line development
essence
the ask
Create an inclusive-sized denim-based clothing line in collaboration with Cotton Incorporated.
the process : inspiration + concept
To start the process, we had to conduct market research. Considering the fact that we were creating an inclusive-sizing brand, we had to understand what the current market offerings were and what we could make better. This research told us that there was a lack of trendy brands that encouraged plus-size women to embrace their natural selves in a way that traditional, straight-sizing brands were. This inspired our idea of Essence.
This concept was based on the popular lifestyle movement that emerged following the pandemic as human seek to connect back to the earth, to rebalance. An energetic and earthy collection speaks to comfort as well as an homage to craft.
sketches
The intention of this course was to create a collaborative project for fashion merchandising and design students to create a clothing line. My group, however, was the only one without a designer. That meant that I had to learn the process from the designer perspective on the fly. As a team, we each created our own designs to ensure we were able making our ideas seen and then I took the final sketches and cleaned them up digitally, using software like Procreate and Adobe Illustrator. These sketches were presented to our critic and cut down to 8 final looks.
FINAL SKETCHES
MARKETING + BRANDING
To complete the merchandising aspect of the project, we had to consider the launch party, store design, website design, and marketing activities for our brand. As a large team, we were able to divide this portion up to best suit our individual strengths.
