Night Tales Costume and Fashion

Press Kit

Unique Properties

This collection is inspired by dark fairytales. Feiyang wrote her own stories then created weird, enchanting characters then design garments that fit their characteristic.

For her, the word darkness conjures all manner of things. Unknown. Unseen. Unimaginable. Unbelievable.

Feiyang enjoys the progress of making design through her own stories; by also incorporate my fabrics she created, she wishes this collection could be storytelling.

Dimensions & Packaging

The whole collection contains 5 looks, size 4 women and size 10 men.

Tags

Costume, Storytelling, Couture, Dark Fairytale, Dark fantasy, Royal College of Art

Production Technology

Instead of thinking of possible garment shapes first, Feiyang would derive lines, forms and texture from nature, like butterfly wings or tree barks, arrange them in various ways until certain forms grow naturally out of that which can also be applied to the human body.

Due to Feiyang's obsession of creating her own fabric, the collection incorporates multiple techniques including hand and machine embroidery, knitting, and screen printing. All shoes and accessories were also handmade by herself.

The creation process is almost the same as a fine artist creating an intuitive artwork.

Design Challenge

The biggest challenge was the process of transforming each characters from words to drawings and ultimately into three dimensional forms. Each step requires days of practicing, sampling and prototyping.

Another challenge would be the making of garment, the embroidery were both machine and hand embroidered, which were time consuming and the process requires lots of patience.

Project Duration

The project started on March 2017, the initial looks finished in December 2019 in Chicago but more characters are getting made in London 2021. It was featured in Chicago Soho House in May 2017. Also in the Worlds AIDS Day Fashion Show STRUT in December 2017.

Operation Flow

The whole collection is carefully embellished with beading and other embroideries on very light material that has a stable understructure. The wearer can perform, dance freely without too much weights on their body.

All silk organza were hand washed in order to create a softer texture that gives more flow while moving.

Research

The inspiration came from novels, tales and short stories that showcase psychological struggle of different character. The soul of the muses are the twisted personalities of different characters.

Feiyang grew up by reading Lilian Lee and Grimm brother’s fairytales. Their stories are known for their whimsical and supernatural elements; these stories feature combinations of familiar plots, images, and motifs.

After hundreds hours of reading and writing, the weird narratives of Night tales were made.

Inspiration

Feiyang have had a passion for all the dark things. The night creatures; the witches and the forest. She found them mysterious and incredibly inspiring.

Feiyang's design approach is very organic, raw, inherent and artistic. She never start by thinking about which type of garment she wanted to create and what shape it might take any more. Instead, she would looked into herself for inspirations and the nature for references.

This collection is inspired by a series of dark fairytales she wrote.

Image Credits

Image #1-5: Photographer Amie Hana/Model Bella Roy and Sarah Hensley/Makeup and Hair Paula De Oliveira Silva/
Designer and Stylist FeiYang Zhang, Night Tales,2018

Patents

Copyrights belong to Feiyang Zhang, 2020.

Colors of Night Tales Costume and Fashion