This creative lesson is a design challenge that reaches beyond your classroom. Students are put in groups and assigned an administrator to interview and then design a tie for. This lesson focuses on the customer side of the fashion design world where customers are an integral part of choosing what they wear and what they’ll pay for. Of course a bonus is that administrators get to see what you do in your classroom!

Time Frame: 2 blocks

Objective

• Students will apply their basic sewing skills and their knowledge of design concepts and work to satisfy a client’s desires.
  

Set

• Give an introduction to the project as well as a demonstration on how to sew a basic tie. You can also show how to make a tie via a video like the one below.

Materials

• Fabric
• Scissors
• Sewing Machines
• Matching Thread
• Pins
• Rotary Cutter & Mat
• Old Ties from the consignment shop that students can use as templates

Instruction

• Instruct students to think beyond the standard ties they have seen. Questions to consider:
  • Texture?
  • Color?
  • Width? (Skinny ties, fat ties, “normal”)
  • Length?
  • Shape?
  • Embellishment?
  • Pattern?
  • Themes?

Activities

• Pair students up
  
• Have students interview their administrator
• Design ties by sketching and choosing fabrics – have them get approval to start cutting
• Students should then cut, stitch, and press ties
• When the class is finished, each group will discuss their tie design in front of the class and administrator. Students should talk about what inspired their design, why they chose the color/pattern/style, etc.
• Administrator should give feed back about what they like and dislike about the tie

Background for Teachers

• Another way to run this is to have one administrator come to your class and have the different groups interview him. Let the groups design based on their own interpretations of what he would like. When the groups are finished have him come back and decide which group’s creation he would be most likely to wear. He will wear the winning group’s necktie on a specified day.
• Have female administrators? Have students design a scarf, shawl, or handbag.

Evaluation

• Ties are graded for construction and client satisfaction.

Attachments

• Design a Tie challenge: Interview Questions (Word)
• Tie Pattern (PDF)

Links

• Bow Tie Pattern
• Tie Inspiration
• Bacon Tie

Similar Lessons

• Introduction to the elements of design and line
• Introduction to the principles of design and balance
• Personal Body Types
• Ying/Yang Characteristics in Clothing

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Based on the My Lifetime show, Project Accessory this lesson will challenge your students to design accessories for an outfit of their choice. The objective of this lesson is to test student’s design skills and practical application of the elements and principles of design and color. Skills required: matching colors & patterns, sewing, construction, neatness, flexibility, adaptability.

Time Frame: 1-3 blocks

Objectives

• The objective of this lesson is to test student’s design skills and practical application of the elements and principles of design and color. Skills required: matching colors & patterns, sewing, construction, neatness, flexibility, adaptability.

Set

• Have your class watch an episode of Project Accessory.

• Handmade Chic: Fashionable Projects that look High-End, Not Homespun
• Paint
• Scissors
• Pliers
• Knife & Mat
• Hot Glue
• Fabrics (pleather, fur, felt, etc)
• Beads
• Sequins
• Thread
• Buttons
• Hair clips/combs
• Pin Backs
• Elastic hair bands
• Jewelry Clasps
• Jewelry Findings (earring backs, rods, necklace wire)
• Trims
• Used items from Goodwill or students’ houses (neck ties, bow ties, purses, tote bags, shoes, jewelry, scarves, belts)
• Internet (idea generation)

Background for Teachers

• First it is important to watch at least one episode of the show so the rest of this lesson is in context.
• Have students  bring in an outfit to accessorize from home. You may choose to tell them why they are bringing in the outfit or not depending on the class’ ability. Telling them its for an accessory competition will give them more time to plan ahead. This can be a dress, a formal outfit, or a casual outfit. It can be an outfit for men or women. It is really neat to display everyone’s outfits on a hanger on a rack or on a mannequin if at all possible prior to revealing the challenge.
• For middle school,  inexperienced classes, or time constrained classes, have students work in partners to complete the challenges.
• As far as getting supplies there are a lot of supplies listed and this can obviously add up. To deal with this you can either ask students to bring in the supplies they need for their specific projects (assuming multi day approach) or you can solicit faculty to bring in some of these odd ball things and just provide the basic materials listed above. You may also be able to solicit donations from your tech-ed department or a local hardware store for used or broken stuff.

Instructions

Scenario 1

• The first challenge is to create at least two accessories for your outfit made out of common recycled items.
  • Suggested Supplies
    • Paper Towel Tubes
    • Newspaper
    • Cardboard Boxes (ask your school’s cafeteria)
    • Bottle Caps
    • Containers
    • Twist ties
    • Bread Ties
    • Plastic Bags
    • Paint

Scenario 2

• The second challenge is to create at least 3 accessories based on nature with at least one using an item from nature (non animals) in the product.
  • Suggested Supplies (you can have your class go find stuff outside if you prefer)
    • Small twigs
    • Tree bark
    • Vines
    • Thistles
    • Seed Pods
    • Small Pebbles
    • Sea Shells, coral
    • Hay
    • Moss (purchase at craft store)
    • Pictures of flowers, leaves, trees, etc.
    • Fake flowers, leaves, stems (from craft store)
    • Snow flakes (purchase at craft store)
    • Paint
    • Feathers
    • Acorn

Scenario 3

• The third challenge is to create 3 accessories based on inspiration from the hardware store.
  • Suggested Supplies
    • Wire (various colors/thicknesses)
    • Nuts
    • Bolts
    • Screws
    • Chain
    • Sand paper
    • Paint
    • Tiles
    • Siding
    • Knobs
    • Carpet samples
    • Wood

Other Scenarios

• Lines, shapes, curves, 3-d shapes
• Black & White Accessories
• City Inspired Accessories
• Decade Inspired Accessories

Activities

• Have students set their outfit up either on a rack, mannequin or hang on doors, tables, chairs, etc. Give each student/group their own space. Read the challenge, I like to make it dramatic by opening a letter on a silver platter with the challenge.
• Remind students how they will be judged and what is at stake for the winners of the challenge. I personally do not like giving grades for challenges only bonus points or prizes. I personally believe that students are under enough pressure from the competitiveness of the competition that adding the grade component can overwhelm some students causing more fear than fun.
  • Judging Guidelines:
    • Theme Adhesion: implementation of the theme and compliance with the rules
    • Cohesiveness: All accessories must be tied together but this doesn’t mean they have to be matchy
    • Outfit Statement: How well the accessories go with the outfit, how clear of a statement the out fit is making (what adjectives describe the look? Is it a clear statement?)
    • Quality & Craftsmanship: How well the items are assembled. (Are their glue strands? Loose threads? Will the item stay together?)
• Give your students time to complete the challenge. Depending on what you are asking them to do you can do this lesson in one block to three blocks per challenge. If you are going to squeeze this into one block you might want to consider having students do their design drawing at home by telling them the challenge ahead of time. I would suggest one accessory per block. So if you are asking them for three accessories you should give them three blocks.

Extensions

• Have your students participate in a fashion show showing off their accessories. Collaborate with drama club to have someone do hair and makeup for the show. Students can either personally model their outfits or chose someone to model. Ask three faculty and staff to judge the show along with an audience choice winner. Ask local businesses for donations to sponsor the show or the show’s prizes. Since fashion shows can be a lot of work you may also consider combining your show with your school’s art show or concert.
• You can also add a budget component to this challenge.
• If you want to do  this challenge but don’t have the time to have students make everything collect a variety of accessories and lay them out on a large table. Have all your students put on their outfits and split the class up into teams of three. Have each team pick a group member to be the model. When you say, “go” have the other team members accessorize the model from the things on the table.  When time is up have all the models stand next to each other at the front of the classroom and discuss the positives and negatives of the accessories chosen. Ask the class about the elements of design, matching, color, cohesion of the look, other accessories that might be chosen that weren’t available.

Attachments

• Project Accessory Design Challenge Rubric (Word)

Links

• Full Episodes of Project Accessory
• Accessory Pictures for Inspiration

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Fabric flowers look so challenging to make but they really are quite simple. Inspire your students to embellish and accessorize their clothing projects with fabric flowers!

Objective

• Inspire students to be creative and make lovely accessories to accompany an outfit.

Set

• Show & Tell:  have a collection of samples that you’ve made as well as some garments that are embellished with fabric flowers. If you don’t have lots of samples you can show them some of examples from books like those shown below.

Materials

Instruction

• Demonstrate how to make several different types of flowers. The best directions can be found in books like those above.

Activities

• Have your students make flowers to use as embellishments or accessories.
  

Attachments

• Fantastic Fabric Flowers Templates (PDF)
• Zipper Pansy Pin (Pdf)

Websites

• Pictures of Fabric Flowers
  
• Collection of Fabric Flowers
  

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Lesson Plans

• Hat Designs (Word)
• Sewing Foundations (PDF)
• Sewing Techniques (Word)
• 3 Hour Unisex Shorts
• Collars, Curtains & Kings: Exploring the History of Lace
• Saris, Kimonos, Togas & Smocks: Exploring Clothing Across Cultures

Worksheets

• Hat Designs Grading Sheet (Word)
• Project Offway (Word)
• Where in the World Is this Made Directions (Word)
• Where in the World Is this Made Journal Entry (Word)
• Where in the World Name Tags (Word)

Links

• Sewing Machine Parts Online Quiz

4-H Curriculum

• Smart Shopper Workbook (PDF)
• Smart Shopper Evaluation Sheet (PDF)
• Clothing Construction Levels (PDF)
• Collage Banner (PDF)
• Holes & More Holes (PDF) – test fabrics by running them over sandpaper
• License to Drive (PDF) – sewing on the lines
• Puppet Party (PDF) – sewing a puppet

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Objective

• Students will analyze and evaluate clothing’s cost per wear, a garment’s construction, and perceived value.

Set

• Put the students in groups and give them piles of clothing to look at. Have them determine the clothes have the highest quality and the clothing that has the least quality. Have them make a list of the characteristics that determine quality.

Materials

• Several types of clothing so that students can analyze the quality by looking at the seams, button holes, and quality of fabric.

Instruction:

• Class discussion

• What is a high quality garment?
• Do brand names necessarily mean that an item is high quality?
• Which do they use more in evaluating apparel quality price or their knowledge about quality?
• How much does the price of a garment tell them about the quality of the apparel they buy?

• Tailoring PowerPoint: history of tailoring, definition of tailoring, types of tailoring, tailoring terms, garment life expectancy, price and perceived quality.

Activity:

• Have the students think of two similar items in their wardrobes and estimate the cost per wear of each. Have them determine which is the better value from a cost-to-wear standard.
  • Ex. Black dress worn 4 times for $25 = $6.25 each wear
  • Or  Prom dress worn 2 times for $250= $125 each wear
• As a class establish performance criteria for different types of garments. For example, what are the typical expectations for attractiveness, utility, and durability for each garment?
  • Wedding gowns
  • Basketball uniforms
  • Tailored suits
  • Jeans
  • Infant sleepers
  • Swimsuits
  • Carhart Jackets

Closure

• Why do you think clothing is sold so cheaply today?
• Why don’t people make their own clothes as frequently as they have in the past?
• In what ways is tailoring coming back into “style”?

Assessment:

• Fashion Spree Assignment: students are given a hypothetical $1000 to spend on a wardrobe and they have to justify each purchase. This can be started in class.

Attachments

• Tailoring PowerPoint
• Fashion Spree Assignment

Websites

• Tailoring Tips
• Shopping Lesson Plan

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On a recent internet search I found the coolest online fashion design sites that allows you to dress a model with real designer clothes and accessories. You can even change the facial expressions of the models.  I had so much fun designing my model that I lost track of time. It’s addicting, extremely easy to use, and tons of fun! You’ve got to give it a try Looklet.com

Here’s one look that I designed:

Designing looks is free. You can even create an account to save your designs. The site does not sell each item but does link to the designer’s website if you click on the item for more information. Using this program can easily be incorporated into a fashion design class possibly as a substitute lesson plan or to create looks for a portfolio project.

Similar Sites

• Dress Up Challenge

Similar Lesson Plans

• Supermodels
• French Fashion

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Objective

• Given a lecture and supplies, the student will design and price a purse, exhibiting at least five elements of fashion design with complete accuracy.

Set

• A collection of purses & bags displayed creatively on a table.

Materials

• Scrap fabric assortment
• Trims & buttons & beads
• Closures such as zippers
• Handles
• Poster Board
• Markers
• Hot Glue

Instruction

• Lecture on fashion merchandising
• Explain group activity
• Hand out bags of accessories & start purse designing
• Have groups present their design and merchandising to the class and/or judges.
• Have class vote on their favorite purse.

Strategies for diverse learners

• Visual learners will learn best through the set and the lecture notes. Kinesthetic learners will love the group project that is designing and making a purse. Auditory learners will learn best through the lecture. Interpersonal learners will enjoy working with other people in the group project.

Extensions

• Assign an in-depth individual fashion design and merchandising project similar to the group project due in three weeks.
• Ask teachers and staff to come in and judge the students presentations.

Assessment

• For homework the students will write a summary of their in class project and reflect on their successes and failures.
• Have each design group present to a panel of judges and use the rubrics below.

Closure

• In what ways were our group projects similar to that of designers and the fashion industry?
• What aspects of design did you incorporate in your purses?
• In what ways does marketing fit into the fashion industry?
• What qualities do males possess that might make them as good as if not better at fashion design than women?

Attachments

• Bag Market Competition Student Instructions (PDF)
• Bag Check Off List (PDF)
  
• Store Window Drawing (PDF)
• Blank Billboard (PDF)
• Bag Market Presentations Rubric (Word)
• Bag Market Judging Sheet (Word)

Similar Lesson Plans

• Capitals, Designers & Common Fashion Terms

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