Design
Looking back at my previous samples I feel that the silhouettes they create are a bit old fashioned and traditional. The voluminous sleeve ideas and position of the waistline make them appear like costumes rather that something you would wear today. Therefore, I decided to try upscaling the smocking. The first sample I did didn’t turn out very well as it created a fabric detail or texture rather than a silhouette. Opening and closing parts of the smocking helped make shape but I needed to be more aware of the position of smocking. The next sample was a lot more successful as I placed linear smocking so it came in at flattering areas such as the waist. After doing research of the liberty blouse for my practice led research module, I learned that the blouse was successful because it combined historical features with what were then modern features. Therefore, I tried to do this for the stand work I did with the upscaled smocking by placing the fabric into fluid feminine shapes.
Whilst making smocking samples I’ve been conscious of how much fabric it takes to create pieces, so for this sample I made the smocking less deep. I did like the softer effect it gave but still prefer the deeper smocking as its more visible, perhaps I could combine the two. The fabric I use could also play a role in how visible the smocking is, for examples I think patterned fabric would hide them, whilst more vivid colours would make them more pronounce. The amount of fabric it takes for smocking is something I’m unsure about for sustainability as more fabric takes more resources, water and energy to produce. On the other hand I want to use the entire piece of fabric so reducing waste, additionally smocking reduces the need for seams and darts so if the smocking is unpicked you end up with a big piece of fabric that could be smocking into a new shape or made into another garment. I’m not sure how practical this is as it takes a long time to unpick and the fabric may be damaged at the points it was sewn together, but it could be something to look into. I have actually been doing this anyway with a lot of my samples to save wasting fabric, so I suppose it is reducing waste at the development stage when snags in the fabric isn’t a problem.
Research
So far we’ve learned about a few different research methods. The ones which have helped greatly develop my understanding of the liberty and co. blouse is semiotic analysis. Studying the different features of the garment (denotations) and what they could mean (Connotations). For example, when I wrote my project proposal and selected the blouse as a starting point for the project, I had no idea how much I could learn from it. I didn’t realise that the sleeve shape was actually inspired by historical garments. This is relevant as it didn’t follow trends, something which I want for my final garment/s. Therefore, I started to research garments of the early 1800s (blouse inspired by) and late 1800s (when blouse was made). From this research I learned about how the garments changed and developed due to advances in technology and why this blouse was made to go against technology. The smocking detail is not only a design detail but also symbolises the aesthetic movements key beliefs of beautiful, highly crafted things made by man not machine. Even today traditional smocking can’t be achieved by machine, only by hand.
The arts and craft movement was also occurring at the time the blouse was produced, which aimed at protecting traditional crafts and appreciating the decorative arts. But many believed this way of thinking was not practical in the modern world and the movement was trying to look back rather than forward. Unique, handcrafted pieces such as the blouse take great skill and understanding of garment construction, a long time to create and are very expensive to produce, therefore only for the high class and wealthy. This is similar to modern day handcrafted couture garments which are unachievable for most, often worn for one off occasions or displayed in museums. This is reflected in relation to the blouse as it is in excellent condition so likely not worn at all or very little. The way its displayed on a mannequin and part of the MET museum archive also indicates that its purpose is not necessarily to be worn but as a piece of art and to display craftmanship.
I want whatever garment I make to be achievable for the luxury customer, so not cheap but fair fir for the skill, time and materials used to produce it. One way this could be achieved is by using technology. I know that Molly Goddard is known for smocking, but in fact when I loo at her garments its more shirring. This technique is quicker that smocking by hand. But you can’t create the more interesting smocking shapes this way. I’m always a bit unsure about the contradiction between craft and technology. The Liberty blouse was made at a time when some people were very against technology as they believed objects and peoples taste were declining in quality and people’s taste. But I know that today technology could help with design sustainability and design development.
Instead, crafts people of today are embracing technology to aid with many areas of their products from marketing to sustainability. I need to carry out research into these but one thing I’m always intrigued by is how the internet has made it possible for anyone to start up their own business, big or small and sell products. I was able to sell handmade blouses on Instagram as this platform allowed me to connect with other small business, customers and promote my brand, I also sold them online via Etsy. Furthermore, the internet has a vast amount of resources to learn new skills and share ideas. I’ve utilised this by teaching myself hand smocking by watching YouTube videos.
This is a bit of a tangent, but I was also thinking about the idea of trends. Although the point of the blouse is it doesn’t follow trends the aesthetic movement was a sort of trend during this time as it increased in popularity. This is similar to the way subcultures where once seen as rebellious and different but have sort of disappeared after being engulfed by the mainstream fashion industry. Therefore, I’m not sure if anything can truly not follow trends, trends are a big part of changing culture which is important. Instead, I’m interested in creating garments which are relevant for the time and current consumer. Maybe this could be achieved by not having an obvious trend but a more subdued nod to it, so it wouldn’t look out of place in many years to come. I like how you can look at a garment and see what was happening at the time mirrored within it, similar to the smocked 1890s blouse. I feel that in the last two decades fashion hasn’t been as distinct as before such as the 1950’s 60’s 70’s 80s etc. which were all very different. Now fashion changes so quickly we don’t see such big changes. But is it better to not have trends at all or to have slower paced trends such as in the past? Maybe this is another way of looking at garments of the past and how this could be applied to contemporary design.