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| Christopher Collins American Fashion Designer |
Christopher Collins – After Project Runway
September
is the month we think of fashion. Nearly
every fashion magazine is bulging with inspiration and the latest in
color, fabrics and fashions. This past weekend I had the
opportunity to hear from Christopher Collins, California fashion designer and
celebrity who participated in Project Runway, Season 8. He was charming, knowledgable and shared so much with our group.
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| Christopher Collins, in gray vest and jeans, contestant on Project Runway Season 8 |
It was a Saturday morning, Christopher
Collins was the guest lecture at the Haute Couture Society meeting in
Stockton CA. This nonprofit organization
is designed to celebrate the creative arts, design, and fashion. Christopher
gave a power point presentation showing his upcoming fall line and his
philosophy around design. He also took
us on a look back at his experience with Project Runway Season 8 where he was a
contestant.
They came the "eye candy" He showed his power point with pictures from his Fall line of clothering:
Prior to national
recognition as a Season 8 Project Runway contestant, Christopher Collins was
already gaining recognition as an emerging designer that multiple publications
noted as “someone to watch.” As a Gen Art honoree and a "Resident
Talent" for Lucky Magazine, Christopher Collins is an unstoppable force in
fashion. Made in California his designs are created with European and Japanese
textiles, each garment demonstrates quality, luxury, high fashion and
femininity with great fit too. He is also a popular instructor at the Fashion
Institute of Design and Merchandising in San Francisco (FIDM).
Christopher
shared his thoughts on design with our group:
“Look at an object and not what it is literally but what it could be.”
Growing
up he talked enthusiastically about his mother and how creatively she
lived. He talked about how she sewed children's
books, aprons, and child development specialties. She used scraps to complete many projects. She collected sewing trims, scraps and
buttons into a box throwing in craft
items, she would get this box out and let the kids dig through and “play.” It was that creative encouragement that
sparked Christopher’s own creativity.
Christopher smiled as he openly admitted that he was fearless in his 20's. His
fashion career really started when he worked as a visual merchandiser
for Neiman Marcus where he gained insight into the luxury market. Christopher
earned his degree in fashion design at San Francisco State University.
Christopher then moved to Los Angeles to design for two well-known evening wear
fashion designers—Tadashi and Dina Bar-el.
The mission
of the Christopher Collins brand is to empower women through fashion.
The Christopher Collins brand represents quality and creating Beauty - making
women look Beautiful.
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| He tried a few of his pieces on an attendee. They look so nice on. I looked at them more closly (from the first row) and saw they were very well made. You can see on the screen the ensomble. |
A highlight of his careen was
the Project Runway opportunity. It
opened the doors to the possibility of his 2010 collection to be picked up in
New York. His collection was shown
during New York fashion week. His customer is the fashion conscious, powerful
woman who wants ease and chic. He wants
his customer to feel beautiful and strong when wearing his line.
Recently he was asked to dress actress Andie MacDowell who plays a lead
character on the new series: Jane by Design” In the upcoming ABC Family original series Jane By Design, Andie MacDowell
plays a “glamorous fashion executive
who travels the world in search of the next big style trend. “ In other words, we can’t
wait to see what trends Christopher will be introducing. I’m defiantly going to DVR this one. http://abcfamily.go.com/shows/jane-by-design
Watch ALL NEW episodes Tuesdays at 9/8c on ABC
Family! Follow them on Twitter https://twitter.com/#!/abcfjane
Other high profile projects Christopher Collin’s has designed recently include: A dress for the “Glamorama” a fashion show
and concert sponsored annually by Macy’s and benefitting Children’s Cancer
Research
Another design project Christopher Collins talked about was a bottle he designed for Absolute Vodca. Christopher LOVES San Francisco, so was honored when they alsked him to design the destionations bottle. If the city of San Francisco were to be bottled, it would taste of grape, dragon fruit and papaya — exotic flavors that capture the unique mix of cultures, ethnicities and culinary heritage of a thriving, colorful city. At least, that’s what one vodka maker thinks. In the latest edition to a city-series ‘sonic ambassador,’ fashion designer Christopher Collins was asked to design the bottle. Now he is branching out into other types of design.
Christopher talked in detail about how one can search for inspiration. He said
he is inspired by historical fashion, especially the Elizabethan
fashion and Rococo
fashions of
the 18th century. He talked of the
silks, taffeta, and needlework. Textures create romance & mood.
He
shared his insights on looking at architecture. If you design something Victorian then stand
and get a photo In front of a Victorian home. Look at the Transamerica building
then design something modern and streamline. This is why he loves living in San
Francisco as there is so much inspiration around him.
He encouraged us to go to creative places.
Nature is another place for inspiration. He loved the outdoors, the
harmony, smells, sounds, and freedom it represents. Deserts are so mysterious; take
Sedona’s red rocks, beaches course sand, a roaring river.
He suggested getting out and experiencing other cultures. Look at crossing different cultures with other
backgrounds their authentic costumes of a culture, jewelry, arts, and
accessories. You can find color inspiration and quality in their techniques and
what they have made.
Take a look at people. We inspire each other, from Opera Winfrey to Lance
Armstrong, from the young royal couple, to the Olympic contenders, from Marilyn
Monroe to Gandhi.
Literature inspires him; music inspires him.
Music is also a great inspiration for fashion. From Lady Gaga to the classics of the rat
pack - music provokes different feelings. He suggested you play
music while creating. Try inspirational
music that reflects what you have in mind for the style; have it playing in the
background while you create.
"Fashion
is an epic moment."
Christopher suggested that one use a story board to display your ideas, using swatches
of fabric and pictures that evoke an image you are trying to achieve. This will help you to get your arms around
the look and feeling of the inspiration. Take this energy, these images, and you will
craft the “look” in no time.
Tomorrow
I will talk about the workshop the Haute Couture Society hosted. Christopher Collins led the workshop, sharing
inspiration and ideas with those attending.
Labels: CA, Christopher Collins, designer, fashion, fashion make, sewing, stockton, workshop
In the creative workshop there was opportunity to ask Christopher to give his thoughts on individual’s
projects and ideas. Christopher showed
us how to really listen to a fabric and start by draping it on a manaquin. It’s okay to have a fabric, and later find a
pattern that makes sense with the fabrics, weight, drape, pattern, and feeling. Christopher showed us how to do draping on a mannequin,
how to change directions on fabric and make Chevron patterns from stripes. He spent time draping fabrics around women's
bodies, and talked about finding 
Christopher
Collins:
Yes. I would have to say that I am inspired by historical fashion,
especially Elizabethan
fashion and
especially Rococo
fashion of
the 18th century with its usage of light silk, and taffeta. Textures create
romance & mood. Literature inspires me; music inspires me; currently I
am listening to Beethoven on my IPod. Fashion is an epic moment.
