At first I thought that this project was going to be really difficult seeing as though we were gonna be using everyday objects as our materials to make our fashion accessory. We were told that this project will introduce us to 3D problem solving and I was keen to get started and see what I would have to adapt to for the duration of the four week project. This was the aspect of the brief I was most looking forward to. I did think that using only everyday objects would be a big restriction for me for this project and that this would be the aspect of the project that I would struggle with.
I looked at Iris Van Herpen during the fashion project and I really enjoyed looking at her work for inspiration when it came to creating my fashion accessory. She has created a lot of chest, neck and general upper body pieces in her career and although they are all different, they are all easily identifiable as being her work and I like this about her work. A lot of the times when artists have clear continuity throughout their work after some time they can become quite repetitive and you can almost guess what they are going to bring out next. I learnt that sometimes the best designs can be those that have come from experimentations or were even experiments themselves to begin with. Therefore when it came to designing my accessory I chose to try to be experimental in the way that I worked. I think this worked well for me as I didn't think much about what I was doing during the design process and I just went with the way the paper folded or the way the pin attached to the mannequin/page. The experimental element of this project also reflects the trends at the moment I think. I also have seen that the a lot of the trends at the moment tend to be minimal and monochrome, both things that I feel come through in my accessory.
I began this project by finding inspiration. I did this by looking at other designers such as Eric Halley and Anne Valerie Hash. I focused on the accessories that these designers had created rather than garments as the brief told me that I myself would create a fashion accessory. After looking at some designers I went on to make a mood board. I focused on the colour pallet that I wished to use which was a monochrome pallet with some blues. I chose this as it mirrored the monochrome fashion trends that are popular today. I chose to look at architecture for my mood board as it is something that I am interested in and I wanted the structural side of it to come through in my accessory when it came to making and designing it. I started the designing process by creating several samples out of house hold items including string, bottle lids and pen lids. After putting together the samples I photocopied them lots of times to represent how the sample could be repeated to create an accessory. I took the photocopies, cut them out and manipulated them before pinning them to a mannequin in different ways. This was very much an experimental task and I used the time to think and try out different areas of the body to figure out where it was that I wanted my accessory to go. This was a significant step in the project as it was here that I started to think that I wanted my accessory to be a chest or shoulder piece. Throughout the project I also picked up valuable skills such as how to use a heat press machine, and also reminded myself on how to use a sewing machine, something that I was already comfortable in using. I then decided to make five more mood boards, one for casting, another one for hair and makeup, one for styling, one for location and one for lighting/mood. I found making these extremely helpful as it was a simple visual way to plan out the photoshoot of my accessory. I originally wanted a female model but due to timings I could only find a male one, however now looking at the photos I think that it is actually better when a man is photoed in the accessory and the image is far more powerful. Another problem I encountered while working on this project was the fact that I wanted my accessory to be strong, heavily structured but simple. At first I was unsure about how I was going to be able to do this considering I needed to have a fastening in order to keep it on the body while being worn. Eventually I came up with using an old pair of jeans as the base and using the button and zipper fastening that was already a part of the initial garment as the fastening for my accessory. This problem solving also worked as a positive for my accessory as I was reusing a piece or clothing rather than going out and buying new fabric. I was told throughout the project to experiment with other areas rather than the chest, neck and shoulders, and I did make sure I amended this and went back into my designs to experiment more with other parts of the body. I found that I was still keen to work in the area I had previously chosen but I was glad that I went back and made sure that I had made the right decision.
I used many designers' websites to reference and search for inspiration for my work. I also looked at fashion magazines as research for the photography portion of the project in particular. I have remained organised throughout this project which I think has become very important. I was very tight for time during the four week period and despite falling ill for one of the weeks, I still managed to keep track on all of my work and managed to produce an accessory that I am proud of. In this project I have learnt how to use a heat press machine, something that is a good skill to have for a designer. I really enjoyed learning to use the heat press and I found it really interesting to see what i could create with it. I particularly enjoyed creating different shapes by melting part of empty water bottle.
I think that time management was the main area that needed improvement in this project as I had to move on from research and begin designing quite quickly and therefore my research and influences are lacking. I would like to go back and make the links from my research and my final outcome clearer to ensure that it is clear how my research came into my final accessory.
I began this project by finding inspiration. I did this by looking at other designers such as Eric Halley and Anne Valerie Hash. I focused on the accessories that these designers had created rather than garments as the brief told me that I myself would create a fashion accessory. After looking at some designers I went on to make a mood board. I focused on the colour pallet that I wished to use which was a monochrome pallet with some blues. I chose this as it mirrored the monochrome fashion trends that are popular today. I chose to look at architecture for my mood board as it is something that I am interested in and I wanted the structural side of it to come through in my accessory when it came to making and designing it. I started the designing process by creating several samples out of house hold items including string, bottle lids and pen lids. After putting together the samples I photocopied them lots of times to represent how the sample could be repeated to create an accessory. I took the photocopies, cut them out and manipulated them before pinning them to a mannequin in different ways. This was very much an experimental task and I used the time to think and try out different areas of the body to figure out where it was that I wanted my accessory to go. This was a significant step in the project as it was here that I started to think that I wanted my accessory to be a chest or shoulder piece. Throughout the project I also picked up valuable skills such as how to use a heat press machine, and also reminded myself on how to use a sewing machine, something that I was already comfortable in using. I then decided to make five more mood boards, one for casting, another one for hair and makeup, one for styling, one for location and one for lighting/mood. I found making these extremely helpful as it was a simple visual way to plan out the photoshoot of my accessory. I originally wanted a female model but due to timings I could only find a male one, however now looking at the photos I think that it is actually better when a man is photoed in the accessory and the image is far more powerful. Another problem I encountered while working on this project was the fact that I wanted my accessory to be strong, heavily structured but simple. At first I was unsure about how I was going to be able to do this considering I needed to have a fastening in order to keep it on the body while being worn. Eventually I came up with using an old pair of jeans as the base and using the button and zipper fastening that was already a part of the initial garment as the fastening for my accessory. This problem solving also worked as a positive for my accessory as I was reusing a piece or clothing rather than going out and buying new fabric. I was told throughout the project to experiment with other areas rather than the chest, neck and shoulders, and I did make sure I amended this and went back into my designs to experiment more with other parts of the body. I found that I was still keen to work in the area I had previously chosen but I was glad that I went back and made sure that I had made the right decision.
I used many designers' websites to reference and search for inspiration for my work. I also looked at fashion magazines as research for the photography portion of the project in particular. I have remained organised throughout this project which I think has become very important. I was very tight for time during the four week period and despite falling ill for one of the weeks, I still managed to keep track on all of my work and managed to produce an accessory that I am proud of. In this project I have learnt how to use a heat press machine, something that is a good skill to have for a designer. I really enjoyed learning to use the heat press and I found it really interesting to see what i could create with it. I particularly enjoyed creating different shapes by melting part of empty water bottle.
I think that time management was the main area that needed improvement in this project as I had to move on from research and begin designing quite quickly and therefore my research and influences are lacking. I would like to go back and make the links from my research and my final outcome clearer to ensure that it is clear how my research came into my final accessory.
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