Group Reflection!

Firstly, through this IDE, we have learnt about how people often make use of fashion to send out messages or portray a certain image. This is especially seen in political leaders, who invest in their clothing in order to create an identity or public image for themselves. For example, Hitler dressed in military uniform to show that he had the authority to lead Germany. In addition, we learnt about how fashion trends have evolved over time, and what historical events or social situations of the time have influenced fashion. Furthermore, another thing we have learnt is whether people choose to conform to these fashion trends and who influences these fashion trends, for example editors of fashion magazines and fashion bloggers. Moreover, we learnt the different theories behind why people choose to dress in a certain fashion style as well.
This module turned out to be an interesting one, where almost every aspect and all the assignments were fun and enriching as we get to translate what we have learnt into our product. One of the first highlights was the introduction of understanding the life of a model, where we watched short clips of models going for castings before they are booked to model for fashion shows. Modeling and advertising a pair of jeans for Ed Hardy was the first application and hands-on we had and that allows us to incorporate all the lessons we learnt, giving us a taster before we design our final product - A Gothic T Shirt. In addition, the learning journey to the National Museum has further showed us and allowed us to draw out the similarities between the wedding dresses and the fashion trends of that time.

Being a model is not as easy as it seems. One needs to have the prerequisites, a good and well-maintained body and the courage to face rejection. Designers’ work are tough because they have to think out of the box all the time, to create fresh new trends and innovate on the existing ideas. We have also became more interested in fashion magazines. As we read them, we tend to take advantage of what is already published in the magazines, without realising how tedious it is to produce just one magazine.
We have also learnt how to appreciate different kinds of styles like Avantgarde and Goth through different media such as magazines and fashion shows. We have learnt that every outfit, no matter how crazy or random it appears to look, is as superficial as one might think. Every outfit would in one way or another have a meaning behind its designs.
Our group has also learnt more about the different fashion designers and their unique inspirations and meanings behind their respective designs. During our field trip to the National Museum of Singapore, we gained a different understanding of how the designs of wedding dresses evolved over time and were affected by the societal and economical background during a particular point in time.