Ethnic Influences on Apparel Design

Creating new and innovative lines of clothing is a very grueling and time consuming process. What colors to use, what styles to create, what trims to incorporate are just a few examples of what questions must be answered. There are many different factors that go into answering these questions. After all, it cannot be easy to create a completely new line of clothing without inspirations. In my personal opinion, ethnic influences play a very large role in the creation of different lines of clothing. Everything we wear and purchase in some way shape or form has been created with some sort of ethnic influence.

In this season of Project Runway, the designers went to Diane Von Furstenburg's company and they were able to pick fabrics out of her personal collection. In her collection of beautiful fabrics, there were tons of the ethnic inspired bright colored fabric. A lot of ethnic influences are most apparent in the fabrics. According to http://www.feministing.com/archives/010929.html, African inspired jungle prints are back. Kente cloth is a traditional fabric used to make clothing in Africa and has also had an influence on American apparel for many years.

Ethnic influences have always been a main part of apparel design. It can be seen in every runway show with examples such as head wraps to kimonos. Many of these ethnic influences can be seen in this years New York Fashion Week. According to Booth Moore a Times Fashion Critic in his article about New York Fashion Week, .."the American answer to the more streamlined looks coming out of Europe for fall." This is an example of European styles working their way into American Apparel. Ethnic Influences will always play a major role on Apparel Design because without them, Fashion would not be what it is today.

This picture is an example of ethnically influenced head wraps coming out of Diane Von Furstenburg's line...

New York Fashion Week

Tim Blanks says "Its an Election Year and most of the styles are based around optimism." In my opinion, that is the best way to sum up New York Fashion Week. Many of the designers took very splashy colors, prints and shapes and added them in their lines. For example, Poppy von Villeneuve defined Zac Posen's line as an "Easter egg hunt of color." Some designers stepped out of there norm and did somethings you wouldn't have expected. For example, Micheal Kors has never used polkadots before until this year, according to Tim Banks, style.com's correspondent. Many of the designers appeared to have fun with their collections.

So far, my favorite collection I have seen from New York Fashion Week is Diane von Furstenburg's. She always uses very interesting and different patterns and colors that add so much life to her collections. Most of her pieces have a natural flow to them that are very proprioceptive. Her collection is called Rock Goddess and she is trying to pull from a very inventive and free era. Her collection I feel was very original, different and beautiful and her clothes could be worn by women of all ages.

The most interesting collection from New York Fashion Week is hands down Calvin Klein. It was a totally different feel than typical Calvin Klein and it showcased styles that could be viewed almost as sculptures. Cathy Horyn from her New York Times Article New York Finale says it best: "There were moments of awkwardness but in the main the collection worked, and maybe was clearest and best in the finale dresses—strapless works of geometry in luscious shades of lavender, periwinkle and deep blue silk."

My Favorite Designer

I must start out by identifying the fact that I do not have a favorite designer. There are many different styles and designs I like and it was hard to limit myself to just one. However, Erin Fetherston is a designer that I feel, has beautiful collections that I always enjoy. One of my favorite things about Erin is she started from a humble beginning and worked her way up at a young age. She graduated from UC Berkeley and then went on to study fashion in Paris at the Parsons School of Design. To the left is a picture of Erin Fetherston courtesy of http://erinfetherston.com/biography.html

One of my favorite things about Fetherston's designs is the flow of the pieces. Many of her pieces have a natural flow that accent the body in just the right spots. I have always been into skirts and empire waistlines which is a main reason as to why I like Fetherston's work. Also, I have recently been enthused by the ballerina skirt which shows up often in Fetherston's Spring 2008 collection.

Erin is a relatively new designer and her first line was launched in January of 2005. Her Spring 2008 collection was my favorite to date. She does not use too much print and her main colors consist of soft whites, grays and blues. I have always been a fan of bright crazy colors but the design behind Fetherston's clothing is so beautiful and intricate that I cannot help to surpass the lack of extreme. This picture to the right comes out of Fetherston's Fall 2008 collection and is by far my favorite piece of Fethersron's. The picture is courtesy of http://erinfetherston.com/fw08collection/index.html.