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The Paisley Pattern design icon that was synonymous with the town is once again on the radar of major fashion houses after steps were taken to make the pattern available for the digital age.
It was once the fashion staple of legends such as Jimi Hendrix and The Beatles now Paisley’s famous pattern designs have been captured in a digital archive to allow people to access for education, research, and commercial purposes.
The Paisley Pattern digital archive, which will be made available later this year, is part of plans to commercialise the pattern to support and grow the ambition to connect the town back to the globally-recognised design through working with external textile and fashion houses and industry experts.
Luxury knitwear brand, Pringle of Scotland’s, accessed the archive to select unique designs for the bespoke creations in its autumn/winter 2017 collection. Pringle also have a history of using the pattern in their designs having previously used them in collections in the 1960s. The collaboration occurred after Pringle’s Womenswear Design Director, Fran Stringer was granted access to the original Paisley Pattern designs during a visit to Paisley Museum.
Fran Stringer, Womenswear Design Director, said: “The archives are always such a rich source of inspiration! Many heritage patterns and signature designs remain relevant today, and we were happy to also work with Paisley in its original form, but printed onto knitwear in much the same way as Pringle first did in the Sixties. I want to continue to celebrate Pringle as the knitwear pioneer that it always has been.”
Showcasing Paisley’s textile credentials to the world is part of wide-ranging regeneration plans that will put Paisley back on the global textiles and fashion industry map once again.
Watch this space to see what exciting new collaborations and partnerships will be created from the digitisation of these famous designs.
