Colour development in samples

 

 

The orange mercerised cotton compliments the grey shades and the cream, and stands out a lot more successfully then the yellow I was previously using. I think I could afford to use it more in some samples rather than using it as a highlight in all of them.

Live Brief: Leutton Postle

The live brief from Leutton Postle was an opportunity for me to work in a completely different way to what I was currently doing, and what I naturally feel most comfortable doing. I rarely use a variety of bright colours in my work, and with Leutton Postle being as bold and unique as they are, it was my chance to explore colour.

I chose to focus my project on tribal dressings, and use elements of child like paintings through my sketchbook. The tribe I focused on were The Huli People of Papau New Guinea as they dress in bright colours, and use a wide variety of textures, materials and shapes.

http://lifeasahuman.com/files/2012/07/PNG-9-Huli-Wigmen-New-Guinea-June2009-c-V.-Ross.jpg

Hulimen

The drawings I developed feature very structural ones, and ones that have a child like quality. My aim is to get the the two different drawing styles in to my fabrics, with sections of blocks of colour and shapes, and areas that are more fluid, and natural.

  

 

Moodboard

Final Fabrics

I think my final samples were successful in representing the tribal dressing of The Huli People. If I were to make improvements on my fabrics I would reconsider how I used the beads, glitter transfer paper and feathers. I have used the embellishing components too evenly on too many samples, and they would have worked better if I had used them more as an impact on less of them, like how I used the cocoa fiber on the 4th fabric. 

The live brief has allowed me to go out of my comfort zone, and I have learnt how to balance a range of bright colours in one fabric. I also discovered how much work I can get done over a small space of time, as I only had 2 weeks to sample fabrics and create my final 6 samples.

Developing my colour palette

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Ffashionloud.wordpress.com%2F2013%2F09%2F03%2Fgarage-magazine%2F&tbnid=l9yU7n6vwwC_nM:&docid=u6bPOfO7ET2XGM&h=1024&w=767

Raf Stalelin Garage Magazine

Whilst researching non functional fashion I came across this photograph from Garage Magazine by Raf Stalelin. The burnt orange colour really pops amongst the greys and white, and there is a lovely balance of colour. The orange reminds me of the orange shades found in Houdinis straitjacket, and the suede fabric I am incorporating into my fabrics. I will experiment with using an orange cotton in my samples, and I hope it is as successful as the balance of colour in this photo.

Fabric Samples

I wanted to explore structural combined with delicate open knit techniques after researching delicate shapes in my drawings. This week I began working on a 10 gauge machine to improve the quality of samples to make them look high end.

A lot of my research features vertical lines so my focus was to transfer  more vertical lines into my fabric samples. Horizontal lines are very typical in knitwear, and I want my fabrics to stand out from other designs.

 Drop stitch with racking

                                                                     Filling Pockets

 http://www.wonderlandmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Picture-183.png                                 Drop Stitch
                                                Derek Lawlor

 Moving mock ribs

 In lay with single bed patterns

In lay with drop stitch racking

In laying yarns into mono-filament gave new properties to the fabric. It made sections more dense and structured like I had hoped, which gives a strong contrast to the smooth areas of single bed cotton that has more drape and fluidity.

The overall quality of my samples have visually and technically improved by working on a smaller gauge, and expanding the range of techniques I am using. However I think there needs to be another colour added that would really pop, and I don't think the yellow is doing that.

I briefly went on to the 4.5 gauge machine which was also new to me. I wanted to create ladders and cables on the chunkier machine to see the contrast between the two machines as I am wanting to make my final fabrics on varied gauge machines to create diversity.

 

Delicate structures

I have a lot of dense and heavy inspiration from my photographs and research to work from. However I lack more delicate drawings that show open structures which I need in order for me to get these qualities into my fabrics. My fabrics are currently looking repetitive and with more delicate drawings to work from I can create the contrast my fabrics desperately need.

I wanted to create my drawings on tracing paper as I like the translucency of it. I also like how medias react differently on it, for example the way it adsorbs watercolour paint and crinkles.

                                                                                                                              watercolours

                                                                                                      acrylic paint

                                                                                                                watercolours

 http://artpulsemagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/tomas-saraceno.gif

Tomas Saraceno

 

charcoal

watercolour & fine liner pen

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/201325045812071892/

Munamiu on Etsy

 

thread wrapping

http://www.aestheticamagazine.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/bora_aksu_ss14_002-550x825.jpg

http://cache2.asset-cache.net/gc/180464215-model-walks-the-runway-at-the-bora-aksu-show-gettyimages.jpg?v=1&c=IWSAsset&k=2&d=GkZZ8bf5zL1ZiijUmxa7QfUpsTZhPcD4rsZIozxtNAwBH2Yg1aUqwU6uP46AXyX4sSqePGNZBcTtf2mgYl1I7w%3D%3D

Bora Aksu

Leutton Postle

After receiving a live brief from the fashion company Leutton Postle, I researched into the design company to get some background knowledge on their style, recent catwalk shows, and some history on the company. Despite them having a very different style to my own, I discovered that the company worked in the area of fashion textiles I see my fabrics for my current project fitting. Their designs are very distinctive and high-end which are important qualities I want my fabrics to reflect.

http://fashionqanda.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/leutton-postle-spring-summer-2012-london-fashion-week-fashionqanda-UK-runway-review.jpg

Leutton Postle S/S 12

Making a jumper

During the Practice unit we were given a short project to create a fully fashioned knitted jumper. I thought this was a great opportunity as I am hoping to design and make a garment during Unit X. This meant I could gain more technical skills, specifically on shaping, and build my confidence so when it comes to creating another garment I will have the knowledge on how to do so.

Pattern Block Sample

 

Final Jumper

Improvements needed:
-Tighter tension needed throughout
-More care taken when linking

Positives:
- Fits person of a size 12
- Have the knowledge for calculating stitches from a block
- Time it took to construct