Are you interested in providing research inputs for Copper Catkin? Would you like to see your shape used to develop garments that will actually fit and flatter you?
If you answered 'yes', then please send me through a set of 3 'technical' photos (these are for the garment development) and 5-10 'dynamic' photos (these are to help visualise how the garments and the fabrics might perform 'in the wild'). Your original photos will never be displayed publicly, and you will only be credited if you want to be.
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Ok, so here's where it gets real. In order to complete my design brief for the pattern maker, Liz, I had to be absolutely accurate in my drawings of my garments. Liz also requested photos of me in clothes that were similar to what I wanted, with notes, as references. My initial sketches were useful as guides, but the only way I knew how to do it was to draw them on my own shape - so, as well as the reference photos, I had my husband take photos of me in fitted clothing, and then I used them to trace my actual shape. This was a difficult experience, because it's hard to face yourself at any time, but as a big girl who has lost the weight twice before, and regained it again, it's even harder, because I was acknowledging my failure to keep the weight off head-on. Still, I persevered, and came up with these.
Wow, there was a really huge response to our first competition post!
To keep track of it all, let's sort it into categories - animal, vegetable, mineral. So, I mentioned in a previous post that I was trying to come up with a good system to help women identify if an outfit would fit them or not.
I figured out that the closest thing to my own shape was the New Zealand sweet potato, called a kūmara. I have been designing fabrics casually for years, under the banner of Phersu Dancing. These are some of my old collections, that will be rebooted and updated for sale if people are interested. PoppiesMy poppy designs were some of my most popular sellers ever. I made them into designs for my packaging, and also as a fabric design, aimed for tablecloths for my market displays, and dresses.
A while ago, I started thinking about what I really wanted to wear. Pretty quickly, words like 'eclectic', 'fun', and 'quirky' started flying around. But you can't really get fun plus size clothes, can you? Well, you can - but they often end up looking like a costume unless you really own the look. One example is the amazing Rockabilly fashions that have been appearing over the last few years - amazing, fun, and flattering for us curvier shapes - but they're from a time when women regularly spent a lot more time on their appearance, and they require a great deal of commitment.
That's not really practical for everyday clothing. This collection came about as I started doodling ideas for some fun and quirky fabric. I decided to inspire myself with recipes. I started by looking up curries, spice mixes (hence the name, 'masala'), and chutneys, then moved on to look for ingredients in South-East Asian and Polynesian cooking.
Well then, it's only been a wee while since my last post, but so much has happened!
To help with my sanity, I will focus this post on the WRR fundraiser, and the next one on Copper Catkin itself. So the first big news is that I have finished all three panels for the WRR fundraiser! That's right, we've got a logo, a nifty little tagline, and now, business cards! As the Geordie Shore lot like to say, GET IN! The saga of the logoThe logo has been a bit of an adventure, actually.
I came up with the 'Copper Catkin' part of the name some time ago - the contradiction appealed to me - the fluffy catkin, made of shiny metal. I chose copper as a nod to my interest in all things Steampunk, and I have loved catkins since I was a wee kitling myself. The combination plant and metal is also a quiet nod to NZ's silver fern. |
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December 2019
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