Sourcing in Casablanca...

For my final week I have returned back to Casablanca to finalise all of my orders and purchases. I'm also finalising my ideas for the Pre 3D Development collection so I can start work as soon as I return to the UK. Like always, time flies when you are having fun and although I feel as though it has been way too long since I have been able to indulge in a Boots Meal Deal, I still can't help but feel that the month has just disappeared without me realising. 

Fabric sourcing in Casablanca is a minefield of garish colour and sparkle. You have to be in a particular head space to be able to see past the the intense shades to focus on the less 'in your face' choices that are hidden in the pile. There are hundreds of shops, market stalls and holes in the wall where you can find such fabrics from, so sourcing can be a timely process and also exhausting on optic nerves and the shoulders from carrying all of your specially selected purchases. It is very satisfying to be able to colour match different prints, textures and structures and purchase each piece within walkable distance from each other. This runs a complete contrast to my graduate collection where nothing matched and money was wasted from constant online sourcing and sampling.

My little notebook has been my best friend, dictator and saviour during my trip, however it is becoming increasingly more difficult to find space for all my fabrics but, it has prevented me from making some extremely bad choices. For some reason I always love to play with the balance between cheap and chic and one of these days it is going to all come crashing down around me, I'm hoping and praying that I have developed the skill to stop this from happening to this collection! 

So, without trying to be a travel blog I wanted to share some of my photos of Casa and show how they have inspired the collection...

I needed a design element to bring the collection together so by taking the lines created by the architectural design I have experimented with creating a versatile and transferable pattern that can be created by paneling fabrics together. I am thinking that this will ultimately develop into a print design of some description. Watch this space...

The design development for the project has seemed like a much more considered process than in my graduate collection, now I feel that i have the confidence to take time with my work and think about much more design detail. The design process for my previous collection is just a haze of stress and pressure to create the most diverse selection of shape and print placement possible. Giving myself time to learn about detail and composition has hopefully been very beneficial within my work.

So the budget has nearly dried up which is a pretty nerveracking time with moments of panic, wondering if I have done the right thing. I have gone for a pretty intense colour pallette which I'm sure will form opinion but I suppose it is time to stick to my guns! It is also time to figure out how I will be getting all this home, I am already 4 bags down and still have my toiletries to go... its time to make sacrifices.

My metal work came back from Fes and i couldn't be happier! I have a total of 120 charms, 2 huge Berber inspired pendants and 1 metal belt to use within my collection. I said from the start that i wanted to incorporate moroccan craft into my work and I really believe that you can't get more authentic than this!

In Marrakech I also did a spot of accessory shopping. The dream is to customise these slippers in to flatform sandals, although I am slightly concerned that walking may be an issue...