I have projects/catalogs/materials that go back many years in my fashion career. When is it time to remove materials–stuff that is 5 years old? 10 years?
For context, I’m an LA-based technical designer with 10 years work experience who’s worked in private label/commercial/fast fashion (nothing insanely high end). I do have experience at one “cool” company that I would prefer to keep in, since it seems notable compared to the rest of my private label experience.
I think it’s fine to include stuff that’s really old if it shows a breadth of knowledge or way of working that is different from more current work. For example if your only opportunity to work in particular category was at the beginning of your career, you’ll definitely want to include something from that time to highlight your experience in that category. That said, I always put the stuff that wows the most first, and the stuff that fills out the checklist of hard skills later.
I think your portfolio should be altered every time depending on the company you are applying. If you are going to work on leather categories you should include leather examples even if it’s from 10 years ago. Also it should not have too much stuff as people have short attention span.
Hi! There’s really no need to have dates on anything in your book. As long as your work feels current it can be as old or as new as you’d like. I agree with the comment about tailoring your book for the brands you are interviewing with. If it’s a luxury brand; only show elevated conceptual work along with your process. If it’s a mass market brand, be sure your book is commercial and highlights your skills with Adobe Creative Cloud, tech packs, PLM etc…
I think your best is what is most important. Your best should be recent work. That is unless the job you are applying to involved something deeper in your past. I then sometimes fresh that stuff up. New layout or sometimes tweak to make it look up to date. Noone wants to see outdated work or stale art