SPORTSWEAR
Jamie Wei Huang X Bethany Williams
Sustainability is the concept and design narrative for my sportswear project. Taking inspiration from my contemporary designer Bethany Williams and her ethos of up cycling used garments and transforming existing products into new apparel, I will be merging her sustainable concept with my chosen luxury sportswear brand Jamie Wei Huang.
During this project, I aim to investigate the design DNA, heritage and ethos of each brand thoroughly. I will propose a disruptive intervention that will respect the original brand signatures and demonstrate a clear understanding of garment functionality for the intended end-use. I will also produce trend boards on my Western Europe market (London), defining a colour palette and document trend-forecasting that will be relevant to include within my designs. Throughout the development of this project, I aim to experiment with colour, fabrication and detail to build multiple garment designs and will conclude my ideas with the presentation of a 6-look capsule collection.
My overall aims are to produce a diverse body of work that explores and collaborates both brands aesthetic. Sustainability will be underpinned by a sophisticated and considered selection of research and exploration into how I can make my garments sustainable with fabrication will be thoroughly investigated. Development on my existing skills with Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator and InDesign will be made alongside hand- rendered techniques such as fashion illustrations and quick garment sketches. I also aim to learn how to use the Clo3D software and curate skills that can be both incorporated into my sportswear project and developed for future university and post-graduate projects. My final outcomes will respond appropriately to the requirements and expectations of the sportswear project brief.
Jamie Wei Huang
Jamie Wei Huang is a contemporary luxury womenswear label which she established in 2012, shortly after a period of interning with Alexander McQueen following graduating from Central Saint Martins College.
Jamie is a firm believer in expressing oneself through details and materials. She introduces craftsmanship spirits to garment production with her fine art background. Her background became her foundation in developing contemporary art, concept building and fashion design. Jamie has an outstanding ability in pattern cutting, sample creation and design development with her signature elements in design details and silhouette. She insists that a fashion garments significance should be redefined as a window of self-expression and individuality, depending on the manufacturing process.
The brand reveals a narrative of slightly casual sport luxury with polished details and a deliberate juxtaposition of fabrication. The brands reputation and recognition for luxury casual sportswear is bolstered by a special combination of fabrics and designs. Jamie's designs are innovative, sleek, elegant, and the ideal mix of smart and relaxed, thanks to a combination of exceptional craftsmanship. When it comes down to the silhouette, structured tailoring, oversized jumpers, and loose-fitting dresses all play a part in her collections, suggesting Jamie isn't afraid to have fun.
The brand now enjoys global success and is now selling through some of the most influential international department stores and boutiques such as Dover Street Market London, Farfetch, David Jones Australia, Liger Hong Kong and Harvey Nichols.
Jamie Wei Huang's latest SS21 series for London Fashion Weeks was converted to a multimedia visual presentation. The film was titled “HER” and the concept was based on the novel “witch” directed by Edward Tseng. When watching the digital film it takes us to a surreal and haunted landscape surrounded by ghost, ghouls and colossal disembodied heads. Her recent collection sought to reinterpret the philosophy of one's activity and alliance, as well as the emotions of submission and injustice induced by the need to survive.
Overall, the designs are simplistic in silhouette however, paired with a bold colour palette and elements of ruffled cut outs were introduced to give the collection interest and texture. This collection illustrates exactly what is possible with the convergence of digital technology and innovation.
Jamie Wei Huang
A/W 14 Catwalk Collection
The sombre mood befitting clothing inspired by photographs of refugees was achieved through Jamie Wei Huang, who sent sedate models down the catwalk to a classical soundtrack. Huang's signature androgynous silhouette was featured in the A/W 2014 Ballade range, with subtle dress versatility expressed in small details like multiple layers, zips, flaps, and buckles.
Jamie Wei Huang's AW14 collection combines a variety of materials and textures to illustrate the resourcefulness required by warfare. Fashion becomes a part of life and a means of survival as luxurious fabrics are merged with essential silhouettes to produce outfits of necessity. This collection taps into the humanity behind the fashion, so the individuality of the refugee is expressed and isn't entirely lost.
Relaxed tool belt styling harkens back to the practical essence of wartime wear, with fabrics like tweed, wool, and leather softening the predominantly square silhouette of boxy cut tops with slit backs, A-line skirts, and wide legged trousers. Wool and leather are fused with oversized male silhouettes and powerful cuts, resulting in odd forms that now fall on the feminine figure. The use of light and heavy fabrics, as well as the contrast between sex and gender, emphasises the collection's modern mix of femininity and masculinity. Cobalt blue, dusty pink, and blood red provided coloured accents to an otherwise neutral toned range, with simple leather clutch bags grasped tightly to the waist. In difficult times, warm hats with ear flaps would have been useful, but the chunky white heeled platform shoes were thoroughly modern.
Jamie Wei Huang
A/W 15 "NYMPHOMANIAC"
Jamie's Autumn/Winter 15 collection is centered on the film Nymphomaniac and reveals the tale of a young woman and her libidinous life.
With sophistication and subtlety, the collection sets aside society's perceptions of women and emphasises their buried wishes and fantasies. ‘Nymphomaniac' employs metaphors to expose the main character's challenges while also contradicting society's views on love, sex and pain. Eventually coming to peace with her subconscious and embracing her true self and desires.
The collection is composed of contrasts, with gritty elements juxtaposed against delicates and eye-catching elements contrasted sharply against ordinary silhouettes. The use of pink and blue sheepskins and fur trimmings in the collection reflects the character's feminine and gentle side. Her masculinity and sexual desires are revealed by the use of blood knots, cat o'nine tails, and metal accents.
Through the use of various fabrics and textures, the Nymphomaniac series was designed to elicit each of our subconscious desires. The fusion of materials represents the need that is hidden deep inside each of us
Jamie Wei Huang
A/W 19 "Roaming Boy"
The Autumn/Winter 2019 collection takes inspiration from the song " Roaming Boy" written by the Taiwanese Indie Band no-nonsense collective. The lyrics describe a condition of youth.
Unisex sweaters with hand embroidered check cable are part of the series, which is designed with traditional fabrication and contemporary details. The elements and colours allude to a specific time span, evoking memories of times gone by and moments we used to recall.
Before understanding all the right words for emotions, there was a time when you didn't know where to put the right dots on the answer sheet. Before determining what was right from the books, writing about current events, and attempting to fit in. Before all the wind, before all the sprinting forward, there was silence. There were faint recollections of a life prior to the one that had been built.
- try find more info on the collection and fabrication details if can!!
Bethany Williams
Bethany Williams is a contemporary fashion designer and the second winner of the Queen Elizabeth II British Design Award, which honours innovation, cultural ideals and sustainable activities. Sustainability is a fashion talking point right nowadays, but Williams takes it more seriously than most. She has volunteered in homeless shelters and food banks, highlighting her commitment to ethical causes. Every season, she interacts with a variety of charitable organisations, from food banks to substance rehabilitation centres of which she donates a portion of the proceeds from her catwalk collections.
Bethany Williams seeks to develop a label which is youthful and vibrant as well as embraces and supports communities by using recycled materials. It's no surprise that street apparel will cater to her aesthetically. Think of bulky sweatshirts and oversized knitwear with Tesco value prints embroidered, denim hoodies, jeans and dungarees designed with hand-written logos and technicolour striped coats.
Her clothes are not inexpensive. The expense of a sweater is £1,500 and the jackets range from £750 to £4,500. The concept is for customers to buy less, but to pay extra for good quality. She has been accepted by some of the coolest cult stockists in the world known for their personalized touch and curated editions, including Dune in Tokyo, Odd92 in New York and Galeries Lafayette in Paris. The brand is available for purchase in the UK through Farfetch.
For Bethany Williams, the pandemic has revealed that it is so important to have a social influence as an artist. The 30-year-old, who has collaborated extensively with social causes since launching her eponymous brand in 2017, has once again promoted The Magpie Project, a London-based charity that supports mothers and small children living in transitional homes, especially those that do not have access to the public funds.
Her SS21 Collection entitled “All Our Children” implies that we all have a common responsibility for our next generation. The concept explores how the environment borrows from our children and makes the audience learn about how it can be done in a sustainable manner, but still in a human context. The concept for her designs first appeared from inspiration took by the V&A Children's Museum archives. Bethany then proceeded to ask the public for messages on what they would like to send to the future generation or to discuss their favourite items of clothing that they had as a child.
Bethany invested much of her time throughout lock-down sourcing vintage lunch boxes, which were then converted into handbags. Her new range has now released childrens-wear for the very first time. Materials-wise, anything used is either renewable or recycled. Bethany has up-cycled knitwear, reclaimed cotton, and used vintage lace and silk for dresses. For the first time, organic peace silk has been used and dead-stock wool from Italian mills was used for tailoring and the surplus used from Adidas sportswear was added.
Sustainability
Sustainability refers to our ability to fulfil our own needs without jeopardising future generations' ability to do just that. We need social and economic resources in addition to natural resources. Environmental-ism isn't the only component of sustainability. Concerns for social justice and sustainable growth are included in most conceptions of sustainability.
Although the philosophy of sustainability is a recent one, the movement as a whole has origins in social justice, conservationism, internationalism, and other long-standing movements. Many of these proposals had come together by the end of the twentieth century in the call for "sustainable growth."
There are three pillars to sustainability these are;
-Enivronmental
Humans consume natural resources at a rate that helps them to replenish themselves, preserving ecological stability and keeping all of the earth's environmental systems in order.
-Economical
Human communities all over the world are able to preserve their freedom and have access to the services they need to meet their needs, both financial and non-financial. Economic structures are intact, and things such as safe sources of income are open to all.
-Social
Universal human rights and basic needs are beyond everyone's reach if they have enough money to keep their families and communities safe and healthy. Just leaders ensure that personal, labour, and cultural rights are upheld, and that all residents are safe from discrimination in healthy communities.
Sustainability motives are often complex, intimate, and diverse. It's impossible to list all of the reasons why so many people, organisations, and societies are working toward this goal. However, for the vast majority of people, sustainability is defined by the kind of future we leave for future generations. Many individuals and organisations share the importance of sustainability, which they illustrate through their strategies, daily practises, and behaviours. Individuals have had a significant impact on the development of our existing environmental and social conditions. Today's people, as well as future generations, must devise solutions and adapt.
How can we be sustainable within the fashion industry?
https://www.sustainablefashionmatterz.com/what-is-sustainable-fashion
Current Fashion Trends
Composing patchwork:
Up-cycling by using leftover materials and dead-stock fabrics to produce fresh and creative concepts is leading a new generation of mix-and-match patchwork patterns that suits well alongside retro aesthetics. Combining repurpose leather, heritage checks with cosy wools and flannels, developing new surfaces.
Feminine Frills:
Frills and ruffles are the key trim signals on the catwalks, introducing folklore-inspired cottage-core to indoor-focused looks as well as emerging eclectic folklore. ⠀
Customer Market - Western Europe
- what are the trends in culture, society and lifestyle?
Fabrication, silhouette and colour are three elements that I explored when creating these fashion collages. Taking imagery from both Jamie Wei Huang and Bethany Williams previous catwalk collections, I then combined them to create designs that showcased both brands aesthetic.
The above fashion illustrations took inspiration from both my chosen brands, my customer market and also my day and night colour palette boards. Print is a significant detail in my designs, this is because of the graffiti scene in and around London and also because both my brands enjoy including pattern within their designs. This is to create an aesthetic that is fun, playful and energetic, which I believe both brands achieve.
Project Evaluation
Sustainability was the concept for my sportswear project. Throughout the development of this project, I took inspiration from both my contemporary designer Bethany Williams and my luxury sportswear brand Jamie Wei Huang. I did this by exploring their design DNA, heritage and brand aesthetic. I believe my chosen market for my West Europe market, in this case London, showed clear colour palette references and initiated some stitch details, fabrication and silhoutte ideas. Trend-forecasting has evidently inspired my designs as there was clear indication of what was popular for this fashion season. As sustainability played amongst my design narrative I researched ways in which we could be sustainable within the fashion industry. Just to clarity the fabrics I would have used if it were possible to take them further into prototype development and manufacturing would have been from existing garment, off-cuts or from sustainable fabric suppliers.
My overall aims were to produce a diverse body of work that explored both Bethany and Jamie’s signature style. I believe that this has been achieved through my fashion collages, illustrations and technical specs of my designs. Development on my existing skills with Photoshop, Adobe illustrator and InDesign have been made stronger, with my work looking to a more professional standard. My strengths that I have identified during the development of this sportswear project is how well my technical flats have turned out on illustrator and how I have applied fabrication to my designs to give a real visualisation of how my design would look in cloth. Another strength of mine I would say, would be my ability to research and merge 2 completely opposite fashion labels together and still being able to keep their individual aesthetic present. Clo3D is a weakness of mine, as it is a new software I am still unfamiliar with the tools and how to use the programme properly hence why my designs aren’t as great as I would have liked them to be. However, with more practice I am sure my work will improve.
To conclude, I believe I have responded to the requirements and expectations of the project brief and have created a diverse and experimental body of work that remains coherent to my concept. This academic year as whole has been extremely challenging, however, it has enabled me to improve on existing skills and also learn new ways of working which I am grateful for. I am confident to say that I have recognised my strengths and weaknesses and look forward to seeing the ways in which I can develop these in my future projects.