The Creative Experience: Very cool to be sewing my own designs

As I am moving through the fashion design program at the Academy of Arts University, I get to test out my design ideas. Researching and exploring a design idea is one thing; having to sew the garment is another. There are many designers who focus on the new ideas while they may not be able to execute the innovation. I am working to leverage my ideas with my technical skills. 
 
The photos below demonstrate the process. The sketch is for a collection inspired by futuristic architecture and the idea of a woman of the future. The look includes a cropped vest, a tank top, and a skirt. Once the  illustration is complete and the design idea solidified, I create a technical drawing called a flat. The purpose of this flat is to inform the sewer about how the garment is constructed and where the seams and darts go. 

I made a pattern based on my flats and sewed a sample. And this is where the fun starts – ideas turn out to be not that interesting or where I find a fabric treatment on paper may not actually be constructed in real life. There is a lot of back-and-forth – the pattern is corrected, flats are updated, sample is sewn again … 

But, in the end, there is just fun and joy of being able to create something that did not exist, of being able to turn an idea into a garment.