Experiment with Colour on Photoshop

As you can see, below i have experimented with different tools on photoshop to create different looks for my final garment.

 

In this image I used the blur tool to create a contrast between the garment and the background. Also changing the hue and the contrast to brighten the image. I was going for a grungy, ghostly look to make the black and white in the dress stand out.

I sharpened this image to create a 'edgy' look. I also used the hue and contrast tools to brighten the image.

In this image I blurred the background using Gaussian blur tool, a neon glow filter to create a 'grungy' look. Also experimenting with hue and saturation to help add to this look. Although the filter 'Sepia' was not used in this edit, the look was created to have an 'edgy sepia' look to it. 

With this image i wanted to experiment with colour. Therefore I changed the colour of the gingham to pink by using the quick selection tool and then used the colour balance tool. Then to highlight the change of gingham and to make a more aesthetically pleasing photo I changed the background to black and white.

Here I did a similar edit as the image above, except I wanted to see the changed colour against the same background. I changed the colour by using the quick selection tool again and then used the colour balance tool.

Overall I feel that these images show how I have developed using Adobe photoshop and can use it in my work in my future career. I also feel that the edits have shown other possible ideas (colour changes) that would still work well with the garment. By doing this in the design process you could see how a potential idea would look when developing.

Final Garment: Urban Utility Gingham Dress

This is my final garment for my first year of my course at college. I am very proud of this dress as i feel that it was well constructed and was perfect for the brief that was set. 

Here i used photoshop to brighten the image using brightness and contrast, hue and saturation tools and experimented with the colour balance. I did this to create a more striking image and to put the focus onto the dress. I also did this by choosing a location with a plain background to make the dress more of a contrast.

Liberty Art Fabrics Design Team: A/W 12 Print Collection

Above is a video from Liberty's Art Fabrics Design Team and each of their design/collections for the A/W12 Print Collection. Each of them have different approaches to their designs and different inspirations which really interests me. All the designs are amazing and I really like the creativity behind all of the ideas and concepts.
During the video, the design team are interviewed whilst sat at their desks, and in the background you can see their computer with their work on it, they then start developing and changing the design by playing around with colours and shapes. It really interests me as to how fast you can change aspects of a design. They also talk about how the swatches were created and why. 

Sally's designs called Camilla was inspired by leaves and pondweed and they're designs were based on print techniques. Sally shares that 'its normally a design that we would have to do digitally because of the amount of colour, but as the brief was print techniques we tried to do it conventionally and use screen printing'. This resulted in using 10 screen printers, but I feel that it worked just as well and the designs are gorgeous.  

Altogether, I feel that this video highlights and gives an insight to the fashion industry and how fast paced and creative it is. This video on the whole is an eye opener to everyone.

Nicole B: Textile Designer Boden

As a textile designer, your job heavily relies on computer software. For Example CAD, illustrator etc. Below is a youtube video of Nicola B who is a textile designer at Boden and throughout the video you can see her using computer software to manipulate and develop textile prints and designs. As you can see this is very helpful in the modern world as you can change and develop designs with a click of a button, as apposed to re-drawing ideas out over and over again.
I feel that this job role would be good for me as I like the idea of exhausting ideas for textile prints and creating garments with these prints on them, also using global inspiration to create these designs, however I feel that I would not be creative enough to create a design. 

CAD - Computer Aided Design; In The Fashion Industry

Computer Aided Design is used when designing on a computer, mainly to enhance the quality of design and to increase the productivity of the designer, also it is very economical. this is very useful in the fashion industry as a design on paper can be transferred to the computer so it is precise. Its a very quick process which is great working in the fast paced fashion industry as it allows you to change, recreate and develop designs. For example, a last season best seller, can be modified and developed into a new garment, still using similar elements in minutes using CAD. 

As you can see in these two images, the designs include precise details of the pattern, the colours and design, and how it is to look on a model. This is why it is good in the fashion industry as you could send that off to construction and they would know all the details needed to construct it. Also it gives you an idea of what the design would look like on a model and can show you if the design is possible to make and look good to sell. 

Winner of Best Womenswear Award 2014: Graduate Fashion Week

Graduate Fashion Week was a big inspiration for me and my future studies and career. I really enjoyed the experience and one day strive to be as good as all the participants in the catwalk show. As we all know that Graduate Fashion Week also has competitions within itself and Grace Weller from Bath Spa University won the Best Womenswear Award. Being so close to home I am delighted for Grace for doing herself, Bath Spa, and Bath proud and an inspiration to all the up and coming designers. 

Now why did Grace Weller win? Was it because of her flawlessly designed garments? or was it the use hand embroidered lace?

The hand embroidered lace looked amazing (shown in image below) and was created using a sewing machine. Personally in the past I have struggled with machine embroidery and therefore did not show off how well it can work but I feel that these designs have really tested as to what it can do, especially with the lace. You can also see the inspiration clearly (the ideas and themes behind the work of romantic artists and writers of the 18th century) which I think makes this collection so great as you can relate to each of the garments and see the ideas behind them. 

Grace Weller : Bath Spa University
Winner of Best Womenswear Award

Embroidery Machines

Embroidery machines are used for stitching pattern onto textiles, they can be used for fashion purposes and for branding on uniforms. There are many types of machine embroidery ranging from free-machine embroidery, link stitch embroidery and computerised machine embroidery.

Graduate Fashion Week: Monday 2nd June 2014

On Monday the 2nd of June I went to Graduate Fashion Week for inspiration in my own work. I watched the Nottingham Trent University show and took images of my favourite garments and collections. 

Stephanie Parsons- Nottingham Trent University
Graduate Fashion Week: Monday 2nd June 2014

I love these garments as I feel they are original and unique. I love the use of a contrasting colour on the black, white and grey and love the style of the garments. My favourite design is the jumper with the leather trousers.
Overall I feel that this work is very strong and portrays a girly yet sporty look that has created a trend within the current trends.

Shengjia (Sophia) Ding- Nottingham Trent University

Graduate Fashion Week: Monday 2nd June 2014 

I like the range of pastel colours in this collection and how it portrays the current trends. I like the sophisticated and feminine look that Sophia has created and feel that this work is strong. However an improvement or development from this that I would add in would be some laser cutting around the waistbands, hem and neckline or embroidery with white to keep in touch with the sophistication. On the other hand I do understand why this was not done as it looks classy without any designs on the garment.

Aimee Lorraine Spies - Nottingham Trent University

Graduate Fashion Week: Monday 2nd June 2014

In this collection I mainly liked the detailing on the garments. It looks like it has been made using free machine embroidery or a hand embroider. I also like the use of a contrasting colour for the detailing so it stands out as apposed to a similar colour that you can only see when close up.

Olivia Andres - Nottingham Trent University

Graduate Fashion Week: Monday 2nd June 2014

I love this collection for the use of white with a contrasting colour and that the collection also fits into current trends. Also a range of fabric manipulation was used to create the pleats. Also the use of dip dye or dying the fabric at the bottom.