Jane Anna Locke H00075036
‘Why have floral prints remained timeless?’ Investigating the history of floral prints and discovering why the trend has become an eternal movement in design
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Abstract Throughout history flowers have played a major role in the decoration and embellishment of garments and interior furnishings. So much so, that we have stretched and squeezed out so much of its design potential over hundreds of years to create archives of floral prints that have influenced those later emerging. Flowers are objects of beauty and have forever been a means of personal expression for many as the desire to look good and look unique is becoming ever more popular than before. This ceaseless popularity for pretty and feminine floral designs that reflect the feelings of spring and summer makes you wonder what it is about them, which marks them an eternal trend that never seems to go out of style. There are so many emerging trends out there with creative design potential, yet still the floral print comes out on top year after year. This subsequently begs the question ‘Why have floral prints remained timeless classics?’ In this publication we will try to discover the reasons for the popularity of the floral design, the history behind it, and how the floral design has managed to stay everlasting when other fad trends have disappeared as quickly as they emerged. In addition, my own work has been inspired by this popular trend, with great regard for such an attractive design theme, and I would like to share some of my work and explore the development process with you.
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Table of Contents Introduction
Page 4
A history of Florals
Page 5
Types of Flowers
Page 7
Liberty Prints
Page 8
Consumer Views
Page 10
The Modern Day Floral
Page 6
Capsule Collection by Jane Locke
Page 12
Conclusion
Page 18
Bibliography
Page 20
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Have you ever wondered why some design trends never seem to lose their style panache and are flavour of the month all year round? People have been designing prints for clothes and interiors for centuries, but one of the biggest style statements that continues to remain timeless is the floral pattern print. This seemingly immortal style of design has been seen on many a personality throughout history right up to the present day. Not only that, but they are seen in abundance on countless wallpapers, cushions, bed covers, lampshades or curtains, providing homes with endless years of stylish dĂŠcor. Floral fabrics certainly have been around for hundreds of years in some form or another during the course of history. But what makes them timeless classics? I would like to investigate as to why this is and what it is about the floral print that makes it so popular, where flower designs originated from and there influences on modern day designs, and how the floral design has managed to stay everlasting when other fad trends have vanished as quickly as they appeared. The concept of florals for spring has gradually transformed into an ongoing love affair, being less of a seasonal trend now, and the novelty comes, bringing new interpretations of the iconic print. Small scale or large, subtle or bold, vintage inspired or futuristic, the floral prints are the perfect excuse to celebrate the liveliness of spring in style. In addition, I shall also be exploring my own floral design project. I will be making comparisons to research and through the use of surveys, literature reviews and internet research, hopefully answer this question and find out how the public think floral designs relate to the popular market.
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In order to understand why floral prints are so popular throughout the world, perhaps it’s a good idea start at the beginning, and find out where it all began developing into the popular trend we know today. The Romans are said to have taken their floral inspiration from the Ancient Greeks. However floral motifs were not widespread on clothing and furnishings, rather being used as decorative elements for headpieces and togas. Garlands, wreaths and crowns were more elaborate than those of the Greeks. Crowns and garlands were tapered. Flowers were sometimes arranged in baskets and cornucopias. A style with great emphasis on minimalism, Oriental floral design is one of the two major branches of floral design today, with a rich developmental history that spans more than 1,500 years. Japanese design has the most complex history. There are a variety of styles and elements. The first, Ikenobo, means, “Giving life to flowers.� This focused on the refinement of art and ritual flower use by Japanese Buddhists Floral prints became widely available with the development of screen-printing in the early 20th century, which thrived as a commercial process, meaning anyone could have access to decorative floral materials that may have previously been too expensive. Formerly used on work wear and clothes linings, floral prints started to become fashionable as decorative clothing that people could wear out with their work to parties and gatherings. (Times, the (United Kingdom), Jul 23, 2007) This era of floral style, again seems to be coming back into fashion in modern society with re-inventions of the original to suit the modern day consumer.
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The ‘Flower Power’ era showcased a relatively recent use of the floral print which transformed the perception of style in the 1960’s and liberated women’s fashion boundaries. The 1960s was a decade of sweeping change throughout the fashion world generating ideas and images which still appear modern today. Brightly coloured large-scale geometric repeats were favourites for both dress and furnishing fabrics. Later in the decade, floral patterns were seen everywhere. Victorian decor was rediscovered and motifs borrowed from Art Nouveau and Art Deco were given a new lease of life by the addition of psychedelic colours. The floral prints of the 60’s are still being re-worked into new prints today due to their fun and quirky appearances. Nowadays, floral prints are seen almost every season on the catwalks and at interior design shows. Modern day floral designs have been overwhelming the catwalks and high street stores with their appealing ability to fit into any season and bringing life and colour to our wardrobes. In the spring you can always count on a full floral fantasy to assure a smooth transition between seasons. It makes girls feel feminine and men feel unique. The floral print can be suitable for any season, spring summer and even autumn winter, due to the diversity of objects of nature there are flowers for every season with suitable colours to match. As Vogue’s Alexandra Shulman has pointed out, the new florals go from pastels to sport to techno. They herald the new spring season, and we’re happy to take her word for that. “We love the femininity of floral prints. Find them this season on floaty dresses, smart suits, slinky gowns and retro jumpsuits. Last year, it was all about delicate pastels. This time round, shouty blooms burst forth and pale primroses clung to vibrant backdrops. Floral trends, like their garden counterpart, pop up every spring. As every gardener knows, no two are alike, and no two seasons are ever the same. That sounds just like the world of fashion to us!”
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(Women’s and men’s clothing and accessories online. Dresses, tops, jeans, shoes, suits, jewellery and more.,2014) This information illustrates the large scale importance of florals throughout history, and the roles they played in different eras of time. Certainly minor roles perhaps, but roles all the same, which have thrust their prominence in design through centuries so that they have remained in the limelight. Perhaps it’s the versatility of the floral print that makes it so reviveable. With numerous real-life plants and flowers to take creative vision from there’s really no end to how a flower pattern can develop. All species of flower have distinctive markings, shapes and sizes, all of which can be translated into designs and drawings over and over again. Not only that, but blended with an individual’s artistic flair, they can be transformed in numerous different ways to suit personal style, mass market, or cultural needs. The rose is certainly one of the most recognized flowers around used in floral designs. According to the book ‘Period Flowers’ by Jane Newdick, the rose “came into its own as a decorative flower, filling gardens with its scent and covering fabrics and porcelain with its beauty. It had long been a favourite flower in every kind of garden but towards the end of the eighteenth century and in the early nineteenth century the introduction of new species from China led to a tremendous growth in rose breeding…one group of workers became renowned for the growing of laced pink roses. These were the weavers of Paisley near Glasgow in Scotland who led hard working and strict Presbyterian lives, weaving
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fine Paisley fabrics and shawls.� (Newdick, 1991) Another familiar flower renowned for appearing in floral designs is the Daisy. Fresh and simple, it is no wonder it gets used in designs over and over again to reflect that spring/summer feeling.
The floral print is always moving forward. One company that is constantly re-inventing its floral designs is Liberty of London. Liberty has an archive of original prints that they constantly build upon to create new and in style designs for their customers. These prints, old and new, maintain that typical Liberty style that everyone recognizes due to the renovation of old designs. These charming prints (see images below) commend some of their greatest loved floral designs, where classic archive prints are reworked, revised and updated.
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Fig.1
Fig.2
Liberty’s imported oriental silks were dyed, printed or woven in Britain and France. The cottons were printed in Scotland, Cumbria and Lancashire. In 1904 Liberty took over a print works that specialized in block-printed silks just up-river from William Morris’ works in Merton. It is because of this print works that the company still has such a large textile archive. “Design revivals within fashion and furnishing mean that with every collection, designers look at the archives for inspiration,” says Emma Mawston, head of interior design for Liberty Art Fabrics. “Archive designs are incredibly popular as they are so diverse, and because customers simply love history. Any design that’s accompanied by an interesting story is even more valuable.” (Fitzpatrick, M. (2014).
So could it be that this is the reason designers keep bringing floral prints back to life? Perhaps people want that little bit of history in the products they buy. Maybe there have been so many flower prints out there that it is inevitable that some of them have to come back round full circle again. In order to find some more conclusive insight into the popularity of floral designs, I conducted an online survey to gather information on what the general public’s views were. The results of the survey were interesting but somewhat unsurprising as they seemed to go as I expected. 9
I asked 45 people a series of questions relating to the design and consumer views of floral fabrics, the results are as follows. A whopping 89% of the people asked were female, compared to only 11% of males. Floral prints are generally viewed as a more feminine style of design, so this was foreseeable that the majority of people who took the survey would be female. To differentiate between the popularity of floral prints in fashion and interiors, I asked the group what they thought of the two comparisons. 84% of surveyors said that they did like floral prints in fashion, compared to 7% who didn’t, and 9% who weren’t sure. In relationship, a little less people liked floral prints for interiors with only 76% saying yes, and 24% saying no. Considering that almost 50% of the people asked were between the ages of 18-24, it is expected because at these ages they probably don’t have much of a need for interior decorations just yet. What is interesting is that all of the older age options voted yes to liking interior floral designs, but overall, floral prints seem to be more popular applied to fashion garments. In addition, 84% of the people questioned, did actually own a piece of floral material, whether it be a fashion garment or a piece of interior design. Only 16% said they did not own anything with a floral print. It is clear from the results of the survey that people would actually pay more money for a floral print that had a vintage tag on it. This shows that the re-invention of floral prints is important in maintaining that timeless title because as long as there is a desire for designs that are reminiscent of the past, it will always be easy to restyle them and create new ones from it. The last 2 questions I asked the group were ‘do you think floral fabrics will ever go out of style?’ and ‘why do you think floral prints
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remain timeless classics?’ Two similar questions both with a connected answer. In relation to floral prints going out of style, a massive 87% thought that they would remain timeless and never go out of style, whilst 7.5% equally thought that they will, or might. The last question, ‘Why do you think floral printed designs remain timeless classics?’ had quite a few different responses. From highest to lowest, 49% of surveyors thought that the reason floral prints remain timeless is because ‘designers these days have the skills to modernize the look of flowers for prints’. 31% thought it might be because ‘there have been so many prints designed over the years they are easily re-invented’. The third most popular answer was that ‘they have been popular throughout history so why would it change now’, scoring 12%. Only 6% of people thought it was because ‘there are too many species of flowers to run out of ideas for designs’. The last 2% thought it was down to ‘other’ reasons, and gave their own answers, which were: “They’re timeless. Floral prints can run the range of vintage, chintzy, modern and even abstract/geometric.” The Devil Wears Prada quote. “Florals? For spring? Groundbreaking.” Two very good answers, one which refers to the famous fashion movie, ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ where the pompous fashion designer implies that florals in fashion are nothing new and it’s not uncommon to see that particular fashion trend in spring collections. This highlights the fact that floral prints seem to crop up somewhere or another in fashion and that it is not an innovative solution to trend prediction. Overall a very mixed bag of responses, but these results show that the public noticeably believe that florals have a major impact on trend forecasting and that they are perhaps partly responsible for the prints popularity over the years. Not only that, but it is also clear that the majority of people asked own a piece of floral fabric in some
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shape or form, old or new, thus emphasising their importance in the world of fashion and textiles today. It is this ceaseless popularity for floral prints that inspired my interior fabric collection and why I wanted to show a different angle towards the portrayal of floral designs and bring it towards a more modern, quirky representation. Floral prints come in all shapes and sizes, there are so many designs out there, it can be an impenetrable task coming up with something diverse and modern that’s unlike other designs already on the market. I have been designing a capsule fabric collection inspired by a range of flowers from over the world, and combining techniques stimulated from research of fantastic floral print designers. My own unique style is directed at watercolour paintings, layering tones over tones and linking figurative with loose and abstract images. I chose flowers as a theme because besides being an extremely popular trend, for me they seem to sit comfortably being painted in watercolours and there is such a variety of them that endless print opportunities are possible, which is probably another reason why they are so popular with fashion and textile designers My main inspiration came from a Scottish design company called BluebellGray, who specialize in interior designs that have been created using purely watercolour techniques. They have really modernized the typical, standard interior floral print by using popping bright colours and not having any figuratively drawn images in their designs. If you saw one of their products in a shop it would be instantly recognizable as BluebellGray. This, in my opinion, is such an important factor in maintaining the floral motif because people will always expect similar things from a particular company if that’s what they are famous for.
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Being known for a particular artistic or painterly style, in this case watercolour could inspire people into wanting to imitate or create similar designs to theirs. Therefore, constantly reviving and stimulating new floral designs and bringing them to the forefront of trend forecasts year in, and year out. What BluebellGray have created is a genius development of creative requirement. There was obviously a gap in the market for a particularly artistic range of textile products, something different that encompasses old and new styles with that special twist thrown in to make it modern and unique. Below are some images of BlubellGray’s best-selling products and you can clearly see the very inventive use of watercolour techniques throughout the collection.
Sometimes some of the prints don’t even resemble actual flowers that we would normally recognize. Instead they tiptoe around some of the shapes and silhouettes to create a new image and a stunning print. Their use of colour also helps to produce that desirable eye catching floral appearance that entraps in the print, the typical fresh and spring like floral form we know and love.
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Another designer that became a source of my inspiration was Matthew Williamson. As a textile designer, whether for fashion or interiors, Williamson has been renowned for his use of floral designs for over a decade. His fun and lively prints have always caught my eye because they also completely symbolize the notion of floral design but through the use of simple modernisation and colourful images. Williamson creates designs for interiors but also for fashion. I particularly love his ‘Butterfly Home’ collection which encompasses floral designs with butterflies and birds to create beautiful, bright and quirky designs. Below are a few images of Williamson’s bedroom designs from his collection at Debenhams. (www.debenhams.com,2014)
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In my own collection, I wanted to achieve a similar style as these two designers by using bright colours, and a unique drawing style. Having researched into a range of diverse flowers from countries all over the world, I settled on a collection of rather British inspired flora and fauna to paint and use in my designs. They included pansies, wisteria, hollyhocks, roses, tulips and foxgloves to name but a few. Each flower I painted individually with the plan to bring them together as prints later on in the development process. I love that you can layer watercolour on top of watercolour in layers to create tonal effects, using more or less water can also achieve this. In order to bring a bit of uniqueness into the designs, the watercolour paintings were mixed with tonal pencil drawings, either incorporating the pencil into the painting, or using it to accompany the painting.
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This technique transforms the painting from plain to edgy, and generates a unique style that people can recognize as something to remember. This is perhaps another reason that the floral print has continued to bloom beyond all the other trends. They are easy to remember and suit any occasion, they really wouldn’t look out of place anywhere and people remember that.
Having developed these drawings through the use of a sketchbook, the next step was to take them to Photoshop with the intention to develop them for digital print. Digital print technology has aided many designers in the creation of beautiful prints and patterns, including florals, where detailed and intricate drawings are too hard to achieve through screen-printing. It can also help manufacturers mass produce items in large scale bulk orders. This has helped propel the floral print into a whole new world of creative technology, enabling designers to create amazing patterns that would never have been possible before, and be available to the masses. Therefore reviving trends such as the floral print and making it available to people all over the world. In a recent digital textile review about the reasons for using digital print technology, John Ingraham states that “textile printing represents upwards of 30 billion yards of material volume on an annual basis worldwide. While digital printing currently amounts to about 2% share of this volume, digital printing continues to expand with the movement from mass-production to mass-customization of printed goods. Digital textile printing efficiently produces designs at run lengths as low as one yard of fabric without the need for screen changes. Digital textile printers can print large designs (e.g. cartoon 16
characters on sheets and blankets) on roll fabric without the usual rotary screen-printing limitation in pattern repeat size. Digital textile printing provides the option to print photographic/continuous tone images, spot colour pattern designs or a combination of both. This expands the creative printing alternatives for fashion and interior designers.� (Ingraham, J, 2013) The collection is made up of a traditional theme in the shapes and subject matter of the botanical references, and then combined with contemporary media techniques. I think that shows a reconditioning of the standard floral print because it doesn’t look like anything from the past but has taken inspiration from it and transformed it into something new, whilst still maintaining a place in today’s market. From here, the floral designs became easy to produce, mingling different species together to liven up the designs and to try and harvest something unusual out of the watercolour and pencil drawings. The prints that were produced had a slightly abstract projection, and a messy, splodgy kind of look that deviates from tradition.
These four designs were made into cushions for the collection and it is clear to see the style and theme carried throughout. The florals 17
don’t look distinctly like flowers which is what I wanted to achieve during the course of this collection. This is another piece from the capsule collection, a furnishing fabric with an innovative style that encapsulates my style of painting that blends in with the market of eternal florals.
Overall, the floral print has in my opinion, succeeded in showing us that it is definitely here to stay for even more years to come. Flowers will never change; they will always be around us, in our gardens, in our lives and they will never disappear. There will always be that inspiration nearby, surrounding the creative minds of today so they can become inspired to revive and generate new trends. The floral print allows people to bring their gardens into their home and nature into their fashion style. It was clear that people generally have crossed paths with a floral print at some point in their lives and some people may even remember prints from years gone by that have now come round full circle and made modern again. It is all about the recycling of designs, the diversity of the flower enables designers to take inspiration from so many sources that print possibilities are endless. Unlike the floral trend, other trends come 18
and go because they don’t have the same history and breadth of material and interest to keep it going for too long. However, designers of today are so skilled and they have archives of floral print inspiration available at their fingertips that it seems impossible for the floral print to ever lose its timeless title. The modern day florals we see today are descended from years of fine-tuning, gradually transforming into a trend reminiscent of these floral print archives. This has definitely helped to catapult floral prints into a worldwide trend that anybody and everybody can gain from in some way or another. Who knows perhaps the floral prints of the future will be even more unusual and wonderful, and people might see modern florals of today as out-dated. As for being a timeless classic? Well, I think it is evident that floral prints are here to stay. Flower designs are deemed the all-rounders in the world of trend forecasting, and will most certainly be here to enrich our lives for years to come.
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Bibliography
Fitzpatrick, M.
Interiors: vintage floral prints that bloom forever “Design revivals within fashion and furnishing mean that with every collection, designers look at the archives for inspiration,” says Emma Mawston, head of interior design for Liberty Art Fabrics. “Archive designs are incredibly popular as they are so diverse, and because customers simply love history. Any design that’s accompanied by an interesting story is even more valuable.” In-text: (Fitzpatrick, 2014) Fitzpatrick, M. (2014). Interiors: vintage floral prints that bloom forever. The Telegraph. [online] Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/interiorsandshopping/ 10857767/Interiors-vintage-floral-prints-that-bloomforever.html [Accessed 20 Oct. 2014].
VAM.AC.UK History of 1960s Fashion and Textiles - Victoria and Albert Museum In-text: (Vam.ac.uk, 2014) Bibliography: Vam.ac.uk, (2014). History of 1960s Fashion and Textiles - Victoria and Albert Museum. [online] Available at: http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/h/history-of-1960sfashion-and-textiles/ [Accessed 10 Nov. 2014]. 20
WOMEN'S AND MEN'S CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES ONLINE. DRESSES, TOPS, JEANS, SHOES, SUITS, JEWELLERY AND MORE. Floral Fashion Trend, Spring/Summer 2014 In-text: (Women's and men's clothing and accessories online. Dresses, tops, jeans, shoes, suits, jewellery and more., 2014) Bibliography: Women's and men's clothing and accessories online. Dresses, tops, jeans, shoes, suits, jewellery and more., (2014). Floral Fashion Trend, Spring/Summer 2014. [online] Available at: http://www.justthedesign.com/floral-fashiontrend-spring-summer-2014/ [Accessed 10 Nov. 2014]. INGRAHAM, J. AND →, V. Ten Reasons for Using Digital Textile Printing Technology In-text: (Ingraham, J, 2013) Bibliography: Ingraham, J. and →, V. (2013). Ten Reasons for Using Digital Textile Printing Technology. [online] Digital Textile Review. Available at: http://digitaltextilereview.com/?p=794 [Accessed 18 Nov. 2014].
NEWDICK, J. Period flowers In-text: (Newdick, 1991) Bibliography: Newdick, J. (1991). Period flowers. New York: Crown Publishers. CHIEDOZIE, A. The History of Oriental floral design 21
In-text: (Chiedozie, n.d.) Bibliography: Chiedozie, A. (n.d.). The History of Oriental floral design. eHow. [online] Available at: http://www.ehow.com/about_5336336_history-orientalfloral-design.html [Accessed 13 Nov. 2014].
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