Wednesday 29 May 2013

The Caroline Sills company Part I. - Devenport / New Zealand

Over the past four months, I got the opportunity to take part in Caroline Sills company's life.  I participated in the development and preparation of the next winter collection. During this experience I could get a bit taste of the New Zealand fashion life thanks to Ange Todd - the company's head-fashion designer. I met some of the world textile traders who were comming from Australia, China and they showed us the actual fabrics trends and we visited the local traders also. I had an amazing three months at Caroline Sills and am very grateful to be part of the company for this time. I can say only Thank you very much for all employees from the company's manager to everyone!

I was interested also How everything started? So I talked about the past with the company's employees.
Special thanks to the help of this article writing to June Remmers -  Manager of the Caroline Sills company.

Timeless style

Caroline began in a very small way designing the range herself with the help of one sample knitter and group of outworkers. From these small beginnings her business has grown until today we see the Caroline Sills, Kathryn Wilson in lot of boutiques in New Zealand and Overseas. In addition to knitwear the labels incorporate woven and shoe section from Kathryn Wilson.



Fashion Cruise -  Pacific Princess: Cruise passengers saw more than the New Zealand coastline.

The leopard knitted sweater is like a jumper from the today fashion magazines.

In the beginning Caroline's only label was Caroline Sills but for some time she felt there was need for another and in 1992 she introduced the Calliope Road label, which embraced directional-easy wear styling. 

Calliope Road 1992




Calliope Road label was welcomed by retailers and consumers – the Birzeit label, which was created precisely with the bigger woman in mind was introduced. 

BIRZEIT - "The designers researched the concept of dressing the bigger woman with diligence and thoughtfulness. They have achieved all they set out to do and have created a range of knitwear and woven which will appeal to the most discerning." Quote from the company's archive



In 2000 and in 2002 Richard Moore and Kathryne Wilson joined her team. Richard as head designer Kathryn as his assistant. Under umbrella of Caroline Sills both have subsequently launched their own label, the Richard Moore label in knitwear and apparel and for Kathryn Wilson her shoe label.

Richard Moore label - Knitted garments in the spirit of womanhood

Natural Beauty at Richard Moore


To be continued ...




Monday 6 May 2013

Sculptural Knit Fabric: HyunJin Yun talented Korean knitwear designer II. part

Knitted design from Auckland/New Zealand: HyunJin Yun talented Korean knitwear designer student / AUT - II. part

She is an ingenious Korean knitwear designer student who is doing now her last year - MA degree - at Auckland University of Technology. I met her last mounth at " Stretching the limits in knit research" Symposium, which was organized by the AUT - Auckland University of Technology. Next to other interesting and exciting design presentation, I found HjunJin's works really special and captivating.
She is not a simple knitwear designer because she is focusing more on e-knitting design in home design. Through her works she bring us in exciting visual spectacle world so we should keep track of her work in the future too.
Your diploma work/idea is very interesting: You were working with unconventional raw material. What was the basic idea and how it evolved in the shape?

Well I’ve always liked new and innovative materials, and at AUT I could experiment with glow-in-the-dark yarn, metallic and transparent yarn for knitting and digital printing, all of which are really interesting. Then I had an opportunity to collaborate with a senior student from a different department, product designer Kate Ramsay. Kate wanted to  develop a three dimensional knitted fabric to make into lights.


During the process I really enjoyed ideas of developing knitted fabrics for a light product and collaborate with different subject but designing. From this point I would like to create fabrics for making product that contains light source. Then I have opportunity to work with research group called E textiles for dancing costume. My roll was creating fabrics that contains growing in the dark. So I had lot of experiment on light related knitting mediums include mono filament, UV reactive yarn, metallic yarn, retro reflective ribbon and fiber optic. After combing knitting these materials together I found interesting properties that this fabric can be rechargeable and it does not damage to fabric. I then want to make light sculpture with this fabric that I want to show details of knitted structures and simple but
it’s has important interactive with people as well.


(Has studying at AUT influenced your career?)
How much influence are your career that you  are studying at AUT?
 
I think it has a lot! I joined AUT to get better qualified for a textile carrier, but I    didn’t expect the creative opportunities it would open up, and I didn’t expect all the exciting equipment, like the digital printing and 3D whole-garment knitting machine.
The way that my study is structured for assessment has influenced my work. In order to write essays and thesis I have to document everything and be introspective about my methods, then try and communicate the key aspects to my lecturers.  It’s challenging - and most the time I’d rather be making something - but it has helped me find efficient working processes and forced me to try and be insightful, something I really appreciate in hindsight.
Now I’m doing postgrad there is more freedom to choose a direction, but also more pressure to specialise. Fortunately I’m enjoying working with e-knitting, because that’s what I’ve been practicing for 4 years!

What developed and defined your style?
Research, practice, then more research and practice and so on!
What brings you to the real atmosphere of inspiration?
It’s a feeling when I see something I think is really beautiful - in nature, art or other textile designers work - and when I feel I’ve caught a little of that in my own work it’s really encouraging.
As a young designer hinges on the ability to prevail?
What abilities does a young designer need to prevail?
I don’t know! I’m still a student but I’m working on a range to sell and planning a commercial strategy and it’s nerve racking!

What kind of difficulties you've to fight as designer?
My main challenge is to never be complacent, and never stop improving my work. Until the deadline that is, then the challenge is to finish everything in time!
What is the general problem to contend with a NZ designer in order to remain marketable? I don’t have the experience necessary to answer this question with authority. People say that the New Zealand market is small but if your design is unique then you can stand out. I think the emergence of the global market to direct sell via websites - straight from producer to customer - is very, very exciting. However there are still logistical challenges around shipping and currency that technology hasn’t trivialised yet, and I think everyone prefers to experience products first hand, so there are huge innate challenges to online marketing too.

Who is the person who you're the most thankful because you became a designer and that you can do what you love?
I’m very lucky, AUT is a great community of inspiring and generous people. Locally I’ve met a retired professional knitter who gives me amazing ideas and tips, and globally there is a thriving movement of e-textile and knitting blogs, instruct ables and hacker spaces. I’m sincerely grateful for my student allowance. Although it’s not actually enough to live on, in Korea education is mostly user pays, which excludes a huge sector of society from reaching their potential.
What for you is exciting in interior Design now?
e-textiles! especially e-knitting!


What is the message from your design?
To combine the long and illustrious heritage of knitting with the rapidly developing world of user electronics.
Are there any designers, past or present, that you would have liked to work with? 
Diana Ing is truly amazing for her constant innovation and sheer productivity, she’s always perfecting new e-textile products! I get goosebumps from some of Issey Miyake’s work, his aesthetic and style is inspiring.




Sculptural Knit Fabric: HyunJin Yun talented Korean knitwear designer I. part

Knitted design from Auckland/New Zealand: HyunJin Yun talented Korean knitwear designer student / AUT - I. part

She is an ingenious Korean knitwear designer student who is doing now her last year - MA degree - at Auckland University of Technology.

Photos from 2011 project
I met her last mounth at " Stretching the limits in knit research" Symposium, which was organized by the AUT - Auckland University of Technology. Next to other interesting and exciting design presentation, I found HjunJin's works really special and captivating.
She is not a simple knitwear designer because she is focusing more on e-knitting design in home design. Through her works she bring us in exciting visual spectacle world so we should keep track of her work in the future too.

 HyunJin Yun
Let’s cast our minds back to where it all began for you.
Tell some details what you think is important to know about yourself to the Blog readers.
Why became you a designer and special a knitwear designer? How it started?
I’ve been fascinated with fabrics since childhood; growing silkworms on mulberry trees, drawing on paper dolls, I even remember making a dress out of a spare sock for my friend’s doll.

When I grew up I worked in the Korean textile industry - which was very hard work, very long hours, and then moved to New Zealand in 2004. I decided to study textile design to get an in-depth knowledge of textiles. 


Tell us a little bit about your study: How is the life at AUT? - teachers, expectations, workshops, etc., which comes to your mind.

I often feel very lucky that I have a lot of people guiding my studying and this makes learning much more enjoyable and faster. Working with new materials and always trying to learn new methods, I often feel bewildered - where’s this all going? Having good supervisors, lecturers’ knowledge and helpful classmates really helps me find areas to specialise in and identify goals to work towards. 


The AUT facilities are very good for practice as well as gaining knowledge. We have specialty knitting machines, fabric digital printing, 3D lab and the Textile Design Lab. I can access these facilities and develop my own project ideas and all the lab technicians and department engineers are always helpful.

"Sculptural Knit Fabric Lit with Electroluminescent Wire"
"Sculptural Knit Fabric Lit with Electroluminescent Wire"
The shapes of these sculptures were inspired by New Zealand native fern trees. They are knitted on a Shima Seiki whole garment knitting machine in the Textile Design Lab at AUT. These three dimensional knitted fabric are 60 cm wide and 6 meters long."
"Sculptural Knit Fabric Lit with Electroluminescent Wire"


Last week(11th April) AUT hosted a machine knitting forum in the Auckland Art Gallery, and at the last moment I learnt I couldn’t hang my fabric sculptures from the ceiling. So in two days I had to find a “professional looking” solution. I ended up in the metalwork department of AUT where I had never been to before, getting a helpful engineer to bend copper pipes to make a lamp post! That available help and flexibility can turn a stressful challenge into a rewarding event.

To be continued...

Sunday 5 May 2013

Showcase tour in Auckland - Autumn/Winter '13.1. / New Zealand

This time is ( From April to September 2013) in New Zealand the Autumn and Winter 2013 session in contrast with the other side of the world.... in Europe arrived the spring. I took a walk in the city Ackland and checked the shopwindows - What is going on in fashion field?
 Enjoy my showcase tour. 

Queen Street / Auckland NZ
AIMAI / High Street Auckland NZ

STORM 


FABRIC
FABRIC / High Street
FABRIC
FABRIC
FABRIC
Great Kiwi Yarns / Queen Street
ICEBREAK / Queen Street
CUE / Queen Street
CUE / Queen Street
Veronika Maine / High Street
Veronika Maine

High Street
Queen Street