DESIGN ELEMENTS
ELEMENTS
The design elements are the building blocks or starting points in the creation of a design.
In Product Design & Technology the design elements include:
SHAPE SILHOUETTE FORM TEXTURE
LINE COLOUR TRANSLUCENCY TRANSPARENCY OPACITY
SHAPE
Shape is the area defined by the outside edges of an object, the
boundaries of a colour, or a line. A shape can be geometric or organic.
Geometric shapes include squares, rectangles, triangles and circles.
Organic shapes are irregular and are often based on curves.
In fashion design SHAPE can refer to a few things...
> The overall shape of the garment which is called the silhouette.
> The shapes that are used as parts of a garment eg. sleeves or collars etc
> Shapes created by a printed design or shapes created by seams, trims etc 1 2
SILHOUETTE
Silhouette is the outline or outside shape of the garment. The silhouette
shapes of fashion are very specific to descriptions of clothing, they include:
Tube - long, cylindrical, and narrow with minimal shaping.
Trapeze – a triangle with a wide base, and pointed or narrow at the top.
Bell – narrow and tube like in the top section, suddenly rounding out to a flat
base.
Hourglass – wide at the top and bottom, and narrow in the centre.
Wedge - an inverted triangle, wide at the top, narrowing to a point at the
bottom.
“We often think of fashions of a particular era as using a specific silhouette
shape – e.g. The tube like flapper dress of the 1920’s, the full skirted, bell
shaped gowns of the 1950’s and the wedge created by the padded shoulders
of 1980’s power dressing.” - PD&T textbook (p90) 3 4
FORM
The overall three dimensional shape and structure of a product.
Form can be created through the use of shape or line. While shape is
only two-dimensional, form is three-dimensional. You can hold a form,
walk around a form and sometimes be inside a form.
TEXTURE
Texture is the surface quality of an item.
It is how something feels when it is touched or looks like it would feel if
touched. In fashion this is the surface of the fabrics and trimmings.
The texture of a fabric is created by the way the fabric is constructed
and the fibre it is constructed from. 5 6
DESIGN ELEMENTS
LINE
Line is the most basic of the design elements.
Lines have length, thickness and direction and they can be straight,
curved, horizontal, vertical, diagonal, zigzag, wavy, parallel, continuous, or
interrupted, such as dashed or dotted lines.
Line can be created by the overall shape or silhouette, surface details such
as stitching, printed pattern, or construction. In a fashion garment they can
be part of the fabric (stripes, plaid or woven texture) or part of the design
(seams, pleats, pin tucks, drape, decorative trim).
Line can show direction, draw attention to a part of the body by directing
the gaze of the viewer, outline or divide a space, create psychological
aspects in the design or generate optical illusion. 7 8
COLOUR
Colour can be referred to as:
Primary, Secondary or Tertiary colour
Cool or warm
Harmonious or Complimentary
Hue refers to the name of the colour (eg. red, blue).
Value or tone is how light or dark the colour is (eg. light blue, navy blue).
Intensity is how bright or dull it is.
Colour can define parts of a design. It can be used to create shape, to
draw the attention to a particular part of the body or may act as a contrast
between one part of the design and another. Colour can be dramatic or
subtle. It can be used symbolically or can create mood and emotion in
design. Colour can define trends for a particular season or define brands or
products. 9 10
TRANSLUCENCY
Allows some light through but detail cannot be seen clearly.
In other words... things that are translucent allow light through but with
significant diffusion or distortion. Most clothes would therefore better be
described as translucent.
Materials which can be made translucent include silk, rayon or nylon.
TRANSPARENCY
Allows light through and can be seen through.
Some sheer fabrics can be semi-transparent, these include fabrics with a 11 12
low thread count such as Chiffon, Georgette or fine nylon (such as found in
stockings).
OPACITY
Does not allow light through and cannot be seen through.
Designs can be opaque but give the illusion of varying opacity levels.
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DESIGN PRINCIPLES
PRINCIPLES
The design principles are created through the way in which the various elements of the design
are applied or combined. Together elements & principles form the building blocks of design and
affect the expressive content, or message, mood or aesthetic form of the work.
In Product Design & Technology the design principles include:
PROPORTION BALANCE SYMMETRY / ASYMMETRY RHYTHM
PATTERN REPETITION MOVEMENT SPACE CONTRAST
PROPORTION
Proportion is how all aspects of the design relate to the design as a whole:
the pleasing interrelationship of the sizes of all parts of the garments.
The size and length of design features like pockets, trimmings, surface
ornamentation or parts of garment and their relationship to the silhouette of
the garment contribute to the sense of proportion.
“Many modern designers exaggerate some of the proportions of their
designs for the effect that this produces.....this creates a sense of tension
and instability or may focus on a particular feature. It also gives the sense of
breaking away from expected or conventional forms.” - PD&T textbook (p81) 14 15
BALANCE
Balance refers to visual weight in design.
A garment must be balanced to be visually pleasing. Balance is also the
concept of visual equilibrium, and relates to our physical sense of balance.
Balance can be achieved symmetrically OR asymmetrically.
SYMMETRY / ASYMMETRY
When an object is symmetrical, one side is a mirror image of the other.
A symmetrical object or garment can be described as having equal “weight”
on both sides of a centrally placed line. It is also known as ‘formal balance’.
Asymmetry means an object or garment has no lines of symmetry.
Asymmetry can create an exciting dramatic effect. Asymmetrical garments
can still be visually balanced through the use of similar shapes or volumes. 16 17
RHYTHM
Rhythm is the arrangement of features in a design so the eye moves easily
over the garment.
It leads the eye from one part of a design to another, creating movement
through repetition of pattern, shapes, lines or colour. Rhythm has a fluid,
visual beat that can range from slow and gradual to fast paced.
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DESIGN PRINCIPLES
PATTERN
Patterns are created from the repeated use of lines, shapes and colours.
Patterns can be formed by:
> The construction of the fabric through the interplay of threads
that are woven or knitted
> Through printed or embroidered designs on the surface of the fabric.
Patterns that are woven into fabric with different colours often have
specific names, e.g. plaids, herringbones and hounds tooth. Twills and
jacquards are fabrics with a pattern formed through the weaving process.
Printed patterns can use a variety of shapes, lines and colours. They can be
abstract, or naturalistic/ figurative (based on real things such as flowers). 19 20
REPETITION
Repetition occurs when an element such as line, shape, space, value,
colour or texture is used more than once.
Repetition creates pattern. Repeated patterns or elements create a
sense of rhythm like the rhythm or beat of a piece of music.
On fabric a ‘repeat’ is: The distance between the starting point of the
pattern and where that pattern point restarts.
MOVEMENT
When discussing clothing, movement refers to how the fabric flows and
drapes.
When looking at other objects , such as furniture, movement refers to
how the eye is drawn across the object by its visual features. 21 22
SPACE
Gives the eye freedom to move through a design and to discover the
elements it’s looking for.
Positive space is the space an object or design takes up.
Negative space is the space between the positive space or between parts
of the object. Negative space can be an important and integral part of any
design and often helps lead the eye to a focal point.
CONTRAST
Contrast is created through the use of elements such as colour, tone,
shape and line. It can add interest and drama to a design, highlight
specific points in the body or draw attention to a focal point in the design.
23 24
Image details:
1) Fabio Bartelt, 2013 2) Chloe, 2013 3) Pierre Cardin 4) Christian Dior, 1950’s
5) Viktor & Rolf, 2010 6) Irish Van Herpen 7) Sass & Bide 8) Chanel, 2009
9) Gucci, 2016 10) Zimmerman, 2015 11) Irish Van Herpen, 2012 12) YSL, 1960’s
13) Vivenne Westwood, 2014 14) Stella McCartney, 2014 15) Valentino, 2016 16) Erdem, 2015
17) James Long, 2014 18) Erdem, 2015 19) Burberry, 2015 20) Versace, 2017
21) Thakoon, 2015 22) Peter Pilotto, 2012 23) Jean Paul Gaultier, 2008 24) Dereck Lam