[FASH 49] More photos of student’s displays

Here are the rest of the photos from various weeks throughout the semester of the visual merchandising class:

Wedding theme: This display from Group 2 was too pretty for words!  All of the flowers were hand-made!

Sports theme: Group 1 did a fantastic job with their Men’s Health display considering the bad shape of the shelf unit.  They literally transformed it!  The stack of chairs on the side are helping to hold it up (lol)!

Fashion Designer theme:  This Tory Burch display is another example of how a few dollars and a lot of man hours can go a long way.  The fabulous floral logo was all done by hand! – Group 4

Fashion Designer theme:  Here’s a table display in progress from Group 1.  That bust form is amazing, it is almost an exact replica of what The Blonds created for their runway show!

Green/Eco-friendly theme:  Here’s a completed cube presentation from Group 5.  I love that they chose to provide signage above the display and not just on the table.  It frames the  presentation and makes it complete.  I could see this in a LUSH store for sure!

“Pick a City” theme:  This was such a fun display from Group 4!  Pick a city meant the teams could choose any city they wanted to build a display around.

Music theme:  Group 1 had the challenge this week of working on the beaten up shelving unit, but the way they transformed it, you can hardly tell!  This was a delicious display ,and notice the under-cabinet lighting they provided.   A very important and good detail!

Green/Eco-friendly theme:  This was the best window display this semester.  Group 2 reused a few flowers from their wall display.

Music theme: This Coachella display was perfect, from the lights they included around the ferris wheel backdrop, to the floral headband – Group 2 – I loved it!!!

Fashion Designer theme: Here’s another window that impressed.  Group 6, which were on a British kick for the class :),  chose famed milliner Philip Treacy as their designer to highlight.  Each student hand-made a hat to display in their overall design.  The big flower arrangement you see is a hat as well!

There were so many other projects that were good, but these are a few that really stood out to me.  They all learned that display work:

• Is not easy!!!
• Requires everyone’s assistance the day of installation
• You eventually have to settle on an idea and get to work
• You need to be organized and allow time ahead of the due date to purchase materials/supplies
• Paint needs time to dry  – or else you get it everywhere!
• Conditions are not always ideal, but you gotta deal with it and move ahead
• Sometimes you gotta improvise
• No one sees your mistakes unless you point them out
• COMMUNICATE, COMMUNICATE, COMMUNICATE with your team!

Like I said before it was a great semester and I am so proud of the work my students have produced, you guys ROCK!

FASH 54A I haven’t forgotten about you guys.  I will be posting your fashion editorials and advertisements soon.  It’s just  A LOT of photos and model release forms to sort through.  But in the meantime I will post the photos from your very first project, where you had to “re-style” yourself in whatever outfit you choose to wear to class that day – remember that?  I know some of you are cringing right now (lol)!  I promised you they wouldn’t be seen by anyone else but me, but some of you did fabulous work that should be seen!

[FASH 49] – Final Group Projects

Each week students were tasked with designing and installing displays according to a theme I provided.  This semester’s class was larger than usual.  I had 52 students!!  Many hands do make for lighter work, but it can also get really crowded in our small classroom with everyone working on either a:

• Window display
• Cubes (had to present twice)
• Table display
• Wall display
• Shelving display

Here are a few pictures from some their work:

This is actually a display from Group 6.  It was the first week group projects launched.  The theme for this week was POP CULTURE.  I thought it was so clever that they used three very distinct time periods that Britain is known for – the Mod 60s, the Punk era, the Royals, which is reflected in the decoupage of their hand-made blocks inside the cubes.

 

 

 

The above display is from Group 2.  Their cube display for POP CULTURE week was inspired by the artist Yayoi Kusama as you can see in the book cover of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

 

 

Up above, Group 4 also looked to Great Britain for inspiration in the iconic image of the Beatles crossing the street. They actually continued the street on the table!  Nicely done!

 

 

 

Group 1 looked to the current fashion trend of studs as their POP CULTURE inspiration!  I loved everything about this display, it’s nicely balanced, clean, and they cross-merchandised.

Considering all the displays shown above was everyone’s first time at doing this type of work, I must say I was impressed!  Students are required to provided all materials and merchandise themselves, they get no outside help, besides each other!  Is it tough to work this way?  YES, but in the world of display one of the first things you must learn and really need to be is RESOURCEFUL.

Throughout the weeks I saw many groups recycling materials and props into other displays – without me having to tell them, they automatically realized that is basically what display is all about!  Stores don’t have unlimited budgets to spend on one-off props, so how do you take what’s used and make it look new again.  If you can do that you will have a long and prosperous career as a display artist!

In my next post I will show more photos of student group projects from the other themes of:

• Holiday/Wedding
• Sports/Music
• Fashion Designer
• “pick a City”
• Green (eco-friendly)

Group Projects: Pop Culture

One of my students recently told me I didn’t show the last of the group projects.  I didn’t forget.  I’ve just been super busy.  I really don’t understand how some people find the time to blog all day and hold down a full-time job, and try to have some semblance of a personal life.  How do they do it :)?

So here you go, sorry for the delay, I’ve been out-of-town a lot and working at my construction program.  We are running a summer session for the first time and since I manage the entire program, I had to start as soon as the spring semester ended with no break.

Group 1: Yayoi Kusama (cubes)

This is truly museum quality work, and the use of the balloon was clever!

Group 2: Breast Cancer Awareness (window)

Very shocking in a good way.  It really grabbed your attention when you went by.  The work could have been neater, but I loved the concept.

Group 3: ComicCon (table) display

This was such a fun table.  Group 3 really saved their best for last (ignore the wall display in the background, they were trying to re-do the wall display they didn’t finish the first time around).  Who said girls don’t like comic books!

Group 4: Vogue (shelf unit)

Not sure where I see this displays, a fancy news stand perhaps?  Nicely done, needed better signage, and someone mentioned more colors.  A beautiful bouquet of flowers would be a good way to introduce more color.

Group 5: OPI nail polish (other cubes)

Great work!

Group 6: Hello Kitty apple cart (wall)

Beautiful apple trees, but the overall display looks unfinished.  I wish it took up the whole wall, at least the whole width, and the wheels on the “cart” has the spokes.

 

The last of the class projects!  It has been a truly wonderful semester, I get so much joy out of teaching this class and doing displays, I really can’t think of anything else I’d rather be doing than designing and building!

My new class in the fall: FASH 54A-Beginning Fashion Styling

 

Group Projects: Music

Here are the displays for the Music theme week:

Group 1 – Window

Clever idea to cut the musical note out, and I like the styling of the mannequin.  Like your classmates had mentioned, I too had wished the musical note had been constructed out of a different paper, something more colorful.

Group 2 – Table

Great job group 2!  I could see this display at the MAC makeup counter, and the colors you chose are perfectly on trend!

Group 3 – Shelving 

You’re on the right track with some of the iconic images you used for Jimi Hendrix.  The guitar is great, but the peace fabric is a little much.  Nonetheless this display would work in a store that sells vintage records, and it is truly representational of the artist.

Group 4 – Other Cubes

This was one of my favorite displays of the day.  I loved how you took the cubes and made them into a an old school boombox, yet you have a modern-day music player – genius!  My only critique is to nix the pipe cleaner musical notes.

Group 5 – Wall

The meet and greet display was fun, and who knew 20-somethings were such Beatles fans!  I enjoyed looking at the collage with the drum in the middle.  Great job!

Group 6 – Cubes

As simple as this might look, it took a lot of time to assemble.  You can tell Lady Gaga was just an inspiration for this display and not a direct representation of her. Shame the black contact paper didn’t cooperate, but regardless it is still an elegant display.

 

The final projects coming up are Pop Culture!

Group Projects: Fashion Designer

Hi Class:

These past two weeks I’ve been out of the office at job sites or student interviews for my summer school program in construction.  Suffice it to say I am way behind on my work – namely getting all your wonderful worked posted here!

Theme for the week these projects were completed is Fashion Designer.

Group 1 – Table (Tiffany’s)

There was a lot of discussion amongst this group on whether or not this display needed flowers.  What do you think?

Group 2 – Shelving (Betsey Johnson)

It does look like something you would see in a Betsey Johnson store!

Group 3 – Other Cubes (Tiffany’s)

The photo doesn’t capture how light and delicate this display looked.  It was really well done.

Group 4 – Wall (Jean Paul Gaultier)

The elements are there, just not the execution.  I needed bigger and bolder.

Group 5 – Cubes (Marc Jacobs)

They did a trio of cubes.  I liked this one the best.  It was great that a student hand-painted the Marc Jacobs wrapping paper to match the inside lining of the bag!

Group 6 – Window (Marc Jacobs)

Well done!

I have very little to criticize and so much to praise.  Great job students!

 

Group Projects: Food

Here are the photos from last week’s displays.  The theme was food.  I’m finding the displays are getting better and better each week, as the students are refining their skills and taking more chances.  The comments in class, as they critique each other’s work, is also in line with what I’m thinking.  This is a testament to their growth as visual merchandisers and how their eyes are now trained to pick up on slight details that used to be overlooked.  My hat is off to all of you!

Group 1 – Shelving Unit

Looks yummy group 1! – I thought they did a great job with this one.  I could see this as a free-standing display in a bakery or even in a window.  The background matched the sprinkles on the cupcakes, and the coloring of the cupcake prop is not too overpowering, which makes it a perfect complement for the merchandise.  They even added under-cabinet lighting.  Great job and thanks for sharing all the treats at the end of class :)!!!

Group 2 – Cubes

Group 2 chose candy as their product to feature.  This project was good in theory but did not deliver in execution.

This cube is suppose to be cotton candy.  The pieces of cotton candy on the bottom of the cube didn’t work, as the sugar began to crystallize.  There is too much negative space within the cube.  I wish the tree branches had been painted a color, and instead of cotton candy, they could have used cotton batting, or stretched out cotton balls.  Learning to improvise, or creating what you want out of something else is the name of our game!  Plus the cotton will last longer than the cotton candy.

The candy mosaic on the bottom of this cube turned out nice.  They used mint flavored dental floss to hang the candy (kinda’ ironic)!  Again, I wish they had painted the branch, although, the unpainted branches was their intent, as they were inspired from another display that used branches.

I like the last cube showing the jawbreakers and gummy bears.  Now, if only they didn’t add any branches to this cube, it would’ve have been perfect.  Their reasoning was, the other cubes had the branches; they wanted to be consistent and have a cohesive look.  Do you agree?

Group 3 – Wall

Unfortunately group 3 did not finish their display in the allotted time.  It’s a shame because they had a cute idea, and from what I saw on their design plan, this would have been a great wall display!

Group 4 – Cubes

I loved this look!  I wish our cube stands where in better condition, or better yet, they had placed the cubes on tables.  The old stands take away from their work.

They almost went overboard on this project, by placing cupcakes on top of the cube!  Glad they scaled back.

The “Heaven and Hell” theme comes across clearly in the overall display.

Group 5-Window

This display is a great example of when the store display follows along with the marketing campaign.  Every week we receive newspaper fliers in the mail advertising a store’s sales, holidays, hot ticket items, etc….this display would go along perfectly with that.  The slogan they choose “on the go” with quick and easy food products, for when you are “on the go”, would go perfectly with an advertising campaign along these same lines.  [VONS is a large grocery store chain in Southern California.  They are the equivalent to the Safeway chain we have here in Northern California]

Group 6 – Table

Group 6 never disappoints!  They do clean, professional looking work every time.  What can I say, the display speaks for itself.  I like that they added lots of different heights to the table.  Very important and visually interesting, as it keeps it from looking flat.

As I mentioned in class, the projects are getting better and better each week.  I’m finding less to criticize and more to praise.  Keep up the great work and I can’t wait to see what you do next week with our theme of FASHION DESIGNER!

Group Projects: theme: Holiday

Now that the students have gotten their feet wet and know what to expect, I’ve noticed the displays are getting better and more detailed.

Group 1 – Other Cubes – Halloween

The photos do not do this display justice.  This was one of my favorites of the day.  Group 1 really redeemed themselves after that “ho-hum” window display from last week.  This week they pulled out all the stops!  Everything in those cubes were handmade and  done so well!  I couldn’t stop admiring this display, it was so cute.  I wish the photos really captured that.

Keep up the good work Group 1!

Group 2 – Wall – New Years Eve

This display is nice, but it didn’t “wow” me.  Clever slogan and I like the clock.  I get that it’s a New Year’s theme, but I wish they took it further and went a little over the top.  It looks unfinished to me.

Group 3 – Cubes – Mardi Gras

This group works well together and it shows in their work.  Another nice job!  My only pet peeve is how flat the tissue paper looks.  I want it to stick up out of the bag and not be pressed down against the wall of the cube.  Trim it if that’s the case.  These are the little details we visual people need to look out for.

Group 4 – Window – Folsom Street Fair

The Folsom Street Fair is not your traditional holiday, but it is a day a celebration for this community.  I allowed my students to do a display that was really sexual in nature, and somewhat controversial, as long as they kept it tasteful; which I think they did.  The window turned out great!

Group 5 – Table – New Years Eve

All the elements are there but to me there is something missing that could send this display from nice to WOW!  The table is proving to be quite a challenge for this year’s class.  The bust form with the shoes and champagne glass look great, the dresses look flat, and I don’t think the chandelier on the table was necessary, although, most of my students liked it.  My advice is to display items on tables that are meant for tables, dresses should be hung.  Do retailers do it?  Yes – but it doesn’t make it right or good!

Nice signage.

All in all, I’m happy they continue to do good, neat work!

Group 6 – Shelving – Halloween (Lucid)

It’s all about the details……

Group 6 took our old shelving unit and turned it into an armoire!

One of my students used to work for this brand, and said she could definitely see this display as an endcap for them at a grocery store!

They hand-stenciled the absinthe spoons on the wall paper – now that is attention to detail!

They used those glow sticks that club-goers wear at parties and such, to make the green liquid!

Group 6 always surprises me and makes me wish I had thought of that!

Well students it’s been another great week.  I’m looking forward to what you guys come up with for our next theme: FOOD!

For my non-students who read this blog I love your comments and do share them with the class.  Thank you for taking the time to read this blog and share your insight.

 

 

Group Projects: theme: “Green”

Last week in class began the presentations of group projects.  Students have been working on their designs for the past two months and will be presenting their various projects for the next month.

We have six groups and this week’s theme was “Green” (my favorite topic).  Students showcased their ideas in a window, wall, table, cubes, and shelving unit.

Group 1 – Wall

Kindle is the product Group 1 chose to feature.

I love how they displayed all the paper content behind the Kindle as a butterfly!

Nice job Group 1!

My critique: the ivy isn’t necessary at the bottom of the display, and the Kindle icon should have been bigger.

Group 2 – Cubes

“Tea” and its many uses is what Group 2 chose to display.

Group 2 did nice job on this display!

This display almost became too fussy and overly embellished, but as they continued to work on it, I’m glad they took away a lot of the flowers and edited themselves.

Group 3 – Window

Reusable bags were their product of choice.

This is a case of not going far enough.  The dress they made for the mannequin is fantastic, but the display is too one-dimensional.  I would have liked to have seen more flowers spilling out of the bags, more bags around the floor – and at different heights.

Group 4 – Table

Clever idea to showcase “Green Fashion Design Classes”, as their green product!

This display is missing so much – patterns, books, fabrics, color!  It’s better to have too much and then have to pull back, than to do too little and look like an unfinished display.

Group 5 – Shelving unit

Group 5 is displaying jewelry made by one of their teammates – Shelby S.

Great Job Group 5!

The feedback they received from me as well as the class, is the background is too dark, making the jewelry difficult to see.

Group 6 – Cubes

I am beyond upset that none of my detail shots turned out as this was an excellent display.  Everything you see in the cubes, these girls made!!!  I thought they borrowed all the props from our local Origins store, but I was wrong.  The work is clean, well-edited, and professional looking.

What are you thoughts, how do you think they did for their first week?

Group Projects for Spring 2012

[Hello Class – I have updated the syllabus on this site for those students who are in my class.  You were given a hand-out at school but if for any reason you lose it, you can find all of the same information on this site.  Click on Class Syllabus under The Categories.]

 

 

GROUP PROJECTS

Group Projects will be assigned this coming Saturday.  We have six groups.

The themes are:

• Pop Culture
• Fashion Designer
• Movie
• Environment
• Holiday
• Music or Sports (we need to decide)

 

The schedule is as follows:

March 31 – #1 wall, #2 big cubes, #3 window, #4 table, #5 shelving, #6 other cubes   (Environment)

April 7 – #1 other cubes, #2 wall, #3 big cubes, #4 window, #5 table, #6 shelving        (Holiday)

April 14 – #1 shelving, #2 other cubes, #3 wall, #4 big cubes, #5 window, #6 table       (Movie)

April 21 – #1 table, #2 shelving, #3 other cubes, #4 wall, #5 big cubes, #6 window      (Fashion Designer)

April 28 – #1 window, #2 table, #3 shelving, #4 other cubes, #5 wall, #6 big cubes      (Sports/Music)

May 5 – #1 big cubes, #2 window, #3 table, #4 shelving, #5 other cubes, #6 wall         (Pop Culture)

The number corresponds with what group you are in and what surface you will be presenting for that day.

 

See you Saturday!

Design and Display in India!

This is a real treat!  A while ago I received an email from an instructor in India, who also teaches interior design and visual display. She graciously sent in some pictures of her students as they work on their projects!

The class is run by the Government Polytechnic for Women, it had 13 students who learned various techniques in Open Displays, Window Displays, and Small Scale Exhibitions. Below are two projects the students completed.  They were allowed to choose their own merchandise and plan a theme accordingly.

Here are the girls setting up for their first project.

They chose stuffed animals as their merchandise to highlight for this Princess themed bed!

Cute class photo!

A window treatment in the works

India is well known for their use of vibrant color!!  The theme for this display is Spring and the merchandise is women’s clothing.  Since the girls did not have dress forms, they cleverly dressed themselves as mannequins – love it!

Great job ladies!  You prove that regardless of how limited your resources may be, you can still create eye-catching displays with the use of a little bit of imagination.

Thank You so much to your instructor Aeti Arora Singh for sending in this story.

(all images via Aeti)