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!
We have found a few great websites that assist fashion designers with starting up their own business. The websites we found assist designers with inspiration, keeping up to date with the latest trends, and websites that help with making, grading, pattern making, marketing and much more. We thought we would share with you our favourite and most helpful websites. If you have a favourite website for emerging designers, share it with us!
Start up fashion
Information on how to start up a fashion label, supplying articles on where to find makers for our American based followers, articles on how to market your product and articles on how to sell. This website has a lot of resources for emerging designers.
startupfashion.com
Business of Fashion
BOF featured an array of fashion articles, keep up to date with what’s happening fashion wise around the world and step by step points on how to start a fashion label and how to market.
www.businessoffashion.com
Business of fashion, 8 steps to start your own fashion business
We came across this great article on the BOF website, 8 steps to start your own fashion business.
www.businessoffashion.com/2007/02/the-business-of-fashion-basics-1-setting-up-your-own-fashion-business-what-do-i-need-to-know-first.html
Ragtrader
Rag trader is a premium Australia directory for everyone in the creative industry. You’ll have to sign up to this website and pay a subscription fee, but it is well worth the money to access fashion agents, textile agents, suppliers, labels and so much more contacts.
www.ragtrader.com.au/index.cfm
AusIndustry
This Australian government website is aimed at helping small textile business in Australia. The Textile, Clothing and Footwear (TCF) Small Business Program provides grants of up to $50,000 for projects to improve the business enterprise culture of established TCF small businesses that have not received grants or qualify for assistance from other TCF programs. Worth a look for all small fashion business’.
www.ausindustry.gov.au/programs/small-business/tcf-sbp/Pages/default.aspx
Fashion shop till u drop
Olena Lugassi runs one on one private design tuition and fashion online courses for designers who want to start their own business.
www.fashionshoptilludrop.com/index.html
Launch Initiative
Assisting designers from the start providing pattern making, grading, digitizing, sample machining, fabric advice and production services.
www.launchindesignstudio.com/index.html
Elizabeth Sonter
Elizabeth Sonter provides a pattern making and grading service.
elizabethsonter.webs.com
We have found a few great websites that assist fashion designers with starting up their own business. The websites we found assist designers with inspiration, keeping up to date with the latest trends, and websites that help with making, grading, pattern making, marketing and much more. We thought we would share with you our favourite and most helpful websites. If you have a favourite website for emerging designers, share it with us!
Start up fashion
Information on how to start up a fashion label, supplying articles on where to find makers for our American based followers, articles on how to market your product and articles on how to sell. This website has a lot of resources for emerging designers.
startupfashion.com
Business of Fashion
BOF featured an array of fashion articles, keep up to date with what’s happening fashion wise around the world and step by step points on how to start a fashion label and how to market.
www.businessoffashion.com
Business of fashion, 8 steps to start your own fashion business
We came across this great article on the BOF website, 8 steps to start your own fashion business.
www.businessoffashion.com/2007/02/the-business-of-fashion-basics-1-setting-up-your-own-fashion-business-what-do-i-need-to-know-first.html
Ragtrader
Rag trader is a premium Australia directory for everyone in the creative industry. You’ll have to sign up to this website and pay a subscription fee, but it is well worth the money to access fashion agents, textile agents, suppliers, labels and so much more contacts.
www.ragtrader.com.au/index.cfm
AusIndustry
This Australian government website is aimed at helping small textile business in Australia. The Textile, Clothing and Footwear (TCF) Small Business Program provides grants of up to $50,000 for projects to improve the business enterprise culture of established TCF small businesses that have not received grants or qualify for assistance from other TCF programs. Worth a look for all small fashion business’.
www.ausindustry.gov.au/programs/small-business/tcf-sbp/Pages/default.aspx
Fashion shop till u drop
Olena Lugassi runs one on one private design tuition and fashion online courses for designers who want to start their own business.
www.fashionshoptilludrop.com/index.html
Launch Initiative
Assisting designers from the start providing pattern making, grading, digitizing, sample machining, fabric advice and production services.
www.launchindesignstudio.com/index.html
Elizabeth Sonter
Elizabeth Sonter provides a pattern making and grading service.
elizabethsonter.webs.com
Keeping up to date with the fashion world has gotten a whole lot easier now with the internet. We now have instant updates on what’s happening around the world not only in the fashion world, but also in the every aspect of life.
There are various websites we continuously check to see the latest news or trends in the fashion world; I particularly enjoy viewing live feeds of the latest fashion shows, the most recent being updates are the Fall 2013 Couture shows.
Here are the top 5 fashion websites we keep an eye on here at Digital Fabrics.
1. Style.com
Latest shows updated as they happen, fashion news, parties, trends, street style photos, behind the scene shots, beauty and much more.
style.com
2. Who What Wear
Fashion trends, celebrities, where to buy, shopping and beauty.
www.whowhatwear.com
3. The Satorialist
Fashion Blog at it’s finest.
www.thesartorialist.com
4. Stylesight
Inspiration for any creative person looking for fresh ideas, trend forecast, inovations, news on fashion, art and culture.
www.stylesight.com
5. Vogue UK
Up to date fashion shows, beauty, fashion news, street style photos, parties and much more.
www.vogue.co.uk
Sometimes you come across a website, which keeps you going back for more, the website ShowStudio has an array of pages to inspire anyone. Having a fashion design background I was drawn to a project on the website, which invites designer’s to share a pattern. The project began in 2002, offering patterns from designers such as John Galliano, Yohji Yamamoto, Alexander McQueen, Martin Margiela and Giles Deacon. My favourite so far is the Giles Deacon dress, the pattern which was taken from the Autumn/Winter 2007 collection, is a basic dress which you can transform into your own and can easily be transported into 2013. With the currently print trends you could design a print featuring cactus, cats, crystals, florals, anything really and you could print this on one of our great fabrics and get sewing; to create your own personalised designer outfit.
Head over to ShowStudio and get inspired. They have great articles on designers and artists and you can download the Giles Deacon pattern to create your own.
Giles Deacon
Giles Deacon
Paula Maso & Neliana Fuenmayor, ÆTHER
Images from Show Studio.
Keeping up to date with the fashion world has gotten a whole lot easier now with the internet. We now have instant updates on what’s happening around the world not only in the fashion world, but also in the every aspect of life.
There are various websites we continuously check to see the latest news or trends in the fashion world; I particularly enjoy viewing live feeds of the latest fashion shows, the most recent being updates are the Fall 2013 Couture shows.
Here are the top 5 fashion websites we keep an eye on here at Digital Fabrics.
1. Style.com
Latest shows updated as they happen, fashion news, parties, trends, street style photos, behind the scene shots, beauty and much more.
style.com
2. Who What Wear
Fashion trends, celebrities, where to buy, shopping and beauty.
www.whowhatwear.com
3. The Satorialist
Fashion Blog at it’s finest.
www.thesartorialist.com
4. Stylesight
Inspiration for any creative person looking for fresh ideas, trend forecast, inovations, news on fashion, art and culture.
www.stylesight.com
5. Vogue UK
Up to date fashion shows, beauty, fashion news, street style photos, parties and much more.
www.vogue.co.uk
Sometimes you come across a website, which keeps you going back for more, the website ShowStudio has an array of pages to inspire anyone. Having a fashion design background I was drawn to a project on the website, which invites designer’s to share a pattern. The project began in 2002, offering patterns from designers such as John Galliano, Yohji Yamamoto, Alexander McQueen, Martin Margiela and Giles Deacon. My favourite so far is the Giles Deacon dress, the pattern which was taken from the Autumn/Winter 2007 collection, is a basic dress which you can transform into your own and can easily be transported into 2013. With the currently print trends you could design a print featuring cactus, cats, crystals, florals, anything really and you could print this on one of our great fabrics and get sewing; to create your own personalised designer outfit.
Head over to ShowStudio and get inspired. They have great articles on designers and artists and you can download the Giles Deacon pattern to create your own.
Giles Deacon
Giles Deacon
Paula Maso & Neliana Fuenmayor, ÆTHER
Images from Show Studio.
Status – As an indication of wealth or opulence, uses the motifs (but not limited to) of gold chains, jewels, animal skins and ornate scroll work often all in combination and in rich vibrant colours.
Checks/Spots/Stripes – patterns of squares, circles and rectangles of varying size, colour and orientation i.e. horizontal/vertical as well as edge definition. A broken or ‘non symmetrical’ circle is still considered a spot.
Scenic/Pictorial – Traditionally called a Toile de Jouy, uses figurative scenes of an illustrative quality (now more photographic) and often with a narrative and generally in a horizontal orientation. Traditionally printed in monochromatic colour on a plain white or ivory ground.
Paisley – Stylised tear drop motif often with abstracted floral elements in accompaniment, now seen with various combinations of many types of fashion prints. Paisley takes its modern name from the Scottish town which saw a great deal of production of these patterns in the 1800’s. These motifs are now most recognisable as Indian or Middle Eastern from where its tradition is embedded.
Tribal/Ethnic – Perhaps more appropriately termed World Cultures, using motifs and elements specific to a nationality or culture with a western interpretation. Popular areas of inspiration are Africa, India and Arabia but also include the folk arts of Eastern Europe and South America. Care must be taken not to use motifs or symbols of a spiritual or special meaning to the culture being used as inspiration.
Status – As an indication of wealth or opulence, uses the motifs (but not limited to) of gold chains, jewels, animal skins and ornate scroll work often all in combination and in rich vibrant colours.
Checks/Spots/Stripes – patterns of squares, circles and rectangles of varying size, colour and orientation i.e. horizontal/vertical as well as edge definition. A broken or ‘non symmetrical’ circle is still considered a spot.
Scenic/Pictorial – Traditionally called a Toile de Jouy, uses figurative scenes of an illustrative quality (now more photographic) and often with a narrative and generally in a horizontal orientation. Traditionally printed in monochromatic colour on a plain white or ivory ground.
Paisley – Stylised tear drop motif often with abstracted floral elements in accompaniment, now seen with various combinations of many types of fashion prints. Paisley takes its modern name from the Scottish town which saw a great deal of production of these patterns in the 1800’s. These motifs are now most recognisable as Indian or Middle Eastern from where its tradition is embedded.
Tribal/Ethnic – Perhaps more appropriately termed World Cultures, using motifs and elements specific to a nationality or culture with a western interpretation. Popular areas of inspiration are Africa, India and Arabia but also include the folk arts of Eastern Europe and South America. Care must be taken not to use motifs or symbols of a spiritual or special meaning to the culture being used as inspiration.
Maria Primachenko’s Original (in part) “Rat on a Journey”
It has come to light this past week that internationally recognised Finnish home wares and textile house Marimekko, has allegedly pilfered a print design from a Unkraninian folk artist, Maria Primachenko. Although Marimekko as a company holds the commercial license for their print designs, their freelance designers are essentially responsible for what they create. In this case long time Marimekko freelancer and daughter of an original illustrator at the brand, Kristina Isola, is the designer in question.
The only difference in the two artworks appears to be that the newer of the two is without the woodland character giving the work the title “Rat on a Journey”. Completed in 1963, Primachenko’s gouache painting is now housed in the Ukrainian Folk Decorative Art Museum in Kiev and featured in a book along a similar theme.
Isola’s version, sans rats, developed in 2007 for Marimekko now adorns the Finnair long-haul Airbus 330 in an ongoing collaboration between the carrier and design house. Although now shown in blues rather than the original greens, there is no mistake for we all can see the forest for the trees. Marimekko is rightly so in “…complete shock and profound disappointment” (sic), however the airline as yet has made no comment, nor have the changed any of the information about the design on their website.
It will be interesting to learn of any developments about this as the subject of copyright and who can use what and when is of constant concern to designers of any magnitude. Simply though it all boils down to trying to stay as true to yourself and your own creative endeavours and taking great care not only with safe guarding your own work but doing the proper research when taking inspiration.
Not to put a downer on an inspired weekend though, go get out there, produce stuff and love it!
Kristina Isola’s version for Marimekko “Forest Dwellers” 2007
- Finnair Airbus 330 with the design in question
Another Finnair aeroplane showing an iconic Marimekko design
![](/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/whowhatwear1.jpg")