Fashion Incubator » Design http://www.fashion-incubator.com How to start a clothing line or run the one you have, better. Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:35:00 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 What kind of designer are you? http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-kind-of-designer-are-you/ http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-kind-of-designer-are-you/#comments Fri, 11 Jan 2013 03:18:18 +0000 Kathleen Fasanella http://fashion-incubator.com/?p=12430 posed on the forum today; it speaks to the subject of what kind of designer you are (I started writing this a couple of years ago but never published it). It is too simplistic to say people can teach themselves (they obviously can) successfully and the question is too open ended because there are many types of designers. Depending on the kind of designer you are is what will determine what you need to learn and how to go about doing it. Caveat: There are other lists of designer types (I like the one Danielle wrote). Since I write mostly about designers starting clothing lines, my list describes those on an entrepreneurial path. Without further ado, here are most of the designer types I can identify -feel free to add to it:
  • The artist
  • The artisan/engineer/technician
  • The mogul
  • The accountant
  • The project manager
There is no worse or better kind of designer to be because most people are or should be, a combination of each. Anyone who falls into a set category exclusively, probably isn't healthy because balance is required. That said, the project manager and the accountant are most successful. Doomed to failure -please stop sending me hate mail, I'm tired of it and it's not working anyway- is the artist and the mogul. Below is an abbreviated description of the archetypes. Once we've discussed these, we can go on to discuss paths to preparation for each (the next post).]]> http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-kind-of-designer-are-you/feed/ 29 Review: Digital Textile Design http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/review-digital-textile-design/ http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/review-digital-textile-design/#comments Fri, 21 Dec 2012 23:36:17 +0000 Guest Author http://fashion-incubator.com/?p=12300 As I mentioned yesterday, we have a review written by Jasonda Desmond (Dotty Logic), maven of all things textile and design related. Jasonda is a long time member of our forum and designed the masthead of Fashion-Incubator. Without further ado, here is Jasonda's review. --------------------- Digital Textile Design by Melanie Bowles and Ceri Isaac focuses on creating surface designs for fabric using digital mediums (Photoshop, Illustrator) and touches on a wide variety of related subjects. The 20 surface design tutorials make up about half the content. There is a strong focus on techniques that are currently in fashion, such as “engineered" prints – for example, a design created based on a photograph of a necklace, where the print is placed around the neckline of the shirt, to create a trompe l’oeil (optical illusion) effect, something that has been popular on the fashion runways for the last few seasons.]]> http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/review-digital-textile-design/feed/ 1 What to do with hideous tie dyed leather pt.2 http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-to-do-with-hideous-tie-dyed-leather-pt-2/ http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-to-do-with-hideous-tie-dyed-leather-pt-2/#comments Thu, 08 Nov 2012 16:03:02 +0000 Kathleen Fasanella http://fashion-incubator.com/?p=12117 A lot of people said they liked the leather. Since I haven't warmed to it yet in spite of your many helpful and interesting suggestions, I've decided to auction it on eBay. In preparation for auction, we measured it and the square footage is a bit over 18 sqft. The starting auction price is $29.70 which is what the hide cost me ($1.65 per sqft). All auction proceeds (including the $29.70 the hide cost me) less eBay and PayPal selling fees, will be donated to Hurricane Sandy relief efforts. So, happy bidding!]]> http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-to-do-with-hideous-tie-dyed-leather-pt-2/feed/ 16 What to do with hideous tie dyed leather? http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-to-do-with-hideous-tie-dyed-leather/ http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-to-do-with-hideous-tie-dyed-leather/#comments Wed, 07 Nov 2012 01:41:30 +0000 Kathleen Fasanella http://fashion-incubator.com/?p=12093 All those who could, you did go vote today? Martha has been organizing my stash and found this hideous thing; about 15 square feet of tie dyed leather. I thought that since you guys are designers, you could tell me what to do with it. So what should I do with it? In my opinion, it looks a lot better in this picture than it does laying on my table. Martha likes it. Or at least she says she does. Sometimes Martha forgets I've known her for 20 years and that I also know she can be... diplomatic... about these sorts of things. But she insists she likes it. The results of this first attempt tie dyeing leather was mixed. It was successful in that I learned it is pretty easy to do -I used some ubiquitous taupe pig skin I had lying around. It was already ugly and figured I couldn't do much worse (the failure part, I could make it uglier).]]> http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-to-do-with-hideous-tie-dyed-leather/feed/ 27 2 ways to prevent being ripped off if you design for hire http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/2-ways-to-prevent-being-ripped-off-if-you-design-for-hire/ http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/2-ways-to-prevent-being-ripped-off-if-you-design-for-hire/#comments Sat, 02 Jun 2012 00:02:05 +0000 http://www.fashion-incubator.com/?p=11349 b_n_h_iconic_frameIf you provide design or other services for hire, the recent case of JCPenney's being sued by a design firm is a lesson to learn from. The central conflict was this: JCP hired a visual merchandising firm (Hudson + Broad) to design a fixture for its stores (shown at right). It is claimed that JCP promised to order X quantity of the fixtures to be supplied by H+B but JCP went around the firm to source the fixture from lower cost suppliers. Sound familiar? I thought so. This is my take on it from the context of the little guy -you and me- with two tips to avoid a similar or related problem:]]> http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/2-ways-to-prevent-being-ripped-off-if-you-design-for-hire/feed/ 6 How many kinds of fashion illustrations? http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/how-many-kinds-of-fashion-illustrations/ http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/how-many-kinds-of-fashion-illustrations/#comments Thu, 12 Apr 2012 00:07:27 +0000 http://www.fashion-incubator.com/?p=11192 sample_brushesFrom my mail, Luciana writes:
I'm a fashion student from Argentina. For my final project I want to pick fashion illustration and the various forms of representation used in the fashion industry (fashion figures, technical flats, diagrams, instructions, etc.) And for you being a professional in the industry, and having experience working with different types clients, I wanted to ask you for any advice or reference material you think would be useful for my thesis.
Considering the increasing complexity in this industry, I thought this would be a good subject to pursue, akin to the 13 kinds of samples post I wrote previously. I have a lot of books and sources so I could probably write this well enough on my own but it would be more useful to hear from practitioners who do the various kinds of sketch development regularly -since I only do it under duress. It would be helpful if you could:
  • Name the illustration type
  • List its utility, why it's needed
  • When it's needed (if at all, it could be optional)
  • A resource for it (book, website etc)
  • and last but not least, a link to a sample illustration.
]]> http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/how-many-kinds-of-fashion-illustrations/feed/ 4 What do good designers have in common? pt.2 http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-do-good-designers-have-in-common-pt-2/ http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-do-good-designers-have-in-common-pt-2/#comments Thu, 05 Apr 2012 21:00:31 +0000 http://www.fashion-incubator.com/?p=11160 What do good designers have in common?, I've used your helpful comments and added a few of my own in an attempt to quantify concrete characteristics of career designers. The core elements I was looking for transcend design per se because if one only wanted design direction, one could hire stylists, consultants, merchandisers and/or subscribe to trend forecasting services. That said, Sarah's comment bears airing:
A good designer is one whose ideas sell and make a profit. Nothing else is essential. He/she can be knowledgeable or not, can be pleasant or a total (your favorite epitaph here). It doesn’t matter. If they sell, they are a good designer. If they do not sell, they are not a designer for long.
The most important skills (if not least liked tasks) required of a designer have always been managing projects, people, product and processes -today more than ever and apply equally to entrepreneur and employee designers. With a primary focus on project and or product management, the most important skills are organization and communication. Here's what I have so far, your comments are noted in parenthesis: Practical skills of accomplished designers:
  • Computer literacy; competency in Illustrator, Photoshop, Excel, Word and PDM.
  • Effective visual communication: sketches that accurately convey proportion, dimensions and styling (Rocio).
  • Knows how to measure a garment, knows how to inspect a garment, knows and employs terminology effectively to articulate desired effects (Willetta).
  • Construction skills, understanding how garments go together (Heather).
  • Anticipate construction requirements to meet price points (Rocio).
  • Being aware of the number and order of steps in given processes as opposed to their costs.
  • Has the spatial ability to visualize in 3 dimensions (Sally).
  • Understand textile characteristics of drape, cut, weave, and maintenance/cleaning requirements (Willetta, Kimmie).
  • Shorten cycle time by understanding how design intersects with drape, fit and production needs (Rama).
]]> http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-do-good-designers-have-in-common-pt-2/feed/ 4 What do good designers have in common? http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-do-good-designers-have-in-common/ http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-do-good-designers-have-in-common/#comments Mon, 02 Apr 2012 18:30:21 +0000 http://www.fashion-incubator.com/?p=11142 UK_ww2_fashion_designerSomeone asked me to describe the characteristics that all good designers have in common but I couldn't go beyond platitudes such as "good communication", "highly skilled", "professionalism" and "no baggage". Subjective answers like those aren't helpful because these apply to any work situation. Hard definitions and qualities that can be measured within this context are needed. For example, it is obvious that experienced and professional designers are easier to work with because they have experience but what is it about their experience that makes it easy? And what experience? It's not so easy to answer while steering clear of circular logic. It has also become increasingly more difficult to answer in an era of increased job competition and the plethora of design degrees. It would be greatly appreciated if you could -based on your experience of working as support staff or as a supervisor- describe core competencies and characteristics shared by good designers as concretely and thoughtfully as you can. Thanks so much!]]> http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/what-do-good-designers-have-in-common/feed/ 19 Organizing a spec sheet? http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/organizing-a-spec-sheet/ http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/organizing-a-spec-sheet/#comments Mon, 12 Mar 2012 20:45:30 +0000 http://www.fashion-incubator.com/?p=11013 here is a sample). You know, a pant would have waist, hip and inseam listed at the top of the page -in addition to being listed along with all the other attributes in the chart. I had two thoughts when she asked me. First was "doh!", because that would make my life simpler and save time, but two, it would mean creating a separate template for each garment or product type. So the question is, how do you organize a spec sheet? Do you worry more about getting the right information plugged into the slots of whatever form is provided (or that the customer even has or wants one)? Or do you go above and beyond that to redesign the form (which presumes you have the say so to do something like that)?]]> http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/organizing-a-spec-sheet/feed/ 13 How much cash do you need to start a small clothing line? http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/how-much-cash-do-you-need-to-start-a-small-clothing-line/ http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/how-much-cash-do-you-need-to-start-a-small-clothing-line/#comments Fri, 03 Feb 2012 00:56:31 +0000 Kathleen Fasanella http://www.fashion-incubator.com/?p=10793 how much cash do you need to start a small menswear label? I haven't responded over there yet, it was too long so I thought to post it here first. I frequently get variations of this question, a previous entry I wrote was how much does it cost to start a handbag line. My stock response is, how much does a house cost? Is it a dump in a crappy neighborhood or is it a restored pristine cottage on Martha's Vineyard? The questioner asked me how much cash I would need and I wouldn't be so boorish as to drill that down because why would he or she care? He or she would want to know what they can expect to pay, not what I would. But then I thought, maybe I should answer the question literally in terms of how much cash I would need to start a menswear clothing line. That is a better question because most startups (nearly all) waste way too much money. Okay, so let's unpack this. By the way, I suggest you hang around for this even if you don't care one whit for menswear. My first thought was "menswear label" is too broad, I'd have to determine my customer within the parameters of what I'm interested in producing. You need to do that too. Is your market young urban males, marathoners, bikers, C-level executives or your average IT guy? Each market has its own dictates for everything from styling and fitting in, to disposable income, signaling requirements and need. Since I have tons of menswear experience, I'd do casual western styled sportcoats at a mid range price point for men aged 35+. Forced to put a point to it, my ideal customer's wife subscribes to Cowboys & Indians while he reads Western Horseman. I'd do that for a few reasons:]]> http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/how-much-cash-do-you-need-to-start-a-small-clothing-line/feed/ 17