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Ugly Christmas Sweaters

Nothing says Christmas portrait like an ugly sweater.
//www.keatleyphoto.com/blog/2008/12/christmas-sweaters-and-little-stuffed-goats/

While we here in the southern hemisphere are lucky enough to have a warm Christmas (fingers crossed it’s not so humid, it rains, unless there’s a draught somewhere…in that case, wish for rain from Santa), we do miss out on the hilarity and fun that is the Christmas sweater.

Some look as though they have been made purely to win worst dressed at the annual ugly Christmas sweater parties that are happening all over the northern hemisphere as you read this, some could be considered cute and others relatively tame when you see the imagination that goes into decorating this festive treat. Don’t think yourself crazy to want to add lashings of tinsel, Christmas ornaments or even flashing lights to your get up because you won’t be alone in this Halloween-ish costume extravaganza.

Nice, how to playing it safe at the Christmas party

Naughty ugly sweaters…ew…

It’s almost a shame that, while our northern comrades snuggle up in their tacky (mostly) acrylic ‘jumpers’ and nurse a sickly sweet spiked egg nog, we here in the south miss out on the chance to don our upper bodies with a hand knitted masterpiece that someone once thought to be the height of holiday fashion! All we get to do lazy about by the pool or by the soft licks of the air con trying desperately to avoid any sudden movements lest it disturb the abundantly fully stomach or raise a sweat and wear a little as possible without raising any grandparental eyebrows.

And just plan bad…

With Christmas just a breath away, and a chance to get in on a warm climate version of the tacky sweater, what festive season prints are you coming up with? Make sure to get your print orders in lickety split and have everyone admiring your get-up over lunch on the 25^th!

If you’re stuck for ideas, a quick image search will have you come up apples!

September Dress

Print design by Liz Smith for her wedding dress, printed at Digital Fabrics.

If you’ve ever thought, nay, dreamt about your wedding, chances are that a lot of that time was spent imagining your perfect gown. Whether it was princess, modern, vintage, beaded, laced, tulled or none of the above, it was to be unique and yours alone. And Digital Fabrics made that once imagined dress a possibility this year when they printed a bespoke design for a custom wedding dress.

Developed from a photograph of hydrangea’s, and repeated along the border of the ivory duchess satin, the colour and effect could not have worked better on the day. The ombre purple and mauves were a great contrast to the earthiness of the bush surrounds and were a true reflection of the bride’s personality.

If you look to the meaning of flowers, hydrangeas (although there are conflicting ideas) are said to represent anything that is sincere and heartfelt, a particularly good thing to be announcing for a bride to her groom.

The team at Digital Fabrics not only printed the fabric but had some helpful input regarding colour and fabric which made the process almost seamless.

So for that totally unique print you’ve been dreaming about, give Digital Fabrics a call as our design and print solutions go all the way to the altar!

More images can be viewed on the photographers blog The Flame Trees here.

Detail of the wedding dress, printed at Digital Fabrics

Look out at Kangaroo Valley courtesy of The Flame Trees Photography

Did you spook or get spooked?

Day of the Dead Skulls

Leading on from last week’s post on Halloween (did you spook or get spooked?) Dia de Muertos is forming the base of our inspiration for creation this weekend. The Mexican Day of the Dead festival which celebrates the life of family and friends who have passed has become quite a fascination with popular western culture in the past few seasons and it’s easy to see why.

Brightly coloured tattooed skulls (known as sugar skulls) have adorned t-shirts and hoodies. Simple black and white imagery could be seen on scarves and tote bags on every second person and even models were done up in makeup resembling adorned skeletons for Lena Hoschek’s spring/summer 2013 catwalk show in Berlin. For a while there it could be found everywhere and it might be too early to tell if the trend has past or just lying low for the moment.

While we wait to see where this trend takes us, why not take a moment to reflect on life and death and then turn it into a creative celebration of the circle of life.

Day of the Dead symbols from a font on www.fontbros.com/

Images from Lena Hoschek’s spring/summer 2013 catwalk show in Berlin.

The Witching Hour Draws Near

Spooky Scene by Poofy on Flickr
www.flickr.com/photos/enchanticals/galleries/72157627899470504#photo_2950228894

Next week is Halloween people. Time to get your print scare on.

Now Australia has only in recent years, embraced the whole October 31^st party vibe, that is more traditionally seen as an American festival of all things spooky. And while there may be complaints from some about our country becoming too “Americanised” this is one occasion which should be taken on board whole heartedly, or less heartedly if you’re inclined to dress up as a heart eating monster this year. Simple because you get to dress up as anything you want to, scary or not and how often do we really allow ourselves this chance?

Trending this year are popular shows from the past couple of years, notably Game of Thrones’ Daenerys Targaryen, the Breaking Bad boys and somewhat more random, Duck Dynasty a ‘reality’ show about duck hunters.

Now you could jump on this band wagon, let Yahoo! do the work for you with their recent top ten’s lists (see below) or you could use that imaginative spirit that was born for an all hallows eve festivity and get crazy with your outfit!

With Halloween right around the corner, Yahoo has released the lists for the top 10 searched Halloween related items this season.

What better way to scare (or impress) the boo out of your friends than rocking up in an outfit that you not only made yourself, but had the fabric printed specifically for it as well! Think cobwebs and creepy crawlies with splashes of suspicious colour or eerie scenes of mist through an abandoned street. It is also no coincidence that Mexico’s Day of the Dead follows up Halloween on November 1, so there’s some great inspiration right there.

If this post seams a little excited, it’s because it is. Purely because there’s so much creativity that comes with dressing up for an event like this, it’s hard not to see the potential for Halloween to play muse and feed into your print designs. So turn the lights down low, light a few candles and let the shadows take you to the witching hour.

A designer edge for Halloween (L-R)
Dolce & Gabbana, Christopher Kane, Ashish (sweater), Mary Katrantzou (skirt)

Get Up High to Look Down Low

Phillip Lim Spring14 runway shot and a topographical map

This week we’re going up sky high to get a bird’s eye view of some great ideas to feed into the repeating pattern melting pot of textile design. And having seen a few on the runway shots from New York from the past week, there could be a trend in here somewhere. A change in perspective is never a bad thing, it can help to inform a full idea or understanding of the thing that you might be looking at and the result could be even more interesting than initially considered and has the potential to keep viewers on their toes. Mess with their minds and their idea of what they should be looking at.

Farm land in Queensland, Australia and tiered rice paddies in China

Snow caped mountains and valleys and an aerial view of a coral reef

Some great examples of where to find inspiration are from the aerial shots of colourful rice paddies in China or snowy mountains anywhere, views of coral reefs and topographical maps of countries. A similar approach can be taken by getting beneath the surface, going under water or inspecting the microscopic images of all types of matter.

But for now, be a bird even if just metaphorically, and take in what they might see soaring the skies.

Aerial shot of horses in a paddock create some interesting shadow play
www.natgeocreative.com

From inspiration to the garment (clockwise from left)
Emanuel Ungaro, Sara Phillips, Due, Grey Malin

Get A Little Touchy Feely

Different types of surface textures from a range of objects and places of inspiration

If the digital printing form on textiles where it’s possible to render fine detail and subtleties in colour, adding texture to your design can enhance your print, lifting it beyond the end product into a realm of its own.

There are many ways to add depth and interest into your designs and playing with textures is just one of them, but considering that we come into constant visual contact with surface variations, we have endless avenues for inspiration. The bricks of a house, the bark of a tree, the frothiness of our morning coffee, the reflections out the bus window, shadows, ripples, concrete, clouds, grass…its everywhere and it all can feed through into a great design.

Different types of surface textures from a range of objects and places of inspiration

And there are just as many ways to translate a rough or smooth or in between feature. Whether you start out organically rendering the area by hand, take photographs to rework it, use features in design programs or a combination of any of these things to overlay and manipulate, its undeniable that at some point as a creative being you’ve considered the importance of texture in your current piece of work.

This is not about using it all the time and everywhere, just an observance piece how texture plays a fairly large role in the designing of fabric prints and has just as much impact as colour, scale, movement or positive and negative space.

So be aware and be inspired and take another look at the surface area of your smoked salmon wrap, what’s happening with texture there?

Great sources of texture images and inspiration can be found at the following website, some of which were used as sources for the included images:

Fine Art America

Deviantart

Pattern People

Read Between The Lines

: Big and bold combinations
(L-R) Etro, Dolce & Gabbana, Paul & Joe

Its always around in some capacity, from season to season there’ll be a stripe or two, a polka dot and even a check. But recently it seems the good ol’ geo is getting a little bolder, a little more out there and even when in the standard black and white, there’s an impact being made and a statement being said.

Even simple geo prints are being teamed with more intricate florals or with a pop of colour which adds intrigue and appeal. Although wearing an all over bold stripe might be daunting for some, finding smaller pieces to go with colour blocking or quite simply a pair of jeans and flats is an easy way to dip a toe into this trend pool.

Steal the show in this impact making number by Oscar de la Renta

In any case take another look at straight or curvy lines and all sizes of spots that surround you every day at let that feed a little creativity when it comes to the simple geo. Take the trend and run with it, between, over or around the lines and see where it can take you. It could lead you right to Digital Fabrics with a great new print to wow all your friends with being so on trend and all!

Geo collage
(L-R) Peter Pilotto, Preen, Erdem

Christian Dior and Aquilano.Rimondi

For more on the geo collage styling, see the following links:

Vogue: Walk the Line

Pattern People: Black and White Interiors

Fashionising

Pull Up A Seat

Range of products on offer at Front Row Society
(L-R) Pansy Patch Scarf by Emma Smyth, Sinner Tank Top by Ivano Tella You See Your Tribe leggings by Saori Ito,

Here is an innovative brand and design house making one long front row for customers and designers to sit side by side. Based in Berlin, Germany and conjured by local Florian Ellsaesser, Front Row Society is all about “design with a story”. Fostering a collaborative open collective of designers, FRS gives their customers what they want by making them the designers.

FRS scours the whole globe for new, fresh and exciting talent through their design competition challenges. Posting a new challenge every few months, FRS gives anyone the opportunity to put forward their designs which are then voted on by the general public to get a shortlist before celebrating the five or so winners. The winners do get a cash prize but they’re also showcased on their website including the info on what challenge they entered and where the hail from.

Announcement of the winners of the most recent challenge, the Rockabilly Bash Shirt

The aim of the game for the challenges is all about prints of all varying capacities. They cycle through a range of different products from scarves and leggings, to swimwear and bags. This month’s challenge is for Autumn handbags with the theme being Pure Math or Art Deco. FRS also helps out with relevant tutorials applicable to the varied contests.

It’s a great way to engage the customer, making them not only the audience of an ever changing and exciting show, but putting out a hand to pull them on stage too. Designer or customer or vice versa. One is not necessarily the other but they could be both, which is great news for either!

Battlefields II range by Stefano Popovski
Rucksack, Handbag and Clutch

It’s not the only way they create and develop their ranges but it plays a big part and they still reference the designer at all stages which is a nice indication that there’s a mutual respect happening across the seasonal lines.

So have a burl, flex your repeat design muscle and even if you don’t win you can always come to Digital Fabrics to get your spanking new design printed and then do with as you please! Now if that’s not exciting, the weekend is sure to be dull, enjoy!!

Scarf prints
(L-R) Intertwined by Emma Smyth, Coral Melody by Oana Soare, Syncretic Cycle by Valentino Fiammetta

Live Global, Print Local

We live in a very “international” age where it’s pretty impossible to live in any part of this country and not have access to information about a plethora of subjects and issues spanning the globe. And whether or not you pay much attention to it all or a little bit, at some stage you’re bound to come across sign posts for key factors that essentially impact Australians and their economy.

For example, perhaps up until this year you had paid little to no attention to where the clothes on your back were actually produced and then there was the absolutely devastating building collapse of the clothing factory in Bangladesh.

Perhaps this tragedy has highlighted some significant areas for consideration including what is the best production practice for Australian fashion houses. This brings us to print runs produced off shore, predominantly in China but increasingly in Korea and India, compared to printing on our own sunny shores. Should we be pushing for one over the other or is there a happy medium that can be forged with cooperation from members of the TCFA industry bodies and government?

Clearly price point is a huge factor and although the minimum wage for factory workers in these countries is well below what we would consider acceptable for ourselves, if we were to take away their source of income altogether by ceasing production completely, what does that do to their livelihood? And yet to support innovation and growth within Australia for both screen and digital printing is to continue to promote our own economic growth with an increased work force and encourage companies to stay local.

You can’t deny that China in particular has a rich history of fabric innovation being the first to cultivate and produce silk. Neither can you dismiss India and her surrounds for their impact on international printing trends and practices. But it would be great if right here in our own backyard we were given the opportunity to establish a stable and reliable fashion printing industry on a large scale.

The printing that is currently offered here in Australia has some key advantages and should be taken advantage of. Companies can deal directly with printers giving them a greater amount of control from initial strike off to full bulk runs. This in turn reduces time pressures by limiting the back and forth waiting for shipments or time zone constraints. Minimums are generally lower which means sampling can be produced with a lower risk and greater flexibility of having multiple print styles. And on an environmental note, the freight back and forth overseas is greatly reduced lowering emissions.

So keep up to date on all that international news, live globally, but support Australian industries, print local, print with Digital Fabrics!

Swimwear Ahoy

Full Piece, Full Print
(L-R) Erdem – Pistol Panties – Seafolly – We Are Handsome

Did you know that this July marks the 67^th birthday of the modern bikini?? So to mark this occasion let’s have a look at some cool print trends making a splash and having a frolic in the swimwear world.

From vibrant florals and crisp clean tribal designs to 1950’s inspired prints and styles, even the one piece suits get in on the action with some great examples of the scope of digital printing onto lycra. There’s plenty of animal action as well, We Are Handsome perhaps being a little too obvious for some? And who thought food was where it’s at, Top Shop sure thought so!

Start working on that beach bod and look forward to the array of exciting colours and prints that will be on offer in the not too far off future. Here’s to sunshine that will hopefully show her rays this weekend!