Cottage Monday

Recently found a new form of inspiration.

Tame Impala

This band dances to the beat of their own drum. When I hear and see them I get a strong sense that they know who they are. And I also get a feeling that they have a good sense of humor.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxvf7gR4-2M

Carolyn Baxtor

Inspirations-the woman wearing my dresses.I always have the image of the type of woman I like to see in my dresses in my head or ripped out of magazines and pinned to an image board. I like to imagine what her life is like and design to this imaginary character. She's like a Muse to me in design. Women like Raquel Welch from the 70's- think mega glamour and of course big hair!I always just use my image bored to raid though magazines and stick pictures up of details and colour combinations I like.

WHERE DID I STUDY?I studied at Edinburgh College of Art- a four year fashion BA Hons. I went to a 6 month private portfolio course before to build a portfolio to get into Art school.

HOW LONG HAVE I WORKED FOR MYSELF-It took me a while to work out what I wanted to do and what avenue I wanted to go into in design and as soon as I designed a dress for Miss Universe Contestant I knew that was my thing! That was a year ago and since then I have been sewing like mad and have been lucky enough even to have Gok Wan compliment my dress when worn at Miss Scotland.

PLANS FOR THE FUTUREI plan on designing set styles in set colours and selling them wholesale to boutiques. This way I will get my dresses on the rail in an actual shop but I have to look into costing as the shops take a big cut of the dresses and if I can lower my material costs I will still be able to make a profit. The best way of selling though is directly to the customer as there is more profit there but shops get people seeing your designs.

IMPORTANT IN DESIGN
Be true to yourself!Make sure you do not loose who you are in a design to cater for someone else. Don't stray too far from your aesthetic. And make sure you pay yourself enough!! It's easy to get so emotionally attached to your work but remember it has to pay the bills!!

November Rain

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SbUC-UaAxE

Novemeber Rain is probably one of my favorite music videos of all time, featuring a dress I have wanted ever since i was a little girl and Guns and Roses being one of my favorite bands since i was two years of age.

The video (directed by Andrew "Andy" Morahan) portrays Axl marrying his then-girlfriend , intercut with a live performance in a theatre. Particularly, it can be noted for its large budget (about $1.5 million, including a dress worn by Stephanie Seymour worth $8,000) and stunning cinematography. It is one of the most expensive music videos ever. Lead guitarist Slash is prominently featured in some of the video's most memorable scenes, including an epic sequence of helicopter shots swooping around him as he plays the first guitar solo and a later scene where he plays the third solo while standing on Axl's piano onstage. Casting co-ordinator Mark Roberton observed; "the camera-man had a lot of responsibility, as the crane-cam was so close to Slash, precariously stood atop a piano that was near the stage edge. One wrong twitch and the guitarist would've had a long drop!". The video for "November Rain" uses the full version of the song as opposed to an abridged version. A theatre in downtown Los Angeles was acquired for an evening shoot that went several hours into the night, and, unlike usual common practice, they didn't mime for any of the takes. Between several differing versions of "November Rain", while the cameras on cranes that swooped close to Slash's frets were reviewed and set up for the next shot - the band entertained the 1,500 extras by playing more of their songs.

Little Flower

Three Days Till Hand In...

I have now completed two garments i just have myshort jacket to complete,

I have enjoyed the process of making these garments. i have had no major problems so far.

Royal Wedding

White gown by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen. According to a release from Clarence House:“The lace applique for the bodice and skirt was handmade by the Royal School of Needlework, with individual flowers hand-cut from lace ,in shapes of roses, thistle, daffodils and shamrocks. The dress is made of ivory and white satin gazar with a skirt in the shape of an opening flower. The satin bodice, narrowed at the waist and padded at the hips in a McQueen signature, is based on Victorian corsetry. The back is finished with 58 gazar and organza covered buttons.The veil, made of ivory silk tulle with a trim of hand-embroidered flowers, is held in place by a 1936 Cartier tiara, lent to Ms. Middleton by the Queen. (It was bought for her mother by the Duke of York and presented to Queen Elizabeth on her 18th birthday.) Ms. Middleton’s earrings—shaped like oak leaves with a pave set diamond acorn suspended in the center—are by Robinson Pelham. The shoes are also by McQueen.”

Would You Wear a Dress This High?

Ashley Olsen in vintage Dior or Rosie Huntington-Whiteley in Burberry—the upper-leg area hasn’t gotten so much attention since Suzanne Somers’ ThighMaster heyday. “We wanted to do something fun,” said Jason Wu of the hip-high slit on the skirt he made for Diane Kruger’s march up the Met’s steps. While most designers go straight for red-carpet appeal with sky-high slashes.

Tangled

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awlBswjJC-g

Topshop

Nice to see topshop is improving, I have not been on the store lately just been on the website. They seem to have a wider range of designers and collections. I do like the fact that Meadham Kirchhoff has created a little collection for the store. Danielle Scutt has been given a commision with her jewellery which also improves the range of products.

new print

Details A/W 11

This Autmn Winter is going to be heavily embroidered paying heavy attention to detail and silloette. We also see some wolf and fox fur creeping into the Oscar De La Renta Collection teamed with Indian embroidery.

Cutting Out Pattern

I am so pleased the print fits alright acording to the sepecific print I designed, it would have been a disaster if the pattern didn't fit on. I have sewed up one garment, i am really pleased with how it has turned out all that time creating the print was definatly worth it. I will get my other two prints hopefully printed out this week and into the fabric dropbox. Then i will have enough time to complete my final garments ready for hand in.