Entry 5: Ze Bathers

"This swimsuit was inspired by Annette Kellerman who had a dream and caught it. The lacing represents a dream catcher and the glamorous beads reflect her stage and screen performances. The design is practical, as was Annette Kellerman, but is fused with stunning detail that demands attention. The swimsuit has been designed to flatter the female figure, with side cut outs emphasising the waist.

Classic, stylish, fashion forward, sexy and flattering - the right combination for a Little Black Swimsuit"

Hannah Buchanan

Entry 4: Famous Last Words

"It was very easy to construct and didn't take long to make". Well that's what I thought anyway! The basic swimsuit may have been, but this is a little more complicated; the lacing and attaching buttons is quite fiddly and time consuming. I found the perfect elastic and the perfect buttons, or should I say beads. The beads are perfect and the cut reflects light amazingly.

I backtacked the elastic to the swimsuit and attached the beads over it to conceal the stitching. I trialed different methods of attaching the elastic to the swimsuit but this was the only one that worked because the machine couldn't sew through all the thicknesses without it slipping. I think it has worked very well and the beads look well positioned sitting on top. The straps are self fabric rouleau, I tried it with cord in the centre but it looked too bulky and didn't have enough stretch.

With the swimsuit finished all I have to do now is take the photos! I'm going home this weekend so I'll get my sister to model for me and I'm thinking I'll take photos in our shearing shed, relating back to the wool the swimsuit is made of.

I can't wait for the parade, it's going to be so exciting, no matter whose design gets selected to be modelled. Now, what to wear....leotard, anyone?

Entry 3: The Search for the Perfect Button

I have made my toile and used ribbon for the lacing but couldn't get it over the hips of a model. I will have to use something with a bit of stretch instead. I think round elastic will work best but I need something a bit thicker than hat elastic - not sure if it exists? I trialed random lacing one side and dream catcher lacing the other. The dream catcher lacing looks much better because it sits closer to the body; it can't be too big either because the bigger it is, the more it sits out from the body.

Apart from the fact that the ribbon lacing won't fit over the hips, the swimsuit is fitting perfectly. I only have to make a couple of minor changes to the pattern and I can start the real thing.

I am having lots of trouble finding the right buttons. Everything is either too big, too expensive or doesn't reflect the light enough. I've tried different places all over Adelaide but I'm very particular with what I like and nothing I've seen yet is 'the one'.

Entry 2: Designing and a Bit More Designing

Like the little black dress, I want my little black swimsuit to be the right balance of classic but fashion forward. It has to be flattering, sexy, striking, but not too over the top. I love cut outs and when at the sides of the waist I think they create a stunning optical illusion on the female body and emphasise the waist.

I have been heavily influenced by the image with the ship's steering wheel. At first I was focused on using eyelets to lace through and having a random lacing effect. I decided instead to use beads or buttons in place of eyelets to create more of a feature and I want them to catch and reflect the light. I am also undecided as to do a random or dream catcher lacing effect but I can decide this when I do the toile. The design I have chosen has side cut outs at the waist because it enhances the waist.

We practiced making a one piece swimsuit today, using different finishing techniques. It was very simple to construct and didn't take long to make. Maybe I should just make leotards and use stretch fabrics from now on!

Entry 1: Create A Blog...?

It's our first day back at TAFE and we're into it already! As well as designing and creating a swimsuit inspired by Annette Kellerman and three inspirational images we are to create a blog to document our progress. I've never blogged before and have no idea what I'm doing so I'll just type and hope it works!

I'm really excited about this assignment because it's an opportunity to have our work showcased to the public through the Maritime Museum next to work from other Australian fashion designers and two students get work experience with local labels - WOW!

We're using black wool/lycra jersey which feels very soft and should be nice to work with. I come from a farm so Dad's going to be stoked that we're using wool, he's really into the promotion of it. We haven't been taught to sew with stretch fabrics yet so I'm really interested to learn how and it will also be very valuable to learn how to pattern make and construct swimwear.

I researched Annette Kellerman (top) and she accomplished so many amazing things; there are so many parts of her life to draw inspiration from. Being born with infantile paralysis she used swimming as therapy to overcome her disability. Her swimming accomplishments are a testament to her dedication and determination and she is a very significant role model for women. I had no idea how she revolutionised the women's bathing suit and even got arrested on a beach for wearing something too 'revealing'. Her stage and screen performances prove that she was talented in different areas. Some of the words I would use to describe her are inspirational, determined, successful and ambitious. She was also deemed as having the ideal female body so I want my swimsuit to accentuate women's curves and enhance their figures, no matter what size. Her life proves that if you have a dream and are prepared to work hard, it can be achieved.

We were also given two inspirational images of swimwear from the 20s to 50s and I will draw inspiration from one of these (top). I love the ship wheel and would love to incorporate this into my design somehow, possibly with some lacing. We were also given one other inspirational image and mine is of fine strands of coloured wool. This has me thinking that if I go with the lacing idea, I could possibly use black wool to lace with.

Another aspect I researched was current trends. I used WGSN to do this and got forecasts of the trends and silhouettes for the coming season. There are lots of different trends and it's hard to pinpoit one but I really love cut outs. When used in the right places they create different illusions.

Now to design!