My second day with Lisa Dahlgren...

Thursday.
Today Lisa invited me to one of her fittings with the teachers Anthony, Scott and Alex and the fitting models. I helped the models with the garments, and stood by just in case I had to help pin something or hole one of the pieces whilst the teachers looked at others. The male models did a walk up and the studio, showing how the clothes could look in the final show. Only the trousers and shorts were slightly tweaked to give them a better fit.
Lisa didn't need me for the rest of the week and with Easter Holidays coming up she set me and her 2nd year intern looking for neon accessories and shoes for the collection. 

Meeting Lisa Dahlgren...my first day as a 3rd year intern

Met Lisa Dahlgren for the first time today outside COSTA in the Grove building at uni. She came across as very friendly, but she looked a little tired and stressed out lugging around a massive blue Ikea bag full to the brim with fabric and other such things like metal...
She went on to tell me about her Mens wear collection, based on a tribal theme, with neon as her colour palette. As she talked me through the collection she showed me her drawings of her 6 garment ideas, pulling out material from the overflowing Ikea bag of the different materials, matching them up the each of the outfits on the page. Some of the materials she pulled out she had already printed on with a tribal print, the material was white slightly see through and the tribal print was quite subtle, another print she showed me was fluorescent yellow with a print that had been over layered a few times that had made the material thick, she told me how the method worked and explained how she would be using it in the collection.
She explained that her Mens wear collection was going to be tailored, similar to suits. Therefor I would learn some basic tailoring skills. She showed me her main fabric for her garments, to probably be used for the jackets and the shorts/trousers. She called the cheese cloth like fabric the “Ugly Fabric”. Personally I didn’t think it was ugly at all I was just confused as to how she was going to make tailored suits out of such a thin fabric, but I decided she probably had some kind of plan to stiffen the fabric.
That day I helped cut of the fabric from the array of different pattern pieces. It was all a bit of a struggle, all the studios were full of other 3rd years and their 1st years working on their collections. So we decided the large hallway would have to do, so we sat on the floor and worked until there was a space in the studios for us. By that time we’d already cut all the fabric out and Lisa explained that I would be fusing all the “Ugly fabric” to strengthen it. I had to iron the “Ugly fabric” a heap of times to get the creases out, to then fuse all pieces before going home.

Here are some of her photos from her first fitting-

Interning for 3rd years

So at least once a week I help my assigned 3rd year, Lisa Dahlgren. All I know is that she is a Fashion Textiles Student specialising in print and her graduate collection is Mens wear. I'll just have to wait till Monday to find out what's going down.

JW

<JUNYA WATANABE>

Born in Fukushima,JAPAN in 1961, Junya Watanabe attended Bunka Fashion College, Toyko till 1984. He began his professional career in the fashion industry by starting a apprenticeship at Comme Des Garcons the innovative fashion house run by Rei Kawakubo, Watanabe started as a pattern cutter and in 1987 he was promoted to chief designer of Tricot knitwear line to then on to designing the Comme Des Garcons Homme line.

Watanabe grew considerably at Comme, he started his own label under his own name  called 'Junya Watanabe Comme Des Garcons' in 1993, progressing on to showing in Paris the same year! In 1994 he launched his own collection.

REI KAWAKUBO-

Kawakubo was and still is a large influence to Watanabe, she was his mentor, you can see a reflection of Kawakubo within Watanabe's collections, not to say Junya Watanabe doesn't have his own personal approach to design, quite the contrary. 

His designs change dramatically each season, from futuristic, noen punk, abstract oriental peasant, near to poetic. His garments have irregular touch to random pleating, ruffs, tucks, rushing and patchwork.

In past collections he has used boiled wool and black leather, a cocooned japanese style in florals, layered white cottons with cape sleeves and uneven heming, two looks in one garment(reversing colours), waterproof skirts, 30s style dresses in satin and velvet, 18th Century milkmaids with parachutes and florals.

Looking from one collection to the next you can really see the difference in approach in each, each one is heavily inspired by one thing or another, whether it may be 18th Century milk maid that have parachuted in to a field of flowers that set of his mind into a wonder of ideas.

<FAVOURITE COLLECTIONS> 

SPRING 2004 READY-TO-WEAR

SPRING 2003 READY-TO-WEAR

FALL 2005 READY-TO-WEAR

SPRING 2010 READY-TO-WEAR

SPRING 2012 READY-TO-WEAR

FALL 2012 READY-TO-WEAR

<COLLABORATIONS>

LEOWE & JUNYA WATANABE-

FALL 2013 READY-TO-WEAR

Collaboration with Spanish fashion house Loewe.

They created a capsule collection of clothing and accessories, which coincidentally coincided with the Spanish and Japanese's government declaring that between 2013/2014 it was to be Japan in Spain and Spain in Japan, to strengthen the relationshop between the two countries. It is to promote social relations, cultural and economic differences between them.

Furthermore it clashed with Loewe's Anniversary of 40 years of being in Japan.

THE COLLECTION INCLUDED SUCH THINGS AS...

• Classic Biker jackets
• Range of fabrics used. Leather, tweeds, felt, denim
• Colours used. Black, grey, orange, red, blue, cream, multi coloured tweeds, browns
• Couture cutting techniques showed in the garments 
• Sporty looks
• Sensible street style
• Accessories. Bags,unusual to see with Junya Watanabe- Loewe influence 

THE START OF THE MUSE

<CHARLES SPENCER CHAPLIN>

Born in LONDON April 16th 1889, Father Charles Chaplin.Sr versatile vocalist and actor, died when Chaplin was just 10 and Mother Hannah Chaplin, known as Lily Harley her stage name for when she was a Music Hall entertainer, she was a beautiful actress and singer. Chaplin's older brother Sydney was also an actor. 

Charlie Chaplin is most famous for and most recognised as an icon of silent film, his most famous and popular character he played called "Little Tramp", sporting a toothbrush moustache, bowler hat, bamboo cane and a funny walk.

Charlie Chaplin made his first professional debut in 1898 as a member of the juvenile group called "The Eight Lancashire Lads", he rapidly became popular with his outstanding tap dancing. He starred in a variety of shows for the next few years, at 12 years of age he starred in his first stage show 'Sherlock Holmes' , then onto Variety show "Casey's Court Circus", but at the age of 18 (1907) he joined his Brother Sydney in Fred Karno's vaudeville troupe, nicknamed 'The Karno Troupe', touring the States and Canada with them in both 1910 and 1912. He travelled to California in 1913 and signed with Keystone Studios' popular comedy director Mack Sennett. Chaplin appeared in and directed 35 films whilst at Keystone, in nearly all of them he would star as his most iconic character "Little Tramp"

(below)

He left Keystone and signed on at Essanay (1914), where he made 15 films.

Chaplin starred in a film named "Easy Street", considered as his best Mutual Film, a company he signed with in 1916, with them he created up to 12 films.

Both the FBI and House Un-American Activities (HUAC)believed that Chaplin injected communist propaganda into his films, some believing that he had no loyalty to his home country, England. Many in Britain called he a coward and a slacker during World War I, due him living in California, US. I suppose it was thought as though he had abandoned his home country. In his whole time in the United States he never applied for a US citizenship  and he claimed to be a 'paying visitor'.

Suspicions mounted when Chaplin created a film called "The Great Dictator" 1940, it was the first talking film . 

Chaplin was caught up in controversy and many scandals, he was criticised when he supported the aid given to Russia against invading Nazis in the Second World War. His morals and political views were questioned and was thought to be a danger to national security in the US ,due to the government having suspicions of him having communist ties.

Chaplins achievements/awards-

• Decorated by French government for being an outstanding filmmaker
• Elevated to rank of officer of the Legion of Honor 1956
• Honoured with an Academy Award in 1972 for his "incalculable effect on making motion pictures the art form of the century "
• Knight Bachelor of the Order of the British Empire in the 1975 Queens Honours List of  his services to entertainment
• Chaplin was considered on of the greatest filmmaker in the history of American Cinema

Charles Spencer Chaplin dies of natural causes at his home in Switzerland December 25 1977 age 88.






<CHARLIE CHAPLIN INSPIRED FASHION>

JOHN GALLIANO SPRING 2011

• Statement about new proportions in menswear
• "Modern Times"
• Dropped-crotch pants and jackets fitted to the body 
• The Little Tramp's shrunken jacket and baggy pants 
• Buster Keaton, porkpie hat, lugubrious expression, three-piece suit
• "Death in Venice"
• Boys in bathing suits and underwear

I love John Galliano's Spring 2011 Charlie Chaplin inspired collection, I think its completely wonderful. The way he has been able to capture all the different characters that Chaplin played throughout his carrer. Using different materials and fastenings to spice up the whole Charlie Chaplin look, making it more modern and eccentric. By using silver metallic trenches, mens sandal, gingham slouched low crotch shorts, over layering of vests on top of jackets, three piece suits that are almost tailored but then the trousers are slouched oversized and baggy and using patterned trim on jackets. There are a few looks I didn't particularly warm to, but overall I think the collection captured a very different look at Charlie Chaplin's style and expression in his character's clothing.

JUNYA WATANABE FALL 2013

• Vintage feel 
• Carefully patched suits and big overcoats
• Felt bowlers
• Pencil moustaches
• Shrunken proportions of the boiled wool jackets suggested Charlie Chaplin
• Folk tale
• Clown
• Utility wear
• Denims

ICEBERG FALL 2012

• Modern Times
• Mixed English traditional suiting,
• Tweeds
• Prince of Wales checks
• Workingman's clothes
• Everything slouched
• Scattered accents of gold
• Embossed print of the Little Tramp's face
• Some bright bold colour
• Bowler hats
• Three piece slouch suits
• A slight hint at glam
• Sophisticated
• Hints of college professer
• Colour blocking