Fashion Design Commons^™

An Exploration Of The Black Female Cosplay Experience, Geneisa B. Ragin, Geneisa Ragin

Honors College Theses

Cosplay is the practice of dressing up as a fictional character whether it's from a television show, video games, or even a book series. Many people participate in cosplay to show their dedication or admiration for their favorite character and sometimes cosplay a character that helps reflect their own character or personality. This thesis will mainly focus on the experience of being a Black female cosplayer in pop culture, social media, conventions, and other places where people can share and communicate. In this thesis’s research, participants' answers about their experiences were centered around their inspiration to start cosplaying, their ways …

You Need This: Global Fast Fashion, Environment, And Consumption Culture, Alexandra Lamm

Student Work

In looking at how global production of clothing has increased and shifted, we see the impacts in places like workers rights, environmental issues and cultural consumption. Although vastly different, through examination we will see how all are intrinsically linked. We have reached a truly global economy, and even when threatened with negative consequences of mass consumption in our daily lives, the road to actual change in the fashion industry becomes harder in time due to our dependency on the industry as a whole.

Vivienne Westwood And The Socio-Political Nature Of Punk, Ashley Rosato

Honors College Theses

Punk fashion, which helped define the punk movement in the 1970s, has been ever changing as it adapts to modern times. Before it was the watered-down, mainstream mass-produced aesthetic that it is today, punk style was full of counterculture meaning and signs that communicated counter-hegemonic ideologies to the public. Vivienne Westwood, one of the contributors to early punk culture and the mother of British punk style, designed clothing that was central to the ethos of the early punk movement. Through a semiotic analysis of five of Westwood’s designs from the 1970s, this study aims to demonstrate how Westwood’s early punk …

Creating A 1940s Costume: A Historical Investigation, Jennifer Mott

The Confluence

The purpose of this Art History research investigation was to create a costume from the 1940s by immersing myself in a time period when people often made their own clothing. This was done to better understand what it means to have a personal connection to the items I wear. Our experiences as consumers in the twenty-first century are vastly different than those belonging to the people that lived during the mid-twentieth century because almost all of our clothing is purchased from corporations and created by people that we will likely never meet. For this investigative study, I shopped for and …

Sustainable Fashion Design Exploration: Transformation To Zero-Wash, Colleen Moretz

Sustainable Fashion Design Exploration

Sustainability has been at the center of my scholarship across the apparel and textile disciplines. Focusing my creative design scholarship on sustainability generates awareness of sustainable issues within the apparel industry to hopefully encourage change in fashion practices. This concentration on sustainability has been an evolution of investigating sustainable design processes through the exploration of transformation, aesthetics, zero waste, and up-cycling.

Creating Adaptive Face Masks With Clear Inserts To Aid People With Hearing Loss, Blare Offenbacker

Apparel Merchandising and Product Development Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to create adaptive face masks with clear inserts to aid individuals with hearing loss. In early 2020, when the world went into lockdown and quarantine, guidelines were set by the Center of Disease Control (CDC) on how to protect yourself from Covid-19. Covid-19 is also known as SARS-CoV-2, which is severe acute respiratory syndrome corona virus 2. The main protection against Covid-19 at the beginning of the pandemic was the use of face masks that covered the nose and mouth. This has been a continued recommendation for protection against Covid-19 with the different variants …

Superficial: An Exploration Of Decoration, Fashion, Taste, Camp, And Trends, Jillian Ohl

MFA in Illustration & Visual Culture

Since the rise of consumer culture in the late 19th century, Americans have had a complicated relationship with decorative objects, the idea of taste, and the cycle of trends within our classist society. This essay examines some of the decorative objects in my childhood home such as patterned wallpaper and an antique chair as well as a contemporary brand name mascara. While these objects do not have major functional properties, their decoration and superficiality bring me joy. To better understand my appreciation of decoration and aesthetics, I assess how an object or fashion is considered in good or bad taste. …

Taylor, Carrie (Burnam), 1855-1917 (Sc 3639), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

MSS Finding Aids

Finding aid and scan (Click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 3639. Postcard advertising the spring opening, 10 February 1915, of the Mrs. A. H. Taylor Company, Bowling Green, Kentucky, inviting patrons to inspect fabrics and designs and offering samples by mail.

Cultural Formation Of Place: Making Yourself At Home, Olivia Arratia

Art Theses and Dissertations

The environment you grow up in can become a pivotal part of your existence. The sights, smells, people, and places you experience every day can transform the way you see the world. Growing up in a Mexican-American household has brought its own set of experiences that have made me the artist I am today. I am one of many contemporary artists building on the foundations of their heritage and the Chicano movement. I am also a Mexican-American artist expanding the identity and extending the legacy in the 21st century. This paper will investigate how Mexican-American heritage has influenced my artistic …

Faux: An Overview Of Animal Exploitation In The Fashion Industry, Karol Christian S. Moralde

DLSU Senior High School Research Congress

The use of animals in clothing is a practice that has always been part of human civilization. Although originally used as a way to warm and clothe bodies, animal products, such as fur, leather, and feather, have transcended their original practical purposes and have become both a status symbol and an integral aesthetic code in fashion. The prominent use of animal products in fashion has not only led to the violation of animal rights but has also directly contributed to the damage to our environments and the well-being of workers. Under a capitalistic system, the commodification of animals, the environment, …

Alpas: Fast Fashion As A Means To Promote Gender Equality To Filipino Young Adults, Mariella Isabelle D. Balaoro

DLSU Senior High School Research Congress

Alpas is a clothing collection that promotes the Filipino identity in genderless clothing in the fast fashion industry. The researcher hopes to use fashion to eliminate inequalities between men and women in the Philippines. The Philippines is recognized for being conservative and traditional, which factors to current gender inequalities. Those who defy fashion conventions are humiliated and harassed. This motivated the researcher to make an innovation in fashion. This collection is a fusion of modern and traditional clothing that may be worn casually outdoors. Because of its affordability and style, fast fashion is the most accessible to the majority of …

Skins+Fabrications: Addressing Fashion And Clothing Waste, Renee Palmer

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Articles of clothing; they are the second organ, the Second Skin. Their functions are to protect the body from the harsh external elements and create a sense of design with Fashion—the same as exterior facades on a building. However, where architecture and Fashion differ is sustainability.

The Global fashion industry contributes 10% of greenhouse emissions. From that 10%, about 13 million tonnes of clothing waste ends up in landfills or burned. Most of the waste comes from the Fast Fashion Industry, which sees cheap labor from underdeveloped countries to maximize profits. These companies will spend a good portion of their …

Exploring Women’S Sizing Chart: A View Into Psychosizing, Patience Billingsley

Apparel Merchandising and Product Development Undergraduate Honors Theses

The apparel industry lacks a universal sizing system and has created tactics to group consumers under a few generic sizes. The inconsistency in sizing has led to a struggle of consumers trying to find pieces of clothing that are not only their size but fit their measurements as well. An analysis of the sizing charts of 5 different women’s clothing private labels ranging from sizes 0-16 within two major department stores was assessed. The sizing charts within each individual store were evaluated, and then compared to one another. After calculating the sizing differences, an average of both store A and …

Apparel Students' Perception Of Denim Quality In Relation To Price And Brand, Karli Haws

Apparel Merchandising and Product Development Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to evaluate apparel students’ perception of quality in denim jeans based on the influences of price and brand. The following research objectives were developed:

1. To determine if apparel students’ perceptions of garment quality are affected by price and brand.

2. To determine how apparel students perceive quality in a garment.

3. To determine if price and brand are indicators of quality to apparel students.

The Effects Of Price And Brand On The Perceived Quality Of Ladies Leggings Between Competitive Retailers, Olivia Thornton

Apparel Merchandising and Product Development Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to determine if brand or price affects the quality perception of the consumer. The research examined what consumers look for when evaluating quality of a garment. Previous studies have shown that consumer expectations of quality in a garment is inconclusive. Research objectives that guided the study were:

- Does brand contribute to the consumers perception of quality?

- Does price contribute to the consumers perception of quality?

This study is a quantitative study using a digital survey and questionnaire looking into fabric, construction, and aesthetics of the leggings. This study involved human subjects; therefore, …

Justification For An Apparel-Based Sustainability Course At The University Of Arkansas, Sydney Taylor

Apparel Merchandising and Product Development Undergraduate Honors Theses

The University of Arkansas' Apparel Merchandising and Product Development program does not currently offer a course on sustainability in the apparel and textile sector. Due to a lack of sustainability information, students may not have a thorough understanding of their degree. If students had the opportunity to learn about current sustainability-related topics before entering the workforce, they would have a new perspective and a deeper understanding of the industry, allowing them to potentially make good change.

By elaborating on the need for an apparel-based sustainability course to be offered at the University of Arkansas in the Apparel Merchandising and Product …

The Death Of Print Magazines In Fashion: The Fight To Stay Relevant During The Digital Era And A Look At The Future Of Fashion Print Magazines, Mary Shannon Donnelly

Honors College Theses

We have found ourselves in a digital era. For the past ten years, the public’s Internet usage per day has skyrocketed across all age groups, which in turn, has had an effect on the print industry (e.g. books, magazines, newspapers). As technology has progressed, many have turned to online magazines and journals to receive their fashion news. Given this rapid advance in digital technology, in my honors thesis, I plan to focus on the effect of digital media on print, specifically in the context of fashion magazines. Specifically, I will explore the history of the fashion magazine, its efforts to …

The Met Costume Institute: Evolution, Metamorphosis, And Cultural Phenomenon, Shelby Kanski

Senior Honors Projects

No abstract provided.

Methods In Costume And Projection Design For Theatre, Jessica Wallace

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports

A report detailing multiple practices for theatre design in costumes and projection. It is focused on playscript analysis, the design process, and the final build of the design for production.

The Architecture Of Clothing: Notions Of Public And Private Space, Savannah Orsak

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Space, as defined as a three dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction, is conversely bound through clothing, architecture, and other margins that organize humanhood for everyday purpose. Continually, clothing imposes and extends itself into everyday experiences and dictates notions of interaction between both people and objects. In this written body of work, my intention is to explore public and private spatial influences within clothing and the ways in which these influences can be curated to reflect and evoke notions of interaction and identity. Following three related studies on space, form, and curation, a survey …

Sewing And Dressmaking In Martha Mcmillan's Day (1891), Elizabeth G. Allen

Martha McMillan Research Papers

This paper describes the process of sewing and dressmaking in America from the mid 1800s to the early 1900s and provides historical context for Martha McMillan's discussion of sewing and dressmaking in her 1891 journal.

Addressing The Lack Of Availability In Diverse Skin Tone Options For Performance Wear, Jessica Batey

GS4 Georgia Southern Student Scholarship Symposium

The following research addresses the lack of availability in diverse skin tone options for performance fabric. The project will discuss the struggles people of color face when finding fabrics that accurately match their skin tone and the difficulties in sourcing the materials needed to successfully design a garment. The research gathered will be used to produce a collection of 4 looks using nude mesh fabrics that are readily available to the average consumer. The garments within the collection will be designed to match the skin color of 4 models. The collection’s theme will be based around the 4 cardinal witches …

Fashsim Lab: Learning About Cotton From Field To Virtual Fashion, Kelly Cobb, Angela Beckett

Frameless

The global pandemic is clearly illuminating the value and even necessity of online education and remote learning for students around the world (IIIE, 2020.) Virtual modules engage students, substituting valuable learning experiences that are not possible to recreate due to constraints on time and/or materials, or physical meeting ability, demonstrated by the pivot due to COVID. In the virtual lab, students are able to work together, applying course concepts to new situations and contexts, as well as develop data analysis skills. Common in the sciences, this novel concept embeds state-of-the art learning into the textile and apparel curriculum. In the …

Renaissance Fashion Of England And Italy, Alexis Litteken

2022 Student Academic Showcase

This research project is aimed at exploring the popular fashion and beauty styles of Renaissance-era England and Italy, two nations that held immense power both politically and socially during the period. Examining the influences behind contemporary trends of the Renaissance can aid in the understanding of what people were like, allowing a look into beliefs, activities, or messages a person might convey through their clothing. From the Medici family to a more middle-class family, this project will explore how a nation’s fashion can speak to more than just current style, but to the ideological, political, and societal movements being experienced.

New Nobility: A Deeper Look At Inspiration, Kristine Johnson

Liberty University Research Week

Undergraduate

Creative and Artistic

“Any Lady Can Now Learn To Cut Perfect Fitting Dresses”: The Role Of Pattern Drafting Systems In The Production Of Women’S Dress, 1880–1900, Alyssa Smith

Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design: Dissertations, Theses, & Student Research

This research conveys findings from my MA thesis research focused on pattern drafting systems for women’s garments developed between 1880 and 1900. The study builds on the seminal work of Claudia Kidwell, who divided these systems into three categories: proportional, hybrid, and direct measure. To date, the study of this textile technology and how it positioned women and sewing in both domestic and professional spheres has received little scholarly attention, but pattern drafting technology transformed the possibilities for pattern creation and proportionate measurements, especially for home sewers. It also aided in the paper pattern and ready-made clothing industries. This research, …

The Making Of Everyday Hollywood: 1930s Film Influence On Everyday Women’S Fashion In Nebraska, Anna Naomi Kuhlman

Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design: Dissertations, Theses, & Student Research

This research examines the influence of film fashions on middle-class, Nebraskan women’s dress during the Great Depression (1932-1940). The Great Depression challenged the middle class: while standards of living remained high, the economic means to achieve those standards diminished. Despite the crisis, women strove to keep up with current fashion trends. While previous literature has examined how Hollywood directly affected trends and styles of the 1930s in major American metropolitan contexts, the manifestation of trends in the dress of middle to lower socio-economic classes in Middle America remains under-examined. Against the backdrop of Depression-era hardships specific to Nebraska’s agricultural economy, …

Uprising, Issue 13 [Spring 2022], University Of Northern Iowa. Northern Iowa Student Government.

Uprising

Contents

Our Undeniable Deception --- 9
The Last Straw --- 10
The Cost of Sustainability --- 18
Clean Slate --- 20
Feet in the Grass --- 24
Birth Flowers --- 26
Bloom --- 28
The Grass is Greener Where You Water It --- 32
Apartment Sized Gardens --- 36
Putting Ability into Sustainability --- 38
This or That --- 40
Sustainability for All Sizes --- 42
Stable Ground --- 44
Perpetuating Harmful Trends --- 50
Her Unconditional Love --- 53

An Inquiry Into Gradable Zero-Waste Apparel Design, Melanie Carrico, Sheri Dragoo, Ellen Mckinney, Casey Stannard, Colleen Moretz, Ashley Rougeaux-Burnes

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

he implementation of standardized grading production practices within the mass market has been challenging for scholars experimenting with zero-waste apparel design. The purpose of this research was to test the efficacy of the Carrico Zero-waste Banded Grading (CZWBG) technique, which utilizes bands inserted in strategic locations as a method of grading zero-waste patterns across various consumer categories. An additional purpose was to evaluate the ways in which this grading approach affected the aesthetic outcomes of garments across a size run, and to determine whether this method affected the overall design process of the designers involved. Through experimental research design, six …

Fashioning The Flapper: Clothing As A Catalyst For Social Change In 1920s America, Julia Wolffe

Honors Program Theses

Fashion has been a catalyst for social change throughout human history. Fashion in 1920s America in particular reflects society's rapidly evolving attitudes towards gender and race. Beginning with how corsetry heavily restricted women for nearly four hundred years up until the twentieth century, this thesis explores how clothing has acted as a tool for societal progression following World War I and Women's Suffrage and during the Jazz Age and The Harlem Renaissance. Specifically, this thesis examines how the influence of jazz music and dance that originated from Black American communities led to the creation of the flapper evening dress. The …