A little embellishing goes a long way...

I've always been in love with Elsa Schiaparelli as both an artist and a designer. She was the Queen of bridging Art and Fashion together, which is everything I believe in. I could go on and on and on about her but I wont... I recently flicked through her book 'Shocking' which you can buy on ebay/amazon (for a SHOCKING price) and was really inspired by her embellishments on coats, jackets and dresses. Throughout my posts this month I've said how I am looking at re-defining the fashions we already have - improving/designing/painting/re-sewing things that we would maybe throw out, in the hope of creating a greener future in fashion!


My sister bought me this denim jacket for my birthday about 3 years ago and yes, everyone needs a denim jacket, it's a necessity - but I have 2 already so this one has kind of taken a back seat in my wardobe. I thought hmm.. I won't throw it out, but still what good is it sitting here doing nothing..?


So to cut a long story short I embellished it with pearls that I bought from a haberdashery ages ago. It took a really long time, maybe I'm a slow worker.. but patience is a virtue! 


Don't tolerate your boring clothes, re-style them!


From a basic denim jacket to a modern Audrey Hepburn??

Re-definition.

I've been adding more detail to the blazer that I'm working on... The goal is to re-define, so I've painted, cut open seams, re stitched, stencilled, embellished and frayed edges - all to re-define what has already been created.


These are some pics of the process!

First I sewed on some turquoise pearl beads (which don't really look turqouise in these photo's!) that I had from a local haberdashery shop, then I later added the chain which was a purchase from a recent visit to London!

I wanted to blur the boundaries between fantasy and reality, that's where I got the idea to paint the clock face, but add a real chain, to shake it up a bit!

I then made a rough textured hole in the fabric to look almost like a shot wound and sewed some black cotton behind to create depth and mystery. I love the personification of the jacket with this particular feature. I think it looks painful!

(also if you're a Katy Perry fan you'll be loving my poster in the background)

;)

Soo... on the subject of re-definition, I decided to alter one of the front pockets, by shaping it into an envelope. I also used fabric paint and a stencil to brand it.

I added a safety pin because I thought it looked cool and also makes whatever you want to hide in your pocket extra safe! ;)

BEFORE AND AFTER: 

I spend a lot of time on intricate paint detail on my garments, but the only thing I find is that sometimes there's not much to show for the time you've put in.. if you know what I mean? Like I'll spend 4 hours or so painting a small dice and it's like is that it.. seriously?!

Because of this, my jacket still looked quite bare even after hours and hours of painting onto it! Sooo.. I literally covered it all over in black paint,smudging it with my fingers and flicking water onto it (my bedroom is now a mess). 

And I love it! It's got a real aggressive edge to it and really speaks to me. I feel it represents my style as a person and designer.

Here are some of my favourite photo's that I took today of the finished piece:

On to the next one...

Re-invention is really cool. We always have a jacket or a dress or top or whatever and think I love it .. if only it wasn't so long in the front... if only it didn't have those flowers printed on the sleeve.. if only it was a different colour.. if only the print was on the back! 


Now I'm discovering how to overcome those flaws in garments, by D.I.Y! What's stopping us from altering our clothes ourselves?!
And that's what I've been looking at over the last few weeks. I've shown how painting onto garments can totally revamp your wardrobe - one brush stroke at a time!


This is another jacket I'm working on at Uni:

I thought it'd be quite different to start working on the inside lining. Since our core is the most important part to us, I thought this might be a nice idea.
My favourite art movement is Surrealism, so I wanted to incorporate that particular influence into my work. I'm quite a dreamy, random person anyway and Surrealism helps me understand that part of me and to embrace it.


The images below are the starting point of a face that is meant to look as if it is emerging from within the layers of lining and wool.


I'm encouraging this idea of finding the beauty in the broken and when I bought this jacket, I didn't realise the entire hem of the lining had come away from the fabric. From this came the idea of having someone trapped between the two layers.


I did a photo shoot with my sister, taking this idea of confinement on board and then the painting began to take shape!

It looks kind of warped and freaky I know. That may have something to do with the fact that I am possibly a warped freak? Droopy eyes and a weird silhouette! It's not meant to look exactly like the photograph above at all. It's inspired by it but then made to look perhaps.. immortal.. almost cartoon-like..?

Most of all I really love the secrecy of it all. When this jacket is worn (by me?!) no one will know there's anything going on on the inside. It's about creating that bond with clothing, creating something special, something that you can be proud of. By painting/embellishing or whatever onto the clothes that you have lost a connection with, not only are you being part of a beautiful process, but you're saving the environment by saving what you already own in stead of buying new! Think about it! (You don't have to be Picasso, just slap some paint about and create fireworks of colours!)

INSIDE OUT.

I've also began to work on the outside of this blazer using both hand sewing and paint effects. (I'll have to upload more pics soon, I've only just started really!)

Space Prints.

As I've been doing so much painting recently, and spending most of the time on one type of material, I thought I'd experiment with other types of fabric to see how the paint takes. I've made these prints which have a kind of 'space' theme. My whole project so far has taken this fantasy/surrealist ideology so I kept that in mind and made some cool prints!

I'm also utilising this idea of sustainability in fashion by encouraging reinvention of existing fashions. If you're bored of that tacky denim skirt in the back of your wardrobe, don't throw it out, paint on it and create something you can treasure! Plus no one else will have it, a complete one off ;)

These below were painted onto dark greyish scraps of denim. It was just an experiment before I actually paint onto a skirt or something. It's always good if you have scraps of material to test out an idea that you have, that way there's room for mistakes!

Which one's your favourite?!

Anyway, back to the jacket...

I've been working hard into the night painting my jacket! It's not finished still, mostly because the painting is so intricate and small in scale, but I thought I'd upload some more of the process...

 Then I went on to paint the Lapel and collar...

  I've done a fair bit on the bottom of the sleeve which is where I started, and I'm slowly making my way up to the top, I want it completely covered because it's looking a little bare at the moment! all in good time! The blue swirly design below is a mixture of inspiration between Van Gogh and Tim Burton. Oh and water. Not sure whether to continue with that all the way up the bodice, hmm decisions decisions...

I'm happy so far with the randomness of the objects and shapes on the jacket. It kinda fits my personality. I painted a chicken's face on one sleeve, which I saw on a farm recently! People are like why is there a chicken on your sleeve? Well I've never seen a chicken on a sleeve before, and that's why.

 Time is playing a key role throughout, with the inclusion of numbers, the freedom of birds, the roll of a dice and the strength of the human heart. Hope to cover the whole jacket completely with images soon!! tick tock tick tock!!

Feel free to comment or ask any questions at all :)

Who'd have thought curtains could be so inspiring?!

I included this photo in a previous post which has recently inspired some design work. Yeah I know, slightly going off the subject of the blazer I'm painting (which I'll upload more photo's of soon!) I'm just doodling some garment designs in between. Its just that I was browsing through my photo folder and the way this veil-like curtain draped across the window in 'fairytale land' made me want to pick up my pencil!

You really can find inspiration in anything!

I also took this photo (below)while out and about in Margam Park which is literally up the road from where I live. I edited the colours slightly and I'm not exactly sure what it's supposed to be.. It was hanging from the ceiling of an old hut and I thought hmmm... one for the album...

I'm really envisioning a rough textured, wild, forest-like dress. Maybe in an emerald/olive tone? with hints of lavender..? Better get to work then, these stitches aren't gonna stitch themselves!

Pick up a paintbrush.. Jazz that Jacket RIGHT UP.

FABRIC PAINTS.

I've been working on re-inventing a blazer of mine, this time experimenting with fabric paints. I bought the 'Dylon' brand paints in a variety of colours which were about £3.50 each roughly? You can buy them in most arts and crafts shops. I bought mine in the 'Range' in Morfa, Swansea. I wouldn't say they were the best but I suppose it depends on what you want to paint and what colour you're painting onto. For example I find them very watery and you have to let them dry and paint over and over your design in layers to get a bold, opaque colour. 

There's also things to consider for example how many colours do you need for your design etc? If you're on a budget, why not stick to a monochrome theme? Save the pennies at the same time! I notice 'Pebeo Setacolor' are good fabric paints, more expensive at about a fiver a pot? I bought mine off ebay.

Firstly, I photographed my blazer before I did anything to it, kind of looking at the before and after effect so you can see the journey and pics along the way of the painting process...

I've got a new camera, a lumix g2 which is really cool! don't really know how to use it but still.. might have mentioned.. but anyway I'm snapping away here, there and everywhere!!

DON'T DRINK AND PAINT.

Only joking, have a glass or two whilst being creative. It helps the imagination ;)

Not the most flattering photo or good quality even, but this is how I spent last Saturday night, painting in my living room. Should have been out partying and terrorizing the streets like a normal 20 year old I suppose, but I am not normal... haha.

I started by decorating the sleeve, using a fantasy, surrealist theme to the images.

                                                                                                         

So this is the start of the process. So far it's taken a good week or so, about 10-15 hours on an off because each object is quite intricate, but I love it all the same.

If you don't put the work in, how do you expect to get the best from it?!