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Fashion Designers Occupation Detailed Description

Fashion Designers career

General Job Description and Education/Training Levels for Fashion Designers

The main tasks and work activities of Fashion Designers are to coordinate design activities, develop artistic or design concepts for decoration, exhibition, or commercial purposes, draw detailed or technical illustrations, write informational material. In general, for the Fashion Designers, active Listening, critical Thinking, coordination, social Perceptiveness and other 17 skills are required.
Fashion Designers Job Description
EducationMost occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Related ExperiencePrevious work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Job TrainingEmployees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
ExampleThese occupations usually involve using communication and organizational skills to coordinate, supervise, manage, or train others to accomplish goals. Examples include hydroelectric production managers, travel guides, electricians, agricultural technicians, barbers, court reporters, and medical assistants.
The following chart shows the education/training levels for Fashion Designers jobs. 3.39% of Fashion Designers have High School Diploma (or the equivalent) and 1.03% of Fashion Designers have Post-Secondary Certificate.
Less than a High School Diploma
1.14%
High School Diploma (or the equivalent)
3.39%
Post-Secondary Certificate
1.03%
Some College Courses
25.39%
Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree)
36.17%
Bachelor's Degree and Above
32.88%

Tasks and Work Activities of Fashion Designers

  • Direct and coordinate workers involved in drawing and cutting patterns and constructing samples or finished garments.
  • Examine sample garments on and off models, modifying designs to achieve desired effects.
  • Sketch rough and detailed drawings of apparel or accessories, and write specifications such as color schemes, construction, material types, and accessory requirements.
  • Confer with sales and management executives or with clients to discuss design ideas.
  • Identify target markets for designs, looking at factors such as age, gender, and socioeconomic status.
  • Attend fashion shows and review garment magazines and manuals to gather information about fashion trends and consumer preferences.
  • Select materials and production techniques to be used for products.
  • Provide sample garments to agents and sales representatives, and arrange for showings of sample garments at sales meetings or fashion shows.
  • Adapt other designers' ideas for the mass market.
  • Purchase new or used clothing and accessory items as needed to complete designs.
  • Visit textile showrooms to keep up-to-date on the latest fabrics.
  • Collaborate with other designers to coordinate special products and designs.
  • Design custom clothing and accessories for individuals, retailers, or theatrical, television, or film productions.
  • Determine prices for styles.
  • Draw patterns for articles designed, cut patterns, and cut material according to patterns, using measuring instruments and scissors.
  • Develop a group of products or accessories, and market them through venues such as boutiques or mail-order catalogs.
  • Read scripts and consult directors and other production staff to develop design concepts and plan productions.
  • Test fabrics or oversee testing so that garment care labels can be created.
  • Sew together sections of material to form mockups or samples of garments or articles, using sewing equipment.
  • Research the styles and periods of clothing needed for film or theatrical productions.
  • Thinking CreativelyDeveloping, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
  • Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal RelationshipsDeveloping constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
  • Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing WorkDeveloping specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
  • Getting InformationObserving, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
  • Judging the Qualities of Things, Services, or PeopleAssessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
  • Scheduling Work and ActivitiesScheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
  • Communicating with Persons Outside OrganizationCommunicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
  • Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or SubordinatesProviding information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
  • Making Decisions and Solving ProblemsAnalyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
  • Selling or Influencing OthersConvincing others to buy merchandise/goods or to otherwise change their minds or actions.
  • Coordinate design activities.
  • Develop artistic or design concepts for decoration, exhibition, or commercial purposes.
  • Draw detailed or technical illustrations.
  • Write informational material.
  • Collaborate with others to develop or refine designs.
  • Conduct market research.
  • Monitor current trends.
  • Select materials or props.
  • Promote products, activities, or organizations.
  • Maintain inventories of materials, equipment, or products.
  • Build models, patterns, or templates.
  • Study scripts to determine project requirements.
  • Conduct research to inform art, designs, or other work.

Skills and Abilities for Fashion Designers

  • Active ListeningGiving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Critical ThinkingUsing logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
  • CoordinationAdjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
  • Social PerceptivenessBeing aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
  • Judgment and Decision MakingConsidering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
  • Active LearningUnderstanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
  • SpeakingTalking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Reading ComprehensionUnderstanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
  • Management of Personnel ResourcesMotivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
  • Time ManagementManaging one's own time and the time of others.
  • Complex Problem SolvingIdentifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
  • Service OrientationActively looking for ways to help people.
  • NegotiationBringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
  • PersuasionPersuading others to change their minds or behavior.
  • MonitoringMonitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
  • WritingCommunicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
  • InstructingTeaching others how to do something.
  • Operations AnalysisAnalyzing needs and product requirements to create a design.
  • Systems AnalysisDetermining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
  • Systems EvaluationIdentifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
  • Oral ExpressionThe ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Oral ComprehensionThe ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • OriginalityThe ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
  • Written ComprehensionThe ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Inductive ReasoningThe ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
  • Deductive ReasoningThe ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
  • Fluency of IdeasThe ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
  • Problem SensitivityThe ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
  • VisualizationThe ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
  • Speech ClarityThe ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
  • Speech RecognitionThe ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
  • Near VisionThe ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
  • Written ExpressionThe ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
  • Category FlexibilityThe ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
  • Visual Color DiscriminationThe ability to match or detect differences between colors, including shades of color and brightness.
  • Information OrderingThe ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
  • Far VisionThe ability to see details at a distance.
  • Selective AttentionThe ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
  • Perceptual SpeedThe ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.
  • Finger DexterityThe ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
  • Scannerse.g. Computer data input scanners
  • Graphics tabletse.g. Computer drawing tablets
  • Laser printerse.g. Computer laser printers
  • Desktop computerse.g. Desktop computers
  • Curvese.g. Drafting curves
  • Scalese.g. Drawing scales
  • Full body form or mannequine.g. Dress forms
  • Ironing machines or pressese.g. Fabric pressing equipment
  • Shearse.g. Fabric shears
  • Steam pressing machinese.g. Fabric steamers
  • Sewing patternse.g. Garment templates
  • Cloth cutting machinese.g. Industrial fabric cutting machines
  • Sewing machinese.g. Industrial sewing machines
  • Notebook computerse.g. Laptop computers
  • T squarese.g. Layout T-squares
  • Tape measurese.g. Measuring tapes
  • Personal computerse.g. Personal computers
  • Sewing machinese.g. Sergers
  • Sewing needlese.g. Sewing needles
  • Domestic clothing ironse.g. Steam irons
  • DesignKnowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
  • English LanguageKnowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
  • Production and ProcessingKnowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.