Wednesday 23 March 2011
abercrombie & fitch
After about five tries I have managed to "perfect" my Abercrombie & Fitch project to the best of my abilities. I just hope it will be good enough for my interview with Sports Direct on Friday. I have managed to work my style around A&F and believe that I do bring my own design handwriting through my designs and illustrations.
Sunday 20 March 2011
prints
I have been uber busy this week designing my prints for digital printing. It is so stressful trying to manipulate designs so that they look fresh and original. I have also been very busy last week arranging pattern pieces to send for laser cutting. All in all I spent £400 just last week buying fabrics for printing, leather for laser cutting and the postage. It is absolutely insane where my money is going nowadays. Should hopefully be worth every penny come show day.
Here are my patterns to be digitally printed so far. I will be putting up screen shots as it is easier than saving jpeg files right now!
The above blank spaces will be filled with traditional shisha (mirror) embroidery but instead of mirrors I will be using flexible flat back sequins to avoid adding extra weight to the fabric as this will be printed at a length of 2 meters to cover the front and the back of my t-shirt.
I love this think. The bright lime colour of the faces and the yellow give this print a very summery feel.
I am definitely having second thoughts about the above chilli print I do not feel that it is a as strong as the first chilli print. Any suggestions?
Here are my patterns to be digitally printed so far. I will be putting up screen shots as it is easier than saving jpeg files right now!
The above blank spaces will be filled with traditional shisha (mirror) embroidery but instead of mirrors I will be using flexible flat back sequins to avoid adding extra weight to the fabric as this will be printed at a length of 2 meters to cover the front and the back of my t-shirt.
I love this think. The bright lime colour of the faces and the yellow give this print a very summery feel.
I am definitely having second thoughts about the above chilli print I do not feel that it is a as strong as the first chilli print. Any suggestions?
Tuesday 15 March 2011
laser cutting express
I am so happy to have finally got my pattern for my laser cutting pieces going. As simple as the shapes are I will be introducing a separate pattern piece under my laser cut sleeve to have another sleeve underneath. The underneath will be hand printed using procion printing onto satin silk and will show my colour off very vibrantly which is the effect I am going for.
These images are of me working on Illustrator to achieve my pattern. The blue lines going through the images are the ruler guides for all you who do not use illustrator very often or at all!
These images are of me working on Illustrator to achieve my pattern. The blue lines going through the images are the ruler guides for all you who do not use illustrator very often or at all!
complementary collection
For my complementary collection, to go along side my garment lengths and fronts I am designing a small range of scarves. Most of today I have spent trying to develop my portfolio pages for this collection and finally I am very happy with the progression of this. Below I have attached some images of my portfolio pages for this collection.
I know that it looks like I have used every single possible colour in my colour palette but I do assure you that for my final scarves I will be cutting down on the amount of colours, even though the majority are tonal colours.
Wednesday 9 March 2011
final project
I started to experiment further with my designs yesterday. Only just having time as I am trying to keep up with my portfolio at the same time. The images below are of my work and of my messy work space! Just thought that I would share this delight with all my readers! :)
The above image has been digitally printed onto silk twill. Such a luxurious fabric texture. I have then used another screen to print adhesive glue onto the black hair and the red lips.
Using flock the sample went under the heatpress for 20 seconds for the glue to adhere to it and this was my result. I am very happy with this result apart from some minute areas not getting the coverage I wanted like the face on the left hand side. Her lips have too much coverage. However that can be sorted with some beading or some fancy stitching!
My next five samples include cut out work onto leather. Here I have used polyester leather to just give an effect of what I want to achieve at a larger scale. The tracing paper attached to the piece of fabric is for me to know where I need to cut.
This is what it looks like so far!!
Juts one page from my sketchbook to give you a brief idea of what I am doing right now.
Last but not least some images of my messy, messy desk! :)
The above image has been digitally printed onto silk twill. Such a luxurious fabric texture. I have then used another screen to print adhesive glue onto the black hair and the red lips.
Using flock the sample went under the heatpress for 20 seconds for the glue to adhere to it and this was my result. I am very happy with this result apart from some minute areas not getting the coverage I wanted like the face on the left hand side. Her lips have too much coverage. However that can be sorted with some beading or some fancy stitching!
My next five samples include cut out work onto leather. Here I have used polyester leather to just give an effect of what I want to achieve at a larger scale. The tracing paper attached to the piece of fabric is for me to know where I need to cut.
This is what it looks like so far!!
Juts one page from my sketchbook to give you a brief idea of what I am doing right now.
Last but not least some images of my messy, messy desk! :)
Sunday 6 March 2011
coincidence continued...
Remind you of something???
weird right...? Looks like halftone is very in this season, meaning I am bang on trend!
diy nut
I found a really interestingly fabulous d.i.y tutorial on http://honestlywtf.com/ about how to make a very inexpensive but superb looking Braided Hex Nut Bracelet. The original idea comes from the Giles & Brother collection http://www.gilesandbrother.com/collections/womens-classic/products/short-braided-hex-necklace
The idea of being able to make you own for under £10 is so inspiring. So why not make one for yourself and your friends?
You will need 3 strands of twine cut into one yard pieces, 18 small brass hex nuts (although you can use any size, maybe even use graduating sizes?) and last but not least some patience.
Gather the 3 strands of twine and tie them in a knot at the top, leaving about 2 inches of slack for when tying. Start braiding and once you reach an inch down from the braiding start threading in the hex nuts. Before you braid the far left strand over the middle strand, thread on a nut, push it against the base of the braid, and crossover. Depending on the thickness of the twine, you can wrap tape around the bottom tips to prevent the twine from fraying. (click on the images for a larger view)
Keeping your thumb at the base of the braid, hold the nut in its place. Before you braid the far right strand over the middle, thread on another nut, push it against the base of the braid and crossover. Again, hold your thumb tightly against the base of the braid, keeping the nuts in place. Thread another nut onto the far left piece and crossover.
Repeat the steps, by threading the rest of the nuts to the outer pieces of twine before they are crossed over. Thread, cross, thread, cross. Finish the bracelet with another inch of braided twine and a knot.
The bracelet should wrap around your wrist at least two or three times. Trim it to your liking.
Enjoy!!
You will need 3 strands of twine cut into one yard pieces, 18 small brass hex nuts (although you can use any size, maybe even use graduating sizes?) and last but not least some patience.
Gather the 3 strands of twine and tie them in a knot at the top, leaving about 2 inches of slack for when tying. Start braiding and once you reach an inch down from the braiding start threading in the hex nuts. Before you braid the far left strand over the middle strand, thread on a nut, push it against the base of the braid, and crossover. Depending on the thickness of the twine, you can wrap tape around the bottom tips to prevent the twine from fraying. (click on the images for a larger view)
Keeping your thumb at the base of the braid, hold the nut in its place. Before you braid the far right strand over the middle, thread on another nut, push it against the base of the braid and crossover. Again, hold your thumb tightly against the base of the braid, keeping the nuts in place. Thread another nut onto the far left piece and crossover.
Repeat the steps, by threading the rest of the nuts to the outer pieces of twine before they are crossed over. Thread, cross, thread, cross. Finish the bracelet with another inch of braided twine and a knot.
The bracelet should wrap around your wrist at least two or three times. Trim it to your liking.
Enjoy!!
Saturday 5 March 2011
mcqueen
Still carrying on with my trip to London there was a lovely sales assistant in Libertys who offered to model an Alexander Mcqueen scarf for me. I am not entirely sure if scarf is the right word to use for this item as it was so versatile.
The georgette scarf when picked up had discreet armholes and a neck seam so the owner could wear it as a shrug. The below image is of the back of the scarf. To me when I first saw the scarf it looked like a kaleidascope slash a rorschach print, highlighting lightening and a storm. But upon a second look and the clear photograph I still think that but rather a stag than lightening.
The great thing about this Mcqueen scarf is that "one size fits all" so you do not need to be a skinny minnie to enjoy wearing this luxurious seamed of fabric.
A snood (double scarf).
As a knotted scarf. Whilst customers were purchasing their scarves each was given a complimentary knotting card showing them how to go about using their scarf in different way; retailing at £15. I did cheekily request if I could have one as part of my research purposes but obviously got denied.
The georgette scarf when picked up had discreet armholes and a neck seam so the owner could wear it as a shrug. The below image is of the back of the scarf. To me when I first saw the scarf it looked like a kaleidascope slash a rorschach print, highlighting lightening and a storm. But upon a second look and the clear photograph I still think that but rather a stag than lightening.
The great thing about this Mcqueen scarf is that "one size fits all" so you do not need to be a skinny minnie to enjoy wearing this luxurious seamed of fabric.
A snood (double scarf).
As a knotted scarf. Whilst customers were purchasing their scarves each was given a complimentary knotting card showing them how to go about using their scarf in different way; retailing at £15. I did cheekily request if I could have one as part of my research purposes but obviously got denied.
Friday 4 March 2011
what makes people buy expensive scarves?
I am doing a brief for university that has to complement my final collection and I am developing a scarf range. I went on a trip to London on Tuesday and researched all the different types of scarves that Libertys http://www.liberty.co.uk/ had to offer.
It was fabulous just standing there discreetly in the background (with permission of course) and observing what types of customers just walked up to an awesome looking scarf and picked up maybe two or three and just went to the till spending hundreds if not thousand pounds at a time. I was very privileged to be able to take photographs and document the ranges of scarves that they stock. I know that I can view them on their website but seeing them in person is a completely different experience. The texture and the amount of work that goes into each of these scarves is amazing.
My main aim of going to Libertys was to see how the prints are composed on each of the scarves and how they are finished. The finishings was a real eye opener. I never know that there was such a variety of finishings. I am not very good with my fabrics so it was a great opportunity to learn about them and the weights and what I could achieve with them.
The above Hermes scarf was phenomenal, I was walking down Conduit Street and the first thing I saw in the Hermes window was this gorgeous scarf. My gaze was directly attracted to the contrast in the edging of the scarf. Viewing from the window I was thinking of ways this could have been achieved. At first I thought that it may have been an extra piece of coloured fabric which was separately hand sewed on.
How wrong was I!? I went into Hermes as soon as it opened at 10am and I spoke to the most loveliest sales assistant ever. I asked her about the finishing of the scarf above and she explained to me that the edging is actually printed on whilst printing the pattern of the actual scarf and is then hand rolled and stitched to give it it's unique value. She was so sweet and let me look openly at the scarves and unfolded so many for me and showed me what fabrics they did and was explaining to me the stories behind each scarf. She gave me a little booklet on each of their SS/11 scarves in which was a brief story about each about the scarves and who the designer was for each one.
I saw another Hermes scarf in Harrods and immediately fell in love with it. The colours were absolutely stunning. I was not allowed to take photos in Harrods but I managed to find a picture on Google of the beautiful scarf. Below is the image of the scarf. This picture does that scarf absolutely no justice as it does in reality, but you get the hint. The hand rolled and stitched edging makes each scarf very unique as no scarf is the same.
I most definitely think that the above scarf represents me as a designer in a nutshell. My signature style as a designer always has hints of geometry whether it be in use of pattern or shape. The influences of pop art and optical art are ever present in my work and I believe that is what makes me stand out as I am not aware of anyone at university who works the way I do.
The above image is a paisley Etro scarf in Browns on South Moulton Street in London. I was quite interested with this finishing. I just always assumed that you would have to be extra careful not to get this scarf stuck in a zip for example or around a button or even your nails. I am pretty sure this would cause the warp and weft threads to pull; resulting in a very unattractive looking scarf.
This Balenciaga top had a very interesting neckline. Using the crepe de chine as a contrast against the silk gives the garment an extra level in depth and helps create a more interesting texture.
The above Etro scarf was one I saw in Libertys. The detail in this scarf was incredibly intricate resulting in such a heavily delicate scarf made from 100% silk. The scarf was a rectangular shape 68cm x 190cm to be precise and one end of the scarf had the above double chain stitches and french knotting to create pattern and texture.
The other end of the scarf had both the above and below french knotting, beading and satin stitching from both jute yarn and olive green embroidery yarns. The plastic effect of from the jute yarn reflects the light very well and certainly makes you look closer at the detail involved.
Another finishing I was very impressed and wowed by was the above scarf by Laura Bernens. How hard must it have been to hand roll the edges and then machine stitch it precisely without a single bump or lump out of place!?
What makes you as a customer want to spend that much money on scarves? If you had a thousand pounds to spend in Libertys what would you spend it on and why? What is so special about each one to you as a customer? I would love to read all of your comments and work out what makes people tick so that I can develop myself as a better designer.
It was fabulous just standing there discreetly in the background (with permission of course) and observing what types of customers just walked up to an awesome looking scarf and picked up maybe two or three and just went to the till spending hundreds if not thousand pounds at a time. I was very privileged to be able to take photographs and document the ranges of scarves that they stock. I know that I can view them on their website but seeing them in person is a completely different experience. The texture and the amount of work that goes into each of these scarves is amazing.
My main aim of going to Libertys was to see how the prints are composed on each of the scarves and how they are finished. The finishings was a real eye opener. I never know that there was such a variety of finishings. I am not very good with my fabrics so it was a great opportunity to learn about them and the weights and what I could achieve with them.
The above Hermes scarf was phenomenal, I was walking down Conduit Street and the first thing I saw in the Hermes window was this gorgeous scarf. My gaze was directly attracted to the contrast in the edging of the scarf. Viewing from the window I was thinking of ways this could have been achieved. At first I thought that it may have been an extra piece of coloured fabric which was separately hand sewed on.
How wrong was I!? I went into Hermes as soon as it opened at 10am and I spoke to the most loveliest sales assistant ever. I asked her about the finishing of the scarf above and she explained to me that the edging is actually printed on whilst printing the pattern of the actual scarf and is then hand rolled and stitched to give it it's unique value. She was so sweet and let me look openly at the scarves and unfolded so many for me and showed me what fabrics they did and was explaining to me the stories behind each scarf. She gave me a little booklet on each of their SS/11 scarves in which was a brief story about each about the scarves and who the designer was for each one.
I saw another Hermes scarf in Harrods and immediately fell in love with it. The colours were absolutely stunning. I was not allowed to take photos in Harrods but I managed to find a picture on Google of the beautiful scarf. Below is the image of the scarf. This picture does that scarf absolutely no justice as it does in reality, but you get the hint. The hand rolled and stitched edging makes each scarf very unique as no scarf is the same.
I most definitely think that the above scarf represents me as a designer in a nutshell. My signature style as a designer always has hints of geometry whether it be in use of pattern or shape. The influences of pop art and optical art are ever present in my work and I believe that is what makes me stand out as I am not aware of anyone at university who works the way I do.
The above image is a paisley Etro scarf in Browns on South Moulton Street in London. I was quite interested with this finishing. I just always assumed that you would have to be extra careful not to get this scarf stuck in a zip for example or around a button or even your nails. I am pretty sure this would cause the warp and weft threads to pull; resulting in a very unattractive looking scarf.
This Balenciaga top had a very interesting neckline. Using the crepe de chine as a contrast against the silk gives the garment an extra level in depth and helps create a more interesting texture.
The above Etro scarf was one I saw in Libertys. The detail in this scarf was incredibly intricate resulting in such a heavily delicate scarf made from 100% silk. The scarf was a rectangular shape 68cm x 190cm to be precise and one end of the scarf had the above double chain stitches and french knotting to create pattern and texture.
The other end of the scarf had both the above and below french knotting, beading and satin stitching from both jute yarn and olive green embroidery yarns. The plastic effect of from the jute yarn reflects the light very well and certainly makes you look closer at the detail involved.
What makes you as a customer want to spend that much money on scarves? If you had a thousand pounds to spend in Libertys what would you spend it on and why? What is so special about each one to you as a customer? I would love to read all of your comments and work out what makes people tick so that I can develop myself as a better designer.
Thursday 3 March 2011
coincidence?!
For my final uni project I am doing using the inspiration of Indian pop art meets quintessential British pop art and optical art. My main influences include the likes of Bridget Riley, Victor Vasarely, Andy Warhol, Lichenstein, Piet Mondrian and my most favourite designer Manish Arora.
What really attracts me to these artists and fashion designer is the graphic element to all their work. I don't know if it is because I find it just easier to draw geometric shapes free hand or the fact that the colour is easier to apply onto geometric shapes? Even drawing flowers is very hard for me; delicate looking ones anyway.
What shocks me more is that I started researching into pop art and Indian pop art last summer for this project and now it is in fashion everywhere! I have just seen the fall line up for Dried Van Noten and the first thing I see is black and white optical art. It makes me wonder sometimes does that mean I would make a good trends researcher? If any employers are looking through this right now I AM GAME! I love researching trends, and it has happened before which is strange but it makes me just think yes that I am along the right lines.
I just picked up my digitally printed fabrics from Kenny our lovely print technician at uni and they look amazing! I love the brightness and sharp tones of the colour. I am a very colourful person. Although I do not always show that in how I dress, secretly I am like a fly attracted to bright lights; except for the fact I go towards the bright colours in fashion, art, homeware basically anything that is extremely colourful and textural.
This passion that I have for colour and texture I hope to bring to my final year work. I will be using techniques such as devore, spandex printing, vinyl, flock, foil, embroidery and pigment printing to achieve these textural elements.
My first sample was based on the women in India and how they are perceived in modern society. I used the images of women who had a sad expression on their faces mixed in with the Mondrian influenced block print for a background. I think that the textural element of the half tone could be placed inside the coloured blocks. I will work into this image by using spandex printed which when dried raises itself, it's almost like a baking process; but without the oven.
I wanted to use the same feminine influence of the women but in an animation concept. The eye is taken from the influence of the rickshaws in Tamil Nadu, India. The owners of these rickshaws paint and animate their rickshaws to give them some personality. I think that is a very quirky element and bring new life to my samples. It is almost like giving my samples a personality. The sample will be worked into by using french knotting as embroidery in places to give a raised heavy texture.
This is my ultimate favourite! This sample is one that I would like all my samples and work to aspire to become. I just live the line quality in this image. My colour palette has 37 colours in total; bearing in mind they are all tonal colours of the same main colours. I love the barely there ochre colour against the bright yellow. I will be using devore to take the colours out from areas and introduce colours back in with beading.
I love taking an animated twist onto my work. This lemon and chilli inspired image has a very good story behind it.
Lemon and green chillies tied on the doorways of shops, business establishments and Hindu homes is a common sight in India. But why is it hung on the door? Lemon and green chilly tied on a thread are hung outside the door to keep away Alakshmi, or Jyestha, who is considered inauspicious. Alakshmi is the sister ofGoddess Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of fortune and prosperity. But Alakshmi brings poverty and misery. Alakshmi likes sour, pungent and hot things. Therefore shopkeepers, merchants and people tie lemons and green chillies on the doorways of their shops and homes so that Alakshmi will only come up to the door and eat her favorite food and satisfy her hunger and leave without entering the shop or house.
It is believed that after consuming lemon and green chillies, Alakshmi loses her urge to enter the house or shop. She will turn around without casting her malevolent eye.
Sour food is also avoided during festivals to keep Alakshmi away. She does not like sweet food, which is the favorite of Goddess Lakshmi. Therefore Hindus always prepare a sweet dish during festivals.
What really attracts me to these artists and fashion designer is the graphic element to all their work. I don't know if it is because I find it just easier to draw geometric shapes free hand or the fact that the colour is easier to apply onto geometric shapes? Even drawing flowers is very hard for me; delicate looking ones anyway.
What shocks me more is that I started researching into pop art and Indian pop art last summer for this project and now it is in fashion everywhere! I have just seen the fall line up for Dried Van Noten and the first thing I see is black and white optical art. It makes me wonder sometimes does that mean I would make a good trends researcher? If any employers are looking through this right now I AM GAME! I love researching trends, and it has happened before which is strange but it makes me just think yes that I am along the right lines.
I just picked up my digitally printed fabrics from Kenny our lovely print technician at uni and they look amazing! I love the brightness and sharp tones of the colour. I am a very colourful person. Although I do not always show that in how I dress, secretly I am like a fly attracted to bright lights; except for the fact I go towards the bright colours in fashion, art, homeware basically anything that is extremely colourful and textural.
This passion that I have for colour and texture I hope to bring to my final year work. I will be using techniques such as devore, spandex printing, vinyl, flock, foil, embroidery and pigment printing to achieve these textural elements.
My first sample was based on the women in India and how they are perceived in modern society. I used the images of women who had a sad expression on their faces mixed in with the Mondrian influenced block print for a background. I think that the textural element of the half tone could be placed inside the coloured blocks. I will work into this image by using spandex printed which when dried raises itself, it's almost like a baking process; but without the oven.
I wanted to use the same feminine influence of the women but in an animation concept. The eye is taken from the influence of the rickshaws in Tamil Nadu, India. The owners of these rickshaws paint and animate their rickshaws to give them some personality. I think that is a very quirky element and bring new life to my samples. It is almost like giving my samples a personality. The sample will be worked into by using french knotting as embroidery in places to give a raised heavy texture.
This is my ultimate favourite! This sample is one that I would like all my samples and work to aspire to become. I just live the line quality in this image. My colour palette has 37 colours in total; bearing in mind they are all tonal colours of the same main colours. I love the barely there ochre colour against the bright yellow. I will be using devore to take the colours out from areas and introduce colours back in with beading.
The above print the one in green is one that I have done using the influence of Andy Warhol. Such an iconic artist and I really admire the way he uses colour. Colours that you wouldn't normally put together actually work. The clash of colours is amazing. The image itself gives a sense of texture as some areas are lighter and more grainy in texture.
I tried to use Andy Warhol as a source of inspiration but feel like I may have totally ripped him off!
Lemon and green chillies tied on the doorways of shops, business establishments and Hindu homes is a common sight in India. But why is it hung on the door? Lemon and green chilly tied on a thread are hung outside the door to keep away Alakshmi, or Jyestha, who is considered inauspicious. Alakshmi is the sister ofGoddess Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of fortune and prosperity. But Alakshmi brings poverty and misery. Alakshmi likes sour, pungent and hot things. Therefore shopkeepers, merchants and people tie lemons and green chillies on the doorways of their shops and homes so that Alakshmi will only come up to the door and eat her favorite food and satisfy her hunger and leave without entering the shop or house.
It is believed that after consuming lemon and green chillies, Alakshmi loses her urge to enter the house or shop. She will turn around without casting her malevolent eye.
Sour food is also avoided during festivals to keep Alakshmi away. She does not like sweet food, which is the favorite of Goddess Lakshmi. Therefore Hindus always prepare a sweet dish during festivals.
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