To assist aspiring fashion designers in making the shift from traditional to innovative garment creation, it is imperative to educate students and showcase the endless capabilities that the world of digital apparel has to offer. This time, we tapped into the South American market, and we couldn’t be more excited. From professors to first-year students, Colegiatura Columbiana, a leading university in Colombia recently offered their students and faculty members the opportunity to participate in an intensive VStitcher workshop, led by 3D Apparel Design Specialist, Karina Ochoa Beltran, aiming to teach their students to develop industry-standard 3D design skills.
“I always wanted to take digital design back to Colombia, and now that Browzwear’s VStitcher has become second nature to me, I felt that with Colombia’s background in manufacturing and not to mention all the emerging talent in the region’s creative industry, it is crucial for Latin American designers to skill up in 3D to impact the entire industry and make a positive change,” says Karina, who spearheaded, created, and taught the workshop.
After knocking on the doors of many universities across Colombia, Karina’s hometown, she came across Mónica Laverde, the director of the Fashion Program at Colegiatura Colombiana University who had already started to research different fashion design platforms. When Karina approached her, it was a great opportunity to set the ball rolling and launch the first Digital Fashion 101 workshop.
12 participants, including students and faculty members, took part in this new and exciting workshop and were able to take their existing fashion design skills into the digital world. The workshop consisted of 16 intensive 3-hour sessions over the course of three weeks.
The first week began with the basics, walking the students through t-shirt construction, whereas the second and third weeks of the workshop provided the students with the skills to begin developing their own digital apparel collections. Needless to say, the results were remarkable. After chatting with several students and faculty members who participated in the workshop, we were able to gain insight into their 3D experience as first-time VStitcher users.
“This workshop was a wonderful experience for me,” says Isabella Orjuela, a fashion design student at Colegiatura Columbiana University. “As someone who has skills within visual communications and now shifting to fashion design, 3D is definitely the way to go,” she adds.
Another student in the program, Valentina Otalvaro, who particularly appreciated the true-to-life aspect of the software said that “Being someone who enjoys hands-on tasks, having the opportunity to work with a solution like VStitcher has given me the resources and tools to put my skills into practice and visualize what my garment will look like in the real world.
There were two faculty members that took part in the workshop. One of them, Laura Landazabal, was blown away at the endless capabilities of the software and how it accounted for all of the physical processes of garments digitally, “If you understand garment construction when you use VStitcher, you’ll get the hang in no time,” says Laura. “I love how you can utilize the fabrics and accurately see how each fabric drapes over the body. I also enjoyed working with different assets including a wide variety of buttons and zippers; I think it’s super helpful that you have the ability to leave the zipper open or closed.”
The second faculty member, Santiago Utima, shared his overall positive experience working with VStitcher,“ I have always delved into the technical aspect of the design process. It is the first time that I found a software that has interesting tools that have the ability to match digital with reality.”
After the success of the first VStitcher workshop, the university is already drawing up plans to introduce Browzwear’s VStitcher into the current curriculum for the Fashion Design program, including extending the opportunity to alumni students, which will allow them to build on their existing skills in 3D and complete their studies with proficiency in VStitcher, before launching into their careers.
We’re inspired by educators like Karina and look forward to following the students’ journeys as they continue to explore the world of 3D apparel, gaining the tools to thrive in such a dynamic and fast-evolving industry.