Karly BrunelleTMD 427Portfolio

Trend Spotting:

finding fashion in unusual places

The following slides are a representation of a collection of fashion spreads featured in a

magazine. In each of the slides I put together the ensembles, including

garments and accessories. Although, I did not design the individual pieces

themselves, I designed the entire layout. To make things interesting, I placed the models in scenes you would not typically

find them.

Right: Zebra Dress by laura dawson $150, Margaux Macrame Necklace by Margaux Designs $55, Totally Turnlock Farida Hobo by Marc by Marc Jacobs $448, Chasity Bootie by Dolce Vita $174.95. Left: One Shoulder Dress by Mint Jodi Arnold $561, Locket Pocket Big Tote by Marc by Marc Jacobs $168, Quantumm Platforms by Steve Madden $79.95, Straw Panama Hat by Charlotte Russe $12.99, Kyanite Necklace by Free People $78.

With this layout, I wanted to use a scene from Africa. This set the initial tone for not only the garments I chose but also the layout in general. I tried to stick with more earthy tones, like the zebra dress and the muted blue one shoulder dress. I also have a few accents, like the chair the model on the right is propped on and her Marc Jacobs bag.

Left: Shiny Body Suit by American Apparel $34,

Divine Leggings by 6126 $122, Big Bear Faux

Tropper by Goorin Bros $42, Peacock Earrings by

Urban Outfitters $18, Feathered Flute Bag by

Michael Teperson $950. Center: Metallic Soft

Madonna Boston Bag by Versace $4,395, Christine Satchel Bag by Frye $428,

Brewster Clutch by Tory Burch $395.

Right: Tailored Button Down Top by lamixx $60,

Matic Faded Skinny Denim by Diesel $250,

Drapped Chains on Velvet Tie by Urban Outfitters

$14.99, Large Stone Cuff by Urban Outfitters $9.99.

I really had a lot of fun designing this layout. The background is a bedroom in a historical palace and I thought it would be very unique to have girls in it that were dressed not like royalty at all. The model on the left is wearing black shiny leggings and a sparkly body suit with a feathered clutch. The model on the right looking very casual yet trendy in a flannel and gray jeans. I also put three bags on the bed, just to showcase a few more choices that could work with either girl. They both also look kind of bored, maybe they really both are royalty and dressing differently because they are bored with their lifestyle.

From Left to Right: Flower Embellished Cocktail Dress by Marc Bouwer Glamit! $256, Embossed Strapless Dress byTracy Reese $330, Gypsy Drop Earrings by Kenneth Jay Lane $155, Black Patent by Giuseppe Zanotti $750, Flare Corset Dress by Charlotte Ronson $367, Black & White Diamond 10k White & Rose Gold ½ ct. byKohl’s $279, Beaded Collar Bib by Urban Outfitters $48, Basic Pump by Dolce Vita $154, Scallop Floral Cocktail Dress by Anna Sui $510, Hamilton Open Toe Buckle Bootheels by Dolce Vita $220, Padded Straw Shell Clutch by Lulu Guiness $256.

You wouldn’t normally find girls dressed up in cocktail dresses in abandoned buildings with walls covered in graffiti. You might find the model on the right in the previous slide here based on her clothing, but certainly not these ladies. I wanted to use more bold colors in this layout, I thought the dresses played off of the spray paint very well. Two dresses have purple in them, two dresses have hues of green and two dresses have shades of yellow as well– just like on the walls. Even though they are all dressed up, three of the four ensembles are a little more classic looking and I kept one more on the trendy side.

Left: BF Mesh Pleced V Tee by Seneca Rising $96, Super

Slouchy Skinny Jean by Current/Elliott $237,

Chain Motorcycle Boot by Golden Goose

$1,350, Silk Flower Headwrap by Urban

Outfitters $18, Genevieve Plaid North/South Mini

Crossbody Bag by Cole Haan $225.

Right: Pinstripes by Johnny Cupcakes

$19.99, Super Skinny Jean by Rich& Skinny

$152, Attitude Hi by Nike $56, Tie Dye

Fringe Scarf by Arden B $24.

And in another contrasting spread, I have chosen a nightclub VIP room scene with two casually dressed girls. I wanted to make sure the pieces I chose were not club or VIP accepted. They are both in jeans, on the left very slouchy and rugged looking and on the right tight black denim. One is wearing boots and the other sneakers. I especially love the ensemble on the left, I think the boots completely off-set the outfit in a way and this makes it a little more edgy rather than country like the rest of the outfit suggests.

The Why and How to

of Magazine Spreads

Karly BrunelleTMD 427

Portfolio Presentation II

Have you ever seen a layout in a magazine where

something just looks.. well, off? In the following slides I will show you what works

and what is visually appealing in a magazine

spread.

A few why layouts work are because they are..

-Colorful-have striking captions

or photographs-are not too cluttered

Let’s start with the magazine cover..

Why does this work?

First of all the thing that stands out the most is the contrast in colors. For the title and captions in the foreground, the creator chose two different shades of a blue, both very vivid. It stands out against the model in the background who we all know to be Mary-Kate Olsen. It catches your eye without being too flashy.

Secondly, reading the captions they are all there to entice the reader. It’s “THE TREND ISSUE,” any girl interested in fashion and current fads is going to wonder what the particular magazine depicts as “trendy.” Two of the captions are even acting as guides. The “SPRING BEAUTY” and “WHAT’S COOL NOW” sections are based on fashion forecasts people in the industry have been working on for you the reader learn how to accomplish. It takes a keen sense of fashion to be able to make predictions like these, seasons in advance.

The cover is also reaching out to various types of fashion magazine consumers. They are not just focusing on garments or accessories, but entertainment and travel options as well and not to mention factual biographical material on two celebrities, Mary-Kate Olsen (as pictures) and British Singer Lilly Allen.

Moving on to advertisements..

In magazines like this one, you will often find event advertisements. And in the April 2008 edition of Fashion Magazine there is an ad for the Buy Design for Windfall Fundraiser. This ad is particularly eye catching because of the color scheme. The entire photographic portion of the ad is in black and white as well as some of the description. Then in bold turquoise, magenta, and orange we see the “BUY DESIGN” as well as the date and location and the host. This is very unique to what we would normal see.

Usually it is the clothing and accessories that is being showed up in a full spectrum of color but instead the designer really wanted you to notice to event. It could even be predicted as an underlying meaning: “come for the charity of the event”, “buy because it will be helping out others”. And if the message isn’t enough of a reason, it is also very appealing to the eye.

In no way does the black and white effect make the ad look eerie or dark. This is partially because none of the models look eerie or dark and the designer makes up for the lack of color in the few colorful accents.

And then of course, the famous “for your body” portion of the magazine..

This J-14 Magazine spread exhibits exactly what every fashion magazine knows how to do: relate the consumer (typically a non celebrity) to a celebrity with similar features. It makes the reader feel like they are not alone and especially at the young age the usual J-14 reader is, it builds confidence in young boyish, curvy, and apple bodied girls.

Physically the spread also flows. The colors of the bathing suits all seem to flow together. There is a shade of yellow in each category as well as blue and purple or dark blue. The designer also demonstrated multiple styles of bathing suits, giving readers with different styles options.

When magazine spreads are not successful, it is usually

because they are..

-Too cluttered with either captions or photographs– this can make a page very

confusing.-Do not have a main focal point or lead our

eye around the page.-Are busied with colors that are not

cohesive.

Let’s start with a magazine cover…

In August of 2007 this issue of London Elle was released. Similarly to the first magazine cover, they chose a celebrity as well as colorful text and enticing captions. However, this cover is still lacking.

First of all, the colors they chose are pretty colors, but not together and not for a cover on a white background with a model wearing a very similar color. The colors are supposed to help the text stand out and be noticed, here the only thing that you can notice is how they wash each other out. Also, the reader cannot take their eyes off the incredibly peculiar balls that Mischa Barton is wearing around her wrists long enough to read the captions. The colors are so bright and completely different from the rest of the layout design.

The fashion collages..

Although this magazine’s particular spread in attempting to show readers affordable and trendy styles of watches and sunglasses, the spread design simply does not work.

It is a good idea to show different styles and different colors for the various styles of each reader, but there is no flow or cohesiveness within each category of merchandise and it actually looks quite messy. The designer should have linked some of the watches together and set them up schematically to form a shape rather than a clutter.

This was an advertisement for SuperSuper Magazine based out of London. At first glance, your eyes are drawn in because of the contrasting yellow and black and then you are left to wonder what exactly is this going on. The only information the reader is given is “4 Show 5/8/7, “ it was an event for readers to get to see SuperSuper behind the scenes.

This spread looks incredibly busy and overpowered by the yellow and black smiley face. If I were flipping through a magazine and saw this I would immediately turn the page because not only is it hard to look at but also because the message is incredible hidden. Not every viewer reads every page thoroughly, especially if the message is not clear upon first glance.

A very confusing advertisement..