With some brands I work with, I help them create a tech pack for their product. With others, they provide me a tech pack with the graded specs they want and I create the pattern for them. Of the tech packs that are sent to me, the detail of the specs in them varies widely. Some are perfect, meticulous, and beautifully organized. Others are a good start.
Some tech packs look complete at first glance, but as I start drafting the pattern, discrepancies emerge. I might find that the provided specs don’t result in a pattern shape that makes sense for a proper fit or for the design intent. Or, sometimes if I’m working on multiple styles for the same brand, I may notice that two styles which logically seem like they should have the same fit are spec’d differently in the tech pack. This usually happens because one of several reasons:
- The specs were created by combining points of measure (POMs) from multiple different garments that were too different from each other
- The POMs are inaccurate, vague, or spec’d inconsistently. (For example: the front rise measurement includes the waistband height while the back rise measurement does not, but neither POM description notes this.)
- Some of the specs have been updated or altered from the reference sample without the other POMs that are affected by this change being updated in conjunction.
- The specs were copy and pasted from the tech pack of another style that is constructed differently from the one at hand. (For example: the sleeve length spec from a style with a cuff was copied over to one without a cuff without adjusting the POM description or measurement.)
In cases like this, I ask the designer for more clarity on their vision for the style and offer recommendations of what specs I think would better yield them that result. It is a collaborative effort to create clothing that fits. This is one of the things my clients have told me they appreciate about working with me. I want to understand your goal for the style. Then, as I’m working on the pattern, I can question anything that doesn’t seem like it adds up to that goal.