Everything You Should Know About FASHION

By Vaibhav Dhange

Fashion is the most versatile discipline and is becoming popular day by day. This book has been designed to cater to the needs of Fashion Design / Technology students, freelance designers / dress makers, and enthusiastic learners from non-fashion background. It is suitable for the beginners who have just started taking interest in fashion design concepts. It is useful in diploma & degree programmes, short term certificate courses and training workshops.

This book is an outgrowth of my study about fashion field since last 12 years. It deals with basic concepts of language of fashion design. This is not just a book. This is a learning material. You are not a reader, but a learner. A reader is passive while reading, whereas a learner is active while learning. Learning happens when you actually do a thing. This book does not intend to make you 'handicap' or dependent by providing ready instructions in bulk. It seeks to take you out of the passive reading mode and helps you get started working on the language of fashion design.

Design is a visual language and it has to be learned, like any other language, by gradually assimilating, first the alphabets, then the words, the sentences, the paragraphs, the pages, the volumes. Fast reading is useless. There is a humble suggestion. Do not skim chapters as if the fire was in the house and you had just a minute left to reach the very last line. Do all the hands on experiments. Unless and until you practice sketches and diagrams as hands on experiments, it is highly difficult for you to have mastery on this subject.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Vaibhav Dhange
• Release date: Jul 21, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301620487

Book preview

Chapter 1   Concepts of Fashion

Meaning of fashion

Fashion life cycle

Fashion terminology

Fashion consumers

Fashion movement

Fashion dresses

Meaning of design

Aspects of design

Chapter 2   Elements of Fashion Design

Introduction

Point

Line

Shape

Form or silhouette

Space

Colour

Texture

Chapter 3   Principles of Fashion Design

Balance

Proportion

Emphasis

Rhythm

Harmony

Unity

Chapter 4   Motif & Patterns

Introduction

Types of pattern

Motif repetition

Chapter 5   Fashion Portfolio Development

Introduction

Typical Portfolio Contents

Organizing portfolio

Bibliography

About the author

Chapter 1

tmp_24b5e69e6920bc8693a718e718dd0c5f_bU_Vk6_html_17bcede.jpg

Concepts of Fashion

Objectives

After completing this chapter,

you will know the meaning & concept of fashion and design.

you will understand fashion terminologies and types of fashion consumers.

you will be able to identify structural, decorative and functional aspects in designs.

you will become aware of different types of art materials and their uses.

~~~~~~

Meaning of Fashion

Fashion is what is accepted and adopted by the society at any given point of time. In other words, it is a lifestyle statement of an individual or a group of people. In this sense, it covers a wide range of human activities. Style, way, manner, mode, method and approach are the common terms associated with fashion. Fashion is an ongoing process and ever changing phenomenon that leads the world and is there in every nook and corner of the world. As fashion is a dynamic process, there are a number of external factors that contribute to it. There are various factors whose interplay affects the fashion scenario; it can be factors like social factors, political factors etc. The fashion scenario is a reflection of the prevailing conditions or tastes of people in the society. Everything that one uses, buys, wears, acquires has to be innovative and thoughtful.

Fashion varies from society to society and from region to region. It is a term which is primarily associated with the art of clothing and accessories. In its real sense it is a continuous process of changes in styles in any field, be it clothes, shoes, bags, profession, furniture, furnishings etc.

The term ‘fashion’ used in this book is in a narrow sense: fashion here means the style or styles of clothing and accessories worn at a particular time by a particular group of people.

~~~~~~

Fashion Life Cycle

Fashion is an ongoing cycle in which new trends take place, are accepted and get finally outdated and rejected. This brings about a change and gives way to newer trends. This process of acceptance to rejection forms a curve. However, the life of all trends is not the same. For some trends the cycle may be completed in 6 months whereas for others it may even be a few years. This curve represents the pattern of life of a trend that takes place in five phases (Figure 1).

tmp_24b5e69e6920bc8693a718e718dd0c5f_bU_Vk6_html_7c9b183d.jpg

Figure 1.1: Fashion cycle

Phase 1: Introduction

This is a stage where a particular style is just introduced and not many people follow it. It is created by stylists or designers, who are involved in developing new designs. Changing or manipulating the design details, colour or pattern etc. can bring about these changes.

At this stage the cost of the garment is generally very high because the garment is not produced in bulk and thus the cost of production goes up. These garments are generally showcased in fashion shows, fashion exhibitions and get extensive media coverage. The most popular method of showcasing, nowadays, is by sponsoring the soaps that are telecast on television and through the film industry. These are methods of marketing so that the orders placed from these activities can go in for bulk production. This would bring down its cost.

Phase 2: Rise

Once a particular style is introduced, its popularity then depends upon the response of the people to that style. If the indications drawn are positive, then the other manufacturers start adapting and copying the same style. At times the designers too have an alternate brand, clothes line that is at a lower price. This is done so as to increase the transaction and to take the orders in bulk.

To increase the popularity of particular style one may modify or alter it a little bit to suit the category of people he/she is catering to.

Phase 3: Popularity Peak

This is a stage where the demand for a style is the maximum or is at its peak. The production happens at all levels but it is produced ct different levels at different prices. The manufacturers keep a close watch on the reactions/response of the customers to a particular style so much so that even a slight indication towards acceptance jumps them to take production in quantities. This thereby reduces the manufacturing cost per garment and leads to mass acceptance. Such situations, many times, lead to ‘fakes' or 'Knockoffs'. Knockoffs are cheap adaptations of design, which get a good response. They are priced low because of more economic versions of fabrics, trimmings and finishing techniques that are used. This is done by picking up a sample from a particular garment and making a pattern for the same, but one must be careful in getting into mass production as not every style is meant for masses.

The practice of Fakes and Knockoffs works to a disadvantage for the original designer or stylist. However one can avoid this situation by getting a copyright for a particular design, but keeping in mind the dynamic fashion era, taking a copyright for a particular design is not useful. Firstly, fashion vis-a-vis contemporary fashion trends change very fast and secondly, the procedure of taking a copyright is elaborate and tedious. Therefore, by the time one actually gets the copyright, the design might get outdated. Hence the alternate is developed for the situation whereby the designer themselves get involved in an alternate line of clothes where the cost of production is much lower than the original.

Many a times the manufacturers get involved in the malpractice of imitating the original designer by using a similar firm name or label and manufacturing fakes. This illegal practice is carried out on international level. Goods are confiscated as and when the raids are conducted but this however has not been able to stop the malpractice.

Phase 4: Decline

After attaining the saturation point of popularity, the design slowly starts being rejected thereby bringing a downfall in its demand. This happens when