Elements of

Design in
Clothing
L___

LINE

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_O__

FORM

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_ _ _ _R

COLOR

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T__T___

TEXTURE

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Elements of
Design in
Clothing
 1.
Line
 Line

this forms the direction or feeling of a design. This

can be part of a fabric as in stripes and plaids or part
of the design as in seams and yokes. Your choice of
emphasizing the direction of lines will determine
the mood you want to create.

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 Line

VERTICAL LINES– add height, strength, and

dignity. Plaided, striped and checkered fabrics
usually vertical lines. These lines are used to make a
short person appear taller and a plump person
appear slimmer.

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 Line

VERTICAL
LINES

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 Line

HORIZONTAL LINES– create a restful,

informal feeling. These make a person’s figure
appear wider and stouter.

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 Line

HORIZONTAL LINES

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 Line

DIAGONAL LINES– these lines have the

same effect as those of the horizontal and vertical
lines, depending on the kind of print of the material.

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 Line

DIAGONAL LINES

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 Line

CURVED LINES– add a softening, graceful

effect and keep the clothing from becoming too stiff.
These have soft, attractive, and feminine effect.
They are appropriate for individuals who are
feminine and frail looking.

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 Line

CURVED LINES

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 2.
Shape/Form
 Shape/Form

Lines that join together produce the form or

shape of an object. Straight lines create
rectangles, squares and triangles. Curved
lines form circles and ovals. Triangles provide
stability and curved shapes soften the con-
tours of objects.

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 Shape/Form

The shape of the face should be considered in

selecting the neckline for a dress.

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 Shape/Form

If you have a ROUND FACE, you are endowed

with a baby-like beauty that will invariably
make you look younger and more adorable
throughout your life. This being said, on
occasions you may not want to look just cute.
Sometimes the aim is to appear more
sophisticated and grown-up. In such cases
wearing a neckline that enhances the
roundness of your face will prove to be
counterproductive.
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Shape/Form

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 Shape/Form

In general, faces with similar length of

forehead and jawline are considered as a
SQUARE FACE type. However, when these
aspects are seen in longer faces, the styling
rules become confusing. This is why, in this
section, we’re only going to discuss the faces
that are broader than they are long, and have
sharp angles around the jawline.

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Shape/Form

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 Shape/Form

If you have an OVAL FACE shape, theoretically

you have the perfect face shape. Oval faces are
known to look sophisticated, cute, and
gorgeous all at the same time. This is why,
unlike other face shapes, the idea behind
choosing a neckline for an oval shape is to not
camouflage but rather enhance it.

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Shape/Form

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 Shape/Form

Remember when we said that a longer face

with equivalent forehead and jawline were
eventually categorized differently for better
styling segmentation. With a strong jawline
that is equivalent to the forehead in length, an
OBLONG looks quite similar to a square face,
except that it is longer. And it is this length
alone that differentiates the neckline styling
for both the shapes.

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Shape/Form

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 Shape/Form

If your face is wider at the forehead and

slender at the jawline which eventually goes
down further to a narrow chin, then you have a
face shape of a HEART or DIAMOND. Both the
face types are known for looking most
feminine than all the other face types. The only
difference between them being the presence
of the widow’s peak in heart shape and the
absence of the same in the diamond.

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Shape/Form

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 3.
Texture
 Texture

Texture – this is the surface quality of an item

detected by how we see and feel it. Texture adds
variety and interest.

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Texture

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 Color

The first thing that the observer notices in

your clothing.

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 Color

1. Black, dark tones or deeply grayed colors

tend to make the figure appear smaller or
slimmer than bright or light colors

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 Color

2. A plain color makes the figure look

slimmer than a combination of
contrasting colors.

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 Color

3. A very small figure should not wear

over large designs in prints, plaids, or
stripes

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 Color

4. Contrast and accent should be done

with care.

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A picture is worth a thousand words

Do you have any

questions?

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