A fashion designer has to be creative and disciplined, flexible yet with a clear vision, refined but down-to-earth. The fashion designer is a study in oppositions, so the question is...

1. DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES?

Passion

Do you have the passion and commitment it's going to take to work long hours at near poverty wages? If not, you may want to re-think your career choice. The fashion industry attracts very talented people, and all of these people think that they have what it takes. Your commitment will be tested in the beginning as you work for next to nothing and struggle to make a name for yourself.

Relocation

Are you willing to move to New York to be near the fashion industry's main hub? New York City is where the magic happens in the fashion industry. Most of the major designers are located there, and so is the network of contacts that you will need to break into the fashion industry. While Los Angeles does have a small presence in the fashion industry, New York is definitely bigger. If you are not willing to eventually make this move, your chances of making it big as a fashion designer will be much lower.

Education

Do you have the necessary skills fashion schools are looking for? Fashion schools are highly competitive and they have certain things they are looking for in their students. Drawing, creativity and sewing skills are all required to get into the schools that will give you the skills and practice that you need to become a fashion designer.

Experience

Do you have a portfolio? The Catch-22 of the fashion industry is that you can't get jobs without experience, but you can't get experience without jobs. You need to build a portfolio however you can. School is a good place to begin assembling a basic portfolio of work.

2. SO HOW DO I GET THE PASSION?

That is all about you, baby. The heart for your work is something that lives within you. It's close to the surface, perhaps. So close that people can see your dreams in your eyes. People can feel your passion when you walk in the room.

Embrace Your Self

You have to get comfortable in your own skin if you want to find your passion for the fashion world. Know yourself: what you like and what you don't like. Start a journal, make a statue to yourself, whatever it takes to light the fires of your passion.

Be Grateful

Make a list of what you are grateful for in your life. It's okay to be grateful for challenges by the way--they make you who you are. Being grateful for the things in life lets you brush away negative crap that gets in the way of your passion.

Visualize Your Success

See the dress that takes a walk down the runway. See the gown that Jessica Alba wears to the Oscars, and see that it has your name on it. Seeing is the gateway to our souls, and tapping into this powerful gateway allows you to make your dreams become reality.

3. SO HOW DO I RELOCATE?

Pack up and move. That's the easy part. Find an apartment. Get a day job and all the basic stuff. You can't be a fashion designer without a place to sleep and food to stick in your belly.

4. SO HOW DO I GET AN EDUCATION?

Learn what schools offer fashion programs. You're not looking for basic home-ec stuff, either; you want design schools that will put your abilities to the test. After you've found a couple of design schools you'll need to find out which school will give you the best training considering your talents. Not every school is the perfect fit for every student.

Pick a School

Choose an accredited school that is recognized as a breeding ground for new designer talent. Many times, the name of the school you attended can get you an interviewprovided you have the resume to back it up.

Some accredited fashion design schools can be found at:

International Academy of Design and Technology is located in Chicago, Illinois, and offers fashion design.

Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising is a particular college with four campuses in the state of California, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Orange County and San Diego.

Westwood College is located in Los Angeles and offers several design degrees.

Berkeley College in New York offers several fashion design majors.

Get the Money

The reason you want an accredited school is so you can qualify for federal student aid and loans. Otherwise you'll have to find some other way to come up with the money to attend classes. Consider the costs of your education as an investment in your future.

You can sign up with FAFSA, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid online.

5. SO HOW DO I GET THE EXPERIENCE?

Your portfolio is your ticket to jobs in the fashion industry. In the beginning you'll have to come up with creative ways to add to your portfolio, but that's your strong point, right?

Use Your School

Your schoolwork will be the earliest stuff in your portfolio, but you will need to replace these works as soon as possible with other examples of your skill and style. Use the most complicated assignments for your portfolio that show the limits of your abilities.

Volunteer

Offer to do costumes at a community theater, or put on a fashion show at your own expense. Volunteering may not make you any money, but the experience that it gives you can lead to paying jobs in the future.

You might try some of these alternative resources to give yourself more experience:

OptiTex is software that allows you to design clothes, put them on models and see how they'd look in a fashion show.

Fashion Toolbox is another example of fashion designing software.

Fashion Design Online is an online fashion design school, with an online resource library.

6. RESOURCES



Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT)

Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design

Royal College of Art

Insitut Francais de la Mode