INDIE LABELS

I read in an article how Indie buyers are determined to maintain a point of difference from high street competitors by making bold buying decisions for Spring 2011.

SOPHIA KOKOSALAKI

Sophia Kokosalaki interview
'In autumn 2006 she was appointed Creative Director of the leading Madeleine Vionnet' 
'Her trademark style often features the classic Grecian draping combined with handcrafted elements'

This is spookily relevant to the ideas I have for my draping project.
Into the manual she goes.

LAYOUT IDEAS.

I came across this blog Neusblog whilst researching layout designs for my Draping design manual. I'm not sure if the font style would work with the rest of my research but I really like the arrangement. Hopefully I will be able to get some pictures of my designs on models as I think it would make the manual look even more professional.  

ps. I like the borders.

DRAPING

After receiving the brief for The draping project I've decided to initially take inspiration from Ancient Greek art and costume. 

This will give me a good starting point for my research but in order to develop individual ideas I've taken inspiration from the following books...

I am hoping I will be able to avoid taking my only inspiration from this initial research, taking it too literally which might result in me producing an ancient collection. Thus why I will also research some contemporary designers (100 new fashion designers). I have also developed a keen interest in the idea of using some of the techniques featured in 'The art of manipulating fabric', to add intricate detail that will juxtapose the soft draping fabric. This might require me spending 100% of my time in the studio as some of the explanatory diagrams are seemingly incomprehensible eg.

and...

but the outcome is definitely going to be worth it.

JACK ETTE..

MY FINAL JACKET...

Alongside the Jacket I have created a booklet with all the work I have produced on Lectra for pattern cutting, and all the steps I took whilst constructing the jacket so that I can refer back to it in future.

POCKETS!

HOW I RATE MYSELF

How I score myself on a scale of 1-4
(1 being I don't. 4 being I do)
I talk too much - 2
I turn up late - 1
I interrupt others - 2
I take up too much of the discussion space - 1
I let other people carry the team - 3
I always think I am in the right - 2
I act as if I were the team leader - 2

When working in groups of generally quite people I tend to take control, however when around people with very strong personalities  I act far more reserved.

I like everything to stick exactly to the agenda -1
I keep going off at tangents - 3
I get caught up in the details and lose the big picture - 3
I have lots of ideas but many are not relevant - 3
In tutorials I often find that I have lots of ideas but they are rarely relevant to one another. I need to work on focusing on one strong idea and seeing where it eventually takes me rather than starting with many and getting confused.
I get too emotional - 2
I don't keep to the deadlines - 1
(I don't not keep to the deadlines!?)

JACKET CONSTRUCTION

This week I've begun construction on my jacket and have ample photos to prove it. I'm really enjoying the construction so far, minus having to match the check. 

I am strongly considering including a jacket in my collection this year. Aside from the sense of achievement which is comparable  to no other, a well made jacket will showcase my technical skills and make the collection look really great.

JUNK SCULPTURE

We were given paper plates and cocktail sticks and were set the challenge of constructing a bridge, in small groups, to hold a toy car. This unleashed a competitive streak in everybody that I've never seen before but was an exercise to help each individual recognize how well they contribute when working in a team.

Although I am not a natural leader, I think I am confident enough to voice my suggestions and work happily under someone else's instruction. Another strength of mine is problem solving, and working well under pressure. 

I don't consider myself to be a shy person but can be quiet at times so my leadership skills could be improved on.

SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE

GRACE CODDINGTON
creative director of American Vogue magazine.

Grace Coddington is British born and lived in an area where fashion wasn't easily accessible.

Her career began after she won a modeling competition for Vogue and pursued a fashion career which meant leaving her home to live in New York. 

This shows great ambition and courage considering she was so isolated from the fashion scene at the time. Regardless she took a great risk in order to kick start a successful fashion career. 

I feel that leaving home to study at AUCB has been the first step for me in pursuing a career in Fashion. 

Although I have a long way to go, I already feel more confident in traveling further away.

I began to admire Grace's strong personality after watching The September Issue, a fly-on-the-wall documentary about the making of the September 2007 issue of Vogue.

She is heavily involved in Styling and production and often portrays a tense relationship with Anna Wintour. 

This has inspired me to become more outspoken when I have a strong opinion as in the past I have been known to be too shy to speak up. 

Also to be more confident in my own work and to pursue my ideas even when criticized. 

STELLA McCARTNEY
British Fashion designer

I wouldn't say that Stella McCartney is my favourite designer but one of the main things I admire about her is that she attended fashion school to attain a degree before starting her own brand even though she could have used her fathers fame to put her name on a brand and chosen the easy way to success.


This represents to me that all the hard work I'm struggling through at the moment is worth it and it's better to work hard for something than to have it handed to you on a plate.


I also admire her no animal policy as although I haven't necessarily gone down an ethical route in my own collection I do have strong views against animal cruelty.

TEAM PROCCESS

•A super team is defined by; effective and enjoyable communication.

•Commitment to each others personal growth and success, and the achievement of shared goals.

After starting work on our MoDIP presentations it is clear that Lauren is a natural team leader and is good at keeping up the team moral. 
Maxine is extremely well organized which is good for when we have to arrange times for meeting and for the first session everyone turned up on time.


Everybody had lots of ideas and had researched the areas that we had assigned ourselves to look at. Although with so many ideas it was hard to make any development as we all seemed to be going off on tangents.
We made a plan for everyone to produce a board with all their research on by the time of our next meeting which would allow us to focus on the strongest ideas.

JACKET LAY PLAN

This week I've begun to cut out my fabric using the pattern I've made for a fitted ladies jacket. I immediately regretted my choice of a check fabric as it made the whole task 10 times harder but it was all good practice. Cutting out has prepped me well for the stress I will be put through when trying to match up the check during construction but I look forward to the challenge.

MoDIP

To contextualize the above image..we have to do a group project on these. 

When we were first given them I had nought a clue as to what they were. 

They're Stair clips.

???????????????

We have to use the object to identify a market and create a unique lifestyle brand which reinforces the object and any additional pieces...

We must promote, advertise and sell the object and additional pieces within the brand.

I doubt any old go getter would seek out Art Deco period stair clips so we've decided to incorporate other such functional yet unrecognizable household items that would appeal to the same customer.

we have a good group of designers and promoters and we've assigned ourselves roles.

Mine is to research other objects that could fit into the lifestyle brand. 

Watch this space...

MORE WORK PLACEMENT

Here are some pictures of the embellishment design I did.

Debenhams Work Placement

During the summer I completed a 2 week work placement at the Debenhams design offices in Oxford street. during my time there I assisted the designers with research for upcoming collections, technical drawings, branding research, embellishment design and other general assistance. 
I found the experience extremely valuable as it allowed me to put the skills I have learnt thus far to practice and even develop them to a more professional scale. It has also helped me confirm that I have made the right choice to continue with design in my second year and I look forward to having the opportunity to take part in further placements, possibly some that are more practical based or a smaller company that sees more of the whole design and making process.

Fashion Blogs

I have decided to create a completely new blog for My second year at AUCB and have been looking around for some inspiration...


JAK & JIL I find this is good for behind the scenes at fashion week, there are a lot of images and not so many articles but it's very good for spotting upcoming trends with particular focus to detail.


LOOKBOOK is a great blog for keeping an eye on street style. There are hundreds of posts per day so it's good for seeing how quickly trends change and get picked up on. 


In my Blog list below I have listed many more blogs that I like to keep up to date with. I like to take ideas from them for my own blog but I've also tried to represent my own style and give a personal touch to the layout and content of this new blog.