Lifestyle Stage Design
The Home+Garden Show was this past weekend and we had the opportunity to design the look of the Lifestyle stage. We partnered with Christopher Straub, a local fashion designer and project runway alum to demonstrate the link between runway fashion and interior design. We chose 6 of Christopher’s runway looks and used them as inspiration for the design of the furnishings and accessories on the stage. There were 2 exciting presentations complete with live models wearing Christopher’s fashions and if you weren’t able to make the shows, we are including the information here! A special thank you goes out to Christopher for being so great to work with and providing such amazing fashion inspiration for our design!
Runway to Room: the link between Fashion and Interior Design
Fashion Look #1:
Fashion Concept: Digital Print
Christopher used a blown up image of an abalone shell to create this beautiful design in the pants of this look. Instead of traditional screen printing, the image is digitally printed onto the fabric much like a traditional printed prints on paper.
Interior Design Translation:
- Digital print pillows use fabric that has been digitally printed
- Floor Basket is made of recycled print materials like magazines and newspaper literally bringing in the concept of digital print media
- Damask Chair is a repeated pattern that mimics the digital print pattern of the pants
Fashion Concept: Negative Space to add visual interest
Christopher often uses the play of negative space to create interest in his fashions. In this ensemble, he used large cut-out designs on the sleeves of the sweater to create visual interest.
Interior Design Translation:
- Bowl accessory has cutout design that mimics the cutout design of sweater
- Fabric panel has design utilizing negative space concept and can be used as drapery panels for a punch of visual interest
Fashion Concept: Neutral with a splash of color
Christopher’s look demonstrates how to pair a neutral with a pop of color to create visual interest without being too overwhelming. The white sweater lets the beautiful colors in the printed pants become the focal point of the ensemble.
Interior Design Translation:
- Neutral sofa and accent pillows create visual interest by keeping the large sofa neutral and using colorful accents that can be easily changed out
Fashion Look #2
Fashion Concept: Bold Texture (jacket)
To create the textured look of this jacket, Christopher used many hand sewn pieces of vinyl in petal like shapes. Some had the shiny vinyl texture facing out while others had the matte side facing out. He did this to further create interest and play on mixing materials and finishes within the ensemble.
Interior Design Translation:
- Fabric Panel texture is ‘petal like’ like jacket and can be used as drapery panels
- Bold runway concepts can be abstracted and toned down to fit into your everyday space:
- Gold Mirror spindles mimic the jagged petals of the jacket texture
- Accent Table metal base mimics rugged jacket texture in an abstracted architectural form
- Metal Ball Accessory has sheen like the jacket and rounded protrusions that provide texture
Fashion Concept: Mixing Different Materials
Christopher often mixes different materials in his looks to create interest and make use of different textures. In look #2, he mixed materials by pairing the vinyl jacket with the fabric dress.
Interior Design Translation:
- Glass and Metal accent tables provide contrast between smooth clear glass and harsh dark metal
- Fabric screen and nail head trim provides contrast between the soft natural linen feel of the fabric and metallic accent of the trim
- Studded Pillow on Sofa mixes materials that are different to provide visual interest and texture
- Mirror mixes wood, metal, and glass of mirror
Fashion Look #3
Fashion Concept: Candy Inspiration and feminine shape
For the inspiration for this look, Christopher used rock candy that he scanned and enlarged to create a digital print fabric. He used candy as inspiration to be fun and whimsical.
Interior Design Translation:
- Pink Chandelier has a whimsical gumball candy like look and rounded ‘feminine’ silhouette
- Candy Accessories- We used candy in a literal sense as a fun way to incorporate Christopher’s inspiration. Using simple glass containers with fun accessories inside that can be easily changed out is a simple everyday design that anyone can utilize in their home.
Fashion Concept: Bold Color
Many of Christopher’s looks feature bold color. The pink of this dress and blue of the dress in look #5 are beautiful examples of using saturated color.
Interior Design Translation:
- Pink Rug- We used Christopher’s pink dress as the main inspiration for the stage color. The rug anchors the main seating space
- Throw Blanket – an accessory on a chair can provide a pop of color but also be easily changed out
- Circles Painting has saturated color and is a focal point on wall
- Pink Pillows– Pillows incorporate pink into the color scheme with navy, gold, ivory without being overwhelmingly pink
Fashion Look #4
Fashion Concept: Neutral
In this look, Christopher chose a neutral ivory fabric to let the texture of this dress become the focus.
Interior Design Translation:
- Sofa is a large staple piece that when kept neutral becomes timeless and can mix and match with different styles and colors
- Accessories: cutout bowl, feather pillow, marble trays– neutral accents can be a focal point or provide interest even without the use of color
Fashion Concept: Bold Texture
Christopher achieved the ‘fringe’ look of this dress by using individual pieces of fabric that were only fastened at the top. The result was lots of movement when the model moved creating another layer of interest.
Interior Design Translation:
- Shag Rug – We used the pink rug with bold texture to demonstrate how to create visual interest with texture instead of a defined pattern like most rugs typically have
- Feather Pillow – The accent pillow made out of ostrich feathers was used to bring lots of texture in on a small scale so it did not become overwhelming. The movement of the feathers on the pillow is like the movement of the ‘fringe’ on Christopher’s dress
Fashion Look #5
Fashion Concept: Bold Texture
Christopher achieved the bold texture in this dress by hand appliqueing thousands of individual pieces of fabric. The result is a stunning look with lots of soft texture.
Interior Design Translation:
- Fabric Panel- We chose a fabric with bold texture that can be used for a drapery panel or accent pillow
- Incorporate bold texture in a smaller scaled item to create interest but not overwhelm the space
- Flamingoes- wooden feathers of the flamingos are like the ‘petal like’ texture of the dress
- Texture can be visual instead of texture you can feel
- Metal side table –indentations are like the reverse of ‘nail head’ trim
Fashion Look #6
Fashion Concept: Bold Pattern like the honey comb
Christopher used a bold geometric pattern of honey comb in this look to achieve interest.
Interior Design Translation:
- Patterned Metal Side Table- metal webbing design of the base mimics the honey comb pattern
- Lamp Pattern- pattern on the base mimics honey comb pattern
- Circles Painting –repeating circular geometric shape in a more abstracted form
Fashion Concept: Nature Inspiration and Whimsy
For this collection, Christopher’s inspiration and concept was the progression of an insect landing on a flower. Using honey comb and bee inspired fashions that ended with the blue dress from look #5, he was able to visually demonstrate that concept as the models went one by one down the runway. He also transposed a bee on the hip of this dress to add whimsy based on nature elements and create additional visual interest.
Interior Design Translation:
- Whimsy based on nature and animals
- Wooden Flamingos
- Metal Owl
- Gold Mirror –mimicking a sunburst and has a golden honey finish
- Fabric– Pattern and weave mimics insect pattern and color and metallic finish is colored like golden honey
- Material Inspiration
- Linen of sofa, lamp shade, and screen panels- Organic feel of the linen fabric brings a rustic and nature inspired feel to the interior
- Feather pillow– Made from ostrich feathers that had been shed, this pillow is a literal way to bring animal inspiration into the home
- Flower shape of marble accessories– Flower shape and natural marble material are nature inspired
Conclusion
- In showing how to take fashion concepts and bring them into your home we also wanted show how we pulled multiple elements together into a cohesive design. We did that by:
- -Repeating colors of Gold, Khaki, Blue, Pink, and white
- -Repeating pattern- honeycomb and circular patterns
- -Repeating finishes-Texture and also metal, glass, and mirror elements
- We also wanted to demonstrate how to think outside the box and bring fun and playful elements into the interior design
- -Playful pink chandelier that is a conversation piece
- -Large jack and whimsical animal accessories
- -Bright pink color
Thoughtful interior design can make bold runway fashion, whimsical inspiration, and saturated color become a cohesive and beautifully designed space.
Interested in purchasing something you saw in the presentation or on the stage? All items are available, Contact us for further information!
