As part of a plan to educate the fashion industry about on-demand dye-sublimation printing and its environmental benefits, Epson is supporting two fashion students from the University of Westminster who are using the printing method in their designs.
The company is also providing the university with a new 24in SureColor SC-F500 printer, which will work alongside an existing 44in SC-F6200. both printers use dye sublimation technology and will help students learn about the application of print within their fashion designs.
‘Epson has been partnering with the University of Westminster for the last three years,’ explained market development manager Heather Kendle. ‘This year we were particularly impressed with the breadth and quality of the thinking, as well as the finish of the collections presented. We selected two students for an Epson bursary, Lottie Everett and Hannah Sosna, for their use of print within their collections and the thinking behind the concepts. Both used print to support strong shapes, avoiding overpowering colours, while still creating strong imagery. In Hannah’s case, the use of colours in a fairly structured menswear range was refreshing, and Lottie’s link to South American architecture showed her ability to include cultural references into fashion.
‘The collections show the flexibility of the Epson dye sublimation printer to support the creation of a collection, as well as the breadth of polyester fabrics available for today’s designers. The final results speak for themselves – showing both strong colours and a more subtle look. We were delighted that Hannah was also selected for the London Fashion Week catwalk and that she has a chance to show her collection to a wider audience.’
‘I used print in my final collection to replicate the TV test cards of the late 1960s,’ said University of Westminster graduate Hannah Sosna. ‘Sublimation allowed me to print onto suiting fabric while still keeping the natural grain of the fabric. This money will allow me to keep searching for new ways to develop this technique for my Pre-Collection.
‘The Epson award will help me to push my prints further and experiment more with colour, fabrics and imagery to create vibrant and exciting prints for future collections. The prints in my collection are hand-painted using bold colours in big fluid brush strokes, however I wasn’t able to achieve the same effect on sheer fabrics such as polyester organza and silks. Print sublimation enabled me to transfer my hand-painting directly onto the fabric resulting in the same brushstroke achieved from direct hand painting.’
Graduate designer Lottie Everett added ‘The Epson award will help me to push my prints further and experiment more with colour, fabrics and imagery to create vibrant and exciting prints for future collections. The prints in my collection are hand-painted using bold colours in big fluid brush strokes, however I wasn’t able to achieve the same effect on sheer fabrics such as polyester organza and silks. Print sublimation enabled me to transfer my hand-painting directly onto the fabric resulting in the same brushstroke achieved from direct hand painting.’
