Article

Mix, Don't Match    (06/19/09)

In this Article Step out of the old concept of excessive matching Learn to incorporate not only color, but texture in your design Swatches are your Friend Accessorize! Discuss this Article on the Boards Click Here About the Author Jennifer Sauer has three loves, teaching, fashion and writing. She is a full-time professor of fashion design at Gibbs College in CT. She is also designing a a line of purses which will launch very soon this summer. In her free time, Jennifer likes to lounge on the beach at her 1920s cottage in Milford, CT. You will learn from her on PatternReview through her articles. Mix, Don't Match For a modern look, combine colors, textures and prints by Jennifer Sauer Photo: Carmine Paladino; design: Elaine James; model: Karoline Blackstock; styling: Amy Gomez, Lee Forde & Sarah Morgan (courtesy of BRAG magazine) Matching your shoes and handbag is as outdated a fashion concept as the "Don't wear white after Labor Day" rule. These days, aim to be a laid-back designer: Let your colors, accessories, textures, and prints "mingle". Experiment, Play, Break some rules. An effortless mix isn't as easy as it looks, however. Here, I'll show you the steps you should take to create "mix-it-up" style. There is a fine line between runway chic and looking like you dressed in the dark -- or are auditioning for Seussical, The Musical. (Re)train your color eye The first thing I encourage my fashion design students to do is trust their instincts. I could bring in a color wheel and show them bow to match colors using it. But I've found that the wheel actually hinders creativity. Each of us sees color in a different way. Instead, I send students off to the paint section of Home Depot, and have them collect a stack of color chips. Do the same. When you get home, clean off the dining room table, and throw the swatches into a messy heap. Then start shifting the colors around and look for "Ah Ha!" combinations. Also start looking for unusual combinations in your day-to-day travels. Mother Nature does some great color mixing. This winter, while walking at the beach, I fell in love with the silvery blue sky, dark indigo water, and straw-gold of the beach grass. I came home, pulled out my paint chips, and pinned that combination up on the bulletin board in my studio. I plan to create a handbag line based on that color combination. Also start ripping into those stacks of magazines in your home. I keep boxes of old magazines in the college library, and frequently send students down to browse. National Geographic magazines are my faves. A photo of a beetle can inspire a brave, bold color way. Inspiration is everywhere. Even photos of kitchens and baths in home magazines can open up a whole new world of color combos. Generally, colors with warm undertones work best with other colors with other warm colors. And the same goes with cool undertones. But the beauty is: not always. You'll be pleasantly surprised at some mixes. Texture, texture, texture The next element of design I like to cover with my students is texture. I'm a HUGE fan of texture. It gives depth and sophistication to your garments. Next time you are shopping, study expensive designer clothes, then compare them to an inexpensive line. The expensive duds are packed with rich, luxurious texture. The good news for us? There are so many affordable, beautiful textures fabrics out there, so you can create a designer look for very little money. Mixing textures is easy and fun. Again, experiment. Try pairing a smooth leather with a nubby wool and a metallic mesh knit. A pretty linen with a rich brocade and a buttery charmeuse. A feathery chiffon with basket-weave bamboo. The combinations are endless! Print to Scale Next, try your hand at prints. Prints are a blast to combine, but they often strike fear into the most savvy color and texture mixer. No worries. Again, I give you permission to play. Start with one print that you love, then pull out other prints from your stash and pile them up on the floor. Lay your favorite print on top and start shifting the pile. Pull some prints out, or add some in until you're satisfied with the mix.   Uneven numbers tend to work best in design, so start with three prints. For your first trio, look for a common color in all prints, say a lemony yellow. This helps tie them together. Then study the scale of the prints, and think like Goldilocks and the Three Bears: Too many small-scale prints become busy. Too many large-scale prints are overwhelming. But a small, medium, and large-scale print are just right. Always Swatch First Designers should really be called "swatchers." When I take new fashion students into NYC for the first time, and they walk out of a store with one measly swatch, I march them right back in. For every one fabric that you actually use, you should have a minimum of five swatches. And try not to make a hasty design decision (unless someone else is eyeing the bolt!). On every fabric shopping trip, I bring a supply of clear Ziploc bags, and I start mixing on the spot, putting all potential fabric partners in one bag. I ask students to do the same. After we hit a few stores, I take them for coffee. We clear off a table and spread our swatches out. We "ooh and aah" over each other's finds, and start playing with color, texture, and print. Then we all scatter to make our purchases, or head on to swatch other stores. When in doubt, Sketch it out You'd never cook a meal without first making sure the ingredients are fresh, right? And you usually work with a recipe. Well, the same holds true with design. Combining prints, textures, and colors in an outfit or collection is part art and part technical skill. Swatching is the first step (i.e. gathering the ingredients). Sketching is step two (i.e. testing the recipe). Sketching helps you make a multitude of design decisions before you cut into your prized fabrics. For example, if you envision a jacket with contrast pockets, cuffs, and collar, sketch it out first to make sure the vision in your head works on paper. More often than not, you'll need to make some adjustments. The pockets make the design look clownish, perhaps, so you decide to eliminate them. Or maybe you need to make the cuffs and collar bigger or smaller depending on the scale of your print. One student in my Portfolio class uses Photoshop to help her experiment with print scale. She scans her garment sketches (just pencil) into the program, then scans in her fabric swatches. She drops the fabric scans into her illustrations, then carefully positions the print. She enlarges or reduces the print to create unusual designs, and even adjusts colors. The results are amazing. Check them out, below. NOTE: you don't need to be a professional artist. In an upcoming PatternReview.com article, I'll show you how to pull some easy fashion sketches out of your creative hat. Photo: Jen Sauer; design & illustration: Jeannie Boccaccio Accessories can make a BIG Impact Finally, a word about accessories. They can make or break an outfit. Always remember that fashion is more than one garment. It is a total look. The way that you style a garment is very important. Again, mine your stash for small bits of fabric and leather to make accessories. A bold belt, or sassy scarf or bold clutch, is fast and easy to make. And fun! Add at least one accessory to your next sewing project. You'll love, love, love the results. Photo: Carmine Paladino; design: Sarah Morgan; model: Karoline Blackstock; styling: Amy Gomez, Lee Forde & Sarah Morgan (courtesy of BRAG magazine) Suggested Resources Style.com (Get inspired by the runway shows and save images to "mylookbooks" ) fgi.org (Twice yearly trend report, available on DVD) From Pencil to Pen Tool : Understanding and Creating the Digital Fashion Image - With CD by Jemi Armstrong, Lorrie Ivas & Wynn Armstrong (Fairchild Books & Visuals) Understanding Aesthetics for the Merchandising and Design Professional by Ann Marie Fiore & Patricia A. Kimle (Fairchild Books and Visuals) Understanding Color by Linda Holtzschue (John Wiley & Sons, Inc.) The New Munsell Student Color Set, 2nd Edition by Jim Long & Joy Turner Luke PR member's tip on how to use Photoshop for fabric and pattern simulation Copyright © 2009 PatternReview.com® All rights reserved.