PLEAT FARM » Silk

Folded Fiction by Kirsten Enkelmann

pleatfarmer — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 08:01:35 +0000

It was millenniums ago as a design student that I was in awe of French chronophotographer Etienne-Jules Marey, known for his graphic studies of humans, animals and objects in motion. I’m glad to have come across the works of Dutch designer Kirsten Enkelmann who was inspired by Etienne and recalled my interest with motion and its influence on design (read Wear Out).

Folded Fiction is a sports-inspired collection showcasing a dazzling feat of pleats. Working on a mix of low-tech and high-tech constructions, Kirsten utilized the traditional knife pleat on a variety of fabrics from cotton to pigskin, and lasercuts on neoprene to produce stretch pleats. Take a peek!

Pleated Fantasy Gown

pleatfarmer — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 07:06:11 +0000

For you future brides and pleat fans: this dashing wedding dress with countless bias-cut pleats could be the one!

This gown could be had at BHLDN, an awesome online (artisanal) bridal store and the brainchild of Anthropologie.

Pleats and knots by Dion Lee

pleatfarmer — Thu, 20 May 2010 18:02:57 +0000

Dion Lee‘s spring-summer 2010 lineup included a range of jaw-droppingly stunning wearables showcasing this Aussie talent’s masterly skills of pleating and knotting.

My favorite is this blue dress whose bodice is constructed out of a beautifully composed knot of bunched fabric.

—-

closeup of the blue dress

—

closeup of the equally stunning black dress via Jak & Jil

—

Check out the runway clip and the interview:

Click here to view the embedded video.

via vogue.com.au

runway photography: Lucas Dawson

backstage photography: rene vaile

Runway Roundup Fall/Winter ’10-’11 – Part II

pleatfarmer — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 04:31:02 +0000

From pt. I comes pt II. Dress galore from the Fall/Winter 2010-11 runways.

Alexander McQueen A/W 2010-2011

………………………

Elie Saab A/W 2010-2011

………………………

Talbot Runhof A/W 2010-2011

………………………

Valentino A/W 2010-2011

………………………

Cerruti A/W 2010-2011

………………………

Emanuel Ungaro A/W 2010-2011

………………………

Issey Miyake A/W 2010-2011

………………………

Rouland Mouret A/W 2010-2011

………………………

Giambattista Valli A/W 2010-2011

………………………

Like what you see? Shop for your favorite looks at farfetch.com

images via style.com

Runway Roundup Fall/Winter ’10-’11 – Part I

pleatfarmer — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 08:13:35 +0000

The little long-overdue compilation of Pleatfarm’s favorites is finally here! Plucked from the recent Fall/Winter 2010-11, the list of wearables are chosen for the designers’ ingenious and whimsical ways of exploring pleats, folds, and innovative materials, such as Viktor & Rolf‘s collar-to skirt pleated outfit; stuffed, twisted fabric by Comme des Garçons; weaving, undulating leather collars by Haider Ackermann; just to name a few.

Part II coming up!

Viktor & Rolf A/W 2010-2011

……………….

Gabriele Colangelo A/W 2010-2011

collection inspired by the textures of rocks. just love the tangled plissé!

……………….

Yohji Yamamoto A/W 2010-2011

……………….

Rick Owens A/W 2010-2011

……………….

Haider Ackermann A/W 2010-2011

……………….

Lanvin A/W 2010-2011

……………….

Gareth Pugh A/W 2010-2011

……………….

Comme des Garçons A/W 2010-2011

Get your favorite looks from your favorite designers at farfetch.com

images via style.com

A Collusion of Angles by Janneke Verhoeven

pleatfarmer — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 05:02:14 +0000

Designer Janneke Verhoeven loves triangles, and her recent graduate collection at the ArtEZ Institute of the Arts speaks of her fascination with the geometry. In Collusion of Angles, Janneke created an interplay between rigidity and softness by utilizing the geometric forms of the tangram puzzle. Recently Janneke took time to show her pieces and answered some questions regarding her design process. The collection was accompanied with shoes designed by Miriam van Weeghel, and were developed with wooden structures inspired by the Kapla principle.

What is the title, and concept behind your most recent collection?: The title of my collection is ‘a collusion of angles’.  Searching for a way to integrate structures in my work, I used the geometric forms of the tangram puzzle. Shapes are created around the body with either flowing or rigid forms. Flowing lines are interrupted or disturbed by angles, by inserting triangles from stiff leather into fluent fabrics. They make parts of the garments protrude from the body, creating unexpected shapes with a renewed elegance. Another take on using the geometric forms is by using triangle-shaped pieces of fabric, which I folded around the body. This way I start a pattern from a really abstract form, and just with little adjustments I try to make a real wearable garment.

What are your inspirations for the collection/ how did you begin the design process?: I get most of my inspirations from things that I notice around me, this time it started with work of the artist Andreas Gursky, which is a lot about structures. Then I found an image of a tangram puzzle, which intrigued me, since it’s a really basic principle of creating something new, by structuring the pieces. So this is how tangram became the main inspiration. (continue below)

(cont’d) I began the design with the mannequin, and start folding and shaping fabric around the form. This mostly ends up in piles and piles of pictures. And in the end I only use around 5 principles for the real collection. I make collages of these and this way I try to create a certain image/feel. Through the whole process it’s a constant development of the collection, also with the inspiration, but also the designs keep developing. I find it very important to keep open minded during the process, and not stick to a very first idea.

What kinds of materials and main techniques used for the collection?: One of the techniques I used in this collection, was making groups of stiff leather triangles and fuse fluent fabrics with these groups. When I drape this around a body, the stiff triangles disturb the fluent lines, this creates stiff forms that protrude from the body. The materials I used in the collection are a combination of natural fabrics such as felt wools, silks, laser-cut leather. But also in contrast synthetic materials, like a blue sheer polyester and high shine polished leathers.

What are the most important things you have learned from your teachers and mentors?: I think I had really great teachers, Goran Pejkoski of Maison Martin Margiela and Lilian Driessen of Viktor & Rolf, who taught me how to structure my design process, to start early with making choices. I also learned to keep an open mind, and not be afraid to ‘kill your darlings’, which can be hard of course.

What is your current fascination (can be fashion, art, design, current issues, books, etc.)?: One of my main fascinations at the moment is still structures, and I don’t know exactly what it is about the triangle, but it’s a shape that keeps me really intrigued, so I want to find out what that is with the triangle

Check out the video of the collection here.

Editorial Photography by Bob van Rooijen

Runway Photography by Sanne Peper

Felicity Brown

pleatfarmer — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 12:30:29 +0000

I’d like to prance and dance in these pleated numbers! Designed by fashion designer Felicity Brown, the ruffle-y couture collection is inspired by paintings of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.

images via Vogue Italia

t 4 3 Jewellery

pleatfarmer — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 08:40:45 +0000

t 4 3 (Tea For Three) is a jewelry label dedicated to friendship and a favorite pastime of tea-drinking. Spearheaded by Singapore-based jewelry designer, Serene Wong, The label features tea-inspired, hand-crafted jewelry collections by a trio of designers and former classmates from Central St Martins. Below is a showcase of a few selected works by Serene Wong and Szufen Huang:

Scent by Serene Wong

Inspired by the scent of various teas and its often calming and relaxing effects on one’s mood, part of the series combines aromatherapy and jewelry to stimulate the senses and evoke nostalgia. The collection consists of several vessel-like pieces that contain assorted contents ranging from colorful floral tea leaves to aromatic oils. This enables the wearer to change its contents or dispose of the tea leaves accordingly. They can also be personalized by varying the scents according to the wearer’s preference. These jewelry pieces are hand fabricated using acrylic and sterling silver.

*Available for order in a variety of colors (subject to availability).

Price available upon request.

————————-

Jurassic by Serene Wong

Designed for Hansel’s Fantastic Jurassic Collection, these jewelry were fabricated in acrylic and inspired by 3D dinosaur puzzles. Each one is handmade and can be re-engineered to size to fit the wearer. Jurassic first debuted on the runway at Audi Fashion Festival 2009 in Singapore.

*Available for order in a variety of colors (subject to availability).

Price available upon request.

————————-

Art by Szufen Huang

“花開富貴” (hua kai fu gui) – meaning “Fortune Blossoms” – is the auspicious name of a Chinese tea which blooms from a ball into a beautiful flower when immersed in water. These Chinese characters have been branded onto the delicate fabric to bring fortune to the wearer and add texture to the designs. Carefully hand-pleated in silk organza, the collection is also inspired by floral forms and skeletal structure of tea leaves. These qualities are expressed through the use of translucent and lightweight fabrics and lively details such as intricately hand-painted motifs.

*No longer available for order.

————————-

About the designers: t 4 3 (Tea For Three) is a jewelry label that is dedicated to Friendship and a favorite pastime. The three designers love the way that Tea brings people together and hope that their jewelry can do the same by serving as conversation starters. Hailing from Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design, London (2002), the former classmates Nana Akashi (Japan), Szufen Huang (Taiwan) and Serene Wong (Singapore) are currently based in three Asian countries. They constantly look to challenge themselves as designers and welcome opportunities for collaboration.

Leanne Marshall Fall/Winter ’10-’11

pleatfarmer — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 04:17:04 +0000

Designer Leanne Marshall recently unveiled her Fall/Winter 2010 collection with plenty of textural goodness. Inspired by topography, Leanne incorporate undulating layers similar to landscape contours on a map, which also give shape to her garments.

Photographs: Getty Images

via coutorture

Interactive Fashion by Ying Gao

pleatfarmer — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 17:45:52 +0000

Montreal-based fashion designer and university professor Ying Gao is known for her explorations in fashion that address movement and interaction with the environment.

Ying Gao created dresses made of various fabrics integrating microelectronic technology. Parts of the garments expand and contract as a respond to their immediate environment like light, movement, wind or touch

Living Pod: garments that expand when triggered by a light source

Click here to view the embedded video.

Walking City: dresses that respond to air, movement and touch

Click here to view the embedded video.

Playtime (still a work in progress): pleated garment inspired by Jacques Tati’s ‘Playtime’

images via ça va aller + exercises de style

living pod & walking city photography: dominique lafond

malousebastiaan Autumn/Winter 2010-2011

pleatfarmer — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 04:10:40 +0000

Dutch fashion design duo, Malou Verharen and Ferdinand Sebastiaan Hartgers of Malousebastiaan, recently showcased their autumn/winter 2010 collection at the Amsterdam International Fashion Week replete with breathtakingly sculptural garments.

Known for their conceptual and hands-on approach, malousebastiaan created textured garments in silk, wool and leather, each adorned with striking cube-shaped details, with the leather being ‘boiled into shape over mold’. The designers carefully hand-dyed each piece, resulting in hues of reds and purples reminiscent of the skies at dawn and dusk.

About malousebastiaan:

Malou Verharen and Ferdinand Sebastiaan Hartgers started their women’s label malousebastiaan in 2008 during their graduation year at Utrecht School of the Arts. Their outlandish yet ultra feminine aesthetics, and their rather conceptual and artisanal approach to fashion got them noticed right from the start; malousebastiaan was invited to show during both 2009 editions of Amsterdam International Fashion Week. Malousebastiaan made their debut in front of the Dutch fashion set at the highly regarded C’est BRILJANT show on February 1st 2009, as one of the selected young fashion talents to host the latest eyewear trends. In the next edition of AIFW, malousebastiaan starred at the prestigious Lichting 2009 show, competing for the G-Star Raw Talent Award amongst the very best of Dutch fashion academy graduates. Lichting introduced these fresh talents to the very core of the Dutch fashion industry and a handful of international influencers. Super-trendwatcher Lidewij Edelkoort was quick to pick malousebastiaan for her Talent line up at Designhuis in Eindhoven, and selected several of malousebastiaan’s leather sculptures to star in Studio Edelkoort exhibition in Tokyo. Apart from their compact handcrafted collections, malousebastiaan have been producing an ongoing series of short films about their design streamed on their website.

Photography: Peter Stigter

Incongruous by Roxanna Zamani

pleatfarmer — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 06:49:33 +0000

Roxanna Zamani of Otago Polytechnic based in New Zealand created a gorgeous couture collection that captures the the beauty of opposites. The Incongruous collection captures the tension between rigidity and fluidity; and the contrast between structure and softness in a garment.

Questions for Roxanna

Describe your collection: The Roxanna Zamani Couture collection ‘Incongruous’ captures the beauty of opposites reconciled. Ornate garments belie a minimalist base of simple shapes and plain geometric lines as the architectural masculine structure is embedded in a feminine and romantic form. Straight, often symmetrical lines lose their severity as the lines are repeated and draped, creating an illusion of soft curves. The repetition of these geometric forms confers on the garments a delicate and romantic femininity, as well as strength in an almost sculptural quality.

What inspires the collection?: The label is inspired by the pairing of opposites – especially new and old, and strength and beauty – in architecture, furniture and nature. Antique china teacups, for example, illustrated the tension and resolution between the hardness of the china and the delicacy of their shape and decoration, which began as a starting point for shapes. The towering walls of curved metal set in spaces, galleries or beside older, ‘conventional’-style buildings by Frank Gehry and sculptures by Richard Serra were particularly influential regarding the merging of two things, different and the like.

What is your favorite material and technique?: Favorite material is hands down silk – I love the way that it can pretty much transform into anything; Light, transparent and very drapable to heavy and stiff which maintains shape and holds structure. Its ability to do so much is so intriguing, being able to push its boundaries and defy its gravity is quite a fun experiment.

Favorite technique would most defiantly have to be things that are hands on – hand made. Things that have a personal human attachment to them, either it be a more traditional craft technique or things that have been personally made. I guess this is why couture is so attractive.

———– Roxanna’s process sketches ————

————————

Credits:

Photographer: Inge Flint
Models: Elza Jenkins, Nellie Jenkins and Nicole Clulee @ Ali McD Models
Jewellery: Claire Rewa
Designer: Roxanna Zamani

Amaya Arzuaga Spring 2010

pleatfarmer — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 08:57:55 +0000

Spanish fashion designer Amaya Arzuaga is inspired by the notion of metamorphosis for her Spring 2010 collection. Each dress connotes the transformation of a chrysalis to a butterfly, and the collection is rife with dramatic origamic folds and pleated tulle shaped into fans and spirals. Amaya also toys with opacity and translucency to suggest skin vs. motion, cocoons vs. butterfly wings. Overall, this is a spectacular collection! Click for more images below for your viewing pleasure:

Photo credit: Tomy Pelluz

Lanvin Spring/Summer 2010

pleatfarmer — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 06:01:57 +0000

I admit, this is the first time I learned of the word ‘plissé‘ after reading about Alber Elbaz. ‘Plissé’ or Fortuny pleating is a textile finish with permanent pleats formed by treating with a sodium hydroxide solution, and supposedly invented by Mariano Fortuny in the early 1900s.

Anyway….the main spotlight:

Alber Elbaz‘s recent Lanvin collection is injected with his signature drapes, ruffles and lots of plissé craftsmanship displayed on his Hellenic/Grecian-looking yet modern dresses and jumpsuits. Scroll for more images.

J. Mendel Spring/Summer 2010 Collection

pleatfarmer — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 07:07:41 +0000

Awesome-ness is my word of the day! These favorite picks from the recent J. Mendel Spring/Summer 2010 collection capture the awesomeness of soft, sculptural pleats on tulle and organza. I certainly appreciate the amazing craftsmanship on these dresses.

Love the structured folds on these dresses

pleated structures by deepa panchamia

pleatfarmer — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 05:12:11 +0000

London-based textile artist/designer Deepa Panchamia created her structural wall art, sculptures and apparel using her signature pleating technique.

Read an excerpt of her philosophy:

“I have taken an unconventional approach to textiles. Combining silk organzas and leathers with inventive pleating techniques, I create intense, double-sided, structural surfaces. The combination of transparency and solidity give my fabric enhanced properties allowing it to be moulded, manipulated and transformed – moving textiles away from its traditional two-dimensional form.

With this technique I have developed a network of structural wall art and sculptures for interior spaces. My designs consist of energetic pleated waves juxtaposed with delicate pocketed constructions. Material and colour selection are paramount to the design. The transparency of the organza allows the internal formation to be revealed, creating an engaging relationship between the exterior and interior. I intentionally use a limited range of subtle colours that create shadows on the surface, enhancing the contours of the piece.”

close-up of her textiles sculptures

images via deepa panchamia

Smocked textile necklaces from Tinctory

pleatfarmer — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 07:50:34 +0000

Czech-born and British-based designer, Eva, created these intricately-smocked necklaces which are sold here. But what’s more fascinating was the record of inspirations and her processes on fabric manipulations on her Flickr set. Using cues from geometry in nature, Eva created several pleating studies over the years which she later translate into wearable jewelries.

The smocked necklaces are inspired by the intricate needlework seen on historic textiles. They are made entirely by hand using old, labour-intensive techniques. Most of the silk I use is repurposed vintage which means each material is slightly different (thickness, weave, lustre) and each piece unique. – Eva

various necklace pieces

smocking trials

Eva's previous works include this gorgeous pleated 'crest' necklace

helix ring

via Etsy + Flickr