Granite, marble and other natural stones are usually reserved for the home, not the runway.  So what happens when aspiring fashion students from VCU’s Fashion Design and Merchandising department take a field trip to the Charles Luck Studio to find ideas for their designs?  A creative outpouring that showcases the articulation of stone in fashion!  Here is the first in a series of works from the students – from product inspiration to sketch to the finished composition. To learn more about the collaboration with VCU, check out this previous blog entry.

Tess Priselac, a junior from Virginia Beach, VA, remembers, “when first hearing about our class inspiration, I was instantly curious on how we would turn stone into fashion. I started my research by looking on the Charles Luck website. The collection called “Whiteness” was quite beautiful and I found that it connected to my style of design. However, when we were invited to visit the studio itself, I found myself being called to the women’s bathroom floor. As funny as that sounds, the pattern made between the terracotta and cream-colored marbles was very striking. I also wanted my look to be more rustic so I added some real Charles Luck samples of marble and stones to the jacket by hand stitching them, bringing the stone literally into the piece.”

Tess drew her inspiration from the intricate floor in the ladies washroom. The pattern was inspired by Turkish rug patterns, interpreted in an abstract, contemporary floral design of two marbles cut with a waterjet saw.

From a photograph, the pattern of the stone was printed digitally onto fabric, creating a striking and bold skirt.

We thought Luck Stone’s Boscobel Quarry would be the perfect setting to showcase the juxtaposition of the quarry’s raw, untamed landscape against the design’s soft colors, feminine form, and gentle movement. AMAZING!

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