Hand - me - down
a street wear inspired menswear collection. The project looks to create a more positive outlook on the portrayal of poverty and the individuals experiencing it. I wanted the collection to be different to other collections focusing on this societal issue, by being more respectful and innovative in what I design. As well as challenging the negative connotations and sub cultures that become associated with poverty in the hope of using fashion to move away from a society that exhibits an ‘Us and Them’ ideology and in turn promote inclusivity. Academic journals were an initial starting point for my research: ‘Poverty first hand - Child Poverty Action Group’ and ‘Child Poverty - Scottish Government Report 2017’. I hope that the collection can educate the wearer on poverty and teach them that it is simply untrue that ‘one size fits all’. Thus, conducting this initial research was a vital step in the preparation of my collection as it allowed me an insight into how poverty manifests itself, allowing me to take a more empathetic approach in my design. In order to gain first-hand experience of poverty, I visited local areas known to have high levels of deprivation. Everything appeared neglected and unadorned, there was an overuse of primary colours, suggesting a poor attempt to brighten up an isolated area. Charity shops and supermarket clothing stores were visited, as these are regarded as affordable clothing stores for individuals on low income. From this insight into what is available and from what clothing said individuals happened to be wearing. Bold and contemporary prints were created and used in creating a multimedia collection. Fabrics are diverse and reflective of the market and concept. Colours are kept bright and colourful to further develop a more forward thinking collection; wearable, contemporary and considerate. The collection sports oversized silhouettes and exaggerated proportions mirroring reality. It also includes a sense of sustainability and responsibility and promotes working on refashioning negative connotations. I position the collection in a young contemporary market. The designs mixes urban wear with an ath-leisure aesthetic. I want the collection to retain its core ethos and so I propose it be positioned at mid-market level where it would be more accessible to those on lower incomes and thus more attainable by its target market. Positioning it here also allows it to be successful in its educational purposes and promotes a message of equality.
“ITS
deterioration THE HUMAN SPIRIt””
OF
“Nobody knows, until they’ve been in that persons shoe ”
Poverty is reproduced rather than reduced
C O U N C I L
A N D
H O U S E D
V I O L E N T
YOUNG FUN & COOL
MIX & MATCH AW19
The Autumn/Winter 2018 Menswear collection Hand - me - down was inspired by the growing poverty levels within the UK. It looks to how poverty is ‘reproduced rather than reduced.’ Drawing inspiration from those experiences of individuals in poverty and the stigma it currently holds, physically and aesthetically. The aim of the col-
lection was to highlight these issue and interpret them in a non-negative way to deduce the reproduction of social preconceptions towards poverty. The collection also takes a social enterprise approach donating a portion of the sales profit to Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
In diffusing the collection to fashion conscious high street retailer H&M, it was decided to interpret the collection into their kids-wear range, aged 8-14 year olds. Given the serious nature of the collection “ a more fun and playful approach was taken forward through oversized silhouettes and bold prints, mixing it with the casual/sporty garment H&M typically uses in its kidswear ranges. The colour palette has been softened and fabrics have been manipulated into a playful approach to allow for a mix & match approach to the kids collection. A Social enterprise concept would be carried on through H&M in which a margin of the profit of each garment sold would be donated to Child Poverty Action Groups.
In Collaboration with Adidas Originals SS19
A collaborative athleisure-wear collection was created with sports brand ‘Adidas’ and British singer ‘Paloma Faith’ for Spring/Summer 2019. The collection is targeted towards the female market and to be sold through sub brand ‘Adidas Originals’ that provides a more casual and fashionable/everyday style of sportswear. Through its vibrant and energetic design, it truly encompasses Adidas contemporary market and Paloma’s personality she portrays publicly. Looking into her individual aesthetic, she incorporates a retro and eccentric style, notable time periods being between the fifties and seventies. Key inspirations taken forward in the collection from this time period were iconic silhouettes and garment attributes, such as jumpsuit’s, flared trousers. It was in the 1970s that Adidas began its clothing line and so inspiration was also gathered from their garment designs at this time, such as the full tracksuit and and specific logo applications at this time. Colour was inspired from Adidas signature use of black and white, fusing this with Paloma’s standout fiery orange hair. Bringing energy to the collection two prints were developed, these were inspired by Palomas ecelectic fabric choices within her style. The mix of fabrics and revival of iconic fashion styles, make this collection unique in todays market and its versatility appeals to a wider audience.