The Fashion Industry
Fashion & Interior Design
Mrs. Wagner
The Role of Fashion Designers
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Work at different levels
Some national & world recognition
Others assist high level designers or work
with existing designs
Specialization is common – swimwear,
lingerie, bridal gowns, children’s clothing
Must be aware of target market
High Fashion Designers – “Name
Designers”
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Influential in establishing fashionable looks for a
season
Some own their own firm or financed by partners
Others – Ralph Lauren – are publicly owned
companies listed on stock exchange
The companies of high-fashion designers are
called Fashion Houses
Some have special style or look – RL – Classic,
Hilfiger, Casual, street smart
Collections
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2-4 times a year designers turn out a collection
– group of clothes designed or produced for a
specific season – 50-70 items
Different collections for different customers –
women, men, etc.
May also have different price range – designer,
better, moderate
Top designers – responsible for most of the
company’s creative decisions
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Search for new ideas, design garments,
choose fabric & colors & establish an
image, set prices, meet with buyers &
clients & promote the fashions
Approve the licenses of other products
that are sold under their name
Apparel Industry Designers
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Most don’t have name recognition
Work for garment manufacturers that
provide clothing for a brand or store label
Do create original designs
Stylists
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Adapt designs created by others, often High
Fashion Designers
By adapting – produce less expensive versions
– Knock Offs –
Choose less expensive fabric & change some
details
Must understand
- garment construction
- Manufacturing Process
- Firms production capabilities
- Work closely with buyers of major stores
Freelance Designers
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Work independently selling original
designs or adaptations
Self-employed – not involved in
manufacturers business decisions
Business of Designing
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Create hundreds of styles – most never
make it to store
“A Designer is only as good as his last
collection” – customer makes the final
decision
Success once depended on high prices –
not inexpensive – just as fashionable –
mix & match – exp. With less exp.
The Design Process
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Step 1 Idea
Art exhibits, theater productions, movies,
newspapers, magazines, travel, ethnicity
New fabrics, textures, patterns, prints –
trims, fasteners
Step 2 - Sketching
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Makes a sketch – very rough with little
detail – some drawn on body silhouette –
may add color
Croquis (Kro-KEY) – preliminary sketch as
it is developed it begins to get details –
yokes, pockets, collars, etc.
Step 3 - Draping
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Some do instead of sketching
Draping – arranging fabric into graceful
folds & attractive lines. Some use live
models
See silhouette, proportion, details longer
than sketching
Step 4 – Selecting Fabric & Trims
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Swatch of fabric & trim is attached to each
design sketch
Step 5 – Making Sample
Garments
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Develop Pattern
Sloper – preliminary pattern is made which
fits a certain body shape
Pattern is made – sewn together – tried
out - revised
Designer Collections
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Were specifically made for clients
Couture (Koo-TOOR) – french word for
dressmaking – designing, making & selling of
high fashion clothing
Haute Couture (oht koo-TOOR) – High Fashion
– most fashionable, expensive & exclusive
designer clothing – Cost thousands of dollars
Atelier – designers workroom - hand sewing
Fabrics – finest available, sometimes one of a
kind or created exclusively for the designer –
very few people can afford
Fashion Babies
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1700’s dolls dressed in detailed copies of Queen
Marie Antoinette’s latest clothes
Dressmakers in London used dolls to duplicate
the style, fabric & construction details
Couturier- designers who make custom made
clothing – copied the idea & sent dolls to copy –
was popular until newspapers & fashion
magazines
Charles Worth - 1845
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1st Designer to present gowns on live
models
1st Designer to sell samples to US to be
copied
1st to market perfume under his own name
Father of Haute Couture
Fashion Capitals
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Paris – significant fashion always started
in Paris until the end of WWII
US started using more American
Designers and started having an influence
on other countries
Fashion Shows
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2 times a year
July – Fall/Winter
January – Spring/Summer
Paris, NY, Milan – High Fashion Designers
Collections – London, Tokyo, Montreal
Designer Ready to Wear
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US started
Pret-a-Porter – Deluxe ready to wear – French
couture house present 2 collections a year
More practical – not as expensive – fabrics not
as unique – no hand sewing
Sold in Major dept. Stores
Top designers in NY, Milan, etc. hold showings
as well – retailers come
Licensing
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Giving legal permission to use your name
to promote a product
Receive a royalty - % of profits
Licensing of moderately priced items has
enabled more customers to buy designer
products