Paris-inspired dress
Leisha Calder
Takapuna Grammar School
Year 11 Soft Materials Technology, whole-year project
Teacher: Deborah Woodward
When asked to choose a country as the theme for her project, Leisha decided on France. She had lived there for a year and was enthusiastic about Paris and all the top fashion designed there. Leisha researched the city and famous French designers associated with it, and says she was inspired by different aspects of their styles. She designed a garment to suit a fashionable Parisian that could be worn as an informal outfit in the day or, with the addition of a removable bustle, for a more glamorous look at night.
After settling on her final design, Leisha looked through fabric shops to find suitable materials. She originally planned to make the dress in a soft merino fabric but found that 100% merino was too thin to hold the desired shape well. She then tested six different fabric samples, handling and sewing them, before deciding to use a black merino backed with nylon.
Leisha chose a curtain taffeta for the bustle because it held the shape better than cotton or other dress materials. The bustle was lined with the same fabric in different colours – she had initially planned to use a striped fabric for this but, after making some mock pleats, decided that plain fabric worked better. Leisha says she is pleased with the taffeta and that it looks striking because, as a shot fabric, it reflects the light differently as it moves.
Leisha bought a commercial pattern for the dress, which she adapted by combining it with another pattern. She drafted the bustle pattern herself and, although she hadn't done pattern drafting before, found it quite straight-forward. She made a toile for the bustle and says that the hardest part was making accurate pleats and that sewing them on the thick strap was "quite a mission". Her design had incorporated a two-layered bustle, but when she modelled that it was just too big on the sides and spoiled the look of the outfit.
Although it wasn't in her original brief, Leisha also made a beret, which she thought would give the outfit the ultimate French look. She made up the pattern herself and used the same material as the dress, with the taffeta used in the bustle as the lining.
Leisha has had lots of positive comments about her outfit, with people saying they like the chic look and the versatility. The dress was selected for entry in the school fashion parade, where she says it looked very effective on the model. Leisha has enjoyed Technology since Year 9 and plans to take it again in Year 12.
Leisha was awarded Excellence when her Technology work was assessed for NCEA.
HOD comment
Leisha's work looked stunning on the catwalk and had a new take on what France was to her. She took that sophistication of the French dress but pared it down to a minimum, using that wonderful detailing, the shot of colour on the underskirt, and using haute couture to create those box pleats. It was just such an innovative way to use the material and to create a point of difference.
