Class Description
Hi! I am Jen Lezan, a Designer, Illustrator and Educator based in the Midwest. I have a background working in the fashion industry and teaching in higher education. I specialize in creating surface pattern designs and other illustrated digital media. I am excited to share this final installment of my 3 Part series focused on Trend Forecasting and Product Development. Make sure you check out the other two in the series (Trend Forecasting 1 and Trend Forecasting 2)
What the class is about
This course will build on the skills and information learned in my previous 2 forecasting class. Students will take the lessons learned and how to apply them in the actual product development process – specifically building pattern repeats for a pattern collection for Surface Pattern Design inspired by their trend research.
A few of the skills students will learn
You will learn how to take your research, and decipher the groups of key trend ideas shown in the trend presentations and apply them to product development and design. By using their findings as a form of inspiration, students will create illustrated motif concepts and color stories and then build a 6 piece surface pattern design collection. Students will also learn about the basics of product development and of surface pattern design, why trend forecasting can be beneficial in developing a collection that sells and how to apply their designs to product mockups to showcase them in a portfolio.
An overview of the class project
For your class project, we will be taking your trend research to the next level by designing a 6 print surface pattern design collection based on your trend report from prior classes. You will find a theme and work it into a mini collection featuring a hero print and supporting prints. The goal is to take your trend knowledge to the next level and apply it to one of the steps in the product development process. You will begin with inspiration from the theme you researched in previous classes and then translate it to an end product.
Who the class is geared toward or if any prior knowledge or experience is required
This class is geared towards beginners. You don’t need any prior experience in the fashion industry, but an interest in fashion and trends would be helpful! I would suggest you take my first two Fashion Trends courses, though as this class builds on the information you learned in those courses and builds of the project created in Trend Forecasting Two. The information outlined in the lessons is meant to be informative and offer a new perspective on the fashion industry and give you an opportunity to create a project that allows you to apply the skills you have learned and work in the affinity programs and procreate.
Some very basic technical abilities will be needed as I will be showing you step by step how to use the procreate app and the Affinity Photo app to create a raster based repeat pattern.
