Fashion Terminologies

 Apparel

Apparel refers to any and all clothing worn by people. The term Apparel was used since early Fourteenth century to denote clothing. An apparel is worn to suit different places and occasions. The factors such as climate, tradition, status, religion etc. affect the type of cloth worn by the people.

Avant Garde (ah-vent' gard)

The term Avant Garde comes from French word 'Advance guard' or 'Vanguard' (ahead of rest). Used in English to mean new, experimental, unconventional ideas ahead of its time. In the world of Fashion Avant Garde represents most startling, daring and wild apparel designs.

Fad

Fad is short-lived or passing Fashion trend (craze) that suddenly becomes popular and dies out quickly.

Fashion

Fashion is a popular or preferable style of clothing, accessories or behavior accepted by a large segment of society at any given time. Fashion changes periodically and are replaced by new popular styles. The style becomes old-fashioned when majority of people no longer accept it. The style variations can be seen changing with varying speed in different culture and throughout history. Some of the styles remain in trend for long period of time and are called "Classics" in Fashion.

Fashion Design

Design in any field is the act of showcasing an idea or concept and utilizing it to create something new. Similarly, Fashion Designing utilizes the ideas or concepts to create new clothing and accessories.

Regardless of any Specialty a Fashion Designer performs one or more of these Activities: Stay updated on fashion trends.

Acquire knowledge and samples of fabrics by visiting manufacturers or trade centers. 

Create the storyboards.

Modernize the designs using computer                aided technologies.

Color selection, pattern making, sewing,     

weaving, knitting etc., 

Work with models. 

Attend or arrange Fashion Shows. 

Supervise the completed garments and so on.

Garment

Once the clothing item is created it is often referred to as garment. For example, dress, gown, coat, pant etc. The collars sleeves, cuffs etc. are called as the components of a garment.

Haute Couture

Haute Couture is a French word where Haute refers to "high" and Couture refers to dressmaking (with original designs). Therefore, Haute Couture involves creation of exclusive, high-end, custom-fitted, unique apparels with exceptional detailed and tailored techniques with expensive fabrics. An Haute Couture garment is prepared for an individual client specifically tailored for wearer's measurements. The finishing cost of these one-of-a-kind apparels are very high.

Mass Market

The mass market is one of the main sectors in Fashion marketing which involves production of most accessible form of clothing.

The clothing produced in this area is ready-to-wear and are in standard or general measurements for a large number of end consumers. This involves most affordable fashion form with inexpensive materials so that the final product can be sold at a very low price and to as many customers as possible.

Ready- To-Wear (RTW)

The apparel in this sector is exclusive and a little bit high quality. Designers sell their Ready-To-Wear collections in the designer's name or their brand name (label) in smaller quantities. RTW is derived from the French word "pret-a-porter" means off-the-rack.