Website Research ( fashion designers )

In this blog, I have been researching on some fashion designer's website, I want to get some inspiration and find out the style that I am looking for. At the same time, learn form the webpage which is worth to add on, and think about what do I need to pay attention with as a customer and audience side.

The first website : https://www.stellamccartney.com/gb

Stella McCartney is a well known fashion designer as known as her eponymous label. And she is renowned for her sharp, simple tailoring with a feminine edge and considerate approach to wearable design. Stella avoids any leather or fur all of her design because of she is also a staunch supporter of animal rights and a strict vegetarian. 

There are already shows the theme of her current season on the first screen, two large posters : a picture which relates to the theme, one of her representative designs and a sentence in the middle ‘ K for Kindness’,  it helps customers easier to get the concept with the following webpage which is maybe about the letter represent something meaning. 

When I pressed the button with 'Shop now', the designer didn’t show her works at the next page first, she put her concept box at the top, and at the same time I think this design is very intimate, in order to consider the customer's feelings, the webpage can let customers to choose want to know more or not, according to their preferences to press the button to have a look.  And then due to my curiosity, I just clicked into the picture, and found that her theme in this session was "McCartney A to Z Manifesto : Spring 2021 Collection", each of the 26 letters is a conversation about their value, and she described the inspiration of the work in detail, from where or inspired by which art works, what meanings and stories they represent, a few sentences can summarize her words, which are easy and clear to understand

The second website : https://www.marcjacobs.com/

Marc Jacobs is also a well known fashion designer as known as his eponymous label. He wanted to be a fashion designer since he was 15. He had design out a lot  the collection featured unorthodox combinations and break out the traditionally clean-cut image which often make a deep impression with his design.

The website is very clear and well layout. The best thing about the website is that it is user friendly. You don't even need to click in the photo, it would already appear the model with the design when you just slightly touch the photo on the webpage. Every post started with a larger font, make sure customers are looking to the right things on the web. There are also design a setting with ' filter ' for customer to select what they want, it would be easier to find the target. 

I had entered the detail page of one of the designs. Due to the fact that I zoomed out the page to have a watch on this website, and I can not find out any instructions for me to click to move on the next photo. I was a bit confused and then I just tried a few ways and after pressing several times, I finally knew how to move on to the next page. In addition, I also think that there are not enough design pictures and there is no tool to help zoom in to see the details of those images, which makes me feel a little inconvenient if I am a customer and I want to buy it. However, it introduces the description of the design at the bottom of the page, the features and the sizing, which allows buyers to consider the details clearly, especially the customers whose skin is sensitive to clothing materials.

Research on textile and fabric

 I had researched some introduction of textile, and I just found that choosing a suitable fabric is really important for designing an outfit. Dressing according to the trends in color combination and the appropriate fabric is very important. They also depend on different targets to design and provide a right fabric selection. For instance, in order to consider the skin of an infant is very sensitive, so when making an outfit for a baby, the fabric materials must be soft and comfortable, the best option of using fabric is always with cotton, it can be warm and protective for an infant. According to my final artwork " 20's PUNK ", I had research out some fabric which is a common feature with punk style and some fabric that I am interested to put it into my work

What is textile

Textile is a type of material composed of natural or synthetic fibers. Types of textiles include animal-based material : wool or silk, plant-based material : linen and cotton, and synthetic material : polyester and rayon. They are being a main character of build up an outfit. And at the same time these product features are also decide what type of clothes to wear in different situation, depends on which fabric textile, the soft, permeability, deodorant or even the resistance to abrasion.

1. Leather

Leather is made by animal hides or skins and different types of animals and treatment techniques can bring out different leathers result. Cowhide is being the most popular animal skin used for leather, there are about 65 percent of all leather produced, exclude for that, any animal can also be made into leather, from crocodiles to pigs or stingrays. They are durable, wrinkle-resistant fabric, and can take on many different looks and feels based on the type of animal, grade, and treatment.

Vintage Punk Leather Studded Moto Jacket
https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/642900857/vintage-punk-leather-studded-moto-jacket

2.Spandex

Spandex is a fully synthetic fiber characterized by its extreme elasticity. This fabric can stretch to 5-8 times its normal size, and it is commonly used in form-fitting consumer apparel, like different types of underwear for men or women, and it can be seen usually present in the waistband. In addition, due to the close and fit with the skin, its really popular in sport wear, for instance : swimwear, bicycling apparel, and types of clothing that are used in competitive team sports.

SLINKYSTYLEZ

https://www.slinkystylez.com/SLINKYSTYLEZ-TurnDown-Leggings-HL2A-E16-CrystalLac-Z360-SPANDEX-CUSTOM-L22D

3.Cotton

Cotton is a staple fiber and it is made from the natural fibers of cotton plants. Cotton is primarily composed of cellulose and is a soft and fluffy material. It is spun into yarn that is then woven to create a soft, durable fabric used for everyday outfits and home items, such as t-shirts and bedding sheets.

Shutterstock:

Coloured clothes shirts hanging Bilder

https://www.shutterstock.com/de/search/coloured+clothes+shirts+hanging

 

4.Gingham 

Gingham is also a cotton fabric, or sometimes a cotton blend fabric, made with dyed yarn woven using a plain weave to form a checked pattern. Gingham are usually used into two-color pattern, combinations with red and white gingham or blue and white gingham. Due to its low cost and easy of production, this is quite a popular fabric for this society. Mostly would be used for button-down shirts, dresses, and tablecloths.

NASTY GAL:Gingham High-Waisted Pants with Tailored Silhouette

https://www.nastygal.com/gingham-up-high-waisted-pants/AGG86068.html

5.Twill

Twill is a versatile fabric weave, the characteristic of the twill weave is a diagonal lines pattern and it is often used as a darker colored. Twill has high thread count, which means that the fabric is opaque, thick, and durable, this has what make it become popular. Mostly it is used for denim, chinos, jeans, furniture covering and bags.

boohoo:Cotton Twill Coach Jacket
https://www.boohoo.com/cotton-twill-coach-jacket/MZZ66618.html

6. Denim

Denim is woven with a traditional twill weave to create a hard-wearing yet soft fabric, Blue fabric is always the main color in Denim, but it is also available in wide array of colors and prints. Same with leather, different treatment techniques can bring out different denim result : Printed Denim, Embroidered Denim, Washed Denim, Heavy Weight Denim and Light Weight Denim options.

The 15 Best Denim Jackets for Men That Won’t Go Out of Style
https://www.menshealth.com/style/g19541496/best-denim-jackets-for-men/

Reference :
1.Textiles – an introduction
https://www.textileschool.com/119/textile-an-introduction/
2.Importance of Fabrics in Fashion Designing
https://www.hunarcourses.com/blog/importance-of-fabrics-in-fashion-designing/
3.A Beginner’s Guide to the Different Kinds of Fabrics and How to Clean Them
http://www.laundryfirst.sg/a-beginners-guide-to-the-different-kinds-of-fabrics-and-how-to-clean-them/
4. 28 Types of Fabrics and Their Uses
https://www.masterclass.com/articles/28-types-of-fabrics-and-their-uses

5. What is Twill Fabric : Properties, How its Made and Where

https://sewport.com/fabrics-directory/twill-fabric

Research on Fashion designer : ZHI YI KIM

This blog is researching about a fashion designer-ZHI YI KIM 

https://www.punk-rave.com/art/about-punk-rave_a0034.html

ZHI YI KIM ( Joey )is a local Chinese designer, but she had insisting on being a dark style brand which is not belong her city. She believed that no matter the dark style or even the punk, they are not only represent an attitude, it is also publishing a positive messages, warning people to pay attention to be nice to our environment. In addition, Joey had published a brand of PUNK RAVE in 2006 

In every process, Joey said that they were all inspiration by daily life and she hopes them can be express and transmit more positive energy to the society. And here were the fashion show which held on ShengZhen fashion week.

She had breaking out the traditions, rules or systems, and try to pursuing reform and reconstruction, combined her original design style through the addition of Chinese elements and cyberpunk mixed in with a diversified panoply of design styles

Reference:

1. Punk Rave at Shenzhen Fashion Week

https://www.swomag.com/punk-rave-at-shenzhen-fashion-week/

2.PUNK RAVE dark designer ZHIYIKIM shocks with London Fashion Week

https://finance.ifeng.com/c/7qCLaKulsuv

3.Punk Rave

https://www.punk-rave.com/art/about-punk-rave_a0034.html

Research on fashion glossary

Every industries have their own industries jargons or mini-dictionary about sustainable terms, so here are the example of some fashion design glossary. It can be the name of the process, texture, the types of clothes, a method to decorate the garments...

Base on my major purpose of this project, I had searched a lot of shirts, pants...which are all related with materials and shapes.

Reference:

1.Unlimited List of Fashion Glossary and Term

https://fashionphotographersmumbai.com/blog/2019/05/04/list-of-fashion-glossary-and-term/

2.Fashion in Infographics

https://fashioninfographics.com/post/148617387406/visual-glossary-pants-trousers-styles

3.FASHION VOCABULARY

https://mystylebox.ca/pages/fashion-vocabulary

 

Research on Fashion Design Template

Draw out a fashion templates is an important process for design.

Choose poses for the templates and add some movement, or sketching out the the choice of body shape, these options can be help out develop our design quickly and effortlessly. There are two different ways to present the template: Fashion illustration and Technique flats

 Fashion illustration is an expression of the design creativity, just depicting with the design sketch, there can be different styles by using different media, such as water colors, color markers...

Technique flats are very specific detail drawing of the garment that we want to make, like a clothing blue print with all information detail ( pattern, color, materials...), mostly they are creating by using software programs, for instance Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop.

I had researched some templates from Patternlab website and then downloaded the PDF document to the ipad, opened procreate and started to exercise. 

Due to the proportion of nine heads of the human body is the ideal height for the model, so I just divided the picture into nine equal parts, and then worked with HB pencil to mark two points on the paper, one for the bottom of the leg and one for the top of the head, connect the two points together and draw out a fast sketch with the body structure. 

Example:

        

Here are the results with some practices of those templates. The left hand side is reference from the website and the right hand side is drawing by myself.

                 

   

Here are video of my practice recording:

Reference:

1.Fashion illustration basics

https://medium.com/iskn/fashion-illustration-basics-5be0b2216da6

2.Glamorous Fashion sketch and illustration: Best 50

http://www.fenzyme.com/fashion-sketches-and-illustrations/

3.Fashion Illustration Tribe

http://www.fashionillustrationtribe.com/member-area/traceable-reusable-fashion-croquis-figure/

Research Class Exercise

1. Name something you have researched in past for art, design or media.

I had a research with fashion designer - Vivienne Westwood from yesterday.

2. Explain how you researched this

Usually I would type the the important word of the chrome that relate with my project, so I type her name on it and then click with the images page, because the images page would show all the information where they come from, there would have a small list below those picture, after that choose one of them which I am interested with and then get into the page.

3.What facts did you discover

Most of those pictures are come from pinterest or wiki, so I would avoid to reference with those which is not reliable website. No matter, 

4.What NEW conclusions did you establish?

News, exclusive interviews or website blogs are usually can support the basic information from the artist, and there are different style of referencing, like printing book, online research..write carefully based on the style that you use. When we are writing a reference list, but if there are not include with the specify publish date on the website, then we can just use the year which next to the copyright.

Research into my major project

I am doing the research with punk fashion historically who started the trend and how do they publish the culture.  

At the beginning, Punk In year 1970, Punk the United Kingdom had influenced the designs of Vivienne Westwood, Malcolm McLaren and the Bromley Contingent.

Reference:

https://www.fashion-era.com/punks_fashion_history1.htm#:~:text=Today%20everyone%20knows%20what%20punk,that%20took%20the%20name%20punk.

Research through my major project

I would draw my major project with those 6 pieces of design draft on the paper by using pencil and color markers. And than upload it into the photoshop to edit it

Research for my major subject

Research of Fashion Designer : Vivienne Westwood

 I have do a research of a British famous fashion designer - Vivienne Westwood.

Elisabeth Klokar (2020) Vivienne Westwood - fashion icon and passionate activist. [Weblog] HAUSVONEDEN. Available from: https://www.hausvoneden.com/lifestyle/vivienne-westwood-fashion-icon-and-active-activism/#inline.

Vivienne was the one who brought the punk fashion into mainstream culture. At the 50 years century, Vivienne had discovered her initial inspirations in those vintage shirts and clothes. And then she started to remake and modified those old ready-to-wear pieces and teddy boy suits into a new pieces of fashion, most of them were random and according the punk characteristic which was printed with sayings and motifs, provided with latex, zippers, chains, rivets and safety pins..but she just noticed that this was punk after finishing with the result.

Vivienne Westwood love to uses for her collection with unusual drapery, voluminous silhouettes, frantic color combinations and texture mixing. All of this combined with black leather clothes, bright, large-scale chains and zippers and mad make-up, these had build up what her unique style are.

Gaby Schmid ( 2011) . Vivienne Westwood Lady of Punk . [Weblog] PRLOG Press Release Distribution . 24th Oct. Available from: https://www.prlog.org/11704994-vivienne-westwood-lady-of-punk-stylertcom.html .

Vivienne used to combine with traditional Scottish design elements (such as plaid). Her clothes design had re-represent the meaning of clothes based on the medieval clothes tailoring techniques of the 16th and 17th centuries, such as adding exaggerated tailoring lines to the men's trousers. In addition, she added a lots tartan checks, tweed, latex, corsages and courtly skirts unite in her designs, and these are far from any fashion dictation and detached from rules or labels.

Katy McCoy ( 2012) . Traditional Scottish Dress: From Sporrans to Fanny Packs . [Weblog] PreciOsoForecasting. 17th Oct. Available from: https://preciosoforecasting.com/2012/05/17/traditional-scottish-dress-from-sporrans-to-fanny-packs/

Wix: Picking with the Template

 

Today we are going to explore with the Wix website which is a software company for support different themes, ideas for users to create their own website. There are three website templates that I am interest to develop with my final work page. Base on my major subject area - Fashion Design, so two of them were found in the fashion design template area but the other one was found in the Art & Illustration area. Here are the reason why I had noticed 

The first one : Artists Cooperative ( Art & Illustration )

This template is full of energetic, the colors and composition can really attractive people to view up the website, the bright colors on the homepage can definitely bring out the visual effect. The best thing about the website is that it used with the dynamic effect, when you are moving down with the screen, the picture would change with their direction movement at the same time, it can really use this individual interaction to enhance the interest of customers to keep searching with the website. 

 

                              

The second one : Textile Studio ( Fashion Design )

This template is really clear and well layout. On the cover front page, there have a huge test box for introduction of the brand name and you can type the topic which you are going to talk with, show up a general idea with public at the first impression. To be continue, it is also user friendly, there are set of button at the top, visitors can easier to follow the instruction and go back to different page in anytime they want. Overall, this website template is easy to use.

 

The third one : Women's clothing store ( Fashion Design )

This website template is really neat and clean, I love the way they have a large photograph space for introduce the theme that I am going to present. There are just using white color for the background which bring out a professional and tidy effect. This website control page buttons are really obvious so that customers can be easily to know how to control and using this webpage.

Project Sign Off : 20s PUNK

 This is the sign off that I had discussed and complete with my tutor. 

And at the following term, I will be carry out with this project.

Exploration of different software

I am going to compare Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator for this Digital art lesson, exploring the different between their function and how can I use them to create my final artwork. 

The first one : Photoshop

Here are the process of creating a Photoshop practice piece.

First of all, open a document that is suitable  

And then, select the brush tool to outline the structure of the module, follow 

Add a layer on the top, make sure the color would not be cover by the outline

Reference: