Learn all about how to draw the fashion sketch for your collection 12 min read

Summary 

• A fashion sketch is a type of drawing that expresses the stylist’s ideas for a clothing piece or collection; 
• In fashion sketches, details such as colors, prints, fit, finishes, and textures are included; 
• Create your collection in Audaces Fashion Studio, online and practical. Try Audaces360 for free! 

One of the most curious and enchanting creative processes in a collection is the development of the fashion sketch. 

And it’s no wonder: it is in the sketch that the entire narrative of a launch begins. Many collections become iconic for the public because of it, as they represent much of the essence of the creating stylist. 

In this post, you will understand the importance of this process, how to differentiate it from others that are part of fashion creation, and how to draw it manually or on the computer. 

Enjoy your reading! 

What is a fashion sketch?

Fashion sketch, also called artistic drawing or style sketch, is a type of fashion drawing that expresses the main ideas of the stylist for a clothing piece or collection. 

From an initial sketch, the fashion designer develops the sketch. Only then does he begin to add details that start shaping what will later become the finished garment. 

Although the sketch includes details such as colors, prints, fit, finishes, and textures, the goal is not to achieve 100% realism. 

The proportions of the human body here can give way to representation, concepts, and emotions conceived by the collection creator. 

What is the importance of a fashion sketch for a stylist? 

The fashion sketch is an essential tool for a stylist’s work. It represents the initial idea for creating a new piece of clothing. 

A sketch can convey the stylist’s vision to their team, suppliers, and clients, serving as an essential guide for the collection production process. 

In addition, the sketch allows the stylist to experiment with and visualize different design options before creating a physical prototype. It saves time and money, as the stylist can discard ideas that do not work without spending resources on sample production. 

It also helps the stylist define the proportions and structure of the garment and think about how it should adapt to the body. 

It is an important tool for creating a cohesive collection, as sketches can be used to check how different clothing complement each other and fit into the overall concept. 

Learn more: Explore the role and benefits of a virtual fashion designer 

What is the difference between a sketch, a fashion sketch, and a technical drawing? 

Fashion drawing is a stage in the creation and development of a collection. It can have numerous phases, including different types of graphic representations of the same piece. 

While the sketch and the fashion sketch are more creative, the technical drawing goes further. First, it’s worth understanding the difference between them. 

Sketch 

These are the initial lines that anticipate the fashion sketch, expressing a designer’s “mental drawing”. 

It’s like a draft of what will later be an elaborate drawing and, ultimately, the realization of the creation, that is, the finished garment. 

Not always the creation of a collection goes through a sketch. In other words, it is not uncommon for this phase to be replaced directly by the fashion sketch. 

A sketch can be born at any time or place, coming from an inspiration that arises suddenly. It is the beginning of an idea that will mature. 

Moreover, it is common for the sketch not to show complete human forms. 

Fashion sketch 

On the other hand, as you already know, fashion sketch has more details, such as the application of colors, textures, and fit. Moreover, it dresses a human figure or, at least, something similar to it, depending on the imagination and concept of the stylist. 

Indeed, this creative character gives the sketch an artistic air, making the lines and style of the drawing the designer’s trademark or signature. 

The style of the sketch’s lines can also change according to the collection’s concept. Thus, it is possible to recognize that these are sketches by the same designer but from different collections and themes. 

Learn more: What is virtual fashion design and why use it in your clothing business? 

Technical drawing 

By analogy, the technical drawing will bring the necessary details for making the garment. 

If the sketch presented more subjective representations, in the technical drawing, there would be more information and technical characteristics of the garment. 

That is gathers, cuts, fabrics, embroideries, hems, circumferences, everything that is necessary to produce clothing. 

The technical drawing is a very important part of the technical sheet, as it graphically represents the information contained in it. 

Learn more: How to create technical drawings online for fashion manufacturing 

How to make a fashion sketch? 

Creating the first sketches depends not only on inspiration, nor is it necessarily a talent of those who already know how to draw. 

In fact, in the beginning, it is much more a matter of technique and practice than of talent as a draftsman. Over time, it becomes easier and easier to draw sketches and even develop your style. 

As you already know, a sketch is also the name given to mannequins that serve as a basis for drawing clothes. 

Even though there is no standard for sketches, the clothing market uses measures that assist in their creation and interpretation. The most common way to draw them is using the 9-head sketch technique. 

The 9-head sketch is a simple and quick way to represent the human body, based on the proportional measure of the human body of 7 ½ heads. However, for the fashion sketch, the measurement of nine heads is used to make the mannequin longer and show the clothes in more detail. 

On paper 

For the female fashion sketch that will be the basis for your creations, just follow these steps: 

• With a pencil, draw a vertical line on a sheet of bond paper. 
• Draw 8 horizontal lines, dividing the first vertical line into 9 equal parts. Each part represents the measurement of one head. 
• From the head measurements, draw the shapes of the female body, following the references: 
  • The mannequin’s chin should touch the 1st horizontal line. 
  • At the 1/3 measurement between the 1st and 2nd lines, the shoulder line is located. 
  • The 2nd horizontal line marks the nipple line for breast tracing. 
  • At the 3rd line, the waistline should be, and the height where the elbows reach. 
  • On the 4th line, the hip and wrist lines are located. 
  • The middle of the thighs will be on the 5th horizontal line. 
  • The 6th line is the delineation of the knee line. 
  • To finish, the 7th line will be at the shin level, followed by the ankle line on the 8th line, and the tip of the feet will end at the bottom of the vertical line. 
• Round the shapes and follow the female silhouette for this sketch. 
• Finally, to facilitate the creation of various sketches, use the first mannequin as a model and trace again with other more transparent sheets on top. Now, just get inspired and create your collections!

For a male fashion sketch, the measurement references are the same. In other words, what changes is the male silhouette, which has different shapes. 

On the computer 

Another way to shape your collections is by using technology to streamline processes. This way, you have much more time to be inspired and test possibilities without fear of making mistakes. 

With Audaces Fashion Studio, it is possible to create beautiful sketches directly from the computer quickly and intuitively. 

To create a sketch using our system: 

• Open the program and select the “New Project” option on the home screen. 
• Select the type of sketch you want to create. You can choose between female, male, children, and plus-size sketches. 
• You will take to the editing screen. On the left side panel, select the “Body” tool to start drawing the sketch’s body. 
• Use the “Draw” tool to trace the body lines, following the correct measurements and proportions. 
• After drawing the body, you can add details such as hair, face, and clothes. 
• To add clothes to the sketch, select the “Dress” tool on the left side panel. AFS offers a wide variety of clothing models that you can use as a base, or you can create your clothes from scratch. 
• Use the “Edit” tool to adjust the clothing model to fit the sketch’s body. You can change the size, position, and shape of the clothes to fit the body. 
• When you finish creating your sketch, save the file in a format compatible with your purpose. 

These are the basic steps to create a sketch using Audaces Fashion Studio. It offers many other tools and features that allow you to add more details and customization, worth exploring all possibilities. 

The main advantages of technology in fashion sketch creation 

Technology has brought many advantages to the creation of fashion sketches. Some of the main ones are: 

Speed and efficiency

Technology allows stylists to create sketches faster and more efficiently than drawing by hand. 

Creating and modifying sketches is effortlessly achievable with just a few clicks, empowering designers to swiftly explore ideas and identify the optimal choices. 

Precision and consistency

Technology enables the creation of sketches with exact measurements and uniform proportions, a crucial factor in guaranteeing the proper fitting of clothing on the body. 

In addition, the precision and consistency of digital sketches allow stylists to create cohesive and harmonious collections. 

Flexibility and customization 

The software allows stylists to customize their sketches according to their preferences and needs. 

With them, it is possible to change the color or thickness of lines, add textures, or create a custom library of clothing models. This allows designers to create sketches that best represent their design ideas. 

Sharing and collaboration 

Technology allows sketches to be shared and collaborated on quickly and easily, whether with team members, suppliers, or clients. 

This makes the creation and production process more efficient and collaborative. 

Sustainability 

Technology allows stylists to create and experiment with design ideas without producing physical prototypes, saving time, and resources, and reducing material waste. 

Develop your fashion sketch and simulate it with Audaces 

Using Audaces software, you can develop sketches easily and even put them on display, showing how the clothing fits. 

Audaces360

Audaces created Audaces360, an integrated solution that connects the creative and productive stages, offering greater efficiency and profitability for clothing manufacturers. 

One of the main advantages of this software is its view of the production process, using complementary tools to feed each subsequent stage with accurate and real-time information. It allows decision-making to be faster and more efficient. 

Audaces360 has several features that bring agility to your production, allowing consumers to customize their orders and contributing to the diversification of clothing offerings. With reduced inventory, costs are eliminated, and profits increase. 

Audaces Fashion Studio 

Audaces Fashion Studio is an advanced digital fashion drawing software that allows the development of both physical and virtual clothing. 

With this tool, it is possible to facilitate visual communication between the team and commercial model approval. 

It is considered both the present and the future of the fashion market in a single solution! 

Among the features offered by Audaces Fashion Studio, it is possible to simulate fabric draping in a virtual environment. In addition to applying realistic colors, prints, and textures, reducing the number of pilots garments in the creation phase, and creating the pattern after approval in the software. 

And many other available features help stylists create innovative and quality clothing! 

Conclusion

The fashion sketch is an artistic drawing that represents the stylist’s ideas for a clothing piece or collection. It is a very important tool as it represents the initial idea in the creation phase. 

Furthermore, it represents the emotions, concepts, and references of a launch, allowing the fashion designer to create garments with personality and meaning. 

With technology, you can make the creation of fashion sketches simpler and faster. 

Download our e-book for free and understand how and why to use 3D virtual drawing in your daily life! 

FAQ