Designer • Photographer • Stylist
UTOPIA
Spring/Summer Collection
My senior year of my undergraduate experience, we were tasked with using everything we had learned in the previous three years of our education to construct ourselves, by hand, a completed and cohesive clothing collection to present in our annual fashion show. Scroll down to see my inspiration, process, and final looks as I present to you my futuristic spring/summer collection of 2021: UTOPIA.
Inspiration
When 2020 first started, many were wondering if it was the beginning of a new age, a new era. My inspiration for this collection was sparked late in the summer of 2020, a time where I was seeking a form of escapism from the blues that were brought upon by quarantine. At this time, there was a lot of social turmoil and political uproar.
I found comfort in dystopic movies and TV, and was particularly inspired by the night-life scenes in these works of science fiction media. I began to envision a group of friends from this era and how they would each dress...
I used very bright and vibrant colors because I wanted to showcase a range of personalities and styles within the same aesthetic. I also I wanted to blend the world of glamour with the world of athleisure, as I feel that in the future, we won't have to sacrifice comfort in exchange for style as much.
The goal of my collection is to embody the vision of a better future, where we have worked past social and environmental injustices, and where fashion and creativity can thrive.
Look 1:
Green Patchwork Set
Inspired by the psychedelic colors commonly shown in dystopic media, this look is compiled of some of my scrap fabric from prototyping in order to achieve an asymmetrical silhouette. I believe that in the future, we will be incorporating scrap fabric a lot more into our garments.
Look 2:
Blue Holographic Dress
Perfectly reflective to catch the lights on the dance floor, this dress is also adjustable in length using the ties on the side to adjust the ruching. One day I'd like to incorporate LED lights into this dress around the turtleneck to create a light-up "choker".
Look 3:
Purple/Pink Babydoll Dress & Bodysuit
This look was inspired to solve the issue of carrying one's phone comfortably when wearing a dress. While some dresses have pockets, cell phones are getting larger every year and that tends to weigh down a dress and ruin the silhouette. The bodysuit worn under this dress is made using recycled spandex, and includes a side pocket on the hip to comfortably carry any size phone, so you can dance all night with nothing weighing you down.
Look 4:
Groovy Orange Two-Piece
Finally, my showstopper. Heavily inspired by a combination of 70's disco-wear and rave attire, this look include bell sleeves on the top and bottoms for a groovy silhouette. The undergarments are made of the same material as the purple bodysuit so they can double as athletic wear and even swimwear if desired to wear alone. Bell sleeves on legs and arms alternate between mesh panels and chiffon for additional volume, the rest is stretchy mesh.