Manmade Project

MAN-MADE PROJECT

For my man-made project I decided to take a look at some of the architecture right here in Savannah. This brought me to my absolute favorite street: Jones Street.

Often regarded as one of the most beautiful streets in Savannah, let alone the entire country, Jones Street captivates those passing by with its mid 19th century architecture and canopy of trees overhead. Many of the single-family townhouse homes have porches which were designed to take advantage of the street's unique brick paving, as much of Savannah at the time was connected by dusty roads.

In the 20th century, Jones Street along with much of Savannah and the entire country took an economic hit. However, it was restored in one of the Historic Savannah Foundation's early large scale projects.

To learn more about Jones Street, click .

here

Since history is so important in Savannah, I decided to let it have a little impact on my design. First, back in the 19th century corsets were a must... so how could I forget one in my design? Next, silk was the fabric of choice for Savannah's elite. So, if this design were ever to come to fruition, the skirt would be made of white silk. I would use white silk primarily because it would keep women the coolest during the hottest times of year.

For the rest of the design, I focused on what I saw while I was taking pictures. First, I loved the ivy and different plants that were growing on the side of the buildings. I let this inspire the top of the whole outfit. I chose for the design to have a high neck because during the 19th century, daytime dressed had high necks because it was seen as indecent for women to wear anything more revealing. While my design definitely shows some skin, I though the high neck was a nice contrast to the revealing sheer top with the embroidered ivy. Then, I decided the skirt would be two different lengths because of all the pictures of stairs that I took. If you looked at this design from the side, the bottom of the skirt would create a step. Not only this style mimic a step but also elongate the figure.