Industry Project: Day 1

Today we were briefed on the designers the teachers had chosen then asked to choose the ones we'd most like to be work on. Then we were put into groups. I was nervous about being put into a group with people I didn't know very well or who I had clashing opinions with but I think the group I have been put in will work well together.

Once we were in our group we chose some lyrics from the Lou Reed song 'Walk on the Wild Song' mainly because we all thought the lyrics were interesting and there was a lot of ways we could interpret them.

Holly came from Miami F.L.A.
Hitch-hiked her way across the U.S.A.
Plucked her eyebrows on the way
Shaved her legs and then he was a she
She said, hey babe, take a walk on the wild side,
Said, hey honey, take a walk on the wild side.

Although we all have very different styles we felt it was important to start brainstorming as a group. After doing some individual research on the song we came together and made a mind map with all of our ideas which included transgenders, punk rock, travelling, glam rock, 70s and feminism.

We also decided that the two designers would try to make garments by next Tuesday because we all agreed it would be good if the promotion students could use some of our clothes in their photo shoots.

Before lunch we decided to all collect imagery which we could use to create a group mood board. I was a little annoyed when after lunch I was the only one who had actually collected images especially since we only had an hour left of the day. Luckily a few other people managed to print off their images and we were able to put together a decent mood board which has lots of inspiration point so hopefully everyone will be able to agree on just two or three themes.

At the end of the day we decided that everyone would do more research and collect images tonight on the themes that'd we'd already looked at and by tomorrow we'd finish our mood board and hopefully have our set themes.

I think so far my group has worked fairly well together and hopefully everyone will be able to work a little bit faster tomorrow.

Lamula Project: Day 3

On the Thursday I started by grouping the fabric swatches that I'd got the day before and seeing which ones worked best together. Then I went through all of my designs and chose a few that I liked the most and thought would most likely fit in with the Lamula Nassuna brand.

I chose a design that I thought was quite outgoing and little eccentric but still smart and appropriate for work. I think it might have been a bit over the top for Lamula Nassuna as the brand is more about basic clothing with a slight flare but I loved the design so much that I went with it anyways. I spent the rest of the day drawing the final design, print off my concept board and doing a working drawing. I didn't have enough time to do the working drawings properly so I am going to redo these neater for my portfolio.

Lamula Project: Day 2

The next day I started to look at colour. I made two colour mood boards, one using the Frida Kahlo research and another using the Jeanne Dunning research. The Frida Kahlo mood board had lots of bright colours such as fuchsia, turquoise, and blood red whereas the Jeanne Dunning one was full of skin tones ranging from deep browns to pale pinks and burnt oranges. I decided to go for the more muted colour scheme as I think it fits more with the Lamula Nassuna brand. I think the bright colours would be too much unless used in a print or a trim.

Since I'm looking at deconstructing I took apart two suit jackets and recreated them on a suit. I tried to position the pieces in ways that they wouldn't usually be done, such as doubling up lapels, turning pieces upside, inside out and using sleeves to make the bodice. This was really useful as it gave me loads of ideas and starting points for possible designs. Then I printed off the photos and designed from these. It also helped me to properly visualize what the suit could look like if I were to make it and how it would be constructed.

That afternoon I went to get fabric samples. I wasn't really sure what type of fabric I wanted to use, but I knew I didn't want typical suit fabrics. I focused on looking for fabrics that matched my colour scheme and where also quite sturdy and fairly thick so if I used them they would be to keep the structure that I wanted my suit to have.

Personality Project: Day Eight

Today I decided to improve on the rough prints that I'd made based on Frida Kahlo's work. I recreated them on photoshop making a repeat pattern using the motifs that I'd drawn. I preferred making these prints on photoshop rather than hand drawing it as it was easier to experiment with scale, shape and colour. However, I think this was a waste of my time because I needed to focus on my design work and therefore didn't have enough time to develop these prints into something I could use.

At this point I felt I had enough initial ideas that I liked so I went through all my designs and put a dot next to the ones that I liked the most and reflected my themes the most. Then I started to put together different outfit combinations. Using these outfits, I drew lots of quick designs developing each garment and changing details such as seam lines, sleeves, shapes and embellishments.

I decided on my final line up by looking at which garments I liked the most and which ones looked the best together. Then I drew the final lineup. I think my final line up would look better if I had my own style of drawing or even just added face and hair to the illustrations because these ones look a little lifeless so I'm going to try to develop a style.

Lamula Project: Day 1

The first thing I did when we were given the task of designing a new suit for the Lamula Nassuna brand was research on the brand so I could see what her design aesthetic is. Her clothes are quite simple but with interesting design details. I imagine the target market is a working woman who likes to look professional but still have a personal style.

Next I created a concept board. As it is only a three day project I decided to use some of the same research that I used for the last project, such as Frida Kahlo and Isamaya Ffrench. I also looked into an artist called Jeanne Dunning because I think her work is interesting and I also really like the colour palette that she tends to use. I also looked at deconstruction, particularly Yohji Yamamoto, as I think deconstructing a suit could be quite an interesting but simple way to change it.

Looking at the 2005 Yamamoto show he focused on the lapels, using bows and ruffles instead of the traditional lapel so I thought this could be a focus for my designs. I started by cutting up suits, shirts and trousers and then collaging them together in new ways. I think these were really successful because I created lots of different shapes that I could have come up with just by drawing. I drew lots of designs next these collages which gave me a lot of possible ideas for a final design.