Hi, Nice to Meet You!
Updated: Oct 18, 2020
I wanted to start off this blog journey by introducing myself and who I am as an artist & designer. As I have never done or even remotely come close to creating a blog before, let alone post one. I figured I would start things off light and tell you why I'm here.
I'm here because of school.
This is my final year in my undergraduate program and my professors thought it a good idea to keep track of my research, findings, and overall reflection. To be perfectly honest, they're not wrong. I do enjoy the thought process of my mind wandering into daydreams and coming out the other side with something only a 5 year old would come up with. Although, my thoughts aren't always relevant to school; they are relevant to what I love. Which brings me to my next point.
2. I enjoy fashion and specifically, what you can show through fashion
One thing I realized coming back into my final year at Sheridan was that I loved fashion. Although, I don't always wear whats considered "High Fashion", you'll constantly find me sitting on my couch in kitschy halloween pajamas and a t-shirt that says "Boo-Yah". But beyond that aesthetically unpleasing visual, I enjoy what people do with fashion and when fashion can tell a unique story.
Ya, you could say I enjoy that new coat in Aritzia's 2021 winter collection. It works for what I need but, compare that to Alexander McQueen's "Deep V-neck embroidered velvet gown"(pictured below-found on https://www.matchesfashion.com/us/products/Alexander-McQueen-Deep-V-neck-embroidered-velvet-gown-1160224), there's a huge difference.

Theres a certain amount of veracity, tension, curiosity, passion, and pure wild-like nature to designs like this. A huge reason a design like this catches my attention in the first place is because it's a gown. Dresses have always caught my attention. Something about the female body and how it's elevated to this stature in this simple yet complex silhouette is outstanding. Whether it's a gown form Vera Wang, Joanne Fleming, Alyssa Kristin, Alexandra Grecco, etc. One thing in particular about gowns that really intrigues me also brings me to my next point.
3. I love weddings-in particular, the wedding dress.
When I was younger, I started watching "Say Yes to the Dress" like any love-struck wannabe dreamer would. I stared at the television for hours and yell incessantly if a dress looked good on someone or not. It became a form of fantasizing for me and what my future might look like. As I continued to watch it over the years I stopped fantasizing and started to pay closer attention to designers, fits of the dresses, the specific fabrics used for each dress, etc. It became a well known fact in my house that I was a "Say Yes to the Dress" abuser.
Through that televised-journey, I realized how much I really enjoyed the aspect of weddings, but more importantly, wanted to know what the bride was wearing. I loved seeing new designs on instagram, seeing collections and noticing changes and similarities between collections, or even between other designers work.
I think what I truly love about wedding dresses is the idea of why an individual is wearing it. When you attend a wedding, you go to bask in the love of 2 individuals wanting to commit to each other in life. Nowadays, a wedding dress doesn't have to be white but there is something dainty and very porcelain-like about wearing white. Even when I wear white clothes I feel delicate. So seeing women wear white on such a tremendous day in their life brings a certain kind of joy to my soul.
Now, what I wanted to do for my capstone thesis was create a contemporary wedding gown and bring in 19th century traditional wedding dress nuances and ideals of love. This gown will tell a visual story of 2 individuals and their lineage's coming together; connecting them with their past and uniting them into their future.
I'll eventually be going over my research, new developments, and explaining why I want my thesis to go in this direction. So, as you continue to follow me in my journey, I hope you enjoy my progress, reflections, and samples.
As always,
JT