Fall semester of last year was the start of my sophomore year and therefore the beginning of my years as a fashion design major.

Here at Parsons, sophomores are required to take five fashion core courses during their fall semester (along with studio electives, history, and liberal arts/ULEC).

From these classes, I acquired a multitude of technical and life skills, which I have condensed below.

If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to be a fashion design major or just want to pick up some sewing and designing tips, I hope these lessons prove helpful to you, too.

Table of Contents

1. Sewing Techniques: Finished Garments & High Fashion vs. Fast Fashion

In my 3D class, we covered various sewing demos for skirts and bodices. We did most of our pieces in muslin, an inexpensive, unbleached cotton fabric.

We had to ensure that each garment was finished, meaning no seams were left with raw edges.

In that class, I learned that seams can be completed in a variety of ways. Here are a few of the most common:

• By serging the raw edge
• By making French seams
• By sewing flat felled seams
• By sewing on hem tape and then hand sewing that to the fabric using a blind stitch
• By sewing a rolled hem

Additionally, my teacher identified various elements that differentiate high-quality garments from fast fashion items.

One example is darts. On high-fashion clothes, the ends of darts are double tied to secure the threads, rather than sewn again, as they are in cheap apparel. This creates a softer, more flattering dart.