World Fashion

                                                World Fashion

Fashion designing can be loosely defined as 'the art of creating fashionable apparel'. With the passage of time, however, the concept of 'fashion designing' has extended to other things such as fashion accessories such as jewellery, bags, footwear, etc. Keeping in mind the evolution of fashion designing, it would not be wrong to define it as 'the creation of fashion'.

Fashion designing has indeed come a long way from the mere designing of clothing. Fashion designing has evolved into a full-fledged industry today. It is well accepted as a career option all over the world. Apart from designing, there are a number of other career alternatives that have emerged in this industry with the passage of time. This article seeks to study the evolution of the industry of fashion designing the then and now.

The origin of fashion designing dates as far back as 1826. Charles Frederick Worth is believed to be the first fashion designer of the world, from 1826 to 1895. Charles, who was earlier a draper, set up a fashion house in Paris. It was he who started the tradition of fashion houses and telling his customers what kind of clothing would suit them.

During this period, a number of design houses began to hire the services of artists to develop patterns for garments. Patterns would be presented to the clients, who would then place an order if they liked them. It was during this timeframe that the tradition of presenting patterns to the customers and then stitching them began, instead of the earlier system wherein the finished garments would be presented to them.

In the beginning of the 20th century, new developments in fashion would take place in Paris first, from where they would spread to the rest of the world. New designs of clothes would be born in Paris before they found their way to other parts of the world. In other words, Paris emerged as the 'fashion capital'. 'Fashion' during this period was mostly 'haute couture', exclusively designed for individuals.

Towards the mid-20th century, fashion garments began to be mass-produced. The bulk of production increased, and people began to have more choices of garments. Towards the end of the 20th century, fashion awareness among people increased, and they began choosing clothes for themselves based on comfort and their own style, instead of relying on the trends prevailing in the market.

Today, as stated above, fashion designing is well accepted as a career option. A number of institutes have come up the world over, offering courses in various arenas of fashion. The number of students who consider fashion as a serious career and who have gone in for courses in the same has gone on rising over the years.

Specializations in fashion designing have come into being. There is a wide range of options for a designer to choose from, such as lingerie, swimwear, women's wear, bridal wear, children's wear, men's wear, footwear, handbags, etc. Fashion designers used to be self-employed earlier now find a number of career opportunities open for them. They can work with garment firms and export houses. They may also be engaged in the job of remodeling haute couture and adapting them to the tastes of the mass market. They might also hold jobs in departmental stores or specialty stores.

Developments in the field of fashion designing have given rise to other related career paths such as hairstylist, make-up artist, fashion journalists, fashion advisors, fashion photographers, etc.

Another significant change that has come about in the fashion designing industry in recent times is the increased use of computers and technology. A number of software packages have come up to aid designers in the process of designing as well as other stages in the production of a garment, easily and speedily.

Fashion designing as a trade has also grown. Fashion designers have gone on to get repute not only in their own countries, but internationally as well. The number of fashion shows and participation in the same has gone up considerably in recent times.

Fashion designing is thus no longer only the designing and creation of a garment, but it is a world in itself involving fashion, design, creativity, technology as well as business.History of fashion design refers specifically to the development of the purpose and intention behind garments, shoes and accessories, and their design and construction. The modern industry, based around firms or fashion houses run by individual designers, started in the 19th century with Charles Frederick Worth who, beginning in 1858, was the first designer to have his label sewn into the garments he created.

Dress designed by Charles Frederick Worth for Elisabeth of Austria painted by Franz Xaver Winterhalter

Fashion started when humans began wearing clothes. These clothes were typically made from plants, animal skins and bone.Before the mid-19th century the division between haute couture and ready-to-wear did not really exist. All but the most basic pieces of female clothing were made-to-measure by dressmakers and seamstresses dealing directly with the client. Most often, clothing was patterned, sewn and tailored in the household. When storefronts appeared selling ready-to-wear clothing, this need was removed from the domestic workload.

The design of these clothes became increasing based on printed designs, especially from Paris, which were circulated around Europe, and eagerly anticipated in the provinces. Seamstresses would then interpret these patterns as best they could. The origin of the designs was the clothes devised by the most fashionable figures, normally those at court, together with their seamstresses and tailors. Though there had been distribution of dressed dolls from France since the 16th century and Abraham Bosse had produced engravings of fashion in the 1620s, the pace of change picked up in the 1780s with increased publication of French engravings illustrating the latest Paris styles, followed by fashion magazines such as Cabinet des Modes. By 1800, all Western Europeans were dressing alike (or thought they were); local variations became first a sign of provincial culture and later a badge of the conservative peasant.

In the early 20th century, fashion magazines began to include photographs and became even more influential. Throughout the world these magazines were greatly sought-after and had a profound effect on public taste. Talented illustrators - among them Paul Iribe, Georges Lepape, Erté, and George Barbier - drew attractive fashion plates for these publications, which covered the most recent developments in fashion and beauty. Perhaps the most famous of these magazines was La Gazette du Bon Ton which was founded in 1912 by Lucien Vogel and regularly published until 1925.The outfits worn by fashionable women of during the Belle Époque (1871-1914) were strikingly similar to those worn in the heyday of the fashion pioneer Charles Worth. By the end of the 19th century, the horizons of the fashion industry had broadened, due to the more stable and independent lifestyles of well-off women and the practical clothes they demanded. However, the fashions of the Belle Époque still retained the elaborate, upholstered style of the 19th century. The changing of fashion was unthinkable, so the use of different trimmings was all that distinguished clothing from one season to the next.

Conspicuous waste and conspicuous consumption defined the fashions of the decade and the outfits of the couturiers of the time were extravagant, ornate, and painstakingly made. The curvaceous S-Bend silhouette dominated fashion up until around 1908. The S-Bend corset thrust the chest forward into the mono-bosom, and, with the aid of padding, judicious placement of trim in clothing, and, most especially, a particular posture entirely independent of the corset, created the illusion of an "S" silhouette.Toward the end of the decade Paul Poiret introduced designs that did not include a petticoat or a corset, taking the S shape out of fashion. This was a big change, as women's waists had been shaped by corsets since the Renaissance. 

The Maison Redfern, founded by the English tailor John Redfern (1820-1895), was the first fashion house to offer women sportswear and tailored suits based on their male counterparts, and his practical and soberly elegant garments soon became indispensable to the wardrobes of well-dressed women.