Fashion Designs and Women’s Styles

See through clothing, shorter hem lines and contrasting colours. It’s all about fashion when we head into the hot sizzling season of summer here in Australia. The latest fashion trends and women’s seasonal styles are often defined by celebrities. And the fact of the matter is, celebrities are often dressed by renowned fashion designers.

So for the aspiring fashionistas who want to dress like the Kate Moss and Paris Hilton, perhaps it’s time to take a step back and see the bigger picture – the bigger picture of the entire fashion world. It’s all about taking ideas from the fashion designers and being unique and comfortable in your personal fashion sense.

Chanel is one of the best known and renowned fashion brands in the fashion and haute couture world. The brand started off with a no-nonsense approach to fashion. The designs were produced for women to feel comfortable and look dignified. This has since been transformed into a classic, tailored style. The trademark can be seen in Chanel’s read-to-wear range, where the tailored-at-the-waist cardigan jacket is most popular and most copied. The evening wear and formal collection of Chanel tends to have an understated sex appeal, not blatantly revealing, yet exudes luxury, feminism and delicateness.

Escada is known for its clean, sleek and sophisticated look. The Escada fashion collection, spearheaded by Margarethe Ley, is known for innovative fabric and colour combinations. This appeals to the slightly more daring and makes for unique fashion statements that stand out. Escada is all about creativity in fashion, and their use of the most updated technology in creating fashion is testament to that fact.

Prada wraps old-world Italian luxury into a new world fashion design. It is innovative yet classic, understated yet unique. Its upside down triangle symbol is now famous in the fashion circles and fashionistas sporting Prada accessories are indeed in a league of their own. Their fashion line for women have been created from a careful eye to detail and a deliberate study of fashion trends and styles.

d’Italia is a designer fabric store in Melbourne, Australia. The store’s products are imported directly from Italy and its fabrics come from the same manufacturing houses that provide for designer labels like Prada, Gucci, Escada and Armani. d’Italia boasts a range of material and fabric that are often used for the creation of uniquely tailored evening wear, bridal wear and professional wear.

The fashion world has long been filled with glitz and glamour. The ramp for models is always long, dramatic, and well-lighted. The walk is certainly a walk for fame, fortunately for aspirants but sometimes leading to a walk for shame. Who is behind all these promises and/or even breakdowns? No less than the fashion designers.

What, exactly, does a fashion designer do?

Basically, with streaks of talent, creativity, and sensitivity, fashion designers, as if influenced by Rumpelstiltskin, craft accessory and clothing sketches. They usually concentrate in one nature of accessory or garment such as women’s or men’s apparels, swimwear, lingerie, children’s garments, handbags, and even shoes. They, sometimes, lead the groundwork of the creation and promotion of their creations.

Famous fashion designers prefer to be self-employed and they cater for the request of their clients. Some cater to high-fashion department stores or to specialty stores. They establish fashion statements by setting the colors, silhouette, and type of materials that are worn each season.

There are also some designers who are employed by manufacturers of clothes. These designers just adapt fashion statements set by other designers for the market. However, there are small manufacturers who just purchase or copy designs.

Both designers sketch unique garments and follow certain trends in fashion. Likewise, both need assistants who should get used to the fast-paced schedule of the fashion business.

In detail, these designers execute the following tasks:

• Draw their unique designs.

• Create patterns for sample garments.

• Choose textile and add-ons (accessories).

• Apply tailoring and basic dressmaking principles along with draping techniques and flat pattern works.

• Fit and alter the completed product, if necessary.

• Set-up a fashion show.

• Compare the performance of the merchandise against the competitors.

• Keep self up-to-date of latest fashion trends thru magazines and other fashion shows.

• Have frequent trips to fabric showrooms to keep self updated of latest type of fabrics.

Actually, fashion designers can be categorized as follows:

1. Lead or Head Designers

They take care of the executive and creative tasks.

2. Assistant or Apprentice Designers

They usually make patterns and sample garments. They may also teach sample makers how to make patterns and designer garments.

3. Specialty Designers

They coordinate with other designers about special lines of garments.

4. Costume or Theatrical Designers

They usually create costumes used in theater and movie productions on a contractual basis.

The foundations for their creations are their knowledge, skills, and abilities honed in fashion schools and trainings in the long run.

• Basic Design – This refers to technical know-how included in the creation and use of technical blueprints, drawings, plans, and models.

• Idea Production – This is the ability of designers to approach problems creatively and resourcefully.

• Dynamic Learning – This is being able to analyze implications of new information and materials at hand.

• Operations Scrutiny – This is considering requirements of products to execute a design.

• Uniqueness – This pertains to unusual cleverness vis-à-vis trying situations.

• Harmonization – This is being able to having good coordination with others.

• Visioning – This is being able to see how an organization works under real conditions.

The talents and skills of these artists are really important in the fashion industry. The work requires an eye for a striking creation and business management. Thus, aside from the portfolio of their usually creations, formal education help these designers acquire the secrets of the trade in this business. In fact, graduation from a college or school that provides training on fashion and design is highly recommended in the industry, to keep incoming designers updated on the advent of new techniques and technologies.

However, some leaders of this industry view vocational training schools and community college as more capable of producing competent artists because these institutions work along with clothing industries.

Vocational schools provide trainings in sketching, draping and grading, pattern making, garment construction, textiles and trimmings, costume history, principles of design and color; and how to plan and market seasonal fashion lines.

High school students inclined in fashion and design should finish basic courses in arts, sewing, mathematics, speech, English, and business.

Usually, vocational institutions provide a two-leveled program with certificate that is consonant to the degree in Associate of Arts. For those who want to enter the fashion field immediately, a first level certificate of proficiency is provided. The next level of proficiency, the second-level requires a greater time of completion. But upon graduation, artists are considered competent enough to aim for positions as Assistant Designers. After all the necessary formal trainings and specializations, those who have the guts and high hopes spin gold fabrics!

The past centuries mark a great progression in fashion. While the traditional fashion clothing has a defined and strict silhouette for tailored clothing which most people wore, new fashion statements dictates that trends should be less restricted, expressing the passion of the wearer while at the same time having the structure to define the body. This paved way for a more creative and playful expression of fashion through texture, and fabric cuts. While it may be boring to read the guides to fashion at a certain fashion magazine or you might be sleepy watching the fashion video from the experts in the houses in Paris, there is another medium that offers the same learning but opposites the dull effect of the learning process. Intrigue with it? Learn and have fun with the dressing up games as you explore fashion texture and cuts with Cloe, Jade, Yasmin and Sasha!

The dramatic and playful ruffles. While the suit is best fitted for corporate attire, ruffled dresses, skirts, shirts and tops are gaining ground in the fashion world after its long rest in the past years. A ruffle is a strip of fabric, ribbon or lace that has been gathered tightly to produce the effect of waves. This is often used for curtains but also recognized in fashion dresses and even corporate shirts. Dressing up games have a wide variety of this type from skirts to tops and even bags.

Faux fur. Faux fur or the fake fur is one of the most elegant and luxurious element of a fashion clothing. Because of the growing concern on animal protection, this has been invented to produce the same stylish effect and soft cravings to the skin. A fashion jacket with faux fur at the hemline and hood is a perfect example of clothing at the dressing up games that uses this accessory as an element of clothing.

The Batik. This pattern of fabric is known in Asian and West African countries. While Batik is mistakenly called for the type of fabric, this is otherwise since it is the pattern that is called the Batik. The Batik pattern works well on leather, wool, silk, cotton and other materials. While some may see this as an old tradition, this becomes part of the closet at the dressing up games to showcase the genuine creativity that goes with fashion.

The Silk. This Chinese fabric is one of the most preferred, common and yet considered as one of the most exquisite texture you can play on when looking for fashionable clothes. Highly regarded in the fashion world not only because of the aesthetic appearance, it also becomes a fashion must have due to the sophistication it gives to the user as it touches the bare skin.

Play with textures and patterns more with dressing up games and see the boost in your creative thinking and fashions sense.