What is pattern?
A pattern is the set of flat shaped pieces a garment is cut from — front, back, sleeves, hood, pocket, cuff and so on — drafted for the base size and then graded to every other size. It is developed from a tech pack or by taking apart a reference garment, and it is the thing a factory holds so a reorder matches the original.
Why it matters
The pattern is the fit. Two hoodies in the same fabric with different patterns are different products. Once yours exists, every reorder is cut from it — which is why moving factories usually means starting again.
On our floor
Patterns are drafted and graded in-house, tested on a size-set sample, and held on file for as long as you order. We pattern from a garment you like if you have no tech pack.
Common questions
- Do I own my pattern?
- Yes — it stays on file for your reorders and is not used for anyone else.
- Can you copy a garment I like?
- Yes. Send it and we pattern from it, then grade and sample.
- What is a block?
- A base pattern for a garment type — our classic hoodie block — that a brand's version is adapted from.
- How long does pattern development take?
- About a week including a first sample.
Related terms
size grading
Size grading is the process of scaling a base pattern — usually the medium — up and down to every other size by set increments for each…
tech pack
A tech pack — technical package — is the document that specifies one garment completely: flat sketches, bill of materials, measurements per…
cut and sew
Cut and sew means the garment is made from fabric — cut to a pattern and sewn — rather than bought as a finished blank and decorated. It is…
marker
A marker is the plan for laying out every pattern piece — for every size in the order — across the width of the fabric so that the least…
Where this applies
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