CRS Blog 7

Alivia A. Esterly
CRS 231-01
October 31, 2008

Sweatshops

Sweatshops are a very controversial topic for many people. When I think of sweatshops I think of beyond poor working conditions. A small room with hundreds of workers packed in like sardines sewing their lives away in forced and unpaid over time. Rats crawling along the floor and people coming to work coughing and sneezing because they do not want to loose their jobs. Small children who are barely big enough to touch the peddle of the sewing machine being paid $0.02 an hour in order to help their family survive.

The stance that I have taken on sweat shops is most likely similar to what many people other than myself feel. I feel that sweatshops are awful, the employers hardly pay their workers enough to even survive themselves. Many of these workers are attempting to provide for their families and working for $0.02 an hour can in some cases hardly be enough to buy a cup of rice.

Yet on the other end of this argument the people who have these jobs need them to survive. Despite the low wages they are paid the money they receive still allows them to survive. I feel that while the working conditions are horrendous, sweatshops are needed for those people to survive. That is why in th long run I feel that I am pro-sweatshop. While I do want to fix the working conditions of sweatshops both in and out of the United States I feel that right now some people depend on these jobs, despite the current working conditions.

CRS Blog 6

Alivia A. Esterly
CRS 231-01
October 26,2008

Fashion: Art or Usability?

Milan's fashion week is known for not only its world renown designers but for the artistic and in some cases unwearable designs. Looking through many of the designers from Milan's fashion week (such as Versace, Gucci, MaxMara, Dsquared, and Marni) many of the designers clothing seemed wearable. Two designers that I felt stood out above the rest were Versace and MaxMara; both of which had very wearable collections.

Versace's collection was extremely sculpted pieces. He used hearts as an inspiration all throughout his collection and he also incorporated zippers all though out his collection. He did not just use the zippers to fasten and be a closure to his clothing, as is the norm. Versace used zippers as a decorative touch to his clothing to give the pieces their shape as well as form some of the many hearts you see on his clothing through out his collection. He has a very high class feel to this collection and while it shows his clothing as forms of art the pieces we see are also extremely wearable.

MaxMara has a very wearable collection as well. His clothing had a very masculine feel to it. None of the pieces he brought to the runway were extremely form fitting. The clothing had a very professional/business look to them. I saw many blazers, long pencil slacks, and there was even a piece that looked to me like a mechanic's jumpsuit. MaxMara's collection was not very sculpted at all, it was an extremely wearable collection that could easily be worn on a day to day basis in an office setting.

CRS Blog 5

Alivia A. Esterly

CRS 231-01
October 3, 2008

Our Inspiration

Every designer has some form of inspiration, whether it is from a dream they had, a different culture, or even a swatch of fabric they may have come across. Everyone is inspired by different things and in different ways. What one person sees as grotesque and not worth any creative time, someone else may see it as a challenge and use that object or thought and create a ravishing piece of clothing.

For my design my inspiration was simply the thought of a girl in a garden. If I ever picture a girl in a garden I always think if warm pastel colors such as yellows, tans, purples, and greens. And when I imagine these colors I always visualize a lacy appearance. I feel that lace give a garment an extremely classic and elegant look (when used properly, other wise it can over power the actual design of the garment). The green fabric that is on the back of the skirt is sewn into where the center seam would be. It is would be a lose fabric in order to give the skirt a flowing appearance. I chose green as the color for that area to visually represent the natural color of a garden as well a nature in general.

I try to gather as much inspiration as I possibly can day by day. Anything I see or imagine is fair game for creativity and design. Inspiration can come from anywhere and I feel that a good designer can draw inspiration from anything. The thought process may take hours, days, or maybe even weeks but in the end a design will emerge and in some cases these designs can "WOW" the world.