Prototype development

This week I tried to focus on coming up with a pattern design solution for an idea I had that involves multiple arms. I came up with the idea from this image of jewellery made from dismembered barbie doll body parts. I admire its notion of repetition and harmony.

I found it hard to visualise how multiple arms would work on a pattern. At first I decided I would make long tubes that sit around the neck and insert holes for the arms to go through, but it didn't create the effect I was desiring.

After speaking with Ricarda, we came up with a couple of solutions that may achieve the effect I was after. I toiled one of the options, and although it didn't appear as quite what I had in mind, I was still very pleased with the result.

Research cont.

In my prototype series, I intend to explore the notion of having the option to wear the garment in more than one way. To achieve this, I have looked at the possibilities of repetition of design elements, joinings of various garments into one and flipping and pasting garments.


The major components for my prototypes will be referencing the generic garments and looking at ways I can enhance them by giving them another purpose / function. Within this, I have been experiementing different ways of achieving significant drape.






The image on the left is of Hussein Chalayan's coffee table dress. Chalayan is a fashion designer that is considered intellectual and avant garde. His collections continuously challenge traditional notions of fashion yet still remain recognisable and elegant.
I was particularily inspired by the coffee table dress and Chalayan's ability to transform an everyday item into fashion and for them to have that multifunctionality.

Research and methods- Week 2

To begin my toile explorationg, I decided to use already made generic garments from home and op-shops to experiment with. My aim was to gather multiple generic garments and join them together randomly to create one individual garment, almost like putting together a jigsaw puzzle. This idea relates back to my initial theme of mutated forms, unconventional pairings, disassembled structure and rearrangement of form.

This is my first toile, where I have sewn all the pieces together randomly so that you have the option to wear it in a number of different ways. These are just a few of the ways it can be worn.

I think that this experimentation had some good results yet i still don't know how I can communicate them into a finished prototype, or how I can take it further.

Exploration- Week 1

Hans Bellmer

Hans Bellmer was a German artist, best known for his life-sized female dolls he produced in the mid 1930's. I find his work intreguing yet rather disturbing with the mutated forms and unconventional poses he created by re-arraging body parts. His ability to dissasemble body parts and morph them into something else, a somewhat figure, is something that I would like to further explore.

With Hans Bellmer in mind, it really motivated me to start exploring the idea of mutated garment structure and multiple body parts for multiple functions. It also inspired me to create collages to better demonstrate and express the mood / feel of my theme. I used a combination of different medias including magazine cut-out, tissue paper, old doll books from an op-shop and grey led pencil. To stick it down I used a clear estapol, which I find gives it a very flat smooth finish. I chose to do a collage I found it related back to my theme of combining different elements of the generic garment and mutating etc.

Week 5

One-piece Swimsuit

The one-piece swimsuit is usually a skin-tight garment worn for any activity involving water or sun activity. The one-piece swimsuit, traditionally covering the female’s torso, can be considered as more modest than the two-piece bikini. The most common type of swimsuit is the sleeveless leotard shape, which we focused on making.

Swimsuit- Self directed Design Exercise

For this week's homework, we were asked to develop our own design approach for experimentation with the swimsuit. I decided to work with the words 'Compose/ Dispose' as a starting point. As the one-piece swimsuit is generally designed to cover the torso, I wanted to explore how I could alter its traditional function, without taking too much away from what it really is.
I wanted to consider how I can dispose of conventional design elements or features, yet compose by creating form by combining features or elements of the traditional swimsuit.

Most bathers have certain features that are practical and impractical, taking this into account, I wanted to look at what I could take away from the bathers, without making them unwearable as bathers, as much as I could add to them within the design construction.

Week 4

The Nana

The nana can be defined as a brief or underwear that is rather high cut and thick at the sides for maximum comfort and coverage. The nana generally has an elasticised waistband and leg openings, and is lined at the crotch area with an absorbent material such as cotton.

Whilst constructing the nana, I had a bit of trouble attaching the elastic. It just found it time consuming and difficult, when you could just use the elastic machine and get a similar, neater finish. I found the workshop with Liam a bit of a let down. I had imagined that he would be teaching us step by step numerous decorative techniques, yet instead we were asked to make whatever we know, which wasn't much help, as most people only knew a few basic techniques, therefore didn't really gain much from it.

Whilst looking at the generic nana, I questioned how it could ever be more appealing to the eye. It appears to be something that is purely based on functional purposes. Yet after researching different designers such as Viktor & Rolf, Martin Margeila, La Perla, Louise Golden etc. it made me realise that the nana is just a blank canvas ready to be decorated or altered in some way.

Image- La Perla

The nana decorate or integrate exercise a bit of a fail. I liked the idea and sketches in my book, yet when I went to make them, they turned out dodgy. It pretty much came down to timing. I ran out of time which resulted in a rushed prototype where corners didn’t match up, elastic was loose on the body, and the frills were attached messily. I’ve realised that the nana brief needs a lot of patience and attention to detail whilst constructing to ensure that all elements are carried out perfectly.

Nana- decorate or intergrate exercise

PROJECT RESPONSE

GENERIC GARMENT INVESTIGATION
Throughout this new project, I have decided to continue to explore aspects of the singlet cut and paste exercise. I found that this exercise triggered the most interest for me, permitting me to explore further possibilities. I like the notion of repetition and cutting and pasting a generic garment to alter its appearance and function. I chose to use this technique also with the leggings exercise, taking a pair of leggings then flipping another pair and joining them at the waistband. I kept one of the leggings opened at the crotch so you could get in. During Adel’s workshop, one of the tasks were to ask the general public to put on the garment they way they think correct. It was interesting to watch how the people wear and interpret your garment. It made me want to explore the idea of allowing the wearer to have the option to wear the garment in different ways or how they feel is best suited.

Top left: Leggings exercise

Top right: Wearer 1

Bottom left: Wearer 2

DEFINING STRETCH
‘To straighten or extend one’s body or apart of one’s body to its full length.’ Subsequently I was drawn to this definition of the term ‘stretch’. I feel that I can relate it back to my conception of the theme. I have chosen to focus on the word ‘extend’ in particular and interpret it as in taking an object and extending its purposes or functions. For example, I thought about taking an arm on a stretch top, and repeating it several times along the side seam, allowing the wearer to have the option of which arm hole they want to use, therefore ‘extending’ their options.
Stretch materials allow for good drape and hangs well on the body. I find with stretch fabric, your design looks a certain way as a pattern draft, yet once you construct the garment in the fabric it looks completely different. It tends to drape excessively therefore you lose a sense of structure to the garment and it becomes something else, more relaxed and fluid. I first saw this result with the geometric t-shirt exercise. We were asked to use geometric shapes to propose a new cut or pattern for the generic t-shirt. After drafting the pattern, and constructing the toile, I realised the influence and manipulation the fabric had on it once it was on the stand. It appeared softer and more fluid, in contrast to its geometric and rigid pattern.

AIM
My aim is to produce a series of prototypes that are an adequate representation of my ideas and concepts. Within this, I hope to create garments that have the option to be worn in different ways to stimulate different moods / styles. Also I would like to incorporate the concept of collage into my designs, whether it be through displaying the contrasts between stretch i.e. drape vs. tension or by simply incorporating contrast fabrics, containing different visual appearances or textures. I hope to produce between two or three garments, yet within the time remaining, I will most likely only manage to complete two garments.

RESEARCH AND METHODS
To begin my toil exploration, I wanted to use already made garments from home and from op-shops to experiment with. My idea was to gather generic garments and join them together to make one single garment, almost like putting together a jigsaw puzzle (n. A puzzle consisting of a mass of irregularly shaped pieces of cardboard, plastic, or wood that form a picture when fitted together.) This idea relates back to my initial theme of mutated forms, unconventional pairings, disassembled structure and rearrangement of form. I was heavily influenced by German artist Hans Bellmer. Bellmer was best known for his life-sized female dolls he produced in the 1930’s. His work is intriguing yet rather disturbing with the mutated forms and unconventional poses he created by rearranging parts of the dolls.

Top left & right: Toiles using already constructed generic garments

Bottom left: Work of Hans Bellmer

MATERIALS
I am planning to use cottons or polyester blends with lycra/ spandex as they have great stretch and drape qualities. Lycra based fabrics are generally used due to their exceptional elasticity. It is most commonly used for extremely tight clothing and swimwear. Lycra is like a second skin, as it appears as if the wearer is naked or coated in a shiny or matte-like paint. Although, I have chosen to design loose fitting garments to contradict the function of Lycra and accentuate its good drape qualities.
The fabrics that I have been toiling with have proven to be quite easy to work with. The course on the fabric should usually go downwards on the grain of the pattern so that the side edges don’t curl. However, in my cut and past singlet exercise, I experimented different finishing alternatives by placing the fabric on the cross of the grain, allowing the arm straps and neck hole edges to curl, so I could leave them as a raw edge. I then finished the edge with an un-folded coverstitch in a contrasting colour that turned out to be very effective.

Swimwear is generally made from Lycra based fabrics. It’s popular amongst recreational swimmers who don’t spend too much time in the swimming pool, as chlorine tends to fade the dye pigment. Lycra can also be fetishist and used in the latex bodysuits or bondage. These latex Lycra bodysuits are becoming increasingly popular in the fetish or bondage scenes. Personally I think that some of the bondage braces are quite interesting and I could see myself being inspired by the general elements of the straps and buckles and possibly use aspects of them on a garment.

PROCESS
Generally I have been exploring my ideas through sketches, toiling and photos. Taking photos of my toile’s gives me a chance to see it in a different, taken back perspective. It’s almost like holding up a drawing or artwork in front of a mirror to see it further away or flipped.

FASHION CONTEXTS (PRECEDENTS)
It’s hard to determine how my work is positioned in relation to other practitioners in fashion and broader design areas. My intention is to create pieces that are not so conventional, and pieces that you wouldn’t see in the commercial clothing market.
Although visually my work is nothing like his, I really admire Hussein Chalayan’s experimental and conceptual work. He uses unconventional materials and technique such as blown up skirts, armchair covers which transform into dresses, chairs into suitcases and a coffee table into a wooden skirt. I admire his ability to transform everyday items into fashion and for them to have a multifunction ability about them, which is what drew me to him.

OUTCOMES- PROTOYPE SERIES
In my prototype series, I intend to explore the notion of having the option to wear the garment in more than one way. To achieve this, I have looked at the possibilities of repetition of design elements, joining of various garments into one and flipping and pasting garments.
The major components for my prototypes will be referencing the generic garments and looking at ways I can enhance them and give them another purpose/ function. Within this, I will be experimenting different ways I can achieve significant drape, as I feel that stretch fabric has excellent drape qualities and I want to utilise this in my prototypes.

OUTCOMES- VISUAL COMMUNICATION
I think I am best at communicating my work through collage and drawing. I am planning on using photos of the prototypes and other sources of inspiration and combing them into a single image. I think this method best reflects the concept of my theme; combining elements of design through manipulation and rearrangement of generic garments.
To communicate my work, I am planning on doing a book spread that is simple, clean and minimal. I will have white pages with a single image on each page.

CONCLUSION
Overall, the major elements of my project are to extend the wearer’s option on how to wear the garment and do this by teaming functionality of design elements and repetition of design features. Visualising my work as a collage helps me express design possibilities where I can combine contrasting fabric and infuse certain aspects of the generic garments into my prototypes. Throughout this project I have heavily referred back to the cut and paste singlet exercise, where I have taken the notion of repetition by flipping patterns to create a new outcome, visually and functionally. I also have been constantly referring back to artist Hans Bellmer to gain inspiration for new ideas and to generate designs.