Fashion illustration has been in existence for over 500 years and is an art of communicating and visualising fashion ideas. It is also popularly known as fashion sketching. It has become an important part of interpreting fashion amongst the designers, the manufacturers, fashion stylists, buyers, and retailers. Although it may be an early stage of designing, it is still a great way of visualising what the designers want to create. Illustrations have become a mode to convey the details and the design of the fashion creation you have envisioned. An illustration is nothing less than an artistic creation, it provides freedom for the designer to create.  

In the earlier days of fashion illustration, illustrators used to create designs on natural figures which have now slowly moved towards exaggerated fashion figures.

Fashion illustrations have not only become relevant but have also become recognised amongst the designers. You may often notice the different styles, patterns and unique style every designer has to showcase. It's a starting point for designs, to create a new, trendy and a unique style. These days, fashion drawings are used in the decision-making process of the customers too. Buyers look at the fashion drawing for inspiration before placing an order for purchase at boutiques.

Fashion illustrations showcase the creativity of the designers, it is indeed a great way to present their ideas on paper. It's nothing less than a creative space! They have always played a crucial role in the evolution of fashion designing. Manufacturers use this to understand the creation in detail. It is imperative that the illustration represents the clothing well enough. Being visually appealing is one of the critical factors of creating unique designs.  

Some of the key elements of fashion illustration are:

1.     It should provide a visual representation of the fabric texture and the design

2.     It's a great way to translate ideas into garments

3.     It is a mode of communication between the fashion designers or artists to the actual creators

4.     Rhythm is one of the key elements in fashion illustration. You may often notice this during fashion shows, especially when a designer is trying to repeat a particular pattern or a design theme through the season.

5.     Whether symmetrical or asymmetrical, proportion, scale, and balance are also an indispensable part of fashion illustration

An illustration by artists and fashion illustrators is an organic process and a creative one too.

Have you ever played with colours and canvas, expressing what your mind feels like? You might have tried it as a child, but have you tried the same now? Or do you consider yourself an adult and too busy to try playing with colours? Paint without judgments, without analysing too much, just paint your emotions. It is a great of expressing, relaxing and improving your everyday life. It is a creative process that relieves all your stress as you invest your time into it.

This therapeutic technique is an expressive form of creativity that helps enhance one's physical, mental, as well as emotional well-being. Imagine the feeling of not having to verbalize your emotions and just depicting it for yourself on a canvas using colours, shapes, patterns, and imageries. Sounds exciting, isn't it? Well, art therapy is just that!

Benefits of art therapy

There have been plenty of researches done to explore and understand the benefits of using art therapy. It not only improves mental health but also physical too. There are many benefits to art therapy and some of them are:

·       Art therapy inspires positivity in people's lives and helps mitigate the symptoms of depression by controlling the chemical imbalances that happen in your brain.

·       2.De-stressing is one of the key reasons to start with art therapy. Depression and stress lead people to start using drugs and alcohol, art therapy eliminates such negative habits.

·       It helps people focus and take their mind off from addictive cravings in life.

·       Some past researches have indicated that it has helped cancer patients relieve from pain and stress too.

·       As people learn to express themselves, art therapy makes them feel empowered and strong. This, in turn, is reflected positively in their decision-making skills, self-esteem, and behavioural patterns.

Art therapy is also used to address past trauma, as people get to express themselves in their own creative space with no judgments whatsoever. It reduces anxiety and uplifts your mood, just like music does to many. You start forgetting about the most pressing concerns and suddenly everything appears to have cleared off. That's the space your mind needs too.

You might be wondering how to incorporate art into your daily lives. Well, it's simple, you don't necessarily need drawing skills for it. Start with an adult colouring book or mandala paintings with intricate designs that you can start colouring. You'll notice how engaging it is for your mind. There are also, colouring apps available at your fingertips. Another dimension of creating art is to start sculpting with clay, that is also a form of art therapy. The freedom to create something is simply beautiful. Experiment with art therapy, register yourself for classes or buy colouring book for adults and set your inner child free.