According to Green Peace, 60 billion square meters of textiles used to make clothes are left on the floor of the cutting room every year. Because the majority of clothing is produced in other countries, the western world doesn’t see this textile waste.

Large textile companies now have access to automatic nesting software that allows them to test numerous pattern-laying combinations to determine which generates the least waste and can be cut in the shortest amount of time.  

Traditional Pattern Making

Garment manufacturers often use block templates to cut out their fabrics. These templates are made from a combination of vertical and horizontal measures that are taken when the body is standing in an upright position.

The problem with these traditional techniques is that they produce large chunks of textile waste.

Minimize Waste In Pattern Making

Minimizing waste in pattern making is the process of adjusting a flat pattern so that fabric use is maximized. The pattern should be made with “marking” in mind.  Marking is the process of creating a guideline for how fabric should be laid out on a 2 dimensional piece of fabric. Each building block of a product is laid flat and their placement is optimized.  The “marker” is digitized and used during the production process.

Small garment manufacturers often have to make zero-waste patterns manually using paper prototypes. More advances ones can use advanced software to make do all of their work on the screen.

This process isn’t just economical, it’s also environmentally-friendly. Fashion companies can use their environmentally-friendly policy” in their branding to appeal to environmentally-conscious customers.  

Lefty Production Co.’s Pattern Makers

If you’re looking for waste-conscious pattern makers, get in touch with Lefty Production Co. We’re an LA-based garment manufacturer that has experience in producing small and large quantities of fashion apparel and accessories for both local and international brands.

We have a team of craftspeople that are passionate about limiting textile waste; with the help of our pattern makers, you can minimize costs and waste at the same.

We provide complete garment production Los Angeles services including sourcing & designing, laser-cutting, pre-production, consulting and marketing.