The Tears Series Label

I was advised to make the underwear a higher waist to make the audience aware that I also made them as well. For the label I dyed white thread using the natural indigo dye and then used the embroidery machine. 

I decided to make it Chinese as a sign of respect and a notice that we can be aware of their situation and what water pollution can do. 

I hand sewed the label onto the underwear giving a more natural and authentic look. 

i don't know if visually this looks quite commercial and quite cheap but I need to put the whole outfit together to see the quality better. 

Shoes. Traditional Chinese Geta.

During the later stage of this project I will need to consider accessories for my each outfit and because I was told that barefoot will not be an option for the fashion show, i will need to design my own - I think this will reflect my understanding of their traditions and the respect i have after reading about what they do for the sake of "pretty" jeans.

Dip-Dye. Natural Indigo.

I have started to dye my bomber jacket but also the bottom of each pair of jeans. I thought visually it would look quite interesting and I think it would make the viewers understand where my inspiration came from and the concept that I am getting across.

To hand dye the bottom of the jeans I needed first wet the fabric and then dust the powder dye on top, then I used my hands to spread dye all over the fabric. This made it easier for me to get the colour I wanted. (More deeper than lighter because it will look more engaging to the viewers).

After a day and a half the fabric finally dried, i really like this colour it was slightly lighter than expected but its a unique colour that you don't see very on denim fabric.  I noticed that that hem was fraying away slightly leaving strands hanging off but it gives the jeans more texture and the strands absorb more of the dye making it more visible.- I will sew the hem on the outside to show fraying texture.

For my collection to be a strong statement i really need to create more texture to encourage my message I am trying to convey. 

I unthreaded the denim which created curly strands,  I dyed this and the denim underneath. Using a hand embellisher i binder the two together. I think this quick experiment has really pushed my ideas for the bomber jacket. It looks in a sense unusual and some like its representing a disease almost which is perfect because my concept involves the cancer that is a regular occurrence caused by the water pollution. 

I don't like the blue i think it looks to washed out it needs to be more bold. 

Progression Presentation.

 

After the presentation and getting some feedback about my garments, I have really good ideas that I think will bring my garments together more as a collection.

I've got quite a bit to think about and consider for each of my outfits . I have been suggested to add more indigo into each item to link them more - for this I will need to experiment more and research designers who have had a similar theme or have used denim for their collection.

My underwear was non-existent in my presentation as it was covered by the jeans and t-shirts which was said to of been pointless of even making. Therefore, i considered the idea of having the bra for the womenswear, over the top of the t-shirt and having the pant highwaisted.  ( for menswear and children swear). Visually i think this would look quite engaging because it is slightly unusual and gives a modern sense to the collection.

The label which is to be embroidered onto my garments was well received by the lecturers but it has to be visible in order for the audience to see it and be more interested. - this means i need to place the label in a not-so-obvious place on each garment.


The jacket still needs more development which will be a main focus for tomorrows timetable.

Boys wear. Outfit one.

This photograph was done by myself. I edited it on photoshop changing it to grayscale and then using a cool filter to give a more cool effect which would correlate to my water concept.

I really like this photo because it displays everything i have made accept the t-shirt but it is the exact style only in a different fabric.  The only negative is that the models toe is out of frame giving it a lower quality than it could be.

Indigo Dye Experiment.

After talking to my lecturer about ways of getting higher grades, I decided to include the indigo dying process in my garments. 

Xintangs rivers are mainly polluted and contaminated by the dying chemicals that are used to colour the jeans and bras. I decided to use Indigo dye because it is a prominent colour used in the jeans manufacturing. 

I bought natural indigo dye because of my sustainable and eco-friendly methods throughout this project. The natural indigo dye was powder which was then diluted in tap water - i had to use quite a bit of this powder to get to a more deeper blue. The photo below shows what It looks like once dissolved in the water. 

I then got a sample of my sustainable denim fabric and used a brush to apply the indigo dye. I had to put quite a bit of the dye on to get more of a blue colour rather than a green/turquoise. 

I really like the colour on the denim, it definitely brings out that "jeans" effect. I would like to use this process on my jacket but only a small amount of this colour because my concept is about purifying and cleansing the fashion industries ways of making clothes.

I then decided to apply the dye on the embroidery pattern which is suppose to look like water. Instead of putting it on the denim I dyed the thread instead but i think it looks quite messy and would prefer it to be on the denim rather than the thread.

Mens Jeans -Toile.

I wanted to make sure that the mens jeans were accurately sewn and that measurements would fit the model comfortably. I got a lot of help from Kay (first years lecturer) because she has had a great deal of experience making jeans -  she gave me easy tips to sew my jeans quicker than what was said on the pattern instructions. 

The model tried them on and they fit nearly perfectly - the hem line needs to be smaller. I mustn't forget to add the rivets and the jeans button.