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Feature article: Fashion Etiquette
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Designing Women and Men
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Designing Women and Men So you want to design clothes? Perhaps you want to be the next Ralph Lauren or Donna Karan. Maybe you have an idea that you have what it takes. Maybe you're just bored and love clothes. Well, that's not enough! You really need to have what it takes. And (how lucky!) now we'll show you how.
The basics: You'll need to be able to draw, so you can create designs. This can be either with pen/pencil or a computer program. Preferably both. You'll also need to be able to sew. A designer who never sewed her own clothes is just a fake. Learn to sew both by hand and machine. Be perfect. Finally, you need a sense of creativity. Only then can you imagine great clothes, put them on paper, and make them.
Aside from going to a good fashion or design school, you will want to brush up on other skills:
- Know your fashion. Learn fashion history. Read magazines, know the current fashion trends and the market. Who's hot? What's in now? What is predicted to be in for next season, and the one after?
- Who will buy? Find out who are your target - will you sell to the old, the young? Women or men? Rich or poor? Who's most likely to buy what you make?
- Know the classics. Know how to design and draw and make classic clothes, including shirts, skirts, blouses, dresses, pants. If your target is shoes, learn that. If it's jewelry, learn how to make that.
- Alter. Part of that creativity should be used to take an existing sewing pattern or piece of clothing, and redo it. Can you adapt a long skirt pattern for a shorter one? Can you take a jacket and make it into a dress?
- Know the market. What would your designs sell for? Who would be willing to pay that much? What kind of money do your buyers have? Set a cost for each of your designs, based on what you know about the market, the work you put in, and the fabrics.
- Fabrics. What will you make your dress out of? If it's supposed to be long and slinky, perhaps wool won't do. You might want silk, satin, or crepe chiffon. Know the kinds of fabrics, what they look and feel like, and when they are appropriate. If a fabric doesn't exist like you want, consider how it might be made!
- Get your fabric made. A fabric maker will make a fabric you want. If you want a paisley-printed linen, that will have to be created. Make sure the fabric is rugged. Figure out if it needs to be washed in warm or cool water. Can it be ironed? Bleached? Know how to care for different fabrics and decide what instructions will be on the label.
- Know your sewing. What are the types of cutting and tailoring? What the different techniques? What high-tech computerized equipment is there for cutting and sewing, and how does it work?
- Inspect, inspect. Once the clothes are made, inspect them as a buyer would. Imagine they cost millions and need to be perfect. What are the flaws? How can you solve them?
- Go largescale. When it's time to make a larger amount of clothes, you'll have to know how to oversee production, make it easier to make the clothing in larger quantity, and have management skills. Better sooner than later.
- Communicate. When it comes time to working with other people on your designs, you'll have to tell them how you want something done. Good communication skills are a requirement for that!
Once you have started learning these skills, you can really go forward as a strong and capable designer (learn more here). So keep at these skills, and you'll soon have a set of clothes you're so proud of that others will actually want to pay good money!
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