I understood the brief and appreciated what was required of me. My first thoughts when given the brief were that I was looking forward to creating my own trouser design and choosing an innovative fabric.
I did not enjoy investigating health and safety but I appreciate this has to be done as part of the brief. I enjoyed investigating a variety of fabrics I gained a great deal of knowledge from this process as I learnt about the different effects fabrics can give. To enquire the information needed for the brief I sent for fabric samples from the internet and over the phone and sourced them locally. I researched on the internet and the library for inspiration for my design, bringing forward my ideas from my sustainability brief.
My final design was inspired by my colour palette from my previous brief, a combination of greys and pinks. These colours looked subtle and contrasted each other well. My design initially was to have three layers of fabric but I found this was far too bulky so reduced my final design to just the two layers of fabric. The underneath layer was slightly heavier in weight than the top layer. My initial design was to create French seams on both layers but this created difficulty. My manufacturing experience meant that even though I sampled the transition from the French seam to no seam to create a split in the side trouser, I had great difficulty in achieving a good finish. I then made a decision, because the under fabric was a heavier weight, to make a feature of the French seams and exposed them on the outside of the trousers. This gave more structure to the trouser and contrasted with the flimsy top fabric. I decided to sew the full inside leg and leave the side seams open on the top fabric. When I attached the waistband I felt that the darts did not enhance the overall look, so I made the decision to add a slight gather. I used a wide range of fabrics within the flower embellishment, some heavyweight and some lightweight. This resulted in the petals in the flower draping in different ways. I felt this effect really worked and was successful. The structure of the waistband and the softness and fluidity of the trousers were linked by the embellishments. Although I had to revise my designs I felt the outcome was satisfactory.
If I was asked to do this brief again I would take forward the manufacturing techniques I have learnt from this brief and produce a garment to industry standard. I did not produce a fastening for the trousers but will complete this now. My problem was I simply ran out of time. In future I will manage my time more effectively and allow time for unforeseen problems. From this assignment I learnt that to manufacture a garment from a design is difficult. As I gain experience I will also improve my manufacturing skills. I enjoyed the design process, but I will take forward to the next brief that for my ability I will chose easier fabrics to work with, simple and yet bold shapes, with manufacturing processes that I am comfortable with and able to complete within the deadline stated.
Although my initial thoughts were that I would enjoy the brief, I missed some time through illness and had difficulty catching up. I arranged to style my trousers in a photo shoot which I have posted on my blog and placed in my portfolio. I was pleased with the end result. I feel with some modifications my trousers could be manufactured for a high end high street market. I considered my market level when arranging my photo-shoot.
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