Becoming a successful Fashion Designer takes a lot of hard work and dedication to one’s craft. The Fashion Designer watches the runway, travels to shows and reads fashion magazines to identify new trends, color palettes and patterns for each season and interpret particular design patterns to create new and innovative designs. You’ll sketch your concepts by hand, make technical design drawings and often address potential buyers as an experienced marketer. Your clients may be designers, brand developers and marketing managers all rolled into one; working in this industry brings with it many opportunities and fulfilling career goals.
The fashion designer works closely with the fabrics and products that they design. Fashion fabrics change constantly based on fashion trends, cosmetic innovations and consumer tastes, which determine how the fabrics are constructed and finished. A good Fashion Designer understands how fabrics interact with light, how to manipulate light to create subtle differences in shade and create illusions of space and how to use textures to create a variety of effects that give the fabric’s depth and texture.
Haute couture is defined by French language as, ‘contemporary art’. Haute couture was born out of the desire of artists to create unique, one-of-a-kind clothes that are appealing to the general public. Haute couture dresses focus on form and function, drawing from a variety of inspirations including theater, paintings, photography, nature and pop culture. An advantage of working with Haute Couture is that designers have access to mass market ready-made clothes, which allow them to make small changes to create a completely new look that will be stand out from the crowd. For example, instead of wearing white jeans to a black formal party, a designer might wear a blouse with a red skirt for an original look that is different and eye-catching. While this might not sound like much, in reality it adds a level of style and sophistication to any outfit and makes the wearer feel confident and attractive.
The biggest challenge for many fashion designers is how to keep up with the ever-changing trends in both design and clothing. Trends tend to change depending on what is in vogue and what people find attractive. The best way for designers to stay on top of current trends is to follow the news, keeping themselves abreast of the latest trends in both design and clothing and learning as much as possible about what is hot and what people are asking for.
Many fashion designers work in the same field as other designers, creating clothing for both men and women. This means that they know the challenges involved in creating clothing that can appeal to both sexes. Being a fashion designer involves more than just choosing a great color or designing a great pattern. A person must be skilled in sewing, able to sew intricate details and understand cutting methods. Designing technical aspects such as cuts, stitching and tailoring are also part of the job of a fashion designer, who understands the technical side of how clothing is made and the types of fabrics that are used to create the designs.
A good fashion designer has to be a great problem-solver. Keeping up with the latest trends is difficult, but keeping abreast of the latest technology in this fast-paced world is even more challenging. Keeping up with technical advances and learning new techniques to make the clothing look even better is the mark of a true fashion designer. Designers learn from fashion magazines and get their ideas from on-air shots of fashion weeks and runway shows. With an education and a passion for fashion, they are able to use the information to come up with new ideas and enhance the products.
