Collection still evolving

Shoes shoes shoes

Whittner

LAURA LAiNE

Laura Laine is an amazing fashion illustrator. Her drawings are so inspiring...http://www.lauralaine.net/

People Should Smile More - Newton Faulkner

I love this song by Newton Faulkner at the moment. It has become the song I first listen to on the train on the way home from my stressful days. It has become my de-stress and relax song......People should smile more :-)

Print development

Experimenting with taking photos and scanning in pleats and shibori techniques to create repeat prints for all over and placement digital prints.

I am really starting to like the development of my textiles. I am not stuck in Sapa anymore (as Cecelia would say ;-) I am getting out of the village and interpreting it in a contemporary, funky and Rhiannon way.

I am actually starting to see my collection now :-)

Double pleated arashi

Bleached arashi denim

Accordian pleats

Evolution

So this is how my collection has evolved over the last 6 weeks or so.........

Summer evening wear TO ethnic sports wear TO funky day wear using pleats and shibori dyeing techniques TO a summer dressy daywear collection with lots of digital prints of pleats and shibori patterns and now FINALLY to a transeasonal collection using bleached and printed denim, prints of pleats and shibori patterns.

Monday Meltdown to Wednesday all Worked out

So a great start to the week with my 1st major breakdown of the year. I have been stressing out a bit lately and getting frustrated with myself quite a bit. I am usually always relatively on time with all my design projects and can always see the end product when I start to design and as this is my final year collection, probably one of the most important times in my life as this collection will define who I am as a designer, you can imagine why I was getting a little stressed when I couldn't envisage my collection walking down the catwalk. I have been feeling like I have been getting mixed and sometimes conflicting feedback from my supervisors which has been leaving me feeling very confused, undecided and a bit stuck in the middle. So after another week of confusion I think it all just built up and exploded on Monday and Anna had to witness and listen to most of it....Thanks Anna :-)

Taking the advise of friends I went home for the day to take a break, have a bath and relax. I did go home for the day, however, I had another 2 breakdowns (1 to my boyfriend Simon and the other to Mum, who always seems to cop my meltdowns and stressful moments) ate some chocolate and designed like crazy. I finally just sat down, put everything out of my head and asked my self what I could see walking down the runway and what I wanted!

My meeting with my design supervisor went really well today. My toiles are finally working out, I have a pair of fitted jeans and my vision for my collection for my collection is finally coming together.

* Denim (bleached and dyed)

* Shibori dyeing techniques

* Prints of pleats, pleats and more pleats and patterns resulting from various dyeing techniques

* Laser cut out borders

* Sheer silk cotton over denim

* Fitted ankle length jeans

* Printed tights

* questioning of the outfits (is that a dress and jacket or just a dress?)

* Light, feminine, sexy day wear with an edge

* Dresses, jumpsuits, aprons

* Layering and mixing of outfits (dress, tights, jackets, top as a second skin)

* Accordion pleats

Take a deep breath and keep moving forward :-)

Finalists

Yay! Congratulations to myself and Anna Cahill for our entries being accepted as finalists in the Art U Wear competition supported by Bernina Australia. They are now going to be judged and displayed at the Textile Art Festival June 25-27 http://www.textileart.com.au/

Curiouser & Curiouser

Images from Anna's Blog http://dotdotdotwithenvy.blogspot.com/

As Light as Air

'Get carried away by a fanciful array of design details that are a joy to behold, and even more fun to wear'
Photographed by Solvo Sundsbo

I found this editorial last year in a Vogue Australia (can't remember what issue) and fell in love with the fashion, style and colours. It is such a fun photo shoot!

Music Idea for my Collection

The Temper Trap- 'Drum Song'

WARRIOR WOMEN

'How we exist in our day-to-day environment is often dictated by the clothes we wear.
Our urban armour steels our nerves and empowers us to be who we want to be, from warrior princess to haunting beauty'.

'Designers become anthropologists, delving into our primal past to empower and enthral fashion's modern urban dwellers'.

Photographed by Nicole Bently

Editorial from Vogue Australia June 2010

Colour Palette Investigation

Intensifying the colours inspired by the Hmong dress and textile art.

Colours that inspire, POP, evoke emotion with a hint of the Hmong inspiration.

Fun, Funky, Sexy day/streetwear women's collection.

Denim, Cotton, Rayon, Jersey, structured polyesters to pleat.

Bleached denims, structured pleats, heavily embellished and textured neck/collar features, prints of pleats, funky shibori dyeing, lazer cut work, funky perspex accessories.

Hmong textile art/costume/jewellery

Viktor & Rolf - Cutting Edge Couture

I am speechless with their Fall 2010 ready to wear collection.

It is AMAZING!

So INSPIRING!

A whole PERFORMANCE!

From this....

To this!

http://www.style.com/fashionshows/review/F2010RTW-VIKROLF

Just some ideas

The Mad Tea Party Frock

So my friend Anna http://dotdotdotwithenvy.blogspot.com/ and I came across this competition a few weeks ago 'Art U Wear' sponsored

The theme: 'Alice in Wonderland'

The theme was perfect for Anna as her final collection is inspired by the children's fairytale 'Through the Looking Glass'.

As for me...well I just love 'Alice in Wonderland' especially the new Tim Burton take on it. I have always tried to enter things I create into competitions. It is always good experience and exposure plus it is something fun to do and the prizes are always good ;-) It is also very rewarding to have your designs seen and recognised. So I immediately starting to think of the dress I made last year for womenswear and how I could add to it and interpret it as 'Alice in Wonderland' inspired. I really didn't have the time to make gloves, mini top hat fascinator and skivvy but did it anyway. It was fun to do and really happy with how it turned out. My friend Eleisha modelled it for me in the perfect setting of my friends beautiful garden.

Eleisha in 'Wonderland'


Now fingers crossed

I could really do with $3000 to help pay for my collection

My Tea Cosy!

'HeartTEA'

So after blogging about Loani Prior's tea cosies I remembered my tea cosy that I made for the 2008 Morpeth Tea Cosy challenge. Just for something fun to do I used some of the felt I made in my surface form class for uni to make it. I entered it in the soft fabric category and ended up coming third :-)