How do you get volume without padding?
Following on from CDG piece, problems with using padding in clothing, and exploring engineered alternatives. Looking at expanding fabric which could then perhaps also be used to wrap a female silhouette around a male body.
I had used stuffing as a means of creating mass in two of my most recent makes, but wasn't happy with the outcome in either case. In the Comme des Garçons piece, while I think it looked ok, I found it too heavy. With the Leigh Bowery inspired piece, I found it too lumpy. I wanted to look into other ways of getting volume. I thought about shapes that have volume without being 'solid' or full, as in the paper decoration above, and wanted to try replicating that effect in fabric.
I had been influenced by the work of Li Hingbo, a Chinese artist who makes incredible paper sculptures by carving recognisable shapes out of honeycombed paper, then stretching them so that they are no longer recognisable. The shapes can then return to their original form. My hope was that I could achieve an effect that was almost the opposite of this - I want the true form to be the stretched version, with the body pushing it outwards.
I first had to research methods of making that same honeycomb construction out of paper, so that I'd have something I could carve a shape out of, once it was on a mannequin.
Using scrap paper, I found that I could get quite a substantial shape by glueing alternating stripes. To get a better idea of the shape this needed to be to become part of a garment, I fixed it to the mannequin.
The thing that becomes immediately obvious is that, as a solid block with straight edges, it stands too far away from the mannequin. As bodies are not perfectly cylindrical, the insides will need to be shaped as well as the outsides. I use a curve measuring tool to get a rough idea of the shape that needs to be removed.
I cut this shape out of the inside of the honeycomb block, and the form can now at least sit snug against the body in most places. I then need to shape the outside. This will obviously need fine tuning later on as the body is not the same shape all the way around.
I cut away enough paper so that the form is not the same shape all the way around. I want a larger area over the hips, but not the stomach, so I grade the form accordingly and it seems to work. I'd like the form to be more fitted on every side, and this means adapting the inside curve of every piece of paper so that it aligns with the body's contours on that particular section of the body.
Designing something with fabric that is perpendicular to the body means I need to devise new ways of measuring the body, as I'm not simply holding a tape measure against it. I instead mark out 12 lines on the mannequin and measure each curve individually. These will then correspond to the appropriate pattern piece.
They are all numbered, which is essential at this stage, as I'll later be using those numbers to match up to the corresponding bodice pieces.
I use paperclips to create the honeycomb effect so that I can take them apart later without damaging them.
I'm pleased with the uniformity that occurs despite every single piece of paper being different. I move onto the bodice. This, in comparison, is quite straightforward. I drape it as one piece, which is later to be broken up into 9 sections that correspond to their numbered segments.
As there are so many seam lines, I managed to get a shoulder dart between the 4th and 5th sections, which creates some nice subtle shaping.
To get the honeycomb effect, the fabric on the bottom section had to be double layered. I decided to make facing sections (see bottom left image in photograph above) from the same pattern pieces and lay these directly underneath. If I were making a real garment I could affix a lining here.
Only the top half of each pattern piece has seam allowances. Originally I'd hoped to seal all the fabric edges by using the University's sonic welder, or perhaps having each piece laser cut, but I think the effect itself works well and fabric finishes will be something I will look into in the future.
Hopefully you can just make out from the pictures above and below how the facing sections come down to meet the surface sections, and are then honeycombed together.
To get an idea of what the whole back of the garment could look like, I mirrored the photograph:
REFLECTIONS
I can see this working well in a tailored garment, like a jacket, or perhaps a dress. I like the idea of the rest of the garment being entirely ordinary, but then these sections breaking up the silhouette and changing everything.
The fabrics used here will make a big difference to the overall effect. The original plan to use wool was largely thought of to avoid fraying issues, but using something even chunkier like felt or wool melton would give a very solid overall look. The only concern is that, in using a heavier weight fabric, I'd have to consider the upper part of the bodice, as that has 16 vertical seams on the back panel alone.
I'd be interested to see if it still held up in something light like chiffon, or organza. I suspect it might, as it gets pulled from two sides simultaneously, causing it to stand up. Spray starch could be used to stiffen it, and perhaps even the act of heat sealing the edges might give it more substance. I'd like to see what this structure would look like against the light, or possibly even backlit.
Taking into account that the structure is two layers (the top layer which forms part of the bodice as well, and the facing layer, which you only see the bottom part of) there is scope to use two different fabrics, or the same fabric in two colour ways. I think using a transparent PVC in two different colours (one on top, one below) could be really exciting.
I feel there are a lot of places I could take the technique I developed, as really the shapes I am making can be any shape - they don't have to be curved, or applied to the whole body. I also feel this is a very strong alternative to using padding, as it is very lightweight but also visually appealing.
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