Why Isn’t My First Prototype Perfect?
Your first prototype came in, and it’s wrong.
Let’s talk about a very common frustration new brands have.
Your first prototype came in, and it’s wrong.
You did all the right things.
You started with a tech pack.
You thought you picked a good factory.
You thought you’d picked a good designer.
But your first proto came in, and it’s not right.
The good (and bad) news is that this is totally normal.
Why?
So many reasons!
Almost nothing in apparel development is an exact science.
Here’s are just some of the things that can cause a less-than-perfect proto:
1. Pattern Drafting:
If you based your measurements on a competitor’s sample, even if the measurements in your tech pack are perfect, things can get off track when the factory makes the pattern.
The measurements in a tech pack are great for showing flat measurements, like how long a sleeve is. But they can’t tell the factory things like how an armhole seam curves. It’s helpful to send your physical reference sample to your factory to help them here, but even so, something like the curve of a seam can drastically change the way something fits.
2. Sewing:
Sewing machines are operated by humans. If your quarter zip under arm seam is sewn 1/8” too deep, you’ve lost ¼” of your sleeve width. By the time that gets to your wrist, your sleeve is getting tight.
3. Cutting:
In the sample room where your proto is made, your fabric pieces are cut by hand. Similar to sewing there’s room for your proto to shrink or grow here, too.
4. Measurements in the tech pack:
The measurements in your tech pack could also be a little off.
I’ll always remember a tech designer I once worked with.
Our factory told me that the measurement we got when we measured the stretched waistband of a short was wrong.
I told our tech designer the measurement the factory said it should have been.
I watched him stretch the waistband of the short as hard as he could next to his measuring tape until it reached the measurement the factory said it was, shrugged, and told me; “sure.”
We updated our tech pack.
He could have argued our measurement was right, but if he tried hard enough, he could get the same measurement the factory got.
Neither measurement was really wrong.
Measuring a garment is not an exact science. Fabric moves, it stretches. If it’s at all skewed in one direction or another, you can get a different measurement.
5. Fabric:
If the fabric you’re using is different than your reference sample, this can also drastically change the fit. Things like stretch and thickness have a big effect on how something fits and feels.
6. The factory might also just have missed something you asked for.
It’s not ideal, but it happens. The people who work at the factory are also humans and humans make mistakes.
7. Your tech pack might have a mistake.
Tech packs are (or should be!) detailed documents. There are a lot of places for an error. Again, not ideal, but it happens.
There are tons of small things that can add up to a proto being not quite right.
There are lots ways to mitigate most of these things (if we work together I can help you!), but I hope this is helpful to set expectations and quell some of that first proto disappointment.