The fashion clinic and The Pattern Room worked together to create a Podcast explaining the ins and outs of pattern cutting and what we do at The Pattern Room. We discuss the industry experience of Owner and Studio Manager Fran. We talk about Why Pattern Cutting is a key process to going from a sketch into a 3D garment. We also give tips on how to start pattern cutting and tips on starting a brand in the UK!
Here is a little breakdown of what was said on our podcast with the fashion clinic!
PEOPLE
The Patten Room is run by Fran Owner and Studio Manager. Fran’s venture into fashion started at Paul Smith working in garment tech. This is where Fran found her passion for garment construction and found she was very interested in the technical side of design geared towards luxury fashion.
From there Fran went into product development, all to do with the construction of garments and scoring trims and fabrics. Working for brands such as JW Anderson, Shrimps and Illustrated people.
Going freelance as garment tech and pattern cutting was a great way to work with a more diverse range of brands and thanks to the network that Fran had meant The Pattern Room grew.
Fran went freelance as garment tech and pattern cutting thanks to the network it grew. She then spotted the niche that was Pattern Cutting for start-up brands, after the patterns were cut the brands wouldn't always have a machinist to put them together. This is when Fran realised there was space to offer a package continuing thought to toiles and sampling.
WHY PATTERN CUTTING IS A KEY PART OF THE DESIGN PROCESS
Working in a factory seeing how production works and how patterns translate into a garment in production. Patterns need to be read by every machinist in every language and when cutting a pattern you have to ensure they are easy to follow with notches that match up, so it translates from a pattern to a garment.
WANT TO LEARN THE TRADE?
If you want to create a pattern that will be used in production, it's important to bear in mind that a sample pattern should always be translated into a production pattern. Notches in the fabric show you where the pattern pieces line up. Because using notches is a way of communicating to machists how garments should be put together without printing off a pattern for every machinist. For example, two notches are the back of a garment for example. Holes in the pattern where a pocket position is. It needs to be readable for anyone sewing the pattern.
Fran can work from many different types of design communication: a sketch, tech packs or old garments with the desired fit or shape. From that side, working with the pattern room is very flexible. Instead of going straight to a factory, where they would want tech packs and measurements and a lot of information about the garment construction. The Patten Room is able to provide each client with that information.
TIPS ON STARTING A BRAND
When starting a brand it's important to start small when it comes to production. One way of doing this might be working with one machinist to do a small production run of five pieces, which is a great way to test if they will sell! This also provides more flexibility as working with small quantities you can change things as you go along, instead of having a large volume of stock that you are unable to amend after feedback.
To listen to the Podcast Click the link!
HOW WE CAN HELP
At The Pattern Room, we are here to prepare you for manufacturing. From pattern cutting to sampling, our job is to transform your 2D design into a ready-to-wear 3D garment.
If you have more unanswered questions book a consultancy session with Fran the owner of The Pattern Room.