Fashion in Motion: Pleats Please by Issey Miyake
May 2001
Fashion in Motion is a series of live catwalk events presented at the V&A. Featuring some of the greatest designers of our time, Fashion in Motion brings catwalk couture to a wider audience by modelling it against the beautiful backdrop of the Museum.
Pleats Please collections by Issey Miyake were first launched in 1993. Made from single pieces of high quality 100% polyester fabric, the innovation behind Pleats Please is that clothes are first cut and sewn together two-and-a-half to three times larger than the finished garments. Individual pieces are hand-fed into a heat press sandwiched between two sheets of paper. The garment then emerges with permanent pleats. This industrial process allows both texture and form to be created at the same time. Vertical, horizontal and zig-zag pleating is used to create varying effects and architectural shapes.
Pleats Please clothes are very functional and practical; the garments store easily, travel well, require no ironing and can be machine-washed and dried within minutes. Shapes are simple, colours diverse. A set of standard colours is available each season, to which are added seasonal colours and prints.
The Spring/Summer 2001 collection celebrated the world of natural light and shadow and included the following ranges: Stitch Denim, Flower Garden, Stripe Montage and Side Wave.
- Stitch Denim range: jeans, shirt and t-shirt
- Flower Garden range: white vest and trousers, mesh skirt, tunic and cardigan and stole
- Stripe Montage range: luminous vest and trousers, vest and stole
- Stripe Montage range: pink trousers, dress and stole
- Standard Black Pleats: long coat, long dress and Madame T stole
- Side Wave range: black vest, skirt and cape
British Design 1948–2012: Innovation in the Modern Age
31 March–12 August 2012
Showcasing over 300 British design objects, this exhibition celebrates the best of British post-war art and design from the 1948 ‘Austerity Games' to the summer of 2012.
More detailsShop online
Steiner Ruby Cotton Pleat Top (Medium)
Lightweight pleat top adapted from a furnishing fabric. Roller printed cotton, Steiner & Co., England.
Buy nowEvent - Henry Holland
Fri 23 March 2012 19:00
EVENING TALK: Discover fashion designer Henry Holland's London look which is constantly inspired by the variety of cultures, attitudes and mindsets that exist in the capital. Now firmly established on the international fashion scene, he discusses his ideas and recent work.
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