Job:12-29742 Title:RP-Fashion Design Ref and Spec Book
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10 THE FASHION DESIGN REFERENCE + SPECIFICATION BOOK
(Text)
Chapter 1: Evaluation
To say that the eld of fashion design is highly competitive is a tremendous
understatement. The fashion centers of New York, Paris, and Milan lead the
industry, but are by no means the only places where a designer can pursue a
career. Every major city now seems to have a regional pool of style makers, fash-
ion design schools, and local fashion weeks. Do-it-yourself programs, classes,
books, and magazines provide just enough of what someone might need to feel
like an authentic fashionista. Reality television shows and unlimited access to
information on the Internet also add to the mix of aspiring designers.
In the celebrity-driven culture that the fashion industry feeds, any inkling of tal-
ent will often be blown out of proportion. This exposure affords new designers
with their coveted fteen minutes of fame, but also robs them of the opportu-
nity to fully develop their message and their craft. They are immediately tested
by demanding consumers and media outlets moving at lightning speed. To
survive depends on an understanding of how the system works and a healthy
skepticism of their own press. In the long term, building a successful career as
a fashion designer requires much more than making beautiful, well-constructed
clothes. That’s merely the price to play.
A good designer can create anything with suf cient research and a clear aware-
ness of the design challenge being undertaken. A great designer does more.
The Pareto principle describes a law of the vital few, where 80 percent of the
effects result from 20 percent of the causes. In fashion, this small but essen-
tial core is the spark that sets things into motion. Visionary, unique, inspired,
ahead of their time: Theirs are big shoes to ll, even when designers feel that
they, too, have something to contribute.
The bad news is that when it comes to clothing the human body most every-
thing has been done before. The good news is that it hasn’t been done by each
new designer. Why this should matter to anyone else is a tough question that
demands a response full of meaning, purpose, and con dence; otherwise it
just gets lost in the sea of options that ood the fashion marketplace every
year. To truly grasp what one stands for both personally and as a designer will
infuse one’s work with passion and one’s message with clarity.
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Job:12-29742 Title:RP-Fashion Design Ref and Spec Book
#175 Dtp:204 Page:10
001-019.indd 10 2/26/13 7:11 PM