Inspired to Design (PDF) - Fashion Design Inspiration

## Walk Into Inspiration Find inspirational ideas by taking a thirty-minute walk-on a nature trail, an urban street, in a shopping mall, or any place. Take along a sketchbook and camera. Don't try too hard; just let intuition lead your eye to interesting images. Not all inspiration is "pretty"; som...

## Walk Into Inspiration Find inspirational ideas by taking a thirty-minute walk-on a nature trail, an urban street, in a shopping mall, or any place. Take along a sketchbook and camera. Don't try too hard; just let intuition lead your eye to interesting images. Not all inspiration is "pretty"; some finds will be remarkable or unexpected - an oil slick on pavement in iridescent blues and purples; a bird feather; a bit of weathered metal; a scrap of paper; a ceramic vase in a store window; anything. Capture the idea with the sketchbook or camera. Use these images to start a clipping file, bulletin board, or creative journal. A few days after your walk, review your finds and make a few quick sketches suggested by one or more of your discoveries. Use this technique whenever you feel blocked or uninspired. Few people ever see a designer's sketchbook, but Christian Lacroix allowed one of his to be published (Mauriès, 1996). Because designers think visually, the pages are filled with quick sketches - a kind of creative shorthand for the designer - and evocative pictures, images, lists, quotes, and fabric swatches. Quick sketches may be no more than a squiggle, but that squiggle is meaningful to the designer. Others may be thumbnail sketches (small scale fashion sketches) recording an idea and its variations (Figure 2.2). Some designers sketch ideas as flats (a view of the garment as if it were laid out on a tabletop). The goal is not a finished fashion illustration suitable for display, but rather a visual note to capture an inspiration. Whatever the techniques for collecting inspirational images and ideas, the process will always be a bit messy and disorganized - that chaotic quality is part of the creative process. Aspiring designers need to discover techniques that work and then begin practicing them. Nothing squelches creativity more than a blank page. With a reservoir of inspiring bits and pieces, a designer never needs to feel blocked. Just look through the stash to start the ideas flowing. ## Researching the Future A subset of the fashion industry, fashion forecasting focuses exclusively on the future direction of color, fabric design and texture, innovative performance characteristics and textile technology, and styles. Fashion forecasters are resource providers for the design process. By working even farther ahead than designers, these forecasting professionals tease out fashion's direction whether it is a breakthrough technology, an emerging and influential consumer group, the reworking of a style from another era, or a shift in fashion's mood. Forecasters shop the world for trends, styles, and details that may influence fashion's future. They watch all the "hot spots" for fashion trends: - The runways - Innovative shops and boutiques - Pop culture - Changes in the economic and cultural climate - Quirky, inventive consumer behavior that signals change From this broad perspective, they deduce the evolution of established trends and the emergence of new trends. The trends are organized into four to six themes or "stories” that help designers and merchandisers visualize the coming season (Figure 2.3). ## Color Forecasting Color forecasts come first-up to two years ahead of a selling season-and are presented as a set of color palettes linked to the themes or stories of the season. Will the season feature crayon-box primaries or sophisticated neutrals, jewel brights or smoky tones, soft pastels or moody deeps? Originating from the three components of color -hue, value, and intensity- the potential range is infinite. Among the colors will be variations on basic colors (neutrals such as black, white, and gray, and perennial favorites such as brown, navy blue, and red), the foundation of any collection and the mainstay of conservative consumers. But the palettes will also include trendy colors that appeal to a fashion-forward customer. The color forecast helps designers see changes in color direction, identify key colors, and suggests color combinations (Figure 2.4). Using the forecasts as background, a designer creates specific palettes that reflect the design signature of the firm, customers' fashion personality, and seasonal newness. ## Textile Forecasting A winning design isn't just a sketch, or even pattern pieces sewn together; it is the fabric's weight, drape, and feel to the touch. Selecting fabrics is an important task for designers. Textile companies employ scientists, engineers, and artists to continuously create new fibers, fabric constructions, finishes, textures, and patterns. Forecasters who cover the textile market translate that newness into seasonal forecasts, highlighting innovations that will be exciting for consumers. Designers research fabric trends by attending forecasters' presentations, visiting fabric showrooms, going to fabric libraries, and walking trade shows (Figure 2.5). To make the designer's research easier and more efficient a fabric library collects and displays samples for the upcoming fashion season from many mills. Usually sponsored by a trade association, the fabrics on display share some common characteristic, such as specific fibers-the best known fabric library is maintained by Cotton Incorporated at its headquarters in New York City and is used to promote the use of cotton fabrics. ## Style Forecasting Color and textile forecasts routinely include style sketches to show the silhouettes, proportions, and details predicted for the upcoming season. Style forecasters look high and low for fashion change: the exclusive, expensive haute couture (custom made) and prêt-à-porter (ready-to-wear) runways and the street. Both ends of the spectrum serve as style laboratories. In the last few decades street fashion has become more and more influential in setting fashion's style agenda. Street fashion happens when creative consumers worldwide experiment with new persona, eccentric combinations, and unconventional accessories. A style forecaster might see voluminous silhouettes on the runways and a band of teens in Iceland who represent the ultra-green approach to fashion and include both in a style report. Sketches and photographs of these innovations serve as inspiration for designers looking to future seasons. ## Resources for Forecasts Fashion forecasting finds the colors, fabrics, and styles that spell newness to the fashion consumer and spark purchases. A fashion firm routinely subscribes to several forecasting services that deliver information in print portfolios and as presentations timed to the seasonal fashion calendar. Other forecasts are available from fiber companies, trade associations, and other industry suppliers. At industry trade shows, presentations on forecasting are among the best attended because the information is so vital in the initial stages of the design process. Designers can participate directly in forecasting activities as members of professional and trade organizations. Occasionally a firm might commission an exclusive and proprietary forecast, but often designers at many firms have access to the same forecast information. This serves a purpose for the industry-it helps present a coordinated seasonal message that reflects the spirit of times. Without a harmonized set of themes, the consumer might become confused and unmotivated to buy. But how does a designer use the information available industry-wide to create a distinctive fashion image for the season? Only part of the forecast will fit the firm's design image, price points, distribution scheme, and consumer profile. The designer filters the entire forecast to find those parts that apply and then reinterprets the themes to match the season, the company's signature look, and the idealized customer. That internal forecast becomes the guide to developing the line. ## Fashion's Inspiring Present Top designers are sensitive to shifts in the cultural environment and in the audience for fashion. Designers below the top tier look to the runway shows for trends and design direction. Fashion weeks in New York, London, Milan, and Paris are seasonal highpoints where designer creativity is most visible. Other spots don't get the same intense media coverage but are important to fashion insiders. The Los Angeles shows spotlight the casual California style; Australian shows are directional for beach wear; and fashion weeks in Toronto, Sao Paolo, Tokyo, and other fashion centers add to fashion's diversity and often feature emerging designers (Figure 2.6). Hidden in the hundreds of runway shows are trends that influence fashion in the future. Some trends are peaking and soon will disappear. Others will be influential for another season or two. Emerging trends will continue evolving for seasons to come. Once the exclusive conclave of merchants and journalists, today's runway shows (the presentation of a designer's seasonal line presented by top fashion models to an audience of fashion journalists, merchants, and celebrities in one of the design capitals) are part of popular culture. Popular culture encompasses all the influences on everyday life and mainstream tastes, especially those related to mass media and get reported extensively in print, on television, and by Internet. Anyone seeking to understand the market and the aesthetics of fashion cannot do better than reading articles by experienced fashion journalists writing about their reaction to and evaluation of designer collections. But aspiring designers also need to assess the shows for themselves by viewing runway images available on Internet sites. A ready knowledge of designers' names and their signature styles pays off in interviews for entry-level jobs by signaling a high level of interest and understanding of the industry. Just as important as the runway is that other laboratory of fashion-the streets. Often centered on young, edgy, and innovative teens, hotspots for trends may be down the block or thousands of miles away. Information on street fashion is harder to find but can be located by: - Watching for coverage in trade publications like Women's Wear Daily - Vigilant scanning of magazines, newspaper articles, and Internet sites - Making frequent keyword searches on Internet search engines - Having access to forecasting reports - Taking advantage of travel opportunities to observe street fashion and new retail concepts firsthand ## Fashion's Inspiring Past Strolling through a museum collection of armor, reading about the career of a Hollywood costumer, buying a fabric swatch book at a flea market, watching a movie from the 1930s-all are examples of seeking inspiration in fashion's past. Whether the ideas come from the distant past (Egyptian pleated linen) or more recent looks (the bright colors and broad shoulders of the late 1980s), the results are the same - a place to start designing. Some well-known fashion designers like Karl Lagerfeld are also well-informed fashion historians (Figure 2.7). Most designers look to fashion's past for inspiration at least some of the time. Why? Open any fashion history book to discover an almost endless variety of styles, proportions, and details, sometimes piled on top of each other in amazingly complex creations. The sheer quantity of material is staggering and no designer could fail to find ideas aplenty in even a casual search. But beyond that, fashion represents self-expression for designers and for the consumers who buy and wear the looks. Dressing up is an essential aspect of fantasy and role-playing-activities that people enjoy participating in from childhood. Sometimes inspiration is an almost direct lift from a period people find nostalgic and want to revisit. Other times the inspiration is more subtle or even turns fashion history on its head-for example, finding inspiration for women's leather coats in the design of armor for knights in the Middle Ages. Some eras get reworked over and over. Grecian draped folds crowd runways; the 1920s flapper look complete with cloche hat reappears every year or two; the Mod look from the mid-1960s has been revived over and over; and corseted looks from Victorian times take frequent encores. There are two dangers for designers who looks to these and other overworked periods for inspiration: the curse of the cliché and the misfortune of error. The definition of cliché is overuse. An idea or look loses its original power when it has been seen too often. Because fashion depends on newness for excitement, the cliché defeats the purpose. It isn't only eras that fall into this predicament, but also the people that embody the period. Celebrities like Marilyn Monroe, Jackie Kennedy, and Audrey Hepburn are icons-each had an image that represented a different aspect of the early 1960s, a time that people enjoy revisiting stylistically. But these iconic images have been overexposed to the public (probably) and to fashion insiders (definitely). Interviewers are bound to find one or more of these icons in most student portfolios. To stand out from the crowd, find inspiration in fashion history that is less commonplace and more creative. Look to eras not currently being recycled, narrower time frames or geographical locations, little-known ethnic groups, and different classes rather than focusing solely on the elite. When working with a fashion icon where there is a danger of being cliché, look for a less exploited period of the person's life. Avoiding the misfortune of error (misunderstanding or inaccurately interpreting fashion history) comes down to good research practices. Don't learn fashion history secondhand from other designers' collections or from fashion magazines' editorial pages. Go to the primary sources-those places that provide firsthand experience with the period, era, or decade. Museum collections are a rich source of fashion history in costume collections, sculpture, and art (Figure 2.8). Vintage stores, Internet sites, and auctions offer a chance to explore decades of fashion and even own a bit of fashion history. When primary sources are unavailable or inconvenient, use the best of secondary sources-books, articles, documentaries, and websites. Some present the broad sweep of fashion history from earliest to recent times. Others zero in on a particular century, geographical location, era, or decade. Deeper treatments survey a designer's entire career or a social era. Courses and lectures by fashion historians offer the chance to see the way an expert studies and interprets fashion history. A discovery, insight, or interpretation from fashion history opens a designer's imagination to new possibilities. Where is the originality in reinterpreting fashion history? Because the designs are adapted to contemporary lifestyles and tastes; these interpretations become original but with that trace of nostalgia that people find so intriguing. ## Looking Beyond Fashion The world of fashion is so compelling that it would be easy to look no farther for design inspiration, but fashion is only one part of the web of culture. Because designers create products that will be marketed some time in the future, they need inspiration that forecasts that future. Most consumers wait until styles are widespread, familiar, and readily acceptable, but fashion-forward consumers are innovative and experimental, always looking for the newest in fashion, cuisine, interiors, media, travel, and so on. Designers are a special category of these fashion-forward consumers, often using travel, shopping, and collecting as part of gathering inspiration for fashion design. Not all trendy, fashion-forward styles will make it to the mainstream, but being aware of the leading edge keeps designers inspired. The web of culture is too complex for any individual to scan. But by following their own interests, designers tap into new directions in consumer culture and shifts in lifestyle that signal change. Those interests are likely to cut across fine art, popular culture, and the counterculture-lifestyles deliberately different from mainstream society. A designer's grab bag of inspiration includes at least some of the following. ### The Art World Blockbuster museum shows, new gallery installations, art fairs, and auctions all make news/Apparel designers often find inspiration in painting, sculpture, and photography, either antique or contemporary. A designer may be stimulated by the subject matter or the technique or even the life of the artist. The same painting viewed by different designers leads to different inspiration-one admires the boldness of the color scheme; another the proportions and division of space; another the variety of textures; and another the mood or emotional content. To keep up with the latest, read one of the magazines that covers news in the art world (for example, Art News or Art Today) or a national newspaper with coverage of art (for example, the New York Times) and follow up on exhibits that spark your interest. ### The Performing Arts Many designers cite dance as an inspiration because of the heightened view of a body moving in space. But any of the performing arts from theater to musical concerts to street performers can motivate design. Designers often report playing music while designing to create a mood or to help them recall images. ### Architecture, Interiors, and Landscape Design A landmark building by a hot new architect; a groundswell of interest in smaller, environmentally sensitive housing; a change in the look of interiors-any or all may motivate a new approach to designing fashion. Although people change their home choices and interiors less often than they change their wardrobes, the two are linked by the aesthetics of consumption. Looking through magazines on architecture and interiors at a newsstand, visiting showcase houses, or shopping design centers devoted to interiors are excellent ways to keep up on this parallel marketplace (Figure 2.9). ### Popular Culture Whether it is the top-grossing film, the hot television show, the latest music star breakout, the next new thing in electronic games, or a sport that suddenly catches on, popular culture draws the consumers' attention. People express themselves through their favorite ways to spend time and dollars. For designers this may require a two-tier approach: popular culture that attracts the designer personally, and popular culture that parallels the target audience. Because popular culture is a fast moving target, designers learn to pick up on even subtle cues by scanning the media and listening to friends and acquaintances discuss their current favorites. ### Travel Most people feel time-pressured. When they choose how to spend leisure time, their choices reflect deeply held values. What are the most popular travel destinations, and what do people do there? What are the preferred destinations for the most discriminating travelers? When adventure- and eco-travel were first introduced, they appealed to only a few experienced travelers but now are a popular choice for all age groups and fitness levels. Family vacations are still the norm, but a growing trend is for a group of women friends to book vacations together. Because part of travel is wish fulfillment and fantasy, designers may be able to tap into consumer aspirations by tracking trends in travel. And most designers use their own travel not only as downtime but as a way to be inspired by a new, unfamiliar locale (Figure 2.10). Can't get away? Even armchair travel offers inspiration by way of books, articles, television programs, and documentaries. ### Avocations As play is to children, so leisure activities are to adults. Games, sports, collecting-whatever people find compelling enough to spend time and money pursuing can provide insights for the designer. What is the ambience-the infield at a race event or a table at the newest restaurant for a "foodie" (people who follow trends and innovation in food and food service)? Is the accent on action or on relaxation? Is the attraction the chance to socialize or to slip away for private time? Does the activity provide possessions or experiences? Often there is a sensory component-usually visual or tactile-to the experience. Can that component be transposed into textile or apparel design? Some avocations are "in" and others are "out," just as in fashion. A few decades ago, seeing a person running on the street would have been unusual, and membership in a gym was reserved for boxers and body builders. Today, those activities are commonplace and have nurtured many breakthroughs in fashion and accessories. Avocations that are "in" help define contemporary culture; those that are "out" may be on the brink of revival or worth a nostalgic look back. ## Interpreting Inspiration Getting inspired isn't a problem. But how does a designer move from inspiration to designing? Not all inspirations merit development. The first step is to sort through the inspiring bits and pieces to discover the patterns and affinities within the selections. Identify a promising cluster and compare them to industry trends in color, textiles, and styles. If there is a connection, however subtle, consider the trend in terms of its potential. Where is the trend in terms of development-emerging, already mainstream, reaching saturation and beginning to seem dated? How does the trend connect with the audience -is it only for the fashion-forward consumer, or does it have mainstream appeal? After the inspiration has been assessed against trends, it is time to consider the fit with company image (Figure 2.11). Does this inspiration mesh with the company's previous offerings? If not, can it help bring in new customers without alienating the current ones? Can the look be created at the given price point? Some inspirations survive all the questions to emerge as winners that designers confidently develop into a theme or fashion story. Others are still compelling but more risky. Together this mix of ideas and influences stimulate design creativity.