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How to Make Fashion Sketches

Fashion sketches are used by designers and sewers to guide their creations and put their ideas on paper. They serve as rough drafts of their projects, and precise measurement takes a backseat to creative concepts. Sketching is a trial-and-error process, and by putting ideas on paper, the designer gets a better grasp of concepts that work with the design. Fashion figures for designing and sewing are drawn standing up, allowing the sketch to feature the clothes completely.

Things You'll Need

  • Sketch book
  • Pencil
  • Ink pens
  • Colored pencils or pens
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Instructions

    • 1

      Draw the head and the upper body with a pencil. Fashion sketches usually feature sharp lines and greater proportions in particular areas, emphasizing a part of the body that the clothes will highlight. Angles are important rather than soft curves, and sometimes the whole body isn't drawn completely, imparting an abstract sense to the drawing. Fashion sketch is a very rough draft--those who draw them are more concerned with their crafts in design and clothes-making than drawing.

    • 2

      Draw the clothes at the same time as the rest of the body. A fashion sketch shouldn't be drawn with an outline of the figure first and the clothes later, as if dressing a paper doll. Clothing is the main point of the sketch, so it should be drawn as if it's the body itself, with emphasis on the shapes of the clothes and the way they fall on the body. Draw other parts of the body to complete the sketch.

    • 3

      Add concepts for accessories, such as bags, scarves, hats and shoes. These accessories are part of the outfit and should be drawn with the clothes on the model to give the designer a fair judgment of concepts that work and those that won't. Hairstyle also can be an accessory, so if there is a style that complements the look, include it.

    • 4

      Color in the sketch using colored pencils and sign pens. Outlining in black ink will make an area pop out. Using different colors adds dimension to the drawing. Vary the pressure when working with color to give the sketch shadows and highlights. Never mind coloring outside the lines, because neatness in drawing doesn't count much compared with the tangible creation that results from the idea. Some designers even purposefully color outside the outline, making the sketch more artistic and abstract. They do this because fashion sketches are often changes throughout the design process, and spending too much time on the drawing makes it more definite and harder to change.

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