Fashion is a very broad term used to describe a specific style, mode of dress, apparel, footwear, accessories, cosmetics, hairstyle, body posture, and lifestyle at a certain time and venue. The word is derived from the French term, ‘pourmeaning’ which means ‘to show.” In its more common use, the word typically means a dress or attire defined by the fashion industry today as what is trendy. However, in its more technical use, it refers to a particular design or style. To most people, they would consider the term to be a synonym for trend.
When it comes to understanding the concept of fashion, one needs to understand the difference between fashion and style. A style is what you wear every day. On the other hand, fashion on the other hand is what you wear to be fashionable. These are two completely different concepts with completely different consequences. Therefore, understanding each can help one to decide how to accessorize and customize a daily wardrobe or enhance one’s current fashion look.
The primary constituents of a garment are the fabric, colors, and patterns. Fabrics can vary significantly. For example, there are many types of synthetic fabrics such as polyester, nylon, and acrylic that are used to manufacture clothing. Fabric plays a large part in defining overall fashion because it is often used to create patterns, design, and accents. Examples of fabric include:
Textiles are woven materials usually made from natural fibers. Examples of woven fabrics include cotton, wool, rayon, silk, jute, sisal, cashmere, bamboo, jute, Merino wool, and Egyptian cotton. The term ‘textile’ often refers to clothing that is produced from a natural fiber, however this description is vague and has various meaning depending upon the context. In the context of the fashion industry, textile refers to any type of apparel regardless of whether it is worn for practical or cosmetic reasons. Textiles are often differentiated based on their processing method such as dyed, printed, sewn, embroidered, and crochet. The processing method is largely responsible for identifying certain styles of textiles.
Sewing is an important factor in the fashion industry. Sewing is defined as the process of creating a fabric by joining two opposing fabrics or cutting a garment from a single piece of fabric to create a new one. Clothing that is custom tailored can be described as sewing since in the case of custom Tailored clothing; the fabric and its cut are selected prior to manufacturing. Clothing that is produced for a variety of purposes including sports, formal, or casual wear needs to have suitable sewing details.
The primary difference between high fashion and low fashion is the use of embellishments and accessories. High fashion apparel tends to use more embellishments and accessories. These may include but are not limited to sequins, pearls, beads, crystals, rhinestones, ribbons, laces, hems, laces, bows, charms, tassels, zippers etc. Low fashion apparel tends to use plain or simple embellishments. In some instances, the use of embellishments may be restricted to a small part of the garment.
