Most
people think of it as only a ‘garment program’, but it can do so much more.
Each
June, as I host a fashion retreat in Verona, Italy, I take my group of participants
to meet Paolo and Dario, two brothers who are leather makers and the owners of Il Girasole in Verona. Over the years, I have become friends with these gentlemen,
and they now humor me by allowing me to bring in a design concept and pattern
from Garment Designer, and they translate it into a finished leather bag. I
have several of these now, and so will share the design process.
Scalloped
Purse, 2018
 |
| Inspiration Purse: note the scallop and the handles |
The
process generally begins with a concept
or a purse or a photo inspiration. Here is the bag that started the thought
process of my 2018 purse. It is from a store window in Como, Italy.
…
I knew that the scallop would be the key feature of the bag, and that the
handles would interact with the 'dagged' shape.
I
start myself with a measuring tape, pencil and a quick rough sketch to
determine the approximate size and dimensions
 |
| My rough drawing |
 |
| I loved these two leathers... green embossed for outside, pink glitter for the inside |
Paolo
now gets involved as we look at my sketch, some other images from online, the
leathers involved, and the dimension. (we do this in Italian …. I’m getting better
at the language, and I’m certainly motivated to speak by the project).
 |
| Paolo working out ideas |
 |
| Translating inches to metric |
Here
are my Garment Designer patterns. I used a scalloped top to get the scallops. I
will only use part of this pattern. Then, I built the smaller front piece and
the piece that will become the bottom and side of the purse. Note that it gets
wider to allow for a ‘pleat’ on the upper side panel)
 |
| Pattern for the scallop flap, the side/bottom and the under-front piece |
Then,
I print in actual size and tape the pieces together and take the sample to
Girasole where we do an evaluation.
Generally,
at this point Paola has a laugh, or he scratches his head and thinks. He aks
questions, offers suggestions, points out my flaw in thinking, etc.
 |
| Paolo laughs.. pretty typical |
Now is generally the time to discuss the finishing’s and hardware. So, often zippers and snaps/magnets come out.
 |
| Choosing the zipper, and findings |
Once
again, I go away and let the magic happen. At some point in this process, I generally
bring my fashion group in to see how Paolo and Dario are progressing and to share their workshop with my group.
Here
is my finished bag.. with the pattern beside it.
 |
| Finished bag on the left and my pattern on the right |
Here is a detail of the inside and the pleat at the upper side of the side purse.
 |
| Inside of the purse.. oops.. my lipstick is peeking out! |
 |
| Note the 'tuck' at the top side. It's a great detail, part of Paolo's signature in his work. There is almost always a surprise aspect to the purse when I see the final project. |
And
here is my bag, back home in San Diego, being worn and loved.
 |
| Off to Balboa Park! |
 |
| Closer view of the purse |
I
really enjoy doing these projects with Girasole, and I think Paolo and Dario feel the same.
(or at least I hope they do).
Below
meet Dario.. the other part of the business. He is standing with Barbara, who
purchased this origami purse from them.; This was a project from a previous
year. I’ll blog about that one in the future.
 |
| Brother Dario with Barbara and her new 'origami' bag. |
Garment
Designer does have an optional Plug-in for Tote Bags, Couture Totes. There are twelve bags in
the set, each designed after a garment style (e.g. Peasant top, Ruffle Purse,
etc.). They offer Small, Medium and Large sizes, and can be a great starting point
for your own original style.’ Garment Designer owners can simply add this on, or it is available as a stand-alone software program.
Go
here for more information, and scroll down a bit.
Thanks
to Paolo and Dario for their ingenuity at translating my inspirations and
patterns to actual Italian leather handbags!
Il
Girasole - Artigianato del Cuoio
Phone: +39 045 832 8693
