As a Fashion Merchandising student, you have the freedom to experiment with various creative ideas in our three creative spaces – Product Development and Design Lab, Digital Design Lab, and Maker’s Space.
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Product Design and Development Lab
Barrow Hall 215
This creative lab prepares students for product development and design careers. The lab currently houses 6 industrial Juki sewing machines, 1 blind hemmer, 1 overlock, 1 Juki baby lock serger, 16 dress forms ranging in sizes, along with various pattern making and draping tools. Students can expand their knowledge in fashion design, construction, and prototyping. The lab equipment was partially funded through a Cotton Incorporated grant, Cotton for Healthy Living, and donations from various industry partners.
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Digital Design Lab
Barrow Hall 216
This digital creative shared space includes an active learning class configuration with 30 Microsoft Surface computers with industry design software. This software includes the Lectra Education Partnership program that donated Kaledo Computer-Aided Design and Modaris, a digital pattern-making solution under a license agreement with the college valued at $2.9 million. Textile, Merchandising, and Interiors students can learn how to use digital solutions from design to production, which is applicable to leading brands and manufacturers.
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Maker’s Space
Barrow Hall 206
The Barrow Hall Maker’s Space includes a Mutoh Sublimation Printer and Heat Press. In this space, students take their abstract creative ideas and make them a reality. While utilizing the digital printer, students create textiles, apparel, and other products.
The Creative Spaces in Action
These creative spaces work seamlessly for students to engage in various fashion design research including historic design inquiry, user-centered design research, digital printing fabric testing and so much more.
Interested in conducting and/or collaborating on design research?
User-Centered Design
The traditional design process used in the fashion industry has created products for mainstream consumers and have continued to overlook the functional and aesthetic needs and wants for under-served consumer groups. Centering the end user helps students design products for diverse consumers.
Student-Created Prints for ER Bed Linens
Related Story: ER physician turns to fashion merchandising students for problem-solving
Historic Design Inquiry
Students researched Georgia fashion designer Frankie Welch’s design process in collaboration with the Hargaret Library and Special Collections.
From Scarves to Printed Fabric
Students were inspired by Frankie Welch’s scarves and digitally designed prints utilizing Lectra’s Kaledo software, sublimate their prints on fabric to then design and construct modern interpretations.
From Historic Object to Modern Garments
From a patternmaking perspective, students were inspired by Frankie Welch’s size inclusive Frankie Dress, where they learned to “rubbed off” a pattern from the original Frankie Dress, proto-type, and create modern adaptions of this historic design.
