique taken from the first Pattern Magic book, referenced in my action plan. To begin, I drew out the pattern shape as shown in the book by free-hand. I did it to full size, as shown in my book, and halved it to fit my mini basic bodice block for the mini manikin. I had to adapt my basic bodice to include the ruffle technique, to do this, I did not cut my front piece on the fold – therefore having 2 pieces with a split up the centre. I then cut out my pieces in calico, sewed up the front seam and darts. I followed the instructions in the Pattern Magic Book and my pleat turned out to be a success. This method is a clean, understated look that is minimal with a geometric shape on the front, which fits my theme and concept very well. However, I would like to challenge myself a lot more with something that requires higher skills.

I have adapted this design of a shift dress with detailed side panels and a pocket, into a two-piece skirt and top, with matching prints and decorative techniques. I have developed the design to create more, and explore its possible outcomes better. I decided to test my new design by creating a part of it, I chose the skirt and used a basic skirt block. On my previous mood boards, specifically the Issy Miyake mood board, I experimented with recreating the effects on her designs by pink tucking Tyvek, I found this worked well and each side of the material was effective – making it double sided. I could possibly use this to create a reversible garment. I began by pin-tucking the Tyvek. I then used this material and a printed geometric fabric, to create the skirt. I found the contrast between the two prints worked well. However, Tyvek is a delicate material that would be prone to tears and would not suit my customer for her specific events due to weather and a possible stage performance. I would need to recreate this using a more suitable fabric.

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PRIMARY RESEARCH AND ARCHITECTURE

 Primary Research – to gather some primary images, I have used collected images from several different places. Some being from a UCAS events in Manchester, where I was inspired by existing students work. Another being from the John Lewis building in Leeds and an Issy Miyake bag, the Expo Gate in Milan, a cinema and architecture in Paris, and a wall hanging I found in IKEA. These image include several aspects of geometry and minimalism. The design underneath, the collar and chiffon sleeves are inspired by the existing garments, the chiffon would be a checked pattern. Around the neck is the wall hanging from IKEA, shrunk down in size and created using origami techniques in either Tyvek or white cotton. The skirt is inspired by the Expo Gate and the image next to it from Paris.

 The design on top is inspired by the wall of John Lewis, and would be a black and white stripe pattern, possibly appliqued on in a material such as felt. The top is a cut out back in the shape of the Normandie cinema’s front design. The right page is the Triennale Museum in Milan of sculptor’s work. The design on this page is inspired by the sculptor’s vase with cut out pieces, with a curvaceous neckline, the long skirt would reveal from underneath of the short dress.  The other design is inspired by the black and white seat, which would definitely be a statement piece for my customer to wear to an award show. These stripes would be created either by creating my own print or embroidery, as my market level is couture so it needs to be handmade and well finished.

 This page is inspired by architecture, I have researched into this because of the geometric aspect within my theme. Therefore, I have looked into modern architecture from around the world that could inspire my designs. The design on the top left is inspired by the louvre and the image in the right corner. The skirt would be made out of strong and structured fabric such as neoprene. The top would be printed and tie at the back as a halter neck. The design sketch at the bottom is inspired by the bottom right image, which I have rotated and transformed into a structured skirt. The V-neck bodysuit is inspired by the architecture with the stand out rectangles, this would be reflected as they would stand out off the body suit. To develop these designs further, I could work more into them, as they are just sketches.

 On the right hand page, I have also been inspired by modern architecture, I have created two sketches based on these. The left hand design, the shoulders are bold and stand up, inspired by Sydney harbour. The top is a v-neck bodysuit with revealing sides. The top half of the skirt is inspired by the structure, second down from the left. It would be sewed with wire in to help it stand up, as would the shoulder pieces. The bottom half of the skirt is inspired by the top right hand picture, the skirt meets at a point at the front, with a cut out design on the left revealing the leg. The design on the right, the big shoulder sleeves are also inspired by Sydney harbour, but are sleeves that meet comfortably under the arms. The dress is inspired by the triangular building in the bottom left, this would be made by sewing black or white leather triangles onto white mesh or skin coloured powernet, met with a subtle ruffle at the hem to keep on trend for SS16, as my customer is very influential.

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SKETCHBOOK DEVELOPMENT OF RESEARCH

This moodboard is Issy Miyake SS15, I found this collection on the VOGUE website. I chose it because it is structured, clean lines. Experimentation on this page, in the bottom corner is heated Tyvek embrioded with black machine stitching. The 3 squares of material are Panama cotton, which I have embrioded into. On top, I have attempted to recreate the pleated textiles on this page, by using Tyvek and strong mesh, using pin tucks in geometric designs.

 The design on the left is a basic A line dress, inspired by the A line white jacket on the left page. the panel on the left is made out of pin tucked Tyvek, and the pocket would be pin tucked mesh, to create a see-through pocket. The design on the right is inspired by the shoulder piece on the left page and the origami inspired top on the right, the silhouette is a rounded hip shape, with folded white material, that is pin tucked on top. The sides of the dress have tucked pleats hanging away.

 Experimentation page. I have gathered textile images from our college Pinterest board that can help inspire my designs that are related to my theme. On the left hand page is black leather, painted with white emulsion and sewn into with black machine stitching. I think this looks very effective yet minimal and I will use this in my designs and develop it further. I then used white mesh and painted with black and white paint, and peeled some away. On the right hand page I have recreated the pleated top, and pulled through white cord, using machine stitching. The belt has been inspired by the white leather with white silk pulled through, I then took these experimentation pieces and applied them to a manikin, transforming them into a top and belt.The illustration is a recreation of this manikin design, paired with a pleated black leather A-line skirt, the middle pleat being painted with white emulsion and stitched into and cracked. This page has helped me to use my experimentation with fabrics to build an outfit only using textural research, using a minimal colour palette.

 In this moodboard I have looked into the use of origami in fashion, researching into existing designers which can be found in my bibliography. The white paint and black ink paper is what remained after pulling away the mesh on the previous page, I have used it here as it looks rather effective. I then used a YouTube video to create an origami star. I have also included a few fabric swatches and created my own beads using heated, glued and wired Tyvek around a wooden stick, before pulling it off and using them as beads. The design on the paper is inspired by the ruffled origami dresses on this page, it is shorter at the front and longer at the back, with pleats emerging from the neckline and side seams. This would be made out of a flowing material, that can be easily manipulated, such as cotton.

 The second design, the top is a high neck, with standing up ruffles, using interfaced cotton and wire. The skirt is inspired by the triangle top below, I have transformed this into a skirt that has several triangle shapes hanging off, made out of leather. The design on the right, I really liked the origami top on this page, and it inspired me to create a cut out top, to create a geometric shape in my minimalist design. Emerging from the seams of the skirt, are structured ruffles. The body piece on top of the skirt, is a structured piece that rests on the hips and ties at the front, inspired the image at the top right. I would fold and pleat material in an origami style, and join them together. The skirt is an A-line with clean lines, with 3 stand up ruffles, using wire.

 The page on the left shows that I have researched into SS16 trend forecasting, that I will then keep in mind when designing myself, as my customer needs to be wearing current trends, and be aware of what not to wear this season. The main trends of SS16 are the delicate slip dress, strong shoulders and off the shoulder looks. Metallic’s, tailored women's suits, trousers and culottes. Most importantly, pin stripes and ruffles will be seen everywhere this summer. I will incorporate these into my designs, as my customer is a major fashion icon, who people look to for current style inspiration.

 I needed to be more inspired by fabric manipulation to create geometric and origami pieces, this mood board shows my favourite picks from my Internet research using blogs and Pinterest. My experimentation on this page is use of pin tucks in printed and plain cotton, this has created a very effective piece and structured lines. I have cut out pink leather and painted shrivelled Tyvek, joined them together on a manikin to create a brooch embellishment, onto a mini black leather dress, created using a mini manikin. On the left hand page, I have created a 3D design using pleated chiffon and cord as a belt. This helped to create a flow of ideas, and how simple techniques such as pinching a waist with a belt, can create a tailored effect.

The design on this page is inspired by the top next to it, which has been manipulated into a stand out skirt. The poncho top, is inspired by the image at the bottom, rippled paper. To develop this further, I could add some embellishment to make a more Avant Garde piece. The designs on the right are inspired by the pleated paper, that I have folded and manipulated to create a garment, as shown on this page.

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Sketchbook Research

 To begin with, I gathered research from magazines and the internet, including websites such as Pinterest, and using Google image searches, to access individual websites and blogs, which helps me find more research. On this page, I focused on my colour palette of black and white. The images were found from a University prospectus, and helped inspire some shapes and prints that I then drew around the images. I was particularly inspired by the clean cut shapes, and the structured, cut out collar. Which helped inspire my paper manipulation on the right hand page. I cut out black card to create a 3D effect, which then inspired me to do the same with felt, and sew wire into the back using a zig zag stitch on the sewing machine. The image in the bottom right hand corner, is this experimentation on a mini manikin, moving the wire to create a 3D effect.

The design on the left was inspired by the cut out collar on the white jacket, I replicated this collar in a top, but which also has a cut out back, which comes to the sides at a point. I paired with a pair of cropped white flared trousers, that are high waisted with a structured waistband. The middle pleated material, will either be printed, embroidered or a different fabric, hence the experimentation in the bottom corner. The next design is a cut out collared waist coat, which has a leather bottom which is cut out in panels, inspired by the stripes on the back of this page.  The dress underneath is finished with a skort like hem, inspired by the triangle images next to it. It will then be embroidered with structural lines. The designs on the right are interpretations of my felt experimentation seen on the manikin. The piece is very bold and structured, so it has been placed on a simple cotton shift dress. The wire would then be bended to create a statement.

The whole of this page has been taken from a University prospectus found at a UCAS event in Manchester. Although the colours do not stick to my colour palette, the shapes apply to my geometric concept. The design on the left, the top is inspired by the image in the top right, with the arm in the purple block. I took this and created it into a cross over, structured and avant-garde top.  The skirt is inspired by the sculpture on the left hand side of the model. The pastel palette of the mood board inspires the colour of the garment. The right hand page helped to inspire model poses. I like this pose, as it makes a statement and is very structured, like the garment. I have used a simple dress, possibly made out of a printed scuba material, to help hold on the shapes, inspired by the mood board. The hem will also have hanging shapes, made out a strong material.

 This mood board is to help inspire my silhouettes, using images of interior, shapes, patterns, sculptures and existing designs. Once I had created this moodboard, I then picked out certain aspects and created experimentation. The bottom left experimentation has been created using leather, white mesh and a sewing machine with black thread, and has been inspired by the structural prints on this page. The experimentation on the right is made using printed cotton and black leather, inspired by structural squares. The illustration on the right, underneath, is a longline poncho, which flares out to a point at knee length, and comes together with a knitted bottom. The design is inspired by the image of the woman in the black outfit, and then sewn into with bold lines and shapes. The design on top is inspired by the light hanging image, and will drop down the body, using wire and mesh inbetween.

The illustration on the right, underneath, the dress is inspired by the black and white vase to the left, which would be recreated in a similar way. The neck will be high, and pleats will fall down from it to the sleeves, which reach a point. The bottom of the skirt will be made out of chiffon which falls out of the bottom of the skirt. The design on top is inspired by the 3D shape in the centre of the page and the triangle at the top of the left page. The top is a structured jacket, made out of leather and wire. The skirt is two joined triangles, embroidered with thread and materials. 

 This page is created using only images from magazines, it features existing designers, architecture, colour pallets and textures. The design on the left, underneath is inspired by the black and white magazine square print and the stripes from the existing garments. The top is a printed material, embrioded using leather, the frame is made of black tape, with wire in to create a strong frame. The flowing skirt underneath will be made of white mesh or cotton. The design on top, the top neck piece will be a choker, made out of wire like material, which will then join down onto the garment, like the existing designs on the page.

 The top half is inspired by the structural shapes at the top of the left hand page, and will be recreated using pin tucks in white cotton. The belt is the experimentation which will be found on the next pages. The A line skirt will be made out of two different materials, the one under the pleats being made out of a printed cotton. The curled tape is inspired by the one on this page, I would recreate this using wire and white tape. Underneath would be a simple pair of pleated and structured culottes. The design on the right hand page is inspired by the lamp shade in the picture, I would imagine this being made out of painted and cracked leather pieces, joined together on a bodysuit.

 These pages are a collection of imagery of Gareth Pugh's 2015 collections. I have chosen this collection to be inspired by because it is minimalist in its colour palette, but avant Garde in its designs, which are structured and bold. The experimentation on the left hand page is use of heated Tyvek, which shrivels. I did this because I wanted to experiment with paper-like material. The design underneath is inspired by the images to the left of it, the large ruffled skirts were statement pieces, and I decided to turn this into a dress, fixed with a tight belt. The thigh high leggings are inspired by the boots.

 For the design on top, I have used blended felt tip pen as the skin colour, which I found rather effective. The cross over, buttoned up bodysuit is inspired by the structured collar of Gareth Pugh's jacket design, the bodysuit is firmly tucked in under a pair of white culottes, inspired by the ones on the left hand side, these would be made out of metallic material and white scuba. The body piece, which my customer would remove after making an entrance, is made out of wired black plastic, which hangs off the hips and holds together at the front, inspired by the ones on the right hand page.

 Experimentation – I have painted red leather with holes in using white emulsion and attaching it to white cotton before going into it by machine stitching black thread into the holes for a geometric minimalist shape effect. I then created a design using this experimentation, the front and back panel of the dress would be made like this, the side panels would be sheer black mesh. Black rolled sleeves and a printed striped turtleneck would accompany the dress.

. The right hand side of the page shows that I have researched into monochrome trends, a colour palette associated with minimalism. Bold accessories show power and dynamic views when wearing black and white for SS16. These designs are inspired by a range of sketchbook pages. The left design is inspired by Gareth Pugh’s 2015 collections. The jacket is inspired by his own, using silver beading for embroidery into white leather. The body piece is inspired by the top left image on the previous page, with pointed stripes, the body piece can be removed for comfort after my customer has walked the red carpet. Underneath is a metallic fitted skirt, inspired by the boots on this page. The design on the right, the top is inspired by the lamp shade as on the previous pages, and would be made out of cracked black leather, sewn onto a bodysuit. The belt is white leather, with weaved silk ribbon in and out of the belt, as seen on a future sketchbook page. The scuba skirt is inspired by the ruffles on the Gareth Pugh skirt, however, ruffles are a huge trend for SS16 and it would be important to reflect up and coming trends in my designs, therefore I added some printed cotton culottes that would emerge from the drop hem skirt, inspired by Gareth Pugh.

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MOODBOARD

I have created my mood boards using Adobe InDesign. At first, I created a mood board using existing collections, however, I realized that I need to base my designs and mood boards on first hand research that I can manipulate into my own ideas, instead using other people's collections. So I have recreated a mood board using interior, geometry, origami, blueprints and architecture, to base my collection on.

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Who is my customer?

My customer is Rihanna, she is a 28 Barbadian Singer and Songwriter who is well known for her constant chart topping R&B pop songs. She has a net worth of $120 million. She is famous for her extravagant fashion choices, including those that she has worn to award shows such as The Grammy’s, The Bafta’s and the Met Gala. She is most famous for wearing expensive designers, such as Dior and Chanel. However, she has also worn her own designs from her collaboration with River Island and Puma. Rihanna is well known for her casual day time looks, for example, pairing cropped tracksuit bottoms with heels, or tying a casual plaid shirt around her waist with a crop top and trainers. However, her evening looks are quite the contrary, as she is known for her glamorous statement designer couture. Usually being extravagant dresses, skirts or smart suits. Most public appearances, for example, award shows, she is usually designed specific one-off pieces, by expensive designers, that are not available to purchase by anyone else. In her spare time, she is seen in extravagant holiday locations, attending exclusive parties and working out to maintain her celebrity praised figure.

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FMP: GEOMETRIC MINIMALISM

As my all important Final Major Project (FMP) etches closer and closer each day, I find myself pondering over inspiration ideas. I am more than determined to achieve a Distinction and challenge myself in many ways than one, however as I have discovered in my previous projects, I must choose a theme that I am passionately inspired by to maintain a constant flow of ideas throughout my project. Choosing this inspiration has proved to be an impossible task. My current theme of World War One is pushing my talents beyond my comfort zone, as the perfectionist within me strongly disagrees with the torn and burnt fabric in my sketchbook. After recently visiting Manchester on Monday for a convention, I have been massively inspired by architecture. Unfortunately, my first year self, already chose that theme and re-using it would prove to be difficult as I would have to take an entirely different approach, and wouldn't be able to recreate previous sketchbook ideas and designs. Over the past few days, I have been thinking long and hard about alternatives to architecture. I thought about everything that appeals to me and creates a flow of ideas within my head. I am a perfectionist. Monochrome. Straight lines and squares are a recurring theme within my work. I finally concluded with a theme of Geometric Minimalism, giving me the chance to look at both a minimalism colour palette, and geometry to cover both architecture and origami. Today I took to Tumblr, Pinterest and Instagram for visuals, and here are my top picks from today.

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