Week 1 Fashion design

As I first introduction to fashion design, I was taught to work straight on the mannequin using experimental abstract shapes, which gave me feel for the free, relaxed way in which some designers create avant-garde pieces.

Everyone in the group was asked to develop a shape inspired by one of their objects. I chose to develop a shape based around, the ornate, yet sharp and angular decorations of my Emily the Strange Book of Strange. We cut out 20 small versions of this shape and one big version out of paper. First we worked with other people shapes, creating a design inspired by a particular mood (e.g. anger, sadness).  It was an interesting exercise using other peoples shapes and you could often see their personality reflected in the shape and you then had to manipulate it into your own creation.

After this we had to create 3 designs using our own shape on the mannequins, then sketch designs inspired by these creations.

Later on in the week we were taught a much more commonly used commercial approach to designing.  I learnt that most clothes that people wear follow the same basic structure designed to fit around the human form but what makes each piece different is the detailing.

I chose to base my detailing around the shape and structure of my 'bumbag', but made it much more sleek and simple, reducing it to a semi-circle shaped pocket with a zip. Using this detail, I then had only a few minutes to roughly sketch several different items of clothing including tops, trousers, coats, skirts, pretty much everything. A first I really struggled with designing so quickly but the task defiantly helped me to not over think my designs and be more instinctive.

Using these designs, I then sketched some more polished versions. I found I was very surprised with how many different ways you can experiment with one simple shape to create a distinctive collection.
Unfortunately, I then was forced to reduce these designs to a 5 piece capsule collection, but it was good to have lots of options and variations.

The general aesthetic of my end collection was very modern, minimal and androgynous. Although I intended for it to be womenswear, many people commented that it could easily be menswear too.

In terms of colour, I went for a simple, bold mix of white, grey and orange to add a contrasting splash of colour.  This colour scheme was inspired by Lowery's paintings; I visited the Lowery: Paintings of Modern Life Exhibition at the Tate Britain. I really liked the way his paintings portrayed urban landscapes of 19th Century Britain in a very bleak way, using a grey colour scene but with bold splashes of orange which I think made them so engaging. I also noticed that the style of clothing in his paintings (worn by 'matchstick men' of course) was very simple, grey, tailored and androgynous, which represents working class Britain of the time, therefore decided to incorporate this silhouette into my collection.

This colour scheme was partly inspired by this mood board which I produced during the first week of the project. I really liked how the bright orange created a contrast to the bleak urban grey and wanted to translate this into clothing. Overall, I wanted my collection to have a slight 'Mod' feel, but in a contemporary way so I made another small moodboard in sketchbook for inspiration.