Fashion Designs

This semester I've had many chances to take my pencils to paper and create some of my own designs. It's difficult to come up with one decent outfit, never mind several at a time, as a full-time designers do! I think I'll stick with pattern manipulation, but it is fun to play around with colour and fabric in my various attempts to create something. It helps that each assignment has definite yet broad restrictions, which provide an easy starting point. Each one implements some basic principle or element of design.

Isn't it funny? Whenever something feels extremely open-ended (e.g., creating a collection), it's somehow always easier to add some rules to focus your thoughts.



This first design focuses on the use of proper proportion:

The bustier top provides an overall one-third/two-thirds ratio, lengthening the figure and creating a long, slim silhouette.

We are encouraged in class to come up with clever titles. I practically kill myself trying to think of good ones.

This menswear ensemble plays on informal balance, which we generally refer to as asymmetry.

The diagonal line in the moto jacket opening and the job in the jacket hem provide informal balance through asymmetry. The smaller, left side of the chest is darker than the larger right side, giving both equal visual weight through colour blocking and maintaining the overall balance of the piece.

We don't normally focus on men's clothing in our classes, but I've been wanting to do some for a while. There's a different kind of difficult in men's wear: making something interesting and unique, while maintaining a masculine fashion sense.

In this suit pairing, we were required to pair two or more patterned or textured fabrics together.

A fuzzy, fibre-dyed, grey wool suiting is ideal as the primary fabric, giving both suit pieces structure without being too clingy. The bell sleeves are a geometric taupe and black check pattern, visually widening the shoulders, thus creating the effect of a slimmer waist in contrast.

Pro tip: when mixing patterns and textures, breaking them up using solid colour spaces is an easy way to provide "resting" areas for the eyes.

This men's running outfit uses lines to visually broaden the wearer's chest and shoulders.

The horizontal seam and top-stitching in the upper portion of the shirt adds width in the chest. This is further exaggerated by the horizontal line created by the dropped shoulder seams on the sleeves.

I have to give Spousal Unit full credit for this amazing title, however, but he refuses to even attempt to give me others, feeling that this is his peak.

This last picture is a design board I did at the beginning of the semester, for my flat pattern class.

This mini-collection was designed with comfortable, chic office wear in mind: modest but eye-catching, bright but not garish, and made using easy-care cotton. I'm currently working on making the pattern of the outfit in the centre. I've got a high-waisted skirt, but it needs some tweaking!

It feels like the semester is almost over, with all of our final projects (including that high-waisted skirt ensemble) starting. I'm pretty sure I'm about to turn into a giant bear. Wish me luck, and the fewest number of late night possible!