Fashion design

Fashion design is the art dedicated to the creation of wearing apparel and lifestyle.

The first person who could really be considered as a Fashion designer was Paul Poiret. In the time before WW1 he started with a concept which is considered now as Haute Couture.. Although fashion itself has a long history which leads back to the early civilisations. People who designed and produced garments before his time where seen as craftsmen/women.

The other great Fashion Houses like for example Chanel and Dior came to live just before WW2. After the War Haute couture was not the only trend dictator anymore.. Under influence of Fashion Icons (like for example Marlyn Monroe,james dean and Jacky Kennedy or the models like Twiggy),Youth culture and the independent womens movements other types of fashion companies and Designers appeared.

Fashion brands not only just produced garments anymore but also started to create their own image or started designing for certain target groups and/or sub cultures. Vivienne Westwood for example "created" the image which is now generally considered as Punk. The Trend dictation of the Old Couture Houses was over.

Modern fashion design is roughly divided into two categories, Haute-Couture, and Ready-to-Wear.A designers Haute-Couture collection is meant exclusively for private customers and is custom sized, cut and made. It is often shown on the catwalk and in private salons. Ready-to-wear collections are not custom made. They are standard sized which makes them more suitable for larger productions. Ready to wear collections can also be divided into Designers/ createur collections and Confection collections. Designer/ createur collections have a high quality, a superb finsih and a unique cut and design. These collections are the most trendsetting compared to Haut Couture and Confection. Designer/createurs ready to wear collections contain often Concept items which represent a certain philophy or theory. These items are not so much created for sales but just to make a statement. The designers ready to wear collection is also presented on the international catwalks. Confection collections are the once we see most commenly in our shops. These collections are designed by Stylists. The brands who produce these collections aim for a mass public.

Although a lot of the modern fashion designers are still working on a somewhat "traditional" way there have been designers who break this "rule" over the past years ( 1995- nowadays). Fine examples are Martin Margiela and Warmenhoven & Venderbos. These designers approach clothing, Fashion and lifestyle from an other angle and explore also the bounderies of Fashion itself in order to create "new" concepts and views for Fashion design.Their collections are not only restricted to garments (ready to wear aswell as couture) and other Fashion related products, but also contain work in other media.The works of this breed of designers can also be placed in a certain Art movent .

Most fashion designers attend a Academie of fine arts. Fashion design courses are considered as applied arts just like graphic design and interior design. Often the the types Stylist and Designer are mixed up. A stylist inspires his/her designs on existing things, trends and Designers collections. A Designer starts from scratch; he/she develops a unique *concept and translates this into garment collections and other Life style related products. Some Designers approach their work just as a fine arts painter or sculptor.

They usually tend to keep an eye on things going on world-wide to inspire themselves towards making their future clothes lines, but they can also be trend-setters and try to change the way people look around the world by coming with new ideas.

Most fashion designers are well trained pattern makers and modeleurs.A typical design team is made up out one or more: Designer(s), pattern maker /modeleur(s), sample maker(s), buyer(s) and salesman(s). For presentations and catwalk shows the help of hair dressers, make-up artists, modeling agencies and the model is called upon.

As Fashion became more and more a large business, Designers started also with licensing products.( For example: Perfume , bags and all sorts of products)

Famous fashion designers

Famous models who have made the jump from the fashion world to the show business world include:

See also: Fashion