Fashion Capital is collaborating with the online brand emporium BrandAlley.co.uk  that specialises in designer flash sales.

 

 

This project will present something truly unique to the BrandAlley customer and draw their awareness to a new set of designers giving them the opportunity to buy into an exclusivity that is not generally available from the mass market. The concept of the competition is for something anti highstreet and fastfashion in the form of investment pieces that are both unique and exclusive.

 

The typical BrandAlley customer profile is predominantly Women in their 30's, affluent and extremely stylish, based in Hampstead, Kensington and Primrose Hill. Working and sophisticated and wanting to make a stylish statement at work and play.

 

The brief asks you to be innovative and fashion forward while bearing in mind the customer you are designing for who would ultimately lust after this stylish and luxurious dress while also wanting it to be timeless as an investment piece. The classic interpretation of a little black dress is a wardrobe staple that can be reinvented with accessories transitioning it from day to night and it will be marketed as such on the BrandAlley website at the time of sale. Being worn both in the professional day wear manor and also being dressed up for evening out for a dressy event.

 

Designers are asked to aspire to design one or more versatile and stylish dress, beautifully tailored with a unique conceptual edge. Think of Audrey Hepburn in her Givenchy ensembles in the famous film ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ which were extremely modern and avant gaurde for their time yet still extremely relevant today.

 

 

The brief:

  

• Produce 1-4 Little black dresses
• Have a Regular retail price of £60-120
• Must be of an extremely high standard using materials that do not look cheap or bad quality
• Must be a dress that can go from day to evening

An extremely important element to consider in the design is how it appeals online, as this is how it will be displayed to customers, so it must photograph beautifully! Even with an iconic   designer LBD it can be notoriously difficult to convey the beauty of a solely black garment photographically. To you’re your design an edge, take into consideration structure using shape, definition, innovative tailoring and draping. Cutout detailing, embellishment as well as subtle peek-a-boos of colour poking through under folds, pleats and splits can all photograph well and look stunning when done right.  Texture and the use of different materials can break up a solid form and bring definition and a sculpting to an otherwise simple garment.

 

The Finalists:

10 final garments will be selected from the entrants to potentially go on sale on the BrandAlley website. The designer finalists and winner will receive press and media coverage and this is a fantastic project to be involved with. Please read terms and conditions for more information.

 

Submission requirements:

1. Submit clear and good quality sketches and drawings immediately
2. Download and Complete a   Garment specification sheet.
   
3. Produce a finished production sample for each dress design by anytime before August 20th 2010 with no late submissions accepted

 

 

 Terms and Conditions of ‘The Little Black Dress Competition’ available to download