design philosophy

Posted: August 18, 2010 in design philosophy
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  • What is my view on design/ what do I think of as good design/ what do I aim to produce?

I believe that good design is subjective, just like beauty. It is all in the eye of the beholder. To me, good design is akin to beautiful design. Something I find visually appealing.. This tends to range from patterns and mixes of fabrics to clothing silhouettes to tiny details that take awhile to notice to interesting ways fabric is manipulated and played with.. My favourite designers include John Galliano and Alexander McQueen for those reasons I stated above..

As for what I aim to produce in my designs, I just want to create something that would be visually appealing to me. While that might sound narcississtic, I don’t know how else to put it. I am my own person and only I will know what I like, visually. With every design I churn out, there will be some that not everyone will like and so be it. I cannot KNOW for sure what someone else is thinking, even  if that person is my bestest friend in the whole wide world.. So, to be safe, I’ll just design for myself and if someone comes along and really enjoys my designs, then I will be happy for being able to share my vision with someone else! 🙂

And I guess there should be another aspect to this.. The sustainability aspect. If it were possible that beautiful designs could be created without harming and/or exploiting fellow beings and with less detrimental effects towards the environment we live in, that would just take the ultimate cake in GOOD DESIGNING.

  • What methods do I use- how do I approach design?

Hmmm.. This is a tough one. I actually think I work better with a pencil and paper. I really enjoy the sketching process if I am able to see it in my mind’s eye and translate it onto a page before I do anything else, that would be ideal.

For example, if you asked me to just grab an old skirt and turn it into something else by draping it on a mannequin and playing around, I’d probably die of a heart attack.. Haha! My brain just doesn’t work that way, I guess. 🙂

That was probably why I was slightly stressed out over this current project and how we were encouraged to just go with the flow of things… My going with the flow is leaving my mind blank, putting that pencil to the paper and just drawing whatever flows out of me, but I guess that’s just a different way of interpreting it!

  • What materials do I like to work with?

Materials.. I tend to make sure I choose materials that first and foremost, do NOT harm any sentient beings in the process of making it available. As you might’ve read in my previous entries, I’m against any animal products used in my designs and I make it a point to check every fabric and/or garment I buy for animal content in it.. And even if I really LOVE that silk fabric because of the gorgeous print, I will not buy it, because my physical beauty or someone else’s(if they were to wear my designs) is NOWHERE NEAR as important as the number of beings that died to produce it.

Another factor about materials would be whether they are fairtrade fabrics and whether they are organic and environmentally friendly or not. While I am still a Uni student and do not have the income at my disposal, this part is probably a bit more tricky, since such certified fabrics are probably quite a bit more expensive than their counterparts. But I guess if I can splurge and buy myself fairtrade chocolate, I can buy fabrics.. Hahaha! 😀

  • What do my designs look like?

Oh wow.. How do I describe that? I feel like my designs are pretty all over the place! Haha~ Here’re a heap of them.. You tell me! 🙂

  • Who is the target customer for my designs?

I made this awhile ago, but it’s still relevant to this question. 🙂

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