kardashian sisters t-shirt contest : VOTE KELSEY!

Hey everyone!  I just wanted to take a moment to share with you that my friend Kelsey Fairhurst, a classmate of mine in fashion design, is in the top 3 for a t-shirt design contest for the Kardashian sisters.  The winner gets $1,000 and the shirt will be produced and sold at Sears for the Kardashian Kollection.

To vote, just click on her illustration above and "like" the photo on the facebook page it takes you to.  If you want to see more of Kelsey's incredible work, go here.  She really deserves to win so please vote if you have the chance!  Thanks so much!

More updates soon on CFDA stufffff.

winter quarter 2012 co-op ...

Just accepted a position on the design team for my winter 2012 co op at ABERCROMBIE AND FITCH!!!!!

I am so so so so so glad that project paid off.  It was a lot of work, but I learned a ton from it and it got me my first choice job.  So happy!! 

Just had to share!

xx
Rachel

CFDA class project

For those of you still wondering if I exist ... I do!  The thing that has been robbing me of my free time lately has been our new design class, in which we design a well-considered collection complete with swatches, full illustrations, and an essay and submit it to the CFDA for a scholarship at the end of the quarter.  As you can see, a lot of work must go in to this project!

Here are some shots of the process work, and a couple explanations along the way:

 

My mess as it is currently consuming my bed, and my working color palette, inspired by the colors on a scan of a brain during a migraine.

Preliminary sketching

Wool jersey and alpaca yarn; inspirational palette of lilac-beige-grays

My knitting pattern charted out and in progress; a swatch of a variegated yarn that happened to match my palette

More color inspiration; watercolor print design based off of the brain scan

Sweater to be done in a kid lace, shown at right

My concept evolved around the migraine - tension, twisting, tightness, a wrapped up feeling.  Since knitwear is my passion, the collection will be of knits - I also found this fitting due to the way each loop is interlocked and interacting and when stretched, tension forms between each stitch - entrelac and cables will be featured in the designs as well, to further propel this idea of twisting, intertwining, knots and tension. 

Stay tuned for illustrations!

hello again!

SO SO SORRY about the lack of posting - I haven't utterly forgotten about the blog, I've just been so busy back at school trying to prepare my portfolio for upcoming interviews.  One of the things I am working on is a project for Abercrombie, and it is taking up a lot of my time.  My interview with them is Monday, so free time should happen a little more once that is over!  I just feel guilty playing around online until then - cause it reminds me of the time I could be using to do something more productive.

But so I don't pull a "post without pictures", here are some very quick shots of what I am working on, just until more begins happening:

 

Left, new swimwear illustration.  Right, Abercrombie look #1.

Newly developed croquis