I DO SOLEMNLY SWEAR
A THESIS COLLECTION BY ARIANNA MARTIN
I Do Solemnly Swear is an extension of my personal experiences as a woman navigating a world that constantly objectifies and undermines femininity. Women, including myself, face a lack of seriousness and respect, often reduced to objects of desire rather than seen as individuals with agency. My collection is a declaration of strength, vulnerability, and defiance.
Inspired by historical dress, I examined the power dynamics embedded in traditional menswear and womenswear, analyzing how clothing has been both a tool of restriction and liberation. From the rigid structure of the blazer to the delicate draping of the corset, these garments tell a story of authority and expectation—one that I aim to challenge. Additionally, I looked at how nature mimics the human form: tree bark reflecting the lines of our skin, rocks mirroring the soft rolls of the body, and sand dunes resembling the shadows of collarbones. This organic connection between body and landscape became a foundation for my design process and textile development.
The book “Fresh Lipstick: Redressing Fashion and Feminism” by Linda M. Scott, served as a key reference throughout my collection. In my designs, high necklines and structured collars symbolize the historical silencing of women, while sheer fabrics expose vulnerability within strength. Masculine garments, like the button up shirt, are reimagined in translucent organza, softening their power. Conversely, traditionally feminine pieces, such as corsets, are constructed from wool suiting fabrics, subverting expectations of delicacy. This interplay between textures and silhouettes creates a juxtaposition that forces the viewer to question traditional gender constructs and stereotypes. This collection is dark yet humorous, grounded in the contradictions women navigate daily.
A key artistic reference is The Birth of Venus by Botticelli, a timeless symbol of femininity and resilience. Just as Venus emerges from the shell, my collection seeks to redefine the female body as a work of art—powerful, not fragile; celebrated, not objectified. The final look in my collection—a full-length, sculptural puffer coat in taffeta and lace—draws inspiration from the shell in The Birth of Venus, acting as a second skin for the wearer. It is both armor and sanctuary, encapsulating the idea that femininity can be protective, powerful, and sacred all at once.
At its core, I Do Solemnly Swear is about reclaiming the narrative. Women should not fear being seen—our bodies are not objects, but statements of power. My collection challenges the traditional power dynamics in fashion, offering a vision where strength and softness coexist, and where femininity is honored as a force to be reckoned with.
LOOK ONE
This look introduces the collection’s central thesis — a reclamation of femininity as strength. The black satin cone bra is a modern reimagining of the 1950s bullet bra, a symbol once tied to the male gaze but here reclaimed through structure, craftsmanship, and agency. With its halter tie and striking silhouette, the piece exaggerates femininity to confront it — circular stitched cups draw the viewer’s eye with intention, not submission. Paired with grey tailored wool suiting trousers, the piece fuses masculine codes with feminine vulnerability. The blazer-inspired waistband wraps around the hips like a tailored embrace, opening at the side to reveal a lace insert — a quiet nod to softness, delicacy, and power in movement. This lace becomes visible only when the wearer walks, demanding attention on her terms. The look is crowned with a felted wool coque feather hat, its sharply pleated form referencing vintage military shapes — yet with feathers defying gravity, it becomes more bird than battalion. This is not a woman dressing for war — this is a woman owning the stage. Sensual, assertive, and commanding, Look 01 sets the tone for a collection rooted in transformation, where garments challenge binaries and celebrate the complexity of womanhood.
LOOK TWO
This oversized wool suiting jacket is a sculptural statement on the historical silencing of women. With a towering high collar that cuts off the lower face, the piece evokes a quiet but powerful defiance. Broad shoulders and gathered bubble volumes in the sleeves and hem exaggerate traditional tailoring, reshaping menswear into a form of feminist armor.
The drop waist references the flapper era — a time when women began to reclaim freedom through fashion, shedding constraints and embracing shorter hems. By fusing this with the structure of a modern blazer, the look bridges past and present liberation.
Classic details like a welt chest pocket, sleeve plackets, and slant pockets nod to suiting heritage, while the adjustable fit allows for fluidity across bodies. Styled with striped tights and a beaded cap, this look balances concealment and presence — reclaiming space, voice, and power.
LOOK THREE
This floor-length hooded evening dress reimagines masculine tailoring through a sensual, sculptural lens. Crafted from pinstripe suiting wool, the garment features a low-cut back where the collar and lapel wrap across the body — a subtle echo of the tailored pant closure in Look 01.
A placket closure, reminiscent of a button-up shirt sleeve, runs down the front beneath a structured three-panel hood. Welt pockets and covered buttons retain the integrity of suiting, while a front slit and peek-a-boo lace lining allow for movement, softness, and surprise.
Balancing modesty with allure, the silhouette embraces the body while disrupting conventions of formality and gendered dress. The piece honors both strength and intimacy, offering a tailored redefinition of femininity that is precise, powerful, and deeply personal.
LOOK FOUR
A study in contrast, this look explores the tension between structure and vulnerability. A sheer black organza button-up shirt, detailed with hand-applied pinstripes, transforms a traditionally masculine silhouette into something ethereal and quietly powerful. The exaggerated collar and elongated sleeves—finished with multi-button plackets—add a sense of restraint and precision to the delicate textile.
Paired with a voluminous bubble skirt crafted from taffeta, stuffed with layers of tulle and netting, the look balances sharpness with theatrical softness. Wire casing along the seam allows the skirt to be shaped asymmetrically, making it both dynamic and playful. Finished with a tailored eight-panel newsboy cap made from donated rayon, the ensemble embodies fluidity, defiance, and femininity on its own terms.
LOOK FIVE
This look deconstructs and reimagines two of fashion’s most historically gendered garments: the corset and the tailored trouser. The structured 16-panel corset merges power and delicacy, with asymmetric lines that cut across the face — a visual continuation of the silencing motif seen in Look 02. Crafted from contrasting textiles — wool suiting on one side and silk shantung on the other — the corset challenges the binary of soft versus strong, redefining femininity through construction.
Paired with draped silk-poly trousers, the look evolves from traditional menswear. Deconstructed from oversized tailored pants and reimagined through intuitive draping, the trousers hang off the body in asymmetric layers — three on one side, two on the other — evoking imbalance, awkwardness, and vulnerability. Slant and welt pockets remain as remnants of traditional suiting, while a peek of polka dot lining peeks out at the waistband, subtly teasing the line between structure and subversion.
Together, the garments question who tailoring serves and what power looks like when it's redefined through a femme lens.
LOOK SIX
A pivotal moment in the collection, this look embodies the act of breaking free — from objectification, from silence, from the constraints of the past. Inspired by Arianna’s research into the ways nature mirrors the human form, the textile evokes the wrinkling and aging of skin, transforming vulnerability into strength. Over 30 yards of tulle, chiffon, and georgette are double layered and stitched in 1/16"–1/4" increments across a cotton base, forming a deeply textural second skin that honors time, labor, and the body itself. The process of creating this fabric took over 100 hours.
The high, structured neckline conceals the face, a continued symbol of the historic silencing of women, while the boned internal structure gives the form power and permanence. This piece is not just worn — it is inhabited. The silhouette suggests transformation: soft yet architectural, ephemeral yet enduring. It is a shedding and a reckoning, where beauty emerges not despite restraint, but through the act of confronting it.
LOOK SEVEN
The final look in the collection, this floor-length puffer coat serves as both armor and affirmation — a declaration of selfhood, softness, and strength. Inspired by Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, the silhouette mimics the shape of a shell: a protective vessel, a symbol of rebirth. Crafted from gathered lace and taffeta and stuffed with polypill, the coat is composed of 86 individual pattern pieces, each referencing the curves and folds of the human form — a tribute to the natural beauty of the body’s rolls and contours.
Modularity is central to this garment’s purpose. Through two double-ended separating zippers, the piece transforms into multiple forms: a cropped bolero, mid-length jacket, floor-length coat, mini skirt, full skirt, and shawl. Designed with adaptability in mind, it fits multiple body types and moods, becoming whatever the wearer needs it to be.
Soft yet commanding, this coat closes the collection by embodying the possibility of transformation — the moment one chooses to step into their power and be fully, unapologetically seen.
FILM
