Fashion Designers Try Their Hand at Interiors

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by Jessica Santina
Fashion School Review Columnist

June 09, 2008

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The buzz about Arman


Launch Your Fashion Career from The Art Institutes

i's latest designs has nothing to do with the runway. Armani Casa, the fashion designer's line of home furnishings, is turning heads for its classic Italian minimalist style, with clean lines and neutral colors. Armani's even crossed into electronics, with a new cell phone and HDTV recently unveiled. This luxury brand should do well despite a slow housing market.

Armani's just one of hundreds of fashion designers dabbling in interior design. Ralph Lauren, Todd Oldham, Nicole Miller, Fendi, and Diane Von Furstenberg have all had their names attached to furniture and home accessories for years.

From Fashion to Interior Design: A Good Business Move?
With the latest news about a sluggish housing market -- and a decline in interior design sales – why would fashion designers pursue it? Some say that high-profile brands like these actually stimulate interest where there might not be any otherwise.

In fact, studies of high income, socially aware "prosumers" say they pay attention to brand names, and select luxury brands to make a statement about who they are. Brands like Armani, Ralph Lauren, and others are associated with quality fabrics and long-lasting appeal, whether it's in their fashions or in their furniture. And people want their image associated with those qualities.

And in some cases, fabrics once exclusively the domain of fashion, such as patent leather, are appearing in home furnishings in order to help homeowners make a fashionable statement.

The Draw of Interior Design
As you'll likely learn in fashion school, only a fine line separates fashion from furniture, two important indicators of a person's lifestyle. Your fashion school courses in color theory, garment construction, textile fundamentals, drawing & illustration, visual merchandising, and even modern art can show you the importance of luxury fabrics to the consumer, and how accessories work to create a look.

Fashion design schools not only help you unleash your inner designer, they may help you to see all the design, marketing, and money-making possibilities available to you in the design industry.

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About the Author
Jessica Santina is a freelance writer with a background in media and marketing. She also teaches first-year writing courses at the University of Nevada, Reno.