BA Textiles - Product Visualisation Boards

The last week has been completely nuts in preparation for the great ‘Hand In’ tomorrow! The list of requirements is seemingly endless and each aspect takes sooo long to manifest! I am a virtual stranger to my poor long suffering family. For the last 3 days I’ve been working solidly from 5am to 9pm while my dear supportive husband take’s care of the day to day running of life at home with a busy family. If only he knew just how much I appreciate him… perhaps I’ll think of something fantastic and creative in equal measure to make it up to him!

For our brief, we were each given two words to work with, mine were ‘Opulence’ and ‘Ornamental’. We then had to take those two words and investigate a whole series of design making solutions culminating in two completely different collections. So, here are my final visualisation boards for those two separate collections. Neither board has all my designs on it, but I will have more time to share those with you after tomorrow. Now, wish me luck, I still have a very long list to complete!

BA Textiles - Preparing for Year 3 Submission

I haven’t posted much for a few months and that’s quite simply because I’ve been absolutely snowed under with work. Switching from Illustration to Textiles and Surface Design for the Final Year of my degree has been such a massive learning curve, it’s utterly wonderful to learn something new, but at times it has also felt overwhelming. I’m now in my last week before having to submit the entire body of work I’ve created in the last few months. Our module has been all about Innovation and Experimentation. Quite honestly, each and every new process I’ve learnt… and there have been quite a number of them, has for me been experimental in itself. There are so many new skills to learn and get up to speed with, from seemingly simple things such as how to make a collection cohesive to different dye techniques and fabric surfaces and a huge variety of different technical processes. Gradually, very gradually I am getting there, although I still have a huge amount to learn.

For now though, I thought I would leave you with a development on my New Year design which has sparked so many new creative ideas of its own.

Happy New Year 2019!

There is something so cathartic about this time of year. It always feels to me like the opportunity for new beginnings, a fresh start. There’s a lot of change ahead in this crazy world of ours, but may the coming year be full of joy, love, friendship and many blessings. Happy New Year!

BA Textiles: Experiments With Geometrics

With the year nearly over and the first term of the final part of my degree complete, I have a great deal to reflect upon. Choosing to take this final year in Surface Pattern Design has been an enormous undertaking, as I get my head around different processes and industry terminology. My actual ‘hand-in’ date isn’t until the end of January, so over the next month I’m hoping that all my work since September will start to come together. It feels as though I’m a long way off realising the briefs requirements at the moment.

Ultimately, it will all culminate in two very different collections of 10 pieces, a sketchbook, a fabric swatch book, a customer board and inspiration board and among other things, 2 final visualisation boards . The module is all about experimentation and for me virtually each and every process in the workshop spaces has been an utterly new experience. I’ll share some of those pieces over the coming weeks. But for now, I thought I’d begin by showing you some of the simple geometric collection I’ve been working on. Geometrics are quite a departure from my normal work and I’m not entirely comfortable with them. Some are created by hand and some I’ve learnt to create digitally in Photoshop. It’s made me realise how much I miss my trusty old paintbrush and watercolour paints though and I’m looking forward to reacquainting myself with them in the New Year!

Garden Folk Pattern Design

I've been busy over the last week getting to grips with creating seamless patterns in photoshop.  I've spent quite a bit of time playing in previous months and making little patterns here and there, but it's been somewhat hit and miss as to whether they're actually seamless or not. In fact more frequently than I would like they've had little glitches and errors and I just couldn't quite work out why! Finally though, the giant penny has dropped and now I'm a bit addicted! This is a re-take on the blue and white pattern I took from a vase of flowers I painted a few months ago. I'm in the process of loading these up onto fabric and products to sell online at Art Of Where and Spoonflower.

Ocean Designs - Beach Towels

I signed up with  Make It In Design for their Summer School 2018.  I'm halfway through the first weeks brief, which seems to have turned into rather a large project, so I'll post it when I've made more headway. But the week 2 brief, which was to design a beach towel, tied in really nicely with the Tropical Fish designs I've been working on so I decided to use them... this is not something I've ever attempted before and I rather surprised myself with just how much my photoshop skills have developed in the last few months! I quite like the idea of collaborating with an Ocean Awareness charity and upon the sale of  my product designs donating a percentage. Anyway, just a dream at the moment, but it's good to dream... right!