Sarah Cooper Design

Moving to WORDPRESS

2010-03-23T07:05:00.001-07:00

I'm moving my blog over to WordPress.

Come and follow me at: www.sarahelizabethcooper.com

:-)

Footwear - wedge heels

2010-03-14T18:28:00.000-07:00

I'm very busy manufacturing my collection this week so I'll be posting a bit less often.

Looking at footwear styling options for the collection - something with a 30s vintage feel. I've spent hours trawling the internet and been to several vintage shops looking for the right shoe for my photoshoot.

In an ideal world, I'd use these Salvatore Ferragamo's and I'd have them made in Tan leather.

Judy Garland

2010-03-12T19:30:00.000-08:00

I've been listening to Judy Garland on Youtube playlists today whilst I've been working. Also found in there some interviews with her. I didn't know much about her before today, asides from that she was Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. I'm intrigued by her personality and vivaciousness....

Bill Gibb

2010-03-12T05:15:00.000-08:00

CHIFFON BEAUTY

2010-03-10T18:47:00.000-08:00

Deco motifs

2010-03-09T16:51:00.000-08:00

Work in progress... :-)

2010-03-08T13:42:00.000-08:00

I'm currently working on manufacturing my AW 10-11 collection, which is going to be photographed by Cassia Tabatini next week.

Here's a couple of shots of one of my garments in progress. Can you guess what it's going to be?!!!

Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon

2010-03-08T01:19:00.000-08:00

Kenneth Anger's cult books, Hollywood Babylon (1&2) are one of the main inspirations behind the AW 10-11 collection I am currently working on. I found this documentary on Youtube, which gives a bit of an overview of some of the major stories covered in the books.

Viktor & Rolf AW 10-11

2010-03-07T10:07:00.000-08:00

Viktor & Rolf never cease to impress me! I love this reversal of their Russian Doll concept from a few seasons back - it took me a while to work it out from the video, but style.com gives a good description of what was happening:

"she (the model) teetered out wearing a few more layers than Rizer did (she estimated later that it was three times her body weight), McMenamy was joined by Horsting and Snoeren, who proceeded to remove one piece of her clothing at a time and dress the younger models in those items for their marches down the runway. Once McMenamy had been stripped down to a nude bodysuit, the process resumed in reverse. " - Style.com (Nicole Phelps)

""This time around, we want to show that something can be both wearable and extreme at the same time. It goes beyond a mere idea; it is literally ready for production." - Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren

The silhouette and volume is incredible and completely mind boggling to consider how they approached constructing it all! :-D

PARIS FASHION WEEK - !!!!JACKPOT!!!!

2010-03-06T18:31:00.000-08:00

Haider Ackermann, AW 10-11(style.com)

I had been a bit disappointed with fashion week so far - I felt that some collections were a bit dull and had only seen a scattering of pieces here and there that were exciting....that is - until today when Style.com uploaded Haider Ackermann,

Christian Dior and Maison Martin Margiela all in the same day!

Akermann's collection is incredible - so many amazing looks, I found it really hard to choose just a few to post. I love his work with sculpting leather and he creates really flattering and sexy outfits. For me at the moment, I think that he is right at the front pushing fashion forward. AMAZING!!!! :-)

Christian Dior AW 10-11 (style.com)

Galliano continues to out-do himself at Dior. I am especially crazy about his outerwear this season - it feels a step forward from the waterfall look we've seen around a lot in AW 09. And leather trenchcoats - fab! :-D

Maison Martin Margiela AW 10

Margiela brought some interestinf fur headpieces out this season. Tee hee! <3

All in all, a good day for fashion!

Xhibit 2010

2010-03-05T17:12:00.000-08:00

This week, the Xhibit 2010 exhibtion opens and I'll be exhibiting my 'Evolution of a collection' video. The UAL exhibition will be hosted at London College of Communication's gallery space. The video is a slightly edited version of one of my stop motion movies that I had posted here previously. The show runs from 8th - 25th March and the private view will be on 9th March. E-mail me for tickets!

I could have danced all night...

2010-03-05T17:00:00.000-08:00

Erte

2010-03-04T17:29:00.000-08:00

Kenneth Cole

2010-03-04T17:19:00.000-08:00

"You can't be successful working in fashion for 8 hours a day. You can be successful working half a day...any 12 hours you choose!"

"Just because you're going against traffic, it doesn't mean you're going the wrong direction."

Kenneth Cole, speaking at London College of Fashion 4th March 2010

Vintage Vogue - 1950s: Glamour in the skies

2010-03-03T17:40:00.000-08:00

Best Dressed Stewardess

2010-03-03T17:36:00.000-08:00

Tailoring project inspired by 50s air hostesses

by Sarah-Elizabeth Cooper

Kris Tsai

2010-03-02T16:32:00.000-08:00

kris tsai photography

Hussein Chalayan at The Design Museum Jan - May 09

2010-03-01T20:01:00.000-08:00

This exhibition was on about a year ago at The Design Museum (London). Chalayan is one of my biggest inspirations and this exhibition at was fantastic.

My favourite of all his collections is SS 07 - and the finale robot dress:

Fin Racoon - Work in Progress

2010-03-01T19:49:00.000-08:00

The meticulous process of laying out the pieces and matching up the direction and colours of the hairs of the fur. Worth it in the end though! :-) I love this technique - Just wait until you see the finished garments!!!!

*Saga sponsored furs - Fin Racoon

CSM MA - Bright new stars!!!!

2010-02-28T18:22:00.000-08:00

Charles Youssef

Joanna Green - I really love the drape of Joanna's collection. It feels very modern and sophisticated. Also -the lengthy skirts/dresses are right on time with the new trend.

Lily Heine

Matthew Harding

Rok Hwang

Shao-Yen Chen

Lace 'n' Fur

2010-02-28T18:09:00.000-08:00

Saga Samples

Letting Go

2010-02-27T17:10:00.000-08:00

This looks like a happy place! :-)

Snow White

2010-02-27T14:47:00.000-08:00

Denmark usually has about the same amount of snow as us in the UK - about 1 week a year, but this year it's been crazy and it's been snowy for months! Its beautiful!

The Louisiana Museum of Modern Art - Copenhagen

2010-02-26T14:02:00.000-08:00

I have now returned from my Copenhagen visit and posts will be resuming as usual. There will be a number of pictures coming from my visit and kicking off the posting is a selection of my favourties from the Louisiana Museum of Moden Art.

Saga - first pictures

2010-02-23T12:21:00.000-08:00

Apologies for lack of postings! I'm super busy right now working on the furs. I have a lot of images which I will put up when I get the time. There's a lot of snow here in Copenhagen at the moment. The studio is amazing and really inspiring. :-)

Internet Exclusive - AW 10-11 Collection Preview Date Announced!

2010-02-20T19:56:00.000-08:00

I will be revealing an EXCLUSIVE ONLINE PREVIEW of my AW 10-11 collection online on:

24th March 2010!

Watch this space for further details!

Saga Furs & Copenhagen

2010-02-20T19:53:00.000-08:00

This week (22nd-26th Feb) I'm travelling to Copenhagen to go and work with Saga furs in their design studios to develop and manufacture some pieces for my AW 10-11 collection. I was awarded sponsorship with Saga in December and now will have the amazing opportunity to visit the studio and learn from the furriers. I'm working on some exciting pieces - so look out for them at the catwalk show in April! E-mail me for tickets :-)

BFTA Competition

2010-02-20T19:37:00.000-08:00

I've been selected as one of 8 finalists in the British Fur Trade Association's Design Competition!

I submitted my entry to the competition a couple of weeks ago, including some of my project work that I have been working on for my collection. The next stage of the competition involves a day of fur workshops and an opportunity to discuss the development of my designs and get some advice before the final judging of the competition in April. Out of the 8 finalists, there will be 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners all of whom get to have their designs made up - with the grand prize being a possibility of exhibiting the design at the MIFUR trade show in Milan :-o

Favourites of NY's supersized labels

2010-02-18T17:39:00.000-08:00

3.1 Philip Lim

Michael Kors

Marc Jacobs

Marc by Marc Jacobs

Wallpaper Magazine Sep 09

2010-02-17T12:52:00.000-08:00

My Fair Lady

2010-02-16T15:52:00.000-08:00

I'm a big fan of Cecil Beaton's costume design for My Fair Lady. I love this vintage Vogue photoshoot inspired by the movie.

Cape design development toiling

2010-02-16T15:40:00.000-08:00

Favourites of NY fashion week AW 10

2010-02-15T14:42:00.000-08:00

Alexander Wang - one of my top favourite designers these days- I would love to hear some more about his inspiration for this collection. He's put a completly new spin cutout. The tailoring and outerwear are amazing-

This last one reminds me of LCF's BA 09 graduate, Bahar Alipour's AW 09 collection:

Erin Fetherston - I love this opening piece - the freedom and volume of the fabric is really effective

Philosophy - trend alert: Long skirts!!! :-) Stunning!

Pretty pinky pink ;-P

2010-02-15T14:26:00.000-08:00

Vogue

Vivienne Westwood

Christian Lacroix

Catherine Malandrino AW 10-11

2010-02-14T21:31:00.000-08:00

Pictures: style.com

A long night's work!

2010-02-14T21:29:00.000-08:00

15 hours and counting...of patient embellishment work. -must-sleep-now-----!

Preen AW 10

2010-02-13T20:29:00.001-08:00

UAL Posters

2010-02-13T20:28:00.000-08:00

Coming soon...Look out for these posters around University of the Arts London and on the UAL Students Union Website. Costume & Flyer design - by myself, Photography - Cassia Tabatni, Model - Ellie Sharpe

Long skirts!

2010-02-12T19:53:00.000-08:00

Susie Bubble wrote a blog post today about long skirts, and how they just feel right at the moment.

(photo: Susie Bubble)

I've been working on a 30s Hollywood glamour theme for my collection for AW 10-11. The inspiration started with this image on the Facehunter blog:

(photo: Facehunter)

Since then, I've been looking at the likes of Schiaparelli for the thirties silhouette:

and Gilbert Adrian, costume designer of the Hollywood icons:

Of course, big long dresses/skirts demand big volumnous coats!!!:

AW 10-11 Long skirts: Richard Chai Love (style.com):

Look out for my AW 10-11 collection - coming soon - for my interpretation on this theme! :-)

R.I.P McQueen

2010-02-12T10:41:00.000-08:00

R.I.P McQueen. You will be greatly missed...

Alexander McQueen, A True Master (WWD)
“The London-born McQueen’s death unleashed a torrent of shock and anguish from designers, retailers and others in the fashion world. ‘In a world where every man and his dog is a designer, Alexander McQueen was the real deal.’”

Style.com: Alexander McQueen R.I.P

Business of Fashion: McQueen 1969-2010

The Sartorialist: Alexander McQueen Shop Window

Style Bubble: Nothing to Say
Park & Cube: Thankyou

Kingdom of Style: Alexander McQueen

Hussein Chalayan: Condolences

F.A.B. - RIP Mr McQueen

Furry feet

2010-02-12T01:56:00.000-08:00

All this freezing cold weather and the furs are out in force. Check out the Facehunter Blog for some amazing icey fashion pics.
I've been working on some designs for fur on shoes:

Deco Decadence at Vena Cava AW 10/11

2010-02-12T01:39:00.000-08:00

Pictures: Style.com

Margiela AW 09

2010-02-10T16:40:00.000-08:00

Margiela AW 08

2010-02-10T16:38:00.000-08:00

Margiela AW 08 - Pictures: Style.com

Some Like it Hot!

2010-02-09T15:20:00.000-08:00

Mini 1 week project - AW 09: to research and generate ideas for a catwalk inspired yet commencial collection

Longing for summer....!

2010-02-09T14:43:00.000-08:00

Walter Van Beirendonk Aw 09

2010-02-08T18:36:00.000-08:00

New Version - Design Development Video

2010-02-07T14:30:00.001-08:00

Fabric sourcing

2010-02-06T05:43:00.000-08:00

I had a great day of fabric sourcing yesterday, running all over London collecting swatches: Holland & Sherry, Henry Bertrand, Soho, Walter Reginald and the LCF materials library

Furs from then and now

2010-02-05T20:24:00.000-08:00

Photocopied clippings from LCF's fashion archives

Furs from Iris Apfel's wardrobe (Book: Rare Bird of Fashion)

Recyling project - Showpiece outfit designed for the London Lord Mayor's Show Nov 09

2010-02-04T12:59:00.001-08:00

More fur inspiration

2010-02-03T14:59:00.000-08:00

Another use for those old plastic bags...

2010-02-02T19:03:00.000-08:00

My Workspace

2010-02-02T18:46:00.000-08:00

Haider Ackermann - SS10

2010-02-01T20:09:00.000-08:00

For anyone who hasn't yet seen Haider Ackermann's amazing SS10 collection - it's an absolute must-see. I love his draped leather pieces. My favourite of all is this one:-

The silhouette is so elegant and streamlined, yet the look is still very edgy. This is one of my favourtie collections from SS10. I can't wait to see Ackermann's AW 10-11!

Ruffle detail development

2010-02-01T19:58:00.000-08:00

Crepe, paper silk, tulle

Crepe, Cotton jersey

Taffeta

Georgette

Organza

Sound of Music Re-mix!

2010-01-31T16:01:00.000-08:00

Ruffled CADs

2010-01-30T12:16:00.000-08:00

Stop Motion Video - Sarah Cooper SS 08 "Queen of the Night"

2010-01-29T16:31:00.000-08:00

Eliana Dimitrakopoulou - LCF MA Shows

2010-01-28T20:10:00.000-08:00

I've been checking out the MA shows today and one in particular really stood out to me. Eliana Dimitrakopoulou (LCF - MA Fashion Design And Technology) Eliana has also been sponsored by Saga furs for this collection. I love the volumes that she has created and how she has created a beautiful drape in the fur. Also, the use of bright colours has a spectacular effect!!!! Check out her London College of Fashion profile page: http://www.arts.ac.uk/showtime/ElianaDimitrakopoulou

Stephane Rolland SS10 Couture

2010-01-27T16:08:00.000-08:00

I've just seen Stephane Rolland's new SS10 Couture Collection! There's some beautiful pieces there - and some great loose organic shapes, reflecting a style that I've been looking at in my own research.

Organic Loose Fit Inspiration

2010-01-27T16:02:00.000-08:00

Drawing = inspiration

2010-01-26T13:44:00.000-08:00

Whilst looking to create new shapes and silhouettes I began by drawing draped fabric and feathers. I then manipulated the drawings in PhotoShop on to a figure to play around with the proportions.

Video Preview: Toiling & Design Development AW 10-11 Womenswear Collection

2010-01-25T16:18:00.000-08:00

Click video for a rough edit of some design developments I've been working on over the last few months. I'll post a more finished version when I get time.

Art Deco

2010-01-25T16:13:00.000-08:00

The art deco movement began in Paris with the ‘exposition internationale des arts decoratifs et industriels modernes’ exhibition, where Paris displayed its revolutionary new designers and artists. This new style of art was all about being modern. It was influenced heavily by surrealism, cubism & futurism. The concept of speed and motion was inspired by new advances in technology enabling travel through trains, cars and cruise liner ships. Shapes were streamlined, corners were rounded, go-faster lines were added, objects were curved and figures were in motion. 2D geometric shapes, fans, sun rays, zigzags, chevrons, lightening bolts, spirals and fountains were popular motifs of the movement. All of these features gave a feeling of motion. The new art movement influenced everything from interior design to architecture, product design, graphic design, sculpture, painting and even the design of trains and ships. Mass production was pioneered by henry ford in the early 00’s, and was implemented in the art deco movement in product design. This made products affordable to the mass market, which had not been previously and the heavily styled art deco look became popular worldwide. It was a new look that could be affordably adopted and gave a feeling of prestige and a glimmer of hope amidst the post-world war 1 devastation. Art deco styling was also a strong influence on Hollywood’s set designers, who also further popularised the look. Furthermore, the cinemas were heavily styled in the art deco look which also enhanced the influence of the movement.

Fur Indulgence

2010-01-24T19:27:00.000-08:00

Chalayan Art Installation for Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen

2010-01-23T17:11:00.000-08:00

http://vimeo.com/7143806

I came across this video today of Hussein Chalayan discussing an art piece that he has created for Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen. It shows a dress worn on a figure which is rotating in water. I think that the movement and flow of the dress is beautiful - there are so many different effects that can be created with different fabrics/weights/weaves/opacity/colours. When the clothes are worn they take on a completely new motion.

In my own design work today I have been working on a dress with a ruffle section and I have been thinking about what different kinds of effects could be created.

Hollywood Glamour

2010-01-23T16:58:00.001-08:00

Hollywood movies were extremely popular in the thirties. In the gloom of the depression that followed world war 1 and the collapse of the stock market at Wall St, cinema was a cheap and accessible form of escapism. “40 per cent of the population of Britain and America went to the cinema every week and 25 per cent went twice or more often.” In the thirties, Hollywood was producing 600 films per year and the cinemas were packed.

The ‘talkies’ - as the new movies with sound were known – were a development from the Broadway shows and brought Hollywood’s glamorous style to the masses. The movies were generally uplifting through song, dance & comedy and presented a glamorous lifestyle which had an incredible influence on the viewers.

The stars of the silver screen became fashion icons. They and the costume designers were responsible for leading fashion during this period. Costume designers Gilbert Adrian and Erte were particularly influential. The art Deco style was adopted in Hollywood set designs
Hollywood was also extremely influential in the changing attitudes towards women. Vamp characters such as Mae West provocatively personified the post-war freedom that women enjoyed. In the 1935 movie, ‘going to town’ the bolshy blonde admits, “you know I used to be ashamed about the way I lived my life,” referring to her promiscuous lifestyle. To which she is questioned: “you mean to say you’ve reformed?” Then comes west’s response “no, I stopped being ashamed.” These lines give an insight into the change in social attitudes during the thirties.

Sarah Cooper AW 10-11 - The starting point

2010-01-22T20:04:00.000-08:00

Hi, I'm Sarah and I'm a final year Womenswear design student at London College of Fashion. I am currently working on my graduate collection for AW 10-11, which will be shown in April 2010. The intention of this blog is to share my design inspiration and process and hopefully, inspire you at the same time :-) My initial inspiration for the collection comes from the Thirties Hollywood movie industry. Preceded by the Wall St crash and followed by the 2nd world war, the thirties was a great decade for Hollywood, as people turned to cinema for escapism. Thus, the influence of cinema globally was enormous, particularly in art and design. Art deco was the popular style of the period and was greatly popularised through the movies.
Gilbert Adrian was one of the most influential costume designers of the silver screen, whilst in Paris, Schiaparelli and Erte led the couture of the era. Iconic figures such as Mae West and Jean Harlow came into the public eye through cinema and stirred up a generation of outspoken, sexually liberated young women. Jean Harlow Mae West