Zandra Rhodes.

I was kindly invited by a friend to the revealing of Zandra Rhodes new Fashion and Jewellery collections. It was in the Mandeville Hotel where we also had a beautiful afternoon tea designed by Zandra. She was a real inspiration with her prints especially her colour palette, it was very brave using almost fluorescent bright pinks, blues and oranges. I have realised my prints are simple but with the layered fabrics and colour clashing they will look exciting. All being well I am going intern with her next year, I feel the way she works is very much print before fashion, she does the prints then they lend themselves to the fashion. It was a really lovely evening, with some very interesting people there something I could get used to! 

Fabrics

So here are some of my fabrics I have got so far, a mix of linens, silks and silk chiffon. For my printing week I will get a lot more in the way of sheer fabrics, as well as on my plain fabrics I am planning to screen print on top of my digital prints which should be coming back in the next couple of days. Looking forward to getting in the print studio this year, I think it is when it all becomes clear, and hopefully my samples will help aid my fashion designs. 

Here are a couple of Designs.

                                      

Fashion Designs.

I am still ploughing on with the fashion designs, probably totting up to around 700 now! Doing some sketchbook pages to make me design a bit free-er instead of just on a body. My designs are going to be fairly simple so I am not sure why I am struggling with it so much. On photoshop I'm trying to show the many layered prints and fabric on my designs by using the opacity tool. This is kind of working but it is very time consuming. Just thinking if I will work better printing my prints on tracing paper and playing a round with them that way.

Leather

Been sourcing leather today, in rich pinky red and a softer bluey green. It is going to be used sparingly just as straps or the triangular shapes in my trousers and leggings.

Accessories

I have also been exploring necklaces as they are going to be an important part of the collection. Planning to water jet cut some bronzy-gold coloured metal in the shapes. I am also considering these at huge zip pulls and buttons and buckles.

Update!

So for the past couple of weeks I have been exploring my prints and my prints within my designs. I seemed to have produced a huge volume of work but am still not happy with my designs. Love my prints but am struggling to design garments that I would like to make. I want my designs to have layers within them, they are simple silhouettes and the prints are going to be what makes them special. I find this so hard to draw in designs that really show off what I am trying to achieve. With the photoshop designs I have done I am at least exploring print placement and mixing my prints with plain fabrics and my colour palette. Here are a few images to show you what I have been up to.

Line and Ink

So naturally the next stage was to mix the two, colour and line, here are a couple of the results.

Adding Ink.

I began exploring my colour palette and did some paintings using indian inks and bleach, I love the acid effect and odd range of colours these gave me.

Progress

So have only just introduced you to my project by introducing my muse, a good start but I am actually a lot further along in the process of designing my final collection. The basis of my imagery is beaches, I drew them over and over in fine line drawings. Here are a couple of them.

Lady Georgiana in one of her huge hats, which I am very much considering as inspiration for my accessories, (painted by Thomas Gainsborough).

The Duchess of Devonshire

Hello Buddies,

Welcome to my blog..... I have set this up so people can see the progress of my final year at University.
I go to Middlesex University and study Fashion Textiles, specialising in Print. This blog is going to follow me through all the design process, decision making, ups and downs of creating my final collection.
I have titled it aptly after my muse, Lady Georgiana Cavendish 5th Duchess of Devonshire. She was a rather rebellious character, she got involved with politics, she gambled, drank, had affairs, held huge parties and was a style icon. Although there was a dark side to her life she was immensely popular and in the 1780's perhaps one of the first real celebrities. So you can see why she is my muse. My inspiration is coming from Georgiana's homes, grand manor houses and also her holidays, offering lighter more free lines and colours. So there is an introduction i will scan in some sketchbook pages and print designs etc so you can get a feel for my project.