My main brief concept was
'Entrapment'. I explored this through first hand photography and expressional
mark making. Then for my Live Brief I chose the concept of 'Natural form' which is focused on the working model of the brand 'Helen Lawrence' has touched upon before. Working two briefs simultaneously was, I found, to be a bit of a challenge and at times a little daunting, yet a challenge I enjoyed. At times I found I was
favouring one brief more than the other. On discovering this I decided evaluate my
work’s progress each week, selecting which brief required more attention and
emphasis. I then focused primarily on a week by week basis on the brief that required more attention. I found that this worked for me
and allowed better time management thus improving greatly my efficiency in managing both briefs development and understanding.
When I consider my work on
both briefs I find that overall I enjoyed the branding brief more. I felt it
reflected my style and personality more. I enjoyed restraining my research to one brand
as if I was to work for them as an employee of the Helen Lawrence Brand. I felt this helped me to develop my ideas towards a single cause, focusing on bringing my original designs
toward what the brand stands for. Complimenting the ‘Helen Lawrence Brand’ with new but similar
concepts was an experience I really enjoyed. I am proud of the outcome I
achieved as it gave me opportunities to narrow my colour palette to a season, to
research and understand a brand’s trademark learning how to cater for the
demands that entails.
Although I enjoyed my work
on the Locating Unit I don't feel I was successful in adding my own signature
design to it. Additionally I struggled in writing my self-initiated brief.
Initially understanding the concepts needed to integrate the two briefs
together was difficult to grasp. However once I received some much needed
support, guidance and advice I was able to overcome these hurdles to finally bring it
together.
I found contacting Helen
Lawrence via email a very positive experience. Recently I have uploaded and
tagged her in some of my finished samples. In addition, through the use of social media I
have set up my own ‘Linkedin’ account. This account includes a summary of my work illustrated
with key images of my designs. Besides Linkedin I have uploaded these key images
to Instagram and Pinterest with the hope that at some point in the future these may
lead to developing contacts, building links, with potential employers who view my work via these social medias.
Overall this unit has
helped me to improve many skills both personally and as a designer. Personally this unit has helped me develop an understanding that at times whether in university or in the workplace of textile design, I will be required of me to take on and manage multiple projects at any given time. As a result this unit has led me to think heavily upon how important time management is whilst juggling multiple projects, and has emphasised the importance of effective research and solid concepts and ideas when running numerous projects simultaneously in order to manage time efficiently. This unit has given me a better understanding of what is required of me and of how to work more efficiently therefore pushing me to work harder for what I want to achieve. Looking at myself as a designer and the way I design i feel i should not be too
literal in my drawings. I feel that I have learnt I can create something impressive by not
adding too many elements together, working with something simple can still produce beautiful and elegant pieces and result in a good outcome. In addition the feedback from my tutorials guided me towards
the optimal direction of where to push and drive my work. This positive and negative feedback allowed me to learn whether techniques or work suggestions would work or not.
To further my practice I
plan to develop and progress my embroidery techniques within my knits. I feel this
element will bring my samples together more wholly whilst showing my style and personality making it my own. To be more diverse I would
like to develop ideas into menswear to see if this is a field I can mould my
design process to and in doing so still focusing my samples towards high-end fashion
knit.
As for the future, I plan
use my research more efficiently, whilst delving deeper into brands in order to understand their design aesthetics and trend patterns. In conclusion, I have really enjoyed
this unit, especially the constant flow of work and the fluidity between both
projects. Having to manage my time effectively and managing my projects and to employ different work techniques in both has taught me
constraint, bringing an understanding of what each individual project needed,
therefore enabling me to switch between the two and in doing so developing my personal skill and developing my ability as a designer.
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