This year’s DRESSED was the most epic yet! Each team continually out-does itself every year, but this year’s raw talent, ingenuity and cultural appreciation was next-level. The theme: colour in (e) motion. Each team selected an emotion and a verb along with a color, and was tasked with designing an original garment in that them using materials sourced from industry manufacturers. Our theme: Feisty Dance with a purple color palate.
The passionate energy of Latin Dance immediately came to mind.
The inspiration:
We got to work sketching and pulling materials, emphasizing a strong shoulder line, a feminine silhouette, bold ruffles, a dramatic train and playful accessories. In order to make a gradient that moves down the dress, we used several different shades of purple fabrics as well as several different textures in our garment that come together to create a multidimensional dance that will catch your eye as it highlights her feisty nature. Pulling inspiration from traditional Flamenco and Tango dresses, the shape of the dress accentuates the femininity found in these traditional dances. When our dancer flowed across the stage, the design of the dress extenuated her elegant but precise movements.
As important as the main body of the dress, the details created using the carpet yarn, metallic carpet backing, and vinyl flooring allow this feisty dancer to sparkle in the spotlight. Channeling the strength of a bullfighter, the vinyl upper-body armor will protect her while the shimmer of the carpet yarn and metallic carpet backing embroidery and tassels lure you in closer like a muleta does to the bull. The continued use of the carpet yarn and metallic backing embroidery further enhances the femininity of the dancer.
Progress:
The result:
Our very own Amanda Gertsen ended up as our model, and she nailed it! At the end of the night, we took home the People’s Choice Award, which was a huge honor.
Special thanks to our incredible reps, Patcraft, Kimball Office and Arc|Com- we wouldn’t have been able to pull this off without you!
Until next year…
