Cut and Sew Services
You have an idea for a garment, but no idea how to make it happen…we’re your cut and sew studio! Our clients come from a variety of backgrounds, which often do not include design experience. We are here to break down the process from start to finish and walk you through every step of the way.
The Terminology
Pattern
Patterns are the paper shapes that we use to cut the fabric multiple times into each piece that is needed to create the full garment.
Muslin
As a material, muslin is an inexpensive, unbleached cotton fabric.
As a process, it is the “first draft” of your piece. We use muslin fabric to test out the pattern and have you review it on a body before using your nice fabric and trims. This allows you to see the piece physically, rather than just as an idea. From here, we review any edits that should be made.
Sample
The sample is your garment made in all of the actual fabrics and trims.
Grading
Grading is the process of taking your sample size through to all of the other sizes you would like to have produced. For example, if your sample was a size medium and you would like to produce sizes small through extra large, the grader will use our medium pattern to then create the patterns for small, large, and extra large.
TOP
TOP stand for “Top of Production.” This is the very first piece finished in your production run that we send to you for approval before continuing on with the rest of your order.
Production
Production is when we are now making your garment in a quantity up to fifty units that you will sell to your customers.
Pricing - always top of mind…
We want to make sure we are clear with the pricing for your development, production, and custom pieces from the beginning, so you can plan. We are unable to provide “ballpark pricing” for garment categories solely based off of a conversation, as your version of a piece may not be be the same thing we think of for a piece. So, we start with a design consultation and both parties can fill out our mutual NDA before the discussion. In order to outline pricing for your garment’s development, we need to thoroughly understand what you are envisioning - all of the fabrications, stitches, etc. This can come in many forms, such as reference pictures, a prototype you pieced together, or a tech pack. Not only is this important for pricing, but also to make sure our machine capabilities are a match for your design. Once we know what your piece will entail, we provide a Development Scope and later, a Production Scope, so that you have a roadmap of pricing catered specifically for your project at the very start.
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Phase I: Fashion Development
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Design Consultation
This is the beginning of development and the more details you can give, the better! In order to outline pricing for your garment’s development, we need to know what you are envisioning. This can come in many forms, such as reference pictures, a prototype you pieced together, or a tech pack. Once we know what your piece will entail, we provide a Development Scope as a roadmap of pricing for each step and an estimated timeline.
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Patternmaking and Printing
Have a pattern created so your product can be consistently reproduced in the future. We digitize our patterns to easily share with you and store for safety and future use.
Our patterns are printed at our Studio to-scale.
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Fabric Cutting
Our team will cut the fabric and prepare it for sewing, while paying special attention to print alignment.
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Muslin and Sample Making
We will make the muslin and sample, so you can see the product and make any fit and design edits as necessary before proceeding with a production run. Once the sample has been approved, we will provide a Production Scope to outline pricing for production.
Phase II: Production Runs
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Grading
This is the one step that we do not do in-house, but will facilitate the process with our established Grader in NYC.
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Fabric Cutting
Our team will cut the fabric and prepare it for sewing, while paying special attention to print alignment.
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Small Batch Production Runs
There are no minimum quantity requirements, as we want to make the process as accessible as possible to those just starting out. We will make each style up to 50 times in a run. The 50 units is the sum of all sizes for that style. This allows you to test your markets, make changes as you receive feedback, and minimize waste. Produce less pieces, more often. A TOP is sent to you at the start of each production run.
Custom Garments
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Fabric Sourcing
Finding the right fabric can be difficult, but we can help! We communicate with our favorite vendors across the country to gather swatches for you to be able to feel in-person to make the right decision for your garment.
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Patternmaking and Printing
Have a pattern created and digitized to fit your specific measurements.
Our patterns are printed at our Studio to-scale.
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Fabric Cutting
Our team will cut the fabric and prepare it for sewing, while paying special attention to print alignment.
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Muslins and Fittings
Making a garment custom to your specifications takes several fittings and alterations. The first sewn piece is a muslin, which is our version of a “rough draft” done in very basic muslin material. Throughout your fittings, we will pin and mark-up the muslin to note any changes and translate those edits into the pattern, until we have the fit ready to sew your final piece.
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Final Sewing
This is the step where everything comes together. All notions, trims, lining, and final details are added. We typically do a pre-lining fitting, which has the piece nearly finished, but still open to more easily make edits. The final fitting will have everything complete for you! Start to finish, custom pieces should be allotted at least three months for turnaround time.