When it comes to learning Illustrator for your fashion design career, you have options.
Now, contrary to the title of this chapter, some of these options are NOT free. Don’t worry, at the end of this guide, there are 37 40 (just updated with new videos!) of my hand picked Illustrator tutorials that ARE free (organized so you can QUICKLY find what you need based on YOUR unique situation).
But for the sake of putting together a comprehensive list, I wanted to include both free AND paid options to learn.
When it comes to learning FAST? That’s really up to you.
I know designers who’ve binged Netflix style on my 100+ free tutorials or gotten through some of my premium courses in a week.
You CAN see fast results...IF you put in the time and effort.
There is NO magic pill. It takes work and dedication. And you HAVE to practice.
The main reason I wrote this chapter? Is to show you that NOT all options to learn Illustrator are the BEST options. (Regardless of price.)
And SOMETIMES, the option you assume is the BEST is actually the WORST.
So read this section closely, choose carefully, and consider what’s MOST important to you:
● Listing a well known fashion school on your resume?
● Or learning from someone who uses Illustrator daily in a REAL life setting?
I will show you exactly how to decide in a minute.
But right now, I want to tell you the HARD stuff you need to hear.
How to kill your fashion design dream: the truth no one else will tell you
If you take the wrong Illustrator course?
You can leave MORE CONFUSED than when you started, like Hayley:
“I was so confused because of the way he explained things, it felt like learning a new language. He might as well have been speaking Chinese to me.” - Hayley
You can get stuck with a GRAPHIC DESIGN teacher who has NO idea how to apply the tools to fashion:
You can get stuck with a teacher who lectures from a BOOK - something you could DIY for WAY cheaper:
As a result? You’ll lose so much confidence that you’ll QUIT:
I know it SUCKS to hear this. But I believe you have the RIGHT to hear the truth.
don’t work.
Or worse, GIVE UP on your dream all together.
Because knowing Illustrator in the fashion industry? It’s the difference between getting the job and NOT getting the job.
To reach your dream and get ahead in fashion, Illustrator skills are mandatory.
98% of fashion design jobs REQUIRE proficiency and hand sketching is insufficient.
See for yourself. Of 20+ listings on StyleCareers.com, NOT ONE listed hand sketching. But they ALL listed Illustrator:
It is your Illustrator skills that will SET YOU APART from the competition.
So ask yourself, CAN YOU:
● Sketch flats quickly and accurately to convey your vision to factories and buyers?
● Create seamless repeating patterns and colorways - and apply them to your beautiful flats?
● Layout line sheets and presentation boards?
Because this is what jobs REQUIRE:
The days of assistants and graphic teams to digitally translate your ideas?
*POOF* gone.
Companies are cutting back and designers are expected to know how to do EVERYTHING.
I experienced it firsthand in 2008 shortly after landing my dream job in fashion.
2008 was a BAD year. Global economies crumbled and fashion brands were no exception.
Sales plummeted but overhead stayed HIGH. Layoffs swept through companies like tidal waves.
My manager was the first to go. Designers fell like dominoes.
In just WEEKS, our team of 20 shrank to 8.
Somehow, I was one of the last designers left.
I wondered WHY and HOW?
Some of the MOST experienced staff was let go. Me? I BARELY had any
“real” fashion experience.
And then the obvious reason HIT ME UPSIDE THE HEAD.
I knew how to do EVERYTHING in Illustrator. I was GOOD. And I was FAST.
● Flats took me MINUTES when other designers took HOURS.
● I could mock up colorways and design variations while the CEO hovered over my shoulder.
● I could pull presentation boards together in ONE afternoon.
What they needed was designers who could “DO IT ALL”.
And most of the team? Their computer skills DID NOT make the cut.
No matter your experience in the industry - entry level or 20+ years, Adobe Illustrator for fashion design is MANDATORY.
And you’ll be TESTED.
And even if you’ve been in the industry FOREVER and can draw flats really fast in CM (Colour Matters, some of the outdated fashion software we talked about earlier), it doesn’t matter.
Ok. Now I KNOW you’re probably feeling PANIC.
DON’T. That is not my intention.
The reason you’re reading this is to get on the BEST path to learn Illustrator for fashion design.
Which is what we’ll go through next.
But I’ve heard SO many horror stories, that I want to get all of this out on the table so YOU can make a better decision for your future. SO that YOU are armed with the right knowledge and choose the right path to learn.
So that you don’t come CRYING to me with a failure story. Instead, you come SINGING to me with a success story, like some of the designers I’m going to introduce you to later.
You can choose your own path to proficiency.
But some are more treacherous than others.
(Hint: fashion school is usually your worst enemy.)
You know what people tell me ALL THE TIME? It goes like this:
“If I’m going to spend money on a course to learn Illustrator, I want to be able to list a reputable fashion school on my resume.”
#FACEPALM
With 10+ years of experience in fashion, I’ve seen FIRSTHAND what comes out of fashion school.
And it is NOT PRETTY.
Beyond what students say? Here’s something SCARIER.
I’ve talked to professors and faculty FACE TO FACE at “reputable” fashion schools. The things they’ve said are FRIGHTENING.
I quote:
Parson’s professor after admitting their Illustrator teacher was terrible:
“The administration doesn’t care. As long as there’s a warm body teaching the class, that’s all that matters.”
CSU faculty:
“The professors just can’t keep up with the technology. We have one class, but it’s not enough. So I tell students to go home and learn on YouTube.”
FIT professor, copied from her website:
“Are you enrolled in another school or program? Our course is a great supplement to your current curriculum. Some designs schools only offer a limited amount of Adobe Illustrator courses and in many cases don’t leave you proficient enough to perform on the job.”
Speaking of FIT? Oh, have I got a GOOD one for you.
I was a guest lecturer in their Illustrator class once. After my 30 min presentation?
The students told me they learned more than they had ALL semester.
They asked me why I wasn’t teaching the class. Because they were learning NOTHING from their teacher.
(I even found out years later that they PETITIONED to bring me in as the teacher.)
But you know...that TENURE thing…
Listen.
This guide isn’t meant to be a RANT on fashion schools.
But I know for a FACT that most of their Illustrator classes (even at
“reputable” schools) are taught by professors who:
● Have never actually worked in the industry
● Have never used Illustrator on the job or in a real life setting
● Teach it out of a graphic design book (yes, this happens) and
students have no idea why they even need to know the software to work in fashion
schools as possible.
Because listing FIT, FIDM, or Parson’s on your resume doesn’t mean SHIT if you don’t actually have the skills you need to pass the Illustrator test during your interview.
Sorry if I sound harsh, but man this makes me ANGRY.
And I hear too many designers caring about “learning at a proper school” when I KNOW they’re not going to get what they need.
Instead, they’ll leave bruised, battered, and UNPREPARED for the real world.
So I wanted to make sure and hammer this one home.
Got it? Cool. RANT DONE.
Let’s look at your options to learn Illustrator, one by one, with all the