Drafting a good pattern requires knowledge of the fabric it will be made in. This is especially true when working with stretch materials. The combination of fabric properties and the pattern shape create the finished garment’s fit. Your design depends on getting this combination right.
Fitting is one of the key steps of producing any garment. Armholes and pant rises are two areas that seem to cause the most problems. They are very different areas of the garment, but they actually have a lot in common.
People love stretchy fabric. It is easy to live in stretchy loungewear. But should stretch fabric be the go-to for all fashion? There are plenty of ways stretch fabric can benefit your design, but I think there are times when stretch fabric isn’t the best choice.
Think about your favorite pieces of clothing. They probably are the ones that don’t hold you back from any of the activities throughout your day. This is why drafting patterns and fit testing for movement is so crucial. Here are seven ways that the pattern and resulting garment need to move.
There are multiple ways you can develop custom apparel products for your brand – working directly with a patternmaker or working with a factory on development. Each has its advantages and drawbacks and which is right for you depends on how you like to work and what factors are the most important to you.
You don’t want any unwanted surprises in production and your customer doesn’t want any unwanted surprises the first time they pull the garment out of the clean laundry basket. To know what shrinkage to expect and how to manage it in production and beyond, testing your fabrics for the different types of shrinkage is essential.
High shipping costs, longer freight times, and rising tariffs have made moving production to the USA a competitive option for some brands. With any big logistics shift, the switch can bring some new challenges. If you are considering moving your production to the States, here are four things to prepare for to make the transition.
Finding the right factory for your brand is often not a quick and easy process, so it helps if you are prepared. While each factory has their specialties and ways of working, there are certain things that all cut & sew factories will need from you in order to make your design successfully.
In the fashion industry or not, it seems like the assumption is that plus sizes are harder to fit. But, is it actually true that plus sizes are harder to fit or has our society spent so much of its attention dressing thin people that it has made us wary of dressing larger bodies?
Have you ever heard the term “production pattern” and wondered what that really meant? There are actually clear differences between just any regular pattern and one that is production-ready. Plus, there and reasons why you don’t want to (and sometimes can’t) go into production with just any pattern.