·
What changes have you
seen in the fashion trend in Oman during the last five years?
· Do you think it is important to follow the latest fashion? Why?
- Match
the words with their meanings.
|
accessory
costume
client
mass
market
seamstress
couturier
salon
synthetic |
woman
whose job is sewing
shop;
store
man-made
style of clothes worn by people in a particular
country at a particular time
item that is worn or carried with the main
items of clothing, e.g. shoes, bag
designed
for sale to many people
customer;
buyer
fashion
designer |
*****
Fashion design is the applied art dedicated to the design of clothing and lifestyle
accessories created within the cultural and social influences of a specific time.
Fashion design differs from costume design due to its product usually lasting for
only one to two seasons. A season is defined as either autumn/winter or spring/summer. Fashion design is generally considered
to have started in the 19th century with Charles Frederick Worth who was the first person to sew their label into
the garments that they created. While all articles of clothing from any time period are studied by researchers as costume design, only clothing created after 1858 could be considered as fashion design.
Fashion designers design clothing and accessories. Some high-fashion designers are
self-employed and design for individual clients. Other high-fashion designers
supply specialty stores or high-fashion department stores. These designers create original garments, as well as those that
follow well known fashion trends. Most fashion designers, however, work for clothes manufacturers, creating designs of men’s,
women’s, and children’s fashions for the mass market. Designer brands
which have a 'name' as their brand such as Calvin Klein or Ralph Lauren are likely to be designed by a team of individual
designers under the direction of a designer director.
History
of fashion design
The first fashion designer who was not simply a dressmaker was Charles Frederick
Worth (1826–1895). Before he set up his fashion house in Paris, clothing design and creation was handled by unknown
seamstresses, and high fashion came from styles worn at royal courts. Worth's
success was such that he was able to tell his customers what they should wear, instead of following their lead as earlier
dressmakers had done. The term couturier was in fact first created in order
to describe him. It was during this period that many design houses began to hire artists to sketch or paint designs for garments.
The images alone could be presented to clients much more cheaply than by producing an actual sample garment in the workroom.
If the client liked the design, they ordered it and the resulting garment made money for the house. Thus, the tradition of
designers sketching out garment designs instead of presenting completed garments on models to customers began as an economy.
Early twentieth century
Throughout the early 20th century, practically all high fashion originated in Paris,
and to some extent, London. Fashion magazines from other countries sent editors to the Paris fashion shows. Department stores
sent buyers to the Paris shows, where they bought garments to copy (and openly stole the style lines and trim details of others).
Both made-to-measure salons and ready-to-wear departments had the latest Paris
trends.
At this time in fashion history the division between high fashion and ready-to-wear
was not great. The two separate styles of production were still far from being competitors and, indeed, they often co-existed
in houses where the seamstresses moved freely between made-to-measure and ready-made.
Around the start of the twentieth-century fashion magazines began to include photographs.
In cities throughout the world these magazines were very popular and had a great effect on public taste. Talented illustrators
- among them Paul Iribe, Georges Lepape, Erté, and George Barbier - drew beautiful fashion plates for these publications,
which covered the most recent developments in fashion and beauty.
Mid-twentieth century
The Second World War created many major changes in the fashion industry. After the
War, Paris's reputation as the global center of fashion began to fade and off-the-peg and mass-manufactured fashions became
increasingly popular. A new youth style emerged in the Fifties, changing the focus of fashion forever. As central heating
became more widespread the age of minimum-care garments began, and lighter textiles and, eventually, synthetics, were introduced.
Late twentieth century
During the late twentieth century, fashions began to criss-cross international boundaries.
Popular Western styles were adopted all over the world, and many designers from outside of the West had a great impact on
fashion. Synthetic materials such as lycra, spandex, and viscose became widely-used and fashion, after two decades of looking
to the future, once again turned to the past.
Choose the correct answer.
1.
Fashion design is done for
A. a year
B. one or two seasons
C. a month
D. half a year
2. Designing is done keeping in mind
A. cultural influence
B. social influence
C. both (A and (B)
D. neither
(A) nor (B)
3. The term couturier was used to describe
A. Charles Worth
B. Calvin Klein
C. Ralph Lauren
D. George Lepape
4. Fashion design is an art that designs
A. furniture
B. upholstery
C. clothing and accessories
D. jewellery
5. In the mid-twentieth century _________were introduced.
A. cotton textiles
B. lighter and synthetic textiles
C. jute textiles
D. none of the above
6. Western style became international in the
A. late twentieth century
B. early twentieth century
C. mid-twentieth century
D. late nineteenth century
7. Fashion designers design clothes and accessories for
A. individual clients
B. high fashion stores
C. both (A) and (B)
D. themselves
8. Sketching out garment design was
A. cheap
B. expensive
C. free of cost
D. easy
9. The latest early 20th century Paris trends included ________ garments.
A. ready-made
B. made-to-measure
C. both (A) and B)
D. neither (A) nor (B)
10. Paul Iribe was an
A. writer
B. illustrator
C. photographer
D. designer
Answer the following questions.
11. What is the difference between ready-to-wear and made-to measure garments?
12. What do you understand by ‘labeled’ or ‘branded’ clothes?
