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Free resources

The Seam Department library

Every spec sheet, template and guide we've promised in our reels — next to the video it came from. Built from what we do every day developing garments with factories in Shanghai.

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ARMHOLE BOXY BRIEF CARE LABEL CURVE DENIM DWR DYE FABRIC FITS GRADE GSM INSEAM MEASURE MOQ NECK PANTS PLACEMENT RISE SCALE SHORTS SHOULDER SIZING SLEEVE STITCH TECHPACK TEES TOLERANCE WAIST WIDE

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30 free resources, newest first

Everyday Apparel

Hoodie Sleeve Spec Sheet

Sleeves eating your hands? It's not the size. Drop the shoulder and the cuff moves too. Spec the sleeve from the centre back and it's right at any drop.

Everyday Apparel

Pants Length Guide

Your tech pack needs an inseam for every size. Use one for everyone and your small drags on the floor while your XL shows ankle.

Everyday Apparel

Collar Spec Sheet

Your neck rib should be shorter than the neckline, about 88%. Cut it the same length and the collar ripples after one wash.

Everyday Apparel

Trouser Fit Types Guide

Every trouser fit comes down to four numbers: rise, thigh, knee and leg opening. Slim, straight, relaxed, wide leg and barrel, in measurements.

Everyday Apparel

T-Shirt Fit Guide

Every T-shirt fit comes down to three numbers: chest, length and shoulder drop. Slim, regular, boxy, oversized and cropped, in measurements.

Everyday Apparel

Print Placement Guide

Measure your print from the high point of the shoulder, not the collar. Starting placements for front, chest, back and sleeve prints, by size.

Everyday Apparel

Tee Armhole Guide

If your tee flashes your stomach every time you reach up, the armhole is cut too deep. How to spec it, armhole by fit, and the reach test.

Everyday Apparel

Wide Leg Spec Sheet

Wide leg isn't baggy. They're opposite shapes: baggy is big at the thigh and tapers in, wide leg stays wide all the way down. Send the thigh and the opening.

Everyday Apparel

Waistband Spec Sheet

Your tech pack needs two waist measurements: relaxed and stretched. Give the factory one, and your joggers fit on the hanger but won't go over the hips.

Working With Factories

Tech Pack Template

Your factory can't read your mind. A complete tech pack template plus a filled-in hoodie example, so your sample comes back the way you pictured it.

Working With Factories

MOQ Breakdown Guide

A factory's minimum is usually set by its slowest supplier. Find out which one, and you can often make 100 pieces instead of 500.

Technical Outerwear

Fabric Finish Checklist

Water-repellent isn't waterproof. DWR vs membranes vs coatings, the test numbers to ask for, and how to check a shell before you approve it.

Production Planning

Size-Range Planning Checklist

Every new size is a new SKU. What adding a size really costs, a sensible starting range, and a checklist before you promise XXS to 3XL.

Fabrics

Denim Shrinkage Test Sheet

Test the denim before you cut. The 1-hour shrinkage test, typical shrinkage by denim type, and how to build it into the pattern.

Fabrics

Dye + Wash Guide

That vintage tee isn't old: it was dyed after it was sewn. Piece dye vs garment dye vs yarn dye, washes, shrink allowances and colour matching.

Fabrics

Fabric Weight Guide

GSM is the biggest reason a tee feels cheap or premium. The weight ranges to ask for, by garment, and how to spec and check it.

Everyday Apparel

T-Shirt Measuring Guide

Stop guessing your sizes. Lay your best-fitting tee flat and measure six points: exactly what your factory needs.

Fabrics

Cotton Fabric Guide

“100% cotton” tells you the fibre, not the quality. Yarn types, yarn count and finishes, and the spec to ask a mill for before you approve production.

Everyday Apparel

Oversized Tee Spec Sheet

Going up a size just gives you a big regular tee. A real oversized tee drops the shoulder. The numbers, graded S–XL.

Everyday Apparel

Print Size Guide

A print that fills a small looks like a sticker on a 2XL. Print sizes by garment size, what scaling does to screen costs, and how to spec it.

Production Planning

Tolerance Chart

A measurement without a tolerance can't fail. Starting tolerances for tees, hoodies and pants, plus a bulk check sheet so you can reject what's out of spec.

Everyday Apparel

Care Label Template

Build the care label before bulk: what goes on it, what every symbol means, what the US, EU, UK and Canada usually ask for, and how to wash-test it.

Production Planning

Size Grading Template

Your XL isn't your medium, just bigger. Grade rules for tees, hoodies and sweatpants, and a template to grade your own size range.

Everyday Apparel

Sweatpant Fit Guide

“Make it baggy” means something different to every factory. The measurements behind six sweatpant fits, so you can send the shape, not the adjective.

Everyday Apparel

Trouser Fit Guide

If the back rise matches the front, the waistband drops every time you sit. How to spec front and back rise, rise by fit, and how to check it on a sample.

Production Planning

Size Curve Template

Never order the same amount of every size. Work out how many of each size to order from your own sales, so you stop selling out of M and L while XXL sits on the shelf.

Everyday Apparel

Boxy Tee Spec Sheet

Don't write “boxy” on your tech pack. Give your factory the numbers that actually make a tee boxy — wide chest, shorter body, dropped shoulder.

Working With Factories

Factory Outreach Kit

Your first message to a factory shouldn't be your whole business plan. Send a 4-line project brief they can assess in seconds, then track every reply and pick your factory on data.

Working With Factories

Logo Size Test + Embroidery Guide

A logo that looks sharp on screen can clog into a blob in thread. Print the true-size test, check your artwork at the real size, and get the embroidery team's review before the sample is cut.

Everyday Apparel

Baggy Shorts Spec Sheet

Write “baggy” on a tech pack and most factories just add length. Baggy is the rise, inseam, thigh and leg opening working together. Here are the numbers to send.

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