Mini Project - Skeleton/Human Body inspired dress

For my sisters 21st Birthday I decided to make a dress for when we went out for a celebratory dinner. I purchased some fabric in Bristol, the colours which I think have been subconsciously inspired by Parisian Architecture seeing as I have been working with them for such a long time!

I decided to use the human skeleton and body as inspiration as I find it very interesting. Particularly the ribcage, spine and breasts. I have enjoyed life drawing throughout the Foundation Diploma in Art and Design hugely and I find the natural human body so beautiful.












There is something about the naked body that is very personal and almost a big secret. Showing skin has been said to be a way of showing confidence. However, it has also been described as indecent exposure. Clothes are used to cover up the skin and the skin is used to cover up bones and organs so in a way, showing bones is exposing something even more personal so shows more confidence.




I wanted to design a dress that celebrates the naked human body and skeleton in a classy way.

I would have liked to spend more time on this project and get more out of it!

Bralet Design and Making - 1 day project

Underwear as Outwear
 A few drawings from my sketchbook to show the design process of my bralet.

 I still had a load of this red stripy fabric left over from my previous mini project so I decided to make a bralet rather than spend £20 or so on one from the high street. The fabric has a cute 1950's feel to it which I love!

I've never made my own pattern before so I found this a real challenge. I wanted the bra cup cut into three sections so that when they are joined to the rest of the bralet (as you can see) they make a sweet heart shape giving the 'sweetheart neckline' a purpose. The holey, embroidered fabric on the ribcage adds a subtle sexy feel to it. The stripes all pointing in different directions make the bust look very 3D and in effect larger than in reality. Always a bonus!

Photoshoot

Curtosy of my model, Charlotte Hamer

For this photoshoot I made sure to keep the background colours neautral to keep the focus on the skirt.

Through using very strong sunlight I was able to create dramatic contrast from the natural shadows made by the gathers and ruffles. This keeps the eye focused on the skirt.

Deconstruct Reconstruct

In groups of 3-4, we were given a man's shirt and told to take it apart and reconstruct it into something modern in approximately 1 hour. My group and I felt it was important not to overdo it as the material was already striped so lots of decoration would give too much for the eye to look at and may look tacky.