Enrolling onto a fashion programme is a great way of making that all-important first step into the fashion industry. Here are four vital skills you will acquire from studying a degree in fashion.

 

Illustration

Fashion illustration is an important means of communicating your designs to others. While you can study specific programmes in fashion illustration, a generic fashion degree will also help you develop your professional illustration skills for fashion purposes.

Fashion illustration requires precision and a good eye for detail; those producing fashion sketches must be capable of drawing figures with accurate proportions and from various different angles.

 

Technical drawing

As well as fashion illustration, technical drawing is another important skill to have. Producing accurate technical drawings is essential, and fashion designers must be aware of the information pattern cutters, machinists and production teams need to be provided with.

Getting to grips with specialist software such as Adobe Illustrator and Kaledo Style is a key step you must take to excel in your career as a fashion designer. A fashion course will teach you the basics of technical drawing, building upon your knowledge and skillset. 

 

Pattern cutting

Pattern cutting is another essential skill for those hoping to secure a role in fashion design. Essentially, pattern cutting is the creation of templates which are used to shape garments, and creating these is certainly no mean feat. In fact, it’s a vital part of the design process.

There are three predominant pattern cutting methods: flat-patterning, pattern draping and pattern grading. Studying fashion will teach you these methods, and truly open your eyes to the importance of pattern cutting.

 

Trend forecasting

If you want to work in fashion design, having an eye for style is a must. You should be confident in forecasting trends and predicting what consumers will soon be looking for. This is something a fashion course can help you with.

Studying fashion will help you understand the importance of retails calendars and the impacts they can have on trends. You can also learn how modern functions such as social media can affect the world of fashion.