There are various types of fashion design software that utilise different features. Compusoft Australia is a partner with Pebblestone Fashion Software which offers a useful integration of all the processes within a fashion company including manufacturing, CMT, wholesale and retail companies. Pebblestone is the leading “Microsoft Enterprise Resource Planning” software for companies in apparel, footwear and sporting goods. It is based on Microsoft Business Solutions and Microsoft Dynamics NAV, providing a unique solution to meet all fashion requirements. The features include easy adaption to changing requirements and growth of the organization, officially certified add-on for style, colour and size dimension and functionability across industry specific processes including presales and project management. Pebblestone is fully integrated and has a complete coverage of all company processes in the fashion industry. Overall the main target areas are PDF Model Management, CRM sales, production purchase, warehousing inventory, distribution financial accounting as well as sales, purchase and inventory. Overall Pebblestone Fashion is an integrated solution to support all primary processes and market requirements.

Another variety of fashion design software is Niche Boutique which includes Niche boutique, Nice fashion RMS, Niche garments and Niche web. Firstly, Niche boutique is a single store point-of-sale fashion software that is designed around the colour-size matrix. It is a cost effective, user friendly and fashion specific POS software that is reinforced with an incredibly powerful management system. Next the RMS, retail management software, for multi-store fashion firms incorporates a new generation in fashion software. It allows fashion companies to better manage their wholesaler functions, manufacturing and multi-store retailing through vertical integration with Niche garments. Overall Niche fashion RMS is fashion specific and has a cost effective design with guaranteed results. The Apparel Management Fashion Software is the most comprehensive apparel management fashion software available. Its features include user friendly templates and formats, simple customer and style selection menus, colour size matrix for sales orders, and easy set up of customer files at time of order entry. There is even an artificial intelligence function that closely matches and predicts customer names when typed in. Lastly, Niche web provides an online shopping and ordering experience that impact on how efficiently and effectively your business is run.

Lastly, Compus of Australia’s Digital Fashion Pro or Professional Fashion Design Software includes training, customisable templates and a fabrics and graphics programs wrapped in one. It uses cutting edge designs without limitations at a great price, with standards above the fashion industry standard.

There are various places where you can learn how to utilise fashion sketching. The FIDM, Fashion In Design and Merchandising) school has many courses from the basics to expert advice. For beginners, try out the ‘Chanel Basics’ course where you will gain a better understanding of how designers work their magic by learning to sketch basic fashion designs. It is run by FIDM instructor, Barbara Sultan who brings to life innovations that have been pioneered by Coco Chanel, such as the classic Chanel suit.

Another fashion sketching course is run by the FBI (Fashion Business College), such as the ‘Fashion Design Illustration, Rendering and Trade Sketch’. You will learn how to use a variety of drawing and painting medium in fun and exciting way to illustrate your designs. You will utilise trade sketches for the production of your own clothing designs.

Lastly the AIFD, the Australian Institute of Fashion and Design also holds courses in local areas for fashion sketching. They have fashion design and styling distance courses that are aimed at aspiring fashion designers from all regions. The ‘Fashion Design and Styling Correspondence Course’, shows how designs can be created through research and development. They target key processes of developing your creative side, drawing and illustrating, finding inspiration, working to a brief, understanding the market, and designing a cohesive collection using a portfolio of designs. There is also an instructional DVD to show you how to draw the fashion figure, colour and render different fabrics.

So as you can see, there are various fashion sketching courses available in all regions to help improve your fashion creations.