Well, it's great to have new students coming along - and so far, the only reason for anyone stopping classes has been work commitments. People mostly have to work harder, longer and with more responsibility these days. (Someone I met yesterday seems to regularly works a twelve hour day...and that's for an employer, not a self employed person).
Some of my students are high achieving women (and yes it is all women!), and my theory is that people of that ilk are the kind of people who want to try learning another skill to broaden their 'education'. But sometimes life gets in the way...
There's something wrong somewhere - I could bang on about a lot of things related to this subject (!) but this is a pattern cutting/sewing/fashion/ blog, so I will stick to that here!
Have been studying again one of my favourite books - Pattern Magic, the book by the Japanese woman Tomoko Nakamichi, which is one of a pair (vols. 1 and 2), of amazing sculptural garment shapes developed by her as part of her research into patternmaking for herself and her students at the Bunka Fashion College in Japan. The shapes in here are so inspirational, and with a bit of time and experimentation could be adapted to suit any idea you could have. I have used some of the techniques as part of my teaching at universities, and even if a student never actually uses those techniques again, I hope that the unexpected, outlandish shapes made with fabric as shown in these books could set the design process going in another direction.
That is the job of a teacher, in my view - that of jump starting the thought processes in a student, not so as to slavishly follow instruction, but to enable the learning of skills and ways of thinking and using ideas so that the student can launch themselves into the ocean of creativity.
Well that all sounds a bit idealistic, but then, you have to have an 'ideal world scenario' that you hopefully work towards!
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An interesting variation on the way I normally work suggested by a new customer/student:
What started off as a commission for an Audrey Hepburn inspired design and make job - a dress and jacket - has transmuted into a combination of a commission and classes. I will do the design for an agreed fee, and then my customer/student will be a kind of student apprentice while I pattern cut the design, and we then make between us, as the person in question has a lot of sewing experience.
So, designs on the go now, and we'll see how it all works out.
Speak soon!
Bobbie
