'Foundation Design', by WWISFD Faculty Zenish Mehta

Drawing can best be best described as a written language that helps us flawlessly convey ideas even words cannot represent. A designer has to tackle with many such difficult ideas and concepts and this makes it paramount for him to learn how to draw and paint.

The basic of design is to first starts with drawing a simple strait line. Learning how to control ones arm and the pressure of their pencil will have on the paper. It’s important to understand the concepts of simple shapes and rendering, slowly moving towards more complex shapes and fractals. Once this is done we move on to visualization.

The next step is to understanding space. Visualization is incomplete if the artist doesn’t understand the space around it, artists in and around history have strived to make art which can show spaces like the ones we have in real life. There are many books, many theories and styles to do so, we explore some of these theories and understand how to visualize and illustrate spaces.

After space comes human form, being a fashion artist means to understand a human form in and out. Where each muscle is situated, how would it budge and form and with what movement will what part of the body crease. We understand all of the basics of human form, from proportions to how an animated human reacts to different parts of the body. And then we apply it to the human form.

Next we start with colour, the principles of colour, the theory, the history and the application. Understanding the art of abstraction and form colour patterns such that we can find the best combinations within colours and light. Finally understanding how to form correlations with colour and form or with colour and space.

Once the principles of colour theory is establish, we learn the craft of colouring. Learning the techniques of using various colouring materials. What would be the best way of using them and where would any of these materials be best used, finally making the foundation strong for a better technique of drawing and colouring.

Constant practice and repetition will help become better at visualization and representation in turn making a better artist and designers.

Design Process:

Designing something is usually more than decorating or making it look good. We understand the aesthetics and functionality of that product and design it accordingly. Because of this, we need to approach every product differently. Learning every approach would be tedious and time consuming and so we learn the design process such that we can handle every approach intuitively.

As said before, Design process is a process to learn different approaches to designing. The first step is to learn what types of designs are there in the industry, to understand what constitutes a design and what types of designs can be considered good designs from bad designs. Once aided with this information we can move to learn about different approaches of this process.

Starting with a simple process we take simple forms and create patterns, tessellations and structures with them. We use different materials and use them to create designs. We then move on to more complex exercises where we tackle products that require more detailed process and better approaches.

Lastly we take these techniques of design process and we apply it to different aspects of character design and costume design. We take stories and characters from these stories and we design the look of these characters. We learn how to design according to their social and emotional situation, their story and scenario and their physical and psychological traits.

Designers' Perspective, by WWISFD Faculty, Shilpa Soneji

When a designer wants to design a garment, he begins with a picture of the client in mind. He then breathes life into this picture by adding depth to it. Which reflects the person, the personality, the occasion and the other requirement like location, budget and social norms, if applicable.  Keeping all the above in mind the designer put down his thought, design on paper through Illustration.

While coming up with a design the designer mentally analyses the physical virtues of the client and look at ways to exchange them while objectively noting the flaws and finding innovative ways to push them into the background.

Finally, once the assemble is ready, the styling of the entire look is worked on from the hair and makeup to the accessories and shoes. This entire mental design process is then finished, often without a conscious thought. For instance, if a lady wants an evening gown, and she is petite, long vertical line with the help of pleats would help add length if it is made in generous proposition, a gracefully open and broad neck line would add length to her neck and face, if she is pale; a bright color that reflects the undertone of her skin and bring out her natural glow would be ideal…. and so on so forth.

In conclusion, it is a designer’s prime objective to weave a seamless connect between the client’s desires and the designer’s vision. This amalgamation of creative thoughts should be unique and individualistic, reflecting not only the designer’s creativity but more the client and her personality.

WWISFD students recreating garments of the pre-historic era

Prehistory means literally "before history", from the Latin word for "before," præ, and Greek ιστορία. Human prehistory is the period from the time that behaviorally and anatomically modern humans first appear until the appearance of recorded history following the invention of writing systems. Since both the time of settlement of modern humans and the evolution of human civilisations, differ from region to region, prehistory starts and ends at different moments in time, depending on the region concerned.

The prehistoric people were basically nomads. The men used to hunt and hence were called the “hunters” and the women used to gather fruits and were hence called the “gatherers”. They started wearing animal skin  and animal hair. Animal skin give them warmth. They also wore leaves and grass sometimes. 



To show the same clothing style our students used muslin and artificial fur. To get the effect , they dyed the muslin. They used jute (the material of jute sacks, usually called “gonis” to get an authentic look. They applied fevicryl brown paint  to have the desired look on muslin, applied charcoal for the rustic look on the costumes, sutali (thin jute rope) stone and pebbles for ornamentation.


For shoes jute have been used, and cane grass have been used for stuffing shoes which was used to keep the feet warm during winters. Bamboos have been used to make the tent and muslin to cover it. There are cave paintings done on the muslin cloth to give the ‘prehistoric’ effect. 

WWISFD students recreating garments of the Minoan Era.

The Minoan civilization was an Aegean Bronze Age civilization that arose on the island of Crete and other Aegean islands such as Santorini and flourished from approximately 3650 to 1400 BC. It was rediscovered at the beginning of the 20th century through the work of British archaeologist Arthur Evans.

They had a very complex culture, more advanced than many of the societies that followed it. This complexity is shown in the artistically designed and skillfully made clothing they wore.

The Minoans sewed skirts and blouses that were shaped to the body of the wearer. Crete is located in the southern Mediterranean and has a hot climate, so heavy clothes were not needed. Ancient Minoan men wore only loincloths, which were small pieces of fabric wrapped around the waist to cover the genitals. Loincloths were made from a wide variety of materials, such as linen, leather, or wool, and decorated with bright colors and patterns. Many had a decorative pagne or sheath that covered and protected the penis, and some had long aprons in the front and back with tassels or fringe. 

While early Minoan men usually went bare-chested, in the later years of the Minoan civilization men often wore simple tunics and long robes. 

Minoan women wore skirts that flared out from the waist in a bell shape, with many decorations attached to the cloth. Later designs were made from strips of fabric, sewn in ways that created rows of ruffles from waist to ankle. Women also wore close-fitting blouses that were cut low in the front to expose the breasts. A tiny waist was prized, and both men and women wore tight belts made of metal, which held their waists in.

Our students recreated the garments from the era by doing thorough research  and under the guidance of our faculty. They got to learn a lot about the culture and the sartorial preferences of the era, which they can later use in creating garments that would combine the best of the contemporary age, to cater to modern sensibilities.

WWISFD students recreating garments of the Egyptian Era

Ancient Egypt was a civilization of ancient North-eastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. It is one of six civilizations globally to arise independently. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC. The many achievements of the ancient Egyptians include the quarrying, surveying and construction techniques that supported the building of monumental pyramids, temples, and obelisks; a system of mathematics, a practical and effective system of medicine, irrigation systems and agricultural production techniques, the first known planked boats, Egyptian faience and glass technology, new forms of literature, and the earliest known peace treaty, made with the Hittites. Egypt left a lasting legacy. 

A new-found respect for antiquities and excavations in the early modern period by Europeans and Egyptians led to the scientific investigation of Egyptian civilization and a greater appreciation of its cultural legacy.

Our students created two looks for the Egyptian civilization, a male and female. The male look comprised of a loincloth made of cotton which we wrapped around the dummy. Over the loincloth was the Shenti. Students constructed the shenti out of a flowy white cloth like georgette and pleated the material. The Shenti consisted of a central part called Chendot. We constructed it using the material that bore Egyptian motifs. The male outfit also comprised of a Pectoral Necklace which in ancient Egypt was made of pure gold and lapis-lazuli stone. It also has gold bracelets. A Gold menes was also made by us as the men in the ancient Egypt wore gold masks. There is also a false beard which the Egyptian men wore with their masks.

The female look consisted of the Kalasiris, which the students made of a sheer white pleated material. Kalasiris had a golden belt which was worn above it. There is a sleeved covering called “Haik” which is put over the Kalasiris. The females also wore Pectoral necklace similar to what the men wore. The hair is braided into tiny numerous braids. The Female dummy has a Snake Headgear which we created using gold papers.

Creating these looks was a great learning experience for us the students as they got to research a lot about Egyptian culture and discovered a lot of facts about the Egyptian Civilization.

WWISFD Students Went To Hyderabad On A Study Tour

WWISFD Students were taken to Hyderabad on a study tour to show the art and culture of a state of India (Telangana), which also includes textile as an element. The knowledge and experience that they have gathered from this tour will act as design-inspiration for them in days to come. They got to visit weavers’ service centre, fashion designer Gaurang Shah’s studio, craft village – Shilparamam, to understand the nuances of various techniques used in the process of creating fibre-to-fabric.

Weavers Service Center, set up by the Central Government to uplift the handloom industry. At this center, our students were introduced to various weaving machines that are used to weave Jaquard, Dorby  and Double Jacquard. Here, they also learned the technique and process of Block Printing and Kalamkari, while also understanding the of process of making vegetable dyes

Main highlight of the tour was meeting and interacting with the award winning textile designer, Gaurang Shah who has created a revolution in India; he is trying to uplift the art of weaving and popularising Khadi. He works with 450 weavers across five states in India and they showcase their stunning designs all over the world; the recent event was the Berlin Fashion Week

Our students spent a day with Gaurang at his studio understanding the process of designing and getting acquainted to different kind of weaves in saris like, Jamdani Designs, Ikkat, Patola, which are woven in geometric patterns in bright  colors. Later, we took our students to the villages where weavers weave these saris. This helped them to understand the different processes involved in the making of fiber-to-fabric, which includes dyeing and weaving. 

Our students also Bidri Work – The art of Inlaying silver in a dark metal base . It is a 400 years old craft. There are 3 main forms Nashan (deeply cut work) , Zar Nashan (raised work) , Tarkashi (wire inlay work). Our students would be following these techniques and incorporating them in forms of embroidery and embellishments on their creation.

Our students also visited a craft village named Shilparamam - a place where artisans from across India showcase their individual skills in a variety of arts, crafts and culture. From Indian pottery to a plethora of weaves, woodwork, jewelry, clothes and local crafts of each region of the country.

While in Hyderabad, our students went to the following places:

Mecca Masjid – one of the biggest and the oldest masjid of India . the students visited the Laad bazar which is famed for its sparkling bangles called Lac & Basra pearls

Charminar – ‘ Mosque of the Four Minarets’  and ‘ Four Towers

Salarjung Museum – The Third largest museum in India . The museum houses magnificent exhibits of Indian  Art , Middle Eastern Art , Far Eastern Art and European Art & Textiles. The idea behind taking the students to this museum was to understand the ancient art and textiles which would act as an inspiration for them in future.

For more pics from the study tour to Hyderabad, visit http://on.fb.me/1Tq62G2

WWISFD Masterclass with Fashion Stylist, Snower Sania

It was a pleasure to have fashion stylist, Snower Sania  to conduct a WWISFD Masterclass for our students.

In the masterclass , Snower  Sania shared insight on fashion styling as a profession and its importance in today’s industry. She spoke about the current trends & contemporary styling techniques. She also explained the process of understanding trends in connection to the various body types, colors and personality. She said, “Fashion styling alone carries many options in terms of profession.” She also explained each aspect and as to how students could choose & decide the correct option, depending on their passion.

Talking of fashion styling she shared the work responsibilities of a fashion stylist, difficulties faced and prospects in the fashion industry. Usually there is a general confusion about the roles of a Stylist and a Designer. She clarified the doubts of the students and said, “Fashion styling is a part of fashion designing. A person can be a good designer but not necessary a good stylist and vice versa. The stylist is a person who not only guides or helps one in terms of their clothing but also oversees into the complete makeover of the person, from make-up to hair to accessories etc. that one chooses to wear or put together.”

She also shared her current work with the students giving them insights of the profession, which was very motivating. Overall the session with Snower Sania was informative yet enjoyable for the students.