When Coco channel said:
“Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.”
The societal stigmas associated with a job in fashion styling were destroyed, and they transformed the lives of many aspiring fashionistas. Individuals soon stopped being afraid to pursue a profession in fashion and proudly and dignifiedly embraced their passion for style. Millions of students nowadays wish to work in the thriving fashion business and learn more about its numerous areas.
When compared to other departments in the fashion business, such as finance, accounting, sales, designing, purchasing, and marketing, the department of fashion styling is less well-known among applicants.
Those who are creative with clothing and skilled at highlighting a person’s physical characteristics might consider a career in fashion styling. Models, celebrities, influencers, and designers are frequently the focus of the industry as they are styled for photo sessions and events.
Yet, given that the industry is still relatively new, often a job in fashion styling is mistaken for the dynamic profession of fashion designing, despite how glamorous, important, and exciting the area may be.
Continue reading this blog to understand how to become a fashion stylist.
What is Fashion Styling?
Fashion styling is the skill of assembling items of clothing through many permutations and combinations, as well as fusing style, functionality, and trends to produce beautiful ensembles. A fashion stylist, like the other 10 jobs in the Indian fashion business, is a specialist who collaborates with designers and models to produce distinctive styles using a variety of clothes.
The main duty of a fashion stylist is to bring any designer’s, photographer’s, or brand’s vision to life through their understanding of trends, proficiency in highlighting the model’s physical features, and ability to select the ideal ensemble of clothing and accessories.
To pursue a career in fashion styling, it helps to have a keen sense of style, an eye for detail and color, as well as outstanding communication and teamwork abilities. You also need to have a comprehensive understanding of industry trends and apparel.
What Does a Fashion Stylist Do?
The duties of a fashion stylist include assessing and predicting trends and dressing clients in line with those predictions. To carry out these responsibilities, they may employ a range of hard and soft abilities, such as attention to detail, creativity, visual composition, and time management. For instance, this job can need specialists to fulfill rigorous deadlines and design original fashion looks, necessitating the use of both creativity and time management abilities.
The duties of a fashion stylist may vary depending on the clients they are working with and whether their business is in media and public relations or retail and sales. They might work in a number of businesses; therefore, their employment responsibilities can vary greatly.
Skills Required
Being a fashion stylist is a creative career that calls for a challenge-loving and creative attitude. A person must be well informed on the dynamics of quickly evolving trends and customs. In addition to possessing a creative eye, a fashion stylist needs the following skills:
- Aptitude for personality and appearance makeover.
- Exceptional work ethics
- Powerful communication abilities
- Taking risks is a virtue
- Ability to multitask
- Current with art, media, and design
- Attractive sense of fashion
- Technical knowledge of Microsoft and Photoshop
- Knowledge of diverse body types
- Time management
- Understanding of diverse customs, cultures, and clothing
Fashion Stylist Responsibilities
As part of their job, fashion stylists are responsible for the following duties:
- Interacting with clients to discuss their needs and interests – To connect with customers and learn about their needs and preferences, fashion stylists can rely on their adept oral and written communication skills. The style of their client or the media appearance, such as a movie or television program, that their client is attending might be better understood as a result. In order to assist a client in achieving a certain fashion style and accurately representing themselves, it is crucial for a stylist to analyse the image that the client wishes to project.
- Studying and identifying trends – These experts may invest a lot of time researching and spotting new or existing trends in order to keep current with the newest fashions. This can enable them to advise clients on the most recent items and ensembles worn by celebrities, social media influencers, and other well-known individuals. This may be used by clients to pinpoint the aesthetics they desire to attain. The stylist might then use those specifics to produce looks that adhere to particular fashion trends.
- Examining fabrics and textiles – Clients might have preferences for the textures and fabrics of the clothing they wear, so it’s crucial for a stylist to examine the materials of the pieces they choose and make sure they meet an individual’s requirements.
- Helping clients in preparation for a media presentation or other event – Before they appear in the media for an important occasion like a job interview or an award ceremony, some people or businesses may engage a stylist to help choose clothing and accessories for people. It is crucial for the stylist to consider the client’s preferences and personal style in addition to the event’s dress code or theme. They may use this to make sure their clients have dressed adequately while also taking into account their own clothing preferences for fit and fabric.
- Managing a stylist team – Fashion stylists may work with or manage a group of beauty experts, such as makeup artists and hairstylists, depending on the needs of the client. To ensure that everyone collaborates to provide a unified appearance for a customer, they may serve as the team’s leader or director. For instance, it’s crucial for makeup artists and fashion stylists to design looks that work well together while preparing a person for an upcoming event.
Where Do Fashion Stylists Work?
The fashion business and other organizations use fashion stylists in a variety of situations. Stylists may work for fashion publications, studios, marketing firms, or advertising agencies. Others provide services on- or off-set in the film, television, and music industries. A lot of fashion stylists work for themselves and a range of clients on a freelance basis.
Essential Tips to Succeed as a Fashion Stylist
Below mentioned are a few tips to succeed as a fashion stylist:
- Develop strong networking skills – As a stylist, you need to build a portfolio, network with designers and business leaders, and go to many industry events. It might be difficult to catch up if you fall behind because the fashion business is notoriously competitive.
- Build up your relationships, both personally and professionally – Gaining new style clients requires developing personal connections. While some fashion stylists may become well-known because a client made an appearance on the red carpet or in a prestigious fashion publication, the majority of their work comes through friends and associates of past clients.
- Don’t be shy – You must be willing to promote yourself a bit in order to succeed. When you create your own firm, make an effort to get asked for lunches and parties, and don’t be afraid to approach your successful mentors for recommendations.
- Experience is more important than a diploma – Some fashion stylists have a bachelor’s or master’s degree in education, however, when applying to be someone’s personal stylist, the subject of college may never come up. A specific diploma won’t open as many doors as years of work experience.
- Stay up to date – A job as a fashion stylist can be excellent for you if you have great communication skills, a passion for aesthetics, keep up with current fashion trends, are confident in your sense of style, and are prepared to work long hours for sometimes unappreciated work.
Scope of a Career in Fashion Styling
If you’re searching for a steady, desk job, a career in fashion styling may not be for you because it is fast-paced and demanding. With unexpected shifts and travel for events, the office work atmosphere is constantly busy and exciting. It is also one of the top ten jobs for compulsive shoppers who would like to start their own original trends.
When it comes to deciding which area of the business to enter, a fashion stylist has several alternatives. One can choose from the following fashion industries in accordance with their knowledge, personal style, and area of specialization:
- Personal stylist
- Celebrity stylist
- Photography stylist
- Product stylist
- Social media stylist
How to Pursue a Career in Fashion Styling?
There is no set road map of dos and don’ts that you must adhere to in order to launch a career in fashion styling. But there are a few crucial actions that might aid in your development as an expert in your field.
- Discovering a unique style – You must choose if fashion styling is your focus before moving forward with enrolling in a fashion styling course and investing a lot of time and money in the area. You may develop your own trademark style and increase your interest in the industry by following the fashion weeks held in London, Paris, and New York, as well as by reading about major fashion houses and their product lines. These activities will help you examine the small details and learn about experimentation.
- Degree in related fields – You will be one step closer to pursuing a profession in fashion styling if you obtain the proper degree and formal education in fashion-related fields. For candidates to understand the history of trends, the science behind fashion, the evolution of apparel, etc., education in the subject is crucial. Fashion styling course fees may differ from college to college.
The following is a list of the top universities and degrees to enroll in if you want to specialize in fashion styling:
- Bachelor of Fashion Design: Some of the top universities in India for fashion design are NIFT (National Institute of Fashion Technology), Pearl Academy, and Arch College of Design and Business, Jaipur.
- Fashion styling diploma and certificates are available for up to nine months at the JD Institute of Fashion and Technology, Indian School of Design and Innovation (ISDI), Mumbai, and NIFT Delhi.
- The top choices for a degree in fashion merchandising include the many branches of NIFT, the Indian School of Design and Innovation, MIT Institute of Design, and Pearl Academy.
- In order to pursue a degree in B.Des Textile Design, aspirants can enroll in NIFT Delhi and Mumbai as well as other branches, Mumbai University, AAFT, and Banaras Hindu University. o There are also various fashion styling courses available online, like AAFT Online, that provide certificate courses in fashion styling.
- Internships – Throughout the years leading up to graduation, obtaining a lot of practical experience in the profession through internships is one of the most important stages toward a successful career in fashion styling. Working at a fashion house or assisting a fashion stylist tends to teach students a lot about the industry and deepen their awareness of the fashion industry.
- Build your portfolio – Don’t forget to expand your portfolio as soon as you start fashion school. A professional’s prior work, shown in a portfolio, is used to demonstrate their experience, competency, and expertise. In addition to documenting all of your work experiences, it is a terrific method to construct a look back at your personal style.
- Focus on Networking – In order to pursue a profession in fashion styling, networking is essential. A great first step to establishing an impact and succeeding in the area is to have contacts that may be used to get a job in the field, or for future references and project collaborations.
Conclusion
Students who want to express their creativity and harness their inner artists in the fashion business might consider the up-and-coming, exciting profession of fashion styling.
The sector offers several prospects for motivated students, which can occasionally be overwhelming and perplexing.
It is crucial that you read through reviews and testimonials from past students before enrolling in a college. AAFT Online is an educational technology firm that provides students with online education and career counselling services. It is the top education and career counselling company in India and is entirely focused on education and assisting students in building a career.
