Remember Me

A while ago, after completing my first year of fashion design at university, I found myself with a three month summer holiday on my hands... most would leap, but for me relaxation equals work of some enjoyable nature. So knowing that the temperatures were above 50°C outside and my husband was working all day, I set myself a personal design project... the most fulfilling (and selfish) kind of art. Alas some weeks went by, I ended up not returning to college but instead starting a full time job as an assistant designer with one of my teachers, who had resigned from teaching and started up a new fashion venture. So although it took me a lot longer than anticipated and the project slowly diminished in largeness from the original expectation of its brief, I have finally completed it. 
The concept was a two part mini collection (originally four part, perhaps the other two will follow in months to come) of looks that suit the modern wife's wardrobe. With four individual themes: 'Birds of a feather', 'Grecian',  'Organic' and 'Nautical'... two looks from each theme per collection. The genre's of the collection were: 'Manaheim' - Lingerie, and 'Esther' - Evening wear. Complete with mood boards, colour cards, technical drawings and sketches. Here are just one or two pages from the finished project.

Four of the looks from 'Manaheim'

'Manaheim' birds inspired look

Four looks from 'Esther'

'Esther' organic look

Part of the collection overview

Beginning with a nude

So returning to my endeavor of tracking my artistic 'progress' on this blog feels a little like trying to go on a diet... again. But, alas, I shall shake off the feeling of failure and push onwards. Where better then to begin (again), but with a nude. 
My mom is an artist. Growing up she regularly gave small 'workshops' to groups of kind ladies from church and my sister and I learnt to while away the time playing at the back of the hall, or more often than not, sitting in the front row and absorbing her immense knowledge, wisdom and passion on the subject. This, I believe, is where I learnt to paint, however, my mom's main medium was chalk pastel, a technique of art which differs greatly from any wet paint medium. When I came to an age where a blank canvas began to tempt me, my medium of choice was acrylic. Thus I have developed a style of painting which merges something of the technique of pastels with acrylic paint... something, I am told, that is fairly unique. 

Paris Project

In about two weeks time I will venture into the very electronic impulse that pumps the heart of the fashion industry. An international fabric fair called ‘Première Vision’ in Paris, where about eight thousand fabric manufactures, thousands of more fashion designers and other creative’s besides will gather to sift through a variable plantation of fabrics. We shall rummage through to find all that is perfect in weight, hand, colour, drape, price, yardage, performance and feel for each of the hundreds of designs that my colleague and I have been working on for the last couple of months. I am daunted. Not least of all by the problem of my wardrobe… having lived in the desert for three years, I own exactly two winter garments. Just two. In the space of two weeks, on a self-imposed min budget, I need to design, make, alter and buy a wardrobe suitable for a professional five-day work trip into winter’s style wonderland. I begin with one winter coat of coarse brown/black wool and one pair of relatively warm black trousers. I shall post further upon progression.

The first

I shall march straight into the meat of the matter then, since I think that, those of you who are interested, will find out whatever it is about me that a first blog post is supposed to say along the way. As I begin I have some illusions of this blog being about art, design, dance, style and possibly some philosophy since those are a few components of what I am about. But, perhaps we shall judge that at some more advanced stage.  For now I leave the vast universe of explanation to One more qualified at such things than me and simply begin to think about what might possibly interest any individual who stumbles upon this humble page of mine.