fashion Laura 25 » Fashion Designer

Become a Fashion Designer

admin — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 07:22:04 +0000

You know you’re destined to be a fashion designer if you: a) spent most of your childhood making clothes for your Barbie dolls instead of playing with your friends; b) read fashion magazines instead of your school books; c) ran a boutique out of your basement at age 10. In other words: if you want to be the next Yves Saint Laurent, it helps to be completely and utterly obsessed with fashion.

However, there are many aspects of the profession. Working as a fashion designer can just as well mean supervising a design team at a sportswear company as producing a label under your own name. Although the former career may not seem as glamorous as the latter, it certainly will make your life less stressful. To create your own label takes a lot of time, dedication and hard work. Not to mention living just above the poverty line for several years.

Choosing a strategy

There are as many different ways to embark upon a fashion career as there are styles of design. Ralph Lauren’s Polo empire was founded on a small tie collection that he sold to Bloomingdales. Helmut Lang decided to open his own clothing store when he couldn’t find a t-shirt that he liked. Michael Kors built up a network of customers by selling clothes in a trendy NYC boutique. However, most people find that the best foundation for a design career is to get a fine arts degree in fashion at a prestigious school. Besides teaching you the craft, a good school will also add credibility to your resumé. “We live in a brandname society, and having the name of a good school behind you really does help,” says Carol Mongo, Director of the Fashion Department at Parsons School of Design in Paris.

Applying to a school

There are a lot of colleges that have fashion programs, but only a handful has the kind of reputation that can really push your career. It’s hard to enter these schools as competition is high, and they tend to be very selective. You apply by sending a portfolio of drawings of your designs. “We can’t teach you how to be creative – you have to bring your creativity to us and let us lead you on your way,” says Carol Mongo. She recommends students to get some sewing experience before they apply. Drawing is also an important skill for a designer – it is the way you communicate your ideas. In order to build an impressive portfolio it’s a good idea to have some experience in sketching; taking art classes will help you understand form and proportion. But you don’t have to be an expert drawer to get accepted to a school. “The most important quality that we look for in our students is that they are truly passionate and exuberant about fashion,” says Mongo. “If you have wonderful ideas but can’t draw, there are always ways to get around it. You could for example put your designs on a mannequin and take pictures of it.”

What school will do for you

Most fashion programs are three to four years long. During that time you will take fine arts classes and study drawing, color composition and form. You will also learn pattern making, draping and cutting techniques. One of the most important advantages of design schools is that they work really closely with the industry. Parsons, for example, have “designer critic projects” where successful designers like Donna Karan and Michael Kors work directly with the graduating students. Ambitious students also have the chance to win prestigious awards and grants, which bring them a lot of attention as well as financial support. One very important event is the fashion show at the end of the last semester, when graduating students show their collections. A lot of important people from the fashion industry attend these shows to scout new talent. It’s also an opportunity to be really outrageous and get noticed by the media. Hussein Chalayan, for example, became instantly infamous when he showed rotting clothes that he had buried in his backyard for his graduation show at Saint Martins.

Alternative routes

“Let’s be realistic,” says Carol Mongo at Parsons, “School’s not for everyone. If you’re just looking to get a job in the fashion industry – not a career as a designer – you probably don’t need to go school.” If you want to work as a seamstress or a patternmaker, the best thing is probably to apply for an internship at a fashion house and work your way up. However, there are many examples of famous designers who started out as interns with no formal training. For example, Dior’s brightest new star, men’s wear designer Hedi Slimane, had a degree in journalism when he started working with men’s wear designer José Levy. Balenciaga’s Nicolas Ghesquière is another example of a brilliantly successful designer who learned the jobs hands-on, as an assistant at Jean-Paul Gaultier. Usually, you apply for an internship by sending a portfolio to a fashion house you’re interested in. But it’s a good idea to call them up beforehand to see exactly what they need. It’s also important to note that competition is fierce, and unless you have personal connections, it’s very difficult to get an internship without an education.

There are also designers, like Luella Bartley, who started their own business after working as stylists for several years, thus building an industry network as well as a good marketing sense.

Understanding the business

Unfortunately, it’s not enough for a designer to be creative; you also have to have some business sense. As fashion gets more and more corporate driven, it’s important to be aware of the business climate and understanding the mechanics behind it. By religiously reading trade papers like “Women’s Wear Daily” you will get a lot of valuable information. If you want to run your own company, you need to be extremely organized and learn at least the basics of economics. A lot of fashion schools are currently increasing business classes in their curriculum. “Our students have to be smart enough to know how to negotiate a contract, or to pick a business partner,” says Carol Mongo. It’s perhaps telling that many of the designers that are really successful today, like Calvin Klein or Tom Ford, are involved in every aspect of the business – from licensing strategies to ad campaigns to actually designing the clothes.

About the author:

Fashion Designer Omar Ejaz,The owner of The Heer boutique, has previously exhibited in Lahore, Karachi, New Delhi, Singapore, HongKong, London, Glasgow and USA,where his creationswas highly appreciated. Omer work with a variety of fabrics, and what truly sets them apart is the innovative way he combine two or more textures in a single garment.

TheHeer Carries Women’s Designer Clothing, Shalwar Kameez, Indian / Pakistani Wedding Lehenga, Bridal Dresses, Bridesmaid Dresses, Casual Wear, Formal Wear, Evening and party wear.They design and sell Indian and Pakistani fashion dresses. Pakistani clothing store. They have custom made Pakistani/Indian fashion dresses like shalwar kameez, sherwani dress, embroidered khussa shoes, Men’s shalwar Kameez, lehnga and ghagra.

website:http://www.TheHeer.com

TheHeer@gmail.com

How to Prepare for a Career in Fashion Design

admin — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 07:11:29 +0000

Every time that a new line of designer clothing makes its debut it means one thing for people looking to enter the field of fashion design and marketing. It means more jobs and more demand for people that have gone through the training that is necessary to work in the field of fashion design. Everyone has ideas that they think would be popularly accepted if they just had the chance to see them produced and marketed. The problem is, that not everyone knows how to go about the process of doing it.

One skill that is important in the field of fashion design is drawing but not just any drawing. Every successful fashion designer has to draw out his or her ideas before they can become reality. Learning to draw fashion designs is different from other types of drawing and there are a lot of books on it that someone can get to learn how to do it. Remember that, you can have all of the wonderful ideas that you want but if you can’t draw them out you won’t be able to communicate them to others.

Learning to sew is another skill that you will need to have if you are thinking of a career in fashion design. Sewing is a craft that you can never stop improving, so a lot of practice goes into becoming not just good at it but great at it. There are now high tech sewing machines that can help you to do great work, so you may want to consider investing in one. All great fashion designers are masters at working with colors and textures and subtle differences in color and texture can make the difference between a good and a great work. Painting and drawing will only help you to become better at working with colors.

Your Fashion Designer Debut

admin — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 07:53:59 +0000

For the girls who dream of becoming fashion designers, there is a critical resource available online that can help you make those dreams come true – or at least get you pointed in the right direction. It can be challenging to begin a career as a fashion designer while still in middle school, but that hasn’t stopped millions of girls from testing the waters with the help of online dress up and fashion games.

Online Fashion

Girls who love fashion can never get enough of outfits and styles in fashion magazines, but now thanks to the huge variety of fashion games online, you can explore styles and create your own fashions right on your computer.

Making Fashion Work for You

To use fashion games on the computer, you need only internet access. There is no need for expensive software or even a measuring tape. Simply boot up the computer and turn your internet browser toward the world of dress up games.

Dress Up Games

The number of dress up games available online will take you aback if you haven’t explored this realm of fashion before. There are dress up games related to almost every fashionable celebrity and even many of the more popular fashion dolls such as Barbie and Bratz. There are also generic dolls used to model some of the latest and greatest fashion, and as a future designer, it is these games that will help you the most.

Assembling Style

When faced with a new dress up game, you have the option of thousands of clothing items and accessories to combine into new and exciting looks. You can easily spend hours trying on different skirts and tops to find the perfect top and skirt that might offset to a great pair of boots. And you can do all this without ever leaving your seat.

Working with fashion in this way lets you play with the most popular styles as well as learn what might be coming our way from other countries – after all, the United States isn’t the only nation with websites and designers creating all these fashion games. Blend styles from other counties to make your new look a bit more European or sparkle with Asian flair. Work to find the perfect outfit that transcends all national lines and when you find it, you must save it for posterity (and your portfolio.)

Creating a Portfolio

Working with fashion requires assembling a selection of your work to show others what you are capable of creating. This means your creations should be saved to a file on your computer or printed out to be stored in a special folder. While the great fashion houses might not come knocking at your door any time soon, creating a portfolio of favorites can be fun to share with friends and it can be especially beneficial when it’s time to head to the stores for a bit of shopping.