Brook Thompson's Initial Sketch for Gypsy Lady

Update form Brook 3/29/2011
I chose a purple satin blouse with some ruffle detail on the yoke, a long, hot pink, knit stretching tube dress and a gold sweater halter style top. Accompanied with my model and feeding from our conversation I chose the pieces at the Express Yourself store. I asked her what colors she liked. She told me she liked pink and I then asked her if she liked hot pink, or pastel. She said she basically liked all pink, and also loved bright colors. I browsed through the racks with her by my side and came across the hot pink dress, which I first chose due to the color and the amount of material it had to be able to rework. I thought that would definitely come in handy. I also chose the cold sweater after I was considering it’s color and shimmer to accent the bold hot pink. With the affirmation of my model, I went with it. Then the last piece was chosen as an accent, the purple, a rich color I thought would play well with the other two. I liked it due to it’s texture, satin and the ruffle details, which I thought could be used in another way.


After picking out the three clothing items, I spent the first night getting familiar with the pieces. I contemplated their colors and textures. I mentally began to block the color pieces together daydream designing what kind of pieces they could become and how they could all work together. I tried the items on myself in order to get a feel of how their fabric would lay on the human form and how colors might feed off of each other. I looked through Runway magazine, which sparked my creativity by seeing all the ideas done by other designers. I then began sketching items with the colored pencils in the hues of the garments.


I first had thought I would use the purple blouse to turn in to a short, soft looking skirt and use the gold sweater basically as a top. I was perplexed with how to use the hot pink. The first item I chose, was now my Achilles. I just wasn’t sure about the jersey knit and how to work that in with the other two fabrics. I contemplated a scarf or long, wide sleeve(s). Yet, I thought this design idea was too simple…an easy way out. Therefore, I went back to the drawing board. I messed around more with the purple blouse and contemplated turning it into a tube style top. I thought maybe the gold sweater could be made into a mini-skirt and possibly the hot pink as a gypsy-style headwrap. I decided to sleep on those ideas last night, but ended up finding inspiration in my dreams and awoke in the middle of the night with new ideas. I envisioned using the hot pink jersey to make a type of harem pants and then the gold sweater as a waist/hip sash. That’s where I’m at so far. Now I’m moving onto the fun stuff, reworking the former garments into my ideas.

Since my last update I have worked on deconstructing all three pieces in order to begin working with them.  I deconstructed the purple blouse and redesigned it into a strapless form-fitting blouse.  I first cut off the arms and cut apart the front from the back.  I sewed in darts on the first piece to make the neckline lay straight across and allow for a fitted bust.  I also cut off the top part of the back piece to match with the strapless front. I then sewed front to back.  I also worked on the harem pant by drawing out a pants pattern following the measurements of my model and allowing for a low gypsy-style inseam.  I then used the pattern to cut out pieces from the hot pink jersey dress fabric.  I sewed the pants together.  I also met with my model to try on the blouse and pant. It was helpful in know how the items would fit and what changes to be made.  I fit the blouse on her so it would be form-fitting and saw how much I would need to take in on the waist of the pants.  I also played around with the bottom hem of the pants and was inspired to taper part of the shin and ankles.  I have yet to work with the fabric from the gold top.  I am planning to use it as a thick and ruched waistband. 

April  5th update
 I have been working with the gold knit top into making it a ruched waistband since my last update.  I have found some difficulty with it and decided it would be too thick and bulky for the waistband.  Due to this predicament, I am trying to come up with a different idea for the waistband or for a way to incorporate the gold piece. I am thinking of doing a thinner waistband with some straps that will hang down.  My other idea is to use the gold knit top’s fabric in order to create a headpiece.  Therefore, I have cut part of the fabric in strips and sewn them, turning them inside out to create thin strips that could hang down from the waist.  I still have part of the ruched waistband I made, which could be used still.  I would like to meet with my model to try things and see how the pieces will lay on her figure.  I am also debating on my purple strapless top in making it a halter top or just strapless. I will hopefully meet with my model in the upcoming days to get underway in finalizing the pieces and see how everything fits together.

April 7th


Since the last update I have met again with my model to try on the harem pants and the strapless top. I have debated and gone back and forth on how to use the gold fabric and what to do for the pants waistband.  In the end I did a bit of a mix of both of my previous ideas: the ruched waistband and the hanging straps.  I made the waistband with one side ruched and the other side opening with the straps connecting the two pieces.  Split personality meets fashion design!  I tried the pants on the model and was pretty pleased with how they fit and looked on her.  The heels made it even better.  I also fit the top again and added a couple more darts to fit her bustline better.  I also used a sleeve from the purple satin blouse and the strap from the gold top to create a gypsy headscarf.  I may or may not use it for the final show, but I feel like it could tie in the outfit and help to give it that exotic funky look.  Overall I feel good for finishing the project.  I feel that I did take some risks with both my fabrics and design (the harem pants), but I feel like it was worth taking.  It was definitely fun to do something different and funky.  I feel that the colors very eye-catching, which could be positive or negative. Yet, I thought they look great on my model and feel that the hair and makeup will tie everything together and create an overall striking look.