Piecing together the Leaf Puzzle Print

The Leaf Puzzle print was one of the first prints I designed for Mata Traders as an intern in the fall of 2011. I had hopes that it would make the cut for the Fall '12 collection (like so many prints), but it had to wait until Spring '13 to make it's debut. 

The story behind this print is interesting because it deals with restrictions. Mata Traders works with a few fair-trade cooperatives in India and Nepal and each one has their own restrictions on what they can produce. A designer might get frustrated by not having the freedom to create anything their heart desires. However, I love a challenge and believe that by learning how to work with these restrictions and guide lines, my designs get stronger each season. 

This particular print was manufactured in a cooperative where I, as a designer, was only allowed to use two colors in addition to the white of the fabric. In the past, the designs Mata Traders had created for this cooperative, were small amounts of two colors and a whole lot of white as background. While that looks nice with one or two pieces of clothing, having too many garments with that color formula gets mundane. Also, I don't even have THAT many clothes with a white background in my wardrobe. I decided that I would challenge myself to design a print that is dense and minimizes the amount of white you see. My goal was from a distance, the eye would blur the shapes and colors together so that the overall print wouldn't seem to have any white at all.

Jin Ju Ruffle Dress pink/blue and Pagoda Pocket Dress yellow. Textile design by Shifra Whiteman. 

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED! After playing with a few shapes, scale and the spacing, I believe my goal was accomplished. I focused on leaf and geometric shapes that together looks reminiscent of fabric from the 40's and 50's. 

This print was manufactured on two different dresses in two different color ways. The Jin Ju Ruffle Dress on the left and the Pagoda Pocket Dress on the right are now on sale through Mata Traders. 

That's the Cats Pajamas!

Last weekend I went on a vintage adventure! Cats Pajamas is a vintage clothing, jewelry and textiles show/sale that takes place twice a year in Elgin, Illinois. Vendors from all over the midwest (and country) come to sell their goods, and let me tell you, I had a field day! 

My dear friend, Yonit the costume designer, has been telling me about this show for the last 2 years. She has gone and acquired many a funky pieces of jewelry, clothing and accessories for herself as well as costumes for shows she has worked on. This year I was FINALLY able to join her. We met up with another fantastic costume designer Rachel Healy, grabbed a few breakfast treats and drove out to Elgin. 

My textile design heart stopped dead in it's tracks! I began to hop from one booth to the next, combing through the racks of vintage clothing snapping photos of fabulous prints that I came across. The quirky florals with ribbons to the geometric ladders and spots, watercolored florals and paisley galore - they were all screaming for me. I began documenting every piece of fabric that seemed interesting, humorous, dainty, funky... you name it, I photographed it! 

I was surprised to find myself drawn to the crazy animal prints. I managed to find quite a few since this was a vintage sale and the 1950's were all about quirky prints & textiles. I clasped my hands and started to laugh when I saw a sweet little print that seemed like a few illustrations of Winnie the Pooh characters in repeat. It was so darling and yet so specific. It included honey pots, red balloons, piglet and Pooh bear! Another wonderful print I found were seals swimming across a pair of shorts. I kept imagining a teenage boy wearing these shorts and it made me chuckle. I have a special place in my heart for peacocks and when I found a dress sporting a hand drawn peacock and floral print, I instantly starting snapping photos of it. 

Kelly in the dress that stole our hearts!

At one point Yonit and I came across the most beautiful cream colored dress from the 1920's. We both fell in love with it and of course it wasn't either of our sizes. However, if it was and would have fit, I would have found my future wedding dress.  We then ran into one of Yonit's costume design friends Kelly. After showing her the dress that caught our hearts, she decided she would try it on. It fit her perfectly! According to the shop owner, it's a magical moment when a dress finds a lady with the right size and body shape to pull it off. She then ran over and found a hat that would pull the whole look together. Kelly happily purchased the dress and is now waiting for a special occasion to wear it.

At one booth, Yonit and I found a 3 piece vintage luggage set, in perfect condition and the price was a steal!  We talked it over and decided to split the set (first photo, bottom right corner). It is a wonderful funky paisley in blues with a hint of red & yellow, and we will always think of each other while traveling.  

This adventure was as fun as it was inspiring. After 5 hours of diving into wonderful clothes and jewelry of the past, I came away with a new excitement about textiles, prints and patterns. I have a collection of reference images of patterns that has grown dramatically since this trip and I am ready to start designing again.