BREIF: To propose a range of research and related ideas that would help to develop a unique concept for young professionals.
The collection will be designed for TOPSHOP/TOPMAN and should consist of menswear and womenwear on the 18-23 year demographic particularly interested in exploring new ideas for established young professionals.
My research will show an understanding of this age based targeted customer i.e. 25 years plus and will provide evidence of developing a unique illustration style based on three illustrators that i have selected and analysed. I will show examples of these in my own illustrations.
My theme is 80's inspired.
Introducing
Eighties Street Boss
80's inspired Apparel Design for young professionals.
Classic Inspiration
Stranger Things, the breakout Netflix Original Series hooked audiences with its impeccable recreation of the nostalgic 1980s sci fi film genre that has made it such a monumental hit with its throw back to the fashion style in the 80s. So this set the direction of were i wanted to go with the theme.
I'm a child of the 80's. Born in 1981 I grew up in an era of asymmetric hem lines, over-sized blazers, Shoulder pads and perms. The '80s was a decade of bold style, colours, and a more masculine silhouette with trends from leather suits to ripped tights and peplums.
My favourite designers of the 80s
designers such as Karl Lagerfeld and Thierry Mulger gave us high end fashion that was luxurious in the creation and production of their merchandise. their use of layers and bold colours stood out and was a break from the norm.
Karl Lagerfield in the Eighties
Thierry Mulger in the Eighties
My favourite illustrators of the Eighties
Rene Gruau.
Rene Gruau illustrations are so simple yet effective. His illustrations are effortless, Gruau puts emphasis on the bold colour of his clothes in the picturs below, with little other colour included. there is no use of skin tones and his overall images are seem blurred and unfinished. His garments are given movement with paint brush strokes. i like the white backround in his pics and the fact he coloured only his garments.
My favourite illustrators of today
Alessia Zambonin
Alessia Zambonin is one of my favourite illustrators today. Alessia her illustrations in sketch form and colour. unlike Rene Gruau Alessia's illustrations concentrates on the overall image and giving it life and movement with her use of colour, and skin tones and her facial features.
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Hayden Williams
Haydens use of exaggerated figures and bold bright colours stands out to me. What is most attractive about her illustrations is the enlarged faded figure in the backround. This has impact allows the illustrator to emphasis on certain areas of the illustration all the while adding drama to the overall image.
Young professionals of the 80's
the young professionals of the 80s did not seem so young at the time all that was seen was the designer suits and brief cases. In my opinion what was lost in all this was the fact that these young professionals ranged in ages form post graduate students in their late teens to late 20s but the fashion sense at the time did not represent that. introducing the YUPPIE....
Today's young professionals
Fast forward to today's young professionals and things are slightly different. the designs are more youthful yet still remain strong and professional and there is a lot more diversity. its not all about the full suit but more about mixing it up with more casual garments like jeans dresses and tank tops. overall staying youthful. on the other hand i feel that they lack colour and trend . What i would like to see is a bit more sass. young ones today tend to go from work to pub and sometimes to club so this should be considered when im designing my range.
Customer profile
Brody
Brody is a 28 year old Fashion stylist who works for a number of well known high street stores. she is well established in her field therefore has more money than the younger profiles and enjoys spending it on the newest trends. Between meetings and client one to ones Brody is always on the go and likes to look trendy and practical for both herself.
chad
Chad is a 23 year old Fashion buyer. He is quite urban and trendy. Chad is very tuned in and has confidence he is very professional and portrays this in his clothing choices. He is well travelled because of his job and wants to look on top of his urban game while travelling yet be comfortable and practical. He has an eye for fashion but has a taste for street style and like Brody has that extra cash to spend on his clothes.
Trend forecasting
WGSN colour pallette
FREESTYLE
The colour style i have chosen from the color forecast on WGSN is free style. it features beacons of bright and neutrals.
The Runway
My design range for TOPSHOP/TOPMAN
Colourboard
Illustrations
When designing my illustrations I used elements from the historical illustrators previously mentioned. I will incorporate the pale white skin tones and blurred image of Gruau, this will be achieved by using "Water paper" filter form the filter gallery on photoshop. I will use the double figures (sketched and coloured) from Alessia Zambonin and the enlarged faded images in the backround from Hayden willing. All my illustrations were coloured on Photoshop. I designed my garments for my theme
"Eighties Street Boss" and separated them into three different styles.
Slay street
Uptown Funky
Street Sass
Working Drawings
Below are my working drawings for each of my TOPSHOP Look I designed.
Evaluation
During the design process for Eighties Street Boss trends and forecasts for A/W 19/20 from WGSN were researched and used in the colour selection and fabric choices. Each design had both the everyday TOPSHOP customer and the young professional in mind. Research carried out from previous trends indicated the direction of the design process. The range is best described as stylish and practical for both working and socialising and are of a high standard allowing them to effortlessly integrate with TOPSHOPS current trends. The work produced selected elements from professional online sources, books and online fashion sites related to the overall design process in the fashion industry. Eighties Street Boss is professional from start to finish and gives the company vision of what is to come. There were technical constraints encountered during the design process for Eighties Street Boss.When creating the specification sheets with flat drawings. Photoshop and Adobe illustrator were both used in the process. It was extremely time consuming due to the lack of knowledge in this particular area. However after referring to you tube tutorials and researching spec sheets of the industry today the results were of a high standard. Overall this design Assignment was completed to a high standard if i were to change anything it would be my knowledge of CAD and how to use it effieciently.
