The pattern card lists each pattern piece for the style along with how many of each is needed to make one garment. It is split into sections by material type. Note, this page doesn’t show all the materials needed like the BOM does. This page only shows pattern pieces that need to be cut out.
Colorways and artwork specifications are another important section of a tech pack. The colorways page shows a CAD drawing of each color combination being offered for that season. Along with the drawings, there are color chips showing the color of each material in the style – including fabrics, thread, and hardware.
The technical section of a tech pack communicates how the garment is constructed. It will always include a tech sketch which is the flat sketch from the cover page with seam, stitch, and detail callouts. Some details will have alternate views such as the sides or inside showing how those details should be constructed.
The Bill of Materials page (called the BOM) is a chart that shows all the materials that go into your design. The BOM not only lists the fabrics, but shows all the trims, closures, thread, hangtags, labels, and packaging materials – everything you need to make the style start to finish.
You’ve probably heard that you need a tech pack, but the conversation usually revolves around how you need one for your factory. While a tech pack is useful in communicating information about your design to your factory, there are many parts of a tech pack that are useful to you as the designer as well.
Product development is expensive. I’m not going to tell you otherwise. And this is all upfront long before you are able to start selling the product and see the return on your investment. But there are ways to still develop and offer your customers new options while staying within your budget.
Fittings are a crucial step in the product development process and can yield a wealth of information about your design. In addition to testing the actual fit of the garment, you have the opportunity to test the design, pattern, and fabric as well. Consider these steps below to make the most of each fitting.
Sourcing and buying fabric as an apparel brand is very different from purchasing fabric as a retail customer. As an apparel brand, you’ll want to find fabric suppliers that provide wholesale pricing and fabric continuity. Depending on your brand’s size and what fabric you need, you have different options available to you for buying fabric.
You know what qualities you want in the fabric, but how do you describe what you are looking for? Most suppliers don’t have swatches of every fabric they offer available for you to look at and feel, so it is important to know how to communicate your fabric needs with the proper terminology.
It’s time to take that design from paper (or your head) to fabric, but the question is, what fabric? We’re going to talk about how to determine the right fabric for your design, how to describe it like a professional, and how to go about sourcing it.