Wouldn’t it be great to try on your apparel design before spending the money to create it? This is the dilemma designers face. How do you know exactly what you want when you can’t see the final garment yet? Reference samples, in a way, let you try before you buy – even as a fashion brand.
I distinctly remember when it first caught my eye. I was walking down the sidewalk of a quaint Michigan town. We had just finished our blue moon ice cream (northern midwesterners, I know you know) and were on our way to the boardwalk with the family. There, in the window of one of the boutiques, […]
Have you ever wondered what makes brides so stunning? I think the clothes have something to do with it. The things that make bridal fashion so special don’t have to be exclusive to bridal, though. Ready-to-wear brands can say yes to the same approach and create clothes their customers will fall in love with.
Designers, do you know how your design decisions affect the garment production cost? Each detail you choose, fabric you select, or seam type you go with influences how much that garment will cost to make. When you are aware of the cost consequences, you have the power to fit both your vision and your budget.
Thread is an often forgotten component of apparel, but one that touches on design, functionality, and production planning. Whether you are the one actually sourcing and supplying your thread, I encourage you to give some thought to thread as you work on your next design. Here are six considerations to keep in mind.
You know what is fashionable? Shopping small and shopping your values. There is a chicness that comes with being able to respond with a personal story about the garment and the people that made it when someone says “I love your outfit”. That is a luxury that I want us all to experience. This Small […]
As much design goes into the inside of a garment as the outside. The biggest decision about the inside is lining. Does your garment need a lining? Perhaps. Let’s take a look at the inside surface of your garment and talk about the reasons to consider adding a lining and reasons to leave it unlined.
Size-inclusive fit doesn’t just begin with grading more sizes of your pattern. It starts far earlier in the design stage. Size-inclusivity starts with how you think about your customer, conceptualize your designs, and consider each detail for different bodies.
If you use deadstock fabrics, you’re going to need to take a different approach to designing and developing new styles. Knowing your fabric is important for development, but when using deadstock, the process looks a bit different. Let’s break it down.
Not every fashion designer is good at drawing. So, if you can’t draw, how do you communicate your fashion design ideas to your team, patternmaker, or factory? Luckily, there are other ways to describe your vision visually that don’t require art skills.