Lindsay Taylor at Harrogate Knit & Stitch

http://www.lindsay-taylor.co.uk/aboutme.html

On Thursday we had a Uni trip to the Knit & Stitch show in Harrogate where I had the pleasure of meeting Lindsay Taylor.

Lindsay is contemporary textile artist who predominantly works in 3D, using a variety of techniques such as free machine embroidery, quilting, moulding, felting and beading  on a basis of hand dyed natural fabrics to produce organic forms.

It was a pleasure to meet her and it was great to see so many inspirational pieces.

I adore this shoe, very enchanted garden where a shoe has been abandoned and the flowers have claimed it as their own.

 And these purses are beautiful, you can see the work that has gone into each petal

Headbands for the new University online shop

We are about to open an online shop at University Centre Blackburn College as a way not only to put our designs out into the market place but also to earn a little extra money!

We have been asked to produce corsages, cards or what ever we think would sell hence I have gone for the headband theme. Most collections have headbands in their range now so I thought it would make commercial sense to make these plus it means every part of material can be upcycled into something gorgeous . There should have been 5 to this collection however one of my girls have claimed it as their Christmas present!

The curtains go up

Well after 5 months of waiting, my family finally saw the hanging of the curtains I made from Nina Campbell's gorgeous Swan Lake fabric.

I found the fabric in Elle Decoration and just knew it had to go somewhere in the house! The first cutain was made some 5 months ago but one big op and the restart of uni meant a huge wait for me to make and hang the second one. Now this means family movie night can mean the curtain's closed and the popcorn out!

http://www.ninacampbell.com/nina-campbell-fabric/september-2009/sylvana-swan-lake.html

What happening this week in Uni

Well it's been a hectic week for me this week as it has been a hand in day for Brief A in Pathway Developemnt, which in plain English means I handed in my bedding designs.  This has been an amazing and unique opportunity for me as a student as the finished designs are going to be shown to a bedding company who sometimes buy them of designers.



I used my Dior pansy dress image as my main inspiration as its a confection of colour, tulle, satin and oomph! I also wanted to use Pansies as legend has it, if you place pansies over the eyes of someone sleeping, they will fall in love with the first person they see when they wake up so what a fitting theme for bedding.

I have also used plenty of black satin and, even though it can be a bit of a cliche on sheets, they have been de playboyed and embelished with gold lace or florals.

And added some roses for romance

And finally, the traditional design which, whilst not always my taste, as a designer i appreaciate it is about what my client wants, not what I want and my job is to take their opinion and develop it to it's full potential

Kensington Palace-Enchanted Palace Exhibition

 A few weeks ago a friend and I headed out of the valley to go to London to see the Enchanted Palace Exhibition in Kensington Palace

Here it was promised that Kensington Palace had been transformed into the Enchanted Palace and we would experience fashion, performance and dazzling spectacle.

Wildwoks had produced some magical and breathtaking installations throughout the palace, each room dark and revealing. Below is the room of flight where the Vivienne Westwood gown appears to hover above the stair case in ghostly flight

The dress below once belonged to the Queens sister, Princess Margaret and as a lover of 1950's couture, it was stunning to see. I had forgotten just how beautiful Princess Margaret was .

This was the war room where it had been set up to represent a battle game, old time pieces, reflections in the mirror above the fireplace conjured up images of gathering around the fire listening to news on the wireless of the war

Some of the rooms were quire sinister and bazaar, it encapsulated a dark and eeriness about the palace.

Overall, whilst the exhibition was an amazing experience, it did have its big disappointments too. We had pre ordered our catalogue on line with the tickets and when we looked at it, it was just about the history of Kensington Palace, nothing at all about the exhibition. Then came the blow that you were unable to take photo's either and the postcards had not been produced yet so you came away feeling very cheesed off that you had not visual items to look back upon for reflection. The other major disappointment was the small number of garments that were being displayed, after all, that was the main reason for the visit.

I would still recommend a visit if you are in the area but do not allocated a full day to go through it, a few hours is all it takes

http://www.hrp.org.uk/KensingtonPalace/stories/Palacehighlights/EnchantedPalaceintroduction.aspx

What bags I am loving........

Ive just received this email on bags from net a porter and couldn,t resist sharing them with you.

They ouze old style glamour but have the modern twist. I would love to find one of these under the Christmas tree however if Idid I think I would be in the wrong house!
http://view.net-a-porter.com/v/3OZRHM0/YGH1D/16DB39F/8Z5LW4/MAILACTION=1&FORMAT=H?cm_mmc=Email-_-Dedicated-_-Gift121110-_-Intl

Bollywood Peacocks

The final design in my Bollywood Taj range.  The peacock, the bird of India was my inspiration for this piece. I wanted a stand out background but muted tones for the bird. This is a contast to the peacocks usual iridescent colours.

Bollywood Paisley

This wall paper is again from my Bollywood Taj Range. The cool tranquil tones reflect the water in front of the Taj Mahal and the paisley symbolises the Henna hand art

Bollywood Taj

This is one of my wall paper designs. 

My inspiration was the Taj Mahal and Bollywood. I chose a neutral background so the vibrant colours in the paisley would stand out. The colours were inspired by Sari's from India

Inspirations

Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn two of my favourite inspirations.

The Louis V

 The inspiration........

Grace

The Hepburn

This is a dress I designed for a wedding I went too. I didn't want to risk wearing something another guest may wear.

Welcome to my blog spot...

Welcome to my blog spot!

I am currently studying for my degree in textile design and fashion construction after a lifetime of dreaming about it!

I have always been pasionate about clothes and feel so frustrated that high streets do not cater for all body shapes. I constantly try clothes on which would look better if the length of a dress was longer or it was better fitted to extenuate the good parts to make me feel womanly and confident.

My passion is the 1950's where women were feminine yet the nipped in waist and fluttering skirts ouzed sex appeal too. I try to use some vintage pieces in my work such as feathers or buttons so it is more unique and fitting to the period however I also add a modern twist.

All women have good points and I aim to design and make clothing bespoke to the client which they will wear and feel flattered and special in. I can make for all occasions, be it for a ball, a prom or a wedding.