History of Fashion in China

The ancient Chinese people had very distinctive social classes. Each of these has specific styles and significance of dressing. Varied symbols are used on the clothing to distinguish between various strata of society. The ancient Chinese clothing has varied greatly throughout different periods of time. Each social or historical period brought about a new style.

During the Pre-Qing Dynasty (also known as the Manchu Dynasty was the last ruling dynasty of China from 1644 to 1912.); the prevalent ancient Chinese clothing was broadly referred to as hanfu with many variations such as traditional Chinese academic dress. Every individual stratum displayed a different fashion. In fact the military was totally distinctive in its appearance.

Chinese civil or military officials had an assortment of motifs to depict their rank and position. Hat knobs were used as an icon of their rank. There were nine types of color coded hat knobs that represented the nine distinctive ranks. Another popular insignia was the Mandarin square or rank badge.

How to Start a Fashion Design Blog

You're a Fashionista with a capital "F." You're on a first name basis with the top designers. You predict fashion trends before they happen. So why not share your love of fashion design with the world through a blog? As you'll see, there are just a few simple steps for starting your own fashion blog. Anyone can do it, but it's going to be your passion that makes it special.

Step 1: Sign up with a blog host. Don't worry, this sounds technical, but it's actually quite easy. By signing up with a hosting service, all your blog content is housed on that host's computer. It saves you from having to do all the technical work yourself. Many of the hosts like WordPress and Blogger are free, and they have easy templates that you can use to set up your blog in minutes. When you sign up, you'll also get to name your blog.

Step 2: Decide on a niche. Fashion is a broad category, so consider focusing on a specific area of fashion that you are most excited about. Whether you're an expert on shoes, the go-to gal on bargain hunting, or a fashion school student with advice for fellow students, choosing a niche makes you an expert in that field and increases your chances of being read.

Step 3: Be an information sponge. Read everything: newspapers, fashion magazines, entertainment rags, the latest chick lit bestseller. Surf the web for other fashion blogs, websites of both established and up and coming fashion designers, shopping sites, and reviews of collections. You'll never know what may inspire a blog entry. As you sift through articles and websites, save anything that catches your eye in an inspiration file that you can refer to later.

Step 4: Write! Don't let writer's block keep you from posting your first blog entry. Think of writing a blog as writing a note to friends. Just write from the heart, and you'll be fine.

Step 5: Be a social media maven. Besides keeping people up to date on your own Facebook and Twitter accounts, you should also follow as many people as you can. Be active on their pages, commenting constantly on their posts, and they will return the favor. That goes for other fashion blogs as well. Be part of other people's blog communities, posting comments and suggestions, and readers of those blogs will find out about you.

Step 6: Get out there. There's more to fashion blogging than sitting at your laptop. You want to be seen all over town attending every fashion event there is, from runway shows to trunk shows to sample sales. Print business cards that identify you as a blogger and hand them out. Pretty soon, people in the industry will be inviting you to their events in hopes that you will blog about them.

Step 7: Set up an easy revenue stream. Why not let your blog make you money in your sleep? With just a few clicks, you can include an advertising program like Google AdSense, which places small, unobtrusive ads on your blog. When readers click on those ads, you make money. Or you can also set up an affiliate program with an online retailer like Amazon, in which you get a percentage of the sales when someone enters the store through your blog.

After you follow these steps, remember that most important thing in launching a blog is to have fun. Because when you have fun writing your fashion blog, people will have fun reading it.

Fashion Design Sketches

The intense competition in the fashion industry makes it important for any fashion designer to showcase the designs to a larger audience. This can be done by creating fashion sketches and displaying them on the Internet. The sketches give an insight to the fashion fraternity and also to the common audience on the concept behind a particular fashion design. It is a way of communicating the theme to the people associated with the apparel industry. Hence, they are extremely important for any fashion designer.

Fashion sketches are illustrations made by professional artists and designed in a way that they can be easily displayed on the Internet. They portray the true creative genius of the designer. These can be considered a blue print of the final product. The perfection in making sketches is a prerequisite as they serve as the main marketing tool of the fashion professionals. The sketches reflect trends and the value added features of the design. They can also be used to evaluate the various patters used by different designers.

Fashion sketches are important, since they are the preliminary designs that have to be taken to the different apparel manufacturers in the market. The sketches are then used to select the different fabric samples from the wide range on offer.

Computers are increasingly being used for the purpose of making fashion design sketches. Several software are now available that assist the designers in making the drawings. While some still prefer the traditional hand-drawn sketches, others choose to opt for the speed and convenience of computer-aided designing. Hand-drawn sketches can also be fed into the computer with the help of a scanner.

The art of making fashion design sketches is important for creating a niche in the highly competitive fashion industry. Fashion designers can make their presence felt only if their sketches are different and original. Good quality sketches are the only means of establishing a firm foothold in the fashion industry.

Choosing A Mother-Of-The-Bride Dress

Wedding Dress

Every wedding starts with the simple goal of being a joyous occasion for everybody involved. Wedding advice is everywhere. However, picking a mother-of-the-bride dress can quickly become contentious if some basic issues aren't addressed properly.

Know Her Taste

While it is tempting to let the mother-of-the bride handle her own dress, having a discussion with her saves a lot of hassle as the big day approaches. Grab a pen, paper and a catalog or pull up a website with several selections. Set aside some time to sit with her and find out what styles she likes.

Choose A Dress That Flatters

Find a dress flattering to her size and shape and taste. Dresses can be found to match nearly any body type from sleek and sexy to flattering and slimming. A compromise may have to be made, but remember she is the one who has to it wear it at the wedding.

Tone Of The Wedding

Any dress should match the tone of the wedding. The three general wedding themes are causal, semi-formal or formal. A summer wedding generally means a more casual tone. The mother-of-the-bride dress should match the tone of the wedding. Shorter dresses are usually common at summer weddings. The dress the mother-of-the-bride wears should match her personal style, but also be comfortable in terms of wear and personal style.

Age Appropriate

Dress her in a style that is age appropriate. Sure, it's great to have a fun, young hip wedding. That doesn't mean you choose a dress that's going to make the bride's mother feel uncomfortable. A good idea is to make the dress practical too. This means choosing a dress that can be worn on other occasions other than a wedding. On the other hand, don't force matronly dresses on her just because she's a mother. Let her decide what she feels comfortable wearing.

Neckline And Length

Mother-of-the-bride dresses today aren't your mother's mother-of-the-bride dresses. The neckline, length and style vary widely. It doesn't have to match the bride's dress in terms of basic style, but shouldn't overshadow it either. Necklines include a simple u-neck, sexy v-neck or an elegant higher neckline. When choosing the neckline, consider what type of jeweler she will be wearing. The length of the dress can range from just below the knee to floor length. A summer wedding generally means a shorter dress, but gauge your choice on the tone of the wedding.

Price And Other Considerations

The price of a mother-of-the-bride dress varies from around $80 to nearly $200. Ultimately, it will depend on the style and type of design. When considering the price, allow a little more for any accessories that may be necessary such as a purse, jacket or wrap.

Choosing Accessories

Choose accessories that match the location. If it is an outdoor wedding, sensible shoes and possibly a light jacket and a hat may be included to create the finished look. If it is an indoor wedding, there can be more flexibility in dress style, length and accessories.

Final Considerations

Take time to find out what the mother-of-the-bride has in mind. Remember, it is a big event for her too. Choose accessories that are practical and comfortable. For example, when selecting shoes keep in mind that she will have to wear these shoes as she walks around and mingles with the guests.

Ways to Become a Fashion Designer

Fashion Design

If you are not afraid of hard work and long hours, you may have what it takes to become a fashion designer. If you can bounce back from constant rejection then this may be the field for you. To succeed in the fashion world you must be good at what you do and better than all the rest. There is an ocean full of talented fashion designers and you must swim like the rest but also stand out from the crowd.

A great first start is going to design college. To become a fashion designer you must get all the knowledge you can about the fashion industry. While there, you will hone your skills and determine the area of fashion that you want to pursue. You will also have an opportunity to meet other designers who are already doing what you want to do and they will prove to be a source of good information.

Set realistic expectations as only a small amount of designers get to work for big name fashion houses. There are however just as important designers working for smaller companies. The fashion industry is glamorous and very competitive so keep your options open. Another benefit of getting a degree from a fashion college is the larger fashion houses prefer to work with designers with a fashion degree. This presents another opportunity to do an internship for one of the larger fashion houses and thus getting your foot or designs in the door.

Angel Investors in Entertainment Are the Best Bet

With entertainment going high up on preferences for entrepreneurs to kick start their ventures, Angel investors in entertainment is fast becoming a viable alternative for funding. You could be in filmmaking, planning independent shows, getting record and band labels done or wanting to enter the wide array of mushrooming entertainment businesses.

Unforgetable Fashion Icons

Some of the most renowned fashion icons never really knew or expected they would be considered icons at some point in history. It is impossible to imagine fashion without its Hollywood influence; and vice versa. There are some mystic characters whose style went a little further away then the big screen, straight to the sales rack in every kind of store.

Fashion Design Scholarships

Considering the alarming growth of the fashion industry and the consequent bright future prospects in the field of fashion design, it is worthwhile to think of being equipped with the requisite skills. The knowledge of the required skills calls for pursuing a degree or diploma in fashion design. However, it might not always be easy to bear the expenses of the schools or the college offering such programs. To provide assistance in this respect, there are fashion design scholarships available for the students. The scholarship includes tuition fees, books and other supplies.

Looking For Fashion Design Sketches

Many people want to make their own fashion. The only problem is that not many people want to look "out of place," which is why there are so many people out there looking for good-looking fashion design sketches online. There are a number of things that you will want to keep in mind when looking for fashion drawing online, and we are going to go through a few of those things in the text below. The first thing that you are going to want to do is look for a professional web site that offers you professional looking fashion design sketchers.