I decided to make a pig fabric pattern, Just something simple. I only did it in one color too. I just felt this was fitting. When it comes to digital, all I can think of is clean and simple. I’ve been so busy lately with work and planning that I haven’t gotten a chance to scan my latest work, but I will. I need to be more disciplined in posting. No matter what, I will be posting something.
This textile design was inspired by a doodle that came to my head. I’m actually sketching some hand drawn designs to incorporate with my digital ideas in my book. It looks very 70’s, but that could be because of my trip to the vintage store today. I was trying to find some inspiration for patterns and maybe just maybe that influenced this one a little bit? I have long term projects, short term, and minute projects; anything to help me flex my creative muscle. I believe your creativity is a muscle, it gets stronger with practice. I try to do a design everyday until it becomes my full-time job… to create every single day…create.
The trend for indigo dyed fabric within the Chinese contemporary market has increased. The demand isn’t just local, for example retailers such as Free People and Urban outfitters feature tie-dye as well as tribal prints in their recent summer collections. Speaking of tribal prints, recently Free People was in the process of being sued by the Native American Association for using their prints without permission and inappropriately. Yes, they weren’t too happy about the fact that their sacred prints where being placed on underwear and socks. Fashion goes deeper than just appearance; when a persons heritage or culture is involved things can get serious.
Textiles can have deep rooted meaning, or just be “pretty”. I’d like to think you can do both. Experimenting is the key to unlocking your most creative inventions, especially in fashion. I suggest really looking up your own ancestral background. Maybe through research you’ll find a consistency or pattern through the years and invent your own tribal prints. Research colors and symbols that represent your family history and draw inspiration from your roots. I plan on incorporating tie-dye methods into my textile projects along with my own art. Who knows? Maybe I’ll invent something new?
feature image (wgsn)
This textile came to me in a dream. For the longest time I’ve been fighting a battle within me. I had a hard time focusing on doing one thing in the fashion industry. I loved everything about it, but there are a multitude of jobs you can do in fashion. I finally said to myself “find something to focus on that will allow you to be in fashion, but utilize your creativity in design”. Then for a week straight I started to dream of fabrics and textile design. The purple version above was a part of a dream I had where a woman was showing me different fabrics. I took these series of dreams as the answer to my questions about what area I would do the best in….Textile Design. I love to create, but designing clothing wasn’t my strongest suit. I don’t care much for the construction of clothing, but I’ve always had a passion for fabric. I remember going to the fabric store with my mother as a child and getting lost in the different textures, colors, detailing etc. I knew I wanted to work in the fashion industry, but I found that I was good at more that one thing in it. What I’ve found with textile design is that ANYTHING GOES! No rules on what kind of designs should go on fabric, and the versatility in use is limitless. Anyway, I don’t want to write a long post, but trust me, more textiles to come. And I will go into more detail in another post or video. Thanks for reading.
