Pattern Puzzle: Tze Goh

tze_goh_1We have to do a restart of Monday’s pattern challenge. Connie generously did the leg work to find the credit for the designer -Tze Goh, another student at St. Martin’s- of the depicted style along with some delicious alternatives. I don’t find much for Tze Goh beyond a Facebook page.

Consider the style at right, Pleat Farm says these are “Made of foam materials fused with jersey”.

tze_goh_2At first I thought this was an obligatory drape but after a closer review, it looks like a shawl collar (or perhaps a revers, stitched to the shoulder line or thereabouts) combined with a convertible collar. Don’t hesitate to trounce my opinion, but I don’t think it’s too hard to come to it -once you acquire the materials that is. I just like the concept, wouldn’t wear it.

Another style -I’m enamored of this one!- is shown at right. It is a very cool concept; the outer edge of the sleeve wends its way to attach into a horizontal side waist seam. The seam looks a little fat but consider the material; it takes a deep tuck (four inches? five inches?) before being stitched into place. I wonder what it would look like in other materials? I could see a range of materials, everything from a calico used in casual summer dresses to a georgette. On second thought, a georgette probably wouldn’t work, it never or rarely looks good without gathers and fullness. Caution must be exercised though, the wrong side of the fabric would be very obvious so one will either need to face the piece completely or use double sided material.

Last but not least, Pleat Farm, where Connie found the reference, is an incredible site. If you’re into dimensional texture (origami etc) wait until you have some time to spend or you’re not going to get anything else done today. I lost most of my morning there. Enjoy.

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6 comments

  1. Marie-Christine says:

    Amazing stuff. Am deadly tempted to waste the rest of the day on that pleating stuff :-).

    But about the ‘foam fused to jersey’, that sounds like a bogus description by someone who’d just say ‘wool’ on antique Inca weavings in a museum. I bet you could do this very nicely with lighweight neoprene. Ditto with Malden Mill’s Power Stretch. They’d have the right amount of slight stretch, and the correct body to hold those yeowzy sleeves. Without nasty artisan fusing to mar the design process.

    Only thing is you’d have to think hard to find a climate you could actually wear this in – New Mexico for instance would be totally out. Maybe Reykjavik. Unless your arms fell out, frozen. Probably just San Francisco, where the locals are inured to simultaneous freezing and sweating :-).

  2. dosfashionistas says:

    Actually, foam fused to jersey is a fabric that was commercially made and used in the 70’s (late 60’s and early 70’s). It was even washable.

  3. Matt P says:

    What’s so great about these designs is that they look very simple at first glance, but they’re clearly complex. I’m trying to figure out the bottom one, but I’m getting stumped. I don’t see any seams other than the horizontal ones that the sleeve bottoms insert into. But, there’s not actually any shaping there. It’s almost like it’s just a slit that the sleeve bottom is fitted into.

    I’m picturing a pattern shape something like a traditional Japanese kimono — the front and the back each cut in one with the sleeve and it looks like it’s folded at the shoulder line. The seam of the sleeve should be at an angle to the side seam, almost like a dart, in order to pull the sleeve edge down like the photo shows. I suspect it needs a gusset in there to avoid having too much strain at the top of the side seam. But, maybe I’m missing something?

  4. Brina says:

    Matt, I think the pattern you are describing is correct except–the seam at the waist for the “sleeve” would not necessarily need to be angled. The pull of the fabric to the front (and back) would make the sleeve angle down. Gusset? I don’t know that that would be necessary either. The fabric appears pretty soft so it might work without one.

    I’ve seen other images of the top design’s sleeve and from the side they are a big circle that shows the top of the arm.

  5. Britannica says:

    Of the first one, I think it’s not two collars, but rather one three-dimensional collar. The upper collar piece which is reminiscent of a convertible collar, but with the inside edge sewn to the front piece (there is a seam visible near the neck although it’s possible that it’s a dart) and the outside edge sewn to a second piece which resembles a shawl collar which is continuous with the front piece only at the very front. diagram

  6. Kathleen says:

    Britannica: hmm. Your diagram is very interesting, I can certainly see this would be an interesting way to put it together! I’ll keep that in mind. I have a few thoughts.

    Imo, it’s immaterial as to whether there is a seam or a dart for the intent of our discussion. Again imo, shawl collars (actually, nearly any collar) with darts to the underside, roll prettier. A dart in this area used to be much more common than it is now. That one could use the dart to stick in another separately pieced collar (as is possible in this case) is just icing on the cake. I do think the convertible collar is a separate piece, it looks too full and the shawl not full enough, to be able to encompass them both as a one piece extension on the neckline. It would be fun to push the limits tho to see if this were possible.

    Any clothing item or feature regardless of its attributes is a three dimensional construct.

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