Meet the GFF 2020 Childrenswear Award Nominees
The nominees for the GFF Childrenswear award have been set the task of designing a childrenswear collection of twelve pieces or six outfits for babies or children up to the age of 8. Meet the nominees below!
Alice Ellard, Coventry University
The main focus of my collection is kids’ outerwear being waterproof, versatile and fun. The collection includes matching dog wear for your child’s favourite friend. Well-made and practical garments that make your little ones look cuter than ever. My collection was inspired by my love of animals and nding a way to combine my degree with this. With dog clothing being such a massive trend, it seemed the perfect idea for a nal childrenswear collection. Finding inspiration from H&M and Canada Pooch, I could create informed designs with matching dog-wear. I have used the ‘waterproof’ fabrics for the outerwear and sourced bright coloured plastics to create many aspects of the collection. The nal outcome is a waterproof and colourful childrenswear collection perfect for rainy day outs with the whole family – dogs included.
Anna Cook, Northumbria University
The Modify Junior collection is hugely inspired by historical pieces from the 19th century. Traditional techniques such as hand smocking have been used for hundred of years and have long been associated with babies and toddlers. This collection breathes new life into this historical technique to create a classic and contemporary collection for children ages 6-7. The natural and beautiful patterns inside igneous and sedimentary rocks inspired the collection colour palette and geode print. The soft lines and layered formations within these rocks remind me of the classic Missoni print which are a constant source of inspiration and are never out of fashion.
Annabel Spencer, Liverpool John Moores University
My collection represents the challenges faced by gender stereotypes placed upon childrenswear. Children have been placed in a position where there are stereotypes in either the “girl” or “boy” category and clothing in shops further demonstrates stereotypes by labeling “girl” and “boy” on clothing. By creating this collection I have set out to challenge these modern day stereotypes, e.g neutral colour scheme to fit both genders, frilled details and silhouette of garments. Why is it abnormal for boys to wear a dress? Why is it unheard of for a boy to wear frilly details? Victorian clothing provides great inspiration for this project as clothing for boys would typically be flamboyant, whilst pink colkoured clothing would also be a popular choice for boys. Furthermore, young girls should be able to dress in a simplified style- they don’t have to be “pretty in pink”
Charlie Watts, Cardiff School of Art & Design
Children all across the world are different but the one thing they have in common is their minds. The ability to create a crazy adventure from nowhere, but there are some children who are living these adventures. Hiking through mountains and chasing the wild children all live different livelihoods but that doesn’t affect the adventures.
Chloe Bean, Manchester Metropolitan University
There is no end to children’s imagination, from building dens and exploring the wildlife in the garden, to dreaming of being the next David Attenborough or Bear Grylls. This collection is aimed at young boys who are adventurous and love the outdoors. ‘Jungle Trekking’ allows children to experience their own safari adventures with friends, and let their imagination go WILD!
Focusing on ‘a Vintage Safari’, inspiration has been taken from classic safari garments in addition to recent trends. The target market is 4-8 year old boys, so the collection consists of easy to wear styles, ranging from lightweight jackets and printed shirts, through to matching sets and statement accessories. Khakis and neutrals make up the colour palette contrasting against pops of bright colours inspired by the catwalks. Colour blocking and natural textures are used, alongside bold stripes and all-over prints. Jungle elements are mixed throughout the collection, updating the classic camo print, experimenting with scale and layering with simple animal prints.
Emmy Eves, Nottingham Trent University
My project reflects British sea side holidays, combining humorous aspects, influenced through Martin Parr’s ‘Last Resort’ and ‘Life’s a Beach’ photography. I took this forward and combined it with vibrant, fun print designs taken from the bold optimistic colours of the beach piers and key motifs that we associate with the British seaside. My project also reflects a personal, nostalgic angle, by looking at primary photographs of the British coast of Clacton (where my grandparents lived), in 1980 to present day, as well as Yarmouth and Devon in the 1960s and exploring different eras of beach wear.
With the current global situation, I have found that British people are appreciating the country we live in and British holidays are now becoming appealing. Due to my collection highlighting the positivity of British adventures, it has become a collection that can be worn to burst out all the positive energy children are going to need when moving forward.
Georgia Lewandowski, Coventry University
Kidswear by Kids and Me is a fashion project that explores the use of co-design with children. In my project, co-design is defined as a process of design and development that includes stakeholders such as businesses or customers during the creative stages to ensure the results meet the needs of the customer. This co-design collection intends to enhance the consumer’s experience in the marketplace by providing a more appealing active sector for children.
Rebecca Skinner, Arts University Bournemouth
The Apple Strudel collection creates a child’s narrative across the ski world. The project was inspired by my own collections of family ski holidasy memorabilia, alongside a love of the mountains. Not only are my own experiences a main inspiration, but retro skiwear remains a constant reference throughout this collection. Modern day influences came from long standing winterwear brands such as Moncler, which became significant within research throughout the design process.
Sarah Leatherland, Northumbria University
This genderless childrenswear collection aims to display the irony of children wanting to dress up as adults whilst longing to“ grow up” too quickly. throughout my own childhood,i would always ask to wear my mum’s shoes or dresses and to play grown-ups. i would dance around the living room imagining life as an adult. We all wish we could go back to endlessly playing outside with nothing to worry about. The collection will be textural, fun and oversized, while still being appropriate for children. As well as being inspired by “ dad’s jeans” and “mum’s dresses”, Japanese streetwear also motivated this collection, inspiring colour choice and silhouette.
Shannon Machin, Manchester Metropolitan University
My gender-neutral childrenswear project has been highly inspired by classic jersey street-wear which is trending on the high street. I have added an element of oversizing to my collection as I believe that the youth of today are growing up in a society where there is a vast amount of body shaming on others which is caused through social media and celebrity influencers. oversized clothing is recently a huge trend and I believe that it can make younger people feel more comfortable and cool in what they are wearing. children grow up so quickly resulting in a vast amount of clothing waste.
Oversized clothing increases the longevity of the garment as the child will have more time to grow into them, this is a sustainable element in my collection. As my collection is based around classic jersey garments, I wanted to make graphics a key focus point. Using Salvador Dali's artwork as inspiration, I created artworks based on modern-day celebrities, who have a huge influence on children of today, and illustrated them in a surreal way to create unique graphics which contributes to a celebrity endorsement. The surrealist graphics also portray the imagination of the youth.