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A CO L L A B O R AT I V E DESIGN PROJECT
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Fashion Industry Project The Stolen Child
Storyboard
Nightwear as Ready-to-wea
Print Design
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Photoshoot
Victorian Style is Back To Be Victorian
Capsule Shoot S/S 2020
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FA S H I O N I N D U S T R Y P R O J E C T
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F A S H I O N I N D U S T R Y Photographs by TONY CHARLES styled by ELLIE JAMES
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The Stolen Child by William Butler Yeats 1889 Where dips the rocky highland Of Sleuth Wood in the lake, There lies a leafy island Where flapping herons wake The drowsy water rats; There we’ve hid our faery vats, Full of berries And of reddest stolen cherries. Come away, O human child! To the waters and the wild With a faery, hand in hand, For the world’s more full of weeping than you can understand.
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Where the wave of moonlight glosses The dim gray sands with light, Far off by furthest Rosses We foot it all the night, Weaving olden dances, Mingling hands and mingling glances Till the moon has taken flight; To and fro we leap And chase the frothy bubbles, While the world is full of troubles And anxious in its sleep. Come away, O human child! To the waters and the wild With a faery, hand in hand, For the world’s more full of weeping than you can understand. Where the wandering water gushes From the hills above Glen-Car, In pools among the rushes That scarce could bathe a star, We seek for slumbering trout And whispering in their ears Give them unquiet dreams; Leaning softly out From ferns that drop their tears Over the young streams. Come away, O human child! To the waters and the wild With a faery, hand in hand, For the world’s more full of weeping than you can understand.
Dublin.com, 2019
Away with us he’s going, The solemn-eyed: He’ll hear no more the lowing Of the calves on the warm hillside Or the kettle on the hob Sing peace into his breast, Or see the brown mice bob Round and round the oatmeal chest. For he comes, the human child, To the waters and the wild With a faery, hand in hand, From a world more full of weeping than he can understand.
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THE STOLEN CHILD
Alongside the bleak, there is also beautiful imagery that is portrayed throughout the stanzas. “flapping herons”, “berries”, “reddest stolen cherries”, “drowsy water-rats”, “brown mice” and “faery vats” give the reader a sense of a child-like outlook on the world – noticing all of the wonderful nature and wildlife. Other key elements such as “the waters and the wild”, “wave of moonlight”, “chase the frothy bubbles”, “wandering water gushes”, “young streams”, “in pools among the rushes” and “scarce could bathe a star” all evoke beautiful, childlike, nighttime imagery. Throughout this lookbook zine, you will be able to see how, through research, I furnished these ideas and developed silhouettes and prints to create a final concept (toile) in collaboration with a working fashion designer - Renli Su. Renli Su is a Chinese designer based in London founded in 2014. She focuses on detail as a very crucial aspect of her designs and storytelling. Some of her pieces are multifunctional and provide an interesting aesthetic for her customers. Renli expresses a sentimentality for the past through design. Her research is a combination of literature, nature and historical costume. She creates modern-day heirlooms for her customer’s everyday lifestyle.
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William Butler Yeats was a significant figure within poetry – specifically within fiction and folklore. The poem “The Stolen Child” was written in 1886 and features locations in Ireland such as Glen-Car and Sleuth Wood – where Yeats would visit as a child. The poet sets a sinister tone for the poem, with stolen children, temptation and a lust for an alternative world. Ultimately, the poem is beautiful, mysterious, and quietly (but naggingly) sinister. It has the quality of an olden fairy-tale, such as of the brothers Grimm.
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“The poem is about a tension between a fascination with and desire for an alter native world. In order to reach this world, one must relinquish impor tant aspects of the mor tal, transient world.” M.Dempster, 2013
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STOR YBOARD
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NIGHTWEAR AS READY-TO-WEAR
This trend research board looks at colours, silhouettes, trims and print ideas in the development of the garment. As Renli looks back to the Victorian era for influence over her garments and style, I decided this would be an interesting starting point. By exploring what was worn by Victorian children as nightwear, I wanted to transform something that typically isn’t worn outside or in the daytime to something that is ready-to wear, also providing links to “The Stolen Child”.
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“Nightwear as ready-towear”
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For Renli Su’s Spring/Summer 2019 collection, magical realism of the Victorian poem “The Goblin Market” by Christina Rossetti inspired her to create a carefully crafted assortment of pieces. All of the details have the purpose to draw you into a world of dreams and desires. For her own prints, Renli used the quinces and gooseberries from the story to influence her patterns. A historical element is always the starting point for shapes and cut, yet the result is refreshingly timeless.
The imagery within the print is all taken from the poem. I decided I wanted the base fabric in either white, grey or black to symbolise the sinister outlook the poem underlays. The sweet imagery of fruits and animals evokes the childlike feeling implied by the poem yet with a base colour that is slightly off-kilter fulfilling the theme that all is not as it seems. On the adjacent page, the final working drawing and technical elements of the garment are featured - alongside the trims and fabrics.
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PRINT DESIGN
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PHOTOSHOOT
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ictorian style is back. The Renli Su label philosophy is shaped by Renli’s interest in history paired with an ever-expanding curiosity about nature and the human spirit. Her collections are characterised by her dreamy sense of nostalgia, filtered through a lens of contemporary romanticism. Looking at history, relating to the experiences of people ties a bond between humans that can serve as a place of solace in our fast-moving lives. Frequently immersing herself in how the Victorians dressed and the detailing, Renli strives to create a narrative for each collection. Telling a story through visual and sensory impulses is at the core of Renli Su’s design process. Silhouettes are free and soft, despite the carefully detailed elements that make each piece a unique labour of art. Renli’s love for old craftsman’s techniques on cotton, linen, wool and silk is in playful balance with the use of innovative fabrics and modern methods of fabric manipulation. 13
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Anna wearing Toile of Renli Su collaboration dress and bloomers TONY CHARLES
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n a rainy Wednesday, I approached Anna and invited her to model my recently constructed toile. She said to me, “Of course, I love the clothes you make!” Now, Anna is by no means a professional model, standing at six feet and two inches, she often refers to herself as a giraffe. However, her unusual height helps achieve the aesthetic of the mythical, alternate world where one can get lost in. By using a plain backdrop for the shoot, we were able to create minimal imagery that emphasises the plain calico fabric used to create the garments (toile). It also sets apart the model from the background, therefore allowing certain facial aspects and features of the garment to be more pronounced. Throughout the series of photographs, Anna’s facial expressions transition from those of innocence to desolate - portraying that ultimately, the alternative faery world one lusts for, is unsatisfactory.
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PHOTOSHOOT
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Close up of Anna wearing dress toile TONY CHARLES 18
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Photographed by TONY CHARLES styled by ELLIE JAMES
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VICTORIAN STYLE IS BACK
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TONY CHARLES
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VICTORIAN STYLE IS BACK
exaggerated curves and unbearably thin waistlines. No consideration was given to comfort and practicality. The long process and physical undertaking of getting dressed for an important evening of entertaining guests or going to a social gala would exhaust the average person before the festivities even started. The corset alone usually took two people to put on. The corset had to be very tight to accentuate or create a thin waist. It was not uncommon to see a woman pass out at a social event from not being able to breathe deep enough due to an overly tight corset. A man’s wardrobe began with the vest or waistcoat. The waistcoat could make or break the outfit. It was a lot like how a man’s tie is today. It accentuated the rest of the man’s clothing. Another prominent feature of a Victorian man’s wardrobe was his hat. Victorian Hats were a necessity for many men in Victorian times The two most popular were the Top Hat and the Derby or Bowler hat. A well-dressed Victorian man needs a quality suit, tie, shoes, hat and accessories to reenact the era. Whether for civil war, Dickens or single action shooting reenactments consider this your go-to resource for Victorian men’s clothing and fashion. The basic Victorian menswear outfit starts with high waist pants held up by suspenders in solid wool, plaid, or dark stripes. Nest add a loose Victorian men’s shirt in white or coloured for working classes. A mid to upper-class man wore a Victorian suit with matching vest. Poor classes may have only afforded a mismatched vest.
“Victorian styles took on many different looks during the era”
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A lady not only wore several layers of outer clothing but quite a few layers of Victorian lingerie or underwear as well. From the skin on up was a pair of stockings. Typically, boots and stockings were put on before undergarments. The first layer of clothing included bloomers, pantaloons or drawers that acted as underwear. Split drawers made them functional when using the facilities. Then came a chemise for the top half. They looked like a loose cotton tank top or summer nightgown. Next was the corset or the bust supporter before the brazier was invented. Then was an optional corset cover. It protected both the corset and the dress from friction. The next set involved a petticoat slip and petticoat skirt or crinoline over a hoop skirt or bustle pad. Sometimes another petticoat slip was worn over that! Then it was finally time to wear the dress. The Edwardian era 1900s, 1910s) followed the same dressing pattern. Victorian clothing styles took on many different looks during Victorian Times. From the everpopular extravagance of the Victorian Dress for wealthy ladies to the basic hand me downs of the Poor Victorian children. As times changed so did the clothing styles. Popular opinion of many historical clothing “experts” is that the birth of the Victorian dress with all of its pomp and flamboyance came about because the leading clothing designers of the day were men. Men that had a biased and possibly unattainable idea of what women should look like. Therefore you have such an outlandish style (By today’s standards) with
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By modern standards young Victorian boys dressed like girls. They mainly wore frocks and pleated skirts until the age of three or four. Sometime around the 1860’s the Scottish Highlander look became popular complete with a plaid skirt and all. These were worn by boys between four and eight years old. Also at this time, Victorian boys started wearing the Knickerbocker suit. A style most likely borrowed from the Americans. In later years much like the girls, boys would wear smaller versions of what the adults would wear. The origin of the custom may be simply that before about 1550, both boys and girls and indeed people of all ages would have worn tunics and gowns of some sort. Other ideas have also been put forward. The youngest children were associated with their mothers and were invariably cared for by women rather than men, and therefore it may have been appropriate for all young children to wear skirts, regardless of whether they were boys or girls. It would also have been easier to change nappies if the child wore skirts, and wearing trousers or breeches would have restricted urination, as they often had complicated fastenings. Young boys would not have felt conspicuous, as at the time wearing a dress was considered normal, although they would have undoubtedly looked forward to getting their first trousers and being thought of as more grown-up.
The Victorian era was an interesting time for boys and girls fashion. Victorian children’s clothing for middle and upper classes were smaller versions of adult clothing with shorter hemlines and sturdier materials. Poor children wore simplified hand me down versions of outdated rich kids clothing. Boys and girls wore white gowns as infants and toddlers, graduating to suits, sailor clothes or sporty knicker outfits for boys and long or short dresses with aprons for girls. Both genders wore button-up boots. Young girls wore bonnets and boys wore caps and straw hats. Long coats and jackets kept them warm in winter. Children’s clothing evolved as time went by during the Victorian era. Many of these styles mirrored the adult styles of the day to some extent. There were some differences though. For example, girls skirts might be shorter than the adult skirt. Little girls skirts would go down to the knees. Then around ten years of age, the length would be somewhere around mid-calf. Around the age of 16, a girls skirt would be full length down to the ankles just like their mothers. In fact, by this time the well to do young ladies would be dressing in the same fashion as adults. Until the late 1800’s girls were still wearing corsets.
“Both boys and girls and indeed people of all ages would have worn tunics and gowns of some
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TO BE A VICTORIAN
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TONY CHARLES
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Back view of Anna in outfit TONY CHARLES 29
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Photographed and styled by ELLIE JAMES
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CAPSULE SHOOT S/S 2020
between kelp, underwater weeds, little spiral sea flowers and floating branches of prehistoric saltwater algae. Reminiscing of botanical studies, the print mixes fantasy and realism.” The narrative for her collection yet again is beautiful and timeless. The androgynous Victorian style is fluent throughout - making her clothes undeniable that they belong to her. The delicate patterns embroidered into the collection are composed of line drawings of waves and water creatures that are repeated over a base of sheer silk or natural cotton. These floaty detailed fabrics reflect the lightness and beauty of the underwater world in which the Selkies lived. Courtesy of Renli Su and Nina Scott-Smith.
“The narrative for her collection is timeless”
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After having presented to the designer Renli Su herself, I was set the task to use her most recent Spring/Summer 2020 collection and capture the garment in a specific location. By working with a light coloured and textured garment, it made sense to use a busier background to emphasise the dress. The lighting was golden and overall achieved a beautiful glow. The final photos evoke an innocent, transient theme, further establishing my own link between “The Stolen Child” and Renli’s own theme for her S/S 2020 collection. Renli Su included the following on her website to explain the collection: “The prints and embroidery for this seasons collection embody the underwater home of the Selkies; winged seals
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