A Career in Fashion Design
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A Career in Fashion Design
The fashion design career, has recently emerged as one of the most popular and competitive among young people. Those who actually succeed in design have a very individualistic personal style and dont follow trends set by others. Having fashion design as your profession sometimes allows you to meet glamorous people. It can also put you in charge of what is in and out when it comes to clothing through ramp shows and fashion write-ups. Most designers have a great social status, and are accepted by everyone. However, There are many aspects which may or may not help you choose it as your career.
Many talented individuals are attracted to careers as designers. Those with little or no education, as well as those who lack perseverance, will find it difficult to establish and maintain a career in fashion design. There were over 16,000 people employed in this field in 2003 and demand will stay strong for designers because of our consumer culture is always wanting new styles and fashions. The employment is expected to grow fast through the year 2010 and some designers will need to be replaced as they retire, leaving more jobs available. Although, these jobs are only available in large cities such as New York or Los Angeles.
Fashion designers dont work on commission so they do earn wages. The pay is great even for beginner designers. Most beginning designers earn as much as twenty-four thousand dollars annually and upper level designers earn as much as one hundred-five thousand dollars annually. The hourly wages for a beginner is twenty dollars and ninety-five cents while more experienced designers earn as much as fifty dollars or more per hour. Fashion designers may have to keep irregular hours to meet deadlines production deadlines for fashion shows. They may have to travel over seas to productions sites or for
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showings and conferences or even material shopping. Designers under incorporations normally negotiate their benefits and normally receive full benefits of paid vacations, group insurance plans, and sometimes sick days or break days. It all dep ends on your employer. As for those who are self-employed benefits may depend on themselves. If they set up a health plan for them selves they may only pay a partial amount on their expenses. Although, they will be able to take time off, but it wont a paid vacation considering that they work for themselves and cant make money unless they are working.
Most designers who work for large or small manufacturers pick an area of specialization.
The four most heard of are head designers, assistant designers, specialty designers, and theatrical costume designers. Head designers are responsible for exclusive and creative functions. They supervise design room staff. Those with less experience may be responsible for small divisions or specialized garments. Assistant designers are generally all-around assistants and designers. They make first patterns and samples or may supervise sample makers. ” They work together with their directors on their sketches, and help put together their catalogs.”(Baron, pg 73)
Specialty designers work with other designers to coordinate special lines of clothing, such as sweaters. They often arrange for styles to be made in foreign countries. Theatrical costume designers create costumes for movies or theatrical productions, usually on a contact basis.
As you may know fashion designers create anything that is part of a garment for men, women, and children. They understand the needs of their clients and create attractive, functional garments and accessories. When designing they must keep a close watch on fit, style, color, texture, size, and material. Designing any outfit starts with sketching and original idea on paper
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or on computer programs. Then shaping the patterns pieces which make the garment. The pieces are then drawn in actual size on paper and cut out on a rough material. These pieces are stitched together and fitted on a model. If it doesnt look right they start over again. If it looks good , it is then made in the final material and put in fashion shows or put out to sale.
Creativity and artistic abilities are crucial to have a design occupation. It helps if you have a strong sense of the esthetic or an eye for color and detail, a sense of balance and proportion, and an appreciation for beauty. Despite advancement of computer-aided design, sketching ability is still an important advantage in fashion