IN THE MAKING OF THE S/S 2021 ‘THE BOTANIST’ COLLECTION

CREATING THE FABRIC

The designer has always been obsessed with embracing the process of creating her own fabric as in her silicone rubber collections from S/S2015 'CLONES, through S/S2019 SPLASH and F/W2019 POSSESSION where she creates colors and 3D patterns from liquid silicone or crocheting pieces with fingers as in the F/W 2017 ‘THE TIE’ collection, where the fabric itself comes to life stitch-by-stitch.

This year she decided to try a new technique to dream up the unique color set for her new mini-collection using hydro dipping. The abstract art created on the surface is the first step completed in the garment making process.

HYDRO-DIPPING

To create the abstract color patterns, the designer used acrylic sprays, some gallons of water, a huge container and the inspiration of the moment. The leafy patterns were created on the water surface with spraying and then quickly picked up with a piece of white spandex while submerging it in the water. The whole process is no more than a few seconds but leaves a spectacular painting and clear water surface behind. The process was repeated several times, depending on the complexity of the pattern designs and then stayed to dry for several weeks before they could enter to the next stage of the garment making.

3 SHADES OF GREEN AND A TOUCH OF YELLOW

The unique color set of ‘THE BOTANIST’ was inspired by greens and yellows of the wild forest. The shades of Pistachio green, Era Green and Guacamole Green allowed to create the random ‘nature splashes’.

STRUCTURAL PLEATS

To make the patterns more dramatic to truly resemble layered crowns of trees the painted fabrics were further pleated and carefully selected for the different sections of the garments. The designer really enjoyed combining deep dark greens with fabrics mostly white, having almost no patterns at all.

The 5 different easy-to-wear looks all had their conceptual skeleton where to show their bare patterns and where to be hiding behind the regularity of the pleats.

Taking the jumpsuit as an example, the bodice with its pleated leafy surfaces forms a retro body-shaping corset effect, while the plain parts on the top and the bottom give a frame to this picture.