Task 1 - Corporate Wear

Fashion plays such an important role when it comes to first impressions, which is why it is so important to get it right. It can be what gets others to take you seriously, or even a way to signal something about yourself, such as wealth, status, or passions.

For this task you will be designing corporate wear looks and using the the art on the cards below to form the pattern for your fabrics. Each of these cards tells a story, and while they tell a story at times about what you can redeem with them, they all hold corporate tones within. Now, I have been to a few interviews where I have been rejected because my fashion taste was too out there, but does that mean I want you to shy away from creativity? Absolutely not! Make sure your designs are classy and match the corporate wear brief, while still showing me who you are as a designer.

To create your look, you will need to use a colour to indicate what element needs to be removed to be replaced with the card artwork. You can choose more than one card to add to your look (it is
easier if you use multiple colours not on your look to indicate
where each one should go). I will photoshop one sample for you
to preview, however you may also choose to photoshop these yourself (see a general tutorial on how to DIY here, or a Photoshop tutorial here). If you choose to DIY, just make sure you can submit a copy of the original look alongside your finished design.

See an example of the before and after below:

As per the rules of this season, all up and coming designers will receive free advice for this task and a later deadline, allowing them to see what some of the established designers come up with the help inspire and get ideas of what can be done. Established designers may seek advice up to three times throughout the entire season. Use it wisely!

Due Date: Established Designers

Due Date: Up and Coming Designers

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Put it on my card

View or download all the cards in detail here.

The Collection

Established Designers

Cassandra.Goth

Peyton125

Lidl-Wayne

Snawl

alydaman

Ramonda

nicrobbo95

Anejo

Up and Coming Designers

SealChowderr

rozuyumiko

Xav.Smi712

EagerGamin

Glumness

Sparkle

LegolasLeaf

Ellie,

CileyMyrus

Critiques

The choice of print turns what could be considered potentially a frumpy and boring suit combo into something that is eye catching and fashion forward. Paired with the smart styling of slicked back hair, and a matching hand bag your whole outfit really sells the fashion forward corporate business woman. Taking on the feedback given to choose a shirt with mor dimension and texture also worked well in your favour. I honestly love this outfit and could see myself wearing it out.

Cassandra.Goth aka Ashley
Established Designer

Design brief: 10/10
Innovation: 7/10
Fashion design: 10/10

I'm not 100% sure how I feel about this look. on the one hand, your base clothing pieces could be styled to appear quite corporate, however I think your approach to the print, while adventurous and daring, moved you away from the business attire style we were looking for. The pants and the bag work PERFECTLY, however the apron doesn't look as corporate as I think the brief needed you to be. I will say, one of the interesting details on this dress that I saw before the colour was added to the garments is the brown collar piece layered under the brown handbag strap. The bold colouring from the apron takes away from that detail and in turn almost flips your garment into being childish, or that of an art teacher, rather than a boss business lady. When submitting this look, you boldy proclaimed "Lusealiya will not fall in line!" and this is true, but I hope to see it workign a a way that is more effective to the task int he future.

SealChowderr aka Lusealiya
Up and Coming Designer

Design brief: 5/10
Innovation: 8/10
Fashion design: 6/10

There is something about this look that feels quite emo - perhaps it is my deep rooted love for Avril Lavigne and the white stripes on the shoulders meeting the gorgeous pink scarf. It's not a bad thing to have this reference neccesarily, but it does make me feel this look sits more in the 2000s than in a fashion forward future. That said, the detailing you chose for the arms creates a really interesting pattern which catches my eye. The bottom half of the outfit however kind of fades away for me. It doesn't have the intricate details to carry the dimension the top half of the outfit presented and so it becomes a little underwhelming.

Peyton125 aka Peyton
Established Designer

Design brief: 7/10
Innovation: 8/10
Fashion design: 8/10

Ellie, I am so glad you decided to change your outfit completely at the last minute. This is a HUGE improvement from what you had. The aura your model conveys is one that feels like someone high up in the creative industries and th simple card designs work really well because of the texture present in your clothing pieces they were placed on. Where you fell down for me was inthe styling. The hat doesn't really balance and the off gold colour is a bit odd. Additionally the earrings felt unncessary and didn't elevate the visual story your design was trying to tell.

Ellie, aka Ellie
Up and Coming Designer

Design brief: 7/10
Innovation: 7/10
Fashion design: 7/10

I honestly don't know where to start with this critique. You like to have your designs stand on their own and leave interpretation open for the viewer, and that can be cool sometimes, but in this scenario, you have created a very specific story that I was missing the puzzle piece for. By making a look that pokes fun at the corporate world, and not telling me that was the intention, I am instead left with something that looks like you've basically said 'fuck you' to the task brief because you had other ideas. To say less, I'm glad I asked what the deal was because I never would have made the jump. In my eyes, this is a streetwear look more so than a corporate wear look, but I appreciate your allusion to the idea of the office using ink inspirations and uncomfortable shoes. Is this a great look? Yes. Is it a great look for this task? I'm honestly not sure.

Lidl-Wayne aka Filip
Established Designer

Design brief: 4/10
Innovation: 10/10
Fashion design: 9/10

I think of all the submissions this week, your look was the one which stood out for using the task most effectively. While your outfit in itself is simple, using items only from teh official hotel you have managed to completely transform the design through clever placement of the fabric prints - the original candy striped outfit is almost unrecognisable and I loved gettign a glimpse of your photoshop file to see exactly how you had achieved it. My only draw back for this is I wish you had taken my advice, played around, and then ignored it because the black shoes worked so much better than these light brown ones. When it comes to advice, you should feel comfortable to say "Hey, I tried what you suggested but it really didn't work" because at the end of the day, it's your outfit submission, not mine. Amazing work, you are definitely one to watch!

rozuyumiko aka Paowee
Up and Coming Designer

Design brief: 10/10
Innovation: 10/10
Fashion design: 10/10

You were low on time this week and honestly, this outfit shows that. I love your overarching concept to use traditional clothing items and enhance them with retro items in a way that doesn't pull focus, however I feel like you did not take full use of the potential in this challenge to use the material to transform these clothing items. This is a shame because we have seen a few other designers utilise the fabric to transform their non-retro clothing this week and I would have expected you to be at the top of that list.

Snawl aka Brad
Established Designer

Design brief: 6/10
Innovation: 6/10
Fashion design: 6/10

This outfit is very smart and I feel like there is nothing I would add to it to make it stand out more. Minimalism is not my strong suit at all, so I am in awe of the simple yet striking design you have churned out with this style. The subtlety of the black with the grainy texture on that jacket, contrasted witht he brightness from the orange woolworths rewards card which compliemtn the gold flecks across the outfits trim and finally pared back with the deep blues from the oyster card - honestly just so smart. I love it all. Amazing job.

EagerGamin aka Marq
Up and Coming Designer

Design brief: 9/10
Innovation: 9/10
Fashion design: 10/10

You submitted this look with a backstory and that really helped me to understand your piece. For those reading along, Alex worked a soul-destroying bank job for four years dealing with mortgages, and this outfit is a representation of the struggle within the corporat confines, clashing with artistic intgrity. In a way, you have submitted art. Is it something I'd see someone wearing in an a literal office? No. Despite this, I see the business attire framework you have built upon to bring in those corporate references while still sharing your story in a way that pushes the boundary of 'fashion'

alydaman aka Alex
Established Designer

Design brief: 8/10
Innovation: 10/10
Fashion design: 8/10

This is a classic office trope with oversized male clothing presented on a feminine model, so while it isn't pushing the boundaries of office fashion too far, I think you have crated an interesting arrangement none the less. I like how you used the qantas card to add a bit of highlight onto the bag, and the pattern on the jacket and pants is very pleasing to look at. This is a fierce combination overall.

Glumness aka Caz
Up and Coming Designer

Design brief: 10/10
Innovation: 7/10
Fashion design: 8/10

Let me take a moment to welcome back that bowl cut that drove me insane during season one - thankfully it is a new season and there is still plenty of time before I start to wonder what else you can do with your hair. I like the way this look showcases a gradient from head to toe. It creates a subtlety to the design and gives the impression of a cog in the wheel office worker who is just blending in. I also appreciate how you have presented a dress with an interesting sillhouette but used the fabric choices to blend them together creating something that is workplace appropriate. A very nice, soft design
from you.

Ramonda aka Ashlyn
Established Designer

Design brief: 9/10
Innovation: 8/10
Fashion design: 7/10

You've created a look that is definitely business wear, but kind of lacks innovation. There is nothing here that really pushes the boundaries of fashion or me in this look. Could having Ashlyn's outfit with similar colour tones and a similar silhouette, displayed above you be influencing that? Perhaps, but her look was something you saw before you showed me your draft outfits of the week, so I think it is fair to judge after her regardless. For a first time playing PR though, I need to highlight this: what you have created is good. It's hard to know what has been done before when you are brand new to the scene so I hope to see you continue to grow and experiment.

CileyMyrus aka Ciley
Up and Coming Designer

Design brief: 8/10
Innovation: 3/10
Fashion design: 6/10

Pulling a leaf out of Harry's book and we have a cut up textile on display here. What you have created almost looks like crocodile leather which is really interesting and unique, and the cut makes it feel like something tha I could see being worn in the officeduring the late 80s (minus the white elements of the jacket, my mum has a black leather jacket with similar proportions). There is somethign ugly chic about the whole ensemble that just works. Good job.

Anejo aka Mickey
Established Designer

Design brief: 8/10
Innovation: 8/10
Fashion design: 7/10

I know you struggled with this task because you didn't read it properly (read it twice next week!) but what you turned in works really well. It's a little unconventional, but it's treading the fine line of office attire and personal style (I should know, I do this all the time at work). It is both conservative, yet conveys attitude, and I am really digging
the vibe.

LegolasLeaf aka Jer
Up and Coming Designer

Design brief: 8/10
Innovation: 9/10
Fashion design: 8/10

You submitted two spectacular outfits this week for me to choose from, so before I dig into this one, I just want you to know that you are already off to a great start. This outfit is clever, has a great balance of colour and has an air for formality while still being something you could wear to the pub after work and not stick out in. I love how you used the curve of the fabric print to follow the bend of the knee, that is honestly so smart and a great way to utilise the existing pattern on the materials. The way you have alluded to that pattern through the top and the shoes without going overboard is clever, and I'm glad you introduced that lighter green colour to balance it out.

Sparkle aka Sarah
Up and Coming Designer

Design brief: 8/10
Innovation: 8/10
Fashion design: 9/10

The Results

Let me begin by saying that everyone of you who submitted are winners in my eyes. Taking the time to put yourself out there can be really hard and you have already moved past that first step.

Now that you have a feel for how the looks are scored, take this into consideration in future weeks because each of those categories is important. Scoring low in one area doesn't mean your it is your week to go home, but if you have a week where everyone else performs well across the board... Well, you will be in trouble!

Congratulations to our week one winner, up and coming designer, rozuyumiko! This is the outfit I couldn't stop talking about with Harry behind the scenes, and you should be really proud of what you did and how you transformed old clothes we have seen done a thousand times into something amazing.

Unfortunately I have to send someone home each week as well. It was quite tough looking at my bottom two - on one hand, I had someone who didn't showcase their talents effectively, and then I had a designer who didn't showcase their style. At the end of the day, I have made the tough decision to send home Ciley, but I am watching closely to see where she ends up. Being the first game of PR she has ever played made for a tough learning curve, and unfortunately showcasing a look which shared multiple similarities with another player means that I don't actually get to see your voice in the design at all - where is the punk attitude/twist on corporate wear? Where is your personal style in this outfit? I hope to see you continue submitting designs following the competition to have a go at the most improved designer prize worth 50 credits.

rozuyumiko - 30
EagerGamin - 28
Cassandra.Goth - 27
alydaman - 26
Glumness - 25
LegolasLeaf - 25
Sparkle - 25
Ramonda - 24
Lidl-Wayne - 23
Peyton125 - 23
Anejo - 23
Ellie, - 21
SealChowderr - 19
Snawl - 18
CileyMyrus - 17