Digital Technology in Fashion design/manufacture

Also in this college project, we are looking at how digital technology is used throughout the fashion industry, so far I have only covered Illustration, but computer technology is currently used in most areas of Fashion.


Computer software programmes are now available to allow designers to play around with ideas without having to manufacture anything. These programmes can be used to draw out designs, create textures, adjust sizes, make patterns and sample fabric colours.

An example of this I found was during a documentary on Ozwald Boateng. He used special design programmes to mix his jewel colours for a range of shirts, this is also a lot less time consuming then going round dozens of fabric shops searching for colour swatches.

The only downside I see to this, is even with the most amazing software available, you cant get the exact sense of how a fabric will work through a computer screen, nor can you feel the
textures which are both huge factors when sampling with fabrics for garments.
(Boateng collection)

Pattern cutting pieces are very often now measured, drawn and cut using special computer software. This means the pattern can be produced in larger scales as well as saved and is easy to come back too. Also Digital Techniques can be used to make spec drawings, this results is high quality and being very clear and easy for a seamstress to follow.

The con however is that these garments are then mass produced, so if there is the smallest fault made in the early stages, ( which would be easily done considering the complexity of these programmes) the entire batch of that garment would be faulty and go to waste.

Gary Fernandez

The complete opposite to Blahnik, Gary Fernandez uses mainly digital techniques in his work. He is a very modern artists who uses a wide variety in every piece of his work to create really eye catching pieces.

Although Fernandez probably plans his work by hand drawings initially, the lines, curvature and colour in his work just don't seem achievable by hand. Therefore I believe he uses not only Photo-shop to enhance his work, but also probably a programme such as Illustrator to create the starting image.


Although this can't be classed as natural talent, I think Fernandez is a very talented artist because just as it takes huge talent to create beautiful hand drawn illustrations, you have to be very skilled to use Photo-shop to this level and it would still be a very time consuming process.
I lurveee the gold colour used in this piece, this is definitely something that would be hard to achieve with a set of watercolours !

"About half my designs are controlled fantasy, 15 percent are total madness and the rest are bread-and-butter designs. "

After looking at all these artists who are mixing traditional with contemporary in their artwork i decided to look at someone who uses just traditional techniques, someone who not only creates amazing sketches ... but amazing shoes ... Mr Manolo Blahnik.


Since 1972 when Blahnik first started designing he created the most fantastic sketches of his design ideas. His drawing were very fine pencil lines, very angular and elongated. This style of drawing has become so iconic to Manolo, and the designs are that greatly appreciated that a book was published with a archive of his drawings. Even now at the age of 68 he continues to design fabulous shoes.

I have always been a fan of both Blahnik sketches & shoes, I really like the shape he uses for the foot with the skinny ankles and smoothly curved arcs and how because they are drawn freely by hand each foot is a slightly different shape or tone.

Christian David Moore

I LOVE THESE PIECES !!!

The reason I like Moore's work so much is because, both the style of his drawings and what he actually draws really relate to my own interests, for example many of his works include famous brands, as well as shoes and make-up !!!

Some of his pieces are very traditional in the way they look like very simple water colour paintings, but at a closer look it is noticeable how clean the images are and how smooth the brush strokes are. Which hints at the aid of photo-shop to make his look just a little more professional.
Watercolours paints and inks are also prone to run and spread when added to a paper surface, which adds a slightly more naturally drawn effect, however it is very clear to see that Moore's backgrounds are bright white. This is probably also achieved by adjusting contrast levels via photo-shop.
This Chanel No.5 drawing I found in Victoria Beckham's book " The extra half an inch", is a good example of how he edits his work digitally for example the text on the drawing has been layered on top of the drawing, as well as the image itself being sharpened to give a more realistic image.

My favourite piece ...Mascara...can save a girls life.

Bec Winnel

Bec Winnel is a artist who I believe uses both traditional and contemporary techniques in her work, which is mainly based upon women with a very feminine girlie feel.


The traditional elements I see in her work is the highly detailed drawing. The drawings look like they would take hours as there is so much attention to detail and tonal shading to show a more life like look. I like this about her work because she is showing how talented she is as her drawing is a main part of her work.

To make her work more current however she also uses digital techniques. It is easy to see this by how smoothly blurred and blended the lines and colours are in the drawing. This creates even more life like structure in her artwork.

The Above is my favourite piece as it almost looks like a photograph that has been faded, the detail in the face is really defined and I especially like the shaded area under the face as it looks really realistic.

Carrie Bradshaw

The next image I decided to photoshop was the drawing of Sex & the City actress Sarah Jessica Parker. I chose to draw her as its in keeping with my shoe theme, as she is the Queen of Manolo's !!!

The image obviously needed cleaning up as I used a 4B and 6B pencil which smudged quite heavily . Therefore I adjusted the levels to make the image a lot clearer and brighter.The image is now a lot clearer and looks more like its been drawn in biro or fineliner I also used the Blur tool on the shoulder and bust area to make the finish a little smoother.To define the facial features more. I used the magnetic lasso tool to select both the eyes and lips. I used the water-colour technique to apply colour to the eyes to make them stand out more, I also then sharpened the eyelashes to make them more of a feature. For the lips I used the smudge stick filter tool as it just separated them from the bright white background of the face.To add colour and more texture to my piece I used a opaque water-colour paint brush. Using this effect kept a slight transparent look, and made the pencil lines still show through. I like this effect as it adds a extra layer of texture to the drawing and is the best tool i have come across ro represent hair.


Using the clone stamp I have added a background to my image. By opening the background image in a blank document I was able to clone the pattern from one screen onto the other. I chose to use the Louboutin closet image as it is iconic to the character of Carrie Bradshaw.
I'am really happy with this final image as I feel the drawing looks more professional after being edited and adding the background gives a interesting effect. I think this image would also work well with a New York theme background for my drawing as New York is also iconic to Sex and the City.

Tall, dark and handsome ... Christian Louboutin Thigh High Boots

These are the gorgeous Christian Louboutin thigh high boots a gaze longingly at all day at work... they are beautiful and frankly my TOPSHOP ones just dot measure up.
Argghh well Tabbi ... keep saving !!!

My drawing does not do them justice !!!

Again I have cleaned up the images by adjusting the contrast colour levels to make it look sharper, brighter and more defined.
The finished image this time has both pros and cons. On the positive side I think the plastic wrap effect I used gave quite a similar effect to that of a shiny leather. Therefore it is a technique I may come back to for mark making techniques on initial design ideas.
However the outline I tried to achieve to emphasise the red of the sole, actually took the attention away from the red sole and the paintbrush tool I used to draw it with didn't give a smooth enough effect.

All in all ... I prefer the real thing !