CATS GONE WILD

Over a year ago I took part to a print/textile design competition arranged by Aalto University and H&M. The price was an internship in H&M. When I was listening the competition announcement and what the price was I decided that I wanna win. I wanted it and needed it. I never did exchange studies or internships abroad because I was afraid and scared. Now I finally felt that I was ready to go.
 The competition collection should include six all over prints and placed prints all together. Some of them was supposed to make into real fabrics by weaving, knitting or printing. These designs would be presented in a clothe collection for a certain H&M customer group we decided ourselves. I made my collection for women.

Cats gone wild

My collection got inspired surprisingly from cats. I started to think what cats do every night when we sleep? They definitely don´t sleep next to us like we might think. Maybe they sneak out and meet their cat friends in a magical garden? Maybe they transform into real tigers and leopards in moonlight? Maybe they became astronauts, who knows?

Drawing the Cats Gone Wild -print

In the end I decided to present five all over prints and one placed print in four outfits.
 The first outfit is a dress that has my star print Cats gone wild. I draw it with black ink pen and colored it with watercolors using Photoshop to combine the outline and colors. This large scale print is repeating only vertically because it is 150cm wide  (as wide as the fabric roll).
 Second outfit has a T-shirt and skirt. I screen printed this Moon cycle -print and used oily foil in it. Skirts print is called First cat on the moon. I used my mother´s cat`s paws as stamps when I sketched it.
Third outfit; jacket and dress are both woven fabrics. Jacket´s Mackerel tabby -print is weaved with soft and fluffy mohair yarns. Tapetum Lucidum means glowing eyes and the dress is covered with green cat eyes glowing in the darkness. Tapetum Lucidum -print is weaved with shiny lurex yarn and black wool.
 The last outfit has a Leafy photo print digiprinted on silk blouse.

Line up. Prints on clothes.

Moon cycle -placed print printed on H&M T-shirt

Cat labor

My dear TC2: Jacquard looms from Aalto university.

 I worked really hard to finnish my collection and I have to admit that after all the stress and anxiety I was really disappointed when I didn´t win the competition. Next day after the competition H&M arranged a recruiting event where I of course took part too. I presented all my artistic projects from my portfolio and I was a bit surprised when the interviewer was more interested of my commercial work. Even though my tactic was to make a commercial collection I think it was still too arty for H&M. You might think that making commercial designs is easy but actually it isn`t!
Few days after the interviews I got a mail from H&M that I was selected to do an internship on young girls department.

This is how my final competition work looked like with moodboards, color charts, prints and woven jacquards

 Taking part to all kind of competitions and collaborations has brought me the biggest advantages during my studies. I think that doing some real projects with real companies is the best way to learn the profession and get good contacts to your future career. Collaboration school courses are maybe not the most amusing, creative and fun ones (because they are real life), but for me they have been the most crucial. Take them seriously :)

Aalto University and H&M repeated the competition before Christmas (2016) and new interns are coming to H&M in February. That´s also nice for me to have some Finns here. Here is a link if you wanna read more (sorry, in Finish only) about this years competition and see the wining collections. http://www.aalto.fi/fi/current/news/2016-12-09-003/

Congratulations and welcome girls :)