Fashion Designing

Inclination towards fashion is an ancient social phenomenon. Taste of dressing changes time to time and today it has reached to a completely new and booming level. Fashion design today is a form of art. It is the applied art devoted to the designing of clothing and lifestyle accessories.  It is the art of application of design and aesthetics. This art  of fashion design is influenced by cultural and social attitudes and has evolved over time and place. As a field of study Fashion design is quite a recent development. Fashion designing is primarily guided by consumer desire for aesthetically designed clothing. Fashion designing is highly influenced by social and cultural factors and therefore the design varies from place to place. Consumer tastes frequently changes and it is the responsibility of the fashion industry to identify the changing taste on time and fulfill the consumer requirements accordingly. 

Who is a fashion Designer?

In simple words, fashion designer is the person who creates the fashion. A fashion designer is responsible for creating the designs for clothing and lifestyle accessories. Fashion designers have to be aware of the existing fashion trends in the market and fashion market requirements. A good sense of art and creativity is believed to be the key for excelling in the fashion designing market. A fashion designer should be good at drawing and should be able to express ideas in sketches. A designer should also have some knowledge and experience of tailoring (cutting, draping, sewing etc.) and be able to tell the difference between different fabric quality levels. A fashion designer should be able adopt quickly with audience's lifestyle and customer needs. Good communication skills and ability to express ideas clearly will help a designer in many ways. However, most importantly a designer should have very original, fresh and innovative ideas.

History of fashion Design

Fashion designing has come a long way from the designer clothes worn by the royalty of the ancient world to the haute couture products of the present. Though, the history of fashion designing is relatively not very old. Charles Frederick Worth, a British is considered as the first fashion designer. He was the first person to design his own label during 19th century marking the beginning of the fashion designing.  Before he set up his fashion design house in Paris, clothing was made by anonymous dressmakers and fashion standards were derived from the styles worn by royalty. Worth's designs were so popular that he was actually able to dictate his customers what to wear rather than following their demands. Worth was the first designer to do that in fashion history. While all articles of clothing from any time period are studied by academics as costume design, only clothing created after 1858 could be considered as fashion design. Charles Frederick Worth's designs became so popular that people were able to attach a face and a name to designs when they knew they were from the House of Worth. This period was also the beginning period of the sketch or paint designs. During this period may design houses started hiring artists to sketch or paint their designs. It is a proven fact that the introduction of sketching or painting instead of presenting completed garments on models to customers began as an economy.

  

Types of Fashion

Traditionally fashion has been classified in three broad types. A brief introduction to all the three types of fashion is given below.

Haute couture or made-to-measure 

In this form the garment is designed specifically for a particular client. This form of fashion was very famous till 1950s and fashion clothing was predominately designed and manufactured on a made-to-measure or haute couture basis. The unique ness of Haute couture is that the Materials employed in making the fabric are of top quality and the finish is par excellence. The term Haute couture term and therefore it couldn’t be used by all.  The term can only be officially used by companies that meet certain well-defined standards set by the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture. Many organizations claim that their they make high quality fashion however in reality there are only few companies that meeting the standards set with the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture.

Ready-to-wear (pret-a-porter)

This form of fashion is not for individual customers and it is characterized as a cross between haute couture and mass market. Quality and exclusivity is guaranteed in ready-to-wear form of fashion designing. Cloths are high fashion and made in small quantity and therefore these cloths are very expensive. These cloths are normally presented by fashion houses and presented during a period known as fashion week. Normally ready-to-wear designs are released twice each year. 

 Mass market

Mass Market is based on popular trends. Mass market is connected to a wide range of customers, producing ready-to-wear garments using trends set by the famous names in fashion. Mass market produces ready-to-wear clothes in large quantities and standard sizes. Materials used in mass market are comparatively of low quality and prices of these garments are low. In order to save money and time, they use cheaper fabrics and simpler production techniques which can easily be done by machine. The end product can therefore be sold much more cheaply.  Mass market designers focus on the design on popular trends. Mass market designers generally adapt the trends set by the famous names in fashion. They often wait around by the famous names in fashion and also wait around a season to make sure a style is going to catch on a season before producing their own versions of the original look.

Steps in Designing a Garment

There are mainly three patterns involve in the process of designing a garment. These three steps are as below:

The Design: Different designers work in different ways. Some sketch their ideas on paper; others drape fabric on a dress stand.

 Making a Card Pattern: When the designer is completely satisfied with the fit of the toile (or muslin), they show it to a professional pattern maker. The professional pattern maker then makes the finished, working version of the pattern out of card. The pattern maker's job is very precise and painstaking. The fit of the finished garment depends on their accuracy.

The finished dress: Finally, a sample garment is made up in the proper fabric and tested on a fitting model.

  

Mode of Work of a Fashion Designer

The job of a fashion designer is not a traditional job. A fashion designer enjoys liberty while working and he can choose to work as freelancer, or he can go for an in-house job or he can also own a label and set up a company of his own.

 Working freelance:

Dictionary meaning of freelance is working for different companies at different times rather than being permanently employed by one company. A Freelance fashion designer therefore works for himself and sell his work to various fashion houses, shops or to manufacturers. The garment is later tagged with buyer’s label. 

Working In-house:

Fashion designer who chooses to work in –house needs to work for a particular company. In-house fashion designers are employed full time and their work and creation is considered as the property of the employer company and cannot be sold by the designer to anyone else.

Own Label:  

Most of the fashion designer prefers to set up their own companies. In general, Fashion designers don’t prefer to see their creation or design getting sold under a different company. They find own company label more satisfying than working for others.

  

Areas of Fashion Designing

Below mentioned table describes the areas of fashion, its brief and its corresponding market.

Areas	Brief	Market
Women's Day wear	Practical, comfortable, fashionable	Haute couture, ready-to wear, mass market
Women's Evening wear	Glamorous, sophisticated, suited for the occasion	Haute couture, ready-to-wear, mass market
Women's Lingerie	Glamorous, comfortable, washable	Haute Couture, ready-to-wear, mass market
Men's Day wear	Casual, practical, comfortable	Tailoring, ready-to-wear, mass market
Men's Evening wear	Smart, elegant, formal, apt for the occasion	Tailoring, ready-to-wear, mass market
Kids' wear	Trendy or Classy, practical, washable, functional	Ready-to-wear, mass market
Girls' Wear	Pretty, colorful, practical, washable, inexpensive	Ready-to-wear, mass market
Teenager Girl Wear	Colorful, comfortable, glamorous, pretty	Ready-to-wear, mass market
Jeanswear	Unisex, democratic, comfortable, practical, functional	Ready-to-wear, mass market
Sportswear	Comfortable, practical, well-ventilated, washable, functional	Ready-to-wear, mass market
Knitwear	Right weight and color for the season	Ready-to-wear, mass market
Outerwear	Stylish, warm, right weight and color for the season	Ready-to-wear, mass market
Bridal wear	Sumptuous, glamorous, classic	Haute couture, ready-to-wear, mass market
Accessories	Striking, fashionable	Haute couture, ready to-wear, mass market

  

Branches of Fashion Design

Fashion Design is a broad and a practical subject. Fashion design can broadly be divided into three main categories —

      Garment design,

      Leather design,

      Accessory & Jewelry design.

Following are some of the main classification or branches of Garment design.

• Outerwear includes jackets, trousers, rainwear, coats, suits, skirts, etc. This is a specialized and slower-moving area of fashion.

•  Light clothing covers , trousers, separates, evening wear, dresses, blouses, shirts and leisure wear. This merchandise is turned over at a rapid rate, with mid-season as well as main-season ranges.

• Children’s wear includes specialized firms producing a range of garments, but this is a limited area of employment.

• Lingerie, corsetry and swimwear design is a growing part of the fashion industry.     

• Knitwear is another growing part of the industry, with jobs in firms producing knitwear garments, patterns and wools. Garments may be sold through craft or exclusive designer outlets, as well as being part of most mass-produced ranges.      

• Accessories include hats, shoes, stockings, scarves, belts and bags. There are both designer-made and mass-produced products.      

• Embroidery done by machine is used extensively in the fashion industry for dresses, lingerie and children’s wear. Most designing is done by people who have taken special courses in embroidery design at arts college.      

• Theatrical costume design for stage and TV is often a combination of design, dressmaking and historical research. It is a highly competitive field and only the very talented can hope to succeed. Courses are available at a few colleges and drama schools.

Career in Fashion Designing

Fashion designing is one of the most lucrative, appealing, glamorous and exciting career options in today's world and it has recently turned out as one of the catchiest careers among the youths. On one hand, the fashion industry satisfies both the creative fancies and the materialistic needs of the people. On the other hand, it promises glamour, fame, success and a high pay package to the talented people. A career in Fashion Design not only involves meeting glamorous people and interacting with rich and famous but also gives a impetus to the creative flair of the people who possess a sense of style. The major functional areas in the industry are designing garments, cutting the cloth, sewing the pieces together and finally merchandising. Popularizing and marketing of the various styles and products is done through ramp shows and fashion write-ups. Some of the popular career options available for a fashion designer are:

Pattern Maker: The job of a pattern maker is to convert designs into patterns so  that it can be practically incorporated in fabric.

Textile Designer: A fashion designer can also go for Textile designing. Textile Designer should be able to pay attention to detail. In addition they need a sound aesthetic sense to distinguish, make and select authentic visually attractive designs.

Stylist: A fashion designer can also opt for the career of stylist. Stylist synchronizes the attire, accessories, hairstyle and make-up of fashion models to make them look best on the ramp. Wardrobe styling is a sub area of specialization for stylists. Most stylists are fashion design course experts.

Fashion Journalist: This is the best option for a graduate in fashion design with excellent communication skill can certainly become a successful fashion journalist. The best way to this career is paved by the course in mass media with specialization in fashion.

Fashion Photographer: Students interested in photography can choose Fashion Photography and start capturing moods and emotions of the models and takes pleasure to make people look lovely marking a way for a brilliant career.

Buyer: You are able to turn into a buyer through a regular course in merchandise management. Like a buyer you select what forms of fashion apparels are going to be stocked in various shops.

Fashion Advisor: As a fashion advisor one must provide expert consultancy to clients- the normal people- in order to dress fashionably and look elegant. This a new fashion career and attaining popularity gradually.

Fashion Design Instructor: A person with many years of expertise inside the fashion world and luxuriate in instructing could become a Fashion Design Instructor. The responsibility of a fashion design instructor is to teach both the rudiments and advanced details of fashion to students.