365 Design Challenge

Can you tell I like “Project Runway”?

You can hate or love reality TV, but one thing is for sure – it has the amazing power of democratizing a certain area of usually a bit snobbish interest – be it gourmet cooking, dancing, singing or fashion designs. Those shows bring those things closer to us, viewers – and give us the skills to become food specialist, dance connoisseurs or music critiques.

That’s what “Project Runways” is for me – a platform that liberated my inhibited designer ambitions. It gave me the lingo and some insight into design process. And almost as a “Project Runway” wanna-be, I try my lick with design, although I have no designer credentials.

I guess the degree of my “Project Runway” fandom dawned on me if full, when i left the bookstore with those two goodies:

“Fierce Style” was an impulse buy, and after reading the few pages I am not all that excited. But Nina’s book is just pure pleasure to read! Well written and witty.

Inspiration behind “Alice” series

One thing that I consider the most poverful source of inspiration for designers are books. Because as we read the words, our minds start working hard creatig images that fit the plot. Or not really… That’s my case with the latest book that helps me endure my almost daily MRT travels from Punggol to Harbor Front (and back), which is “Vampire Academy” by Rachel Mead.

If you are already grimacing at the though of another vampi Edwardbella soapy love story, don’t worry. “Vampire Academy” has been written before the whole vampire craze, and is just a good mystery book set in fantastic realms of vampires world. And thats why it gave my imagination a really nice push. As much as the author describes the outfits of the two main heroines as just plain teenage fashion, my manga-infused brain instantly produced vision of sophisticated school uniforms.

In the Alice series I tired to convey just that: dreamy, unrealistic clothes, but with a certain preppy’ness. I also decided to go with two collections, to reflect how differently I imagine the two heroines.

Are there any books that inspire you visually? Are there any you would recommend for me, or want me to design outfits for?

I’m not crazy, I just like ninjas and cats.

I know the latest collection might seem a bit “off”, but for some time now I have been thinking of representing though fashion design an idea of a “Ninja Cat” – a woman living in contemporary world, going on about her business (like a ninja), and yet keeping her unique non-conformist personality (like a cat). Thats where the idea of a “Ninja Cat” was born.

Hopefully I will extend this collection into a 14 piece one… Stay tunned!

What are your memories of autumn?

Living in the scorching Singaporean heat for almost 2 years has not wiped out my memories of frosty and gloomy European autumn. I hated the shortening days, perpetual darkness and anxious awaiting for the central heating system to work.

But I also remember the smell of frosty mornings, soft woolen sweaters, sweet taste of late autumn apples. Hence the inspiration for the current collection, although its probably not timed well, with all runways being flooded by the spring/summer collections.

Muzzle inspiration

For this collection I have been thinking about how fashion and clothes are in fact a manifestation of basic need for comfort, but at the same time they show restrictions and restrains we accept. Sometimes the restrain works like an armor or a comformism, that allows us to avoid pain and escape to comfort. Hence, the main inspiration is the word “muzzle” – like a dog that wears a muzzle, so it can still stay close with it’s owner in public places.

For fabrics and textures, I have been thinking of clashing soft, plushy fabrics with studded leather. At the same time, I’d imagine the clothes to be build of customized panels for maximum fit and shape. I’m slightly concerned that it might become a bit costume like… But hey, it’s just concept design! ;D Cheers!

First week is over…

First week is over and I am happy that the whole first collection is out =D. It wasn’t my original plan to go with this one, so I didn’t pre-prepare it, and instead ended up doing one design a day. I am not fully happy with the last outfit – but I guess I need to improve my skills a bit more before the designs fully reflect my ideas.

For this week I plan to go with the “Royal V” collection, which is an abbreviation of my original “Lavender Royal” concept, which actually had 14 pieces. But in the end I decided on all of them are collection quality, and decided to go with another 7 piece collection.

Some photos that served as the inspiration:

Beautiful purples

Urban setting

Inspiration for Urban Butterfly collection

For a person who is phobic of butterflies I must admit my love for the butterfly symbol is somewhat weird. But at the same time, it’s hard to find another symbol of elegance, fragility and class that could match up to the symbol of butterfly.

When I was thinking of this collection I used my overwhelming stack of butterfly-themed jewelery, to imagine a classy woman, who has a sensitive and sentimental side to her. She lives in the city, but lives a free and cheerful life,playing her own fantasies and living her emotions to the fullest. Thats why I was drawn to mixing harsh, heavy colors with ruffles and lace.

I might go up against the trend of “woman fighter”, who dresses up in her modern armor to live up to every day challenges… But under the armor, there is still a heart, and for me, butterfly symbolizes that heart.