How to Design a Clothing Line
If you have drawing ability and love fashion, you already have the basic talent and desire that you will need to design your own clothing line. If you dedicate your time to perfecting your craft by taking fashion design classes, and if you make the right industry contacts, you will be on your way to a lucrative career. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Enroll in a reputable fashion design school, such as Parsons School of Design or the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising. You will hone your design talent and skills while learning tips and tricks from the top professionals in the industry. Also, you will develop important industry contacts. If you aren't able to enroll at fashion school right away, start by taking art classes at a local community college.
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Define your personal style, and determine what type of clothing you will design. Start making sketches of your ideas. Start small, and lay out plans for a complete line.
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Sew samples. Once you have sketched your designs, gather your materials and make a few clothing samples from your proposed line. These will act as your "calling cards" as you market your line and shop your products around to manufacturers and retail buyers.
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Market your products. Once you have determined who your target buyers will be, set up meetings with retail buyers to show off your clothing line. Bring your samples with you to the meetings along with a price sheet. Make up high-quality business cards and create a professional Web site. You can also try to sell some of your products on an artist-based retail Web site, such as Etsy (see Resources below).
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Consider getting a retail job. Not only will you make extra money to finance your fashion line, you will also learn the ins and outs of the retail business. Volunteer for a local fashion show. The more experience you have in fashion sales and marketing, the better you will be at spreading the word about your own product line.
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