The Fundamental Principles of Fashion Design - Essay Example

Fashion design While fashion design means different things to different people, most of who perceive fashion design as simply theidea of creation of new garments, fashion design is actually more than that. In its comprehensiveness, fashion design refers to the art of the application of design, aesthetics and natural beauty to both clothing and accessories (Bye, 7). The concept of fashion design is not static, owing to the fact that it is highly influenced by social and cultural latitudes, most of which tend to change with time. The sole aim of fashion design is to produce a range of clothing and aesthetics designs that will capture the interests of the customers, by following the developing trends and even going back to reinvigorate some traditional or ancient clothing styles and aesthetic components that were fashionable during the time, which can also integrate fully into the current tastes and preferences of the people (Eceiza and Alvarez, 22). Design functionality and aesthetic value forms the fundamental principles of fashion design, since a fashion designer must come up with a design that functions well for the current generation, while also matching the emerging trends and thus giving a touch of aesthetically pleasant attire. Most significant in the world of fashion design, is the consideration into who is likely to wear the garment or the accessory that has been produced, and on what occasions is the attire desirable. Therefore, with the interest of the current generation on the forefront, coupled by the occasional desirability and aesthetic appearance, a fashion designer is sure to remain in the business. There are a variety of skills that are desirable for an individual to qualify as a fashion designer. First, a wide knowledge in fabrics, ornaments, garments and fashion trends is highly desirable for anyone waiting to become a fashion designer (Eceiza and Alvarez, 37). The knowledge of fabrics is essential; since it enables an individual understand what type of material is desirable to produce a clothing fashion, based on the occasions for which the clothing is designed. The knowledge of ornaments is also relevant, since it allows individuals to understand the types of ornaments that are suitable to produce certain accessories, and which of such ornaments is worth matching the dressing that is designed for such occasions (Brogden, 42). Another relevant requirement for a prospective fashion designer is the knowledge of fashion trends. This is necessary because fashion is not statistic, and thus new designs are generated with each passing day, depending on the changing tastes and preferences of the people, as well as the advancement in technology. Therefore, an educational qualification of a Bachelors of fine arts degree or an associate degree programs in fashion design, which are offered by colleges and universities are desirable for anyone willing to become a fashion designer, since such degree programs covers the art of fabrics, ornaments, garments and fashion trends, thus equipping individuals with the relevant skills and knowledge for this field (Jones, 10). For those willing to establish their own fashion design businesses, a relevant business degree is also necessary, to equip them with sufficient business skills that will support them during the course of establishing and running the business. In addition to the educational qualification, there are also some relevant skills that any prospective fashion designer ought to possess. One such skill is the color, color scheme and color mixing skills. These skills are relevant, since color is one of the basic components that enhance fashion (Hopkins, 72). Without the knowledge of how color works, then it will not be possible for anyone to develop an aesthetic and appealing clothing or accessory, since color is the key element that attracts the attention of a potential buyer to a commodity, before the buyer can even delve into the features and price of the commodity. Textile sewing and tailoring is another relevant skill for any fashion designer. This is because, garments and fabrics are just found in the form of sheets of garments, and must be designed, cut and sewn to become clothing that is wearable by individuals (Hopkins, 75). Therefore, the knowledge of tailoring and sewing is inevitable, since it is the one that gives the designer the much desired knowledge of cloth making. The fashion designer needs to possess a range of sewing and tailoring pattern skills, since different designs calls for use of different sewing and tailoring patterns. Design skills are also very important skills that a prospective designer should possess, since such skills enable a designer to develop a design idea and tailor-make it to produce the much desired final clothing or aesthetic product. Therefore, a fashion designer need to have design skills, which include the Computer Aided design knowledge, that would allow the designer use the computer to generate relevant designs, as opposed to manual design, which is time consuming and tedious (Seivewright, 40). Nevertheless, the possession of relevant skills in fashion design does not automatically guarantee an individual to become a successful fashion designer. This is because, while fashion design is a skill, its success emanates from actualizing the skill into a tangible product that is appreciated by people. Therefore, to become a successful fashion designer, an individual requires possessing a strong sense of aesthetic (Brogden, 53). While the knowledge and skills of designing new fashions for clothing and accessories is vital, it can rarely be actualized without the possession of a strong sense of aesthetic by the potential designer. This is because, the main idea behind fashion design is beauty and appeal, which are actualized by the strong sense of aesthetics, held by an individual, allowing a designer to generate a clothing or accessory that captures the attention of fashion and beauty-sensitive individuals. An eye for color and details is also essential for an individual to become a successful designer, since color and fine details forms the basics of differentiating fashions made by different designers (Bye, 14). Excellent communication and problem-solving skills are also relevant components that enhance the success of a fashion designer, since fashion design is a people-oriented business, which requires the fashion designer to interact with the people, to understand the taste and preferences of different people. Problem-solving skills are essential for ensuring that any issue that arises from the design process must be addressed amicably, without causing discord between the designer and the customers (Eceiza and Alvarez, 28). Finally, creativity is another important component that ensures the success of a fashion designer. Creativity plays a big role in differentiating the products of one designer from the other, since the business of fashion design is competitive, thus being creative; to come-up with designs that the competitors are not capable of developing, assures the designer of business success. Chanel This is a privately owned French design company that produces fashion accessories; ready to wear clothes and luxury goods (Abrams and Coco, 55). The design company is named after an individual proprietor, who spotted an opportunity for women’s taste in clothing and accessories, including elegant dresses and jewelry (Abrams and Coco, 47). The company also specializes in blouses and suits for women, women trousers and dresses, meant to replace the 19th century fashion. The most popular commodities as offered by Chanel Design Company are dresses, suits and perfumes. There are certain aspects that have made Chanel successful. First, innovation has marked the life of Chanel fashion design, with a consistent release of women’s fashion that always maintained a sense of elegance and class (Abrams and Coco, 44). Communication and customer relationship also marks a success factor for Chanel fashion design, since it helps the customers feel valued and appreciated, thus promoting customer loyalty. Resilience is another success factor for Chanel, since the proprietor always kept improving and cultivating the vision for fashion and elegance especially for women, even at a time that the business did not seem to reward the efforts (Abrams and Coco, 56). However, the resilience applied has proved to be worth, owing to the success that the company has registered to date. Dior Dior is a fashion design company that was founded in 1946 by a French designer called Christian Dior (Pochna, 5). This design house came into the limelight after World War II, due to the material that it used in making women dresses and men’s suits, which was considered to be more than necessary, owing to the shortages of fabrics in the post-World War Period. However, this changed after the shortage was eliminated and Dior became favorite of many, since it designed descent clothing for women that covered up to their legs (Pochna, 8). The success factors for Dior, which has seen it emerge as a popular design house, includes innovation, where it consistently develops new designs, fashions and elegant styles that keeps the customers loyal. Constant promotions have made the design house popular, owing to customer information and attraction to the new company’s development. Valentino Valentino design is an Italian design company that has various lines of products, founded in 1959 but got its major recognition in 1967 (Mower, 12). Having started his interest in design while still in primary school, the founder of Valentino Design Company had to wait for many years before the dream was finally realized. Most significant among the success factors for Valentino design house is resilience, which enabled Valentino to rise from a small design firm to the bigger fashion design company it is today (Mower, 19). Specialization in women’s wear has also given the design company an upper hand, since most women looks up to this design company for the recent and most elegant fashion and designs. Works Cited Abrams, Dennis, and Coco Chanel. Coco Chanel. New York: Chelsea House, 2011. Print. Bye, Elizabeth. Fashion Design. Oxford: Berg, 2010. Print. Brogden, Joanne. Fashion Design. London: Studio Vista, 1971. Print. Eceiza, Laura, and Alvarez M. Asensio. Atlas of Fashion Designers. Beverly, Mass: Rockport, 2008. Print. Hopkins, John. Basics Fashion Design - Menswear. Ava Publishing SA, 2011. Print. Jones, Jen. Fashion Design: The Art of Style. Mankato, Minn: Capstone Press, 2007. Print. Mower, Sarah. "Valentino Spring 2008 Ready-to-Wear Collection on Style.com: Runway Review", 2007. Print. Pochna, M-F. Christian Dior: The Man Who Made the World Look New. Arcade Publishing, 1996. Print. Seivewright, Simon. Research and Design. Lausanne: AVA Academia, 2007. Print. Read More