The master‘s thesis examined cultural heritage and the ways in which it can be transferred into a
contemporary women's clothing collection. The aim was to determine how elements of the clothing
culture of Slovenia, traditional embroidery, wool spinning, the rural environment and a personal
photographic archive could be transformed into a contemporary design language. Heritage was not
treated as a basis for reconstructing traditional costume, but as a system of images, materials, techniques
and values.
The theoretical part included an overview of Slovenian cultural and clothing heritage, traditional
costume from the Gorenjska region, heart and carnation motifs, wool processing and the influence of the
childhood environment on the development of a recognisable design aesthetic. Contemporary fashion
brands whose design identities had been shaped by local environments, folklore and personal memories
were also examined. In the experimental part, photographs from a personal archive were analysed,
knitted structures were developed, and hand spinning, hand and machine knitting, and sewing-based
textile manipulation were carried out. Locally sourced Slovenian wool, materials from personal archive
and donations, deadstock materials, and different fabrics and yarns were used.
The outcome of the thesis was the Nagljica collection, which consisted of eighteen garments. The heart
and carnation motifs were translated into openwork and relief knitted structures, textile manipulations,
pattern-cutting lines, pockets and voluminous details. The research showed that personal and collective
heritage can be meaningfully combined into a distinctive design expression. Wool, as a local textile raw
material, proved to be a strong foundation for sustainable textile and clothing practices and an effective
means of reviving traditional hand techniques in combination with contemporary design approaches.
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