The University of Idaho Argonaut

To the untrained, fashion design seems like a piece of cake. In a perfect world, designers would sketch all day and put together outfits for an endless array of models.

It’s not that simple. Most fashion designers have at least two, if not four, years of design training, and many schools offer master’s degrees in fashion design. To be a designer, one has to know construction, fit and fabric composition, not to mention being able to keep up with current trends.

So, if this job is so hard, why are celebrities taking over?

In truth, most celebrities who do designers’ jobs aren’t so great at it. Lindsay Lohan, recently hired as the creative director of Ungaro, sent models down the runway wearing little besides heart-shaped nipple pasties. Sarah Jessica Parker’s line, Bitten, went to discount stores and was a resounding flop.

That’s not to say that celebrities can’t make great clothes. Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen have transitioned from straight-to-VHS princesses to leather legging queens. Their line, The Row, is highly successful and shows almost no traces of the hobo-chic they used to sport in SoHo.

Even with the Olsens’ success, celebrity efforts are usually flops. Miley Cyrus’ clothing may sell well at Walmart, but Kathie Lee Gifford’s clothing was a disaster after the sweatshop truth came out.

Even with the unpredictable rate of success and failure with celebrity clothing lines, they still keep going. JWoww from “Jersey Shore” has her line of club wear. Parker has a new line. Jessica Simpson has made millions from licensing her name to shoe designers.

It’s too bad rich celebrities are getting richer off their clothing lines, but when they do fail, the actual company has to deal with the lack of profits.

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