Unit X evaluation

I feel this unit has been a good progression from practice.

I wanted to solely use natural dyes, which has been challenging but rewarding. Although it has been a time consuming process I am pleased that I persevered and am happy with the results; I feel I have managed to achieve a good colour balance across my collection.

The addition and removal of colour with bleach and overdyeing and the layering of foil are other aspects that I have spent time developing. As a refinement to the use of lace in my work I have explored stencilling foil to add feminine details. I really like the effect of this technique although I feel it is still not fully resolved and could be extended to make more of an impact.

Using the finer gauge dubied has allowed me to broaden the qualities of the fabrics in my collection. The fine knit viscose has a lovely drape and sheen to it, providing a good contrast to the heavier/ flatter wools. Embellishing different fabrics together has also worked nicely and has good potential for further development.

I have focused mainly on developing garments this unit, working on the stand to explore different shapes and ideas, building on what I learnt in practice. Although I was pushed for time at the end I managed to produce the two garments I outlined in my learning agreement. I am not entirely happy with the tunic garment, as it does not hang as well on the body as I would like. I think this is due to the viscose being heavier than the fabric I toiled with. As I did not foresee this I have not had time to re-knit the side panels to correct it, better planning and time management was needed here. I do like the details on the garment though and am pleased with how well it works with the garment I made in practice.

I worked more intuitively with the 2^nd jumper style garment and produced it in a shorter amount of time but I feel it is the more successful. It has a good impact of scale and I like the balance between the weight and silhouette and the more delicate detailing on it.

The photoshoot was another key element to developing a professional finish to my work. I kept the styling simple and let the shoot flow naturally, reflecting my overall concept. The model and photographer were both very helpful as well with ideas for the shoot and I am really happy with the photos. Having done this photoshoot I feel much more confident with the styling and direction of my work.

I have kept in mind the context for my work throughout the unit, looking to other designers working unconventionally in Menswear for inspiration. Bethany Williams and Suzanna James are both young designers who work sustainably within a menswear context, I admire both of them as their work is innovative and contemporary but is underpinned with conscious design. This is how I would like my own practice to develop and I think the work from this unit has been a good step forward to achieving this.