"Mentors". Romance Was Born

Luke Sales and Anna Plunkett met studying fashion at East Sydney Technical College in 2003, a few-filled party nights and the creative pair became the best of friends, a dream of starting a label together was formed – and so Romance Was Born. Fresh after graduating Anna and Luke were selected to attend The Forth International Support awards in Italy. On the other side of the world they turned down internship with Galliano. The lure of starting their label was to strong and although flattered, they kindly declined the offer. Since establishing the label talented duo has participated in several fashion weeks, has gathered many prestigious awards including the recent one when they won Woolmark Young Designer Award in 2009. So, being quite new label the duo has managed to become successful and to occupy a strong position within contemporary Australian fashion scene.

Romance Was Born collections are irreverent and fun loving. As Luke himself mentions: “We like to have fun with our collections. Fashion after all, is pretty funny” (p.144). Their lavish aesthetic often includes a pastiche of craft work like appliqué, tie-dying and crochet, those fabulous hand detailed features that set their label apart from the flippant trends of the fashion madding crowd.

Being a young label they still are quite limited in resources but thanks to their outstanding quirky designs they have attracted variety of sponsorships (from Pandora and Swarovsky crystals, to new a couple) and have moved from creating collections contented with one-offs pieces only to more down-the-earth “ready-to-wear” ones. Nevertheless, the duo still takes the same care of “wearable art” one-off pieces as it does about more commercial interpretations.

Another feature of the label is that Romance Was Born does most of its production in Australia with some exclusion for beaded and embroidered pieces. They insist on supporting Australian manufacturing industry and hold to the vibrant Australian characters that help them to stay honest to their label’s distinctive style.

Personally, I love this brand and consider it the most unconventional and cool one in Australia. Just like designers of the label can’t stand weird, technical fashion. Their aesthetic is more “cheerful”, it is about “creating pretty things”, it is about having fun and sharing it with your customers and that is a very close to the vision I have about my own space within the fashion industry. I find these guys highly inspirational because they have managed to find a perfect compromise between doing what they are truly passionate about, to be able to keep their distinctive, sometimes mad and very crafty style, from being swallowed by faceless mainstream trends and, at the same time, to successfully allocate themselves within Australian market. That is kind of a balance I really want to learn how to reach.

Inchley, N. 2009, ‘A true romance’, Vogue (AUS), July, p. 142-147

McCourt, G. 2010, ‘Real style. Anna Plunkett’, Vogue (AUS), March, p. 96-98

Take a look

I've found an interesting and very related blog being kept by textile student.
Such a petty it is in Austrian or may be German(((
But some images are very inspiring! )))

It's a textile world

My textile experiments. Nuno felting. Part 1

Haven't done much writing recently because have been concentrated on textile designing for my collection. There are some more or less successful experiments I have come up with so far. I feel like getting somewhere for the one who has never done felting or nuno felting before ))) The process is, by the way, pretty time consuming and a quite a workout. At least some alternative to GYM I have never managed to force myself to get into )))

Technologies. Nuno felting.

My collection will be heavily based on such textile technique as felting and particularly its advanced version - "nuno felting". There is some introduction of that unique textile creation method.

"Felting" (which is thought to have originated in Asia) is one of the oldest textile processes and was used for hats, wall coverings, boots, blankets and the covering of yurts. Fibres, usually wool or other forms of animal fleece or hair, are manipulated to form a densely interlaced mass which can then be flattened, moulded or otherwise shaped. Felting is an efficient form of insulation.

"Nuno" means fabric in Japanese. Nuno felting is a process which melds loose fibre, usually wool, into a sheer fabric such as silk gauze. This creates a lightweight felt that can totally cover the background fabric or be used as a single decorative design. The Nuno felting process is particularly suitable for fine garment making, since silk-backed felt ensures a stable felt that will not stretch out of shape like normal felt. Because it is lightweight and easy to manipulate it can also be dyed more readily than traditional felt. Other fabrics or open weaves can be used as the felting background, resulting in a wide range of textural effects and colours.

NUNO FELTING BASICS


Step 1 Lengths of hand dyed silk gauze were arranged on a long table which was covered with a cut piece of a swimming pool cover. Traditional see-through bubble wrap can be substituted. Next, thin bits of hand-dyed wool woven were arranged onto the gauze. Due to time constraints, we 'decorated' only the ends of our scarves.

Step 2 These layers were covered with a thin, almost sheer, nylon material. Having several hands helped to keep the roving from being disturbed as it was positioned. Next, cool water was worked into the layers.

Step 3 A bar of soap, fitted into a nylon sleeve was rubbed over the material.....along with more water until everything was fully saturated.

Step 4 The layers were carefully rolled up and tied tightly with strips of nylon (panty hose worked great for this task). Now the hard work began. Using the pressure of hand and arms, this 'log' was rolled back and forth on the table....for what seemed like hours....but was probably only 20 mins. This friction begins the process of matting the layers together so the fibers can work their way into the gauze.

Step 5 About every 50-100 rolls of the 'log', it was unrolled and checked for signs that it was beginning to felt. Until the fibers stick to the gauze (when they can no long be picked up between a finger and thumb), the rolling continues. Once it does, it's unrolled and more agitation on just the scarf is required. This again means the addition of soap and water and lots of picking up of the material and slapping it down onto the table. This where it can get messy.

The work is finished when the gauze has shrunk up and gotten distorted as the wool fibers have penetrated the material, becoming one.

image from

"Textilicious". Marianne Lovink

Modern life is filled with contradictions. Beauty as a concept can be no longer defined easily.

That the vision which Canadian artist Marianne Lovink presents in her incredibly gorgeous sculptural installation “Hanging Garden” made from medical-use plastic that is “heat malleable”. The piece is “evocative”, “seductive” and “organic” and took 3 months to create. Lovink works with the plastic underwater almost at the boiling point. Her hands may remain immersed for ours at a time beneath the surface of the water as she stretches, cajoles, and teases the white plastic into its new forms. Each piece of the sculpture is hand-dyed with an aniline dye she mixes herself.

“I am interested in our perceptions of mutability and how we relate to hybrid form in light of the more disquieting aspects of the modern genetic research….by emphasizing the visceral, sensual qualities of the forms, I hope to disturb initial assumptions and engage the subconscious” comments Marianne. She wants her viewers to struggle with the dichotomy – surrealness versus recognizable forms, sensual yet viscerally repugnant, conscious/surface versus subconscious/deep recognition.

Fraser, J. L. 2005, ‘The Terrifying Beauties of Marianne Lovink’, Surface Design Journal, winter, pp. 42-45

This piece of art is not related to fashion but sooo “textilicious”!!! And thought provoking. To make people to revise, to reconsider their perceptions and embedded assumptions is exactly what my fashion/textile collection is aimed at.

"Textilicious". Thea Bjerg

Another incredible textile designer/artist from Denmark who specializes in thermoplastic and laser-cut techniques.

Thea Bjerg is regarded as one of the most original textile designers in Denmark. She often merges craft techniques with industrial processes, and experiments with ultrasonic cutting and welding, laser cut and industrial pleating which have led to crepe-treated silks, spiraling scarves, heated-fused fabrics and pleated wraps. Bergs fabrics have a unique translucence. The base fabrics she chooses for her pleated textiles are often diaphanous and the tiny folds in the material’s surface both capture light and diffract it to create a striking texture.image1
“Textiles can cover us and shroud us but they can also attract the gaze of others. This is something that I find compelling about sea life that many of the colours and textures that draw me to them enable them to hide from other creatures” (Thea Bjerg about her Aquatic collection).

It is again a sign of chameleonism, isn’t it?

image2
Quinn B. 2009, Textile designers at the cutting edge, Laurence King Publishing, London, p.154-163

“Mentors”. Gaudi

My favorite Gaudi's fabulous whimsical creations.
His genius has made Barcelona the most beautiful and unique European city.

Park Güell (1900-1914)


Sagrada Família (1884 -...)

Casa Batlló (1905-1907)

Casa Milà (La Pedrera)(1905-1907)

Images from: Gaudi 2002 Barselona guide, 4th ed., Editorial Escudo de Oro S.A., Barcelona and my own photographs