Closer Look: Mara Hoffman

Fashion week has been all the buzz on social media, the news and on many people's minds. After combing through photos and runway videos online, I can't help but realize I am drawn to very specific designers.

Mara Hoffman. From her 2013 & 2014 collections.

Let's talk about one of my favorite designers, Mara Hoffman. As you can probably tell by the photos, Mara Hoffman's pieces and collections focus on patterns, and not just any patterns. We are talking about intricate geometric designs with nods to traditional tribal patterns but with a contemporary twist (sound familiar? ) . The juxtaposition of the edgy, detailed lines in her prints against the soft, floating cuts and material of her garments, are her signature. 

Mara Hoffman is a NYC based designer, born in Buffalo, NY. She studied at Parsons School of Design in NY as well as Central Saint Martins in London. Her ready-to-wear line, Circle (2000-2005) was all one of a kind pieces focusing on dying techniques, batik and traditional elements. Circle then evolved into a more brand and sales oriented line and then in 2008 she launched her first swimsuit collection. This is where I learned of Hoffman and began to obsess over her designs and style. 

Mara Hoffman. From her 2013 & 2014 collections.

What I find most interesting about her collections are that they doesn't quite fit a trend cycle. She manages to create clothing that are just unique as a whole and while each collection has a specific theme with nature or travel, her work becomes more of a genre than of a seasonal collection. It's funny to say these pieces are "timeless" when really they are of this decade, but that is fashion. We take what we know and what we like, and try to twist it a bit, create a hybrid with other styles, borrow from other cultures or contexts and be creative. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't but these are the types of patterns that inspire me, drive me to keep creating, pushing the envelope and design design design.  

Happy Houndstooth Mistakes

Last summer, while we  (the design team at Mata Traders) were looking over the trend forecast, one of the interns had her heart set on houndstooth. This traditional geometric print has been seen all over the fashion world and we decided to try to make  our own version of the pattern.  At one point she mentioned that she was having difficulty finding the repeat. I spent an afternoon trying to not only find it for her but to teach her how to find it on her own. While doing so, I made a mistake and it came out like the print you see now. I immediately laughed because all I could see were cats! 

Left: Catstooth. Right: Traditional Houndstooth. 

Hundreds of cats were repeating on my computer screen and together we decided this was a fantastic twist to the classic houndstooth: It would now be our Catstooth pattern!  I kept thinking about how my friend Haley, a feline lover, would possibly walk into work wearing this dress. She would subtly state her love of cats while still looking work appropriate. This was a classic happy mistake moment that is now available not only on the Mata Traders site under the Half Moon Dress Catstooth, but on ModCloth as well as the Curriculum Vitae Dress (ModCloth even has plus sizes). 

Textile design "Catstooth" print by Shifra Whiteman. Dress available on ModCloth & Mata Traders.

Making The Cut

I am so pleased to share another print of mine that made it to the Fall 2013 collection for Mata Traders. The crazy thing about this print is that I designed it way back when I was an intern in the fall of 2011 for the Fall 2012 collection.

Back then I was designing all sorts of patterns that were (in my opinion) great, edgy and contemporary. Unfortunately they didn't make the cut for the Fall 2012 collection. I am going to be totally honest and admit that I was upset and took it personally. At the time I was more interested in getting my work out there as soon as possible. Most people don't realize that as fashion and textile designers, we work on collections a year in advance. After designing 6-8 new prints for Mata Traders, they only chose 1 print to go through for Fall 2012 (and it wasn't the "Roses" print). 

What I wasn't thinking about at the time, was the collection as a whole. This is something I have learned loads about since my time as an intern. A collection needs to be balanced, have a variety of cuts and prints, staying safe but taking risks, and stay in a theme of color and direction. My 6-8 prints were great individually but didn't necessarily work well with what was being created in garment patterns or in unison with the other prints being used that season.  

"Roses" Dresses

Luckily for me, most of those prints made it into the Spring 2013 collection (which made me personally very happy and proud) but the "Roses" print still hadn't been used. Which brings us to Fall 2013. I am proud to announce after four collections from start to finish, that the "Roses" print finally made the cut! Here you can see the print in two different color stories and on two different dresses! The First Dance Dress on the left and the Meet Me In The Meadow  Dress on the right. This print has really taught me the lesson of patience and harmony. Sometimes we need to be patient in order to use something we created and wait for the right time for it to be used. When that time comes, it should be used in sync with the rest of what is created, in order to bring out the best it has to offer. 

Wearing Folk Art

I was raised in a community where “papirshnit” or Eastern European Jewish papercutting is a traditional folk art form. Jewish papercuts are used as holiday decorations, to commemorate life cycle events and even just to remind us of the direction of Jerusalem. The traditional Jewish papercut is made with one piece of paper from which shapes are cut out to create a design and images. They are beautiful and meaningful, as well as a great departure point to explore other culture's papercut traditions! 

Jewish Papercut Arts class taught by Shifra Whiteman. Chicago. Fall 2012.

Lets talk wycinanki! Pronounced “vi-tshi-nan-ki” these are papercuts from Poland and the Ukraine.  Like Jewish papercuts they are used to depict traditional holiday images and for every day decorations. They are traditionally cut in multiple layers and saturated paper colors give a completely different vibe. The most common traditional images are of flowers or birds, connecting to the surrounding nature. I find wycinanki to be so vibrant and fresh even though its roots go back a few hundred years. 

Wycinanki - Traditional Polish papercut arts.

Last year, I noticed there was a folksy vibe in our trend forecast. It focused on getting back to hand made traditions like embroidery, needlepoint and appliqué. The imagery was focusing on nature and animals - the simpler life and I could not help but feel this was the perfect collection to create a textile design based on wycinanki! 

Starling Pocket Dress and Sweetheart Lace Dress. Textile Design by Shifra Whiteman for Mata Traders Fall 2013 collection.

Mata Traders produced two dresses with this pattern for their Fall 2013 line. Here is the Starling Pocket Dress and the Sweetheart Lace Dress that share the same rooster fabric. Most designs I create are a fun creative way of expressing myself and solving design problems. However, this print really is a design that connects my past with my present - a traditional inspiration with a contemporary edge. The techniques used for hundreds of years to create designs from paper are beautifully adaptable to fabric and when I wear my dress with this design around the streets of Chicago, I really do feel like I am wearing a contemporary piece of folk history. 

Sweetheart Lace Dress. Textile Design by Shifra Whiteman for Mata Traders Fall 2013 collection.

Yugntruf (Youth for Yiddish) Magazine Cover

Last year, I was asked to design the cover for the new issue of the Yugntruf magazine. Yugntruf (Youth for Yiddish) is a non-profit organization that promotes speaking Yiddish as a living language through programs, reading circles and retreats. I have been part of this organization and have frequented their events since infancy and was honored to design this cover for them. It comes at such a great time too, because I leave for Yiddish-Vokh (Yiddish Week - Yugntruf's annual summer camp retreat) tomorrow morning and cannot wait to see my close friends, meet new Yiddish speakers and enjoy the wonderful Yiddish community! 

Yugntruf - Youth for Yiddish, magazine cover. 2013. 

From the Yugntruf Facebook page: 

Tonight at Yiddish Week we had the debut of the new issue of the Yugntruf Journal, our all Yiddish-language literary magazine which all Yugntruf members will receive as part of their membership. The issue will be available for sale next week as both a printed journal and a digital download for readers all over the world.