Cut and Sewn Past Projects

[Atomic DNA]

I know I haven't posted much in a while as we have been busy. I wanted to post some jobs we have done to give people some inspiration if they are deciding to go this route. Enjoy!

 

[Atomic DNA]

A few more jobs:

 

[Andy D]

I know next to nothing about apparel...
but very nice!

 

[rjssigns]

Wow!

Now I'm hungry and want the one with the burger on it.

 

[Atomic DNA]

Very impressive.

How does this process work? I still haven't wrapped my head around the dye-sub workflow.

Print roll to roll, heat set, then have someone cut it up and sew it together? I take it there are templates available?

It's a really interesting (and growing) part of the industry.

Pat, that's the basics but as you know there is quite a bit more to it. It doesn't necessarily have to be roll to roll but it's nice to have a calendar machine to produce large volumes.
As patterns are concerned, there are quite a few online stores that offer stock patterns. We actually make our own patterns as the ones we produce are more custom and not generic. We have
a pattern maker that has 55 years experience in this line of work. Having a great pattern grader/digitizer and sample maker helps as well.

I find that you will see a growing trend towards cut and sew not just in dyesub but apparel manufacturing in general coming back to the U.S.which I think is a good thing in certain applications. When it all comes down to it, anyone with deep pockets can acquire large format machines for printing and pressing along with the many different types of sewing machines required for manufacturing. The key is having experienced operators that really know their stuff. The sewing part is what is the most labor intensive and it has to be perfect. That is essentially what is going to separate most companies.

Here's one for ya. One of the most sought after positions in the realm of apparel manufacturing are machine mechanics. Anyone that does volume usually has a couple on staff. But these positions are making the way of the dinosaur as most are in their 60's and 70's and even older. Most are not passing on their knowledge and when that knowledge is lost, that means trouble. I talked with an owner of an industrial sewing machines company recently and they employ two mechanics to service new/used machines. He told me that they are worth their weight in gold and they named their salary. How awesome is that?

 

[player]

It would be cool to make one with a human body and the skin is pealed off showing the ribs and organs...

 

[WildWestDesigns]

. We actually make our own patterns as the ones we produce are more custom and not generic. We have
a pattern maker that has 55 years experience in this line of work. Having a great pattern grader/digitizer and sample maker helps as well.

This is really key here. We make a lot of our own patterns, not just for apparel and that really separates you from the others.

I find that you will see a growing trend towards cut and sew not just in dyesub but apparel manufacturing in general coming back to the U.S.which I think is a good thing in certain applications.

Not just in apparel, but in other goods as well.

For me, it's a way to take over as much real estate as I can. Why I also like to make items from scratch when able.

The sewing part is what is the most labor intensive and it has to be perfect. That is essentially what is going to separate most companies.

Depending on what machines you are talking about, some are even more intensive then others. I would rather be on a sewing machine, then an overlock machine.