Dress designed by Charles Frederick Worth for Elisabeth of Austria painted byFranz Xaver Winterhalter
The history of fashion design refers to the development of the fashion industry which designs clothing and accessories. Fashion design is the art of the application of design and aesthetics or natural beauty to clothing and accessories. The modern fashion industry, based around firms or fashion houses run by individuals usually male designers, started in the 19th century with Charles Frederick Worth who was the first designer to have his label sewn into the garments that he created
• Couture
beginnings
The first fashion designer who was not merely a dressmaker
was Charles Frederick Worth (1826–1895). Before the former draper set up his
maison de couture (fashion house) in Paris, clothing design and creation was
handled by largely anonymous tailors and seamstresses, and high fashion
descended from styles worn at royal courts. Worth's success was such that he
was able to dictate to his customers what they should wear.
• Early
twentieth century
Throughout the early 20th century, practically all high
fashion originated in Paris and to a lesser extent London. Fashion magazines
from other countries sent editors to the Paris fashion shows. Department stores
sent buyers to the Paris shows, where they purchased garments to copy (and
openly stole the style lines and trim details of others). Both made-to-measure
salons and ready-to-wear departments featured the latest Paris trends, adapted
to the stores' assumptions about the lifestyles and pocket books of their
targeted customers.