Yes, it's Andrae Gonzolo--of Season 2, Project Runway fame. Other PR fans may remember Andrae for a rather notorious crying-on-the-runway scene, but I remember him best for one of the coolest designs from the entire series--a gorgeous evening gown inspired by a photo he took of a New York City puddle.
I got to meet Andrae yesterday at the Bryant Park Hotel, where he was showing After Eight, a collection of very pretty, classy evening wear he's designed in collaboration with LA fashion company Single. And in person, he's as sweet, smart, and prone to dramatic gesturing as he was on the show. [sound of needle being ripped off vinyl record]
Why are you reading about this here on Gearlog, you may ask? Well, because believe it or not, fashion designers these days are using a lot of tech! (OK, I had to justify my meeting somehow--but I could not pass up the chance to meet one of the most endearing designers to be booted off the show--"You're out!"--by the slightly terrifying Heidi Klum.)
After the jump, read about some of Andrae's tech techniques.
Me: How do you use and implement technology in the design process?
Andre: Wireless, wireless, wireless. It is a savior for domestic garment manufacturers. Because I have my own laptop, which can connect wirelessly to the local network at Single, the additional overhead associated with adding another member to a design team is significantly streamlined, because we did not need to install a special computer terminal.
Gmail is a savior as well. My assistant designer and I keep track of the samples being sewn via a Google docs spreadsheet that we can access online, from anywhere, and edit simultaneously, without having to save multiple copies of it on our hard drives.
Also, inspiration... I get notions for the collection, and then research images through Google and Flickr.com for concrete manifestations of my imagination. Lately I've been researching deep-sea wildlife and exotic Amazonian insects for fabric treatment inspiration.
Below, two of Single/After Eight's dresses. I want!
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