Fashion Illustrated

This week is all about fashion illustrations...

Unless you went to middle school or high school with me, you probably would not know that I have a deep background in art. I moved to America at age 11 and not knowing a word of English, I spent most of my time at school drawing. In fact some of my teachers really liked my drawings and even allowed me to turn in a drawing related to what we were learning for a grade, since I didn't understand anything in class.

That was when I began to discover my creativity talents, which led me to where I am today, a fashion designer. 

I would like to share with my readers three of my favorite fashion illustrators. They are masters of their techniques and their work exudes an incredible amount of creativity.

The first artist I would like to share is Laura Laine, a Finnish artist who masters the use of pencil and ink. Her style is so precise, yet so fluid and organic at the same time. Her illustrations feature beautiful line work and with extremely intricate details. The atmosphere is eerie and wave of hair seems to be growing endlessly. I love Laura's work because she is a great inspiration for silhouettes techniques, fabric prints, facial expressions, and of course, hair.

"Elle Girl" by Laura Laine

"Oeil de la Mode" by Laura Elaine

"Zara" by Laura Elaine

My next artist is Nuno Dacosta. He is a fashion and beauty illustrator from London. Some of his works had even made it on Vogue Magazine. He mainly use water colors and acrylic gouache, with a bit of media retouching. I love to look at his work for inspirations on facial features, eyes, and skin colors. His faces are so breath taking to me and they are drawn almost to perfection. I can stare into the drawing's eyes and be mesmerized by them!

illustrationweb.com/artists/NunoDaCosta

illustrationweb.com/artists/NunoDaCosta

illustrationweb.com/artists/NunoDaCosta

Last but not least, Masaki Mizuno, a Japanese artist who master detailed handwork and coloring techniques. He has worked with acrylic, air brush, and rollers. His work mainly features faces and fabric prints. He is also great at illustrating a variety of hair styles. I draw inspirations from his faces, eyes, hair, and beautiful shading techniques. His works are also very dark and eerie, sometimes seems like the model has been haunted.

"Alexander McQueen" by Masaki Mizuno

"Body Stoking" by Masaki Mizuno

"The Flower Shirt" by Masaki Mizuno

I hope these beautiful artworks inspired you, too, just like they inspired me. They makes me want to stat a new drawing... right now.

And since we are on the topic of fashion illustration, I thought it would be fun to show you some of my own fashion sketches. 

These illustrations are from a series collection named "Twiggy's Doll House".  It is inspired by Barbies that are dressed in 1920s garments. The focus of the series is on fabric prints, but of course the poses and facial features add some extra spice to each pieces. For this particular series, I used Prisma Color Markers, which can be found at Hobby Lobby or Michaels. My favorite medium of choice, however, has to be water color. I love that it is so free and organic, and it blends so well to create any color that you can imagine.

So there it is. Lots and lots of beautiful illustrations for your eyes to feast on.

Until next time, just remember, "Fashion and art cannot exist without each other."

I Spy With My Little Eyes

Since all of my classmates have shared their studio space/ living space/ both, I thought I should share mine, too. So here it is, my small little apartment room that is an obstacle course when I need to get out of the bed.

I don't think I have gotten adequate sleep the past weeks... actually no... months. And when I am so busy with so many projects and competitions... this is what happens to my room.
So I woke up today and realized that it has gotten to this point, and had the idea to blog about it.

It is disgusting and embarrassing. I know. I don't think in my whole life my bed room had ever got this bad. It looks like a page out of an I Spy book!
HOWEVER, I am cleaning it right now since I have some free time for the first time since forever.

See the brown desk at the top left corner? That used to be my sewing station. When the room started swallowing me in, the sewing and patterning station was now moved to the living room where the mess had also taken over...
Every drawers in the room is filled with fabrics, trims, and notions that I had accumulated over time. My bathroom is filled with fabric bolts and even my is closet filled with garments I have made.

Until next time, just remember, "A cluttered space is a sign of a genius."

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The Little Black Dress Project

This week I am working on a fashion competition garment for The Little Black Dress Project sponsored by The Neal Hamil Agency in collaboration with the Fashion Group International of Houston. A little fun fact from my fashion history class is that the little black dress was introduced to us by none other than Coco Chanel in the 1920s . Ever since, the little black dress has become every women's staple item in her closet. It can be dressed up for cocktails or evening occasions, or dressed down for day wear and lunch outings.
This competition challenge designers to to once again reinvent and create their own version of the little black dress.


I thought it would be fun to show my lovely readers my process of creating this design, from the original sketch to the finished garment.

I was inspired by the artist Carlo Zinelli from the Art Brut Movement. This art movement stems from the the idea of  mental institutions. The subject matters are usually dark, illustrated by rough and rugged scribbles, doodles, and writings. 

This is my favorite painting from Zinelli that I found during my research, which I used as my sole inspiration behind my little black dress design.

I created a series of thumbnails sketches with a variety of silhouettes and techniques before I decided to go with this design. This fashion illustration is a water color painting on paper, combined with some finishing touches of pen and ink. 

My design features a classic 20's silhouettes with a contemporary cut out square back. I used black cotton fabric with a genuine leather neck line. The design utilize ruffles sewn together to create the poof skirt, topped off with intricate hand beading and  hand sewn yarns and fibers to create contrasting textures on the the bodice.

The 1st step in designing this garment is draping and patterning the garment. Then a muslin is created to check the fit and construction issues before it is made with the final fabric.

After any problems with the pattern are corrected, the final fabric was cut and sewn together to create the front and back bodice.

Next is the fun - but tedious part - cutting out the ruffles. Each ruffle is cut from a circle to create a wave as it falls from the skirt hemline. I believe several hundreds of ruffles was cut... I have lost count...

All the ruffles are then arranged to fit to the hemline, and then sewn together.

Last but not least, beading, beading, beading...
I went and dug through my basket of trims and pulled out everything black, gray, and silver that can be used to bead and create textures. I also went to buy some additional glass beads from Joann Fabrics and Crafts store.

Finally, the finished garment that I have painstakingly hand beaded and embroidered... 

Up close of the beading and embroidering...

Thanks for checking out my project! Come back to get updated results from the contest!

Fall 2013 Trendboard - The Colors of Rust

This week I was introduced to the "storyboard" feature on Stylesight, a site dedicated to fashion and art trends used by industry professionals. I was inspired to create two trendboards featuring my take on upcoming trends in 2013. 

This trendboard is called "Rusted" and it is inspired by an image of a rusted vintage car. I loved the shades of reds and browns in the image and I was so inspired to create a collection based on those colors. I was also intrigued by the interesting textures from the image. My color story was inspired by a photo of a granite rock in shades of browns. I researched several runway trends that used this color pallet and found this beautiful Vivienne Westwood handbag from Fall 11. I also found a very interesting rusted red fur coat from Frankie Morello from Fall 05. My favorite has to be this Valentin Yudashkin look with a long maxi dress with red and purple shades, completed with a brown leather jacket. Some silhouettes that I would like to pair with this trend are long chiffon dresses paired with a vest or jacket. Also some light weight blouses paired with maxi skirts or exaggerated wide legged pants.

What do you think of the trendboard? Do you think this trend will hit the market next year? 

Spring 2013 Trendboard - The Toy Trinket

This is my other trendboard and it is called "The Toy Trinket". The trendboard was inspired by the idea of youth and childhood, and it explores playful colors and prints.

My color story was inspired by a painting by Adrian Ghenie. I really love the pop of colors in this painting combined with shades of dark purples and browns. My runway fashion inspirations came from a long maxi printed dress by D&G that just came out this Spring 2012! I was also inspired by a printed Talbot Runhof Spring 2012 dress just previously came out in Paris fashion week.

Shilhouettes I would like to see these trends in include printed dresses and blouses that can be paired with wide legged pants.

What do you think of this trendboard? What other pieces would go well with this colorful trend?

The Future of Cotton

One of the biggest things that will influence consumer fashion trends this year is the rising price of cotton. With the many recent droughts, forest fires, and the high rising temperatures of Texas and in the US overall, cotton prices have surged upward within the past recent years. In 2012, shoppers will begin to notice a price increase in their cotton shirts, pants, day dresses, denim, undergarments, etc. 

Cotton Council International Promotional Ad

  

According to CBS News, one solution to the problem is for manufacturers to mark up their prices. This becomes a difficult challenge for retail chains that sell low cost and fast trends fashion like Forever 21 and H&M. When their target consumers are budget shoppers, price mark ups pose a real threat to driving away their customers. 

H & M Organic Cotton Ad Campaigns

Stylesight news predicts that consumers will buy more clothing with blended fabric contents. Some popular fibers used to blend with cotton are Polyester, Nylon, Viscose, and Linen blends because they look and feel like cotton.








Denim manufactures especially have research the many cotton blends alternatives that will actually increase performance and reduce the price of denim. Some popular denim blends include TENCEL® lyocell, recycled polyester, recycled cotton, standard polyester, polyurethane, and Lycra® T400 elastane.

Denim look from Frida Gustavsson Blog

 On an interesting note, I recently read a Wall Street Journal article, “Chinese Take Cotton to Hoarding,” by Carolyn Cui. Cui reports a Chinese farmer hoarding a stockpile of cotton in his home, waiting for cotton price to continue rising, hoping to sell them for more money to make up for the rising cost of fertilizer and labor. These farmers heard news that the world was running short of cotton, simply because the demand for it is so high in China, the world’s largest producer of cotton. 

Farmer Yu Feng Hoarding His Stockpile of around 7,700 pounds of Cotton

 

As the climate effects of global warming becomes more drastic, not only is the price of cotton rising, but also many other natural and regenerated fibers, like silk, wool, and flax, are seeing a price increase. So what is the future of natural fibers?

According to Stylesight, scientists and manufacturers have been researching innovative and renewable resources for future textiles. One of which is bamboo regenerated fibers, which have become popular in the past few years. Others are milk, coffee, coconut, corn, and wood. These resources are still in their infancy and are relatively high priced, but with today growing technology, consumers will soon see these in stores.

Some Renewable Resources Featured on Stylesight

German biochemist/ designer Anke Domaske and her new fashion line created from milk

Check our this video of designer Anke Domaske photo shoot for her new milk clothing line campaign where she explains more about the process of turning milk into a textile. 

Trends Spotting at UNT

  This week in one of my fashion class we were introduced to Bill Cunningham, world famous fashion photographer who have made a career from taking snapshots on the streets of New York. Cunningham photos have been featured in renounced magazines and are adored by top fashion editors.

So for one week I set out to be the Bill Cunningham of UNT. I walked around campus in search of odd and fabulous trends worth gossiping about.

One of my fave spotted trend is the denim on denim look.

Denim on denim has always been casted as a fashion no-no, even I myself would never have the courage to attempt such a trend. Yet I came across these daring ladies who rocked this look. Way to go ladies, because you guys are looking fabulous!

 

Tribal prints are definitely in right now. This is a trend that must be worn with confident and personality. 

 

Okay I know you will love this very glam trend: FUR

Ever since I have gotten he chance to work with fur in the International Fur REMIX Competition, I have been keeping an eye for fur trends. I am very interested in the many different colors and textures of fur, as well as the many ways the fur can be incorporated in everyday outfits. I even notice the different types of closures used on fur items. 

Check out this super trendy fur vest paired with a contrasting orange handbag. 

 

I am so in LOVE with this gorgeous fur boots! I had to dodge cars across a street to catch this shot!

 

I have always has a love for handbags and accessories, so of course, I have to take pictures of these awesome across the shoulder bags that I came across.

Over the shoulder bags are so fashionable, yet functional to have as a college student. It can be used both a purse and a book bag. You can even stash in there your favorite beauty products or a light lunch snack.

 

Bonus: FAVORITE find of the week:

This amazing tribal printed handbag!

Isn’t it to die for? This bag must have been hand weaved because there is no way this can be store bought. It is totally unique and can be paired with modern pieces to create a totally edgy look.

My Inspirations

Among the beautiful things in life that inspires me, some of the most important have to be nature, art, architecture, and the simple everyday objects around me.

Photo of a plant that I took as inspiration

    Nature brings out the feminine side of my work. It is soft, organic, intricate, and dynamic in movements. The little things in nature sometimes are considered insignificant and ignored, like a dead tree, an insect, or a tiny leaf; they are all beautiful to me. 

I incorporate nature in my design from the use of asymmetrical designs with intricate details, like my handmade roses, beading, tulle and lace fabrics. 

"Dragonfly" watercolor 22" x 30"

This was a dress I designed after closely studying insects in a laboratory for several days.

A page in my sketchbook

I have a rich background in art ever since I was a child. I had always draw inspirations from my own artwork or work from other artists. 

Art brings out the fun, colorful, and creative side of me. It reminds me that rules are there to break and that I should live in the moment and let my feelings and emotions guide my design.

Architecture inspires the edginess and structural side of my work. Studying architecture intrigues me because it is deliberate, strong, calculated, and brings modern touches to my designs.

Elements of architecture can be seen in my work of corsets, jackets, sportswear pieces, and handbags.

"McConnel Tower" Ink on paper 22" x 18"

 For a week I sat in front of the UNT Administration Building to create this piece.

Everyday objects can also have a big influence on me. I may walk through a thrift store and see something that is considered trash and turn it into something beautiful that I can incorporate in my work. Sometimes I will find an interesting handbag or clothing item in my closet with a beautiful color, print, or design element that will inspire my next creation.

Still-life of some objects that I drew. Complementary pastel colors. 22" x  18"