The Harper Tunic & Lydia Dress, Plus a Gored Skirt Deep Dive

In this week's session, I focus on providing more detailed explanations and measurements for the DDM projects we explored last week, specifically the "Harper" tunic/jacket and the "Lydia" one-shoulder dress. I also address some excellent student questions, including a deep dive into my approach for creating a multi-panel "gored" skirt, offering an alternative to standard textbook methods that can sometimes be confusing.

DDM Deconstructed: Understanding the Harper Tunic/Jacket & More

In today's live session, I took a closer look at the DDM (Direct Design Method) demonstrations from last week, providing detailed measurements and explanations for the "Harper" tunic/jacket and the "Lydia" one-shoulder dress, as well as the elegant draped gown. I also addressed student questions, particularly focusing on how to approach a multi-panel "gored" skirt using my method, offering an alternative to potentially confusing textbook instructions.

DDM Live Workshop: Unlocking Design Freedom & Demonstrating Three Versatile Draping Techniques

In this session, I welcomed our community to our creative space and introduced the Direct Design Method (DDM), which focuses on creative draping techniques to achieve unique, high-fashion looks directly on the dress form. I demonstrated three different techniques: one based on right angles and geometric folds for a tunic/jacket, a three-quarter fold technique for a one-shoulder dress, and a form & flow technique for an elegant draped gown.

Creative Draping: Developing an Asymmetrical Halter Dress

In this live session, I dove into creative draping exploration, showing you my real-time design process using pre-prepared jersey fabrics. I experimented with different techniques and forms, culminating in the development of a unique, asymmetrical draped halter dress, similar to the one shown in the thumbnail. This session really highlights how simple fabric manipulation can lead to stunning, high-end looking designs perfect for anything from cocktail events to red carpets!

Draping Asymmetrical Silhouettes: One-Seam Wonders & Diagonal Cuts

This week, I dove into exploring asymmetrical draped dress designs, moving beyond symmetrical shapes using variations of our three-quarters approach. I demonstrated how to create unique looks using both a single-seam folded fabric piece (resulting in the grey boatneck style) and a diagonally cut two-piece layout (creating the draped pink patterned dress variations you see). We played with different necklines, sleeve options, and draping techniques like using an internal waist stay.