The Cutting Class

Comme des Garçons, AW12.

For her Autumn-Winter 2012 collection for Comme des Garçons, Rei Kawakubo presented a very flat collection that called into question the very nature of the way we view fashion. As a comment on the way that we generally view collections as endless catwalk thumbnail images the garments were made out of very thick felt, giving the appearance of paperdolls playing dress-up, and making the garments perfectly suited to only being viewed front on. The collection also appeared in fashions most clichéd prints - the floral, the polka dot, the camouflage, the leopard print.

The garments presented in this way provide a perfect example of seam allowance - a section of fabric that is usually unseen in garment images. Seam allowance is effectively like a border of free space on the fabric. If you imagine the finished edge of a garment when it is on the body, following the stitching line that joins the pieces of fabric together, then the seam allowance is the extra margin that runs parallel to this finished edge.

Basically because you can’t join fabric edge to edge as it will fray away, there must always be some sort of margin of spare fabric on either side of the stitching line so that the stitches have something to grip into.

In the case of the Comme des Garçons collection, the seam allowance has been left visible along the top shoulder edges of the first garments to allow us to see this element that would normally be hidden inside the garment.

The below explains the basic process of sewing a seam in a garment. As you can see in some of the garments above, the seam allowance on the shoulders is not turned to the inside so it is as though the machinist has only sewn the first 3 steps, but with the wrong sides of the fabric together:

The amount of seam allowance that is added to the pattern of a garment, and therefore the margin for when you sew the garment, will depend on the type of fabric you are sewing and how you intend on finishing the seam. For example, some garments may take just 6mm (essentially the width of a sewing machine foot), 1.2cm or 1.5cm or as wide as your require.

Understanding seam allowance is extremely important in pattern making and sewing, as sewing along the stitching line must be exact. If you leave the wrong seam allowance when you are pattern making then your machinist may not be able to sew the pieces together correctly. If you are sewing and take more or less seam allowance than you should then you will effectively be shrinking or growing the size of the entire garment.

If you are pattern making a garment and are unsure how much seam allowance to add to your finished outline then the best practice is to do a small test of the seam finish that you want for that seam, in the correct or similar weight fabric wherever possible. Then you will be able to ensure that you have left enough space.

Read more about seams and seam allowance in Fundamentals of Sewing: Seams» and Fundamentals of Patternmaking: Seam Allowance»

Images from Vogue.co.uk»

Chanel, AW12.

With so many looks, garments, different fabrics and embellishments involved in a Chanel show, it often takes a second look to fully digest the entire collection. As a fashion behemoth, a Chanel collection is normally made up of many mini collections and stories under the one umbrella concept, catering to many different versions of the “Chanel” customer.

With the oversized crystal background as a hint of the theme, there were many references in the embellishments to crystals whether in the use of actual crystals (clustered on buttons, bags, belts, neckpieces) or in the multi faceted cuts made to some garments.

With so much going on in the Chanel repertoire it is sometimes most interesting to go back to what would have occurred at the cutting table, right back at a pure pattern stage and imagine the garments cut purely out of calico. Thought the theme of a Chanel collection may change from season to season, there is usually an interesting blend of silhouettes between very traditional western tailoring (with a base of jackets, trousers, shirts and skirts) to perhaps more deconstructed shapes such as ideas we would usually expect to see at a Comme des Garcons or Junya Watanabe show. It is these unusual silhouettes, from a blend of reference points, that are played with at Chanel and that are the substance behind all of the glittering embellishment.

Images from Vogue.co.uk.»

Balenciaga, AW12.

Nicholas Ghesquiere has a knack for making his job at Balenciaga look easier than it actually is. After all, it is one thing to moodboard up an innovative concept and sketch up exciting silhouettes every season, and something else all together to make sure that all the tiny details, combinations of fabric and ideas look resolved and polished by the time the garments hit the runway.

In the Autumn-Winter 2012 collection for Balenciaga, we were treated to a gentle blend of influences and references, from neoprene haute couture cocoons to sci-fi transfer black sweatshirts. Part of what helped to resolve all of the elements of the collection was the fact that the details were usually both decorative and highly functional. You get the feeling that no fabric or fastening decision is made in isolation, so all of the elements work to complement and support the overall concept.

There were intricate embroidery designs that were used to create 3D texture that also had a structural impact by stiffening the fabric and enabling the egg shaped sleeves. The subtle reinforced panels that were used in the sleeves of jackets and coats helped to add a sportswear reference without making the garment uncomfortable and unwearable, but still affecting the silhouette of the sleeves. Suspending hem bands from delicate georgette is also no easy feat, and yet with no distracting pulling or seam slippage, you can see that this has been somehow engineered to work.

Ultimately resolving all of these ideas so well allows the viewers to take the clever details and innovation for granted and focus on how they will pull these clothes out of the context of the high concept and make it wearable - without worrying about the clothes disintegrating.

Images from Vogue.co.uk»

Balmain, AW12, Paris.

To create an opulent collection in his second season at the head of Balmain, Olivier Rousteing drew on an array of techniques to create multi layered fabrics with an intense level of detailing. Leather was used as embossed and laser cut panels layered over velvet, or quilted with lines of stitching. Velvet was used as an under cloth, or heavily embossed for fitted trousers. Velvet was also used with a burnt out devoré effect, revealing sheer lines of fabric in the base cloth beneath the velvet pile.

There was also an incredible level of beading that was used in an impressive way to reinforce boxy silhouettes, or in elaborate panels to flatter the curves of the body. Rather than appearing as though the embellishments were a heavily applied decoration, they were cleverly engineered as part of the garments.

Also of note were the tapestry panels that proved a vibrant flash of colour in amongst the pearly pastel pinks and pistachios, and rich teal leather.

All in all the techniques chosen worked as complements of each other, creating 2D and 3D versions to reinforce similar linework details and to echo historical references. It was with interesting effect that Rousteing used one of the most simple and everyday pieces of the collection to ground the otherwise very regal techniques. The very opulent and detailed designs were nicely offset by the simple shape of a fully fashioned knit sweater. 

Images from Vogue.co.uk»

Comme des Garçons, SS12.

Rei Kawakubo and the team at Comme des Garçons were able to tread a careful line in the exploration of female wedding gowns for the Spring-Summer 2012 collection. They gave us all the right clues to know that this collection was all about bridal wear with silk satin in whites, off whites and creams layered with fine lacework, beading and even some faux floral embellishments in soft greys and lemons.

But as ever with Comme des Garçons, the rebellion is in the execution. Where you would normally find carefully hand bound edges and french seams on a wedding gown, there was instead roughly cut necklines leaving exposed slabs of wadding. When giant-sized, voluptuous silken bows were used, they were used in a strangely creepy way, binding the models hands together. When boning was used to give the gowns structure it was not hidden discreetly away beneath layers of fine silk, it was instead made into an exterior cage that seemed to be constructed out of plastic boning and wadding.

The wadding in itself played a very important part in the collection - rounding out silhouettes and leaving all of the gowns looking thick and puffy. Not so much puffy in an unflattering way but more in a way that gave a subconscious reminder about very comfortable quilts.

The elements that gave each of the outfits their individual character were the headpieces that at times seemed to be mottled as though they were covered in spray on concrete. Or sometimes the headwear appeared as rubberised alternatives with strangely sagging theme-park faces. The black of these headpieces was also brought out in the glossy black and white paint that formed angular lines across the front of a couple of garments These angular marks, especially used so sparingly, contributed to the dark undertones that seemed to be simmering through the whole collection.

Images from Vogue.co.uk».

Junya Watanabe, SS12.

The Japanese designers seem to have a way of conjuring up new fantasy headwear each season and pairing it with delicate models and deadpan facial expressions. This season was no exception with Junya Watanabe displaying feather hair sculptures with flashes of unusual tones and hues to offset the floral repeats that embellished the garments. The use of the colours within the feathers echoed the off-kilter colour palettes that have been the norm for the last few seasons. These colours added a contemporary edge to simply draped floral dresses and trademark double breasted tailoring by throwing unexpected highlight colours into the mix.

Danielle Scutt, SS12.

There was an interesting mix of high end / lo-fi street references in the recent Danielle Scutt collection for Spring-Summer 2012. On the one hand there was a certain youthful quality to the vibrant polka dots and disjointed checks and on the other hand this was balanced out by the more conservative monochrome tailoring. It felt very wearable and very street, from the hipster denim to the t-shirts and bleached out jerseys, but at no point did it feel scungy like an unwashed teenager. At the points where the subculture references could have crossed into a naive, coming of age territory, the crisp shirting and considered drape of the folds and tucks helped to reign the collection in.

In a quote on Vogue.co.uk, Scutt described the collection as being very personal and perhaps this was best reflected in the varying levels of complexity that were seen in the pieces. We can only assume that while a younger teenage Scutt may have been satisfied with a slogan tee, the older Scutt would get a kick out of the more complex pattern cutting. Which is probably why the low/high references tied together - the basic idea of rebellion was the same whether executed in oversized metallic cocoons, mid grey suiting or rope dress overlays.

Images from Vogue.co.uk».

Valentino, SS12.

There are some designers who can take an idea or a technique that has been used time and time again, and can bring their own freshness to them to use the techniques in new and beautiful ways. Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli, as the creative directors at Valentino, are finding ever more intricate ways to work with lace, and lace-like effects to build ethereal collections.

The garments manage to balance prettiness with substance, largely due to the obvious care, thought and attention to detail that goes into crafting these garments. Additional edge is given to the collections through the intelligent colour combinations that contrast the most subtle of neutral pinks, lemons and mints with pops of cornflower blue, vibrant red or even layers of stark black.

Half of the beauty in these collections is hidden in the details - the careful finish given to a near invisible fastening, or the way that the leather is molded and tucked to form a perfect and yet understated sleeve head shape. Sometimes embellishment can be used as evidence of labour and effort but in the Valentino collection it is all about subtle and deft handiwork. 

Images from Vogue.co.uk».