DIVERSITY LINES OF WISDOM Fashion Design For A Commercial Context ( E19CC)
MAY CHO BA Fashion ( Heriot-Watt University)
DESIGN STATEMENT Have I ever considered about the diversities as a fashion designer? Have I ever thought to make clothes for disabled people? Have I ever made clothes for people who are at my grandma’s age? Have I ever tried to make clothes for plus-sized women? What does diversity in fashion mean to me? Yes, this project makes me think a lot that I’ve never thought before. Though Fashion has started revelling about the diversity more than the old times, it seems not enough till now. For me, I want to consider about the environment and society as much as I can as a fashion designer. Since I was young, I have always been wanted to make clothes for everyone; just everyone, rega rdless of the age, gender, size and shape, etc. I decided to choose AGE element among all of those. I designed with my mother in my mind, tried to make the garments what my mother and women at her age would wear. So, the silhouettes should be simple but unique details which will make them look young, fun and joy. There are many elderly people who are affordable to buy high-end fashion clothes. However, they still do not have many choices. I looked at all the women especially age over 50 and over during my research. “Wrinkles are a representation of every emotion we have experience d throughout our lives. With every laugh, smile and frown, our facial muscles are subjected to a range of repetitive movements that cause our skin to crease with time. These wrinkles document the emotions we have experienced and as a result, they’re a representation of everything that’s made us who we are today.” (Australian Natural Health Magazine).
There is nothing wrong with being old. We are ageing everyday. I chose to look at the way the skin changes through the ageing process and how soft folds and maps through lines which are created within the skin surfaces. This is the main design concept of this project. I chose black as the main colour for this collection as I have never been used black before. I think it will suit my design concept more than other colours as well because the elderly prefer stable colour like black than others. I decided to use simple silhouette with loose, big, comfy and cosy which will be suitable for the elderly people according to my research. I thought about how to describe the crease things that I mentioned before in beautiful ways. As a technique, I could use drawstrings, pleats, elastic and gathers to give those details. However, I chose pleats as one of my details because I used pleats in my previous projects and it becomes my designs aesthetics somehow. As this project needs to be inspired by the sportswear details, I did researching about some details such as zips, fasteners, eyelets, etc. We started this project by drawing hoodies in the class so I decided to choose pockets from hoodies and pleats as my detail. As a fabric, I am going to use neoprene which will be good for autumn/winter, soft net fabric which will provide me beautiful pleats and jersey fabrics which will give comfy and cosy. This collection is being named as “LINES OF WISDOM�.
CUSTOMER PROFILE
High Income High Status High purchasing power
Sophisticated, Self-confident & Independent woman Has expensive tastes
Interest & awareness in fashion Stylish & Extraordinary Wants to show her strong personality through her stand-out
CUSTOMER PROFILE
Name - Catherine Broughton Age - 51 Occupation - Regional Merchandise Manager Locations
- Currently lives in London
Language
- English, Italian, French
Income
- Minimum £50,000 per annum
Interest/Hobbies- Going Art/fashion exhibitions & events Shopping habits -Mainly Seasonal shopper Style Signature -Minimalist
Catherine is a 51 years old Italian woman who lives in London. She is a regional merchandise manager of Italian Retail Company called CHOW. She has more than 25 years experience in retail industry. She is mainly a seasonal shopper but sometimes shops at the weekend, once or twice a month as she works for the creative industry causing her to attend fashion shows and events. She browses online but prefers to shop in store. She likes the clothes with details, tailoring piece
and clothing that gives her confidence and style. She also has an interest on new & emerging designers as part of her job. She follows current trends but adds her own classic style. She is not a brand maniac. S he loves to find unique quality pieces and does not mind buying it whether it is cheap or expensive as long as she likes it.
COMPETITORS
Rick Owens
Molly Goddard
Viktor & Rolf
MOOD BOARD
COLOUR BOARD
FABRIC BOARD
SILHOUETTE BOARD
DETAILS BOARD
TRENDS BOARD
SPORTSWEAR INSPIRATION
INSPIRATION
DIGITAL DESIGN DEVELOPMENT