FRIDAY FASHION ILLUSTRATION : BE SUSTAINABLE, BABY!

Hello my dearest readers and fellow bloggers! In this post, I'll share a very special fashion illustration. Why is it so special? Well, I'm glad you asked. It's not special because of the medium or even the illustration itself. What makes it special is that I have already illustrated all of the items that featured in this outfit. That means that I have not only worn all of these clothing items before, I have also illustrated them. So, basically I'm illustrating an outfit composed of clothing items I already illustrated. Maybe that will not seem that special to somebody, but it is special to me. It means that I'm creating an illustrated wardrobe of sorts, and I find the idea exciting. When I started my sustainable fashion files, I wanted to capture the stories we create with our clothing items. I wanted to show how fun and creative shopping one's own closet can be. To prove that we do not always need new stuff to be stylish. To show how best outfits can be made with what we already have. I'm really happy that I managed to throw art into this sustainable talk as well. Many years ago, I started my Friday Fashion Illustration series out of love for fashion. Now, I managed to merge the sustainable with the artistic, and I like where all of this is going.

So, what about this fashion illustration. It is a quick sketch I did with random coloured pencils on regular printing A4 paper. As I explained in my last post, I did a couple of these fashion illustrations in one day, capturing different outfits I wore in the last few months. I ended up liking these fashion drawings and I posted one of them already. I spent around only 10-20 minutes on each of these fashion drawings. If you remember, I wrote a bit more about it in my last post where I also thanked my readers for 4.1 million views. As I explained, I worked on a painting and that exhausted me so completely, so I needed to do something more simple. Indeed, these quick fashion drawings proved like a perfect way to do something creative on the go. Not saying that fashion illustrations are always simple for they can be complex works of art as well, but in this case simple was better. Not every illustrations needs to take hours and be extremely elaborative and detailed. There is nothing wrong in working quickly sometimes. In fact, it is one of my drawing tips for fashion illustration: practice working quickly and then slowly. Challenge yourself to finishing a drawing in five, ten or fifteen minutes and then allow yourself more time an hour or two. See what difference does the time make! This exercise can be quite beneficial for advancing one's fashion drawing. Now, scroll down to see and read more.

Should we talk a bit about the process of making this fashion drawing? As you can see from the gif above, I started with a basic outline and then added more details. Finally, I set to colouring it. I did not have a lot of coloured pencils at my disposal, so I improvised mixing different coloured pencils. Working with bad or unknown art materials can actually be a good practice as well. Sometimes it is good to struggle a bit. It helps you with not getting lazy or relying on your art materials. I'm sure this is something I'd already written about on my blog. It is good to experiment with art supplies and materials. It is good to challenge one's self and so on. Of course investing in quality art supplies makes sense, especially as you get better or start getting commissions and stuff. However, it is always important to remember that it is the artist, not the art supply or material.

Most artists set on a certain medium eventually. Some artists are masters of all mediums, but most specialize. You can usually tell what medium best suits the artist. For example, I feel most drawn to acrylic and oil paints. As I do not have an art studio with ventilations and I learned that oil paints can be toxic, I mostly paint with acrylic paints. That is my main medium, let's say. I also occasionally have fun with watercolour pencils. I seldom paints with watercolours, but for some reason watercolour pencils really work for me. I made a lot of my fashion illustrations with watercolour pencils and even some portraits, too. Let us say that paint is something I gravitate to. However, I like to try out different art mediums. You've probably seen it all if you have been following me for a while. I used oil pastels, pencils, markers, oil paint, acrylics and even old make up (another sustainable hack) to make my fashion illustrations and art.

Coloured pencils, however, is a medium I have hardly touched. I sometimes used them to make quick sketches, but I would typically just use a regular pencil for sketching. For some reason, coloured pencils never appealed to me. However, after seeing some amazing art made with coloured pencils, I started wondering whether I'm missing something. Not before making this illustration, but in general. I've been thinking about using coloured pencils more and learning about them. I'd like to get the hang of layering colours. When it comes to this particular illustration, it was no exercise or a conscious decision to try to improve in this medium. I actually used coloured pencils because I had nothing else at hand.

So, what did I want to work on? There was something I wanted to practice and it was just working on proportion. I'm aware that I need to work on my drawing skills in general. This is not something connected to coloured pencils, this is a skill that I need to develop further. One of the reasons why that painting tired me so much is because I still lack certain art skills. Some things come naturally to me. For example, I seem to have an intuitive understanding of colour. I know how to get a certain colour in painting and how to use colour in composition. I mean that in the sense that I can get what I want easily and do not feel the struggle, and not in the sense that I feel that I'm some kind of colour master. I'm sure that I need to learn a lot about colour theory as well. What I'm saying is that I can usually get the colour I want when it comes to painting. Whether that colour is perfect in some deeper artistic sense is now besides the point. The point is that I do not struggle with colour that much, but I tend to struggle with proportions and even composition in some sense. So, I know I need to draw and illustrate more. I need to work on my line quality as well as the perspective and structural aspects of my drawings.

Making quick fashion illustrations is as good a practice as any. I have a lot of new and unpublished outfits that I can illustrate, and if I run out of those there are always the old and published ones. The fact that this art will tie in with the whole sustainable fashion talk is just another plus in my book. Sometimes doing one or two quick drawings a day or a week can really make a difference. The thing with art is that you have to work on those skills. If you don't use it, you lose it. When you get back to making art after a pause (be it a short or longer one), it can feel difficult. I figured that this kind of quick illustrating can help me to relax between more ambitious art projects. Plus, it works well with the whole sustainable outfit post format, does it not?

Moreover, maybe I need to give this coloured pencils medium a try. In any case, I want to continue working on these quick illustrations. Maybe I'll try to do some that aren't so quick as well. Maybe I'll get myself some decent colour pencils. Maybe I'll just continue sketching and drawing with what is at hand. Either way, I plan to continue with making fashion illustration. Either way, you'll see more fashion illustrations. Even if I do not manage to fit fashion illustrating in my schedule, there are still a few unpublished fashion illustrations I did that I will publish. So, either way fashion drawings and sketches are coming your way!

I do not remember why exactly I choose this photograph to illustrate. Maybe I liked the outfit, maybe the location or maybe the pose. Now, that I think of it, there are a lot of things I like here. First of all, I like the sort of movement that the photograph captured. The reference photograph that was captured by my husband (the main photographer for this blog) that is. Secondly, I liked how the movement emphasized the clothing items or at least that it the impression I got. Thirdly, I liked the location. Now, to be honest I hardly sketched the location at all. I did not have time to illustrate this particular beach in detail. I just sketched the sea and the beach in very general terms with no details. Still, I wanted it to be a part of the illustration and I do get the sense of being at the beach from it. The wind in one's hair and all that. Not that there was that much wind, I think my hair was more moving from my movement than anything. That is another thing I tried to capture, my hairdo and these tiny sunglasses I got as a gift some time ago.

What I probably tried most to do with this fashion drawing is to capture the flow of the movement and the sensation of feeling good in what you wear. There is one item I removed from this fashion illustration and it is not because I do not like it. Can you guess what it is ? It is the small burgundy bag. I did not include it in this fashion sketch because I felt like it would take away from the flow of the composition. Possibly also because it was easier to do the drawing without this bag. I did illustrate this bag in the past and more than once. I actually illustrated everything I'm wearing here before- and more than once! I focused on those clothing items the most. The clothing item I focused the most on this illustration was probably this gorgeous vintage black dress. Of course the magenta coat and the high brown boots were illustrated with some care as well. It was a fun outfit to wear and a fun illustration to make. For a hurried illustration, the result was not bad. Now I need to make about hundred or thousand more of these and watch my drawing skills improve! In all seriousness, I do believe in practice makes perfect. If not perfect, then definitely better!

Indeed, one of the good things about art is that whatever specific skill you are working on, it will translate into other skills as well. For example, if you practice working on geometry, proportions and dimensions, as you develop those skills, they will translate into other art areas. I'm sure that working on my art in general has helped my fashion illustration as well. When I took some art courses and did what most people do on art courses- paint reproductions of famous paintings, this helped my art skills in a couple of ways. All of this translated to my fashion illustration series as well, as learning new things helped to motivate me in this sense as well.

Maybe I need to start separating these two: my fashion illustration and my art because fashion illustration can be art as well!

Now, let's talk a bit about the location and the outfit.

The location is Žnjan, a large beach and playground complex in Split city, Croatia. I wrote and blogged about Žnjan a couple of times. Last Spring, Žnjan was reopened again after a large urban regeneration project worth estimated forty-five million euros. The vision was apparently (and I'm going by what I read in official media statements) to create a year round social place where people could spend time with their families and loved ones. Reactions to the new look of Žnjan have been mixed from what I heard, but a lot of work has visibly been done, and there are definitely new facilities and playgrounds. Some criticism says that it looks too generic and too much like a beach complex in any other Western country. By that they mean that it does not reflect our Mediterranean culture enough. I think the area looks functional and neat. Moreover, it's cool that there are new additions and stuff. I only wondered at the price of forty-five millions. Personally, I would have liked to see at least a hundred palm and agave trees for that money. Afterall, Split is famous for its agave plants and palm trees. Neither of these plants is native to Split, but somehow they have become its signature greenery. So, I think the new Žnjan looks alright. I see that the sport facilities are being used to their full potential. Not surprising, since we like to call ourselves 'the sportiest city on the planet'. This is not an empty brag, because Split does have a record in Olympic medals per citizen. It is a city that loves sport and its athletes. Žnjan was always a place where people liked to jog, skate, swim and exercise, so new sports fields will probably only add to that. The new plateau also features artistic corners and an amphitheatre. So, maybe we'll get to see cultural events on Žnjan as well.

If you want to see photographs of Žnjan beach, you can visit some of my old posts HERE, HERE, HERE , HERE, HERE , HERE AND HERE. You can see how Žnjan evolved and changed with time on my blog. Split remains the force and inspiration behind my artistic drive, and Žnjan as well. I painted Žnjan in a seascape years ago.

Now, about this winter outfit. I wore this lovely outfit one December weekend. I went to the beach for a walk and a cup of coffee with most of my family. We strolled around. I was obviously comfortable. That's the best thing about vintage dresses. They usually are so comfy and warm. Especially if you inherited them from your mother, so they fit like a glove. When we think comfort, we often think PJs or sportwear. However, one can feel extremely comfortable in a dress. This is an example of an outfit that looks stylish, but is in fact extremely easily to put together and wear. This magenta coat is so warm and the long zipper makes it super practical. The cut makes it looks very elegant and polished, but in reality this coat is so easy to wear and style. The black dress with the silver detail is made of cotton (if I'm not mistaken) and it's a joy to wear. The high brown boots are both warm and comfortable. The small heel makes them perfect for walking. I wish I could buy another pair just like this because these boots will fall apart one of these days. I walked many miles in them. These boots are made for walking... Finally, the burgundy bag is both chic and practical. I bought it years ago, and it still looks brand new. This outfit is literally composed of some of my all time favourite items.

Sustainable Fashion Files- How I Wore It Before?

I'm close to forty documented wears with this magenta coat on my blog. Recently my mother took it to seamstress because the zipper was broken and she said the seamstress said everyone who walked in her studio was enamoured with it. Of course they were! The seamstress also commented on how the coat was hand sewed. Well, another thing I knew. I'm indeed lucky to own such a statement coat.

THE MAGENTA COAT (Bajina bašta, old)- Don't you love a little colour. This magenta beauty is one of the most worn coats in my wardrobe.

1-14) See 14 ways to wear this magenta coat here! 15-31) See 31 way to wear this magenta coat here!

31) See how I styled this magenta coat with black leggings, a striped scarf and black leggings for a visit to Malta !

32) See how I styled it with loafers, a white shirt and a vintage pink skirt (also for my Malta hikes)

33) I also wore this magenta coat for a visit to Valetta and 34) for a visit to Saint Julian's

35) See how I styled it with an all black outfit high heeled boots in 2024.

36) See how I styled this magenta coat with cropped Amadeus jeans, a cropped top and a pair of brown boots for a visit to Međugorje in 2025.

37) See how I styled this magenta coat with a golden scarf, a blazer and high brown boots for a visit to Rabat and Mdina ( I visited it in 2023 but the outfit was published in 2025).

38) See how I styled it with a yellow jumpsuit and pink heeled boots in 2025.