TRENDS // FEATURE - S/S 2015 MEGATRENDS BY GREG TACKETT

Friday, November 1, 2013

Greg Tackett is an M.F.A candidate in the Luxury and Fashion Management program at the Savannah College of Art and Design.  His main focus is luxury brand management and marketing.  His Spring/Summer 2015 Megatrends project focuses on key future trends. The key trends in his report are Intergalactic Prosperity, Natural Liberation and Technological Urbanization.  Below is a preview of his report, Intergalactic Prosperity.  To read the full report and to view his portfolio, go here.

Greg Tackett's report may not be copied without his permission.

comments | | Read More...

TRENDS // FEATURE . MARTIJN VAN STRIEN - RECESSION FASHION . 2015

Friday, October 4, 2013

Meet Martijn Van Strien who is based in the Netherlands, developed a keen interest while at the Design Academy in Eindhoven creating and developing textile for the fashion industry.  He also has a passion for identifying trends and forecasting the direction for future concepts and products then translating concepts into materials or garments. Visit his site to learn more about him and his work, martijnvanstrien.com.

Martijn's trends for 2015, Recession Fashion is a concept on Russia's influence on world fashion.  With his permission, below are a few pages of his report.  You can view the entire report on his site.

comments | | Read More...

DESIGNER FEATURE - LILY ATTWOOD

Thursday, August 15, 2013

Lily Attwood studied at Central Saint Martins and is incredibly talented. She has interned for some pretty incredible design studios, Proenza Schouler, John Galliano, Richard James Savile Row and Louise Gray to name a few.  When we received Lily's portfolio, we were thrilled to feature her.  She has quite an amazing collection in her portfolio where she shows her inspirational mood boards, print designs and the finished product.  Below are a few of her images, and she has many more that it was so difficult to choose.  Read her story below as she shares her journey to design which all started by being surrounded by inspirational parents and friends.  

I grew up in Brighton with a mother who worked in fashion and a father in design. Visiting my mum at work first started my interest in fashion, going into the studio, looking at the vintage pieces used for inspiration and being given all of the samples that turned out to be too small even for the japanese market! My dad had to travel a lot for work so we spent a few years living in Saudi Arabia and America. This exposure to different cultures really shaped my eclectic taste and my own desire to travel. Growing up in Brighton was a very creative environment and my family and their friends were always very involved in the art festival. Soon I began to sell my drawings and photographs there too. Looking back at early art projects, they always had a textile like quality to them but it took me while to realise that I was going to pursue that path. Gaining a place to study at Central Saint Martins had always been my dream so I couldn't believe it when it actually happened. As well as having the most incredible, dedicated tutors, I learnt so much from my peers and made friends for life. My placement year before graduation was the most enriching and enjoyable time in my life. After spending some time on Savile Row completing a project for Swarovski I flew out to New York to work for a Menswear Designer. I then spent three months in Paris doing print design before going back to New York to work for my favourite brand Proenza Schouler. It was an amazing company to work for with an incredible team and beautiful design studio. Now I've finished my collection I'm really enjoying the opportunity to complete some self initiated projects but after August I'll be seeking a full time design role in London, Paris, Milan or New York.

© Lily Attwood - all rights reserved.   Layout may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, photocopying, or otherwise, without prior written permission. 

comments | | Read More...

DESIGNER FEATURE - AMANDA HARRISSON

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

An impressive new talent, Amanda Harrisson has been shortlisted for the VOGUE Talents competition. She needs your votes to secure her place in the finals and hopefully go on to win. To vote for Amanda please go to http://www.muuse.com/#!vogue2013/483-amanda-harrisson . 

Amanda Harrisson Central Saint Martins recent fashion print graduate has a unique talent for incorporating illustration into fashion. Her stunning final collection of hand drawn black and white portraits which took over a staggering 300 hours to draw of contemporary icons. Amanda told us she "wanted to create a fully hand drawn collection, and my inspiration came from looking at Renaissance paintings and religious iconography of Northern European art. I was interested in the portrayal of cultural icons throughout art history" she went on to say "I decided to create a collection using my own contemporary fashion icons" and we think you'll agree she certainly has achieved this. Integrated textured prints, laser cut lace and jewels with Swarovski-sponsored crystals engineered within the print to create an illusionary effect. Challenging use of fabrics normally found in luxury jets and the backdrop on film-sets means her part-time Chemistry Degree via the Open University as well as her full time degree at Central Saint Martins has certainly paid off. Amanda wanted her final collection to acknowledge her love of nanotechnology within the collection and to use the basic concept of reshaping fabrics, manipulating fabrics and understanding the synthetic composure of fabric. Taking a smart fabric concept of adapting and changing this was utilised incorporating shimmering fabric which projected an electrotextile visual  without the weaving of computer components into the fabric.

British born Amanda Harrisson, 23 has racked up an impressive nine internships whilst studying Fashion Print during her studies at the prestigious Central Saint Martins. Internships include Balmain, Viktor & Rolf, John Galliano, Mary Katrantzou, Gareth Pugh, Alexander McQueen, Bruce Oldfield, Zandra Rhodes and Liberty of London. Amanda also successfully won Liberty of London Award and this resulted in her fabric print created for Liberty; this fabric was sold out within days and is still currently sold out online. 

Even before graduation, Amanda appeared in Vogue Italia and she has received offers from all over the world for commissions, requests to exhibit her final collection, requests to stock her final collection. Editorials are already booked into her diary and requests keep coming in. Amanda said, "the response to my collection from not only the fashion world but the art world, has been overwhelming." Amanda's determination, hard work and driven attitude has definitely paid off and she most certainly has a bright future ahead of her.

If you would like to take a further look at the collection, then go to www.amandaharrisson.com or follow Amanda @amandaharrisson.

© Amanda Harrisson - all rights reserved.   Layout may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, photocopying, or otherwise, without prior written permission. 

comments | | Read More...

FEATURE - JUDY WU . FASHION DESIGNER

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Our featured designer is Judy Wu, a graduate of Central Saint Martin's in London.  Judy Wu has worked for the House of Holland, Jasmine De Melo and Ne-tiger - a couture house in Shanghai, before embarking on the launch of her own label this year. Representing chic elegance with a playful yet hard edge, Judy Wu combines structural pattern cutting techniques with with the finest fabrics to create truly unique garments. 

Her debut A/W 13 collection 'A Crack in Time' is inspired by an ancient Chinese totem. Totem symbols such as dragons, clouds, waves and fire are recreated through laser-cut tinted suede, silk and leather. Juxtaposing fabrics sit together to represent different symbols living in tandem. Luxurious fabrics are used to create each piece including 100% wool, cashmere blended wool, 100% silk and lamb nappa leather. As a luxury women's wear label, the recommended retail price begins at £200.

Judy Wu is currently stocked widely across Japan and the label is now focused upon establishment within the UK market. You can visit her website here to learn more about Judy Wu, an insight to her collection and images of her press coverage. 

Below are images from her A/W 2013 look book where you can view the entire collection here.  Also, stay tuned for her S/S 2014 collection....

© Judy Wu - all rights reserved.   Layout may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, photocopying, or otherwise, without prior written permission. 

comments | | Read More...

FEATURE - LESLEY MEROLA . HUNT + GATHER STUDIO

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Lesley Merola is a talented textile designer based in beautiful Taos, New Mexico and I love her amazing work.  She started her studio Hunt + Gather after spending more than a decade designing for various fashion and home furnishing companies in NYC.  Her studio now creates original digital artwork for your textile and surface design needs, as well as design services.  

We are also thrilled to have her on board as an FV contributor.  Go here to visit her website and to follow her inspirational and informative blog, go here.

© Lesley Merola/Hunt+Gather - all rights reserved.   Layout may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, photocopying, or otherwise, without prior written permission. 

comments | | Read More...

FEATURE - ERIC MATYASH . FASHION DESIGNER

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Our feature today are fashion designers Matjaz Plosinjak and Eric Maj Potocnik who established their fashion brand MEM couture in 2004 and worked under that label until September 2012, when they rebranded it as Eric Matyash. The new name starts a new chapter and liberates from needless brand labeling. To learn more about the designers and to view their lovely storytelling collections, go here.

The collection La Métamorphose (spring/summer 2013) gets inspired by changes in designers’ lives. The spirit of their femme fatale remains present. Nostalgia for the past and their fiction of the future both meet in the present time. The reign of blackness. Black is not monotonous, it changes and creates contrasts with itself. It can be clean matte and dark as autumn night at the countryside, or it can shine as well. It can be plain or even full of various shades and structures, enriching well-defined, almost geometric silhouettes. The black colour is being supplemented by chartreuse-yellow, symbolising brightness and the positivism of the morning sun. A palette of various fabrics is being used in this collection – from very light silk materials, viscose and soft velvet, to contemporary polyester materials, such as the quilted latex, sporty softshell and the very sophisticated lurex with the silver thread. The collection is being supplemented with wide silver zippers at the back of most of the skirts and with woollen hats inspired by nostalgic hairstyles. The skirt and jacket, hand-made of thousands of viscose ribbons, precisely inserted in the basic form, are certainly two of the most outstanding designs of this small collection.

© Eric Matyash - all rights reserved.   Layout may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, photocopying, or otherwise, without prior written permission. 

comments | | Read More...