By Anya Ferring Here at Factory8 we talk a lot about the art and best practices of garment making and manufacturing, but have you ever wondered about the history and process for making the materials involved in garments? And excellent
By Anya Ferring What exactly is pattern grading? The purpose of grading is to proportionally increase or decrease the size of a pattern, while maintaining shape, fit, balance, and scale of all style details. Grading is different from alteration in that grading is
By Anya Ferring Historically, trade shows were first created to gather buyers and sellers in one place, and although that core objective remains the same, trade shows today also offer opportunities beyond buying and selling. In what can be described
By Anya Ferring While a number of forward-thinking retailers are already using social networks like Instagram and Pinterest to track the latest fashion trends, it appears Amazon intends to go one step further and use this information to actually design
By Anya Ferring $200/hour, no way! I will just be my own fit model, or use (insert random friend/family member/etc) they are also the right size….. Firstly, to understand the value of a fit model it’s important to understand the
By Anya Ferring The dawn of the information age has shaken up many industries, but in fashion it is most clearly seen with the advent of direct-to-consumer shopping. Direct-to-consumer shopping is the business model that more and more fashion brands
By Anya Ferring Increasingly, apparel companies are using information technology and new innovations to enhance their manufacturing systems. Customer relationship management systems, mobile technologies and supply chain tracking, for example, are receiving the most attention among U.S. manufacturers. But with
By Anya Ferring The most misused and abused words in the world of fashion are ‘Prêt-à-Porter’ and ‘Haute Couture’. While these terms are casually thrown around by even the most seasoned designers, there are indeed very specific meanings to the
By Anya Ferring So you want to know about designing your own fabric? If you are curious about the process, make sure to plan on buckling in for a long ride! Below is a general outline of the process involved from
By Anya Ferring So you’ve started your designs, sourced your fabrics, and developed your own first pattern sample. Great work! However, even if you have what you believe to be a perfect pattern and a first prototype sample already sewn