Posts tagged designer process

Post number one… here is where I’m supposed to say something profound right?  Like I find my inspiration from these famous designers, or this highly published artist, etc.  But in all honesty, I was never one of those people who perused the magazines to draw inspiration (or copy, as many do) from images, or poured over fashion history to try and re-live fancy moments.  This could also end up being my downfall, as market research and trend spotting are major components in a successful business of any kind.  Don’t get me wrong, Fashion History was one of my favorite subjects I ever studied, and I love seeing what the designers are going to come up with next; I just didn’t ever use this as my main starting point for design.  Maybe this is because I originally began as more of an artist.  I grew up loving to draw, and got into oil painting at a very early age.  I probably picked this up from my late Grandfather and Dad who are both very talented painters and artists.  

(painting of toe shoes I did in high school)

My “designer process” is a little all over the place.  I adore ballet, but am so not girly.  I absolutely HATE chic-flicks, and really only like pink if it’s of the fluorescent nature and I can run in it.   See my slightly out of control collection of sports bras…

However, if you look at many of my designs, they would appear to the average viewer very girly.  I even worked for 5 1/2 years for a bridal company, doing some designing in veils and headpieces of all things.  In general, I find that I love the visual aspect of bizarre, kind of weird things.  Have you ever seen the movie Mirror Mask?  That explains a lot of where I am at this point.  

I love finding beautiful materials, hardware, and accessories and playing around with them.  Almost all of my handbags that I create, I have no beginning design for… and until recently, did not even have a pattern for.  I kind of just start creating and try to see where it goes, depending on how I’m feeling on that day.  This would probably also explain the amount of time it takes me to create one item… I love to come up with ideas while I’m out for a long run too, this is one of the best times to let my mind wander into the creative process.

Currently I have been working with a mixture of leather, lace, and metal hardware… So far I am enjoying where it is taking me.

And so the ramblings begin…