Fashion Design Drawing

SKETCHING ACCESSORIES

Many of the larger department stores and specialty shops employ artists to sketch nothing but accessories, hiring other artists to sketch fashions exclusively.. Other stores expect one person to do all the sketching. With the latter possibility in mind, it is well for the artist to become versatile enough to sketch anything from pots and pans to French-room gowns.

To become a good accessories artist the student should know something about perspective. Books are obtainable on the subject, and practically every school in the larger cities offers courses in the subject.

In some instances it is better to display accessories on the form rather than show them posed on a flat surface. For instance, gloves are often shown to better advantage on the hand than in a flat picture. Even a face will attract attention to accessories. If you are advertising gloves, they will have more feminine appeal, and. I dare say more sales appeal, if they are shown on the hands of a woman holding her hat. If the face is subordinated to the merchandise advertised, it will attract attention to that merchandise.

In sketching still-life objects, there is one quality every artist should strive for, - a fresh-from-the-tissue crispness, a sparkling new look. If one sketched gloves as they actually are, they would usually have a worn look to them, whereas with the aid of a ruler an artist can lend them a smart crisp appearance. Bags, too, would often have a run-down-at-the-heels look if they were sketched as they are usually seen in reality. Here, again, the artist has the privilege of sharpening his lines.

A compass may be used for making circles when these are needed.

In illustrating leathers try to get the general effect of the grain. If it is a rough leather, indicate the roughness

in your sketch; if it is a smooth leather, illustrate it in an unbroken tone except where the shadows or high-lights hit it.

In sketching soft accessories such as handkerchiefs, scarfs, hose, etc., strive for a sketchy appearance. Give them action. It may seem difficult to understand how an inanimate object can have action, but they can have a feeling of action in their lines.

Beads, compacts, and anything shiny may have shadows and high-lights to bring out their brilliance.

Fashion Design Drawing - Sketching Accessories 1.jpg