"Interview with a Designer" Elsa Lloyd

Haute on High

15 High Street Fremantle

West End

The other day I happened to be walking down High Street in Fremantle, Western Australia (Round House end) and I stumbled across a beautiful shop called “ Haute on High”. They specialise in “Couture by Elsa Lloyd” and “Ready to wear designed by her daughter Bernice Sara” as well as a selection of additional local and imported labels. After chatting to Elsa Lloyd about my studies she agreed to answer a few questions about “How she got started in the Fashion Industry”. If you haven’t already been to “Haute on High” do yourself a favour and go. I would also like to say a “Big Thank-you” to Elsa for taking the time out to inspire students wanting to get into the industry”.

When did you open the door?

'Haute on High' opened its doors on Wednesday 9th February 2011.  I searched many areas before settling to this area of Perth.  Once I decided to accept this location, many doors of opportunity opened. 

Did you study fashion design?  Well, that’s short and sweet, no! I'm self taught.

I raised 3 daughters and made our clothes.  When the girls were in high school I designed and made their party dresses and ball gowns. Their friends then asked me to design gowns and party dresses, and eventually I was asked to design for weddings which lead to requests to have my own label.  Asked often enough, you begin to think it may be something, so I then registered 'Elsa Couture'.

I had not decided to become involved in fashion as a younger person.  It simply evolved raising my family. But I had a love of 'others' creativity, whether it be a dress or a piece of furniture or a sand castle.  I loved beautiful fabrics whether it be for clothing or furnishings and spent many hours looking at fabrics.

What Challenges have you endured setting up “Haute on High”?

The greatest challenge becoming involved in starting a label is the finances required to start producing designs and the time it takes to correctly produce patterns and finding suitable manufacturers.  

Inspiration is an ongoing part of my life.  I eat, sleep designing.  I sometimes pull over when driving and sketch what is in my mind and the same when going to sleep.  Pencil and paper beside the bed, is the only way I can clear the mind to go to sleep.

Some of my designs are a 'one of' item.  I travelled to several countries overseas and purchased fabric pieces which I produce into a single garment.   Some of my designs are now manufactured in Asia as I found it impossible to produce the more involved pieces in Australia.  I personally design and make the first sample and pattern and send it to the manufacturers.  They copy the garment but sometimes it needs adjusting and sometimes remaking.  It goes back and forth until corrected

We do you see yourself in 5 years time? I hope to have grown to a reputable boutique and have stores on the east coast of Australia.

How do you balance Family and work? Family and work life is moulded into one at the moment.  Work does not end at closing of the boutique.  I look forward to personal time in the future.

The End

HOW TO MAKE A SHOWER CAP

I usually use those cheap hotel freebies for a Shower Cap but they don’t tend to last very long plus they are not stylish in anyway. I ask the question though is it even possible to look stylish in a shower cap!!  but sometimes practicality wins over aesthetics.

Here are the instructions to whip yourself up a shower cap.  It is not difficult at all and takes approximately 30 minutes to make.

Materials required:

Plastic for the underside of the shower cap (you could use any sort of plastic as long as it’s not too thick) if it bunches up easily its suitable. (Bubble wrap would even work, I used a plastic tablecloth).

Binding (to match your fabric) Cotton for Cotton, Satin for Satin.

Narrow elastic

Thread

Sewing Machine

Steps

Firstly cut the plastic into a circle with a  55cm-65cm diameter depending on head size to be fitted. 

Do the same with the external fabric.

Keep the two pieces together (making sure the right side of the decorator fabric is facing out).  Now attach the binding to the edge of the fabric pieces attaching to the plastic side first, overlap a little at the end so you have a neat finish.

Then flip and sew the binding to the fabric side (you can add any edging you wish at this point eg. Lace, small pompom trim etc). Be as creative as you wish!

Now it’s time to sew on the casing (bias binding) around the perimeter of the cap, which you will eventually thread your elastic into. Place this either on the inside of the plastic or the outside of the cap if you wish to make a feature of it. Measure in approximately 5cm to do this. Sew both sides of the casing close to the edge ensuring your elastic will fit through the casing.

Dada - complete.

It’s that easy.

Theatre De La Mode

After the war ended in 1945, in an effort to reassert French Couture, designers, artists and the Chambre Syndicate of Paris came up with the idea to design and dress small scale couture dolls to send abroad to let the world know Paris was still number one in Fashion.  Miniature scale was decided as large quantities of materials to sew were not available; the dummies themselves were made from recycled iron with white unpainted plastered heads.

The son of Nina Ricci (Robert) was the head of commission of public relations at the Chambre and it was his idea to organise an event to raise money, the collection of dolls, all dressed by major couture fashion houses. 53 out of a total of 70 fashion houses took part. Some of these include, Balenciaga, Schiaparelli, Fath, Hermes, Ricci, Balenciaga, Worth and Carven, they were given the task of creating up to five outfits each.  There were a total of 237 dolls at the opening of the exhibition in March 1945. The exhibition travelled from city to city throughout Europe, then onto San Francisco.

Each doll was immaculately dressed and the details of their clothing was exquisite with linings, trimmings, accessories such as small purses, gloves, undergarments, hats, belts, powder compacts, shoes and wigs perfectly styled. Jewellery design was even by major jewellery houses such as Cartier and Van Cleef and Arpels.

The dolls were set up on amazing backdrops, designed by well-known artists, in some recognizable Parisian scenes.  On completion of the tour, the mannequins were laid to rest in the City of Paris department store (now Neiman Marcus) and then were forgotten about, until, it was discovered in the basement in 1952.  Sadly, many of the original sets and dolls were destroyed, before they were rescued by someone who had connections with the Maryhill Museum in America. This is where they resided until 1988 when Arthur Garfunkel became aware of their existence. There was an agreement reached whereby the Met Museum in France now house the collection and the Maryhill exhibits 3 out of the 9 sets every year and the rest of the time it travels the world.

The heads of miniature fashion mannequins, below, await
their bodies, above, as they are being prepared for display.
Each is dressed in Paris couture of 1946.

Photos from website www.archives.starbulletin.com These photos where taken when the Theatre De La Mode went to Hawaii.

Sadly I think we could be waiting a long time before they end up in Australia.

Our lecturer loves the story of Theatre De La Mode and thought it would be a wonderful idea if we created our own dolls. We were inspired by our Cultural Signpost research. Ours was “How Film and Fashion go hand in hand”. As a lover of the Mad Men Series, I decided an outfit for Joan Holloway. (Grey wool garment) The other garment pictured was designed by Veronica Parish.

Bye for Now.
Hope you enjoyed.

Identifying Fads/Trends and Classics

I’m sure you can all identify with me, when you have a big clear out of your wardrobe, either because you have no more space or you feel like spring cleaning, then you are hit with throwers remorse. It is very hard to know what to keep and what to not. My general rule is if it’s a classic it stays and if it’s a Fad it goes. If of course you have a massive wardrobe it can be fun to keep and fun to sieve through 20 years down the track. You should always keep classics  like a white shirt, pencil skirt, classic black pants and tailored jackets. So lets talk about Fads, Trends and Classic to help you make those wardrobe throw out decisions.

A Fad whether related to Fashion or anything for that matter is something that is short lived. It is extremely popular but for a short time and is followed with enthusiasm and zeal.

Of recent times the Jeggings would have to fit into this category. This is a Bubble up effect. Jeggings is a recent variant of leggings. They are leggings that take certain attributes from jeans, such as colour and style and seams down the side. Topshop introduced them in 2009 but the term originated in Japan. These wouldn’t be possible though without the technology to produce fabric (stretch) that looks digitally like denim.  As they are very comfortable society loved wearing them. Jeggings were a social fashion cycle.

Another Fad seen currently is the Nerd glasses as they have been termed. They were originally made of horn, tortoise shell or plastic in the 1950’s. They were a type of eyeglass students wore with the main characteristic being their lack of nose pads.  Today they are made fashionable by celebrities such as Pink and Lily Allen.  We are even seeing them on the runways, magazines and music video clips.  (Bubble up). They are a social fashion cycle.

A Trend is a general movement or direction in Fashion.

After in depth discussions our group decided that femininity will be the next trend. We are seeing it already but think it will continue strong with the current interest with television hit series like ‘The Mad Men Series’ where woman dressed like woman in stockings, dresses, hats, gloves and all the accessories. We are seeing alot of the designers like Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior being influenced by this glamour period of the 40, 50’s and 60’s. We all welcome this change away from masculine, minimal lines and can’t wait to see woman dress as woman used to.

The colour we predict are the soft pastels, particularly all shades of pink.

What is a classic?

Something that is continually in fashion usually because of its simplicity and basic need.

LBN: (trickled down).Everyone knows this stands for Little Black number. It is usually cut simply and quite short. The origin of the LBN dress can be traced to the 1920’s and Coco Chanel. It is essential to every wardrobe it’s almost a rule of fashion. Worn with a jacket and pumps for daytime attire or business wear then with ornate jewellery and killer heals and you have evening wear. When choosing your LBN make sure it is not part of a trend.  Chanel was the first to introduce black as a fashion colour; her versatile, semi-formal "little black dress" became a Chanel trademark.

Black was used for Day wear, evening wear and cocktail wear.  Black has continued to dominate throughout the decades. 

Chanel stripped down the design of women’s attire in 1926, no longer did the designs focus on bosoms, stomachs, and rump.  It was the simplifying taste of Chanel that woman could identify with.   No longer could men dictate what woman should wear. 

The LBN due to its simplicity will never be out of flavour, it’s something that can be worn to any occasion. The Little Black Dress started out being a political, feminism fashion cycle, nowadays though it is socially exceptable to wear a LBN anywhere.

Fashion and Film

HOW FASHION AND FILM GO HAND IN HAND

Film and Fashion are so very closely linked that we almost don’t notice their trendy sway. Movies have contributed to major trends in fashion, hairstyles and make-up.

Here are my personal favourite Top Fashion Moments in Film.

Sex in the City has definitely made MANOLO BLAHNIK shoes a household name but Blahnik opened his first shop in 1973. Woman drool over the expensive and exquisitively designed shoes as worn by Carrie and the the girls in Sex in the City.

Designers like Sass and Bide have even featured in Sex in the City. Sarah-Jane Clarke was wearing a self styled denim jacket and took it off and handed it to a security guard, who gave it to Sarah Jessica Parker whilst on set of filming Sex in the City. The next day, the Sass and Bide girls were invited to Parkers trailer to show their designs. Later they were commissioned to make a few one of pieces for the Series. This propelled their brand instantly internationally.

Desperately Seeking Susan, in this 1985 hit starring Madonna, created a trend with many look alikes appearing on the streets. (I remember it well!) She wore black dresses with leggings to men’s pants with exposed lacy bras to rolled-down rhinestone boots. She also wore chains with dangling crosses (which had the churches horrified), beads and of course bleached blonde permed hair.

Saturday Night Fever (dadadadadadaaaa) 1977 hit starring Johnny Travolta.

John Travolta’s blow-dryed hair, tight, shiny polyester pants and that famous white suit. Men wanted to look like him.  He gave men the courage to dress flamboyantly during the Disco era and was responsible for those embarrassing wedding photos in the 70’s sporting white suits. (looking back I bet they wished they hadn’t).

God Created Woman starring Bridgett Bardot in 1957

Bridgitte Bardot was a style innovator. In God created woman Brigitte wore her hair in an unkept style during an era of coiffed perfect hair. She also wore a very tight skirt (girdle free) for her bongo gyrations, making woman and men mouths drop. It was Brigitte Bardot who caused the demand for the bikini. It was because of this film that bikinis became fashionable. Pretty amazing considering the two piece swimwear was band from the Miss World Contest 6 years prior.

The Wild One (Marlon Brando)

Marlon Brando invades a small town with his biker gang “Black Rebels Motorcycle Club”. His iconic look of cuffed jeans, leather cap and tough black motorcycle jacket created this cool look to civilians. This look influenced TV and Movies like “Happy Day” and the Fonz and the “Rock and Roll Revolution”. This is a continuous trend today that is timeless in its style.

Mad Men Television Series

Mad Men is set in the 1960’s, at the advertising agency on Madison Avenue, New York.  The focal point of the series is Don Draper, creative director at Sterling Cooper and a founding partner, as well as those in his life, both in and out of the office.  Mad Men has received critical acclaim, particularly for its historical authenticity and visual style. It has influenced designer such as marc Jacobs with his latest collections of corsets, cleavage and cocktails. We are talking full skirts 50’s style, sweetheart necklines and cat’s eye sunglasses.  We may and I hope even see a change in models on the catwalk, steering away from the waif look to a more volumptuous look of Joan Holloway. Arguably this series has caused a” Bubble Up” effect.

If you haven’t seen the Mad Men series and you love fashion of the 60’s, do yourself a favour and get the series out.  Get a group of girls together with some champagne and take yourself back to the past. Yummy Don Draper!

You know when you’ve made it when there is a Barbie Doll to honour you.

PRESSUREEEEEEEEEEEE TEST

At TAFE recently we were put under a

Pressure Test. In a group of 3 using a selection

 of recycled garments create a garment based

 around your designer, we chose “ Deborah Lindquist”.

 We titled our range “ Cowgirl goes Caberet”. I must

say this was a difficult task for me. The main problem

was the time constraint which was 2 hours. Now I know

 how they feel on those reality TV shows like Project

Runway. Then you have 3 people working together as a

 team with 3 different ideas.  It was a Challenge to say

the least and this is what we created.

We were disappointed with ourselves and we now

 have a new appreciation and understanding when

 working under pressure just how difficult it can be.

Deborah Lindquist

Check out some of Deborah Lindquists latest collection " Cowgirl Meets Thunderdome"
Her pieces are limited edition as they are created from recycled materials combined with environmentally friendly fabric such as these Hemp.