Hope Harding

Design identity Sketchbook

What is fashion? What does it mean? What does it do? Who does it help?

These are the first few questions that come to mind when I’m questioned about fashion and why I have chosen it as my path-way. There are so many needs in this world, so many other jobs and areas I could go into which would probably end up help-ing more people.

So Why Fashion? Well selfish reasons of course, I’d love to say the idea of studying for 7+ years to become a life saving doctor thrilled me but I’m afraid it doesn’t. I study fashion because I love it. I love being able to do something each day that I learn from and can make it completely my own. Being able to say, ‘Yes I made that, Yes I designed that, Yes I created that.’ It’s great!

But it’s not all that selfish Fashion is such a influential thing, it reaches and effects everyone, from the mum who feels old and frumpy to the 13 year old boy who is trying to impress his latest crush, we can feel a whole range of emotions simply by what we wear that day. And that’s what I love about it. Over the course of this project I want to be able to interact with people, I want to learn what they like and don’t like about fashion. I think fashion has a bad name, to everyone who loves and works in fashion of course they might not agree, but for all us ‘normal people’ it has a stereotype as this bitchy, over competitive industry. Which can be intimidating. Along side fashion, hand in hand, comes the media. From glossy magazines to trashy TV, the Hollywood idea of perfection is plastered everywhere. How to look, what to wear, where to go on holiday or what hairstyle to have. There is a long checklist we now have to tick off before we can be seen as ok, let alone perfect.

Manifesto

The word ‘perfect’ has come up a lot in my mind when I have been thinking about this project. It fascinates me, the idea that we as humans are constantly striving for more, for better. The idea of a perfect life somewhat baffles me, what is perfect? The idea that we want what we can’t or simply don’t have surely irradiates there ever being something perfect. If we have the typically perfect family, a mum, dad, brother, sister. If we have money, if we have love, success, friendship. Then what is left? If we have everything we could ever want then what more is there to want? I’m sure our minds would invent something.

When I was a child I use to love making up stories. I always acted them out in front of my mirror, pretend I was famous or even stranger, pretend I was dying. I realise that sounds pret-ty messed up for a young girl but my life was perfect, I had a great family who fed me, clothed me and treated me to a life full of everything you could ever want. So I was bored! I wanted a little drama so I would often pretend to my self.

Perfection is in the eye of the beholder, and when I first dug into that statement I really agreed with it, but after I made a short video of myself to test out my camera skills, I realised that it’s maybe not so true. Growing up I would hear my parents tell me I am beautiful everyday, and now I’m grown my boyfriend tells me. Does that mean I’m beautiful? If I were to draw or write down the attributes that I think a beautiful person would have I wouldn’t necessarily be drawing or writing myself.

If perfection of our selves can only be achieved when we our-selves think we are perfect, well then we may never achieve perfection.

Manifesto

I have been looking into Fashion Film, wanting to create my own I decided to have a play around and see what I could do, so I made a short film of myself, close up shots of my face and body. Whilst I am not a girl who particularly fusses about my weight or wearing lots of makeup, I did find my self feeling uneasy when editing the video I had made. I wanted to share the video on my blog to show what I was thinking about when researching and responding to fashion film’s I had watched, so I wanted an honest representation of a 20 year old girl. But I didn’t want to look fat or pale or have dark circles around my eyes, essentially I didn’t want to look like me! Not because I’m not ok with any of those things about myself, but because I think someone else might not be. Is what other people think of us, more important to us, than what we think of ourselves? Or is that just me? And is it vain? Or just normal?

Being a Christian, I believe there is a perfect heaven. I don’t understand it but I believe it is there, and when I think about heaven, well I almost don’t like to. Living in the world we live in I find it difficult to imagine a world where everything was ‘per-fect’. Almost like the Stepford wives, I am Nicole Kidman won-dering what the heck is going on, knowing not everything can be this perfect.

Playing with the idea of changing myself and the way I look is of course somewhat playing God. Now with out being too cringe, God made me the way I am and so in theory I am per-fect, of course I am not talking about sin and all that jazz but for now, simply the way I look. So if I know that God loves me and the way I look just as I am and my parents and my boyfriend too then what more do I need?

Whether you are a Christian or not almost everyone has people telling them daily their beautiful, compliments thrown at them from friends, family and even strangers. But we still struggle to see it ourselves.

For this project I want to hopefully change the way we look at ourselves, with the help of viewers and writers I will recruit, I want to build a site where people can learn to appreciate them selves and other people, it will be mostly a ‘beauty site’ and whilst I absolutely hate to use that phrase, I am not looking to create a ‘click here to learn how to do winged eye liner’ website but an organic and inspiring place where people can come to shop, blog to an audience or just take a look around and enjoy what other people have to say.

I want to create a short introductory film for the website made up of a series of close ups and other footage of a few different people. With the aim to inspire people to love them selves a little more!

I want to be interactive with the viewers. I want the viewer to be able to have a say and an input on the content of the web-site. As well as having writers layout blog posts, tutorials and interviews the viewers will not only be able to respond to the content but also create there own, buy uploading photos and tutorials in response to what it already on the site.

Along with involving viewers, I also want to get small up and coming brands involved. Being at university I am surrounded by fellow students trying to get their companies, brands and music careers off the ground, so I would love to dedicate a sec-tion of the site to artists and entrepreneurs to show and hope-fully sell some of their stuff.

End of Manifesto

Inspirations

I have had a lot of thoughts and ideas when thinking about this project, not just what I want to do but most importantly how I want to do it, what I want to say. I want my brand to be ethical, organic and unique, among many other things. Having a natural film or website is very important to me, nothing pretentious, just pure.

From genuinely helpful things, like print-ing on eco friendly paper and encour-aging eco friendly brands, to things that have no effect on our world but make it prettier, like organic feeling colour schemes.

I have had a look at a few films and sites that I think I could take elements from to create my ‘dream’ brand.

Rock Roll Ride

Stuart Weitzman presents... #RockRollRide for FW14. “Rock Roll Ride” with Poppy Delevingne and Dylan Penn in Julia Restoin Roitfeld’s stunning directorial debut. Enter an enchanting para-dise of revved-up boots, racy bombshells and fast cars set to a remix of Lana Del Rey’s “Ride.”

Rock Roll Ride A Single Man

Tom Ford’s first fashion film based on the novel by Christopher Isher-wood. The film stars Colin Firth, who portrays, George Falconer, a de-pressed gay British university professor struggling with the unexpected death of his partner living in Southern California in 1962.

Preserve “America is full of tales waiting to be told. There are beautiful stories hiding in small towns and big cities, on sub-urban streets and rural roads. Great wisdom lives in the well-worked hands of aging craftspeople and in the eager words of young artisans. Our very history is whispered into the materi-als they use to make exquisite goods according to timeless standards of quality and care. That is the tradition we aim to preserve.

Our goal is to support the America we’ve always known, and the one we haven’t yet met. We hope to achieve this in small but meaningful ways, through the stories we tell, the treas-ures we share and our genuine desire to give back to those with fewer op-portunities but just as much heart and soul as anyone else. We believe that nurturing a better tomorrow upholds the yesterday we cherish, for all of us.

PRESERVE is all of us, together, championing the goods, makers and legends that instill meaning inside the moments of our lives. The curios that cozy our homes, the threads that define our silhouettes, the foods that leave our bellies happy, the projects that mean everything to us—we want to share all of this with you; we know we have so much to learn from you. In our ongoing quest for knowledge, these are our PRESERVE passions…”

Love Aesthetics

Preserve Love Aesthetics Love Aesthetics is essentially a blog, a blog that does more than just blog. With sections on DIY, Accessories, Beauty, Clothes and much more this blog does it all.

The page has an extremely minimal-istic look to it, with white pages and images the blog is very clean cut.

I love the mixture of information you can get on this site, from how to paint the perfect manicure and the perfect hair do, to how to enter diy heaven!

BeExposed

BeExposed is an online Magazine and blog I have had the pleasure of writing for.

Their clean cut layout of both the website and magazine is beautiful.

BeExposed is a new online mag-azine supporting and promoting emerging crea-tive talent, and this is something I really admire.

BeExposed Website Along side a short film I want to create a web-site. The film will be used as a promotion/advertisement and shown before the website launch and also played automatically when someone clicks on the website.

As for the website it’s self, I want it to be inter-active. I want the viewer to be able to have a say and an input on the content of the website. As well as having writers layout blog posts, tutorials and interviews the viewers will not only be able to respond to the content but also create there own, buy uploading photos and tutorials.

I will of course come across the issue of pos-sible inappropriate content being posted so there will be a screening process where each article or picture posted will be vetted.

Brands The site will also give viewers the opportunity to come across up and com-ing brands and be able to explore their sites and buy their products. There would then be a link on the brand page to another page where peo-ple can upload photos of them wearing the brand’s garments along side a style tutorial from an in-house stylist in which people can respond to by asking ques-tions etc.

Fonts For the website's head-line font I want something that will reflect the or-ganicness of the brand, something unique and fluid. The 'Good Karma' font I have used for the headlines of this pres-entation, at the moment, is my favourite.

Colour Scheme A Grey day

Colour Scheme A Grey day Vs an October Fall

Website Mock ups

Main Text - Good Karma, Size 60Sub Text - Good Karma, Size 36

Website Mock ups

Model for Shoot Serenna

Model for Shoot

Natural make up with a darker gold eye

Locations for Shoot Twesledown

Shoot Details

Date - 1st weekend of November, 2nd weekend if

needed for re-shoot.

Time - Day time, as much sun and light as possible as will be shooting under the shade of trees.

P lace - Tweseledown. Areas include lots of trees,

open field spaces, hill tops, ponds and lakes.

Clothes - Big knits, layers, large coats and faux

fur. (Buy and return)

Camera - DSLR with film capabilities and also my

iphone for contrasting shots.

Shoot Inspiration

Shoot Inspiration

Shot List - Close up of feet as she walks along the path. Sounds of leaves crunching beneath her before music starts.

- Hand brushes along moss covered barkMusic begins quietly, show cuff of fur jacket.Sound from clips stops here.

- Close up of the fur coat blowing in the wind, Pan up to the shoulder.

- Jaw shot coming from behind her shoulder.Hair blowing slightly in the wind

- Close up Lips

- Close up eyes

- (Change outfit) Full face, rule of thirds, landscape shot. Break out into a smile/laugh

- Model Spins in white dress

- Close up of hand on back of head as she spins with hand harness

- Far out shot of model standingamongst the trees.

- Same shot, different positionof girl, repeated a further time.Add fur jacket, only on shoulders

Shot List - (Change outfit) Close up of model’s face with oversized scarf.

- Close up shot of model through the trees/leaves.

- (Change outfit) Model spins whilst walking down the path.

- Model walking towards camera with a series of back-ground changes as we head to the final shot.

*Change Location*Standing on a hill top

- Model climbs hill with hands in pockets.

- (Back to outfit Two) Rule of thirds, model on left facing away, shot covers below feet to hip. Dress blowing in direc-tion of wind.

- Begin walk back, Rule of thirds, model on left facing away, shot covers shoulders to above head,

- Repeat shot in different locations.

Barney’s Originals Ombre Faux Fur CoatASOS Flower ChokerASOS Beanie In Mohair Mix With Detacha-ble Veil/Pom

Outfit One

ASOS Midi Fit and Flare Dress with Scoop BackASOS Hand Harness

Outfit Two

H&M Roll Neck JumperRough Shutter Customised T-shirtASOS Duster CoatASOS Faux Fur Collar

Outfit Three

Outfit FourPrimark Oversized T-shirtZara Cropped JumperZara Oversized Scarf

Don’t forget List

Luke Sital-Singh - Fail For You. Full Length 4.10. Tempo change at 2.57

Luke Sital-Singh - I have been a Fire. Full Length 4.03 Change at 2 & 3

Luke Sital-Singh - Benediction. Full Length 3.39

Farrow - Drive

- Camera- Spare Memory Card- Blanket- Bin Bags- Umbrella - Two big towels- Water- Snacks- Baby Wipes

- Grey coat- Fur Coat- Grey t shirt - Black Jumper- Rough Shutter T- Fur Collar- Orange jumper- Big Scarf- White Dress- Hand Harness- Black Clark’s Boots- Black Heel Boots- Black and White stripe scarf- Black chiffon over coat

Film Music

Sub Film Adverts

Don’t forget List

Film Music

Rough ShutterRough shutter is a clothing brand run by graphic designer, Adam Willis. The brand is new, young and fresh, creating awe-some hand drawn designs printed on to t-shirts. Along with the clothing brand Adam is a Freelancer in his spare time, so if you like Rough Shutter, ask nicely and you might be able to get your hands on an Adam Willis original.

I have styled a rough shutter T-shirt in my outfits for the main HushTwenty shoot and so whilst I wont be shooting a video especially for Rough Shutter, I am going to re-edit the HushT-wenty shoot to create a smaller advertisement for the Rough Shutter page on my website.

Sub Film Adverts

The Lavender Hill CompanyThe Lavender Hill Company is a mixture of lovely things, firstly a florist, selling beautiful fresh flowers and arrangements. Specialising in events such as weddings, parties and funerals. The Lavender Hill Co. Also sells gorgeous gifts from candles to hearts in a million different styles. LHC also sell beautiful, bespoke furniture; wonderfully restored or up cycled by Steve Pritchard.

I have created an advertising video for LHC once before, an overall look into the company’s day to day life. But as a collab-oration with LHC and HushTwenty I will be creating another video for the company as their Christmas advertisement. This too will be placed on HushTwenty on LHC’s brand page.

- Lots of shallow depth of field.- Close ups.- Decoration dangling in front of bulk stock.- People laughing and drinking mulled wine/tea.- Show love and happiness.

LHC Film Notes

A Lavender Hill Christmas https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9swmFyn1LA4

A Lavender Hill Christmas https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9swmFyn1LA4

HushTwenty ShootWaking up to the sound of torrential rain on the day of my outside film shoot is not a good feeling! The thought of having my model prance around a muddy wet forrest in expensive clothes I’m eager to return is also not a good one!

However! It did stop rain-ing!!

The rain managed to hold off and although it was a bit gloomy my shoot went rath-er well! I’m really happy with what I have achieved footage wise. I changed locations because my original location was pretty waterlogged, so I shot the film at Minley woods and it was perfect!

My next challenge is to de-cide what to do with all the footage, my initial plan was to create a video 3-4 minuets long, however now I think I may create a few shorter videos from the 3-4 minuet one, along side the Rough shutter brand video, as a sneak peak.

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