There is no formal education or certification required to become a successful fashion designer, but that doesn't make the feat any easier. To become a fashion designer, you will need to have a combination of drawing, sewing, and design skills, a knowledge of the fashion industry, and unparalleled perseverance. You'll also need to create a strong fashion portfolio and strengthen your knowledge of business and finance in general. In this article we discuss about How To Be A Fashion Designer.

Things You Should Know

  • Develop skills in drawing, sewing, and design. If possible, pursue a degree in fashion design, or apply for a fashion internship or apprenticeship.
  • Narrow your interest to a specific design field and practice your craft as much as possible. Create your own stylistic vision and expand on it.
  • Learn about the business and marketing aspects of the fashion industry to give yourself a competitive edge.

Honing Your Fashion Design Skills

Develop Your Skills

Successful fashion designers have a wide array of skills, including drawing, an eye for color and texture, an ability to visualize concepts in three dimensions, and the mechanical skills involved in sewing and cutting all types of fabrics.

  • Get excellent sewing tuition if you haven't already learned this skill well. Being able to sew difficult fabric under challenging situations will stand you in excellent stead throughout your career but you need to work at it - it's a skill that doesn't come easily to many people.
  • Understand how fabrics move, drape, breathe, react when worn, etc. Your in-depth knowledge of fabric is absolutely essential to using it properly when designing. Also know where to source materials from.
  • Learn from existing designers, not just who they are, but their backgrounds, their signature style, the learning that they undertook, where they studied. Knowing this will help you to be a better designer yourself, as you can borrow and build on their ideas.
  • Learn how to create storyboards and product ranges. Be good at researching trends and finding inspiration from social media, comparative shopping and trade shows.
  • Start developing these skills at a young age. Be prepared to devote hours of time to perfecting your craft. A little bit everyday will make you gain a deep understanding of fashion on the long run if you are planning a career. Trying to do all at once might get you discouraged.

Learn More

If you can, it makes good sense to get a diploma or degree in fashion design or a related program. You'll learn a great deal, make excellent early contacts and have ample opportunity to show off your skills in a less judgmental environment (although still be prepared to be critiqued!) Do one (or both) of the following:

  • Get a degree in fashion design. Most programs are three or four years long. FIDM and Parsons are two of the most popular design schools in the United States. You will study drawing, color and composition, pattern-making, and draping. In addition to learning practical skills like these, you will also be working with industry professionals who may serve as important contacts in the future and who can give you first-hand advice and feedback on your work.
  • Apply for an internship or apprenticeship. If school is not for you, or if you simply feel that real-world experience will be of more benefit to you, then find a fashion internship. You will need to have an impressive portfolio to apply and be willing to start at the bottom; interns are often given menial tasks like getting coffee. Again, the connections you make through your internship or apprenticeship will be vital as you pursue your career in fashion, and working with industry professionals will give you an opportunity to pick up important skills first-hand. More Fashion blog information read the article.

Working Out Which Fashion is Your Passion

Decide which designing field is your principal interest. You may need to start at the bottom but you do need to have some goals in mind as to the type of designing you want to undertake lifelong. Are you interested most in haute couture, ready-to-wear, fitness/leisure gear, the mass market or niches such as eco wear?

Each has advantages and disadvantages that you'll need to explore before reaching your final decision on which pathway to pursue. Within these major fields, you'll also need to decide on a few sub-set areas for your fashion design. You might wish to straddle a few but, to begin with, don't over-extend yourself as it's better to perfect your designing within one area and then experiment when you've already got a good foothold in the industry. For example:

  • Women's daywear, women's evening wear
  • Men's daywear, men's evening wear
  • Boys' wear and/or girls' wear; teenage wear
  • Sportswear/fitness/leisure wear
  • Knitwear
  • Outdoor, adventure, outerwear
  • Bridal wear
  • Accessories
  • casual
  • Costume design for theaters, movies, the advertising industry and retailers.

Downsize Your Ego


Think about real needs prior to think about fame. Looking cool is fine, but it won't sell garments by itself. If you are planning to become a fashion designer, you will not only make apparel for yourself or for famous people. You can't be making a living out of that: they're not even 1% of the population. 


Even though you see big names in magazines: it's advertisement, not the reality. It doesn't work that way. Designers are especially needed for people with real, imperfect bodies that still want to look their best. Having a snob attitude will blind you from making money. Reality is: you don't design for yourself, you design for others.


Ask Your Customers What They Need


Be realistic: if you happen to live in a very warm country, you will have a tough time selling ski jackets. Look around you. What do real people need and want. For example, if you plan on designing a complete collection, you will need more tops that bottoms because most people have more tops than bottoms in their wardrobe in general. 


Tops are great to change your looks while a plain nice fitting pant will match most of your tops. Keep it simple and realistic. Extravagant sketches are nice on paper, but great tops and jeans will sell out in more interesting numbers than evening dresses. You can hire a phone hacker.