FMP1equalsCatieAllen

A blog for all my FMP work “Undersea chic”

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All my worksheet pictures

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2026 met gala looks and opinions - fashion is art.

Beyonce - I really like the skeleton look. I am a bit miffed off that it is not anatomically correct. Like, why does the spine go all the way down like a mermaid? And why do the legs have ribs? I think it would have been better as a body suit rather than a dress. I also think that she should ditch the long coat. I do like the headdress, but I think it should have been more skull like, to tie in with the rest of the outfit. 7/10

Sabrina Carpenter - I really love this one! She is wearing a dress made out of film negatives from the 1954 movie Sabrina. I just think that is clever and the dress is nice. It is different from what Sabrina usually wears but it is very flattering and the colour is surprisingly nice on her. I thought the piece on her head made her look like a Flapper and so I thought the film had come out in the 1920's but it was 1954. 9/10

Emma Chamberlain - This dress literally takes the theme of 'fashion as art' and throws it on a dress. I love how it utilises different textures to give the dress an almost thick acrylic painted look. The swirls running up the dress remind me of Vincent van Gogh's style and I think that the shape is very flattering on her body. I think she was one of the few to do the theme and to do the theme well. Overall - stunning! 10/10

Heidi Klum - This outfit could have been greatness. I know they wanted to go the special effects makeup look but it just gives in an uncanny vibe. I think if they wanted to replicate this sort of statue, they should have gone with fabric. They used latex and other makeup and I just think that this was the wrong call. Layering sheer grey fabrics would have made this look much more beautiful. 5/10

Rose - this dress is based off 'The Birds' painting by Georges Braque. I personally think that many people did this sort of thing (i.e. dresses inspired by paintings and artwork) and did it better. This is just a black dress with a bird on it, and I didn't even realised that it was a bird at first! At least make the dress blue like the painting's background. 4/10 - purely because it flatters her.

Rachel Zegler - this dress is inspired by the painting 'The execution of Lady Jane Grey' by Paul Delaroche. I love the sheer blindfold since it is both fashionable and practical (she can still see). I think the dress could have had more done to it and a different neckline would have suited it better. Imagine a really high neckline with red around the collar! I think this was a missed opportunity. 7/10

Ben Platt - this suit is inspired by the painting 'A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte' by Georges Seurat. Besides the colour he is going to get the standard comment of men and the Met Gala. IT IS JUST A SUIT! I wish he had played with the painting a bit more, add some painted texture to the suit, play with the shape. Or bring a parasol like the lady in the painting has. I just wish men would try a bit harder at the Met Gala. 4/10

Karlie Kloss - this is just a plain Dior runway dress that was not inspired by a painting or a piece of art. The consensus on the internet is that she appears to look like a scrotum! I don't know if I completely agree with this but it certainly is an odd shape. I don't like that the heals are green as there is no other green in the outfit. Either make the heels white to match the dress or lavender to match the flowers in her hair. Because of this the bottom and top of the outfit appear to be disjointed. 3/10

Chase Infiniti - this dress is inspired by the statue 'Venus de Milo' and I think it does really well in honouring the statue while adding her own unique spin. It was apparently embroidered with 1.5 million stacked sequins to create the look and as a result it is really sparkly and I love sparkles. I think the shape contours her body nicely and it is beautiful without being too sexual. It is nude not naked. 10/10

Teyana Taylor - she looks as though she has been dipped in fringe! I don't think that it fits the theme and it is rather random. That being said, the colour looks absolutely beautiful with her skin tone. Normally I prefer gold jewellery on people with darker skin tones but my word does she look great in silver! That colour was definitely the best choice, even if she does look like a long haired cat. 4/10

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The hunger games. How the capital contrasts the districts in fashion.

The capital is full of excess. It’s wealthy, never hungry and always able to hop on the latest trends. On the other hand the districts are poor, starving and unable to afford “luxury” goods. The hunger games films show this nicely with fashion.

Take Effie trinket. The first person from the capital we meet. She is shown in a bright fuchsia suit, a large with a hat and a painted white face. Contrast this in the picture below with Catnis’ best dress. It’s a plain blue simple dress. That’s it…

Compared to Catness Effie looks garish and crazy but she’s actually one of the more toned down people in the capital. I think the movies actually tone down some of the capital fashion. (See movie pictures below)

In the books there are many capital people described. The most prominent are Catnes’ prep team. Venea, Octavia and Flavius. Venea is described as having bright aqua blue hair styled into points and gold facial tattoos. Flavius has bright orange corkscrew curls and purple lipstick. Finally Octavia is described as having pea green skin.

Dying your skin for a fashion thing is insane! I honestly wish the movies kept these 3 in. It would be so cool to see what they would do with them.

In short the capital has outrageous over the top fashion in neon colours and the districts have to wear practical clothing in boring colours.

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Poster

I looked at a ton of vogue covers for this and chose the elements I saw the most to add to my one. (See ones I looked at below)

I started by putting my favourite picture into photoshop and messing with the hue, saturation brightness and curves until I was satisfied. I turned the saturation up and the contrast down. Then I messed with the curves until I was happy. Idk what I did I just fiddled around until I was satisfied. (below is the original picture)

Next was adding the text. I found a font on Dafont that looked very similar to the vogue font and put that at the top. I widened the curning until it filled the top of the poster and looked good.

When I was looking at vogue covers I noticed that the issues for different countries had the countries name ether in the O or under it. Because of this I added the words deep sea inside the O. As it it was vogue deep sea addition. I also added the date June 2026 under the title since vogue does that and that’s the month of the show.

I then added some words to the side of the poster. Some vogue covers have slogans about what’s inside. I finally added the models name at the bottom since when they have a celebrity on the cover they put their name on it. I had to come up with a surname on the spot. I chose flowers because of remona flowers from Scott pilgrim and because the sponge she is based off is called the Venus’ flower basket. I also added a slogan underneath the name about her.

I texted my mum a picture of how it was looking and she rightfully pointed out that she has fly away hairs all over and if you look at vogue models they never have any. So I followed the YouTube tutorial below on how to remove them and I definitely agree that it’s better.

Finally Kyrstie told me that because of the cropping and the frame I had to move my text inward. She helped me move it and get the words in line.

I’m so happy with this poster. It looks just like a vogue cover. I think it’s beautiful in its simplicity. If it was more complicated mistakes would have somewhere to hide but because it’s so simple it would be very easy to make mistakes. So I’m glad I didn’t make any. I also think the colours I chose gave it a beautiful ethereal look.

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final photoshoot.

I wanted to experiment with different backgrounds so I did a few pictures in the light box with a blue background and a few outside in front of different bushes.

I think I like the ones inside best for what I was trying to do which was to create a vogue cover as my poster. I still like the outdoor pictures but I think the combination of the sun creating strange shadows, me having to lay face first in the dirt and the wind causing lots of flyaway hairs caused me to not want to use those pictures. And the flyaways would be hard for me to remove because they of the more complex background.

Below are my 10 favourite pictures.

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urchins shorts struggles.

For context the g3 monster high dolls all have different body types and the one I chose for urchin and Mandy has thicker thighs. The pattern I had was for a standard type which has thinner thighs.

I had to edit this pattern to make them fit. But it seemed no matter what I did the shorts came out too big or too small or just wrong.

Because Venus took me so long I decided to scrap Mandy and urchin and focus on getting the photoshoot done and the poster perfect.

Above is me halfway through my final attempt at the shorts before I gave up.

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urchins hat

The plan for this hat was to use the hat from Draculauras “core refresh” doll (see below) and attach some dangling pleather triangles to the brim and then use apoxie sculpt to add spikes to the top.

The pleather triangle went well. My glue didn’t particularly like to stick to the plastic so I had to use my fabric clips to clamp it down. I haven’t made the apoxie spikes yet.

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Final details

The final details I had to add were doing up the hair the way I wanted it and to make a tiny norigae. Norigae are dangling tassels often used to hold incense or perfume. But they are mostly decorative. I used a sequin for the top of it and a bead underneath the sequin to add texture. I then tied a small knot and let the embroidery thread I used to tie it hang loose to look like tassels.

For the hair I did 4 braids. Two at the front and 2 in the back. I tied the ones in the back together and pulled it off the dolls face.

And that’s the doll finished.

This doll took me much longer than I expected and idk if I’ll have the time to make the other 2.

This is the final doll not in a nice photoshoot but still pretty. The norigae is just above the row of sequins.

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making the petticoat

Petticoats are a garment designed to go under skirts to puff them out and give them shape. I wanted to make one for this doll since it would just elevate the final look to something better.

To make it I started with 3 rectangles of tule. One fatter and shorter and the others longer and thinner. I gathered these long 2 rectangles together and stitched them to the bottom of the big one. I then gathered the top of the fat rectangle and attached it to a strip of elastic. I had to pull the elastic tight while I sewed it to keep the elastics stretch

I finally zipped up the back seam and added one of the most important parts. I added a strip of elastic underneath to catch the crotch. If I didn’t do this the petticoat would ride up all the way to the elbows.

Petticoats are hard for me to make since I hate tule but I think it turned out great and I’m hoping it adds that last touch it needs.

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making the apron

The apron is one of the final garments I needed to make. It was purely for decoration so I didn’t need to make this but I wanted to. I cut out the few pattern pieces and got to work.

I started by making 4 tubes of fabric and turning them. I then had to do more fabric transfer 😅. I did my best to make them as neat as possible but I still messed up. I have a few gaps and a I burned the fabric a bit.

I then cut some rectangles of the satin fabric and top stitched the transfers bit into it. It ended up pulling the satin a bit so it’s not perfectly flat.

I Finaly attached 2 of these final parts to a long ribbon and tied it onto the dolls waist. Under the jacket but above the skirts.

This is the final product of the apron. I debated adding some of the rope to the aprons but I decided not to.

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devil wears Prada movie revew

This movie was confusing for me. I loved parts of it and I hated other parts. Some of the quotes are extremely funny but other parts genuinely made me question.

I like the character of Miranda. She’s funny and snarky but also mean and (excuse my French) a b!*ch. I do also like that she is human too. When she gets a divorce she is sat without makeup on the sofa obviously having been crying and vulnerable. She NEVER shows weakness! I like that they included this bit these sorts of “bad bosses” in these kind of movies are usually a caricature.

I didn’t like the skinny comments. There is a part where one of the characters talks about her diet. Diet is a strong word because she literally doesn’t eat anything unless she feels faint and then she eats a cube of cheese. This is insane! I think these comments are genuinely dangerous. People could see this and think they aren’t pretty enough. Especially since this is a line “ever since size 0 became the new size 2 and size 2 became the new 4. Im size 6… that’s the new 18” as someone who has had weight issues and an ed at one point this is genuinely dangerous.

Some quotes I like/found funny

“You don’t deserve this you eat carbs”

“I can’t be sick I’m wearing Valentino”

“Alright everyone gird your loins”

“Florals? For spring? Groundbreaking”

“By all means move at a glacial pace you know how that thrills me”

“Are you doing anything fun this weekend? YES”

Essentially I have mixed opinions on this film and can’t tell if I love it or hate it. I can see both sides of the argument.

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is fashion sustainable?

Now I know that most runway shows ether get turned into a purchasable collection or go into a museum. For the museum option I’m of the opinion that I can be if done right. I obviously think art and museums have their place but I think if you make your art out of plastic or plastic like material it won’t be sustainable. Polyester and plastic don’t break down over time and after people inevitably don’t care about the art and it gets thrown out that dress can go on to pollute the environment for centuries to come.

The collections for purchase on the other hand are usually more sustainable but it promotes overconsumption. Fashion in general has this problem. You must have the latest style or you’re ugly and poor. Obviously couture lines don’t promote this as much as places like shien and temu but they still make the trends and are part of the problem.

Fast fashion is the main problem. With fast moving treads and the internet promoting overconsumption it makes it easy to fall into the trap of these companies. Cheap bad clothes made with essentially slave labour. These clothes are also made with polyester most time and when the people who buy hauls of shien and temu clothes throw them out for the next haul they will sit in a landfill or the ocean and just exist for years.

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Vivienne westward

Vivienne westward was an English fashion designer who lived from the 8th of April 1941 to the 29th of December 2022. She is credited for bringing modern punk fashion and new wave into the mainstream. She now is the name and creator of the Vivienne westward brand. I’m going to talk about a few of the designs. I don’t know if Vivienne herself designed these outfits but her brand definitely did.

First up is this drawing. I don’t know if it’s got made into an actual dress but if it didn’t it’s a crime. I love the very 80s Leg of mutton sleeves. It gives the top of the garment a very dramatic look to it. The skirt continues this theme with its dramatic sweeping shape and the tule petticoat shown underneath adds a lovely contrast of texture. I would LOVE to wear a dress like this. The colours also give the dress a beautiful dark palette increasing the drama. I think if the dress was a light colour it wouldn’t work as well.

This dress was worn by Jessica Parker at the Tokyo premiere of sex and the city 2. I’m a big fan of florals and puffy skirts so it was inevitable that I’d like this dress. Instead of a standard skirt this one has a layered textured look with almost a diamond shape. It almost looks like a flower itself. I just wish the neckline was different. I think an off the shoulder look with a ruffle would be nice.

GOLD! This beautiful gold dress was worn by someone called Rosalía at the 2022 Latin Grammys. I think that this colour looks great with her skin tone. I also like that the shoes match her hair. This is the type of neckline I thought the last dress should have. I do think it’s nice in this dress but I personally would have done a halter top for this since the dresses cut is rather simple I would use that higher neckline to show of more of the sparkles.

Yellow is my 2nd favourite colour so please expect bias here. This dress was worn by Lashana Lynch at the No Time To Die premiere. This dress besides its beautiful colour has a wonderful shape. It’s kinda sharp and angular and I really like that. The bird on the back is the national bird of Jamaica which makes me wonder if this model is Jamaican. I have now found out she is English but is of Jamaican descent.

This white dress was worn by Elle Fanning at Cannes Film Festival. I can tell the Vivienne westward likes this almost sweetheart neckline. It’s strange but for this dress I think it works. I think the rooshing on the neckline and the skirt tie them both together. I also think the painter like elements on the train are beautiful and add visual interest to what would otherwise be a kinda plain dress.

High fashion has always had this reputation of “she’s just wearing a bin bag and calling it art” and I do think this one is kinda that. It’s obviously not a bin bag but my friend pointed that out and it is there. I like the umbrella elements and I think the cutout for her eyes is practical and cool looking. The dress reminds me of a bride and the umbrella with an eye cut out gives a sense of mystery like she’s trying to hide something. I’m wondering if her husband will last long…

This collection clearly has an emphasis on the patterns and the colours. I don’t like how the man on the left has no trousers but that’s just my opinion. It’s very cool and striking I just honestly don’t have to much to say about it. It’s not good or bad it just is… I actually think that’s worse in fashion/art the worst thing you want is your art to be dull.

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fabric transfer troubles

Once the fabric transfer paper came I immediately started printing. I wanted to test the paper first so I printed the Mandarin fish’s patterns and cut a small corner out of it to test. I put the paper on top of the fabric colour side down and ironed.

Above are the pre printing colours below are the post print/transfer colours

Once I had finished and let it cool I pealed the paper off. I then noticed that the colour wasn’t very saturated. This is why I tested boosting the saturation of the body’s pattern but it didn’t help. I think it’s the paper. Oh well…

The next problem I found was that transferring a whole A4 size sheet onto fabric was hard and I ended up with a few gaps. I wish I did better but it was my first time using this and I can’t expect it to be perfect.

I didn’t have the pattern peaces for the apron so I’d do this later. I did transfer the emblem onto the back of the jacket. Because I had decorated the front I couldn’t put it there. I’m glad it was on the back because it didn’t turn out good… I put it on wonky and I had a bit peal off. Finally I burnt the back of the garment. If you pull back the hair it’s very yellow. I’m glad I did it on the back so I can hide these problems. But I know it’s there 🥲

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Designing patterns to be fabric transferred.

Fabric transfer allows me to move designs from paper into fabric. I bought a set of fabric transfer paper designed for printing onto light fabrics like white cotton.

The first 2 patterns I made are based on the patterns of the mandarin fish for Mandy’s clothing. I essentially doodled the patterns onto an A4 procreate file. I didn’t want to put too much thought into the patterns to keep them feeling organic. I did 2 different patterns one based on the fins pattern and one based on the body’s pattern.

I think I prefer the body’s one. (Please note the colours of the body one have been boosted in saturation and I’ll explain why I did that in the next post) I think it looks more organic than the repeating pattern of the fins. I also didn’t colour it correctly (see if you can spot what I’m talking about)

For the hanbok I doodled up a few patterns for the aprons and the back of the jacket. I used the pre made ones by dollightful as a size reference but deleted all of the patterns inside.

I doodled a pattern in the stripes once again not thinking too hard so It worked look more organic. I put the word Venus is Korean in the middle of the stripe and repeated the pattern at the top. For the emblem I chose the words Doll and Clothing in traditional Korean hanja. I also added a few water like elements.

For colours I chose blues for the emblem so it can show up on the white jacket and I went with a white to dark blue gradient for the stripes because I wanted white for the colour palette and I like gradients. Below is the finished design.

I really like these patterns and I’m super happy with them. I hope they transfer well.

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lower skirt.

a simple semi circle skirt with pleats and n embroidery thread tie. its that simple. I cut the peaces and stitched the pleats to the bottom and cut off the extra. I then hemmed the top and in the small pocket I threaded an embroidery thread through it. I then zipped up the back seam and done! I simple garment. I added a rope to the bottom to add texture and boom. I think it looks good even if most of skirt will be hidden.

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upper skirt.

the upper skirt consists of a simple semi circle of fabric with a few strips of fabric sewen to it for decoration and a tube top like bodice stitched together.

I put darts on the bodice part to make it curve around the boobs nicely and sewed it to the top of the skirt. I used one strip of velvet and one strip of the satin for the stripes. I chose these fabrics since I couldn't add colour I decided to utilise the different textures to add verity. I sewed them to the fabric backwards and flipped them round to keep the edges neat. I sewed the pleats onto the edge, cut off the excess and wiped up the back. finally I hemmed the raw edges and added a closure.

I bedazzled it with sequins and a chain of beads.

the garment turned out a big bigger than I expected and slips off if you pull to hard but it looks good and it will be hidden under the jacket. I'm very proud of it and I think the darts line up nicely with the boobs and looks great.