Ploymint

Listed as one of our top creative careers with a salary over $50,000, a fashion designer is a fantastic career for anyone with an eye for clothing. You’re told that you “put yourself together” well—but you haven’t formally studied fashion design a day in your life. Your natural ability can only take you so far—but we can help hone your skills with this guide to entering the high-class world of fashion.

If you recall the Dummies series, the books are still in print—but tips based out of the series are now accessible to millennials in their favorite medium: the Internet. Of course, you can learn about Fashion Drawing For Dummies, which is a great place to start learning for a beginner. Here’s some of what the Dummies authors had to say:

• You don’t have to design your own clothing line to make your mark.
• Sourcing involves “finding all notions and fabrics to create the garment, along with finding a factory to construct it.”
• The need for hand drawing “will never disappear completely.” Before going ahead to start your own company backed by your own designs, why not work for an established designer “who has great ideas, but trouble transferring them to paper.”
• Of course, be sure your skills are marketed online through a website—as well as social media.

As an authority on all things fashion, Glamour magazine provides tips for breaking into the fashion industry—with Q&A interviews from established industry professionals. Some highlighted pearls of wisdom to come out of the interviews include:

• Intern (yes, intern–you can do it at any age!) for an established designer to gain experience.
• Utilizing talents in other areas—especially tech-related jobs. (Hint, hint, tech-oriented millennials!) “Look at your talents, and there is probably a job in fashion for them.”
• Stay up on the social media of your favorite designers—and when interviewing, make sure that your social media pages are appropriate for review by potential employers. Share your favorite designs via social media—or even share your own designs.

It is important—when trying to get your foot in the door in any industry—to keep an open mind and be willing to work. There is more to the fashion industry than runways and glamorous events—the goal is to be a part of it, even if you’re not the mastermind designing the clothes.