Cath Kidston - Conversational Print Research

In order to get an idea of the kind of conversational prints Cath Kidston has on offer I browsed her website to check out the different patterns. This will give me an indication of the illustration styles which are most predominant throughout Cath's work. The brief asks us to create a conversational print like the ones below, this means that the imagery needs to be more substantial than the polka dot and floral print Kidston is famous for. This will give us a more options to work with and we will hopefully be able to produce a print which is engaging and a good talking point for the customers. It is important that we stick within their style as it needs to work along side her other prints.

London Guards

There are 2 different Cath Kidston London Guard prints. They both have a very different illustration style to the usual Cath Kidston prints which usually don't use black outlines. The image above has a mixture of blocked coloured illustration and fine line detail. The combination works well. However I don't think this fits in with the rest of Cath's pattern designs.

The guard pattern above is very different to usual and is very cartoon like. In my opinion this does not reflect the rest of Kidston's work. I think it is far too busy to work well as a pattern. I think it is probably best to stick with the original illustration style. This Cartoon like imagery devalues the brand in my opinion.

Bird Print

I really like the illustration style of this bird print design, I'm personally not a massive fan of the colours as they are quite dull in comparison to some of the other prints Cath Kidston has to offer.  I like how the birds are all in different positions. The branches fill out the negative space creating a nicely interlinked pattern.

Cow Boys

The cowboy print is much more visually exciting than the rest of the patterns, I think this is mainly down to the fact that colours are much more vibrant and bold. This design is quite busy but still manages to work really well. There are many components which go together to make up the design from cowboys to carts and even lots of foliage. I think this works well because there is a mixture of small and large elements which creates more of a scene as apposed to a standard pattern.

Racing Car Print

This is another interesting print, the illustration style is quite different to usual, I don't think this works as well as some of the others. The concept is unique and shows many different perspectives of the race. The colour scheme works well, however I am not personally a fan of the background. I like how there is aspects of movement within the design creating an idea of whats going on in the race, and where the track could go...

London Print

I really like this print, the illustrations are awesome and depict many aspects of london, the print is very british which is a modern twist on the roots of Cath Kidstons British designs. The colour scheme works really well subtly emphasizing the British red white and blue. The negative space is also broken up by speckled white sections which works as both clouds and extensions of the individual elements.

Dinosaur Print

This pattern design is a bit more childish and doesn't really suit the target market we are aiming for but I particularly liked the illustrations here. I think it works best when the tonal differences are quite obvious. The colour scheme contrasts really nicely on these illustrations creating a really bold engaging design. There are fewer elements involved in this design but the impact is just as strong.

Circus Pattern

I love these illustrations, once again very bold and beautiful the colours compliment each other well and contrast nicely against the white background. There are many elements to this design which pretty much makes up the whole circus which I really like. There is lots to look at which I believe is a key factor to a good conversational print. I think it is probably best to have lots going on in the design, however it needs to be executed well in the same style without looking too busy or intense. I think the key to nailing this brief is creating a quite simple pattern with many elements in a true Kidston style. I think choosing the colour will probably be the hardest task in the brief as it can make or break a design.