Textile Design College of Design, Engineering & Commerce Textile Design in general: “Textile Designers are part artists, part color experts, and part technical specialists who create new fabrics or modify the designs of previous fabrics so that they can be used in the manufacture of fashions. Many Textile Designers also work on related textile-based items, ranging from the everyday (e.g., curtains and furniture coverings) to the much more narrowly focused (e.g. cold-weather clothing and even spacesuits)…[t]hey may…focus their efforts on print fabrics…work with woven fabrics…[or] work with knits.” (p. 18) 1 Description of Major: The education of textile designers at PhilaU begins in the art studios, where students develop a sense of color, light, shape, texture and form. Design students then study the properties of fibers, yarns, dyes, and fabric construction -- they also learn to research design. Of special help is The Design Center at Philadelphia University with its textile study collection ranging from Coptic to the contemporary. Students get hands-on expertise with the latest computerized design systems before trying their own designs on knitting, weaving and printing equipment. Because most designs are created to sell textile products, the program also includes principles of marketing and product performance. A cornerstone of the program is the system of portfolio reviews. Every student is reviewed and advised individually by a panel of instructors after their freshman year, mid-way through their junior year, and part of graduation requirements are the mounting of a Senior Exhibition. Skills reviewed include drawing and painting and use of color and presentation. Specializations: Textile majors range from those that are primarily design-oriented to those focused on textile science and engineering, enabling students to specialize in the area most suited to their interests and strengths. 2 Careers/Job titles: 3 Assistant Designer Assistant Merchandiser Assistant Sweater Designer Assistant Textile Stylist CAD Designer CAD Technical Programmer Colorist Contract Designer Decorating Consultant Designer Design Assistant Design Department Coordinator Executive Trainee Program Fabric Assistant Fabric Library Assistant Fabric Research & Development Assistant Freelance Designer Jacquard Designer Junior Store Designer Knit Fabric Manager Print Designer Production Assistant Product Development Product Development Assistant Raw Materials Assistant Residential Housing Coordinator Textile Artist Textile Colorist Apprentice Textile Designer Textile Stylist Wallpaper designer Who employs PhilaU graduates? Affiliate Trading Anthropologie Belding Hausman Beyond the Loom Broder Brothers Boscov’s, Corporate Carnegie Brothers CMI Industries Inc., Chatham Fabrics Chaps Ralph Lauren Charming Shoppes Chico’s FAS/White House Black Market The Children’s Place Craftex Mills David Rothschild Company Designweave Falcon Bay Franco Manufacturing Free People Gloria Vanderbilt Denim Guilford of Maine Hartstrings, LLC IKEA Jacquard Fabrics John Ritzenthaler Co. Jones Apparel Group Jones New York Let’s Decorate Lily Pulitzer Magaschoni Milliken & Company Milliken Fabric M-Murray Fabrics Monterey Carpets Moonkitten Textiles Parimatex Patagonia Phillips Van-Heusen Ralph Lauren Childrenswear Sedgwick CMS Shaw Industries Shenandoah University Shen Manufacturing Simba USA LLC Sina Pearson Textiles Tempur-Pedic Technologies The Textile Studio Toltec Fabrics, Inc. Trim Fit Valdese Weavers Wallquest, Inc. Wearbest Weave Corporation Woolrich Inc. Helpful websites:  Article: How do I become a textile designer? -- http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/career_and_jobs/graduate_management/article2914105.ece  Textile Design -- http://www.moore.edu/site/career_center/careers_in_art_design/textile_design  Textile Designer -- http://www.getaccess.com.au/careers/profiles/data/OCC238.asp  Textile Design Jobs -- http://www.mylocaljobsearch.co.uk/Textile-Design-Jobs.html 1 Industry information taken from Vogt, P. (2002). Career opportunities in the fashion industry. New York: CWL Publishing Enterprises. Major information taken from the Philadelphia University website at several locations: Undergraduate Degree Programs (http://www.philau.edu/academics/undergrad.html) and the Textile Design Program homepage (http://www.philau.edu/textiledesign/home.html). 2 3 Job titles compiled from a variety of sources, including the Senior Survey (http://www.philau.edu/career/success/index.htm), Vogt, P. (2002). Career opportunities in the fashion industry. New York: CWL Publishing Enterprises, and from entry level positions for which organizations are recruiting on CareerLink (https://philau-csm.symplicity.com/students/index.php?s=home&_ksl=1).