Evaluation

Evaluation

The theme of my individual project was firstly to produce an interactive website, through which, users could view different fashions from the 1920’s to the present day. My initial thoughts and ideas were to create an interactive space where users could click through a timeline of different eras, each one showing a collage of representative fashions and music from that particular decade.

To start my project off, I researched fashions and styles of each decade, and posted them on my blog. I looked through images online, blogs and magazines and noted down similar fashion styles for each. This was to help me to produce a legitimate representation of each decade. The further I researched, I realised how much work there was to be done and that I may have chosen a project which was too demanding, it was rich in content and needed in depth knowledge of HMTL and CSS, far more than a normal or more simplistic website. I also think my idea lacked a clear vision, because there war far too many areas in which I had to learn new skills and acquire information from.

I decided after much thought that I would simplify my website, as it would be better to put more effort and time into something smaller, than lack in a larger website. My idea was now to create a photography website dedicated to the Mod fashion of the 1960’s. This was easier for me because I already had background knowledge of Mod culture, fashions and styles, as I am particulary interested in this area of fashion. I researched more online and also spoke to my parents for inspiration as they participated and grew up in the Mod revival in the 1980’s. I thought it would be easier to speak to someone who had actually lived through that style.

In order to successfully create my website, I decided to teach myself the basics of Dreamweaver by reading The Adobe Classroom in a Book. This was so I could get the most out of Dreamweaver and connect it with my website ideas. Once I had learnt the basic information to get started, I soon picked up the more I used Dreamweaver. In my head this website idea was far clearer than the previous one, which gave me much more direction and I could plan things a lot easier.

Unfortunately due to changes within my website I was unable to stick to my original timeline, but this was to be expected as I had changed the complete direction of the site. Once I had re evaluated what I was going to produce, I began the making of the website, firstly by taking photographs and secondly by producing the HTML and CSS side of the site.

In the future, I would like to have a more focussed idea from the start, so I do not have to keep changing ideas and therefore messing timings around. It is always crucial in large projects like this to make sure you use the time you are given wisely, and that is one thing I will be taking into account in my next project.

Mod Culture - 1960's

I have gathered some representative images of Mod culture, from the 1960's and some modern day versions of this style.
This will initially help me to create a legitimate website of that particular time and era.

Twiggy - often seen as a prolific Mod inspiration.

Spots, stripes and black and white.

Mod women and men differed in styles.

Scooters played a huge part in being a Mod.

The Mod logo, often linked to the band The Who

Quadrophenia, a famous film representing young British Mods.

A modern day representation of Mod fashions.

Update and changes

Due to my website being very difficult to plan and make, I have decided to change the style to which it is based. I have now decided to focus on only Mod fashions from the 1950s and 1960's. The websites main focus will be a gallery of images of different Mod fashions from those particular era's.

It was too difficult to cover all the era's that I had wanted to, so I feel now that I have scaled down my website, it will look and be alot easier to manage.

Research - Fashion through the years 1920-1950

This particular blog post is going to feature the research I have been doing in regards to fashion over the years. My website will focus on fashion styles throughout the era's of 1920-present, so it is crucial that I choose correctly and research well.

1920's

• Glitz 
• Glamour
• Formalilty

Unfitting, long dresses dominate.

Actually an American image but similar styles to Britain. Tuxedo-like suit vs a lace dress.

Pointed court shoe with Mary Jane strap.

Loose fitting fur and generous fabrics.

Glitz and glamour defined with pearls, feathers, boas and sparkle.

Crystals are often seen especially in evening wear.

1930's

• More simplistic styles
• Durable fabrics
• Elegance

Simple coats with fur around the neckline give elegance but simplicity.

Clothes were made to suit to family woman.

Structure and fitting was now more a part of the 1930's style.

Long dresses were still worn, but with less glamour than before.

Good Housekeeping magazine show a detailed reference of 1930's clothing styles.

Small details like frills and bows replace pearls, crystals and fur.

1940's

Fitted waists show off the figure of a woman.

Heavy fabrics were used for durability and wear.

The Tea Dress.

Brogue, Mary Janes, Court and Block heeled shoes in fashion.

The Pleated skirt.

 1950's

A more relaxed approach to being a woman, jeans and checkered shirt.

American/ British approach to gangs, often with their own unique styles.

The Circle Skirt proved very popular. 

The Circle Skirt, small waists and fitted clothing.

The Circle Skirt.

Decade Promenade - The Idea and Proposal

Proposal                                                     Jessica Derges K1207361

I propose to design and make a fashion based website, which runs through eras and decades, in particular the decades from 1920’s to the present day. The website will provide a guide to the most popular fashions of each era, whilst complimented with accompanying music, of the decade it represents.

Site purpose

The site’s main purpose is to be informative and creative. It will be educational in its aim to provide a walkthrough of fashion through the decades leading up to now. It also provides a history of music alongside the fashion. It will be creative in the way it provokes art within its content. I am going to attempt to hand draw fashion icons which will create an artistic take on fashion through the years.

Site inspiration/motivation

I was inspired to make a fashion style website whilst I was looking at other fashion sites, namely fashion blogs and e-commerce sites such as Topshop, Forever 21 and Boohoo.com. I decided it would be a good idea to produce a concise documentary of the history of fashion, but in an artistic manner. I then thought I could produce something fluid, which took the audience through a timeline of the history, and this could also incorporate the history of music development and changes to match the fashion. I decided on these two different aspects because I am particularly passionate about both of them, and feel I already have the knowledge behind both music and fashion over the years to successfully create my website.

Target audience/suitability

My target audience is going to be primarily females aged between 18-25. This is because I feel that a female would be more inclined to visit not only a fashion based website, but also a conceptual one. I have decided to only do female fashion through the years as this will suit a more specific target audience than choosing both male and female models. I have chosen the age group of 18-25 as I feel these are the people who are particulary interested in vintage fashion and fashion in general. More and more people are purchasing old, vintage clothes from charity shops, high street stores and markets, therefore it would be good to educate these people on the styles and fashions they are sporting, and where they derived from, making it a suitable website concept for its audience.

General website content

My website is going to be content-rich as I wish to use lots of different forms of multimedia to create it. Firstly I will be creating different doll/mannequin figures which represent the era of fashion I want to portray.

This will be set in a timeline fashion, moving through the decades from the 1920’s to the present day. Participants in the website will be able to travel through the website using arrows and directions, learning as they go about the fashion of that particular decade, through images that have been hand drawn.

Music will also accompany the fashion mannequins, giving the participant a real feel of the time that I am portraying.

Project Timeline:

Week 1: Designing and creating mood boards, updating my blog with research on the fashion era’s of the 1920’s through to the present day. I will be researching each era and the poignant fashions in each one.

Week 2: Producing a mannequin design for each decade, which is hand-drawn. Research existing websites for design ideas and layouts.

Week 3: Intricate layout design of the website, how it will work and the technicalities behind making the website. Researching Java, HTML and CSS.

Week 4: Researching and selecting music for each decade. Researching how to add this to a website.

Week 5: Website making begins.

Multi Media Productions - Proposal Final

Website Concept

I have started to produce some ideas for my individual website. Here are some of the concepts I have come up with;

• Fashion based website in a timeline design.
• Creative/conceptual experience. Users will go through the timeline of fashion, seeking different decades, era's and trends.
• The decades will range from the 1920's through to 2013.
• Suitable music will be added to continue the theme of each decade/era.
• "Walkthrough" experience, allowing the users to feel like they are within the website.

Week 1: Classroom In A Book

I have decided to use the book: Adobe Dreamweaver CS4: Classroom in a Book to enhance my skills on Dreamweaver further, thus enabling me to produce a website of the highest standards I can reach. I will be posting some of the digital workshops here as a taster of the ideas and concepts I have been learning.