Top 10 Qualities of a great fashion designer

The fashion industry is exploding and everyone, it seems, is vying for a part in the action. To get ahead in the business and sit with the ranks of Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein, you as an aspiring designer should have some of the same qualities as the world’s top designers. Here are some of the qualities you’ll need to succeed as a designer:

1. Strong Business Sense
A great fashion designer has excellent business skills. You understand budgets, marketing, and sales concepts that are vital to getting designs produced and sold.
2. Good Communication
A number of people are involved in the creation of a garment, and as designer, you must be able to effectively communicate to everyone involved what he or she expects.
3. Sense of Competition
You continually strive to do better than your peers to come up with quality innovative designs quickly.
4. Highly Creative
You have a great sense of style and are constantly coming up with new ideas for fashions.
5. Strong Drawing Skills
Excellent drawing skills mean you can easily sketch your ideas onto paper to start the production process.
6. Good Eye for Materials
You have an eye for the materials of a garment, as well as the elements that make it unique, such as color and fabric.
7. Strong Sewing Skills
You can construct the garments you design. You understand what materials work best in the designs you are developing.
8. Team Player
Great fashion designers work well as part of a team. Designing a garment for production involves the work of many, from pattern making to sewing to shipping. As designer, you must be able to work well with all involved.
9. Knowledgeable of Current Fashion Trends
You follows trends and have a good eye for anticipating what your audience will respond to next.
10. Strong Visualization Abilities
Good fashion designers can visualize a garment before ever putting an idea on paper. You can see the finished product well before production and can put your ideas into words and onto paper so others can grasp the idea as well.

Fashion Designer Salaries

Fashion Designer Salaries – A Desirable Career With High Pay

Fashion design is a career choice desired by many. The glamour, creativity, and earning potential, along with names such as Tommy Hilfiger, Prada, Mark James, and Yves Saint Laurent, convey visions of glamorous clothes, red carpet events, celebrities, fame, and big bucks. However, the reality could not be farther from the truth. Those who choose careers in fashion design have beginning salaries below $30,000 a year; however, hard work, resolve, creativity, and the ability to stand out, can result in earning millions during the course of a career.

People associate fashion design with high profile designers who lend their name to the clothes we wear. Those who enjoy the world of fashion, but require job and income stability, have more secure opportunities available. Employment abounds in mass marketing and manufacturing. These garments are designed for retail and discount chains. As middle class demands increase for fashionable, yet affordable, clothing, these designers and manufacturers continue to grow in popularity. Beginning salaries in mass marketing average $30,000 a year; however, creating designs that are unique and functional, leads to potential income of $78, 000 or more per year.

Designer salaries are often dictated by employment. As mentioned above, designers who work for manufacturers can expect to make between $56,000 and $73,000 a year.

Design firms, franchises, universities, and design houses offer middle road salaries; somewhere between, $45,000 and $51,000 annual income.

Designers who choose the path of self-employment begin with a salary of $35,000 a year, but it is often these designers who have the greatest earning potential. While rare, these designers often create have their own label and design houses; their name brand label will command millions.

Employment location influences the salary of fashion designers. Unlike other industries, fashion design is focused in major U.S. cities. The greatest earning potential is found in cities such as San Francisco ($69,000 a year), Dallas ($67,000 a year), Los Angeles ($57,000 a year), Seattle ($56,000 a year) Miami ($45,000) and Chicago ($43,000 a year). Interestingly, although considered the design capital of the world, New York has third place honors with salaries averaging $63,000 annually. New York is inundated with new designers each year. Salaries are kept low, especially for those new to the industry, to test their mettle, and commitment to the industry.

Other factors that determine salary are education and experience. Designers, who have graduated from esteemed universities and design schools, garner higher salaries. Creativity, talent, and reputation allow a designer to stand out amongst competitors, and further increases income potential. Designers who respect their clients and employees have higher incomes and do not forget a client base of well known celebrities and headliners will boost a designer to the top of the salary scale.

As with any career choice, many factors including education, drive, creativity, location, and just plain hard work, will ultimately determine lifetime income for a fashion designer. For those willing to take risks, and search for prime opportunities, life time income is only limited by creativity and imagination.

Top 10 Qualities of a great fashion designer

The fashion industry is exploding and everyone, it seems, is vying for a part in the action. To get ahead in the business and sit with the ranks of Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein, you as an aspiring designer should have some of the same qualities as the world’s top designers. Here are some of the qualities you’ll need to succeed as a designer:

1. Strong Business Sense
A great fashion designer has excellent business skills. You understand budgets, marketing, and sales concepts that are vital to getting designs produced and sold.
2. Good Communication
A number of people are involved in the creation of a garment, and as designer, you must be able to effectively communicate to everyone involved what he or she expects.
3. Sense of Competition
You continually strive to do better than your peers to come up with quality innovative designs quickly.
4. Highly Creative
You have a great sense of style and are constantly coming up with new ideas for fashions.
5. Strong Drawing Skills
Excellent drawing skills mean you can easily sketch your ideas onto paper to start the production process.
6. Good Eye for Materials
You have an eye for the materials of a garment, as well as the elements that make it unique, such as color and fabric.
7. Strong Sewing Skills
You can construct the garments you design. You understand what materials work best in the designs you are developing.
8. Team Player
Great fashion designers work well as part of a team. Designing a garment for production involves the work of many, from pattern making to sewing to shipping. As designer, you must be able to work well with all involved.
9. Knowledgeable of Current Fashion Trends
You follows trends and have a good eye for anticipating what your audience will respond to next.
10. Strong Visualization Abilities
Good fashion designers can visualize a garment before ever putting an idea on paper. You can see the finished product well before production and can put your ideas into words and onto paper so others can grasp the idea as well.

Fashion Designer Salaries

Fashion Designer Salaries – A Desirable Career With High Pay

Fashion design is a career choice desired by many. The glamour, creativity, and earning potential, along with names such as Tommy Hilfiger, Prada, Mark James, and Yves Saint Laurent, convey visions of glamorous clothes, red carpet events, celebrities, fame, and big bucks. However, the reality could not be farther from the truth. Those who choose careers in fashion design have beginning salaries below $30,000 a year; however, hard work, resolve, creativity, and the ability to stand out, can result in earning millions during the course of a career.

People associate fashion design with high profile designers who lend their name to the clothes we wear. Those who enjoy the world of fashion, but require job and income stability, have more secure opportunities available. Employment abounds in mass marketing and manufacturing. These garments are designed for retail and discount chains. As middle class demands increase for fashionable, yet affordable, clothing, these designers and manufacturers continue to grow in popularity. Beginning salaries in mass marketing average $30,000 a year; however, creating designs that are unique and functional, leads to potential income of $78, 000 or more per year.

Designer salaries are often dictated by employment. As mentioned above, designers who work for manufacturers can expect to make between $56,000 and $73,000 a year.

Design firms, franchises, universities, and design houses offer middle road salaries; somewhere between, $45,000 and $51,000 annual income.

Designers who choose the path of self-employment begin with a salary of $35,000 a year, but it is often these designers who have the greatest earning potential. While rare, these designers often create have their own label and design houses; their name brand label will command millions.

Employment location influences the salary of fashion designers. Unlike other industries, fashion design is focused in major U.S. cities. The greatest earning potential is found in cities such as San Francisco ($69,000 a year), Dallas ($67,000 a year), Los Angeles ($57,000 a year), Seattle ($56,000 a year) Miami ($45,000) and Chicago ($43,000 a year). Interestingly, although considered the design capital of the world, New York has third place honors with salaries averaging $63,000 annually. New York is inundated with new designers each year. Salaries are kept low, especially for those new to the industry, to test their mettle, and commitment to the industry.

Other factors that determine salary are education and experience. Designers, who have graduated from esteemed universities and design schools, garner higher salaries. Creativity, talent, and reputation allow a designer to stand out amongst competitors, and further increases income potential. Designers who respect their clients and employees have higher incomes and do not forget a client base of well known celebrities and headliners will boost a designer to the top of the salary scale.

As with any career choice, many factors including education, drive, creativity, location, and just plain hard work, will ultimately determine lifetime income for a fashion designer. For those willing to take risks, and search for prime opportunities, life time income is only limited by creativity and imagination.