When you take a fashion design course, you learn...
When you take a fashion design and sewing course, you don't just learn how to make a dress. You learn to appreciate the materials and the textures. You learn to appreciate the craft and everything that goes into it. All the little intricate details that are a part of a dress making process. The way all the little pieces come together to form a garment can feel positively magical. You learn to have patience and trust the process. You learn how to take measurements in a proper way. You learn to think about how the body moves and how you need to always leave space for the beauty to move and for the skin to move. You learn to have respect for both the body and the clothes. You learn about how the clothes are there to adapt to the body, and not the other way around. Clothes are there to help you to dress yourself and express yourself. When you take a fashion design and sewing course, you learn to truly appreciate the craft and that matters. A good fashion design course will teach you all that, but you also have to be teachable. At heart of any learning process, there is appreciation.
Appreciation matters. It is something that we're losing today. The ability to appreciate and admire. The ability to take on new tasks and adapt to the changing circumstances. This applies to life in general, not just dressmaking obviously. Whatever task you have at hand, what matters is that we care and that we try to do our best. This very human ability of learning and adapting is essential for our wellbeing. People are avoiding the struggle today. They are opting for the easy way out. Convenience comes first, second and third. Press a button to do your task. Press a button to decide what to do today. Press a button and order things. Consumerism is sucking the soul out of this world. People think they can buy everything. People think that all they need is some fancy tool. ChatGpt has all the answers. Except it doesn't. It is the lazy way out, more often than not. When you remove the struggle, what remains? Of course everything is hard in its own way. However, struggles is what builds. Struggle is what builds physical muscles. Struggle is what builds our creative thinking and skills. Choose the easy way out and you might lose everything.
I write about sustainability on blog all the time. It is a topic I can write endless articles on because there are so many things to say about it. Sustainability is not something you order and buy, it is something you incorporate in your life by actually using your head. It comes from a place of appreciation and humility. Something we as humans are in desperate need of, now more than over. There's nothing so fatal for building a character than treating this world as a store where you handpick what you like. Life is so much more complex than that. Consumerism destroys not just the body, but also the mind and the soul. It alienates us from ourselves and others.
When I write about sustainability, I also write about what it means to be human. I reexamine it. I write about many things that people would not necessary connect with sustainability. The introduction to this post is not just about taking a fashion course. It is about the process of learning. It is about the struggle that is our daily life, a struggle that builds or break us. If we are to be more than mindless shopping bots, we need to build ourselves into a better version of ourselves. Learning about anything takes time, effort and struggle. However, often that struggle is worth is because it is the learning that builds us and that makes us ever better and better at learning.
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| Location: A fortified Catholic church of Assumption of Saint Mary, Jelsa |
As I wrote on Linkedin this morning, I learnt to make clothes from fashion designers. Not just the fashion designer Stanka Zovko I took the fashion design and sewing course with at 2018 , but other designers I've met in my life so far. Small independent designers. Women who make clothes for other people and find real beauty in it. It is from them that I learnt to appreciate the craftsmanship in clothes making. Of course, I have always loved clothes. Even as a little girl, I never let my mother dress me. She always lamented that fact. She was so happy when she gave birth to me, thinking how she will have a little girl to dress but unfortunately her little girl always had a mind of her own. Even as a toddler, I wanted to pick my own outfits. I refused to wear pants and would only wear skirts. I was always looking for ways to express myself through fashion. Naturally, my style changed over the years. Like with most people, it was more experimental during my teen years and more elegant once I became an adult woman.
Speaking of elegance, I learnt elegance from elegant women. I learnt it by watching and observing. I learnt it from women in my community. I learnt it from my grandmothers, aunts, cousins and my mother. I learnt to embrace my Mediterranean culture and prosper from it. Elegance in speaking, elegance in sitting, elegance in dressing and elegance in expressing one's self. As some of my international coworkers would say about me: 'Always a diplomat'. I suppose there is truth in that. We relied heavily on diplomacy to survive the turbulent centuries. There's a diplomatic streak in a lot of Mediterranean people. Of course, so there is in others. One can find models for elegance anywhere, but there are always benefits to connecting to your own cultural heritage.
I learned to paint from painters. As a child I set next to painters as they worked. As an adult, I took art courses. I watched, I observed and I practiced. Travel with my Art series on my blog is a testament to my progress in this sense, especially when it came to landscapes.
I learnt to teach from teachers. I observed, I paid attention and a I listened. When I started teaching (many years ago), I did not assume that I know better because I was fresh out of University. I didn't think I know better because I was young. Quite on the contrary, I realized very early on that it is experience that builds a teacher. So, I learnt from other more experiences teachers.
I learnt to exercise from athletes. My hometown Split has the highest percentage of Olympic medal winners. When I was young, I would just copy what they were doing. My logic was always- they have Olympic medals, they must know what they are doing.
I could go on and go on with examples, but I will stop here. What is my message? Simply, that I learnt because I was open to learning. Because I respected someone's authority. That is how you learn. It never occurred to me to rely on artificial 'intelligence' to 'learn' any of this. The AI craze was a bit before my time and thank God for that.
What are we giving away when we 'learn' from AI? What are we even learning? That's a question to ask ourselves. Even before talking about the environmental and moral cost of AI (that everyone seems to forget), there's the question of abandoning our social ties, creativity and critical thinking. Now, that part is more worrying than anything else.
When you learn from actual human beings, you also learn humility. You learn to be grateful. You learn to admit you need help. You learn to rely on others. That is just as important as learning how to be the person others rely on.
You have to start somewhere. If you don't know something it needs to start with you admitting it. Start with humility and grow from there. Learn how to admire someone or something. Genuinely admire. Be ready to compare yourself to someone and see where you fall short and why. Don't really on AI, learn how to rely on both yourself and others.
That is how you learn to be the person others rely on. That is how you end up being someone original, and not an antisocial individual who thinks fancy tools can replace genuine human interaction and the complexities of a learning process.
When we learn from each other, we learn so much more than the subject matter we are learning. We learn how to interact, how to create genuine connections, how to form bonds, how to build support groups for ourselves and others. We learn to give and to receive. Both of these are of massive importance if you want to remain human.
Yes, AI can give you an answer to some question. An answer that will sometimes be correct and sometimes not, but think of what you're losing every time you reach for it. You lose the social connection, a chance to interact with others and learn from them, a chance to use your own head. There's another worrying aspect of getting your answers from AI. For it is more often than not an answer that is plagiarized.
I find it fascinating how many people simply do not care about AI plagiarism. That the AI answer they are reading is a ruined example of a brilliant article written by some incredible individual. That the image they are prompting was stolen from some amazing artist.
Little do they know that by doing that, they are also losing an opportunity to connect to someone, to appreciate someone, to establish a social connection. If someone steals an image or an article and tries to pass them as their own, at least there can be some accountability. In some way, that thief might steal admire the original creator. Imitator might steal admire the original. Most of the time a person using ChatGpt or whatever AI tool does not admire anything, does not think anything. Excessive AI usage is just abandoning our creativity and humanity. It is saying- I give up on being a human being, I'll rather be a mindless bot because it's easier.
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| A collage including my fashion illustrations |
Once I recognized an AI articled that completely plagiarized a book review from a brilliant book reviewer. One of the things that made her review so brilliant was her incredibly clever wordplay. However, since AI has to change up words to plagiarize, all the world play was lost. The result was a bland review in English that does not sound natural. A review that most people looking up that particular writer will read, instead of the original well researched and written post read the AI article that is a distant shadow of the original. This might seem like a small thing, but it isn't. There are so many worrying consequences to this widespread plagiarism. There's actual research suggesting that people are starting to sound like AI. Social connections are being lost. Language skills are being lost. It is a serious topic and a serious problem.
Every time I see AI anything, I have to fight the urge to be sick. Not to say that AI does not have its uses. If you're short on time, it is better to write a CV with AI then not to write it at all. Still, again there are advantages to asking someone to help you with your CV. Again, there are advantages to hiring an expert to teach you how to jazz up your. Of course, sometimes you just need a project or job done, and using AI as a tool will be fine.
However, most people are using AI to do thinking for them and that is especially problematic. People are using AI to getting access to other people intellectual work for free and plagiarize their hard earn skills and work. People are happy to see themselves rendered in some art style. They do not care about the collective effort of artists that was just stolen, their names forgotten. AI mimics humans, and humans mimic AI. In all of that, are we losing our humanity?
You know I think there's a distinct connection between materialism, consumerism and AI. The pursuit of happiness that will send you on a wide path favoured by the majority. Shopping instead of creating, consuming instead of thinking. It's all ties to the modern thinking. AI is imitation of life. A cheap imitation. So, is consumerism, shopping and all of that. It's all death for the critical mind.
I always hated consumerism. Consumerism in fashion included, for fast fashion is really one of the great modern evils. It is so widespread that some people look at you like crazy if you don't shop as a maniac. If you don't remember when it was the last time you bought something. If you profess that you wear your mother's clothes or make your own. If you advocate for shopping vintage. I suppose that is one of the reasons why I was always drawn to vintage clothes and local artisans and craftsmen. I want to support artists, artisans and craftsmen. I want to support craftsmanship. I don't want to wear what everyone else is wearing. I don't want to think what everyone else is thinking.
When I took a fashion design course, I learnt much more than to make a dress. Still, a dress resulted from that course. This dark grey midi dress I made almost a decade ago. A dress I have worn in many outfits. I remember how fun the whole dress making process was. I picked the material. I picked the design from a Burda and then I changed it to better suit my ideas.
I love clothes that tell a story. This dress definitely tells a story. In fact, it tells hundreds of stories. A story about a girl who drew fashion illustrations on her books in primary. secondary and high school. A girl who wanted to learn fashion sewing and she did- as an adult.
A story about her grandmother who (having this midi dress on a small image) instantly recognized the unusual sewing technique that was implied. The sewing technique is actually similar to kimono making. All the pieces are sewed together without wasting absolutely no materials. It's a very sustainable technique. For truly, sustainability is something we already had, it is not something we have to reinvent, sometimes it is enough to go back a bit in time and remember the past artisans.
My islander grandmother is a woman I could tell countless stories about. She loved sewing and she was very creative. When I look at this dress, I remember her. I'm grateful for all the time we have had together, for everything I have learnt from her. I'm grateful for all the time I have spent on the most beautiful of all islands- the magical island Hvar.
When I look at these photographs, I see so many stories...and not only when it comes to my outfit. The location tell a story. The clothes tell a story. The photographs tell a story.
The photographs are not AI. They were shot by husband, who is quite a talented photographer if I may say so myself. Photography is also an art. On my blog, I shared both my photography and that of my husband. However, most of photographs you'll see of myself were taken by my husband. That's something I'm aware of every time I open my blog and that I often thank him for. For giving credit is important. Doing something together. Appreciate others. Appreciate ourselves. That's something AI is taking away from us as humans.
Yes, I could generate AI photographs of myself, but where would be the story in that? Why would I want to plagiarize someone's art work? I could place myself to any location with AI, but what would be the point in that?
On my blog, I often share 'Sustainable fashion files', basically a story of how I wore certain clothing items. I link up my clothing items to show how many times I have worn them and to promote 'shopping' our closets, something I genuinely believe in. So, let us have a look at links for this outfit.
The colourful striped scarf- vintage (second hand)
The red leather bag- a gift from a friend.
8) In this 2025 post, I wore it with a pink polka dot dress.
9) It was also worn with a floral print ruffled mini dress in 2025.
The dark grey midi dress- made and designed by myself
The nude heeled sandals (no brand)
Tell me, what story can be get when one is using AI? What story do you get when one shops fast fashion brands? Where is the story in that? I see no story, so I see no value. I see no value in AI art, no value in AI writing, no value in imitation of creativity and life.
What are your thoughts on this?
Sustainable location stories- Jelsa on island Hvar
We can look from everything from a sustainable point of view, tourism included. Here are some links that show that Hvar is much more than a tourist spotlight for me.
Do you want to see more of Jelsa? Feel free to check out the posts below:
How many times have I blogged about Stari Grad?
I browsed my blog arhives and I found thirty posts about Stari Grad. Isn't that amazing? I took some time to arrange the links and now you can visit these old Stari Grad post if you want. Ready, steady, go!
1. You can visit this 2020 late Summer post to stroll Stari Grad streets with me. In this post, I posed in my iconic grey dress paired with a red sailor bag bought from a local seamstress. You can also see the historical Shipyard square in this post. I mean you can also see it in this post, but you might want to have another look to see how it looks bathed in sunshine.
Full link address: https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2020/10/a-neutral-grey-dress-for-visit-to-stari.html
2. In this Summer 2020 post, you can visit Stari Grad Unesco protected plain with me and learn a thing or two about its history. I also snapped some pictures of a small helicopter and airplane that landed there. I don't know who they belong to. Island Hvar does not have a real airport. It is more an airfield that small airplanes use to land. There are a couple of airports near island Hvar, the nearest two are Split city airport and Brač airport. Brač island has a proper International airport, fully functional and all that.
Full link address: https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2020/10/visit-stari-grad-plain-fully-preserved.html
3. In this winter 2018 post, I shared a mini acrylic sketch of St Stephen church in Stari Grad. I used a summer photograph for the painting. I also painted this church in oils many years ago. I think I don't have these paintings anymore. Maybe the acrylic sketch is still with me. Besides the painting sketch, I also shared ten interesting facts about St Stephen church in this post. I really put in some effort in that post.
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4. In this March 2014 post, I shared my photography with you. It was back when I actually had a proper camera and took a lot of photographs. Some of them were not bad at all.
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5. In this May 2016 post, I shared the most beautiful bus stop in the world, located in Stari Grad port. Of course, I was funny subjective in calling it the most beautiful bus top. It is in reality a very ordinary bus stop. However, the view from this bus stop is absolutely gorgeous. So, it is if not the most beautiful, then one of the most beautiful bus stops in the world.
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6. In this August 2014 post, I shared with you our (my husband and mine) photography of both Jelsa and Stari Grad.
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https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2014/08/two-cities-one-day-dva-grada-jedan-dan.html
7. In this October 2014 post, I again showed you my photography of Stari Grad. Do you see how this city inspires me? In this post, I captured a lot of sides of Stari Grad. I took some lovely sunset photographs of the Stari Grad boats with the boats and all. I named the post Postcards from Stari Grad because these photographs reminded me of postcards.
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https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2014/10/postcards-from-dalmatia-starigrad.html
8. In this 2013 post, I shared my visit to three Croatian cities and Stari Grad was one of them. This was another photography post. I did not write much but let the photographs do the talking. I might update this post one of these days if I find time. Sometimes I update my old posts to add relevant information.
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https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2013/06/3-cities-one-day-split-starigrad-jelsa.html
9. In this April 2013 post, I wrote about Stari Grad a bit. I basically shared a post for which the photographs were actually taken in Summer prior to 2013. I don't remember the exact year but I know it was before I graduated University and got married. I recently updated this post to add some links and some of my art. You can see me posing in front of Church of Saint Stephen here.
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10. In this May 2020 post, I showed you beautiful beaches in front and around Arkada hotel in Stari Grad. This hotel was never open when I visited, but I always love hanging around it. I think it's because. Its brutalist architecture might not be to everyone's taste, but I like it. The hotel's whiteness looks very idyllic surrounded by all the greenery. Maybe some day I'll get to actually get inside of this hotel.
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11. In this August 2024 post, I shared an outfit post wearing a blue dress. The outfit was shot on a ferry. Stari Grad port is visible in the background. Moreover, there are some nice photographs of Stari Grad post as well. Again, this was when I had a proper camera and took professional looking photographs. These days we rely on our cellphones.
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12. In this December 2013 post, I shared my twelve favourite urban photographs of the year and Stari Grad was one of them.
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13. In this October 2020 post, I showed you what I wore for a visit to Stari Grad. I remember I was proud about wearing a t-shirt with a print of my painting. The whole I wear my art thing that I wrote about a couple of times. I also shared a dining recommendation. Moreover, at the end of the post I took you to bay Brezovica, near Stari Grad. This was a fun post.
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14. In this October 2021 post, I shared one of my seascape painting inspired by Stari Grad specifically. The location I was inspired by is basically the view from Arcada hotel in Stari Grad. Check it out if you love seaside inspire art.
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15. In this 2015 post, I shared an oil painting inspired by Saint Stephen church in Stari Grad.
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16. In this 2020 post, I shared two autumn outfits. I shot one of them in Stari Grad.
Full link address: https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2020/10/two-autumn-outfit-ideas-with-graphic-t.html
17. In this 2020 post, I wrote about different historical sights in Stari Grad, such as Saint John and Saint Roch church as well as Renaissance garden of Castle Tvrdalj.
Full link address: https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2020/07/wiw-to-visit-stari-grad-island-hvar.html
18. In this 2019 travel post, I also wrote a lot about historical sights in Stari Grad, for example the Dominican monastery and so on. I also recently uploaded this post with more relevant links.
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19. In this post 2019 post, I showed you what to wear to Stari Grad in Autumn.
20. In this 2020 post, I reviewed a novel and I used Stari Grad as a background.
Full link address: https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2020/10/our-kate-autobiographical-novel-by.html
21. In this 2019 post, I showed you how Advent in Stari Grad looks like. I showed you Castle Tvrdalj (from outside), Stari Grad port and the famous narrow streets.
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22. In this 2019 post, I shared my visit to Renaissance castle villa Tvrdalj. You can see how this famous Renaissance castle looks on the inside as well as read some of my descriptions.
Full links address: https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2019/11/inside-of-renaissance-villa-of-petar.html
23. In this 2020 post, I blogged about sustainable fashion, that is plus thirty ways to wear a pair of white sneakers. However, if you look at the photographs at the start of this post, you'll see it shows Stari Grad port and the olive gardens one can find walking from the city to the port. A walk I highly recommend!
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24. In this 2020 post, I shared a bay that is located right next to Stari Grad port. It is not far from the city centre either. A French complex is being built there at the moment, but I think the bay will be open to everyone.
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25. In this 2020 post, I shared a travelogue about bay Lozna that is located right next to rt Kabal. This bay is located in vicinity of Stari Grad.
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26. In this 2023 post, I shared my painting of Lozna bay near Stari Grad.
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27. In this 2021 post, I shared my painting of bay near Stari Grad.
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28. In this 2021 post, I shared four Autumn outfits, two of them I wore for a visit to Stari Grad.
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29. In this 2019 post, I shared one of my favourite all vintage Autumn outfits of all time. Somehoe wearing vintage for a visit to Stari Grad seems very appropriate. I wrote a bit about the history of Stari Grad in this post. I showed you a stone house that was built when America was discovered.
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30. In this 2021 post, I showed different ways to wear a printed t-shirt and many of these outfist were shot in Stari Grad.
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31)In this 2026 post, I blogged about my recent off season visit to Stari Grad.
https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2026/03/i-visited-stari-grad-off-season-wearing.html
Thank you for visiting and reading!
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| A gif showing my outfit of the day, location: fortified church of Saint Mary's Assumption in Jelsa |
Thank you for visiting and reading!
ReplyDeleteThe photos are amazing. You, your outfit, the location... I love everything about it.
Have a nice evening!
Wondeful outfit and photos Ivana. Your husband really does take wonderful and arty photos I think :-D
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