Zero-Waste Fashion Design:: A Study at The Intersection of Cloth, Fashion Design and Pattern Cutting

ZERO-WASTE
FASHION DESIGN:
a study at the intersection of
cloth, fashion design and pattern cutting
Timo Rissanen
Doctor of Philosophy – Design
2013
University of Technology, Sydney

Certificate of Authorship/Originality
I certify that the work in this thesis has not previously been submitted for a
degree nor has it been submitted as part of requirements for a degree except
as fully acknowledged within the text.
I also certify that the thesis has been written by me. Any help that I have
received in my research work and the preparation of the thesis itself has been
acknowledged. In addition, I certify that all information sources and litera-
ture used are indicated in the thesis.
Signature of Timo Rissanen
13th of May, 2013
iii
Acknowledgments
I dedicate this project to my mum and dad. Kiitos.
My husband George: thank you for the unwavering support, the understanding amongst a sea of non-
sense, the non-sense, and the untold patience.
I am eternally grateful for the astute supervision I received from Dr Cameron Tonkinwise (2005-7),
Dr Sally McLaughlin (2007-12), Alison Gwilt (2005) and Dr Vicki Karaminas (2007-12). Thank you.
My family: Mum, Dad, Hilkka, Emo-mummo and Börje: you’ve all offered your unconditional support
and encouragement. Kiitos! To my sister Heli and brothers Juha and Sami: thank you for always welcom-
ing me. Kiitos!
Dr Zoë Sadokierski: Thank you for the naked mole rat and for being extraordinary. Thank you for stand-
ing by me all the way.
Val Horridge and Maureen Lazarus: thank you for your invaluable feedback on various sections of the
thesis.
At UTS I thank Alana Clifton-Cunningham, Eric Hagen, Cecilia Heffer, Milena Ratkovic and Kate
Sweetapple. I thank Professor Kees Dorst and Professor Desley Luscombe for their support of this
project, and the University Graduate School for making things work. My special thanks go to Professor
Peter McNeil, Ann Hobson and Jemima MacDonald.
Karen Giard: Thank you for everything you have taught me about fashion.
I owe my sanity to my friends Jackie, Nelson, Anthony, Kate, Tom, Fleur, Kim, Greg, Stephen, Justin,
Cristoffer, Evette, Mari, Pat, Salla, Kalle, Taru, and Sini. Thank you also folks of room 675: Anita, Dianne,
Helen, Cris, Todd and Emily.
At Parsons, I thank Gregory Climer, Yvonne Watson, Simon Collins, Joel Towers, Hazel Clark, Fiona
Dieffenbacher, Francesca Sammaritano, Pascale Gatzen, Otto von Busch, Christina Moon, John Quinn,
Josephine Tirado, Sara Kozlowski, Jonathan Kyle Farmer, Shelley Fox, and Heike Jenss. I also thank my
research assistants Harmony Pilobello and Adrienne Perlstein.
Kate Fletcher and Lynda Grose: thank you for sharing your experiences and expertise with the world so
generously. Thank you Zandra Rhodes and Yeohlee Teng for being pioneering. Thank you Julian Roberts
and Holly McQuillan for the continued inspiration. Thank you Kathleen Fasanella and Sandra Ericson
for all the support. All zero-waste designers around the world: thank you. To my students past and
present: thank you for everything that I have learned from you.
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1.1: Marker showing fabric waste created during cutting, by Gemini CAD.
Figure 1.2: Waste management hierarchy, adapted from White, Franke & Hindle (1999: 20)
Figure 1.3: Reuse: fabric off-cuts cannot be used in the same way that cookie dough off-cuts can.
Marker by Gemini CAD.
Figure 1.4: Shoddy coat and vest
Figure 1.5: Pages from “Are Clothes Modern?” by Rudofsky (1947), highlighting waste
Figure 1.6: Garment pattern diagrams by Burnham (1973), highlighting waste
Figure 1.7: Garments designed by Rudofsky and Fernandez
Figure 1.8: Garments designed by McQuillan
Figure 1.9: Andrew Hague’s shirt
Figure 1.10: Garments by the author from 2008 to 2011
Figure 1.11 Garments designed by Julia Lumsden
Figure 2.1: Fashion creation methods from a fabric waste creation perspective
Figure 2.2: The “Perfect t-shirt” by Better Thinking, manufactured through fully fashioned knitting
Figure 2.3: Dress created through seamless knitting by Wolford, 2000 (Black, 2002: 128)
Figure 2.4: Manel Torres spraying Fabrican fibre on model, photograph by Gene Kiegel
Figure 2.5: Jacket by August using DPOL technology; fully-fashioned woven sleeve by George Plionis
for Usvsu (2003)
Figure 2.6: Knitted and woven A-POC garments by Issey Miyake
Figure 2.7: Cut & Sew coat by Balenciaga
Figure 2.8: Zero-waste dress by Mark Liu (2007).
Figure 2.9: Hierarchies of roles in the fashion industry
Figure 2.10: Fashion sketches by Jonathan Kyle Farmer
Figure 2.11: Dress and pattern by Julian Roberts (2011)
Figure 2.12: Cape and pattern by Yeohlee Teng (1982)
Figure 2.13: Garments created from triangles by Yoshiki Hishinuma (Hishinuma, 1986)
Figure 2.14: Madeleine Vionnet draping on a doll, 1923 (Kirke 1998).
Figure 2.15: Envelope top by Halston, 1977 (Gross & Rottman, 1999: 118)
Figure 2.16: Cut of kimono (Tarrant 1994)

Figure 2.17: Men’s breeches from Turkey, Chinese trousers in Tilke (1956)
Figure 2.18: Blouses from Denmark and Finland (circa 1923), demonstrating similarity in cut
Figure 2.19: Cut of shirt from 1837 (Shep & Cariou 1999), square-cut shirt from 1930 (Burnham
1973), square-cut shirt from 1775-1790 (Baumgarten et al 1999)
Figure 2.20: The cut of Thayaht’ tuta, Thayaht wearing the tuta, sketches for men’s one- and two-piece
tuta and women’s tuta dress.
Figure 2.21: Dress by Madeleine Vionnet (1919)
Figure 2.22: Dress and jacket by Claire McCardell (circa 1944) featured in “Are Clothes Modern?”
Figure 2.23: Drawings by Tilke in Rudofsky (1947) and Bernardo Separates by Rudofsky (circa 1951).
Figure 2.24: Dress by Zandra Rhodes (1979)
Figure 2.25: Coat by Yeohlee Teng (1997)
Figure 2.26: Zero-waste coat by Holly McQuillan
Figure 2.27: Garments by St James, Priebe and Formo
Figure 2.28: Garments by Carla Fernandez
Figure 2.29: Garments by Whitty and Lumsden in Yield
Figure 2.30: Zero-waste duffel coat by David Telfer
Figure 2.31: Zero-waste garments by Yitzhak Abecassis (2011) and Simone Austen (2011)
Figure 2.32: Timeline of this study
Figure 2.33: Good practice in journal writing (Pedgley 2007: 473)
Figure 3.1 Entry 339 from January 18th, 2008
Figure 3.2 Pages 12-13 from journal with transcription and codes
Figure 3.3 Journal page 399 with coding
Figure 3.4 Table of criteria for fashion design without fabric waste as they emerged from practice in
this project.
Figure 3.5 Trousers designed through pattern cutting on graph paper.
Figure 3.6 Matching angles in square-cut trousers and shirt
Figure 3.7 Conventional fashion design approaches
Figure 3.8 Simplified comparison between conventional and zero-waste fashion design approaches
Figure 3.9 Design of leggings demonstrating function of shape library building
Figure 3.10 Journal pages demonstrating shape awareness development
Figure 3.11 Julian Roberts stepping back to assess developing pattern layout
Figure 3.12 Examining hoodie body and sleeve patterns on the fabric width
Figure 3.13 Cape and pattern by Yeohlee Teng (1982), jacket and pattern by Holly McQuillan (2005)
Figure 3.14 Jacket 1005 and pattern
Figure 4.1: Shirt by Timovsthang (2002) utilising selvedges as external details
Figure 4.2: End-of-ply losses created during cutting, typically 2cm at each end of ply (Tyler 1991: 69)
Figure 4.3: A marker for a single shirt, and a marker for two shirts.
Figure 4.4: Nested, graded back panel of a garment (Aldrich 1990: 143)
Figure 4.5: Gored skirt that eliminates the need for grading
Figure 4.6: Zandra Rhodes bodice and graded pattern, in Zandra Rhodes (2005: 34-36)
Figure 4.7: Pant 2003 marker; shaded area indicates belt loops
Figure 4.8: Impact of conventional and adapted grade on seam angles
Figure 4.10: T-shirt 4007: two garments in original size on the fabric width, and two garments, smaller
and larger than the original.
Figure 4.11: A visual comparison between a conventional, trued dart and trouser waist darts in this study
Figure 4.12: Holly McQuillan’s design exploration process using Adobe Illustrator (McQuillan 2011a: 92)
Figure 4.13: Conventional fashion design and fashion manufacture hierarchies
Figure 4.14: Comparison between conventional hierarchies and a new possibility for industry organisation
Figure 5.1: Comparison of initial criteria for fashion design in this project, and proposed criteria for
fashion design in the future.
Figure 5.2: Endurance Shirt I and patterns for Endurance Shirt I and II
Figure 5.3: Zero-waste garments by Laura Poole (2010) and Simone Austen (2011)
Figure 5.4: Andria Crescioni parka in calico (2010) and denim (2011).
Figure 5.5: The working space for zero-waste
Figure 5.6: Pyjamas made from two sheets of predetermined size.
Figure 5.7: Sell wearing

Abstract
This thesis examines zero-waste fashion design: design activity that results in zero-waste
garments. Conventional design approaches waste approximately 15 per cent of the fabric used
in the design and make of a cut and sew garment. The responsibility for this wastage belongs
with manufacture, which is constrained by what has already been designed and pattern cut. The
economic systems that underpin fashion design and manufacture are such that there is little
economic incentive to be concerned with this wastage. An examination of the material and
social investments embodied in fabrics alongside their environmental impacts, reveals that
these investments are wasted in the wasted fabric.
The context of this study is contemporary fashion design within the ready-to-wear indus-
try: fashion design that leads to the manufacturing of multiples of one design. The contextual
review of this study examines different methods of fashion creation. Design ideation tools and
the relationship between fashion design and pattern cutting in current industry provide the
frame for design practice in this study, together with an analysis of historical and contemporary
zero-waste and less-waste garments. Findings from the contextual review frame a series of briefs
for design experiments. This study asks: What are the opportunities for creating zero-waste
garments within contemporary menswear fashion design practice using cut and sew methods?
Fashion design practice is the primary research tool in this study. Design processes and
their outcomes are documented in a journal, and the journals are transcribed and analysed.
Successful strategies for zero-waste fashion design, emerging from the data, are presented.
Pattern cutting emerges as integral to zero-waste fashion design. Zero-waste fashion design is
examined in relation to fashion manufacture, as particular manufacturing issues such as fabric
as material, and the grading of garment patterns to achieve size ranges of garments, create new
kinds of opportunities for zero-waste fashion design. This study also asks: To what extent is a
zero-waste approach feasible and desirable within contemporary fashion industry? This study
demonstrates that zero-waste fashion design generates new opportunities for fashion design to
engage with fashion manufacture that may not currently exist.
This study calls for fashion design to consider pattern cutting an integral part of the
fashion design process. Such an approach to fashion design creates new opportunities for the
fashion industry and fashion design education. Zero-waste fashion design is part of a larger
picture of beauty for everyone, that fashion is capable of being the source of.
CONTENTS
Certificate of authorship iii
Acknowledgments iv
Preamble v
Abstract ix
CHAPTER 1: Introduction to zero-waste fashion design 1
1.1 Fabric waste: an emerging problem for fashion design and manufacture 2
1.1.1 Fabric waste and the waste management hierarchy 5
1.1.2 From embodied economic investments to embodied environmental investments 10
1.2 On the possibility of fabric waste elimination by design: existing literature and
documentation of zero-waste fashion design 13
1.2.1 An emerging interest in zero-waste fashion 13
1.2.2 Changing the culture of pattern cutting: on the need to integrate zero-waste
pattern cutting techniques into design practice 15
1.3 Towards an approach to fabric waste elimination that can be integrated into
contemporary fashion design and manufacturing processes 19
1.3.1 Fabric waste elimination from a fashion design perspective 19
1.3.2 Rationale for the approach taken to the investigation of fabric waste elimination
from a fashion design perspective 20
1.3.3 Fabric waste elimination from a manufacturing perspective 22
1.3.4 Rationale for the approach taken to the investigation of fabric waste elimination
from a manufacturing perspective 23
1.4 Overview of thesis and structure of the investigation 23
1.4.1 Definitions of terms 24
CHAPTER 2: Towards a zero-waste fashion design practice 27
2.1 Fashion creation methods and fabric waste 28
2.1.1 Fashion creation methods from a fabric waste perspective 28

2.1.2 Hierarchies of roles in current industry 35
2.1.3 Design tools in fashion design ideation 37
2.1.4 Communication between the fashion designer and pattern cutter 44
2.2 Zero-waste fashion design: past and present 45
2.2.1 Zero-waste fashion design without fashion designers 46
2.2.2 Modern zero-waste fashion design 50
2.3 Method of enquiry adopted in this project 58
2.3.1 From design briefs to frames for practice 58
2.3.2 Journaling 62
2.3.3 Overview of coding and categories 66
2.3.4 Exhibitions 66
2.3.5 Other voices 67
2.3.6 Student projects and exhibitions 67
CHAPTER 3: Opportunities for zero-waste fashion design 69
3.1 Overview of coding process and categories 71
3.2 Garment appearance, fit, cost and fabric waste in designing fashion 76
3.2.1 Criteria in designing fashion without fabric waste 77
3.2.2 Fabric waste as a criterion in designing fashion 82
3.2.3 Hierarchies of fabric waste: Garments of multiple fabrics 83
3.3 Pattern cutting the body: Tailored and square-cut 86
3.4 Fashion design and pattern cutting: strategies for integration 88
3.4.1 Contemporaneous sketching and pattern cutting 88
3.4.2 Hierarchies of garment elements: Building a shape library 89
3.4.3 Shape awareness and designing garment details 93
3.4.4 Visualization strategies and managing scale 95
3.4.5 Breaking pattern cutting “rules” 99
3.5 Fabric Quantities 102
3.5.1 Space awareness and marker-making in zero-waste fashion design 102
3.6 Sustainability issues not directly addressed through practice 106
3.6.1 The need for visual presentations of garments and their patterns in fashion publications 106
3.6.2 Zero-waste fashion – acknowledging a history of practice and research 108
3.6.3 Reflective and contemplative time in fashion design 109

CHAPTER 4: Opportunities for manufacturing zero-waste garments 112
4.1 Fabric and zero-waste garment manufacture 114
4.1.1 Cutting fabric 115
4.1.2 Fabric selvedges 116
4.1.3 Cutting time 118
4.1.4 End-of-ply losses 118
4.1.5 Fabric flaws 120
4.2 Zero-waste garments and grading patterns 121
4.2.1 Pathway 1: One-size-fits-most 123
4.2.2 Pathway 2: Conventional grading 123
4.2.3 Pathway 3: Designing each size 124
4.2.4 Pathway 4: Using a different fabric width for each size 130
4.2.5 Pathway 5: A hybrid method 131
4.3 Zero-waste garment construction 132
4.4 Zero-waste fashion design and CAD/CAM 133
4.5 Zero-waste fashion design and fashion industry hierarchies 137
CHAPTER 5: Conclusion: Designing a future for fashion design 140
5.1 Zero-waste fashion design and pattern cutting 142
5.2 Zero-waste fashion design in fashion education 146
5.3 New research areas in fashion design 150
5.4 Reflecting on practice in research 153
5.5 Sustainability as a creative catalyst in fashion design? 154
5.6 Beauty: a paradigm shift for fashion? 156
Appendices
Appendix A: Glossary of terms 162
Appendix B: Design briefs, outcomes of design experiments 171
Appendix C: Journal transcription, codes and categories 224
Appendix D: Fashion Incubator discussion 254
Appendix E: Reflective statements from students, January 2010;
zero-waste course syllabi from Fall 2010 and Fall 2012 263
References 285
1.
INTRODUCTION TO
ZERO-WASTE FASHION DESIGN
“I shall cut my cote after my cloth.”

English proverb in Proverbs in the English Tongue ( John Heywood, 1546),
quoted by Burnham (1973: 2)
“Fashion’s most glaring aspect is waste. ...

waste is not only regarded as perfectly legitimate
but assumes the significance of patriotic duty.”
Bernard Rudofsky (1947: 227)
“Immaterial aspects of fashion will become more celebrated

as raw materials become scarcer. The material components
of fashion will be treated with greater reverence and
respect for the same reason.”
Kate Fletcher and Lynda Grose (2012: 181)
A
lmost all clothes are made from fabric, or cloth; they do not exist without it. The predom-
inant method of making clothes involves cutting fabric and assembling the pieces through
sewing, fusing, welding and other techniques into garments. A considerable amount of fabric is
often wasted in the process. Through researching the French couturier Madeleine Vionnet for an
undergraduate dissertation in 1999, I became aware that throughout history, various cultures had
produced clothes in a way that wasted little or no fabric. Thanks to two decades’ of research by
Betty Kirke (1998), I was able to examine Vionnet’s work in detail. I was particularly interested
in the relationships between three-dimensional garments and their two-dimensional patterns. I
began to realise that zero-waste fashion design might be possible in a contemporary industry
context. Through my subsequent practice as a fashion designer and pattern cutter this hunch
became stronger. But how would a designer go about creating zero-waste garments?
The focus of this thesis is zero-waste fashion design. A zero-waste garment in this thesis
refers to a garment that has been designed and pattern cut in such a way that when the garment
is cut, all of the fabric is in the garment, and none is left behind as off-cut waste. Zero-waste
fashion design in this thesis refers to the activities and design processes that lead to such garments.
Zero-waste fashion, however, is a broader term, with potentially multiple interpretations. In my
view, our common goal as an industry and as a global community should be zero-waste fashion.
This would be a community of fashion producers and users who eliminate waste – material and
immaterial waste – at every instance of fibre generation, yarn spinning and processing, fabric
design manufacture, garment design and manufacture, storage and transport, sales, garment use,
and the cycling back of resources at the end of the first use life of the garment. Zero-waste fash-
ion design as it is presented in this thesis, is one significant stage of that cycle.
A brief consideration of the possible reasons for the fabric waste produced during making
fashion garments reveals that where fabric waste is a consideration in the fashion manufactur-
ing process – at the marker planning and making, and cutting stages – the designed garment is
already inviolable; it cannot be changed. This suggests that to eliminate fabric waste, fabric
waste needs to become a concern earlier in the process: a consideration for fashion design and
pattern cutting. Manufacture is governed by what has been designed and pattern cut.
At this point in time, fabric waste is mainly regarded an economic issue (Cooklin 1997:
9-10). This study responds to calls by Fletcher (2008) and Allwood et al (2006) that fabric
waste should also become an environmental and ethical consideration for the fashion industry.
I, the researcher, am an experienced practitioner with thorough knowledge of the craft of fash-
ion design and pattern cutting. The project is structured around the design of a menswear
2 | chapter 1: introduction to zero-waste fashion design

collection, an area of practice with which I am very familiar. In the course of developing the
collection I systematically identified a range of approaches that could be adopted when design-
ing and making zero-waste garments. The application of these approaches to the menswear
collection has been documented and analysed. Successful and unsuccessful strategies are
reported. The implications for manufacturing and fashion design education are explored.
1.1 Fabric waste: an emerging problem for fashion design and manufacture
How does waste come to exist? The focus here is on material waste. Waste comes into being
through sorting and categorising. When someone deems a material entity undesirable or
unnecessary, it becomes waste (Strasser 1999: 5). Textile waste is created in two broad categories
(Caulfield 2009). Pre-consumer textile waste is created during manufacture of fibre, yarn, fabric
and garments. Post-consumer textile waste is created by consumers and comprises garments
and household textiles. This research is concerned with pre-consumer fabric waste and more
specifically, fabric off-cuts created during the cutting phase of clothing manufacture.
The way in which the fashion industry uses fabric to create garments is arguably wasteful
and inefficient. For the garment manufacturer1, a garment costs money to make and this cost is
a sum of several parts. Generally the two most significant sources of garment cost are fabric and
labour for construction (usually sewing). Fabric makes up approximately 50 percent of the cost
price of a garment and labour 20 percent (Cooklin 1997: 9). It is therefore in the manufacturer’s
economic interest to be able to make each garment from as little fabric as possible without
compromising the fashion designer’s intent regarding garment appearance or fit. To reduce
fabric usage and cost prior to cutting the fabric, the pattern pieces are laid out on the fabric
width as closely together as possible. A person may do this manually on paper, but increasingly
appropriate computer software, such as OptiTex, Gerber or Lectra, is used to determine the
most efficient cutting layout. The resulting pattern layout, the lay plan for cutting, is called a
marker and the person responsible for the planning is the marker-maker. As long as the produc-
tion yield for each garment (the amount of fabric that a garment will require in mass produc-
tion to cut) is at or below the costed yield (this was calculated when the original sample garment
was made, based on how much fabric was required to make the sample garment), the profit
margin will be satisfactory as far as fabric consumption is concerned.
1 Manufacturer here refers to an entity that takes orders from retailers for a particular garment and then produces multiples of
that garment, either by manufacturing them or by subcontracting the manufacturing to someone else. Regardless of which way the
garments are produced, the manufacturer bears the costs discussed.
chapter 1: introduction to zero-waste fashion design |3

While the overall fabric usage may be satisfactory to the manufacturer in an economic
sense, after garments have been cut there are usually fabric off-cuts left – the fabric waste with
which this study is concerned. Even with up-to-date software or the most experienced and
skilled manual marker-makers, in adult outerwear this fabric wastage varies from 10 to 20
percent (Feyerabend 2004: 4). Cooklin (1997: 9) estimates the average waste to be 15 percent
of total fabric used, while Abernathy, Dunlop et al. (1999: 136) give an estimate of 10 percent
for trousers and jeans and higher for blouses, jackets and underwear. Manufacturers and much
of the literature on fashion manufacture do not regard this as a problem as long as the total
amount of fabric is at or below the costed yield. From a strictly economic viewpoint it appears
to make sense to waste 15 percent of the total fabric used. The established industry models are
such that there seems to be no economic imperative to be concerned about this level of waste.
Figure 1.1: Marker showing fabric waste created during cutting
Why doesn’t extensive marker-making expertise or the most sophisticated software result in
patterns that reach 100 percent fabric usage? The answer lies in the nature of the pattern pieces,
the pieces of fabric from which the garment is made. In order to use all of the fabric, they would
need to interlock perfectly, not unlike the pieces of a completed jigsaw puzzle. Why do the
pattern pieces not do this? They are not designed to do so. In most fashion industry practice, a
pattern is cut for a garment based on a sketched idea. When a fashion designer is sketching a

garment, the shapes of pattern pieces and how they may interact on a fabric width are not
considerations in conventional fashion design. It seems that the primary aim of conventional
pattern cutting is to assist in realising a sketched idea in three-dimensional form; most pattern
cutting manuals reinforce this view.
Variation in the amount of waste (10-20+ percent) stems from a number of variables.
These include: a) the garment style (number, size and shapes of pattern pieces) in relation to
fabric width; b) the number of garment sizes marked together in one marker2 and c) the exper-
tise of the marker-maker (whether manual or computer-aided). In conventional industry prac-
tice, the marker-maker is severely limited by what has already been designed and pattern cut.
This problem lies at the heart of this research.
Conventional attempts at improving the efficiency of fabric use focus on the manufac-
turing stage. Pattern engineering refers to the practice of modifying a garment pattern in order
to achieve a better yield on fabric and thus reduced fabric cost for a garment (Fasanella 1998:
36). This usually entails shifting, adding or eliminating a seam, and it occurs during manufac-
ture (after design), usually based on a suggestion by the marker maker or sample cutter. Depend-
ing on the size of the company, these roles may be performed by the same person. According to
Fasanella (1998: 36) sample cutters “are usually the first to notice the over-all efficiency of fabric
use. If too much fabric is wasted, their suggestions guide the pattern maker to cut a more effi-
cient pattern to reduce waste.” The sample cutter is the person cutting the sample garment from
fabric; depending on the size of the company, this may not be a separate role and maybe
performed by the pattern cutter. The fashion designer and pattern cutter typically do not see the
amount of waste created because the waste mostly occurs after the garment has been designed
– while it is being manufactured – often in a separate physical location. This study investigates
the relationship between fashion design practice and how fabric is used to design and make
garments. This research proposes that fashion design and pattern cutting are capable of produc-
ing considerable improvements in the efficiency of fabric use; and that it is possible to create
fashion without creating fabric waste in a contemporary fashion design context. Key to this
development would be to include pattern cutting within the practice of fashion design; currently
the two crafts tend to be practiced separately.
2 Creating a single marker that contains more than one garment style is rare, but tailors often mark a jacket and trousers (and
sometimes a waistcoat) on one marker, resulting in better efficiency (Cabrera & Flaherty Meyers 1983: 57). In 1992 Yeohlee Teng
marked three dresses together to ensure the restricted length of fabric was sufficient for the three garments (Teng & Major 2003:
82-83). Holly McQuillan has designed multiple garments within one marker, resulting in no fabric waste (McQuillan & Rissanen,
2011: 54)

1.1.1 Fabric waste and the waste management hierarchy
Fashion fabric is fabric that is specifically designed and manufactured for use in the process of
designing and making clothes. This fabric arrives at the fashion designer containing its “raw” materi-
als as well as the embodied energy and other resources consumed to generate raw fibre and trans-
form it into yarn and then fabric. The primary function of the fabric used by the fashion industry is
for use in the garments produced by it. Any fabric not in the finished garment has been “wasted” by
the fashion industry; its primary function has been lost. Nevertheless, a “fabric waste industry” of rag
traders exists to trade in the off-cuts produced by the fashion industry. This raises the question: Is the
fabric waste really waste if it is a resource to be traded and used? In this study, the scraps left over
when the garment has been cut will be referred to as waste because of the loss of original function.
There is a high degree of consensus amongst researchers working in the field of waste
management that there is a clear hierarchy amongst the approaches that might be adopted to the
management of waste within the fashion industry (Sakai et al 1996; White, Franke & Hindle
1999). Prevention is better than cure: it is better to avoid creating waste than to manage it (Gert-
sakis and Lewis 2003: 7). Figure 1.2 sums the options from most through to least favoured. The
clarity of this hierarchy provided the initial impetus for the study. This study is situated at the top
within waste prevention, and in the contextual phase (Chapter 2) waste minimisation, because
there are significant problems with approaches that sit within the lower levels of the hierarchy. I will
briefly review some of the difficulties that arise when working with these lower level approaches.
Figure 1.2: Waste management hierarchy, adapted from White, Franke & Hindle (1999: 20)

Reuse in the hierarchy refers to using fabric waste as fabric; the function as well as the
material (fibre) of fabric is retained. Cutting garments from fabric appears somewhat like
cutting cookies from rolled out dough. Unlike cookie dough, however, the fabric scraps left
behind cannot be combined and “kneaded” into new fabric of the same quality as the origi-
nal fabric. Fabric waste can nevertheless be reused in a number of ways, for example by
weaving rag rugs or making small items such as wallets.
Figure 1.3: Reuse: fabric off-cuts cannot be used in the same way that cookie dough off-cuts can.
Marker by Gemini CAD.
The Riedizioni collection by Luisa Cevese uses fabric waste from the fashion industry as
decorative elements in polyurethane bags (Braddock and O’Mahony, 2005: 31). Gale and
Kaur (2002: 117) question whether Cevese’s approach is “green”; “what is gained in terms of
issues of disposal may be lost in terms of issues of manufacture”. In the 1997 Prism collec-
tion Issey Miyake seemingly uses fabric scraps as decoration on garments; pieces of different
fabrics are placed on a base fabric, which is needle-punched to intertwine the fibres of the
different fabrics (McCarty & McQuaid 1998: 28-29). Whether actual fabric waste is used
or new fabric cut for these pieces is unclear, but as examples Miyake’s and Cevese’s approach
are perhaps an ideal way of treating fabric waste if waste must be created: as fabric. Two
companies in the USA point towards the possibility of turning fabric waste into a source of
profit. Alabama Chanin in Florence, Alabama (Chanin 2010: 5-6; McQuillan & Rissanen
2011: 66) and Dosa in Los Angeles, California (Fletcher 2008: 71), re-use all of their fabric
waste within their product ranges, turning waste into embellishment, yarn and stuffing for
furniture, to name a few examples. Both companies have incorporated a holistic zero-waste

philosophy into their business models, thus ensuring waste elimination on one hand and
profitability on the other. Moreover, fabric waste becomes a source of employment for
communities locally and overseas (Alabama, USA and India, respectively).
If a separate small product such as a wallet is to be made from the waste, a problem
arises: it is difficult to handle and store fabric waste while maintaining ease of cutting using
conventional mass-production methods. Ideally the item should be cut concurrently with
the garment, requiring that it is also designed and pattern cut before cutting the garment.
In mass-production cutting, dozens or hundreds of layers of fabric may be laid on the
cutting table; moving and storing multiple layers of off-cuts for later cutting without shift-
ing the layers is difficult. For economic reasons alone it would make more sense to produce
the product concurrently with the garment. Further, some fabrics suit only a limited
number of useful items.
Materialbyproduct, an Australian fashion company, routinely produces accessories
from fabric waste, that coordinate with the garments that created the waste. The
company calls each of these items “an anti”. Materialbyproduct states that the demand
for antis matches the demand for the garments (Dimasi, 2009). Given that Materialby-
product cater to a niche market, it is likely that this situation would not be sustainable
across the industry as a whole. While in some instances an additional product may be
the ideal way to address off-cut waste, overall avoiding waste is better than making
things from it.
Recycling paper and glass, and more recently plastic, is familiar to most people at
home and at work. It is therefore perhaps the most easily understood mode of waste
management. Where reuse of fabric waste is not possible, recycling is the next option to
investigate. Fabric, however, creates its particular challenges for recycling. Fletcher
(2008: 103-105) notes that there are two methods for fibre recycling: mechanical, which
has not changed for 200 years, and chemical, an approach which is technically possible
with some synthetic fibres. Perhaps the largest problem posed for either method is the
sheer diversity of fabrics: synthetic and natural fibres are often blended into one fabric,
and sorting fabric waste by fibre type and colour (necessary for mechanical recycling
unless a lesser-quality end product of mixed fibre is deemed acceptable) can be prob-
lematic. When different coloured fabrics or fibres are recycled together, the end colour
can rarely be predetermined, and re-bleaching and dyeing may be necessary; this can be
resource intensive. Furthermore, recycling can impact negatively on the environment

through transportation (fuel, emissions) and reprocessing (in particular, water, energy
and chemical consumption). Mechanical recycling also shortens fibres, resulting in
lower quality yarns and fabric. This degradation in material quality, or more specifically,
the decrease in value during recycling is referred to as “downcycling” (McDonough &
Braungart 2002: 56-59).
The problem of recycling a blend of natural and synthetic fibres might make one
question the rationale for blending these in the first place, yet in terms of sustainability
some benefits may arise from such blends. Braddock and O’Mahony (2005: 14-6) discuss
the benefits of mixing polyester microfibre with cotton for better durability and colour-
fastness; this could potentially extend product life considerably. In such instances,
McDonough and Braungart (2002: 116) propose for the cotton to be composted to allow
the collection of the polyester for reuse, while more recently chemical processes have been
developed for separating cellulosic and synthetic fibres ( Jeihanipour et al, 2010).
Palmer (2001: 205) calls most recycling “a fraudulent program thrust forward by the
Garbage Industry.” Palmer’s alternative, “Universal Recycling,” is concerned with what a
waste article does as well as what it is made of. Palmer’s ideal of recycling “consists of reus-
ing both materials and function” (222). Certain forms of fabric waste recycling are not ideal
as fabric’s original function (in case of fashion fabrics, to provide material for clothes) is
often lost. This could be argued in particular when denim waste is used for housing insula-
tion (Chong, 2006). Whilst using the waste in this way is better than sending it to landfill,
it is nevertheless a high-impact way of producing insulation with a loss of the denim’s
original function.
Increasingly high quality products made from mechanically or chemically recycled
fabric waste are becoming available (Fletcher 2008: 103-105) but many are of a lesser qual-
ity than the fabrics they were originally made from. An example is the blanketing fabric
from which the Shoddy coat and vest (Figure 1.4) were made as part of this project. The
fabric is made from recycled fabric waste: scrap fabric that has been torn apart through
carding and then spun into a thick, coarse yarn, comprising the weft (the horizontal filling
yarn of the blanket). As a testament to the blanket’s origins, on the surface it is easy to
identify small, unbroken fragments of cotton jersey and in a few places strands of fine elas-
tic poke out. The fabric is rather unstable to work with and after cutting releases large
quantities of dust, posing possible health risks.

Figure 1.4: Shoddy coat and vest
A coarse blanket with possibly a long, low-impact use-life is better than losing the raw
materials to landfill. Such blankets can have further value added through use in humanitarian
and environmental crises. However, a consideration of the global volumes of clothes manufac-
tured annually, with attention to the 10-20 percent of fabric wastage, the loss in quality, and the
undesirable aspects of the processes involved in recycling, undermines the case for recycling as
the ideal.
Energy recovery refers to the incineration of fabric waste for energy production. The
function of fabric and its material are lost but some energy investments are recovered. To the
researcher’s knowledge no research has set out to find out whether energy recovered from incin-
erating fabric waste equals the energy consumed during fibre generation, fabric manufacture
and transport. Fabric waste can also be incinerated without energy recovery; the aim is to
reduce the volume of waste going to landfill.

Disposal refers to storing the waste in landfill. Through sending fabric waste to landfill
its raw material and function are lost, whilst decomposing fabric may leach toxic chemicals and
produce methane and ammonia (Fletcher 2008: 98).
1.1.2 From embodied economic investments to embodied environmental

investments
Fabric is a precious, sophisticated and designed product, due to fibre extraction, spinning, design,
weaving or knitting, and finishing processes. When fabric is wasted during conventional manu-
facture, one could argue that the embodied economic investment of the wasted fabric is also lost.
As we have seen, current costing models are such that fabric waste does not show up as
an economic concern. If a garment uses 150cm of fabric and wastes 15 percent of it, the whole
150cm is costed into the making cost of the garment. As long as the production yield for each
garment is at or below the costed yield the profit margin is considered satisfactory. Under
current economic models there are some savings to be made by eliminating fabric waste. The
company would benefit economically if the same garment could be cut from 140cm of fabric.
Further, in some cases indirect savings could be possible through reduced waste management
costs. This would vary depending on the size and kind of company and in particular, depending
on whether cutting occurs in-house or is subcontracted out. The location of the company would
also impact on waste management costs and taxes relating to waste. For most companies these
economic considerations are not currently considered to be significant.
The principal motivation for eliminating fabric waste emerges from environmental
considerations. These concerns emerge from an examination of the environmental impacts of
the fabrics used by the fashion industry. These impacts can be partly revealed by life-cycle
assessment, a tool that can measure the material and energy inputs of fibre, fabric and garment
(Fletcher and Grose 2012: 55-56).
Fletcher (2008) discusses the environmental and social impacts of fibre production. It is
clear that no ideal fibre exists as everything has an impact; rather, the impacts of different fibres
vary greatly in type and intensity. Cotton and polyester account for more than 80 percent of
global fibre use (Fletcher 2008: 4), and thus their impacts are magnified. If we take the example
of cotton, a brief examination of the environmental impacts reveals cause for concern.
Cotton growing is characterised by high consumption of pesticides, synthetic fertilizers
and water (Fletcher 2008: 9). Cotton growing accounts for approximately 2.4 percent of the
world’s arable land but 24 percent insecticide use and 11 percent of other pesticides (Chapagain
chapter 1: introduction to zero-waste fashion design | 11

et al 2005: 19); cotton growing and processing also accounts for 2.6 percent of global water use
(31). Grose (2009) provides a thorough overview of the complexity of the global cotton indus-
try that further reinforces the idea that fibres embody investments. In the case of cotton, these
investments arguably include research and development of pest- or herbicide resistant strains
of genetically modified cotton, for example (whether or not one’s personal ethics align with
genetic modification), where such strains are grown.
Formerly the fourth largest lake in the world, the Aral Sea is situated in Kazakhstan and
Uzbekistan. In the 1960s, the Soviet Union diverted the two main rivers feeding into the Sea
primarily for cotton irrigation. By 1989, the Sea had split into two and had lost more than 60%
of its area since the 1960s. Whilst some restorative work has occurred in the Northern half
(Aladin et al., 2005: 378), most of Aral’s fish species have been locally extinct for more than two
decades, rendering a formerly thriving fishing industry obsolete with significant social conse-
quences (Williams & Aladin, 1991). The Australian cotton industry may be contributing towards
a similar environmental and social catastrophe. In Australia, increasing diversion of water from
the Murray-Darling River for agricultural irrigation and cotton in particular, coincided with one
of the worst droughts in the country’s history during the 2000s. As a result the unique ecosystem
of the Coorong, the mouth of the Murray River in South Australia, was in 2008 facing ecologi-
cal collapse (Wilkinson, 2008). While the more recent flooding has remedied the situation
(Wright, 2011), one must question the sustainability of such a water-reliant crop on the most
arid continent, particularly in the face of climate change and increasingly erratic weather patterns.
In the United Kingdom, the annual consumption of clothing is estimated at one million
tonnes (Allwood, et al 2006: 16). Even with a conservative estimate of fabric wastage (five
percent), it is reasonable to assume that to produce the annual clothing consumption of the UK,
approximately 50.000 tonnes of fabric is wasted during manufacture. Roughly 40 percent, or
20.000 tonnes, of the clothing is likely to be cotton (Fletcher 2008: 6). If 8000 litres of water is
required to produce 1kg of cotton (Fletcher 2008: 7), the cotton fabric waste alone amounts to
160 million tonnes of embodied water – wasted. Other similar figures could be calculated.
Fletcher (2008: 100) discusses the energy is embodied in fabric. The embodied energy of
fabric is higher than the embodied energy of fibre. This energy is the aggregate of raw material,
labour, energy and water consumed from fibre generation and extraction, to spinning, weaving
or knitting. Fabric can be therefore said to embody investments of raw material, labour, energy
and water. Building on Sherburne’s concept of “embedded energy” (2009: 19), “embodied
energy” might be extended to include fibre and fabric research, development and design.

All fabrics embody the time and efforts of various people from fibre extraction to spin-
ning to textile design and weaving and knitting the fabric; wasting a portion of fabric is also a
waste of the embodied contribution of those people. As Tarrant (1994: 10) notes, fabric is
“expensive to make in time and in raw materials”3. Zandra Rhodes is a fashion designer who
designs the textile prints first. It is therefore easy to see why she states: “I always consider what
is left and try to make it into another part of the dress. I can’t tolerate waste and use every inch.”
(Rhodes and Knight 1984: 56). It may be easy for a fashion designer to forget that someone,
whether a textile designer or a textile engineer, designs every fabric; wasting any is wasting part
of the embodied time and effort of textile design.
Social injustices associated with fibre extraction exist; these are investments embodied in
fabrics that humanity would best do without. Arguably anyone working with fabrics – includ-
ing fashion designers – needs to be aware of such issues and work with the appropriate stake-
holders to have the issues rectified. Recent reports speak of severe human rights abuses associ-
ated with cotton cultivation in Uzbekistan (Environmental Justice Foundation, 2007). The
much-publicised Dirty Laundry report (Greenpeace, 2011) documents the presence of toxic
chemicals in two river systems in China, a direct contribution made by the fashion and textile
industry. This is as much a social as an environmental problem, as the pollution impacts directly
the people living alongside the rivers.
A consideration of the full range of embedded investments and energy must surely raise
the question: Why waste part of the fabric required in making a garment, when there is such
an enormous investment of resources embodied in the fabric? And if producing fabric from
any fibre has environmental and/or social impacts, does not designing fashion from fabric
wastefully add to those impacts?
1.2 On the possibility of fabric waste elimination by design: existing litera-

ture and documentation of zero-waste fashion design
1.2.1 An emerging interest in zero-waste fashion design

The term zero-waste in a fashion context has emerged during this study, primarily from 2008
onwards. This has led many to think that zero-waste fashion design is a new phenomenon.
By drawing on a range of sources including illustrated texts on historical dress, monographs
on fashion designers, texts on manufacture (clothing and other products) and exhibition
3 Ironically, in the 18 years since, the actual prices of fabrics and clothes have decreased (Allwood, et al, 2006: 11-12).

catalogues, it can be shown that while the term may be new, the practice is as old as making
clothes from cloth.
Working outside the domain of fashion, Paul Palmer established Zero Waste Systems
Inc. in 1972 (Palmer 2001: 227). Palmer later founded the not-for-profit Zero Waste Institute
and has published critiques of the modern waste industry, and recycling in particular. This study
acknowledges Palmer as the first to use the term zero waste; due in part to his pioneering work,
the term was perhaps more easily adapted to fashion later. It needs noting that Palmer’s zero
waste calls for closed loops of material use and reuse, not unlike the later Cradle to Cradle
(McDonough & Braungart 2002), while zero-waste fashion design in this thesis refers to fash-
ion design that wastes no fabric. It is acknowledged that a broader and more holistic definition
of zero-waste fashion design would include delay of garment disposal as a design criterion.
Given the recent popularisation of the term zero-waste fashion design in the same context that
it is presented in this study, and the necessity of this study to remain focused, zero-waste fash-
ion design in this study refers to fashion design that creates no fabric waste in the design and
making of a garment.
Bernard Rudofsky (1947: 137-54) was among the first to formulate a critique of contem-
porary fashion design and manufacture in contrast to historical methods. In the 1944 exhibi-
tion “Are Clothes Modern?”, and the 1947 catalogue that followed (Figure 1.5), he criticised
the wasteful Western way of cutting fabric, comparing it with examples of efficient cut in
traditional forms of dress from around the world. Rudofsky noted that in many cultures fabric
“was clothing itself,” “free of the curse of dress-making” (143).
Figure 1.5: Pages from “Are Clothes Modern?” by Rudofsky (1947), highlighting waste

Perhaps the most significant documentation of the construction processes involved in zero
and minimal waste traditional dress to date is that provided by Deborah K. Burnham (1911-2005)
of the Royal Ontario Museum and her seminal 1973 exhibition and text, “Cut My Cote.” Whilst
Rudofsky and others had noted the efficient use of fabric in some garments prior to Burnham’s work,
Burnham was among the first to place the efficiency of cut at the forefront of her study, uncovering
the link between the loom type used for weaving by a particular culture at a particular time, the
resulting fabric width, and most significantly, the relationship between fabric width and garment cut,
and the resulting waste. Burnham includes diagrams of garment cut indicating the amount of fabric
waste produced during the making of the garment, demonstrating the efficiency of the garments in
relation to wastage. Palmer (2008: 44) acknowledges the impact of “Cut My Cote” on later exhibi-
tions of traditional and historical dress in terms of combining rigorous scholarship with exhibiting
visually powerful objects.
Figure 1.6: Garment pattern diagrams by Burnham (1973), highlighting waste
Burnham’s (1973: 3) thesis about waste is clear: “With today’s ease of manufacture we take textiles
for granted and the wasting of cloth does not worry us. But for those closer to the processes of
production the attitude changes, and an extreme economy of material was practised in the cutting of
traditional garments. This does not necessarily mean that very little material was used. Extra and
unnecessary length could be employed for purposes of opulence, but full benefit was obtained from
it and nothing was left over.” In 1976, three years after the exhibition “Cut My Cote” had been
shown at the Royal Ontario Museum, graduating students at Ryerson Polytechnic Institute (now
Ryerson University) in Toronto designed garments based on the exhibition and its catalogue. In
writing about the student work, Burnham (1976: 34) called the student work “an intelligent use of

available design sources,” despite the fact that – according to Burnham herself– the concern for waste
evident in “Cut My Cote” did not emerge in the students’ work. In looking at the photographs and
through reading the article, it would seem that within the project the students focused on garment
appearance (shape) and principles of cutting, insofar as a satisfying garment appearance was achieved.
1.2.2 Changing the culture of pattern cutting: on the need to integrate zero-
waste pattern cutting techniques into design practice
Drawing in part on Burnham’s work, Tarrant (1994: 10) explains how pre-industrial societies
treated fabric as a precious resource. Through the history of dress she highlights several instances of
cutting in which waste minimisation is inherent although this is not the primary focus of her study.
In a study of indigenous textiles and dress in Mexico, Fernandez (2006: 87) notes that in making
traditional Mexican dress little or no fabric waste is created, because “the story told by a piece of
cloth remains incomplete if it is fragmented”. Both Rudofsky and Fernandez have applied their
research to the practice of designing and making garments (see section 2.2.2, and Figure 1.7).
Figure 1.7: Garments designed by Rudofsky and Fernandez
Chow (1978: 396-402) provides an elegant introduction into the efficient utilisation of materials
that come in sheets and plates, albeit outside of fashion design. Chow draws parallels between
placing components on the material and M. C. Escher’s art (397). The primary distinction
between Chow’s research and this study is that the aesthetics of what the components create
when assembled is not a concern in the former, whereas they are in fashion design: the shapes of
cut pieces of fabric directly impact on the appearance of a garment.
Holly McQuillan’s (2005) Master of Design thesis, whilst not primarily about zero-waste
fashion design, contains an integral and substantial element of it, which to date has not been acknowl-

edged to an extent that it warrants. Late during this study, McQuillan (2011a) published an account
of some zero-waste strategies she has adopted, providing a significant contribution to a fledgling field.
Figure 1.8: Garments designed by McQuillan
Fletcher (2008: 153) includes a photograph of a shirt by Andrew Hague (Figure 1.9), refer-
ring to “efficient pattern cutting” but the pattern for the shirt is not shown nor is the garment
discussed in the text.
Figure 1.9: Shirt by Andrew Hague

My own work in this area commenced during my final year of undergraduate study in
1999. In a written dissertation on Madeleine Vionnet I speculated that designing garments
without wasting fabric might be possible. Equally significantly, while designing the final collec-
tion for graduation, I would sketch garment patterns alongside sketches of garments. My aim
at the time was to understand the relationship between two-dimensional patterns and three-
dimensional garment form, not zero-waste, but reflecting on those sketches now I see how the
foundation for this study was laid then. In late 2004 I wrote the formal proposal for this study,
and sketches of garment patterns returned into my sketch book soon after. In the early stages
of the research I investigated the work of a range of designers including Yeohlee Teng and
Zandra Rhodes while also investigating the cuts of historical garments from around the world.
In 2005 I presented this research at a conference in Denmark (Rissanen 2005); that paper
formed the basis of a later book chapter (Rissanen 2008a) and the book was received favourably
(Bye 2009). In 2006 I extracted speculative approaches to fashion design that could result in
zero waste; I developed these into experimental design briefs that led to the first garments in
this project. From 2006 I regularly shared garments and patterns from this study on a blog
(initially zerofabricwastefashion.blogspot.com, from September 2011 timorissanen.com); this
led to a blog post on Fashion Incubator (Fasanella 2007b). In 2010 I developed findings from
this study into an elective course at Parsons The New School for Design, which received consid-
erable publicity (starting with Rosenbloom 2010).
Figure 1.10: Garments designed by the author from 2008 to 2011

Julia Lumsden’s Master of Design thesis (Lumsden 2010) focuses on zero-waste fashion
design and specifically designing through pattern cutting. In her research Lumsden acknowl-
edges my work, documented in this thesis, which I had published in a number of venues listed
above (Lumsden 2010: 96).
Figure 1.11 Garments designed by Julia Lumsden
1.3 Towards an approach to fabric waste elimination that can be integrated

into contemporary fashion design and manufacturing processes.
As discussed in Section 1.1.1, pre-consumer fabric waste created during fashion manufacture is
significant in quantity (approximately 15 percent of total fabric used in cut and sew manufac-
ture), and waste reduction and elimination are preferable to waste reuse and recycling. If the
fashion industry is to adopt the highest and most effective level of waste management, then
waste must be eliminated at the design stage. This implies that the designer must understand the
processes involved in the construction of the garments that they are designing. This also implies
changes to the way in which production practices (manufacturing processes) are currently organ-
ised. The existing literature does not address either of these issues in sufficient depth.
1.3.1 Fabric waste elimination from a fashion design perspective

In the outline of the existing literature on zero-waste garments above (section 1.2) we have seen
that many of these sources do not place a lot of emphasis on the processes involved in the
construction of the garments. Those that do, approach this material from the point of view of
historical documentation. A contemporary designer would have to work extremely hard to
translate the lessons that might be learned from these historical examples into practice. Indi-

vidual fashion designers have explored waste reduction and elimination through their design
practices but only the recent work by myself, Holly McQuillan and Julia Lumsden, documents
approaches to zero-waste garments from a design practice perspective.
One of the serious limitations in fashion design expertise and the related literature that
my own research points to is the need to integrate pattern cutting into fashion design and zero-
waste approaches into pattern cutting. Fashion design manuals aimed at undergraduate fashion
design students provide some information about the practices of fashion design and manufac-
turing. Many of these texts seem to base their claims about practice on the authors’ own assump-
tions and opinions about practice, and the rich and diverse ways in which designers practice is
not always evident or acknowledged. The numerous monographs on fashion designers can also
be problematic. The widespread myth-building (Breward 2003: 21) about fashion designers and
their practices (for example, an uncritical framing of the fashion designer as artist or genius4) in
these texts is not only a problem for fashion design studies but it could pose a challenge for vari-
ous future strategies for sustainability, such as co-design, design where the designer facilitates
participation from wearers (Fletcher & Grose 2012: 162). Pattern cutting manuals with a fash-
ion design focus, notably those by Winifred Aldrich (1990, 1996, 2002), are helpful, but others
present pattern cutting merely as a subsequent step to design (for example, Joseph Armstrong,
1995). At the time of writing (2012) there is no manual on fashion design or pattern cutting that
describes approaches that would result in the total elimination of fabric waste.
1.3.2 Rationale for the approach taken to the investigation of fabric waste
elimination from the fashion designer’s perspective.
From the inception of this project I was interested in investigating the issue of zero-waste fash-
ion design in a way that could be translated into practice. The primary audience for this compo-
nent of the research is the fashion design practitioner. The aim was to identify, document and
present the research in a way that would allow other designers to incorporate zero-waste
approaches into their practice. The aim is to produce a body of research that will benefit fashion
designers and pattern cutters by providing new knowledge about how existing fashion design
and pattern cutting practices may be modified to create zero-waste garments. An associated
aim is to benefit fashion design education by presenting new knowledge that may assist in reas-
4 For example, see Colin McDowell’s book on the fashion designer John Galliano. In Galliano, McDowell (1997: 119, 194) uses
“genius” repeatedly, and is generally unrestrained in his praise of Galliano. It would seem strange not to examine Galliano’s work in
a more critical light, particularly in terms of its appropriating cultural heritage as discussed by Shand (2002), or from a postcolonial
viewpoint as expressed by Said (1978).

sessing and reworking curricula in universities and colleges that have courses in fashion design
and pattern cutting.
In working towards this outcome I draw heavily on my own background as both a fash-
ion designer and a pattern cutter. I was educated as a fashion designer in Australia, in a program
that has been over time adapted from the UK system of fashion design education to meet the
needs of Australia’s fashion industry. Between graduation in 1999 and becoming a full-time
academic in January 2009, I worked in the fashion industry for nine years, as a fashion designer
in my own business, and as a pattern cutter for over 30 businesses. At the outset of the project,
this background informed my ability to “read” and synthesise a range of disparate sources
including images of garments, images of garment patterns, as well as various types of texts, to
identify a range of approaches that have been used to design and make zero-waste garments. A
practice orientation is a holistic, integrated orientation. Many of the texts that this thesis draws
from concentrate on one area of fashion design, such as manufacture and technology of fashion
(Carr & Latham 1988; Cooklin 1997), fashion as visual culture (Stern 2004) or craft of fashion
(Shaeffer 2001). This thesis aims for a holistic treatment of these sometimes disparate sources,
reflecting the diverse ways in which all of these areas interlink and interact. The range of
approaches to zero-waste garment design identified through documentation of contemporary
and historical sources are discussed in Chapter 2.
There are, however, specific limitations to studying zero-waste fashion design through
literary and photographic sources alone. Illustrated literature is a relatively fast way of uncover-
ing zero-waste garments from different eras and cultures. The technicalities of a garment,
however, are often not explicitly explained, whether in text or through visuals. Yet, for this
research to progress, I needed to understand how the zero-waste garments worked. As an expe-
rienced practitioner with thorough knowledge of the fashion crafts, I was keen and curious to
attempt designing garments without creating fabric waste in the process. Intuitively it seemed
that the key to meeting one of the project’s primary objectives – to generate and disseminate
new knowledge about fashion creation without fabric waste creation to other practitioners –
was in the practice itself. The research problem can be “brought to life” in a designerly sense
through practice. I had prior, albeit limited, experience of this through completing an under-
graduate dissertation on Madeleine Vionnet in 1999. I experimented with draping some of
Vionnet’s designs on a half-scale mannequin as she had 80 years earlier (Kirke 1991: 28, 233-4).
Engaging in practice provided a deeper understanding of Vionnet’s approach to fashion design
than reading about her approach had. In this study, however, for a researcher relatively new to

the craft of rigorous research, designing a practice-led method for generating primary data was
a challenge early in the project.
Pedgley (2007: 463) claims practice-led research to have “significance because it empow-
ers academically competent designers to utilise their design expertise and assert ownership on
design research.” This is not to say that only practitioners should research practice, but that
practice-led approaches are complimentary to approaches by non-practitioner design research-
ers. Over time a richness of approaches is likely to yield a rich knowledge of practice. Mäkelä
& Routarinne (2006: 13) claim that a practitioner engaging in research is in a double position:
“s/he can access the process of making while s/he is meeting the need for explicitness that is
characteristic of academic research.” They state that inquiry can arise from practice or research
intent. In this project the inquiry arose from research intent, but the researcher’s practice in
preceding years had sensitised him to the research problem considerably. As a practitioner
(fashion designer and pattern cutter) with a practice-oriented research problem at hand, prac-
tice provided a meaningful approach to examine that problem.
I explored the range of approaches identified through the contextual investigation,
through practice. I aimed to situate the practice within a realistic context. Therefore I designed
and made a small collection of men’s ready-to-wear zero-waste garments. Men’s fashion is the
area of design in which I have the most experience. This component of the research, then, was
guided by the question: What are the opportunities for creating zero-waste garments within
contemporary menswear fashion design practice using cut and sew methods? Cut and sew is
the dominant method of designing and making garments; in this method fabric is cut and sewn
to create garments and approximately 15 percent of the fabric is wasted. Design activity was
used to generate data on strategies for zero-waste fashion design. Details of the practice inves-
tigation will be discussed in Chapter 3. As a fashion design educator with significant networks
of peers with a background in fashion design and education, I was able to draw on these
networks of students and educators to interrogate emerging insights and themes arising from
the research. A particularly significant event, early findings from this study were developed into
an undergraduate course on zero-waste fashion design (Rosenbloom 2010), and feedback from
students in that course over several semesters and my own reflections on classroom learning
have led to further refining of the insights of this study.
1.3.3 Fabric waste elimination from a manufacturing perspective

As we have seen, the amount of pre-consumer fabric waste created during fashion manufacture

is significant. Historical and contemporary examples of such designing show that it is possible
to design without creating fabric waste, but the relative rarity of the contemporary examples
suggests that barriers exist in fashion industry practices to the adoption of a zero-fabric waste
approach. An important source of many of these barriers are the current systems used to manu-
facture multiple garments. An investigation of the possibility of zero waste fashion must there-
fore take into consideration industry conventions that come into play after the design and
manufacture of one-off sample garments. While there is literature that may be drawn on to
understand these industry processes as they are currently practiced there is at present no litera-
ture that investigates these processes from a zero-waste perspective.
A key impediment to zero-waste fashion design is the separation of roles of fashion design
and pattern cutting. The separation of fashion design from the making of garments, both of sample
garments as well as manufacturing multiples, further distances fashion design from issues it could
address, such as fabric waste. At present none of the literature on fashion design and manufacturing
investigates this arrangement, including the small body of literature on zero-waste fashion design.
If the key to eliminating fabric waste lies in reconfiguration of these roles then the feasibility of
overcoming potential impediments to this reconfiguration must be considered.
1.3.4 Rationale for the approach taken to the investigation of fabric waste
elimination from a manufacturing perspective.
A key aim of this study is to provide the industry with findings that can be applied to the design
of garments, which can also manufactured; during the course of the investigation manufactura-
bility emerged as an important consideration for this research, and led to the second question:
To what extent is a zero-waste approach feasible and desirable within contemporary fashion
industry? The garments designed in this study were not manufactured in multiples in collabora-
tion with manufacturers. I did not deem this necessary to meet the objective of the study. Rather,
I have drawn on my own experience of working as a designer and pattern cutter in companies
producing ready to wear garments at a range of price points. For the manufacturing aspect of this
study, I have used literature on fashion manufacture, I have conducted visual experiments to
quickly test issues such as grading patterns (Chapter 4), and I have had countless conversations
with peers about the potential of manufacturing zero-waste garments. Chapter 4 will address
particular issues for fashion manufacture that arise from fabric waste elimination through design.
It is my hope that this study contributes towards further conversations about fashion
design and fashion manufacture working together in new, more productive ways in the future.

Among other things, such conversations have the potential of enabling fashion manufacture to
not be a source of pre-consumer fabric waste. As noted in section 1.2, the responsibility for
fabric wastage is currently with manufacture, but manufacture is always constrained by what
has already been designed and pattern cut. New conversations, of which this study is a signifi-
cant part, can break through such constraints.
1.4 Overview of thesis and structure of the investigation
This research then responds to two questions: What are the opportunities for creating zero-
waste garments within contemporary menswear fashion design practice using cut and sew
methods5? To what extent is such an approach feasible and desirable within contemporary
fashion industry? The research is an investigation into the opportunities and barriers for design-
ing and making fashion garments without wasting any of the fabric used to create them. This
first chapter has outlined the rationale for the study.
The study is contextualised in Chapter 2. Fashion creation methods from a fabric waste
perspective are described, followed by a discussion of the design ideation tools used by the vast
majority of fashion designers and how these relate to pattern cutting. Practice of zero-waste
fashion design to date is then examined, including examples of historical and traditional dress,
followed by examples of contemporary zero-waste fashion design. The focus is on what fashion
design practice can learn from these. The chapter closes with an overview of how these lessons
can be harnessed into design briefs, to allow design practice to examine the research questions
in this study.
Chapter 3 discusses the key findings of this study in a fashion design context. The coding
and category-building processes are discussed in detail. Fabric waste as a design criterion is
examined in relation to other criteria in design. I then present successful strategies for zero-
waste fashion design and pattern cutting as they emerge from the data. Chapter 3 closes with
sustainability issues that design practice in this study did not directly address, but I deemed
important discussing, partly as these were issues that emerged on reflection on practice.
Chapter 4 provides an account of the implications for manufacturing zero-waste fashion
garments. Literature on fashion manufacture and my own experiences of working with fashion
manufacturers ground the discussion. There are manufacturing issues relating to fabric itself
that open the discussion, followed by opportunities for grading zero-waste garment patterns. In
5 Cut and sew is explained in Section 2.1.

closing this chapter I propose that the fashion industry would benefit from closer collaboration
between fashion design and fashion manufacture than is currently the case.
Chapter 5 concludes this thesis with a look at some possible futures for fashion and
humanity. Drawing from the findings of this study, I make recommendations for the fashion
industry as well as fashion design education. I also present opportunities for further research,
followed by a reflection on the use of fashion design practice in research. I conclude this study,
thesis and a significant chapter in my life by pointing towards a shift in beauty in fashion.
1.4.1 Definitions of terms

In order to maintain the momentum of this thesis on one hand, and to provide the reader with
the necessary tools on the other, the key terms are introduced briefly here. These are elaborated
on in more detail in Appendix A, Glossary of terms.
Fashion
Fashion in this thesis refers to physical garments: fashion garments designed and made – fash-
ioned – by individuals within the fashion system. In Appendix A, the propositional term of
“designerly fashion” is fleshed out. It is acknowledged that in other contexts and within other
fields of study fashion refers to symbolic production, as well as the system at large.
Zero-waste fashion
Zero-waste fashion in this thesis refers to a fashion system that creates no waste. The system
would be a community of fashion producers and users who eliminate waste – material and
immaterial waste – at every instance of fibre generation, yarn spinning and processing, fabric
design manufacture, garment design and manufacture, storage and transport, sales, garment use,
and the cycling back of resources at the end of the first use life of the garment. While currently
individual companies operate according to zero-waste principles, adoption across the entire
system would require agreement from the prevailing economic system.
Zero-waste fashion design

Zero-waste fashion design in this thesis refers to the activities and processes that lead to zero-waste
garments. In zero-waste fashion design pre-consumer fabric waste is eliminated through design
that integrates pattern cutting. Zero-waste fashion design in this thesis does not address the vast
quantities of wasted garments created by the capitalist pursuit for economic growth; zero-waste

garments as defined in this thesis could easily contribute towards this larger issue of post-consumer
waste, if created within the dominant economic and fashion systems focused on growth.
Zero-waste garment
Zero-waste garment in this thesis refers to the outcome of a zero-waste fashion design process.
It contains all of the fabric that was used to create it, with pre-consumer fabric waste having
been eliminated through design.
Fashion designer
Fashion designer in this thesis refers to the person primarily responsible for the ideation and
problem solving phases of a garment. These responsibilities include aesthetic decisions, fabrica-
tion as well as the responsibility for various sustainability-related impacts of a garment, even if
the designer may be unaware of these. As elaborated in Appendix A, the responsibilities of
fashion designers vary depending on the market level and size of a company, personality of the
designer and other factors.
Pattern cutter
In this thesis pattern cutter refers to the person responsible for creating the patterns for a
garment design. The use of this UK-centric term is a deliberate choice, despite the fact that in
Australia (and the US) patternmaker is the most commonly used term. In my opinion, the
inclusion of the word “cutter” implies a closer relationship with cloth. In reading this thesis,
pattern cutter could be replaced with patternmaker.
Both fashion designer and pattern cutter are discussed in the context of the fashion hier-
archy in Section 2.1.2. This study will make a strong argument for fashion designer also being
the pattern cutter, despite treating them separately in this instance, because creating zero-waste
garments is only possible if pattern cutting is an integral, active part of the fashion design
process. It is nonetheless acknowledged that within the predominant industry situation two
separate individuals perform these roles, and this thesis is thus written with that situation in
mind. I the researcher performed both these roles during this study. I will note this was a seam-
less performance in the sense that I did not make the separation in my mind. I encourage
anyone wanting to try zero-waste fashion design to equally put that separation aside.

2.
TOWARDS A ZERO-WASTE
FASHION DESIGN PRACTICE
T
his chapter builds on the investigation into opportunities for fashion creation without
fabric waste creation in a contemporary fashion design context. Garments created with-
out wasting fabric are not new, as this chapter will demonstrate. Neither is the concern about
fabric wastage new; procedures exist in fashion manufacture to reduce fabric waste – and cost
– to a minimum. The initial proposition in this study, however, that fabric waste can be an envi-
ronmental and perhaps an ethical and aesthetic issue situated in fashion design, as well as an
economic issue situated in fashion manufacture, differs somewhat from conventional thinking
in the fashion industry. The claim of newness in this project extends primarily to formalised
research on fashion creation without fabric waste creation, of which there has been a limited
amount to date although this has improved during the duration of this study (Section 1.2). As
this chapter will demonstrate, some contemporary fashion designers’ practice is informed by a
concern for minimum fabric wastage; the practice of fashion creation without fabric waste crea-
tion is not new. From a fashion designer’s perspective a discord often exists between the visual
examples of those designers’ works and the texts discussing them. For example, aspects of design
practice may be suggested in visual form but not discussed verbally. Fashion studies (as different
from fashion design studies) do not always concern themselves with the minutiae of practice or
garment details (Taylor 2002), yet this thesis aims to show that such discussions could benefit
the fashion industry by revealing opportunities for amplified resourcefulness.
2.1 Fashion creation methods and fabric waste
2.1.1 Fashion creation methods from a fabric waste perspective

With fabric waste creation as the distinguishing factor, I have identified three methods of fash-
ion creation: Fully-fashioned, Cut & Sew and A-POC (with subsets and some overlaps); these
are illustrated in Figure 2.1. I have simplified the methods into “formulae” of materials and
actions, demonstrating the process from yarn or fabric to garment. Each is described. I acknowl-
edge that experimental methods exist. For example, Tissue + Culture in Western Australia
(artists Oron Catts and Oinat Zurr) are experimenting with growing clothes out of living
animal and human tissue (Braddock & O’Mahony 2005: 146-7; Hemmings & Simonson
2008). Such approaches should be lauded and encouraged; this research, however, only exam-
ines methods of designing and making clothes that are possible through technologies widely
available in current fashion industry through cutting and sewing fabric.
28 | chapter 2: towards a zero-waste fashion design practice

The two most common methods of fashion creation in industry are Cut & Sew and
Fully-fashioned. These are also the dominant methods in fashion design education. A brief
introduction into fabric construction is necessary to understand the differences between these
methods, as different fabric types have implications for the different fashion creation methods.
Three broad categories exist for fabric construction: wovens, knits and non-wovens. In woven
fabrics weaving results in yarns interlacing in two directions (warp and weft), knits are knitted
rows of looped yarns, while non-woven fabrics are made directly from fibre without spinning it
into yarn first, or may not consist of fibre (leather, for example). Sorger and Udale (2006: 70-77)
use four categories: woven, knitted, non-woven (felt, rubber sheeting, leather, fur) and other
(macramé, lace, crochet). Jenkyn Jones (2002: 96) lists three categories: wovens, knits and non-
wovens, the latter including “felt, net, lace and bonded fabrics”.
Figure 2.1: Fashion creation methods from a fabric waste creation perspective
Fully-fashioned/Knitted fabrics: Yarn + Knitting + Sewing = Garment

Fully-fashioned is commonly used in manufacturing knitted garments: the garment pieces are
chapter 2: towards a zero-waste fashion design practice | 29

knitted individually and then sewed or linked together (Black 2002: 178). In its truest form, the
making of a fully-fashioned garment involves no cutting, and therefore creates little or no yarn
or fabric waste. Domestic hand knitting is a familiar example; a front, back and sleeves are knit-
ted individually and then sewed together to make a jumper. BTTG (1999) report two percent
yarn wastage in the knitting of a nylon blouse. Setting up a knitting machine for each new style
can be costly, and a lot of knitwear is a combination of Fully-fashioned and Cut & Sew. For
example, rectangular panels may be knitted from which the garment pieces are cut (Cut &
Sew), but the panel may have a finished hem knitted into it. For the Perfect T-Shirt project
(Figure 2.2), Better Thinking Ltd chose fully-fashioned knitting as the most appropriate
method of garment creation (Gwilt & Rissanen 2011: 79).
Figure 2.2: The Perfect t-shirt by Better Thinking, manufactured through fully fashioned knitting.
Seamless Knitting: Yarn + Knitting = Garment

Seamless Knitting is a technologically advanced version of Fully-fashioned; a machine knits a
finished garment to its three-dimensional shape, thereby eliminating sewing from the garment
making process (Black 2002: 118; Choi & Powell 2005: 1). While this has been technologically

available for more complex garments since the mid-1990s, socks and knitted gloves are exam-
ples of Seamless Knitting that have been manufactured industrially for several decades. Because
of the method’s elimination of waste, Allwood, et al. (2006: 30-31) call for more garments to be
created through Seamless Knitting: cutting and sewing are eliminated as the knitting machine
creates finished garments from yarn, and thus wastage is potentially reduced.
Figure 2.3: Dress created through seamless knitting by Wolford, 2000 (Black, 2002: 128)
Fully-fashioned/Non-woven fabrics: Fibre + Fabric Construction + Sewing = Garment

Non-woven sails made of carbon and aramid fibre by North Sails Nevada demonstrate that
non-woven fabrics can be adapted for an industrial Fully-fashioned approach. The sails are
made into the exact required shape by specialised fibre-laying machinery (Brown 2005: 53, 55).
To adapt this technology for the fashion industry seems plausible, even likely, as increasingly
diverse non-woven fabrics become available. To date, shaped non-wovens have been limited to
a few isolated examples, such as the moulded plastic bodice by Issey Miyake from 1980 (Fukai
& Suoh 2002: 609). Fabrican Ltd., a company established to commercialise Manel Torres’ PhD
research, manufactures fibre that can be sprayed directly on the body to form a garment (Gundry
2008; Figure 2.4), representing a Fully-fashioned approach in non-woven fabric. From a zero-
waste perspective further research into the potential of these technologies seems warranted.

Figure 2.4: Manel Torres spraying Fabrican fibre on model, photograph by Gene Kiegel
Fully-fashioned/Woven fabrics: Yarn + Weaving + Sewing = Garment

Looms are generally used to weave rectangular lengths of fabrics. As Burnham (1973: 9)
demonstrates, through hand-weaving shaped woven pieces can be created. According to Tarrant
(1994: 10), the Roman toga was woven rather than cut into the half-oval shape.
Technologies for weaving shapes other than the rectilinear form of fabric exist. Using hand-
weaving on a purpose-built loom, jewellery designer George Plionis wove a fully-fashioned t-shirt
sleeve for my company Usvsu in 2003 (Figure 2.5). Using industrial machinery, Shape 3, a German
company, produces what Fully-fashioned, three-dimensional woven products for the medical
industry (see http://shape3.com for further information). In a fashion context, the Indian company
August (see http://august.synthasite.com/) has developed Fully-fashioned weaving for creating
garments; the company calls this method direct panel on loom or DPOL. Each garment compo-
nent is woven individually (Figure 2.5). A jacket by August was featured in the Trash Fashion:
Designing Out Waste exhibition at The Science Museum in London in 2010. It is unclear from
the August website how much it costs to set the machinery to weave each new style, but for
garment styles that are manufactured over several seasons the technology is certainly promising.
The company website remained largely unchanged from 2009 to 2011 so it is unclear how widely

the technology has been adopted. Whilst it might seem that the technology could make the focus
of this study obsolete, it is safe to assume that the fashion industry will continue to manufacture
garments from lengths of fabric in the foreseeable future, hence the necessity for this study. Tech-
nological solutions such as that offered by August are nevertheless welcomed.
Figure 2.5: Jacket by August using DPOL technology; fully-fashioned woven sleeve by George Plionis for Usvsu (2003).
A-POC: Yarn + Knitting or Weaving = Fabric, followed by Fabric + Cutting =

Garment + Fabric Waste
In the late 1990s Japanese fashion designer Issey Miyake and his colleague Dai Fujiwara launched
A-POC (A Piece Of Cloth). A flat tube of fabric is knitted or woven with the two sides of the
tube joined in areas to create cavities within the tube (Figure 2.6). Black (2002: 118) distin-
guishes knitted A-POC from seamless knitting in that the former uses warp knitting while
seamless uses weft knitting; both rely on computers to guide the knitting machine. The consumer
buys a tube and following the lines of the joins cuts out finished garments (Kries & von Vegesack
2001). How the consumer cuts out the pieces determines partly how much waste is created.
Some woven A-POC garments have been developed; for example, Caravan and Pain de Mie
from 2000. The latter can be cut out as finished garments like the knits, while Caravan requires
some sewing after cutting (Kries & von Vegesack 2001: 63). Extending A-POC to non-woven
fabrics would seem possible: it is, for example, possible to create a double-layered felt with cavi-
ties within the two layers (Fisher 1997: 36). Issey Miyake claims A-POC to recycle thread (Kries
& von Vegesack 2001: 68), but how it achieves this is not clear. While the inventiveness of
A-POC is not in doubt, the methods of making A-POC are technologically unattainable to
most manufacturers (Scanlon 2004). Additionally, the responsibility for fabric waste creation and

management is passed from the designer and manufacturer to the consumer (Sato 1999: 125).
Figure 2.6: Knitted and woven A-POC garments by Issey Miyake.
Cut & Sew: Fabric + Cutting + Sewing = Garment + Fabric Waste

Through a Cut & Sew method garment pieces are cut from fabric and these are sewed or other-
wise joined to make garments. Fabrics from any of the three categories (wovens, knits, non-
wovens) may be used. It is the predominant way of designing and making clothes, and arguably
the fashion industry is most familiar with this method; the textile industry that produces vast
quantities of lengths of fabrics caters purely for this method. Cut & Sew can waste fabric
considerably. In adult outerwear this fabric wastage can vary from 10 to 20 percent (Feyerabend
2004: 4). Cooklin (1997: 9) estimates the average waste to be 15 percent of total fabric used,
while Abernathy, Dunlop et al. (1999: 136) give an estimate of 10 percent for pants and jeans
and higher for blouses, jackets and underwear.
Figure 2.7: Cut & Sew coat by Balenciaga

Zero-Waste: Fabric + Cutting + Sewing = Garment
Zero-Waste in this thesis refers to Cut & Sew that wastes no fabric; the method of construc-
tion is the same. The pattern pieces interlock on a length of fabric; no waste is therefore created.
Unlike Fully-fashioned and A-POC, Cut & Sew and Zero-Waste require practically no repro-
gramming of machinery to create new garment styles. This suggests that the methods will
remain feasible alternatives alongside emerging technologies for some time to come. Notably,
most research and development on efficiency of fabric use has occurred with Cut & Sew but
this is generally framed as belonging to manufacture rather than design. Figure 2.8 shows a
zero-waste dress created by Mark Liu as part of his Masters degree in 2007. I included the dress
in a book chapter (Rissanen 2008a), in which I called zero-waste fashion design “Jigsaw Puzzle”.
I later chose to abandon the term, for it potentially trivialises the issue, and could unintention-
ally reduce zero-waste fashion design to a technique. As this study will demonstrate, zero-waste
is best described as a philosophy of making and being that utilises a palette of techniques.
Figure 2.8: Zero-waste dress by Mark Liu (2007).
2.1.2 Hierarchies of roles in current industry

Between the initial conception by the fashion designer and a retail store, a mass-produced
garment passes through several steps. The pattern cutter makes a pattern (on paper or computer)
based on the designer’s sketch; the pattern guides the cutter in cutting fabric. Before the cutting
of multiple garments in production, the marker-maker creates a marker (on paper or computer),

which contains all the pieces of all the sizes to be cut – the marker is a cutting map for produc-
tion. Most often responsibility for fabric waste creation at the cutting stage is placed on the
marker-maker, and the primary objective is to reduce fabric cost (Abernathy et al. 1999: 136).
Figure 2.9: Hierarchies of roles in the fashion industry
This hierarchy has its roots in industrial organisation, and particularly ideas put forth by Henry
Ford and Frederick Winslow Taylor at the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries
(Forty 1986: 122-123). Taylor (1913), through “scientific management”, studied the potential
to increase industrial efficiency through a critical look at workflows. During the Second World
War, a number of countries regulated industrial production, including that of clothing, to
maximise the use of scarce resources and labour. In the UK, this effort became known as the
Utility Scheme and the scheme had a permanent positive impact on how the garment industry
was organised in the UK (Sladen 1995). Sinha (2000, 2001) has studied the role of the fashion
designer in its larger hierarchical context within the UK, revealing the separation of fashion
design and pattern cutting in the UK industry.
These hierarchies have advantages, of which having a clear and defined role is perhaps
the most obvious; it allows each worker to concentrate on improving and becoming an expert
in the role and skills they are responsible for. In contrast, however, the worker may have a
limited understanding of the overall process. In the case of fabric waste, this can mean that the
waste is largely invisible to the fashion designer and pattern cutter, and in the current organisa-
tion of the hierarchy, fabric waste is beyond the control of the fashion designer. Fletcher &
Grose (2012: 155) refer to Buckminster Fuller: “As you get more and more over-spealized, you
in-breed specialization (and) breeding in specialization also breeds out adaptability.”

2.1.3 Design tools in fashion design ideation
Different approaches to designing fashion exist; these have implications for fabric waste
elimination. Because the aim of this study is to uncover practical information about fashion
creation without fabric waste creation, an understanding of different ways of creating fashion is
important; fabric waste elimination may need to be investigated through several types of design
practice. Fashion design at haute couture level may differ from fashion design at ready-to-wear
and mass-market levels. Although it is possible that fabric waste elimination through design is
possible at all levels of the fashion system, the focus is on ready-to-wear fashion.
Despite the numerous histories of fashion design and designers, few studies have investi-
gated how fashion designers design although such research is plentiful among industrial and engi-
neering design. Anecdotal evidence and increasingly critical designer monographs suggest that
diverse approaches to fashion design exist. For example, this study draws from Kirke (1998), Major
& Teng (2003), Koskennurmi-Sivonen (1998), Sudjic (1990), Wilcox (2004) and Bolton (2011).
The thoroughness and criticality of the texts somewhat contrast with an increasing number of
fashion design manuals aimed at undergraduate fashion design students; these arguably present
fashion design as a standardised and formulaic practice. These manuals are generally written by
fashion design academics, and they are rarely grounded in formalised, critical research into design
practice but rather, they draw from the authors’ own assumptions about fashion design practice. In
short, such books could be described as attempts to summarise three- or four-year degrees into
textbooks. This study reviewed Faerm (2010), Sorger & Udale (2006) and Jenkyn Jones (2002).
Many more were available but I deemed further review of the genre unnecessary.
The types of fashion design practice presented are simplified to the core stages that the
fashion designer is influential in. Each begins with the initial design ideation tool and ends with
the final sample garment. Only stages with direct impact on waste elimination are included; some,
such as market research conducted by the designer, are thus omitted. In practice some stages such
as making a toile or pattern alteration may be repeated more than once. I acknowledge that a
designer may use more than one tool; fashion design is a flexible, dynamic and personal practice.
1. Sketch – Pattern – Toile – (Design alteration) – Pattern alteration –Sample garment

This may be the most common approach to designing in industry and fashion design education. The
designer produces a sketch (Figure 2.10), which the pattern cutter uses to create a pattern. The fash-
ion designer may also be responsible for the pattern. Sketching is a fast way of communicating an
idea to others, and the role of sketching in the conceptualisation phase of the design process has been

widely researched. Menezes and Lawson (2006) review much of the research to date across design
disciplines, and note that sketching is particularly important during early design activity (572).
Jonson (2005) concludes that while the verbalisation of ideas may be the most used conceptual tool
in design, designers nevertheless perceive sketching as an important skill (623). Jenkyn Jones (2002:
118-119) suggests that in fashion, the pattern is generally preceded and guided by a sketch. Nance
(2008) reviews eight models of fashion design process; remarkably, all assume fashion design to
occur through sketching, and sketching to precede pattern cutting. Given the widespread use of
sketching in the fashion industry, sketching may pose particular problems for fabric waste elimina-
tion; the research addresses these through particular design experiments.
Figure 2.10: Fashion sketches by Jonathan Kyle Farmer
2. Pattern – Toile – (Design alteration) – Pattern Alteration –Sample garment

A fashion designer may skip sketching and use pattern cutting as the primary design ideation
tool. Julian Roberts, an English designer, sometimes begins the design process of a dress with
a large rectangular tube (3-18 metres long, Roberts 2008) that has a number of circular holes
and the top of the bodice cut into it. The top bodice anchors the garment onto the body. The
drape of the large fabric rectangles depends on the position of the bodice in the overall tube,
and the number and position of the circular holes, and the order in which these join to each
other (Figure 2.11). There seems to be a great deal of uncertainty in this kind of designing; the
final form of the garment is not revealed until it is made up and tried on. Quinn’s (2002:
87-92) account of Roberts’s design process refers to “complicated” and “elaborate” processes
(89), with Roberts discussing the significance of pattern cutting in the fashion design process
and the uncertain nature of the final outcome (91). Roberts’s approach shows that serendipi-
tous pattern cutting can be a design tool, a view supported by Aldrich (1996: 5): “…the tension
between precision and the speculative cut of new fabrics can generate new garment forms”. a

Figure 2.11: Dress and pattern by Julian Roberts (2011).
For Yeohlee Teng, a contemporary designer in New York, fabric waste reduction is integral to her
work. Like Roberts,Teng’s design process may begin with the flat pattern (Major and Teng 2003:140-
1). Some garments by Teng create very little or no fabric waste. To achieve the interlocking of the
patterns Teng would need to consider the garment patterns in relation to the fabric width from the
outset. The cape from 1982 is engineered to the width of the fabric it is cut from (Figure 2.12)
Figure 2.12: Cape and pattern by Yeohlee Teng (1982).

During the 1980s, Yoshiki Hishinuma in Japan created a series of garments made entirely
of equilateral triangles, presented in Clothes by Hishinuma (Hishinuma 1986: 162-72; Figure
2.13)). No account of the design process is included, but it is likely that the process begins with
a pattern rather than a sketch. The book includes with each garment a diagram of its composi-
tion, hinting that Hishinuma places great importance on how the garments are designed, pattern
cut and made. It seems that the three designers, while allowing a degree of uncertainty into their
designing, decide on the type of garment (dress, jacket, trousers) before the pattern is made.
Figure 2.13: Garments created from triangles by Yoshiki Hishinuma (Hishinuma, 1986)
3. Sketch – Draping – Pattern –Toile – (Design alteration) – Pattern alteration -

Sample garment
Through draping fabric can be manipulated on a mannequin according to a sketch. The result-
ing fabric pieces are then developed into a garment pattern from which a toile can be made.
Jaffe & Relis (1993) provide one of many manuals for this approach.
4. Draping – Pattern –Toile – (Design alteration) – Pattern alteration - Sample garment

Draping can also be a way of exploring the potential of a fabric on the body, and therefore it can
initiate the design idea. This is similar in many ways to beginning with pattern, except that a
pattern is created flat in two dimensions, while draping investigates three-dimensional form
with two-dimensional fabric. Ericson (1992: 7) defines draping as “fashioning a garment with-

out the aid of a pattern”. Madeleine Vionnet (Figure 2.14), an early twentieth century French
designer, developed her ideas exclusively through draping on a half-scale mannequin (Kirke
1998: 28, 233-4). Vivienne Westwood designs through drape, “in the round”, rather than
through sketching (Wilcox 2004: 33). Alexander McQueen also used drape extensively as a
design ideation tool (Bolton 2011: 229). Research on the practice of draping in fashion design,
other than draping manuals for fashion designers, is scarce. Virtual or simulated draping using
various types of software, on the other hand, has been widely researched (Townsend 2003:
4-22-26). While the primary use of simulated draping may seem to be dressing virtual humans
in computer games and animated films, some recent research is directed specifically at the fash-
ion designer: simulated draping as a design tool (for example, Volino et al. 2005). Such investi-
gations are welcome but I would like to call for more research on the practice of draping with
real, material fabric and the role of draping in fashion design practice.
Figure 2.14: Madeleine Vionnet draping on a doll, 1923 (Kirke 1998).
5. Conceptual idea – Pattern – Toile – (Design alteration) – Pattern alteration -

Sample garment
Sudjic (1990: 30-4) provides a detailed account of how Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garçons
works with her pattern cutters. Often the sketch given by Kawakubo lacks detail, and sometimes
there is no sketch. For example, she may give the pattern cutter a piece of crumpled paper and ask
for an interpretation. The level of aesthetic and creative responsibility the pattern cutters have may

be higher than what is usual for pattern cutters in the industry. Kawakubo credits her pattern cutters
with helping her to design. Not unlike Kawakubo, Halston, an American designer, would fold pieces
of paper to communicate his ideas to his pattern cutters, or the design team would search for flowers
to communally understand the shape of a skirt (Gross & Rottman, 1999: 145); these were supple-
mented with verbal descriptions. Figure 2.15 shows a top by Halston that could be engineered to use
the full width of a fabric (fabric width is not communicated), creating little waste.
Figure 2.15: Envelope top by Halston, 1977 (Gross & Rottman, 1999: 118)
6. Textile print on paper – Draping paper on body – (Sketch) - Pattern – Toile –

(Design alteration) – Pattern alteration – Sample
A contemporary designer of textiles and fashion, Zandra Rhodes often allows the printed
fabric to determine the pattern shapes of a garment. She explains: “The [printed] patterns lead
me along and influence the way I use them [in garments]…I always consider what is left and
try to make it into another part of the dress. I can’t tolerate waste and use every inch.” (Rhodes
and Knight 1984: 56). Rhodes pins the printed paper on herself in front of a mirror to deter-
mine the impact of the print on the body. Notably for someone lacking formal fashion design

training (Rhodes trained as a textile designer), for Rhodes pattern cutting is an integral aspect
of the fashion design process. Townsend (2003: 3-21) calls this textile-led fashion design: the
printed pattern on the fabric determines or guides the garment cut.
7. Existing garment – Sketch – Pattern – Toile – (Design alteration) - Pattern altera-

tion – Sample garment
It is common practice in Australia and elsewhere for the fashion designer to purchase a garment
and develop a slightly modified sketch based on it. In a more economic variation, the sketch can
be based on a photograph of the garment. The pattern cutter then creates a pattern based on
both the garment (or photograph) and the sketch. Depending on the level of modification from
garment to sketch, whether this constitutes fashion design is open for discussion.
8. Existing garment – Pattern – Toile – (Design alteration) – Pattern alteration -

Sample garment
Sometimes the existing garment is given directly to the pattern cutter to create a pattern from,
sometimes referred to as “rubbing off ”. This in effect is copying and in my opinion does not
constitute fashion design. Two pattern cutting manuals (Hollen & Kundel 1999: 270-276;
Joseph-Armstrong 2006: 531-542) provide detailed instructions on such an approach; the intro-
ductory section in each is surprisingly uncritical. One might expect this to be more common in
“lower” levels of the fashion system (mass-market), but I witnessed such practices somewhat
regularly within the Australian designer ready-to-wear industry. In some instances this practice
may have merit. Vivienne Westwood states: “By trying to copy technique, you build your own
technique.” (Wilcox 2004: 9) Westwood began her career as a self-taught fashion designer in the
early 1970s by copying Teddy boy suits. Arguably she ventured beyond copying; she analyzed the
garments’ structure and construction, and later applied this knowledge into ideas of her own.
9. Photograph of garment – Pattern – Toile – (Design alteration) – Pattern alteration

– Sample garment
McQuillan (2011a: 84) discusses a fashion designer developing a garment design from a photo-
graph of an existing garment. This approach is more economic than purchasing a garment for
copying, and somewhat common within the industry in Australia. In this study, the various ways
of copying (7, 8 and 9) do not inform the experiment briefs. The assumption is that most existing
garments waste fabric as stated earlier; copying them would create the same amount of waste.

Every fashion designer may work somewhat differently and therefore various combina-
tions of the above may exist, or there may be other types of designing that the list does not
cover. For example, Jaffe and Relis (1993: 2) note that combining draping with pattern cutting
has certain benefits when variations of a silhouette are sought; pattern cutting may be faster
than draping in such an instance. Jenkyn Jones concurs (2002: 124): “Most pattern develop-
ment is a mixture of [pattern cutting] and draping.” Even if not exhaustive, the nine types argu-
ably cover the vast majority of fashion design practice in the industry.
2.1.4 Communication between the fashion designer and pattern cutter

From the types of fashion design practice, different types of pattern cutting practice become evident.
The focus here is on the type of communication from the fashion designer that initiates the pattern
cutting process, despite that in this study the fashion designer and pattern cutter are the same
person. Because the amount of fabric waste produced depends on how well the pattern pieces are
able to interlock on a length of fabric, pattern cutting has great significance for fabric waste elimi-
nation. Consequently, how a pattern cutter approaches the design and make of a set of garment
patterns has implications for fabric waste elimination. Relationships between designers and pattern
cutters are diverse; whilst the communication is simplified here into four types, combinations of the
four probably take place. In some instances the designer may make the pattern, but may use
sketches, draping or existing garments as conceptual tools preceding the pattern cutting process.
The importance of other forms of communication between the designer and pattern cutter should
not be underestimated. Regardless of the type of pattern cutting practice, verbal conversations
probably play a significant role in assisting the pattern cutter to interpret the designer’s idea.
1. The pattern cutter may make a pattern from a sketch, notes and measurements produced by
the designer. Often these take the form of a specification sheet. This is perhaps the most
common type in the industry, and the predominant type in cases where the designer and pattern
cutter are in two different locations, a somewhat common occurrence with clothing production
having shifted to countries with low labour costs.
2. The pattern cutter may make a pattern from draped pieces of fabric (or paper, as with Zandra
Rhodes). If a sketch precedes draping, the pattern cutter is likely to be responsible for draping, but if
the idea were first conceived through drape, the designer would probably do this, as Vionnet and
McQueen did. The draped fabric pieces often do not match to each other exactly and some pieces

such as facings and linings are usually not draped. Geneviève Dufy, a Vionnet employee, noted how
difficult it was at times to translate Vionnet’s scaled down drapes to full scale (Kirke 1998: 118). The
pattern cutter ensures that a complete set of patterns is produced, which can be made into a toile.
3. The pattern cutter may make a pattern from an existing garment. It is possible to trace a pattern
from a garment without taking it apart, using a tracing wheel and taking measurements. Kirke
(1998: 233-4) developed the patterns in her book on Madeleine Vionnet by laying the garments
flat and analysing the fabric grain (direction of yarns) and taking measurements, preserving the
often fragile museum specimens. With some shapes, such as trouser crotches and jacket sleeves, it
would be more accurate to carefully unpick the garment first, lay the pieces flat and then trace them.
4. The pattern cutter may make a pattern from an idea communicated vebally and/or non-
verbally by the designer. This approach is evident in Halston and Kawakubo’s approaches to
working with their pattern cutters.
2.2 Zero-waste fashion design: past and present
This section discusses examples of zero-waste and “less-waste” garments throughout history in a
chronological manner. Whilst it is difficult to tease out a consistent temporal narrative, some
connections nevertheless emerge. In particular, it is evident that some fashion designers in the
twentieth and twenty-first centuries have been influenced by cuts of historical zero-waste or less-
waste garments. Due to space limitations this section is not an exhaustive list of every zero-waste
garment discovered during this study; rather, the aim is to provide a snapshot of the rich diversity
of zero-waste garments through time, and to create a fertile foundation from which to draw from
in this study. The heading of this section may seem erroneous in that it is not possible to name the
designer for the examples of earlier garments. Fry (2009) regards all human beings as designers;
this study seconds the view and argues that someone (and more accurately, someone building on
designs by several generations of people) designed each garment discussed here, even if it is not
possible for us to know who that was. These garments are referred to as “zero-waste fashion design
without fashion designers”, after Rudofsky’s (1977) “architecture without architects”.
Evidence shows that the developments in cutting into fabric have been influenced by
developments in fabric weaving technology (Burnham 1973; Tarrant 1994). Burnham (1973:

2) discusses the various factors affecting garment cut – the body, climate, geographic terrain,
social status and (culturally variable) modesty, stating that they “are all important, but the mate-
rial from which a garment is made is the factor that has the most influence on the particular
shaping of it.” Burnham asserts that there existed two separate developments in the cutting of
garments: those based on the shape of animal skins, and those “dependent on the rectilinear form
of loom-woven cloth”. Eventually these merged into one. When fibre was scarce and spinning
and weaving were slow, fabric was precious. It was cut as little as possible and waste creation was
avoided during the cutting process. Before the Classical period in Europe, two types of loom
were used for weaving (Tarrant, 1994: 8). The ground and warp-weighted looms were not ideal
for weaving long lengths of fabric and both looms were relatively slow. Around 1000 AD the
horizontal loom was introduced to Europe from China; the weaving of longer lengths of fabric
became much faster than before. Regular changes in dress in Europe appeared from the four-
teenth century onwards (Tarrant 1994: 48). In the eighteenth century a dressmaker was judged
by the skill she fitted the customer with, the way she cut without waste and the way she
matched patterned fabrics (Ginsburg, 1984: 28). During the Industrial Revolution the weav-
ing industry was mechanised approximately a century before the fashion industry, allowing
plentiful “raw” material for the industry sped up by the sewing machine from 1850s onwards
(Forty 1986: 73, 94). In an anthropological look at cloth, Schneider (1987: 433) notes that
technological and organisational innovations lowered the cost of fabric, thereby permitting
“the wastage of tailoring”; given the extensive bibliography, it seems odd that Schneider does
not cite Burnham.
2.2.1 Zero-waste fashion design without fashion designers

Many examples of traditional dress are zero-waste garments. The himation, chiton and
peplos of ancient Greece, and the main piece of the sari of India are lengths of fabric with
no cutting, draped on the body. The sari can be draped in a variety of ways (Lynton 1995:
14-6), as can examples of ancient Greek dress (Rudofsky 1947: 137). The garment pieces of
a Japanese kimono are engineered to the fabric width and length. No fabric waste is created
in the cutting process, as Van Assche (2005: 7), Tarrant (1994: 36; Figure 2.16), Kennedy
(1990: 6) and Liddell (1989: 223) demonstrate. Surplus fabric in front neck is pleated inside
the collar for structure rather than cut (Dobson 2004: 54). Similarly, the curved sleeve hem
present in some kimono is achieved by easing the excess seam allowance inside the sleeve
rather than by cutting it away.

Figure 2.16: Cut of kimono (Tarrant 1994)
Tilke (1956) presents several garments from around the world that could be zero-waste. It is,
however, impossible to ascertain this from the pattern diagrams without knowing the pattern
configuration on the fabric width. The men’s breeches from Turkey (Plate 19: Garment 1;
Figure 2.17) are a basic example. The crotch is made from four gores that could interlock on a
particular width of fabric. The legs are two large rectangles with some fabric cut away at inside
ankle. Plate 89 includes two examples of Chinese trousers (Garments 6 & 7, 9 & 10; Figure
2.17) demonstrating the displacement of two rectangular shapes against each other. This results
in the fabric hanging off-grain in an asymmetrical garment.
Figure 2.17: Men’s breeches from Turkey, Chinese trousers in Tilke (1956)

A woman’s blouse from Denmark (Plate 38: Garments 1, 2, 9 & 10; Figure 2.18) is cut from
one piece. The bodice wraps to the centre back and attaches to a yoke seam from which the sleeves jut
out. Burnham (1973: 20) states that the shape of animal skins influenced this cut; Hungrywolf (2003:
47-48) explains the making of a Native American dress from two skins that bears a similarity to the
European examples. This is not to say that the European garments in question were influenced by
those from America; Europe has its own history of garments made from animal skins. A baby blouse
that belonged to my grandmother (born in Finland in 1923) is based on the same cut (Figure 2.18),
as are garments by Balenciaga (Figure 2.7), Teng (Figure 2.25) and Telfer (Figure 2.30).
Figure 2.18: Blouses from Denmark and Finland (circa 1923), demonstrating similarity in cut
Shirts that seem similar in their t-shape but are in fact cut differently are common in texts on
European historical dress. The difference to the previous examples is that the sleeves are cut
separately from the body. A t-shaped blouse worn by the seamen and fishermen of Bornholm,
Denmark, (Tilke 1956: Plate 38: Garment 24) seems to be cut for maximum efficiency. Shep
and Cariou (1999: xxiv) reproduce the cutting diagram for a men’s shirt from 1837, which
echoes the shape of the Danish blouse described above. The entire shirt is cut from rectangles
that form an interlocking grid on a particular length of fabric, thus producing no waste.
However, from the diagrams shown it is very difficult to determine how the pieces correspond
to a finished shirt. The authors also include two square-cut shirts from the “Keystone Shirt

System” from 1895 (121, 123). By the late nineteenth century many men’s shirts were already
similar to contemporary men’s shirts in cut, utilising curves around armholes and neck1, but
these examples were work wear and frugality would have influenced the cut. An eighteenth
century men’s shirt illustrated by Hart (1987: 153) is a simpler version of the principle. Burn-
ham (1973) illustrates several shirts cut using the same principles, making a note of the fabric
width in relation to the cut. A man’s linen shirt from England or America featured by Baumgar-
ten et al (1999: 105–108) from 1775–1790 is also cut from a series of rectangles. Further
examples, from Estonia and Finland respectively, can be found in Kaarma & Voolma (1981:
28-30, 45) and Lehtinen & Sihvo (1984: 155-162). Figure 2.19 illustrates three examples of
these shirts. Vivienne Westwood mentions the use of a 500-year-old shirt pattern as the basis
for the Pirate collection of 1981 (Wilcox 2004: 9); the visual connection between the shirts
shown here and Westwood’s work from the early 1980s is clear.
Figure 2.19: Cut of shirt from 1837 (Shep & Cariou 1999), square-cut shirt from 1930 (Burnham 1973),
square-cut shirt from 1775-1790 (Baumgarten et al 1999)
1 Breward (1995: 172) notes how throughout the nineteenth century men’s clothes became more refined in fit.

Arnold (1977(1966): 3) discusses fourteenth century dresses from Greenland, which use
interlocking gores on a full width of fabric to create fullness in the skirt with minimal waste.
She also details ways in which off-cut waste was often used as part of the interlining of a
garment, similar in principle to the kimono collar described earlier. Ginsburg (1984: 17)
describes a seventeenth century knitted jacket made of rectangles. Like the curve of the kimono
sleeve, curved neck and underarm shaping are achieved by turning under sections of fabric.
2.2.2 Modern zero-waste fashion design

From early twentieth century onwards it is possible to identify the creators of garments that
demonstrate a relationship between fabric width and garment cut, the foundation of zero-waste
garments. It is likely that others were involved through collaboration with the named designer;
this is, however, difficult to ascertain from the available literature. The Italian futurist artist
Thayaht (Ernesto Michahelles) launched the tuta, or overalls in 1919 (Stern 2004: 43). The
entire body is cut in one piece, with the cutout wedge between the legs used for front facings.
Gussets under the arms and at the crotch allow better movement. Figure 2.20 illustrates several
versions of the tuta, including a two-piece for men, and a dress version for women. English
(Chenoune 1993: 142) and Italian (Stern 2004: 43) versions of the original tuta cut are known;
the English version, slightly cropped, is included here.
Figure 2.20: The cut of Thayaht’ tuta, Thayaht wearing the tuta, sketches for men’s one- and two-piece tuta
and women’s tuta dress.
Thayaht worked for Parisian couturier Madeleine Vionnet in the early twenties. Kirke
(1998) demonstrates several garments by Vionnet that exhibit an affinity with fabric width.
A Vionnet dress from 1919-20 is essentially four squares of fabric, with minimal shaping
(Kirke 1998: 54-5). Twisting the front shoulder against the back before joining eliminates

armhole and neck gape (Figure 2.21). Thayaht’s tuta and Vionnet’s square dress date from
the same year, 1919. To accommodate the expansive garment cuts, Vionnet worked closely
with the textile mill Bianchini & Ferier to have wider than usual fabrics woven for her
(Kamitsis 1996: 12; Kirke 1998: 80).
Figure 2.21: Dress by Madeleine Vionnet (1919) from Kirke (1998) and Demornex (1991)
Bernard Rudofsky (1947: 137-48) was critical of the European tradition of cutting fabric to
make clothes, and applied his knowledge of traditional dress into the Bernardo Separates
range in 1950 (Bocco Guarneri 2003: 294; Figure 2.23). The clothes were adjustable and
one-size-fits-all, made from rectangular pieces of fabric. Rudofsky aimed to minimise waste
as well as sewing (LIFE, 1951), to keep the clothes financially accessible to most. In 1944
Rudofsky included garments by Claire McCardell as examples of zero-waste fashion design
in the exhibition Are Clothes Modern? (Rudofsky 1947: 201). The pattern diagrams for the
McCardell garments (Figure 2.22) have been simplified, and do not include all the pieces.
Notably, Rudofsky (1947: 204) included Max Tilke’s pattern diagrams (see section 2.2.1) in
the exhibition catalogue.

Figure 2.22: Dress and jacket by Claire McCardell (circa 1944) featured in “Are Clothes Modern?”
Figure 2.23: Drawings by Tilke in Rudofsky (1947) and Bernardo Separates by Rudofsky (circa 1951).
An English designer, Zandra Rhodes, often allows the printed fabric determine the pattern
shapes of a garment (see Section 2.1.3). Rhodes was trained as a textile rather than fashion
designer and yet for Rhodes pattern cutting is an integral aspect of the fashion design process.
On her time at the Royal College of Art, Rhodes says: “I enjoyed the discipline of the prints,
that they had to be cut and used economically, that I had to consider measurements and repeats,

that it was both technical and artistic at the same time, and directed towards an end product
outside the pattern itself.” (11) The cut of a blouse from 1979 (Zandra Rhodes 2005: 34-5),
while not entirely eliminating waste, demonstrates this approach clearly. The sleeve and peplum
pieces interlock fully, while the bodice length is determined by the space left over by the afore-
mentioned pieces. A dress from the same collection (Figure 2.24) demonstrates a variation of
the same textile print-drive approach to designing a garment (McQuillan & Rissanen 2011: 8).
Interestingly Tilke’s (1956) “Costume patterns and designs” was an early influence on Rhodes
(Rhodes & Knight 1984: 37). Rhodes’s contemporary, Vivienne Westwood, also discusses her
dislike of wasting fabric (Wilcox 2004: 9), but there are no concrete examples given.
Figure 2.24: Dress by Zandra Rhodes (1979)
Yeohlee Teng, an American designer, has adopted faabric waste minimisation as a key element
of her design practice since 1981 (Major & Teng 2003: 14). The pattern of a cape (155) described
as cut “with no waste” (18) shows that roughly ten per cent of the fabric is wasted. However, the
patterns of two complex sarongs from 2001 demonstrate full utilisation of the fabric, as does
that of a coat from 1997 (171; Figure 2.25). In its cut the coat is similar to the Danish blouse
in Figure 2.18: folds replace side and shoulder seams to create the body, and sleeves jut out of
one piece of fabric. The illustrated coat pattern (like all the pattern diagrams in the book by
Major and Teng) does not include facings, interlinings or linings, which a rigorous approach to
eliminating waste would demand.

Figure 2.25: Coat by Yeohlee Teng (1997)
In the first decade of the twenty-first century, zero-waste fashion design has become more
widely adopted worldwide. During this study (2004-2012) in particular, new examples have
come to my attention. While I am aware that Materialbyproduct (an Australian company
designed by Susan Dimasi and Chantal Kirby), Andrew Hague (an American designer) and
Friederike von Wedel-Parlow (a German designer) have created zero- or less-waste garments,
patterns for these are not publicly available so they are not included here; to grasp the zero-
waste nature of a garment one needs to see its pattern. The same applies to Kyotap, an Austral-
ian brand owned and designed by Fiona Buckingham. Nevertheless, these designers’ work
warrants commendation. Mark Liu (Figure 2.8) received considerable attention in 2007-8 for
his zero-waste garments (for example, Liu 2010; Fasanella 2007a; Menkes 2008), which in part
facilitated conversation I was able to have about zero-waste fashion design with the media.
Undoubtedly Holly McQuillan (Figure 2.26) has conducted the most significant work
on zero-waste fashion design outside of this study in Wellington, New Zealand. Notably the
work has been largely concurrent to this study, yet until 2008 we were unaware of each other’s
work. McQuillan completed a Masters in 2005; in her thesis zero-waste fashion design was
not the main focus yet it was an integral part of the study, and laid the foundations for McQuil-
lan’s now extensive zero-waste practice and research.

Figure 2.26: Zero-waste coat by Holly McQuillan
In 2011 McQuillan and I curated and exhibited in Yield, a survey exhibition of zero-waste
fashion design. Included in Yield were Rhodes, Teng, Alabama Chanin (Section 1.1.1), Roberts
(Section 2.1.3), Fernandez, Lumsden, Whitty and Telfer, alongside work by McQuillan and my
work from this study (McQuillan & Rissanen 2011). The remaining Yield designers are Tara St
James of Study NY, Caroline Priebe of Uluru and Samuel Formo; these designers’ work from
Yield is shown in Figure 2.27. St James presented her first collection for Study NY in Septem-
ber 2009. The collection was based on squares: look 1 in the show was made from one square,
look 2 from two, and so forth. St James has included zero-waste garments in each collection
since. Priebe’s Westlake dress and its pattern were also exhibited in “Ethics + Aesthetics =
Sustainable Fashion” in 2009-10 exhibition (Scaturro & Granata 2010). In Spring 2011, Priebe
taught the zero-waste course (Chapter 5) at Parsons. Sam Formo created a zero-waste jacket
during his studies at California College of the Arts (CCA). It must be noted that Andrew
Hague, Caroline Priebe and Samuel Formo are all former students of Lynda Grose, professor
at CCA and a fashion industry sustainability pioneer (McLaren 2008; WRI 1992).
Figure 2.27: Garments by St James, Priebe and Formo in Yield

Carla Fernandez (Figure 2.28) is a Mexican designer whose design practice for her
company Flora 2 draws from her research into indigenous textiles and dress (Fernandez, 2006).
She collaborates with indigenous artisans, who weave the fabrics for Flora 2. The cuts of Flora
2 garments draw from those of indigenous garments; there seems to be an intellectual connec-
tion between the approaches by Fernandez and Rudofsky.
Figure 2.28: Garment by Carla Fernandez
McQuillan’s influence on colleagues and students is evident at Massey University. Jennifer

Whitty is an Irish designer and a colleague of McQuillan at Massey. Julia Lumsden completed
her Master of Design at Massey University in 2010 with McQuillan as an advisor; Lumsden’s
collection included several zero-waste men’s shirts (Lumsden, 2010). Zero-waste garments by
Whitty and Lumsden were featured in Yield (Figure 2.29).
Figure 2.29: Garments by Whitty and Lumsden in Yield

David Telfer, a British designer, has explored zero-waste fashion design alongside other
concerns for efficiency, such as minimal fabric utilisation and minimal seaming. The cut of the duffel
coat he exhibited in Yield (McQuillan & Rissanen, 2011: 24) bears a resemblance to the blouses in
Figure 2.18; the body, sleeves and hood are not separated from the original piece as slashes are used.
Figure 2.30: Zero-waste duffel coat by David Telfer
During the last two years of this study, there has been a considerable increase in the number of
young designers exploring zero-waste fashion design, as evidenced by the many emails I receive
from them. While they are too many to mention, Simone Austen’s undergraduate collection, all
zero-waste, demands acknowledgment, as does a collection by Yitzhak Abecassis, who created
a collection entirely through cutting slashes into single pieces of fabric.
Figure 2.31: Zero-waste garments by Yitzhak Abecassis (2011) and Simone Austen (2011)

With the presence of zero-waste fashion design in the fashion media, books on fashion
and sustainability and online, it seems likely that both established companies and designers and
new designers entering the industry, as well as institutions teaching fashion design, will increas-
ingly adopt zero-waste fashion design.
2.3 Method of enquiry adopted in this project
2.3.1 From design briefs to frames for practice

From the contextual review (Section 2.2) emerging concepts were developed into a series of
design briefs to direct the design practice. I regarded this early phase as a series of experi-
ments. It can be seen as a sensitising phase: the practitioner feeling his way around unfamil-
iar territory. The design briefs are included in Appendix B; this section includes an overview
of the issues that were drawn from the contextual review for design exploration. Section
2.2.2, on modern zero-waste fashion design, has expanded considerably since late 2006
when the practice phase commenced. Some of the designers uncovered later during the
study have explored some of the issues that I had incorporated into the design briefs; these
will be discussed where relevant.
Prior to the practice phase, I had conceived the experiments and the designing of a
collection as two discreet phases. During practice, however, the experiment phase did not
end and collection design began. Post-practice it is also not possible to point out when the
experiment phase finished and the collection design commenced. On reflection, it is more
useful to look at the practice phase as one whole. The practice phase is presented in the
larger context of the entire study in Figure 2.32.
Relatively early during the practice phase I wrote the following in the journal: “I’m feel-
ing more and more, that rather than stick to rigid briefs and follow them to a tee, I should
respond to what I’m finding out and tailor future practice so that it inquires into issues arising
from practice as I go. That’s not to say the briefs to date are worthless; I think it’s important to
keep checking that the practice doesn’t become ‘stuck’ around one issue or group of issues, but
that it is covering all the issues raised from both the literature and practice, and later on, from
peers.” (Appendix C, transcription of journal page 52, dated March 18, 2007.) This comment
demonstrates how practice-based research can dynamically react to issues arising from the
practice itself. This is called theoretical sampling: “Data gathering driven by concepts derived

Figure 2.32: Timeline of this study
Research activity (inward facing) Dissemination (outward facing)
October 2004: application for PhD
September 2005: Creativity conference

presentation in Copenhagen, Denmark
March 2006: Doctoral Assessment,
UTS, Sydney, Australia
August 2006: InForm symposium presentation,

Sydney, Australia
December 2006: First experiments
in studio (undocumented)
March 2007: Intensive practice

phase begins
May 2007: Dressing Rooms conference
presentation in Oslo, Norway
May 2007: Nordes Conference presentation

in Stockholm, Sweden
February 2008: chapter in Sustainable

Fashion: Why Now? published
August 2008: intensive practice phase ends August 2008: Bad Dogs exhibition
November 2008: Analysis of journals begins
August 2009: testing of findings

August 2009: Fashioning Now exhibition
through design practice
October 2009: Course on zero-waste

fashion design written for Parsons
August 2010: first Zero-Waste Garment

course at Parsons begins
December 2010:
Analysis of journals complete
February 2011: student work from Zero-Waste
Garment course exhibited in New York, USA
July 2011: The Cutting Circle at Massey

University, Wellington, New Zealand
October 2012: submission of thesis

from the evolving theory and based on the concept of ‘making comparisons’, whose purpose is
to go to places, people, or events that will maximize opportunities to discover variations among
concepts and to densify categories in terms of their properties and dimensions” (Strauss &
Corbin 1998: 201). Early practice in this project was also used to inform further practice.
The model of identifying alternative frames for practice and using these frames to structure
the practice component of the research was developed with the specific aim of countering the
tendency of practitioners to rely on their own particular “habits” of practice. Prior readings and
professional experience as both a fashion designer and a pattern cutter had suggested that approaches
to fashion design and pattern cutting practices varied from one practitioner to another. In order to
avoid limiting the scope of the project to the researcher’s own approach, alternative frames for
practice were identified through literature. This literature ranged from monographs on fashion
designers to fashion magazine articles and pattern cutting manuals. Nine approaches to fashion
design were identified; these are discussed in 2.1.3. The approaches were varying sequences of
different activities: sketching, draping, pattern cutting and acquiring an existing garment for copy-
ing. Three approaches were rejected because they were copying rather than designing, and one
because it was primarily relevant to a combination of fashion and textile print design practice,
which was not the focus of this project. The remaining five approaches were used to develop design
briefs to guide practice. The aim was to ensure that the diversity of practice in industry was reflected
in the practice within the project. Notably, three of the five approaches were significantly different
from the researcher’s own previous approaches to practice.
The following design guides under three categories were developed from the garments
covered in section 2.2 and were used to develop the design briefs for the experiments. The aim
was to find common elements in the garments rather than articulate the differences in cultural
or historical contexts, for example. The aim was to acquire a sense of “what has been done
before” – even the contemporary examples (e.g. Mark Liu) were historical in the context of this
research. The garments, despite their differing cultural and historical contexts, can arguably lead
to valid questions about zero-waste fashion design.
Fabric in zero-waste fashion design

Fabric is inherently central to this project and the intrinsic qualities of fabric lead to specific
questions for design practice. Fabric width must be a design criterion from the outset because it
defines one of the spatial dimensions from which the garment is cut. It is common in industry
to produce a successful seller in different fabrics of different widths. In zero-waste fashion design

this may not be possible because the configuration of pattern pieces will be different on two
different fabric widths. This may, however, be an opportunity for bringing depth into a collection
through design variations: for example, a shirt initially conceived on 140cm-wide fabric may be
adapted to fabric that is 110cm wide. A new design is created but common elements with the
initial design are retained, a useful tool for creating depth in collection development. It must be
considered that many fabrics are prone to variation in width and small faults during weaving or
knitting. Allowances for slight variation may therefore be necessary in individual garments of
one style. For example, selvedge, the finished fabric edge, may be shorter or longer than the main
body of the fabric; either variation could have implications for zero-waste fashion design.
Pattern design
Some questions arising from the garments in section 2.2 are best described as relating to the
design of the garment patterns. Two broad categories emerge: square-cut and tailored. Square-
cut refers to garments that are cut from primarily rectangular or triangular pattern shapes;
straight pattern piece edges dominate. Tailored refers to patterns that make use of curved
pattern edges. Rectangular pattern shapes seem to be more common in the reviewed zero-waste
garments, in particular among “zero-waste fashion design without fashion designers”. This
might suggest that zero-waste design leads to basic box and t-shaped garments. However, the
offsetting of two identical rectangular pattern pieces against each other creates shapes beyond
the basic box and t-shapes. Tilke (1956: Plate 89: Garments 6 & 7, 9 & 10) demonstrates this
in a pair of trousers from China. A Japanese designer, Yoshiki Hishinuma explored the same
principle extensively in the 1980s (Hishinuma 1986: 162-172). Vivienne Westwood refers to
geometric fabric having a “terrific dynamic” (Wilcox 2004: 31); some of her early work could
be described as explorations of geometric pattern shapes. In Thayaht’s tuta a traditionally curved
crotch seam is replaced with a triangular gusset inserted into front and back slashes. Eliminat-
ing curved pattern edges may in some circumstances facilitate fabric waste elimination.
Interlocking gores can create graduated fullness in a garment while possibly making
fabric waste elimination easier. Arnold (1977(1966): 3) discusses gore use in fourteenth century
gowns from Greenland, while Baumgarten, Watson and Carr (1999: 43-46, 57-60) show
advanced examples of the same principle from eighteenth century Europe. Cutting slashes into
a pattern piece combined with the use of gussets may sometimes replace shaped seams in creat-
ing three-dimensional shapes. Yitzhak Abecassis has explored the use of slashes extensively.
Straight seams may be eliminated by combining pattern pieces into larger ones. The

kimono (Tarrant 1994: 36) has no shoulder seams, with left front becoming left back at shoul-
der and vice versa. In Thayaht’s tuta the entire body is cut in one without side seams. At times
even curved edges or seams maybe converted into folds. Ginsburg (1984: 17) describes how the
underarm and neckline curves were achieved through folding in a seventeenth century knitted
jacket. The hem of a circular skirt in haute couture is often a fold, with the excess internal full-
ness controlled with darts, tucks or gathers (Shaeffer 2001: 65). Adapting this to ready-to-wear
warrants experimentation.
Seam and hem allowances may vary in width, allowing more fabric to be incorporated
into a garment internally. This “excess” can have functional properties, in enabling repair or alter-
ation (wider seam allowance is common on the centre back seam of men’s trousers, to allow for
possible growth in the wearer), or through added weight helping with the hang of a garment part
(curved kimono sleeves; Dobson 2004: 53). “Excessive” seam allowances are sometimes regarded
as “waste” by manufacture. Cooklin (1997: 10) states that 5.5 percent of the total fabric in a
garment is in the seam and hem allowances, and that the pattern cutter is responsible for ensur-
ing “that all these allowances are the practical minimum possible”. This does not, however,
account for the enabling of future transformative practices that can result from larger allowances.
Small fabric pieces can be potentially useful as internal or external structural compo-
nents. For example, selvedge strips can be used to stabilize armholes or necklines (internal;
Shaeffer 2001: 49-50), while often high-end garments may be sold with a small piece of the
garment fabric (external). The consumer can use this piece to test laundering or for garment
repair. An eighteenth century shift (Baumgarten, Watson & Carr 1999: 57-60) has fabric
rectangles appliquéd internally to reinforce the armhole and shoulder area.
Garment design
Garment design best describes issues relating to the visual and technical design of a garment.
Designing more than one style of garment simultaneously and cutting these together from one
piece of fabric can (but does not necessarily) reduce the amount of fabric waste. This approach
is demonstrated in tailors’ practice of cutting two- or three-piece suits; the jacket and trouser
pieces (and sometimes vest) are mixed on a length of fabric (Cabrera & Flaherty Meyers 1983:
57). Yeohlee Teng minimised waste on a seven-metre length of fabric by designing and cutting
three different dresses within it simultaneously (Major & Teng 2003: 80-83). Holly McQuillan
designed three garments together for Yield in 2011 (McQuillan & Rissanen 2011, 54). Poten-
tial disadvantages include an overly complex design process, and the fact that in manufacture

an equal number of each garment would need to be cut, regardless of whether an equal number
of orders for each garment had been received.
Zero-waste fashion design requires simultaneous consideration of the garment’s technical
and aesthetic elements, and simultaneous consideration of the garment in two and three dimen-
sions. The latter is less common in conventional practice: usually the garment design is first resolved
through a two-dimensional sketch, a two-dimensional pattern is then cut and finally the three-
dimensional garment created. Furthermore, conventionally a pattern cutter may consider only a
part of a garment at a time and progressively create the pattern pieces. To eliminate fabric waste,
the entire garment must remain a consideration throughout the pattern cutting process.
It may take longer to create a garment with entirely interlocking pattern pieces (thus
without wasting fabric) than to create one through more conventional methods. While this
may initially seem a negative attribute, it has the potential of inciting a more carefully planned
fashion design process. Waddell (2004: 40) notes how up to a fifth of sampled garment styles
in a collection are not taken through to production, representing a considerable amount of
wasted time and resources to the company. Zero-waste fashion design may offer an opportunity
to consider more carefully which garment styles to take to sampling phase; this would require
close consultation with the sales department.
2.3.2 Journaling
In and of themselves the garments created in this project are not new knowledge about fashion
creation without fabric waste creation. It is likely that an external observer would see garments
but not understand what new knowledge, if any, was created through designing and making
them. Showing the garment pattern layouts demonstrating the zero-waste nature of the
garment would only tell the viewer that – these are garments that were made without wasting
fabric. The research question, however, asks what the opportunities are for such an approach to
fashion creation. The garments and their patterns by themselves would likely reveal nothing
about this. It is the processes of designing and making such garments, and the problems and
insights encountered during those processes that are the subject of study in this project. Docu-
menting these therefore is key to generating new knowledge in this study.
De Freitas (2002) states that active documentation must be strategically planned and
managed as a studio working method. Active documentation is “a process of knowledge
construction that may be regarded as a distinct research method appropriate to practice-based
research projects”. De Freitas identifies four areas it is useful for: identifying “the evolution of a

work process”, capturing “accidental progress or problematic blocks”, articulating the “phases of
work that become invisible with progress” and providing a “detached record that is necessary in
the abstraction of research issues”. The latter can be expanded to include transparency in the
research; while the design activity undertaken in this study is hidden from any external observer,
the journal provides an auditable record of it. Richardson (2000: 923) notes that writing never
completely captures the studied world but that nevertheless, writing can be a way of finding out
about a topic: writing is a way of knowing. Prior (2004: 91) elaborates: “…each and every docu-
ment stands in a dual relation to fields of action. Namely, as a receptacle (of instructions,
commands, wishes, report, etc.), as an agent that is open to manipulation by others, and as an
ally or resource to be mobilized for further action.”
A combination of concurrent and retrospective documentation of design activity in the
form of reflective journal was chosen for the project. I was highly accustomed to this approach,
first during undergraduate study and later through my professional design practice. However,
modification to reflective journal documentation was necessary as in this study the objective of
documentation was to generate data, as well as to serve as a design ideation documentation tool
as in previous practice. The journal content falls into three broad types: written text, photo-
graphs and sketches. Written text in form of overlaid comments accompanies the latter two for
the most part. Photographs are primarily of patterns (including on fabric), toiles and garments.
Sketches are of both garments and their patterns.
Journal documentation was concurrent to designing and an intrinsic part of the design
process. The journal was always close by during designing, pattern cutting and making. Apart
from the vital role the journal played for this study, it was equally vital to designing. In particu-
lar, it was helpful being able to return to both verbal and visual accounts of challenging episodes
of designing, on one hand to reread the issues and on the other to see them. At the time I
regarded some of the documentation as retrospective, but on reflection it is difficult to docu-
ment problem solving in retrospect without re-entering a problem solving, reflective mindset
during the documentation. Thus, I regard all of the documentation as concurrent; it is insepa-
rable from the design activity. When faced with a design problem, a designer is likely to process
facets of the problem not only during pre-planned design activity but often extensively during
other periods; the designing mind does not necessarily cease to operate during periods of leisure
or rest. While at the time these “retrospective” episodes of documentation were not part of pre-
planned design activity, on reflection they were a crucial aspect of it.
Pedgley (2007: 473) provides a useful overview of “good practice in diary writing”. In this

study “journal” is used over “diary”, namely because “diary” tends to have connotations of
personal documentation or time management. I consider Pedgley’s overview the most useful for
rigorous documentation in a research context; however, I discovered the overview some 18
months into the practice phase of the project.
Figure 2.33: Good practice in journal writing (Pedgley 2007: 473)
The first point concerns chronology and describing the work in the same sequence that
it occurred. I expected this to be highly relevant for documenting a zero-waste fashion design
process, an iterative process of problem defining and solving. Each journal entry was dated, and
when several units of design activity were accounted for in a single day, the time of entries was
also recorded. This allowed the chronological reconstruction of design processes for each
garment designed during the project, and identification of major problems and how they were
eventually solved. Not all processes can be wholly constructed in retrospect but nevertheless
narratives for processes do emerge. At times I experienced the second point, clarity, as a chal-
lenge during practice. In particular, I was nervous that my documentation was primarily
descriptive and somewhat lacking in insight. In this regard, it was helpful to ask, “What is
different here in relation to a conventional design process?” On reflection, the descriptive entries
are sources of insight about what was happening in terms of practice at a particular moment,
while analytical entries point towards the thinking about that practice at that time.
Focus refers to succinct entries. This was not an issue and mostly the entries are brief,
reflecting the intensity of problem solving patterns. During transcribing the benefit of succinct
entries becomes clear. Images in this study comprise sketches and photographs, mostly overlaid
with written notes. Sketches vary from conventional sketches of garments to sketches of pattern

piece shapes and preliminary tests of how pattern pieces might fit and interact on a fabric
width. Photography was used extensively to document pattern development and toile fittings,
as well as garment details. While Pedgley (2007: 473) mentions moving images, in this project
no video was used to document design activity.
It may be impossible for a designer or a researcher not to process the day’s activity
outside of designated hours. Unplanned or out-of-hours designing should be accounted for the
next day. In this study, however, such documentation mostly occurred each night, with the
benefit of documentation having occurred relatively soon after the activity, lessening the risk of
decreased memory of what had actually occurred. Throughout the practice phase I had the
journal nearby in case insights occurred well outside the designated times of designing. In this
respect the chosen format of a ring-bound journal seems advantageous; it is easy to carry
around. On occasions that it is not near, I propose documentation through available means, and
incorporating this documentation in the journal when possible. This leads to my fist suggested
addition to the list: appropriateness. The format of hand-written entries in a ring-bound journal
is comfortable to me; at the time of commencing the practice phase it had been integral to my
practice for a decade. This, however, may not be the case for everyone. The format of the journal
should be what the researcher-practitioner is most comfortable with, in order for it not to
impede on the practice it intends to document.
During the project four separate journals with 120 pages each were required. To ensure
ease of later referencing, continuous page numbers were used. In other words, the first page of
the second journal was designated 121, the first page of the third journal was 241 and so forth.
In particular, during transcribing and consequent analysis rigorous administration proved
useful. A considerable number of paper and card2 garment patterns, pattern layouts, toiles as
well as finished garments were produced during the practice phase. Modelling administration
in this study meant that all garment patterns and pattern layouts were dated to ensure that they
could later be examined, if required, in conjunction with journal entries. Toiles were numbered
and dated, and specification sheets were created for the finished sample garments to document
details such as fabric usage and trims used for each garment.
This study would suggest two more additions to Pedgley’s otherwise useful points about
good practice in journaling. The researcher is likely to benefit greatly from revisiting journal
entries regularly during the practice phase. This might be daily or weekly activity; it should be
2 Sometimes a first pattern, or part of, may be done on paper rather than card. After fitting the toile, the paper pattern is
transferred onto card.

formally planned into a practice-based research project. In this study the greatest insights
often emerged from returning to and reflecting on older journal entries, sometimes after a
considerable period of time. The second recommendation is to transcribe either daily or weekly
where journaling is done by hand; in this study the 400+ pages were transcribed after the
practice phase. An alternative would be to maintain the journal digitally from the outset. In
this study, the journal was also the sketchbook and the manual method seemed the most
appropriate and natural.
All of these points, while aiming to contribute towards rigorous documentation, also
ensure that the journals can be externally audited if the need were to arise. Transcription of the
journal is included in Appendix C. The journal is a constructed representation of what occurred
(Atkinson & Coffey 2004: 58) but nevertheless it externalises the experience of practice,
contributing towards transparency and explicitness of that experience. Reflective journal docu-
mentation is a research skill like interviewing is a skill. Several years of journal documentation
prior to this project proved helpful, although documentation during the study was more rigor-
ous in a research-oriented design setting rather than the previous professional setting.
2.3.3 Overview of coding and categories

The coding and category building processes will be discussed in detail in Section 3.1 but chron-
ologically these warrant a mention here. Methods outlined by Strauss & Corbin (1998) guided
these processes. Coding was commenced six months after the initial practice phase and refined
and completed over a two-year period. Instead of line-by-line coding common in much quali-
tative research, each journal entry was treated as a datum for coding. This ensured that the study
remained in the domain of emergent, “up from data” research; this was deemed important as the
field had been the subject of little formal investigation prior to this study.
2.3.4 Exhibitions
I exhibited garments from the project in four exhibitions: Bad Dogs (2008), Fashioning Now
(2009), Zero-Waste: Fashion Re-patterned (2011) and Yield (2011). Exhibiting has been the
primary means of showing the garments to a broader public. Mäkelä (2006: 75) deems the
function of exhibition important in the kind of practice-based research she calls “retroactive”.
In my experience, the informal conversations with exhibition visitors have proven most insight-
ful, but the lack of documentation, the lack of a permanent record of these interactions, is an
issue. The two exhibitions in 2011, Fashion Re-patterned and Yield, received some publicity

(for example, Scaturro 2011) but in my view there has been a lack of critique in these; perhaps
it is time to put an end to a certain politeness around sustainability in fashion.
2.3.5 Other voices

Throughout this project I have been fortunate to receive feedback on the topic from
external sources to supplement the faultless efforts of my supervisors. I first presented a paper
from this project, focusing on the history of zero-waste fashion design, at a conference in
Denmark in 2005. The feedback from the conference audience was enthusiastic. A number of
people (other fashion design academics) asked whether I would take some of the findings
forward into practice. This was significant in reassuring me that the planned practice (at the
time another year into the future) was relevant; at the time (in 2005) there was still considerable
lack of consensus about incorporating design practice into a PhD.
In 2006 I was invited to present work-in-progress at the InForm symposium at UTS;
the focus of the symposium was practice-based design research. Following the presentation, I
submitted a paper for review; one of the two reviewers rejected it from publication while the
other accepted. One of the key criticisms from the former was that my research did not address
the larger issue of fashion as waste through planned obsolescence and brief use lives. A paper
that was accepted a year later (Rissanen 2007b) received a similar comment from one reviewer:
“I am skeptical about the premises [sic] for the work - that it is important from environmental
perspective to get rid of 10% fabric waste when the whole garment often is thrown away before
it is used as much as it can. These questions and the conditions for the work is not discussed
enough.” This was and remains a valid point; at the time I did not present zero-waste fashion
design in its broader context of fashion and sustainability. In this thesis, and Chapters 1 and 5
in particular, however, I do. During 2007 I wrote a book chapter (Rissanen 2008a), for which I
received feedback from the publisher. The book, Sustainable Fashion: Why Now? in some ways
responded to these reviewers in that my necessarily focused chapter was one of 15 and thus sat
in a broader picture of sustainability in fashion. The feedback from the publisher did not ques-
tion the issue at hand.
At the suggestion of my then supervisor, Dr Cameron Tonkinwise and following the
example of a fellow PhD student, Dr Zoë Sadokierski, I established a blog for my research in
September 2006. The blog has been a useful platform in opening zero-waste fashion design to
critique and allowing me to make contact with others around the world interested in the same
topic. Kathleen Fasanella (2007b) first mentioned my research on her blog Fashion Incubator

in November 2007, and this led to coverage from other bloggers. I first posted images of my
garments and patterns in August 2009. The interest, in terms of comments left on the blog,
visitor numbers as well as other bloggers taking the topic on, increased significantly from there
on. The feedback at the time was mostly encouraging and positive.
One primarily negative online forum discussion on zero-waste fashion design and this
research, took place in October 2011, on Artisan Square (http://artisanssquare.com/). While
some valid points were raised in the discussion, many of the comments were ill-informed and
narrow in vision. Oddly enough, the initiator of the discussion titled “Let me fume about zero-
waste cutting” had emailed me two years earlier about the possibility of publishing a book based
on this study.
During the final year of this project (2011-12) a number of companies have approached
me regarding zero-waste fashion design. These have included Eileen Fisher, H&M and
Marimekko. Furthermore, through teaching the zero-waste course at Parsons, I collaborated
with Loomstate during 2010-11 on producing a zero-waste garment (Rosenbloom 2010).
Concurrent to this industry interest, I have been invited by several universities to speak about
zero-waste. These have included Samsung Art and Design Institute (Seoul 2010), Columbia
College Chicago (Chicago 2011), Kwantlen Polytechnic University (Vancouver 2011), Califor-
nia College of the Arts (San Francisco 2011) and Aalto University (Helsinki 2011 and 2012).
When I wrote the proposal for this study in October 2004, I could not have imagined
the rich conversations about zero-waste fashion design I would get to have with colleagues,
students, and old and new friends. Nor did I anticipate the global interest in what I was setting
up to study. While I acknowledge many individuals at the front of this thesis, I also want to
acknowledge all of the individuals and institutions mentioned here: thank you. Many of the
insights I have had during this study have arisen from the conversations with you.

3.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR
ZERO-WASTE
FASHION DESIGN
T
his chapter presents opportunities that exist for fashion creation without fabric waste
creation. These opportunities have been uncovered through the practice of designing and
making fashion, and they are examined in the context of conventional fashion industry practices.
First, the criteria for fashion design without fabric waste are discussed. The chapter then focuses
on successful strategies in fashion design situations where fabric waste is a design criterion
alongside other more conventional criteria such as appearance, fit and cost. It is anticipated that
this chapter could function as foundation for a how-to manual for fashion designers who wish
to include the criterion of fabric waste in their fashion design practices. In closing, the chapter
presents broader issues about fashion design without fabric waste that this project has uncovered.
The chapter opens with an overview of how the coding process and subsequent analysis
form the foundations for the project findings. Before the practice phase commenced in this
project, three primary criteria for conventional fashion design were identified: appearance, fit
and cost. In this project, a fourth criterion was added: fabric waste. Beginning with criteria for
fashion design, I will argue that fabric waste as a design criterion needs to be balanced with the
conventional criteria of appearance, fit and cost. The chapter then discusses the relationship
between fashion design and pattern cutting, arguing that to eliminate fabric waste, pattern
cutting needs to be an inseparable part of fashion design rather than a stage that follows design.
Through the contextual research in this project (Chapter 2) two broad approaches to “pattern
cutting the body” were identified: tailored and square-cut. These are presented in the context of
the practice phase, noting that the tailored approach dominates in literature on pattern cutting
as well as industry practice, whilst historically square-cut garments dominated where woven
fabrics were used to make clothes. It will be argued that fashion design without fabric waste is
more feasible with a hierarchical approach to garment elements, resolving the garment shape
(macro) first and then moving to resolve garment details (micro). This strategy is called “build-
ing a shape library”. The chapter presents “shape awareness” and “space awareness” as significant
aspects of designing fashion without fabric waste, presenting strategies for managing scale
during the design process. Marker making, conventionally in the domain of manufacture, is
presented as part of fashion design, particularly within later stages of designing. Similarly, while
grading patterns remains within manufacture, it needs to be considered during a zero-waste
fashion design process.
In closing, the chapter discusses some broader issues relating to fashion design and
sustainability uncovered in the contextual research phase of the project (Chapter 2). Whilst
these were not the primary focus of this project, zero-waste fashion design practice must be
72 | chapter 3: opportunities for zero-waste fashion design

considered in the broader context of sustainability and fashion. Reflecting back on Chapter 2,
I argue that fashion design can actively engage with its past beyond mere visual referencing of
past fashion; knowledge gleaned from historical sources can be actively applied in current fash-
ion design practice as it occurred in this project. The role of fashion design literature in this
engagement will be discussed. Two issues relating to time close the chapter. First, it will be
argued that fashion design can enable or disable future transformative practices relating to the
physical durability and longevity of a garment. Fashion design can facilitate later repair and
alteration of a garment as well as delay the need for repair; it is suggested that fashion design
without fabric waste can provide strategies for enabling future repair and alteration. These
issues were examined through practice with the garments created for Fashioning Now in 2009
(Rissanen 2011a). The second issue relating to time arises from a possible slowing down of the
design process that may occur when the fabric waste criterion is included in fashion design. It
will be argued that this may have positive implications for fashion design, allowing greater
reflection and a deeper engagement between practice and the practitioner. Nevertheless, it is
also acknowledged that the slower design processes experienced in the early stages of practice
sped up with time and increased expertise; with sustained practice, zero-waste fashion design
may not be any slower than conventional fashion design.
3.1 Overview of coding and categories
During the practice, the design processes of each garment were documented through writing
and visuals (sketching and photography). After concluding the practice phase in the project, the
journal was transcribed using Microsoft Excel (Appendix C). Each discreet entry was given a
unique entry number, and each specific experiment and garment was given a style number. This
allowed extracting a chronological account of the design process for each experiment and
garment when collating and analysing this data. Whilst none of the accounts provides a
complete picture of the process, many of the accounts are nevertheless rich in detail about the
challenges encountered and how these were tackled.
As each journal entry was transcribed, it was coded; up to ten codes were assigned per
entry. The coding process was commenced approximately six months after the practice phase
had been completed. Codes were not preconceived; instead, they emerged from data and were
created after examining the content of each entry. In other words, the codes arose from the
chapter 3: opportunities for zero-waste fashion design | 73

verbal and visual documentation of practice. The coding process was largely informed by that
described in the context of grounded theory by Strauss & Corbin (1998). I recognised early in
the research that grounded theory is an approach where codes and categories, and the result-
ing theory, is generated from data. As little was known about the practice of zero-waste fash-
ion design, testing existing categories was not deemed relevant for this project. The contextual
review (Chapter 2) had led to some hypotheses about zero-waste fashion design but these
were tested through practice, not the coding and consequent analysis. For example, entry 339
from January 18, 2008, was the first written verbalisation of a significant realisation about how
zero-waste fashion design might become easier to practice (Figure 3.1). This and other similar
entries were given the code “Procedure”, with the aim that similar realisations together would
contribute towards successful zero-waste fashion design strategies.
Figure 3.1 Entry 339 from January 18th, 2008.
Coding was a learning process in itself. Some of the initial codes were later deemed too vague or too
detailed (e.g. “accuracy”; “neck”), whilst some unnecessary overlap occurred between some (e.g.
“restricting movement” and “comfort”). Hence the codes were refined and consolidated several times

to provide a more streamlined sense of the practice and the thinking that occurred during designing.
For example, “neck” was subsumed into a more general yet descriptive code “body measurement”. As
the codes became more refined, discreet categories began to emerge. Eventually the following eleven
categories were constructed, noting that many codes appeared under more than one:
Pattern cutting as fashion design tool
Opportunities for fabric waste elimination through design
Challenges for fabric waste elimination through design
Sketching as a fashion design tool
Fabric and fashion design
Design for manufacture
Design and sustainability
Time and design
Body and garment
References to literature and extant examples of zero-waste/less-waste fashion during practice
Practice-based research
Of these, “Pattern cutting as a fashion design tool” was eventually deemed the most significant.
The realisation that sketching garments as a fashion design tool alone was not sufficient, but
that pattern cutting needed to be integral to the design process, was a breakthrough moment in
this project. Partly this realisation occurred during practice, partly through the later coding and
categorisation. Once I had had the realisation during practice, the design of further garments
became easier and faster. This was significant because up to this point in my practice I had not
always viewed pattern cutting as “active” designing. Once I realised it needed to be, and that I
had to commence pattern cutting before I knew exactly what the garment would appear like
visually, practice freed up considerably.
The codes “Design through pattern” and “Pattern sketch” reflect this realization, both
under the category “Pattern cutting as a fashion design tool”. From the earliest stages of prac-
tice these codes come up regularly. “Design through pattern” pertains to journal entries where
designing was occurring through pattern cutting. An earlier code “Pattern design” was subsumed
into this code, as on close inspection there was unnecessary overlap between the two codes.
“Pattern sketch” refers to entries where sketches of patterns, as different from sketches of
garments, are present. Figure 3.2 shows entries for T-Shirt 4004 (which I abandoned after the
first two toiles) from very early on in the practice, and both codes appear with several sketches

of garment patterns but no sketches of garments. Entries like this are typical throughout the
journal. An entry from late in the practice for Jacket 1005 in Figure 3.3 (which was part of the
exhibition Bad Dogs in August 2008) shows sketching of garments and patterns concurrently.
It is important to note that sketching garments was not abandoned during practice; rather,
sketching patterns was utilised alongside the more traditional approach of garment sketching.
“Pattern sketch” is therefore a distinct code from “Design through sketch”; the latter refers to
sketching garments. Notably, in total “Design through pattern” and “Pattern sketch” appear
roughly twice as many times as “Design through sketch”; this indicates the significance of
pattern cutting as an integral design tool in zero-waste fashion design.
Figure 3.2 Pages 12-13 from journal with transcription and codes

Figure 3.3 Journal page 399 with coding

3.2 Garment appearance, fit, cost and fabric waste in designing fashion
Through the journal entries, the code “Fabric waste” appears in about ten percent of all entries. This
indicates that at times fabric waste was not necessarily a foremost concern and might seem odd in
a research project about fabric waste elimination. In conventional fashion design, the three main
criteria for the fashion designer during designing are the appearance, fit and cost of a garment. This
statement is based on my own practice as a fashion designer; to my knowledge no texts discuss
them succinctly together. Appearance tends to be the focus of fashion design manuals for fashion
students, fit is generally covered in pattern cutting manuals, while cost tends to be the focus of texts
on fashion manufacturing. For example, in a manual aimed at undergraduate fashion design
students, Sorger and Udale (2006) fail to include any discussion of cost or its impact on design. In
a similar manual, Jenkyn Jones (2002: 141) concedes that the significance of cost as a criterion for
fashion design in “fashion school” may not reflect its significance in the fashion industry. The
Jenkyn Jones manual nevertheless includes a reasonable discussion on cost (54).
These three criteria are not stable concepts in that the company employing the fashion
designer and the company’s core market impact on the relative importance of each. Appearance
refers to garment appearance, or its “visual aesthetics”, and it is often treated as the most signif-
icant criterion of fashion design. Appearance includes attributes such as garment shape, balance,
and use of colour, texture and line, sometimes described as principles and elements of fashion
design ( Jenkyn Jones 2002: 76-86). Fit refers to the relationship between garment and body.
Particular aspects of fit are subject to little interpretation; a sleeve that swings forwards causing
wrinkles in the sleeve/armhole junction and at the elbow, may be treated universally as “incor-
rect” fit. Nevertheless, fit is company-specific and therefore a subjective concept. Garment fit
needs to reflect the core customer of a company, catering to customers’ notions of “good fit” and
comfort. Cost refers to garment cost: how much it costs a company to produce a garment. Cost
is made up of a number of variables. Fabric and other materials account for approximately 50
percent of garment cost and labour accounts for 20 percent, with the remainder comprising
company overheads (Cooklin 1997: 9). In designing, the three criteria of appearance, fit and
cost (along with other less central criteria) are rarely treated separately; for example, an exami-
nation of fit includes an examination of the garment appearance on the body, and possibilities
regarding appearance are tempered by concerns about cost.
This is reflected somewhat in the distribution of codes. The code “Economic saving”
appears only twice; on reflection, this is less reflective of cost not having been a criterion during

designing in this project but rather, given that the focus of practice was fabric waste elimination,
I did not write about garment cost in the journal. My previous design practice in industry has
imprinted me in that cost is almost always a consideration for me during designing; the excep-
tion would be a conceptual exhibition-only piece. Fit, as seen in the code “Garment fit”, appears
significantly more often, in approximately 15 percent of the entries. This is reflective of the fact
that fit is inseparable from the garment pattern, and fit was often a primary concern during
practice. Appearance, as denoted by the code “Aesthetics in design”, appears in ten percent of
the entries but almost entirely during later entries. Again, this is mostly reflective of appearance
being a constant criterion in all of my design practice.
3.2.1 Criteria in designing fashion without fabric waste

Fashion design without fabric waste adds a fourth criterion: fabric waste. As a criterion it is
equal in significance to the other three criteria. The criterion means that a garment is designed
and made so that it retains all of the fabric required to make it. Where conventional approaches
to fashion design result in approximately 15 percent fabric wastage (Cooklin 1997: 9), a zero-
waste approach aims for zero wastage. It should be noted that the aim of zero-waste fashion
design in this project is not to create clothes from less fabric. The quantity of fabric required for
a garment determines the length of the marker1; this depends on the designed garment. For
example, an ankle-length skirt is likely to require more fabric than a knee-length skirt. A zero-
waste garment will contain all of the fabric in the marker length and across the fabric width,
regardless of how much fabric there is. Eliminating 15 percent wastage does not necessarily
result in the garment requiring 15 percent less fabric; some of the usual “waste” may be designed
as part of the garment. Whilst I could have added another criterion for the practice – “Mini-
mising fabric usage” – I did not because the focus needed to be fabric waste elimination. The
two are distinct. Notably, Sam Formo and David Telfer have created zero-waste garments
where minimizing fabric usage was a criterion (McQuillan & Rissanen 2011).
The terms “zero-waste fashion design” or “fashion design without fabric waste” may seem to
imply that fabric waste as a criterion is more significant than appearance, fit or cost. However, in
designing and making a zero-waste garment, one needs to balance the concern about fabric wast-
age with concerns about garment appearance, fit and cost. Most of the challenges encountered in
this project arose from trying to achieve this balance, for it would have been relatively effortless to
1 Marker is the cutting plan of a garment containing all the pieces required to make a garment; these pieces are placed on a
fabric width as closely as possible. The length of the marker tells us how much fabric is required to make a particular garment; this
is often referred to as the yield or meterage/yardage.

create a zero-waste garment if the appearance of the garment was compromised, for example, or if
garment fit was treated as a secondary criterion.
Research by the fashion design generally precedes fashion design activity. This includes
thematic or concept research, and research into trends. Both areas of research vary in scope depend-
ing on the company and the market area. These research areas influence particularly the appearance
criterion, and to perhaps a lesser extent the fit and cost criteria. The market area in this study was
hypothetical given that there was no intention to manufacture the garments for sale. Nonetheless,
a sense of an end user, or wearer, was present throughout designing the collection. While there was
no particular theme or concept behind the collection, I chose the title Bad Dogs as it captured a
particular mood and referenced an inspiring group of people in Sydney. As I have matured as a
designer, the need for conducting visual theme research has disappeared. My inspiration is consist-
ently the cloth I work with, and the human body it lives over.
In the early stages of designing the collection, the appearance criterion was difficult to
balance with the fabric waste criterion; deciding on a particular garment detail would be tempered
by concern about how that decision might impact on fabric waste, while attempts to design with
fabric waste as the main criterion resulted in unsatisfactory outcomes in terms of appearance. Once
I had ascertained that a hierarchical approach to resolving garment elements could be a useful
strategy (section 3.3.3 on building a shape library), appearance became easier to resolve. While the
design process may have become seemingly more constrained as it progressed, there was a comfort
in not knowing what the final outcome might look like. The code “Openness to possibility” refers
to this mindset during designing. The realisation that throughout the design process countless
possibilities existed for the appearance of the final garment was a breakthrough. This is a significant
point of difference between conventional fashion design and fashion design without fabric waste:
in conventional practice appearance is resolved through sketching prior to pattern cutting. In fash-
ion design without fabric waste, appearance is resolved incrementally through sketching and
pattern cutting2.
The fit criterion was significant throughout designing the collection, as fit was perceived as
one of the major points of difference that would make this collection unique in the market place.
On the one hand, this translated to significant amounts of toiles and fittings early in the design
process to achieve satisfactory garment fits. On the other, in some cases the garment fit was culti-
vated as an aspect of the design that would remind the wearer he is wearing the garment. This does
not mean deliberate discomfort but rather, a consciousness of the body built into the garment.
2 In both approaches the designer may also use draping.

Much of this is hidden internally in the garments, such as the jockstrap-like elastic in the leggings
(Pant 2007), or the waist stay (a type of internal belt) in the wedge shirt (Shirt 3002). During
designing, the most challenging issue relating to fit arose from garments described as “square-cut”
(see section 3.3.2). This may have been due to my initial lack of experience in working with this
approach to fashion design and pattern cutting – more time was required early on to develop and
resolve fits for these garments. Later, as I became more experienced working with these pattern
shapes, resolving “square-cut fits” did not differ from the more conventional tailored entries.
This project aimed to simulate a “real world” situation: designing garments for a small
company within the designer ready-to-wear market that would produce garments with a strong
and original design direction. Garment cost is an important criterion in a “real world” design situ-
ation (Sinha 2001: 173); the fashion designer needs to be aware of what the customer is willing to
pay for a particular item and to understand the relationship between the retail and cost prices of a
garment. As noted, the codes would imply that cost was not as significant a criterion during the
practice in this project as it would be in a real-world fashion design situation. With experience, the
cost criterion becomes embedded in designing; an experienced fashion designer will only consider
using fabrics within an appropriate price range and is well-equipped to judge various garment
elements in relation to cost. A post-practice examination of the collection suggests that the costs of
the designed garments would not be a prohibitive factor if these garments were manufactured for
market. The yields (amount of fabric required for a garment) are generally on par with those of
conventional garments manufactured in industry, and the costs associated with construction are
competitive, too, based on what the sample machinists employed to make some of the garments
charged for their labour. In fact, some economic benefits may exist with zero-waste garments.
Cutting becomes somewhat faster, as each cutting line separates two pieces. A “shared cut line” is
less common in cutting conventionally designed garments, although this is considered desirable
(Fasanella 1998: 114-5). A garment of 20 pieces generally takes longer to cut than a garment of ten
pieces; a zero-waste garment of 20 pieces, however, is faster to cut than a similar conventional
garment of 20 pieces, due to the shared cut lines3. Finally, fabric waste management and disposal
costs are also reduced or eliminated. Neither of these may directly benefit the company employing
the fashion designer, however; cutting is often subcontracted rather than performed in-house. To
further complicate matters, different service providers may charge for their services differently. An
independent cutter may charge by the hour, in which case some savings could occur for the client.
3 If a garment piece contains one or more slashes (cut lines originating from a piece edge into the piece without dividing it into
two pieces), cutting time waould increase.

A larger cutting house, however, might charge by the number of pieces in a garment; in this case a
zero-waste garment would cost the same to cut as a conventional garment if both contain the same
number of pieces.
Figure 3.4 Table of criteria for fashion design without fabric waste as they emerged from practice in this project.

Different companies may have different secondary criteria for the fashion designer to
address. Similarly, several secondary criteria emerged during designing in this project as outlined
in the table in Figure 3.4. For example, Masculinity as a criterion (and code) refers to a concern
about achieving a balance within a garment that might include elements traditionally considered
“feminine”. For example, silk/hemp satin may be perceived as a feminine fabric; to create a
masculine feel in the wedge shirt (a shirt made from silk/hemp satin), the broad shoulders were
exaggerated and waist narrowed to emphasize a sturdy chest. Robust stitching details contrast
with the delicate surface of the fabric, further designating the garment as menswear. Conven-
tionally women wear leggings; the front pouch of the leggings in the collection aims to be
sympathetic to the male anatomy. Most fabrics used in the collection, however, are traditionally
perceived as masculine. For many garments this criterion was not significant during designing.
Fashionability as a criterion in this project aims to ensure the appropriateness of appear-
ance and fit at a particular point in time. Successful sales rely on this criterion. Fashionability
varies significantly from one company to another, depending on the core consumer and his/her
ideas and desires about fashionability. The fashion designer needs to be sensitive to these ideas
and desires throughout designing. In some companies it may be a primary criterion for the
fashion designer. In this project the criterion translated to designing clothes that were relevant
for the market at that time, but that would also have longevity in a wardrobe beyond one or two
seasons. This criterion was somewhat tempered by broader sustainability concerns in that I
aimed to create garments that had a timelessness to them while appearing desirable to a partic-
ular group of men at the time of creation. This seeming tension between “being current” and
timelessness has been undone in detail by Koskennurmi-Sivonen (1998: 204-205).
Future transformability (as criterion and code) refers to the ability of a garment to be
altered or repaired over the lifetime of its use. This has been a consideration for me for some
time. In 2005 I delivered a lecture titled Design for Repair within a course on bespoke tailoring;
bespoke tailors generally provide a repair and alteration service for a suit if and as needed
(Gwilt & Rissanen 2011: 75). Being able to repair a damaged garment or alter one that does
not fit can potentially prolong the useful life of a garment. Similarly, while physical durability (as
criterion and code) is not appropriate in every design situation (for example, medical garments
that may need disposing of after a single use), with many types of garments durability can at
least hypothetically lead to longer use lives and potentially lower levels of consumption. These
considerations informed some of the early experiments as well as the design of Shirt 3006. For
example, larger-than-usual seam allowances allow enlarging a section of a garment, and “excess”

fabric in a garment can later be used to repair a hole. Since the practice in this project, I have
expanded this to include visual durability, the kind of timelessness in fashion described above.
3.2.2 Fabric waste as a criterion in designing fashion

Fabric waste is rarely a criterion for fashion design or pattern cutting; conventionally it is an
economic problem for the marker-maker to solve at the commencement of manufacturing. The
more fabric a garment requires, the more it will cost to make. Sometimes the pattern cutter will
modify a pattern to reduce fabric usage, with minor consequences for the appearance criterion.
For example, fullness in a skirt may be reduced to fit the garment pieces on less fabric. While
fabric width is noted at such an instance, it is rare for fabric width to be considered during
designing or early phases (if any) of pattern cutting.
Across designing garments during the practice phase, the criteria bore varying signifi-
cance at different stages of the design process. While the fit criterion was significant early on,
the fabric waste and appearance criteria increased in significance towards the end of the design
process for all the garments. In other words, for the most part, fit was resolved before appear-
ance and fabric waste. The overall silhouette (as relating to appearance) was resolved early along
with fit, but garment details (for example, the shape of collar and cuffs on a shirt), were resolved
concurrently with fabric waste later.
An early experiment of designing a pair of trousers by drawing the pattern layout on
graph paper (Figure 3.5) demonstrates that fabric waste should not surpass appearance or fit in
importance. The cut of the trousers draws from Thayaht’s tuta (Stern 2004: 43; Chenoune 1993:
142), an overall cut from rectangles. No conventional sketching was undertaken prior to draw-
ing the pattern layout on graph paper – body measurements were used as a reference to ensure
the garment would relate to the body. While the pattern layout included pocket patterns, I had
not decided on pocket placement at this stage. The intention was to determine this in toile.
Upon transferring this to full scale (with some modifications to further reduce the amount of
wastage) and making the toile, I discovered the fit to be utterly unsatisfactory. The main leg and
gusset patterns required significant alterations, and two subsequent toiles were made, resulting
in significant changes to the pattern layout with increases in the amount of fabric waste. Other
implications for subsequent practice resulting from this quick experiment will be discussed in
section 3.3.3. I introduce the example at this stage to demonstrate that fabric waste cannot be
the only criterion for fashion design: appearance, fit and cost are equally significant.

Figure 3.5 Trousers designed through pattern cutting on graph paper.
3.2.3 Hierarchies of fabric waste: Designing garments of multiple fabrics

Garments that make use of a contrast fabric for visual effect are common. In fact, very few
garments contain only one fabric even if they seem to do so. Even a basic t-shirt often has a
neckband cut from rib knit while the body and sleeves are usually jersey. A plain shirt will have
fusible interlining hidden inside the collar and cuffs. A suit jacket may have several different
interlining fabrics hidden between the outer shell and lining fabrics, each serving a separate

purpose. In manufacture, each of these fabrics will have a separate marker made for it. Cutting a
garment of multiple fabrics is generally more time-consuming than a garment of one fabric only.
Adding another fabric to a garment makes the design and manufacture more complex
when fabric waste is a criterion for design. At first one needs to decide whether the pattern
layouts for each of the fabrics in a garment are to be zero-waste, or if only the main fabric (that
which makes up the majority of the garment) should have fabric waste as a criterion. No “correct”
solution exists; in this respect each garment needs to be judged on its individual merits. Never-
theless, I argue that it is more consistent to include the fabric waste criterion for each fabric.
Treating fabrics hierarchically is a useful strategy; this means that fabric waste as a design
criterion is most significant with designing the pattern layout of the main fabric – the fabric that
constitutes the most intensive material resource in the garment. This criterion may diminish in
significance with contrast fabrics and interlinings; one may be more accepting of wastage in second-
ary fabrics if fabric waste and appearance cannot be resolved satisfactorily. Particular limitations
exist for lining and interlining fabrics in relation to fabric waste. The pattern shapes of the main
fabric determine the shapes of the lining and interlining pattern pieces, and the latter patterns are
only made after the main fabric pattern has been perfected. A lining pattern is usually cut to repli-
cate the shape of the outer shell it lines, even if it is made slightly bigger to ensure the lining does
not pull on the shell. Interlining patterns, such as those for fusing, are often cut exactly the same or
slightly smaller than the pieces they interline. From a functional viewpoint (feasibility of garment
construction) this is more significant than the fabric waste criterion and therefore a compromise
may be necessary and some wastage in lining and interlining fabrics is likely. This occurred with all
of the shirts; the fusing patterns were not zero-waste as the main fabric pattern shapes dictated the
pattern shapes in fusing. Similarly, some of the trouser pocket bags, in pocketing (lighter fabric than
main) were not zero-waste. I nevertheless attempted to engineer these in ways that minimised the
amount of fabric waste. In some garments, such as the denim trousers, the garment fabric was used
as interlining, eliminating the need to use a separate interlining fabric. Lumsden (2010: 46)
employed this strategy in some shirt designs.
A somewhat more flexible situation arises with a contrast fabric. It is not unusual in
conventional practice to adopt a garment of one fabric, say a plain shirt, and create a new style
by cutting the yoke, collar and cuffs in a different fabric for example. If this were a zero-waste
shirt for which the pattern layout was already resolved, removing these pieces from the original
layout would create “holes” (waste) in it. Furthermore, it would be unlikely that the removed
pieces, once placed on the contrast fabric, would interlock perfectly for a zero-waste layout. If,

however, it is decided from the outset that this garment (without an exact idea of how the
garment will visually appear) is to have these two fabrics and that both fabrics are not to be
wasted, then fulfilling the criterion of no waste in either fabric is possible. The appearance crite-
rion is not directly connected to the pattern shapes of lining and interlining fabrics but it is to
those of a contrast fabric. With appearance comes “openness to possibility”, which in turn
provides flexibility for the fabric waste criterion to be resolved.
One garment in the collection, the square-cut wedge shirt in silk/hemp satin with vintage
kimono silk contrast, offers an alternative approach. Most of the shirt is of the satin and the
pattern layout is zero-waste. Some waste does occur in the kimono silk, for two reasons. The
fabric was mostly plain with some brocaded motifs placed rather far apart; I wanted to include
these motifs in the garment. Furthermore, there were permanent stains across the fabric as well
as all around its edges; the fabric was 40-50 years old, from a damaged kimono. I did not want
to include the stains in the garment, unless I could hide them in the seam allowances. While
wastage was high, using an otherwise “useless” remnant made the compromise easier to accept.
Naturally this approach poses problems for mass manufacture; I was able to secure only two
panels of this fabric that were not exactly the same length. After making the original sample
garment I had the one panel left to make one more shirt; this would be problematic in fulfilling
an order for 50 shirts. Kimono fabrics vary very little in width, however. It would seem plausible
to source several fabrics of similar weight and colour (fabrics that would work equally well with
the main silk/hemp satin) and offer these as alternatives to retailers.
Although the aim of fashion manufacture for over a century has been to produce multi-
ple, identical garments, it would seem that in the past decade retailers have become more
accepting, even welcoming, of some designed variation (as opposed to variation caused by errors
during manufacture). In 2002-2003 I sold to one Sydney store t-shirts that had old cut-up
t-shirts that had been appliquéd. While the t-shirts were identical in fit and the retailer dictated
what the base colour was to be, I had complete freedom in sourcing the old t-shirts from char-
ity stores. Furthermore, each appliqué was unique as I worked with whatever was on the old
t-shirt rather than create a standard approach. Admittedly this required some trust on behalf of
the retailer (she did not know exactly what she had ordered until it arrived in store), and it was
a more time-consuming and costly approach to manufacture than standardising would have
been. Nevertheless, mass customisation may be one strategy in designing garments of multiple
fabrics. Most research on mass customisation in fashion seems to concentrate on customised fit
using new technologies such as body scanning, but the above example indicates that there are

possibilities that could be explored in relation to customised appearance in mass-produced
garments. The British brand Junky Styling manufactures most of its garments from second-
hand suits. Retailers have embraced the variability in the brand’s garments for more than a
decade (Sanders & Seager 2009).
3.3 Pattern cutting the body: Tailored and square-cut
Two differing approaches to pattern cutting the garments in the collection can be identified,
even if the division is blurry: tailored and square-cut. “Tailored” is used here to refer to garment
cuts and patterns that make use of curves to reflect the body that wears the garment. Patterns
of square-cut garments, such as the trousers described in 3.2.2, make extensive use of rectangu-
lar shapes and straight lines, which may be at any angle. The body is abstracted in the garment
through geometry, reflecting to some degree the concept developed by Roberts (2008) that
garments are tunnels through which the body travels. Tailored garments are more common in
conventional fashion design and their pattern shapes reflect the human body more closely
through the extensive use of curves. This may be because currently most fashion design and
manufacturing courses teach the tailored pattern cutting approach, although the square-cut
approach was widespread until the late nineteenth century in Europe, and is still used in many
forms of traditional dress around the world. The division in the collection is blurry because
many of the square-cut patterns do incorporate some curves and most tailored patterns also
include straight lines and parts of a garment that might better be classified as square-cut. Most
garments are hybrids of the two, although early in the design process most of the garments
fitted neatly into one category or the other.
Decisions made early in the design process of a garment can prove useful later on. For exam-
ple, the angles of the edges of the main body pieces in the hoodie (square-cut with curved slashes)
were determined early and were not altered because the two pieces interlocked with those particu-
lar angles. When a rectangle is bisected with a straight line, the angles of corners A and B at one
end of the line will match those of corners A and B at the other end (Figure 3.6). Several garments
in the collection benefited from this principle. For example, the left and right leg pieces of the
asymmetric square-cut trousers (a pair in denim, another in check wool) form a rectangle bisected
by an angled line. The cut is an intentional play on shape. In its overall outside edge, the left leg
pattern is exactly the same shape as the right leg pattern, but the edge forming the waist in the left

leg becomes the hem in the right leg, and vice versa. Darts were used to ensure that the left waist
and hem measurements matched the right waist and hem measurements respectively. In the
square-cut wedge shirt pattern (one in silk/hemp satin, another in striped cotton), the angle of the
centre front of the body matches the angle of the back sleeve seam. The body and sleeve patterns
do not form a perfect rectangle but keeping these angles the same throughout the design process
ensured that the pieces formed a larger unit. When I added more fullness to the sleeve hem while
altering the initial patterns, the angle of the back sleeve seam changed as a result. I consequently
changed the angle of the body centre front so it matched the angle on the sleeve.
Figure 3.6 Matching angles in square-cut trousers and shirt
In the initial experiment briefs I asked whether it would be easier to resolve the fabric
waste criterion in square-cut as opposed to tailored garments. The predominance of straight
pattern edges seemed to suggest so. On reflection, fit and appearance were more challenging to
resolve in the early square-cut garments in this study, underlining that a single criterion cannot
be resolved in isolation. Nevertheless, a number of people have noted on the predominance of
square-cut garments in this study. Holly McQuillan’s work provides a useful contrast; curved
lines dominate her garment patterns while resolving the criteria of appearance, fit and fabric
waste. I would be cautious to compare square-cut versus tailored in resolving the fabric waste
criterion; one may be more appropriate in a particular design situation. Furthermore, while
many of the longer seams in garments in this project are straight, necklines in particular tend
to be curved for appearance and fit. I would, however, encourage the teaching of the square-cut
approach alongside the tailored approach in fashion design education; the potential for new
garment forms that the approach offers is currently perhaps underutilised.

3.4 Fashion design and pattern cutting: strategies for integration
3.4.1 Contemporaneous sketching and pattern cutting

In conventional fashion design practice the fashion designer hands the pattern cutter a “final”
sketch of the garment to guide the pattern cutting process. Usually pattern cutting does not
commence until the sketched idea is resolved ( Joseph Armstrong 1995: 80). Both the fashion
designer and pattern cutter may use draping as an additional tool to explore or resolve aspects
of a garment. Mostly the roles of fashion designer and pattern cutter are hierarchically separate
in industry and there is some evidence that fashion design education may reinforce this separa-
tion (Aldrich 1996: 5). Figure 3.7 shows a simplified order of the process.
Figure 3.7 Conventional fashion design approaches
Based on this, in conventional fashion design practice it is hypothetically therefore possible

to design a garment through sketching in one episode of designing. The appearance criterion is
resolved before pattern cutting commences. It is possible to sketch a design, hand the sketch to a
pattern cutter and have a sample cut and sewn using the pattern that will replicate the sketch in
three-dimensional garment form. In reality, however, this rarely happens in one episode of design-
ing; the garment idea is usually developed in a number of iterative stages through sketching, on one
hand to refine the idea as an independent entity and on the other to ensure it serves a specific
aesthetic and economic purpose within the overall collection of garments being developed. Regard-
less, once the sketch is resolved, the pattern cutter can cut the first pattern in one episode of pattern
cutting and a toile can be cut and made to check the appearance and fit of the garment.
With fabric waste as a criterion for fashion design, such a process is unfeasibly difficult.
Maintaining an awareness of the two-dimensional patterns on fabric while simultaneously
sketching a three-dimensional garment is a formidable challenge. When a garment element
such as a pocket is added to a sketch of a jacket for example, one would already need to know
exactly what the patterns of the jacket body and sleeve would be like and how they might inter-
act and interlock on the fabric, and design the pocket accordingly. At this stage the patterns for
the jacket body and sleeves would not have yet been pattern cut, toiled, fitted and corrected. The

fit and appearance criteria cannot be evaluated until the garment is toiled and fitted on a body.
It would be possible to speculate what the pattern pieces might be, but even a half centimetre
alteration to one edge of a sleeve pattern later during fitting could have undesirable conse-
quences for the pocket in the overall pattern layout.
Perhaps the greatest challenge of designing fashion without fabric waste is this: designing
through sketching (if the designer employs sketching to design) and pattern cutting need to be
contemporaneous, dynamically complementing each other. More precisely, as this project demon-
strates, pattern cutting is an inseparable part of zero-waste fashion design, not a subsequent activity.
Realising that I had to commence pattern cutting prior to knowing exactly what the garment
would look like, the design process became easier and faster. This section will present useful strate-
gies for fashion design and pattern cutting that emerged from this study, which work together to
create garments that waste no fabric. Pattern cutting as a design ideation tool is present in them all.
3.4.3 Hierarchies of garment elements: Building a shape library

As the trousers discussed in 3.2.2 demonstrate that trying to resolve the appearance, fit and
fabric waste criteria all at the same time is not feasible. Rather, one needs to give different
weighting to each at different points in the design process, and pattern cutting is integral to
resolving the appearance criterion. Furthermore, the appearance criterion needs to be broken
down hierarchically to components such as silhouette, shape and details. Resolving the criteria
is an iterative process, and tackling the various elements of a garment hierarchically can be a
useful strategy. In the context of designing a collection of garments, I describe this as building
a shape library. The basic garment shapes are pattern cut, toiled, fitted and corrected until they
are “perfect” for the requirements at hand, including the desired and appropriate seam and hem
allowances around each pattern piece. These patterns can be described as being half-way
between a block pattern and a pattern for a specific garment; the garment shape is specific but
details such as pockets or collars are not yet designed or pattern cut. For a shirt or a jacket this
means perfecting the patterns for the body and sleeve; the neckline to which the collar will
eventually attach is decided on, but the collar will be designed later. For a pair of trousers, the
main leg patterns are perfected and waist measurement is determined even if the waistband or
waist facing is not yet designed. To generalise, the largest pattern pieces need to be resolved first
as these will dominate the eventual pattern layout. Here, zero-waste fashion design appropri-
ates an element of conventional marker making (discussed in 3.3.5) where larger pattern pieces
are placed on fabric first and smaller pieces where they fit (Cooklin 1997: 59). Once the larger

pieces that make up the basic garment shape are resolved, one can commence placing these on
the fabric to explore potential for further designing.
In some instances garment details might need to be included in this process of building a shape
library. If the fashion designer has a determined idea of how a particular detail should visually appear,
it needs to be developed and perfected with the basic garment shape. Perfecting the pattern pieces for
this detail before trying to resolve the final layout and design ensures that that detail remains true to
the original idea. For example, the front pouch of the leggings (Figure 3.9) was such a detail, and the
patterns for it were resolved relatively early because a particular appearance was desired.
Once these basic patterns for a specific shape have been toiled, fitted and perfected, one
can begin examining how they may be placed on the fabric width to be used, what “leftover”
shapes these placements create and how the leftover shapes may yield ideas for the details of
the garment. By perfecting the basic garment shape first – resolving the appearance and fit
criteria for the shape but not yet for garment details – ensures that the perfected pattern pieces
will not change later. A later change to these would have implications for the interlocking of
the pattern pieces on fabric, thus requiring that the main pattern pieces are made “perfect”,
inviolable, before the design process moves forward to consider garment details. To sum, the
design process begins with the early macro considerations (garment shape) and ends with the
later micro considerations (garment details). Figure 3.8 provides a simplified comparison
between conventional and zero-waste fashion design approaches.
Figure 3.8 Simplified comparison between conventional and zero-waste fashion design approaches
The perfected basic pattern shapes can function beneficially in developing a collection of
garments, which is expected to comprise garments that relate to and complement each other
through visual elements. It is important that no two garments in a collection compete for visual
impact or sales with each other; each garment serves its own unique aesthetic and economic

purpose in a collection. The basic pattern shapes in the shape library yield an unlimited number of
design variations, depending on how the pieces are initially placed on a fabric width and what one
chooses to design from the resulting leftover shapes. Further variation results from utilising the
basic pattern shapes on two different fabric widths. Variation in fabric width forces new placements
for the basic pattern shapes, creating new leftover areas to design garment details with.
The asymmetrical check wool trousers and asymmetrical denim jeans were based on the
same original basic shape. The two fabric widths were relatively similar (check wool 156cm, denim
152.5cm), but significant variation between the two garments was created using other strategies.
Construction is an important difference; the choice of different seam types in the two garments
require different seam allowances for each and this change has to be made to the patterns before
exploration on fabric can begin. The denim jeans are constructed with a manual felled seam; to
reduce bulk when the top seam allowance is folded over the lower seam allowance, the top seam
allowance is double the width of the lower one. In the wool trousers, open seams are used and
therefore uniform seam allowances are used throughout. The one exception is the back crotch
where the seam allowance becomes wider towards the waist to allow later enlargement of the trou-
ser waist if necessary. The large darts were also constructed differently in the two garments: the
wool trousers have internal darts while in the denim jeans the darts are external with top stitch
detail. Further difference is created by pocket design. The denim jeans have oversized welt pockets
on the front and one patch pocket at the back, while the wool trousers have two back patch pockets
and welt pockets covered by oversized flaps on the front. Although based on the same original
shape, the two garments are sufficiently different to justify having both in the collection.
The Endurance Shirt I created in 2009 became a base for Endurance Shirt II created in
2011. The earlier shirt and both patterns are illustrated in Figure 5.2 in Chapter 5. The body
shape remained the same but a change in fabric width (the later fabric was 13cm wider) resulted
in some appearance changes in the latter garment; I eliminated the elbow patches because they
did not feasibly fit on the fabric width without having to design further components into the
shirt, which I did not desire to do. Because the fit was already resolved in 2009, designing and
pattern cutting the latter shirt took less than a day. Over time, building a shape library will
speed the process of zero-waste fashion design along considerably.
In designing the stripe leggings (Pant 2007), the basic leg shape was developed first.
Beginning with a conventional, tailored legging pattern (Stage 1 in Figure 3.9, below), the
inside leg seam was displaced to the front of the leg (Stage 2). After the pattern was converted
from tailored to partially square-cut (I anticipated fabric waste elimination to be easier this

way), I had to split the leg pattern horizontally to achieve a closer fit around the knee. Convention-
ally one would achieve this by contouring the pattern edges (as in the original pattern in Stage 1)
with curves. Splitting the leg and contouring the leg with straight edges (see dotted lines in Stage
3, resulting in the pieces shown in Stage 4) would allow butting the left leg pieces against the right
leg pieces later (Stage 5, the final pattern layout); curved edges would not allow this, instead poten-
tially creating new shapes between the pieces.
Although the decision to keep the main leg piece edges straight allowed some butting
of pieces, the waist and crotch shape created somewhat awkward shapes within the pattern
layout, regardless of how the pieces were placed on fabric. The front crotch became even more
problematic once it was cut away to accommodate the pouch (referred to as “codpiece” and
“cock cup” during designing). The pouch nevertheless seemed important as it made a tradi-
tionally female garment explicitly masculine by reflecting male anatomy. Once the pouch was
resolved, however, I reached what seemed a dead end for the fabric waste criterion. The idea of
using “waste as appliqué” allowed a simultaneous resolution of the fabric waste and appearance
criteria. Infinite possibility existed for the appliqué design depending on how the leg and
pouch pieces interacted on the fabric, how the resulting shapes were split up further and how
the appliqué was placed on the garment. Small pieces were also used as filling inside the pouch
(pieces F in Stage 5), giving it a somewhat smoother external appearance.
It may seem that in light of filling the pattern layout with appliqué, with its countless
possibilities, converting the pattern from tailored to partially square-cut was unnecessary. It
was my desire, however, to have the stripes meet at the front seams at mismatching angles. In
a tailored legging pattern the stripes would barely mismatch close to the hem, while with this
square-cut pattern the degree of mismatching remains uniform throughout the front seam.
Although both fashion companies and the fashion media perpetuate a myth that fashion
changes every six months (in the retail stores of “fast fashion” companies collections may be
replaced every six weeks or less), it in fact makes economic sense for companies to repeat some
garment styles over two or more seasons (and collections). These styles are usually ones that
have sold well and often they are not the most “fashion-forward” in a collection. Making and
perfecting a pattern is costly and including some garment styles from previous seasons in a
collection reduces these development costs somewhat. When a style is repeated, it is usually
(but not always) offered in a different fabric or colour to previous seasons, to maintain an
impression of newness. Certain garment styles could feasibly provide the foundations of a
shape library, if a company was to shift from conventional fashion design to designing and

making garments without fabric waste. The main pattern pieces can be copied from a pattern
set (for example, the body and sleeve patterns of a shirt or the leg patterns of a pair of trousers),
ensuring consistency in fit across garment styles. Examining these on the new fabric width
could provide the initial drive for the (re)design process.
Figure 3.9 Design of leggings demonstrating function of shape library building
3.4.3 Shape awareness and designing garment details

Over time, the pattern cutter develops an in-depth understanding of the relationship between
the three-dimensional garment form and the two-dimensional patterns required. An experi-
enced pattern cutter will have a clear sense of the pattern shapes before the patterns for a garment
are made ( Joseph Armstrong 1995: 80). Although most fashion design courses include pattern
cutting in their curricula, most companies do not expect the fashion designer to make patterns
for the garment he/she designs. In conventional designing the fashion designer does not need to
possess an awareness of what the garment will look like as flat, two-dimensional pieces of fabric.
In designing fashion without fabric waste, this shape awareness is required: the fashion
designer needs to understand how two-dimensional negative shapes on fabric, created by the
basic pattern shapes, may be used in designing the garment further. A shape awareness – having
a sense of the pattern shapes that one is working with – becomes increasingly important as the
design process progresses from the basic garment shape to garment details. This includes an

awareness of both the pattern pieces and the negative spaces their edges will create in the pattern
layout, negative spaces, which will become part of pattern pieces for other elements within the
garment design. In short, designing fashion without fabric waste requires of the fashion designer
a shape awareness similar to that which is conventionally the domain of the pattern cutter.
During the practice in the project it was helpful to regularly “doodle” with resolved pattern
pieces and test variations in pattern composition to explore the kinds of negative spaces created
by them, and the design potential of these shapes. This doodling proved an invaluable part of the
practice. For example, it led to the discovery that the sleeve heads of a shirt could be brought to
interlock (Shirt 3006) without compromising the fit criterion. Having these “shape doodles”
visible within the studio space, by way of pinning them on the wall, for days or weeks at a time
was useful. They served as visual memory aids and helped the design process along. In Figure
3.10 pages from the journal demonstrate shape awareness with three different garments. Sketch-
ing pattern shapes and incomplete pattern layouts, either quickly to get a sense of a situation or
accurately (for example, on graph paper) sensitises the fashion designer to not only the pattern
shapes but also the possibilities for further designing. In particular, once the patterns for the basic
garment shape are ready for the designing to move forward to garment details, sketching these
shapes within the confines of a fabric width can be a quick way of assessing potential for further
designing. A pattern sketch also becomes a permanent record of a possible “design move” that
can be referred to later.
Figure 3.10 Journal pages demonstrating shape awareness development
Shape awareness is particularly important in the early phases of designing a garment, as

it facilitates the designer seeing possibilities for further designing. As the design process

proceeds, space awareness – a critical attention to how the pattern shapes relate to each other
– becomes increasingly significant.
3.4.4 Visualization strategies and managing scale

The primary ideation tool in a conventional fashion design situation is sketching. The fashion
designer sketches the garment front and back several times, refining the idea iteratively and
eventually hands the front and back sketch to the pattern cutter. The sketches are significantly
scaled down; no examples of fashion designers sketching full-scale garments were uncovered
during this project; sketching scaled-down garments is quicker and easier than sketching in life
size would be. The actual scale used mostly depends on the fashion designer’s own preference.
Manual pattern cutting involves cutting patterns for a garment to actual scale; the patterns
are used to cut fabric and these pieces are sewn together and therefore need to be full-scale4. Never-
theless, the pattern cutter works on one pattern piece at a time and it is rare for the pattern cutter to
need to be concerned with how all of the pattern pieces of a garment might interact on a fabric
width. In conventional fashion design and manufacture this is the marker maker’s responsibility. The
pattern cutter does consider the entire set of patterns in ensuring that two edges that need to match
(seams in a garment), match, but he/she rarely needs to examine the entire pattern set on fabric.5
Designing through draping or developing the patterns for a design through draping can
occur in full scale or a reduced scale. Madeleine Vionnet’s approach of draping on a half-scale
mannequin is well documented (Kirke 1991: 233-234). MFA Fashion Design and Society at
Parsons The New School for Design provides all students with a half-scale mannequin to drape on.
I adopted this approach during my undergraduate study in 1999. Draping in half-scale is faster,
allowing a more diverse exploration of ideas in less time. The possible downside of draping in half-
scale is the lack of accuracy. Kirke (1991) discusses some issues arising from translation to full-scale
in Vionnet’s workroom. During my undergraduate study, Therese Rawsthorne, a fellow student, also
draped in half-scale, then enlarging the resulting patterns using a photocopier. Due to a number of
factors, including distortion caused by the photocopier, and the differences in shape between the
half-scale and full-scale mannequin, at times the full-scale patterns resulted with fit problems not
4 CAD pattern cutting is an exception. Pattern pieces are manipulated on a computer at a reduced scale, and the printed out full scale.
5 Occasionally during conventional fashion manufacture patterns may be changed slightly for more financially economic yields.
This is referred to as pattern engineering, and should not be confused with zero-waste fashion design. When patterns are engineered
for a more efficient overall yield, the look of the garment is changed as little as possible. In commendable texts on fashion
manufacture, Fasanella (1998), Cooklin (1997) and Carr & Latham (1988) discuss aspects of pattern engineering, while pattern
cutting manuals are generally silent on the topic.

present in the half-scale drape. I employed a different strategy; after resolving a design idea through
half-scale draping, I draped the same idea in full-scale. While initially slower than the photocopying
method, the resulting full-scale fit was generally more satisfactory.
With fabric waste as a criterion for fashion design it is important to be aware of the
pattern shapes and how they might interact with each other on a particular fabric width. Work-
ing in full-scale can become overwhelming and time-consuming. Several times, I found myself
standing on patterns placed on fabric, trying to make sense of possibilities and achieve space
awareness; doing this afforded only a partial view. Even stepping back and seeing the whole does
not always help – to visualise possibilities, one might have to shift a pattern a little, step back,
shift again, step back –the process can be cumbersome (see Julian Roberts in Figure 3.11).
Furthermore, whilst exploring possibilities regarding garment appearance, the designer needs to
keep the fabric waste criterion in check; sketching while standing next to or on patterns is not
easy. Several strategies exist to make designing more feasible and to manage the issue of scale.
Figure 3.11 Julian Roberts stepping back to assess developing pattern layout

After completing the square-cut trousers on graph paper in section 3.2.2, I transferred
the pattern layout to full scale. Despite the problems with this particular approach described
earlier, having sketched the pattern layout on graph paper made the making of the first pattern
in full-scale fast. Another problem that may arise with drawing on graph paper is a tendency to
draw rectangular pattern shapes at the expense of curves. Partly this may be due to the grid on
the graph paper, and partly because curves are more difficult to draw accurately to scale. Pattern
cutting software (CAD pattern cutting) could overcome this. Once the pattern for a basic shape
has been made, toiled, fitted and altered manually in full scale, it can be digitised and worked
on a computer screen at reduced scale. Although many styles that incorporated curves in the
patterns were initiated early in the project, I never attempted to transfer these to graph paper
due to the difficulty of drawing curves (such as armholes and neck lines) accurately and quickly
on graph paper. A CAD system would have made this more feasible. The potential of CAD
pattern cutting software for zero-waste fashion design will be discussed in detail in Chapter 5.
In designing most garments in the collection I did not sketch pattern layouts on graph
paper while developing the final garments. Once the block patterns for each design were toiled,
fitted and resolved, it would have been necessary to scale the block down to allow “playing” on
graph paper. I deemed this too time-consuming and fiddly, but acknowledged that a CAD
system for pattern cutting and marker-making would have served well for this purpose. These
systems allow digitising the pattern pieces and exploring placements on fabric quickly. Currently
pattern graders and marker makers use these to grade patterns and plan and make markers in
the conventional way, resulting in approximately 15 percent wastage. If fashion designers were
trained in these software systems, with the specific goal of designing without fabric waste, value
would be added to the software systems without them requiring modification. For this project
a CAD system was not available nor was I trained to use one during the practice phase. CAD
and designing without waste should be the subject of future research.
Fletcher (2008: 153) features an “efficient pattern cutting concept shirt” by Andrew
Hague. Hague describes the process: “So I found an image of a traditional shirt pattern on the
web and pulled it into a vector-based platform (Illustrator, but almost any will work). From there,
I manipulated the pattern almost arbitrarily to fill out all the holes that would leave wastage. I
paid special attention to the armholes, but that’s about it. I let the shirt become what it wanted
to be. Most importantly, I neither added, nor subtracted pattern pieces, so when I sat down to
the sewing machine, I sewed the shirt the way I had been trained as a tailor’s apprentice.” (Hague
in Rissanen 2008b). While Illustrator is not the pattern cutting software discussed here, Hague’s

approach is an example of working at reduced scale, probably to make the design process faster
and easier to manage. For Hague, fabric waste was the primary criterion: “The result is a decid-
edly Kawakubo effect, but the purpose and rationale are what makes it special.” The shirt never-
theless works visually, perhaps because it retains so many elements of a “classic” shirt.
Photography is a valuable tool for documenting pattern shapes for later examination at
a manageable scale. It is also useful to photograph fabric pieces left over when a toile for a basic
garment pattern is cut. The early toiles of zero-waste garments are generally not zero-waste; it
is difficult to resolve the fabric waste criterion so early in the design process. Having a visual
record of the negative spaces that the basic garment patterns will create aids in later designing.
Photographing pattern pieces that are already resolved is a helpful tool in building shape aware-
ness, as is photographing fabric scraps created in cutting a toile. A photograph of a pattern set
makes it easier to acquire and maintain a sense of the pattern pieces in a way that simply look-
ing at patterns on fabric does not allow. Examining actual patterns on fabric is an important
regular activity nevertheless, as it gives a sense of the pieces in full scale. In the case of the
striped hoodie, full-scale exploration provided me with an immediate sense that I could make
a hood that fits a head out of the triangle shapes formed by the main body pieces. The photo-
graphs made that exploration quicker while functioning as memory aids.
Figure 3.12 Examining hoodie body and sleeve patterns on the fabric width
Following experimentation through scaled down sketching and examination of pattern

photographs, all final markers were developed in full scale. Working to scale at this stage had
clear benefits. The sizes and shapes of “leftover” areas were easy to transfer from paper to fabric,
allowing cutting and sewing of segments, which could be incorporated into and examined with
the most recent toile. The hood of the hoodie (Figure 3.12) was resolved in this way, as were the

appliqués of the leggings. In some cases, the leftover shapes in paper were pinned to a toile, for
example, the patch pocket shapes of the square-cut double wool pants. Working in full scale at
this stage provides an immediate and reasonably accurate representation of the impact of a
garment component within the whole garment.
3.4.5 Breaking pattern cutting “rules”

Pattern cutting education and manuals often present pattern cutting as a somewhat inflexible,
impersonal and closed technical process with one “universal” approach or one “correct” solution.
It has been established that pattern cutting is integral to zero-waste fashion design. Arguably
fashion design, like all design, is a dynamic, creative and personal activity; it is unlikely that two
fashion designers design in identical ways. It may therefore be difficult for a fashion designer to
accept pattern cutting as part of the design process instead of as a subsequent activity.
Many rules exist in pattern cutting and some of these rules originate from strong ration-
ales. Nevertheless, this project suggests that some rules, even with solid rationales, may be
broken if it is deemed that fabric waste elimination becomes more feasible by doing so. The
code “Breaking rules” emerged early in coding; I will discuss where I broke rules and conven-
tions. Notably, two years after the practice and coding phase, Almond (2010: 16) called pattern
cutting an art form, whose rules “can all be broken or manipulated”.
Perhaps the most common rule broken during designing the collection was in relation to
trueing patterns and the resulting lack of flow-through. Trueing a pattern refers to checking on
patterns that seams and darts, when sewn, will form smooth continuous lines, referred to as
flow-through. Darts can be checked by folding the dart on the pattern as it will fold in the
garment; the edge of the piece where the dart meets it should be smooth, without an indentation.
This generally results in a shaped edge in the flat pattern, even if the fabric piece edge is straight
once the dart is sewn. In designing the collection it seemed, however, that waste elimination
would be easier if some of the darted edges were kept straight, for example, in the waist and
hem of the asymmetrical square-cut trousers (Pant 3004). The resultant lack of flow-through
was resolved by “incorrect” construction. The waist had an unusually large seam allowance (2cm;
1-1.2cm would be usual), which allowed the machinist to join the waist to the waistband in a
curve without stitching too close to the raw edge while enclosing the dart allowance within the
seam. Any pattern cutting manual would consider this approach incorrect. I, however, did this
knowingly and communicated the required construction to the machinist. A somewhat simple
act of rule-breaking made designing without fabric waste significantly easier without making

construction unfeasibly complicated. A “correct” approach of trueing the dart would have
resulted in an uneven waistline instead of a straight horizontal one, resulting in a new negative
shape to contend with in further designing.
At times, rules and conventions regarding fabric grain can be broken if it facilitates elim-
inating waste. In the denim coat ( Jacket 1005), one front facing is on the “usual” warp grain,
while the other is on the cross-wise weft grain (rotated 90 degrees). In some plain-weave fabrics6
this would pose no problem, but denim is a twill weave woven with a different type of yarn used
in the warp and the weft. This has implications for the hang on the two grains, and it can cause
the fabric to shrink differently along each grain during laundering. The coat was laundered after
construction, and fortunately no detectable difference in shrinkage was apparent.
Some rules and conventions are arguably arbitrary. For example, it is common to make the
fly facing shape from a rectangle with one corner cut away in a curve; the majority of trousers with
zip flies have a curved stitch line on the front. There is no reason why the facing cannot be a rectan-
gle instead. All of the trousers and jeans in the collection have a rectangular fly facing. This allowed
a further innovation for the fly. A conventional fly is made of the fly and fly facing pieces, shaped
as described. By using rectangles instead, I was able to combine the two pieces into one. This does
not make construction faster as such (though nor does construction slow down once the machinist
understands the construction method); rather, the appearance of the fly on the inside is arguably
cleaner than the conventional fly construction. While only the wearer would see this when putting
the garment on, arguable it nevertheless adds value to the garment.
While pattern cutting manuals provide a narrow view on the function of pattern cutting,
some texts on pattern cutting do present a view of pattern cutting as flexible, and more signifi-
cantly, integral to fashion design. Winifred Aldrich (1996: 5) makes a strong connection
between cloth, explorative pattern cutting and garment form: “…the tension between precision
and the speculative cut of new fabrics can generate new garment forms”. Julian Roberts (2008)
argues similarly that pattern cutting “is about possibilities & what-ifs and experimentation…
New ways of cutting come to life through a mixture of luck, risk & mistake.” In discussing her
work, Yeohlee Teng (Koda 2003: 85) states: “You know, if you find a traditional pattern cutter,
trained in Europe or in that tradition, you will find that they will want to conform to strict
pattern cutting principles. And I don’t like that. My work is more organic.” This research
6 In a plain weave fabric, a weft yarn crosses under a warp yarn, then over, then under again; the next weft yarn crosses over
where the previous crossed under. The overall composition of the weave appears the same whether it’s viewed from direction of
warp or weft. In twill and satin weave fabrics, the warp yarns cross over several weft yarns, then under one weft yarn, then over
several weft yarns again. This has implications for the drape of the fabric, creating variations based on whether the fabric hangs on
the warp, weft or bias grains.

strongly suggests that opportunities exist within fashion design education to better harness the
creative potential of pattern cutting in fashion design practice, for new aesthetic possibilities as
well as more sustainable design outcomes through reduced or eliminated waste.
3.5 Fabric Quantities
During designing a zero-waste garment, design and pattern cutting become increasingly
constrained as the design process progresses. A mass-produced garment is cut from a rectangle
of fabric (or multiple rectangles if multiple fabrics make up the garment): the width of the
fabric and the length of the marker (cutting layout) determine the size of this rectangle.
Although in zero-waste design the marker length remains unknown well into the design
process, the resolved main pieces placed on fabric will give a reasonably accurate sense of the
minimum marker length. Whether this will be greatly exceeded depends on how the garment
is designed further. The designer has a choice of trying to resolve the design within the mini-
mum marker length or exceed it, if the desired outcome requires more fabric than the minimum
length. In resolving the leggings, the four leg pieces and waistband height determined the
minimum length of the marker and this was not exceeded. It would have been perfectly plau-
sible, however, to increase the amount of appliqué by using more fabric. Designing with a seem-
ingly decreasing amount of “available” fabric may seem constraining, but fashion design is only
as constrained as the designer allows it to be. Each emerging pattern shape and its design
potential within the garment need to be examined creatively, and the minimum marker length
may be exceeded if the fashion designer thinks the final outcome justifies it. An open mind
regarding the final outcome is useful in this hierarchical way of trying to resolve the criteria
simultaneously. It is nevertheless important to commit to certain decisions at particular points
in time, to keep the design process moving forward.
3.5.1 Space awareness and marker-making in zero-waste fashion design

In conventional industry practice marker planning and making are a phase of manufacture. The aim
of marker planning and making is to place the pattern pieces on the least amount of fabric possible;
the rationale is economic. This occurs once the pattern has been perfected and approved for manu-
facture, and graded. The grain of the fabric provides a limitation to these placements; each pattern
piece has a grain line marked on, which needs to adhere to the fabric grain during marker making

and cutting, to ensure the garment hangs and fits correctly. In some cases fabrics with a nap create
limitations on how the patterns may be placed on fabric. Nap refers to the surface of some fabrics
such as artificial fur or velvet: a raised surface that has a definite direction. The nap should be
consistent throughout the garment, thereby limiting which way the pattern pieces may be placed
and cut on a fabric. If the nap is facing up the front of a jacket, for example, it should also face up
on the back and the sleeves. Similarly, a one-way textile print should generally be cut with the print
facing the same way throughout the garment. Stripe and check fabrics may place further limita-
tions on marker planning, if the aim is to match stripes or checks at seams. Generally, the larger the
scale of the stripe or check, the more desirable matching is as any mismatch becomes more obvious
with larger scale. The designer may deliberately, however, mismatch stripes or checks for visual
effect. To sum, in conventional fashion manufacture minimising fabric wastage is the marker
maker’s responsibility, and the result is approximately 15 percent fabric waste. As well as the limita-
tions above, first and foremost the marker maker is limited by what has already been designed and
pattern-cut. Small changes maybe made to the patterns to achieve a more efficient marker but the
general aesthetic is inflexible towards change at this stage. Conventionally marker planning and
making are subsequent to fashion design and pattern cutting.
In zero-waste fashion design without fabric waste, marker planning and making are an
element of designing, particularly in the later phases of the design process. Once the basic
patterns have been perfected, their possible placements on fabric and the potential for design-
ing garment details can be examined. As the design is resolved further, the final design, patterns
and marker come to be simultaneously. The final design refers to the garment, the final patterns
are the pattern pieces needed to make that garment and the final marker is the configuration of
those pattern pieces on fabric. Fabric waste is eliminated because it has been a criterion for
design, and pattern cutting and marker making, traditionally subsequent activities following
design, become part of designing. Furthermore, fabric width, conventionally not considered
until manufacture, becomes a parameter within which the garment is resolved during design-
ing. In these later stages of designing zero-waste garments, space awareness becomes increas-
ingly significant. This refers to the designer being aware of how the pattern pieces relate to each
other and the fabric width. Figure 3.11 (section 3.4.4) demonstrates how the marker length for
the hoodie was determined by the combined length of the two sleeves. Whilst I could have used
more fabric for more details in the garment, I chose to limit the fabric quantity to this amount.
A brief look at literature on conventional marker planning and making is warranted here.
Tyler (1991: 53) notes human factors as a significant aspect of marker planning and making in

order to maximise fabric savings. From a design and pattern cutting perspective in zero-waste
fashion design, human factors are equally significant. Drawing from Lounsbury and Gibson
(1987), and their study into marker planning at Levi Strauss & Co, Tyler lists the following
twelve personality characteristics as factors in effective marker planning:
1. mathematical ability and numerical reasoning
2. spatial visualisation, both two and three dimensional
3. spatial reasoning
4. the ability to integrate elements of patterns
5. abstract reasoning
6. global intelligence
7. the ability to perceive patterns in complex visual displays without distraction
8. short-term memory
9. perceptual speed and accuracy
10. manual dexterity and eye-hand-finger coordination
11. introversion/extroversion (with introverts performing better)
12. anxiety (with less anxious persons performing better)
In adapting the list for zero-waste fashion design practice that incorporates pattern
cutting, a creative and critical ability to perceive aesthetic potential, or an openness to design
potential, or an ability to imagine, should be added to the list. During the practice in this
project, and in particular in the early phases, seeing beyond “awkward” shapes, and what their
negative shapes could become within a garment, was perhaps the biggest challenge to over-
come. This may have been because the early experiments were somewhat prescriptive, and at
times it was difficult to creatively negotiate within the confines of the experiments, despite the
loose nature of the design briefs. Once the thematic foundation of the collection became solid-
ified, the design process freed up and new ways of seeing the potential of shapes emerged.
Returning to Tyler’s list, and examining the practice in this project, some of the factors
seem more significant for design than others. Mathematical ability and numerical reasoning
were important at times, to reconcile gaps still left in the pattern configuration and the garment
areas yet to design. For example, the length of the facing in the hoodie (T-shirt 4006) was
determined by spaces created by the body and sleeve pieces. The size of the inverted pleat in the
hood was manipulated to ensure the facing fitted into the front edge it faced. It may well be the
case that some designers and pattern cutters could overcome a lack of mathematical ability by

“working by eye” with the original pattern, but grading is mathematical by nature and therefore
it seems likely that at least a rudimentary attention to mathematics is necessary in a zero-waste
fashion design, to enable the creation of a size range (grading will be discussed in more detail
in 3.3.7). Yeohlee Teng states: “I believe in the magic of numbers. Putting certain numbers
together in a pattern can result in a perfectly proportioned article of clothing that works in
many sizes.” (Steele 2003: 140). In the introduction to his school of subtraction pattern cutting,
Julian Roberts (2008) provides an alternate view, however: “Pattern cutting is not all about
mathematics and measurements: it’s about space and balance… Your hands, arms, legs and
body length can all be used as reference when pattern cutting to understand space and distance,
so incorporate yourself into the pattern.” Whilst Teng and Roberts’ comments may seem
contradictory, they both suggest a creative potential for fashion design through pattern cutting
and marker making that most pattern-cutting manuals and texts on fashion manufacture omit.
Perhaps the most important factors for zero-waste fashion design on Tyler’s list are two
and three-dimensional spatial visualisation, spatial reasoning and the ability to integrate elements
of patterns. Much of the zero-waste fashion design process occurs through two-dimensional
pattern cutting, and the designer needs to understand how the patterns will look when made up
into a garment. That is, of course, unless an element of surprise is allowed for, such as in Julian
Roberts’ design approach. At times he might create a pattern shape without an exact idea of how
the garment will appear; for him this serendipity seems to be an exciting aspect of fashion design.
Roberts (2008) writes further: “As these pattern concepts involve a free-hand non-representa-
tional approach to pattern cutting, they are in their nature hypothetical, and open to interpreta-
tion.” He also notes that the approach demonstrated is not aesthetically prescriptive: “Whoever
implements [the techniques shown], automatically adds something of their own style to them.”
This is in stark contrast to conventional pattern cutting, which generally aims to recreate a pre-
existing design in the form of a sketch, garment or photograph (the latter two amount to copy-
ing); the flexibility of Roberts’ approach does not really exist as the design tends to be less nego-
tiable at the stage that the pattern cutter takes over it. In short, pattern cutting manuals tend to
present pattern cutting as a closed process. In zero-waste fashion design, however, pattern cutting
is an open-ended, creative endeavour, not unlike in the approach documented by Roberts.
Zero-waste fashion design could pose both opportunities and challenges for the marker-
maker’s role. It is often a distinct role, although in the past the pattern cutter commonly made the
marker and cut the fabric. In small companies this still occurs; during designing for Usvsu in 2001-
2004, I occasionally performed all of these roles. Whilst it might seem that zero-waste fashion

design has the potential for eliminating jobs, it also has the potential to foster new ways for fashion
designers, pattern cutters and marker makers to work together. This potential should be the subject
for further research. Some of this potential will be discussed further in Chapters 4 and 5.
3.6 Sustainability issues not directly addressed through practice
The primary aim of this project has been to uncover strategies that make fashion design without
fabric waste more feasible for the fashion designer. Findings from the project suggest, however,
that designing fashion without fabric waste may address aspects of fashion design that are not
directly connected to the problem of fabric waste. In this section I will discuss broader issues
relating to fashion design that arose from designing the collection. The first part of this section
discusses how knowledge of past practice drawn from literature may be applied in fashion
design practice, with sustainability benefits for the practice and its outcomes. The second part
discusses how fabric waste can highlight for fashion designers issues relating to garment use,
with particular focus on garment durability, repair and alteration. The third part presents the
issue of time in the practice of designing fashion and how avoiding fabric waste has the capabil-
ity to slow down the design process; while seemingly a negative impact, the potential positive
implications of slowing down fashion designing will be discussed. Finally, the aesthetics of
fabric waste in fashion design practice will be discussed. The focus is on the aesthetics of prac-
tice as much as the aesthetics of its outcomes, garments.
3.6.1 A new approach to fashion publication: the need for visual presenta-
tions of both garments and their patterns
Fashion design, perhaps more than other design disciplines, constantly refers to things already
designed. Looks are revived, modified, regurgitated. When past fashion is referenced, it is mostly
superficial appropriation of elements of past looks. It is less common to see historical knowledge of
pattern cutting and cutting studied and applied in fashion design. Literature on fashion and fashion
designers hardly caters for such an approach. Fashion in contemporary literature is presented visu-
ally most commonly as garments. The design and manufacturing processes are rarely presented
visually. This is in contrast to some of the earliest manuals for pattern cutting, such Juan de Alcega’s
text from the sixteenth century, a manual that presents garments almost exclusively as two-dimen-
sional pattern pieces. As I discovered during my investigation of the literature relevant to this

project, texts that include visual representations of garments and their patterns are very rare indeed.
Yet every cut and sew garment prior to sewing is an assortment of flat shapes of fabric. As the
discussion on shape and space awareness demonstrates, showing these shapes with the resulting
garment could potentially contribute towards the reader developing a more refined sense of spatial
intelligence and a heightened understanding of the relationship between two-dimensional flat
pattern pieces and the three-dimensional garment. Figure 3.13 shows a cape by Yeohlee Teng
(Major & Teng 2003) and jacket by Holly McQuillan (2005) – both garments and their patterns
are illustrated. The catalogue for Yield (McQuillan & Rissanen 2011), an exhibition of zero-waste
fashion, showed patterns for all of the included garments.
Figure 3.13 Cape and pattern by Yeohlee Teng (1982), jacket and pattern by Holly McQuillan (2005)

3.6.2 Zero-waste fashion design – acknowledging a history of practice and
research
In examining the design processes of various garments in this project, regular instances of refer-
ences to literature during practice become apparent; these instances helped move the practice
along. For example, the gusset in the first toile of the first square-cut trousers fitted unsatisfac-
torily. Based on a memory of how Thayaht’s tuta was cut, I cut the gusset as a square, which
resulted in excess fabric around the crotch. Upon returning to an image of the tuta, I realised
Thayaht’s gusset was a triangle, and I was able to quickly rectify the fit. The bias sleeves of the
hoodie refer to Madeleine Vionnet’s practice of cutting fabric on the straight grain but hanging
it on the bias, as exemplified by a dress from 1918. This approach to bias has two distinct
benefits: fabric waste elimination becomes easier as the main seams adhere to the fabric grain,
and having seams on the straight grain does not constrain the intrinsic malleability of fabric
hanging on the bias in the same way that vertical bias seams (most often side seams) do.
Studying historical design and make practices, and applying the gained knowledge to
current design practice enriches the practice and its outcomes, while ensuring past wisdom is
not lost. For example, early in her career Vivienne Westwood studied the cut of 1950s garments
by unpicking actual garments (Wilcox 2004: 11) and later studied old shirt patterns at the
Victoria and Albert Museum and applied this research to her work (Wilcox 2004: 15). During
her studies in Paris in the 1920s Claire McCardell unpicked and studied second-hand dresses
by Madeleine Vionnet to learn more about their cut; this research was evident in her later work
in the USA (Yohannan & Nolf 1998: 26).
The contextual research of this project, and particularly the seminal research by Bernard
Rudofsky (1947) and Dorothy Burnham (1973), highlights that zero-waste garments are prob-
ably as ancient as the practice of making garments from fabric. It is important to remember this,
particularly in light of recent erroneous claims in the media promoting zero-waste fashion
design as a new practice, for example Menkes (2008) and Doan (2008)7. The reference to
making a garment from one piece of cloth in each article is somewhat meaningless in that,
discounting any interlining, lining or contrast fabrics, all garments, whether zero-waste or not,
are made from a single piece of cloth that is cut into pieces, except for garments made from a
single piece of cloth (which Liu’s at the time were not). Whilst it is easy to understand that for
much of the fashion industry and media, the works of Rudofsky and Burnham are somewhat
7 Since relocating to New York, I have met Abigail Doan and discussed the cited article. Based on the discussion, I have a better
understanding of how easily a misguided, erroneous press release can lead to repeated errors in the fashion press. An attempt to
bring balance to the dialogue is apparent in the comments section of an online article by Mark Liu (2010).

obscure, the monograph on Yeohlee Teng (Major & Teng 2003) is a recent text that highlights
Teng’s work in zero-waste fashion design during the past three decades. Similarly, two texts on
Zandra Rhodes (Rhodes & Knight 1984; Zandra Rhodes: a lifelong love affair with textiles
2005) show that a concern for fabric waste has informed Rhodes’ design practice throughout
her career. Similarly, an article on a zero-waste fashion design course that I developed at Parsons
The New School for Design in 2010 (Rosenbloom 2010) led to claims about the course being
the first of its kind in the world. I take responsibility for initiating the claims; the course is the
first to adopt a singular focus on zero-waste fashion design. In fairness, however, the pioneering
teaching work of Lynda Grose at the California College of the Arts and Holly McQuillan at
Massey University must be acknowledged. Both (and possibly many others) have encouraged
fashion design students to explore zero-waste fashion design for several years. Works by three
of Grose’s students, Caroline Priebe (McQuillan & Rissanen 2011: 36) Andrew Hague
(Fletcher 2008: 153) and Samuel Formo (Currey 2009) have received deserved attention, while
McQuillan’s sharing of her own methods online (http://hollymcquillan.com/) is commendable.
3.6.3 Reflective and contemplative time in fashion design

The pace at which I designed the early garments in this study was considerably slower than one
would find in industry. First, I was learning a new way of designing; the variation in pace is no
different to that between someone learning to write and someone who has been writing for three
decades. Second, I was performing tasks that in industry are usually performed by several individu-
als (designer, pattern cutter, marker maker, cutter, machinist). Third, I designed in a research context,
which required substantial time for reflection. Coming from an industry background, working at a
slower pace that allows time for reflection and contemplation is more enjoyable and rewarding.
Nevertheless, I acknowledge that for industry the issue of time can be problematic; this has emerged
in many informal conversations during this study. The simple solution: the earlier one is trained in
zero-waste fashion design, the sooner he/she will work at a pace that would be acceptable in indus-
try. The challenge is that zero-waste fashion design is currently taught in a limited number of
institutions (Chapter 5 discusses fashion design education in greater length).
During this study, taking breaks from designing a particular garment was important, in
particular when the process temporarily slowed down. When I found myself stuck, I moved to
working on another garment. Often breakthroughs occurred after a period of time away from
a problem; these breaks allowed for reflection and contemplation during which new possible
solutions would emerge. This is still occurring. I designed the denim coat ( Jacket 1005) in

Figure 3.14 more than three years before the time of writing. The shaded areas in the pattern
diagram are waste. Looking at the garment and the pattern diagram now, a number of ques-
tions and possible solutions are apparent to me. As the overall intention was for the garment to
be symmetrical, it may have been easier to develop the patterns towards a vertically symmetrical
marker. This would have necessitated adding a centre back seam to each back panel (horizontal
versus vertical symmetry) or engineering some of the back panels to be on the weft grain (unde-
sirable). Some change in the length of the coat might have been necessary, too.
Figure 3.14 Jacket 1005 and pattern
A zero-waste fashion design process could have the potential to facilitate more critical reflec-
tion than may be the case in conventional fashion design situations. This would, however, need

to be underpinned by a business model that acknowledges the importance of and supports
critical reflection in design. Instead of producing a large number of sketches relatively fast, the
designer needs to incorporate pattern cutting into the design process of each garment. A large
proportion of a sample range is culled before mass-production. According to Waddell (2004:
40) “most design houses estimate at least 20% wastage at this stage”, and that the culling is done
due to technical or financial feasibility, or for aesthetic reasons. The deleted styles (sample
garments) represent a considerable amount of work by the design team, a cost to the company
and a significant waste of physical resources. Research on whether a more reflective design
process (and the kinds of business models that would support this) could potentially reduce this
other kind of waste is therefore called for.
This chapter has focused on successful strategies in fashion design situations where the
design criteria are appearance, fit, cost and fabric waste. A fashion designer may utilise these
strategies as a how-to manual in tackling fabric waste as a fashion design criterion, regardless
of the market he/she designs for. Fabric waste as a criterion for fashion design needs not and
should not be of greater importance than appearance, fit and cost. Zero-waste fashion design is
perhaps described as a play between the four criteria, a play that seeks to find out balances, not
compromises. During the practice, a fifth significant criterion for fashion design emerged:
manufacturability. The following chapter will focus on opportunities and challenges that fabric
waste raises for fashion design and fashion manufacture.

4.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR
MANUFACTURING
ZERO-WASTE GARMENTS
T
his section focuses on the implications for garment manufacture arising from designing
fashion without fabric waste that this study has uncovered. The previous chapter consid-
ered fabric waste as a fourth criterion for fashion design alongside appearance, fit and cost. From
the data in this study a fifth significant criterion emerges: manufacturability. The code “Design
for manufacture” appears in approximately five percent of the journal entries. This criterion is not
limited to designing fashion without fabric waste; it relates to the designing of all mass-produced
ready-to-wear garments, as distinct from unique one-off garments. The fact that ready-to-wear
garments are produced in multiples requires that they be designed in such a way that they can be
feasibly replicated in manufacture. Manufacturability as a fashion design criterion refers to
aspects of a garment relating to manufacture, such as cutting fabric, grading, construction and
the use of CAD technologies. As it is the aim of this project to provide fashion designers and the
industry with new knowledge about designing fashion without creating fabric waste, manufac-
turability requires careful consideration. While manufacture of the garments in this study was
not undertaken, I was employed in the fashion industry in Sydney, Australia, throughout the
practice phase of this study. It is apparent from some journal entries that the industry work led
to some considerations about manufacture during practice. Literature on fashion manufacture is
used to support discussion of issues that the practice did not directly address.
The broader topic of this project, fashion creation without fabric waste creation,
comprises fashion design and fashion manufacture. The project brings to the fore a number of
issues about the relationship between fashion design and fashion manufacture. This section
will focus on these issues, demonstrating that fabric waste as a fashion design criterion may
help bridge a gap that some (for example, McRobbie 1998 and Kawamura 2005) argue exists
between fashion design and fashion manufacture. Fashion creation without fabric waste crea-
tion presents challenges for fashion manufacture, some of which can be addressed through
fashion design. In this section I will argue that tackling these challenges could result in a
deeper engagement between fashion design and fashion manufacture than may currently be
the norm. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the positive impacts for sustainable
fashion design originating from this deeper engagement.
The chapter begins with the practice of cutting fabric to create fashion garments, as this
creates a number of challenges for fashion manufacture, whether zero-waste or not. Some of
these may become magnified with fabric waste as a fashion design criterion. Fashion design
offers solutions to many of these challenges, whilst others require closer collaboration and
communication between design, manufacture and in some cases, fabric mills. The chapter then
114 | chapter 4: opportunities

chapter 4: opportunities for manufacturing
for manufacturing zero-waste fashion | 114
zero-waste fashion
examines pattern grading, proposing a number of possible pathways for creating size ranges of
zero-waste garment. The construction of zero-waste fashion garments follows, noting the
tension between the need for standardised industry practices and the occasional breaking with
construction conventions. The chapter then examines the potential of Computer-Aided Design
and Manufacture (CAD/CAM) in the context of zero-waste fashion design and manufacture;
this study suggests that these technologies could be employed in new ways to facilitate zero-
waste fashion design and manufacture. The chapter concludes with a proposal for transforming
the industry hierarchies and the kinds of communications that occur between different actors
in the fashion design and manufacturing systems.
4.1 Fabric and zero-waste garment manufacture
This section examines issues relating to fabric, the material from which the vast majority of fashion
garments are manufactured. Arguably many of the issues relating to fashion design without fabric
waste arise from a tension that exists between fashion manufacture and fabric. Since the Industrial
Revolution it has been the aim of almost all manufacture of mass-produced goods to produce
uniform, standardised products. The main material of mass-produced clothes, a length of fabric,
despite being a mass-produced product in itself, often is not uniform in width, appearance and other
characteristics. Rather than work with the variability of fabric, conventional fashion design and
manufacture aim to overcome it. Extensive literature exists on strategies to address the variability of
fabric. Some of these strategies lead to further fabric wastage. Whilst it would be easy to blame this
on manufacturing practices, those practices currently serve fashion design, fashion business and
fashion markets. Upon entering a clothing store, we consumers expect to see identical garments in
multiples across a range of sizes. A careful examination of texts on fabric in fashion manufacture
nevertheless reveals how poorly fabric is suited to the mass-manufacture of standardised products.
This section focuses on issues relating to fabric that design can address. Some of the types of
fabric waste that Tyler (1991) covers in Chapter 6, Fabric Losses Outside the Marker, cannot be
addressed through design, such as ends of piece losses. These occur when the total length of the
fabric in a roll is not divisible by the length of the marker for an individual garment. The solution to
this kind of waste would be to weave or knit the fabric based on the marker length. This is unlikely
to be feasible, however, as little dialogue occurs between fashion design and fabric mills once the
garment has been designed and the length of the marker determined. Furthermore, by the time the
chapter 4: opportunities for manufacturing zero-waste fashion | 115

required amount of fabric is known, the fabric is generally already woven or knitted, and often also
ordered by the fashion manufacturer. The end of piece is an otherwise usable piece of intact fabric,
and mainly waste to the company in an economic sense; as a piece of fabric it is very much usable.
4.1.1 Cutting fabric

A number of issues in fashion manufacture relate to cutting fabric, and the impact of fabric’s
particular properties on cutting practices. Fabric waste as a fashion design criterion creates
specific implications for how some of these issues may be addressed. The garments produced in
this project were not mass-produced; only a sample garment of each garment style was cut and
made. Consequently, relatively few manufacturing issues relating to cutting fabric arose during
this project and for this reason literature on fashion manufacture is consulted to ensure that
most issues that could arise, are considered. Nevertheless, the garments were designed with the
intention of being feasibly manufactured.
Perhaps the most significant issue relating to fabric in fashion manufacture concerns the
difference between cutting a single sample garment (this project) and cutting multiples during
manufacture (industry). In order to cut multiple garments, the required number of fabric layers, or
plies, is placed on top of each other on the cutting table. A length of fabric is laid down continu-
ously with folds at the end of each ply. Once laid down, the plies constitute a lay. The garments are
then cut; for example, if the lay is made of 50 plies and the marker contained one garment, 50
garments would be cut at once. Tyler states (1991: 69): “Since it is impossible to spread the fabric
so that all the plies [layers of fabric in mass production cutting] are aligned precisely, the width of
the marker must be made a little narrower than the fabric.” This means that only one selvedge
(fabric edge lengthwise) can be lined up precisely at the cutting stage (Chuter 1995: 129). Tyler
(1991: 71) suggests that relatively large variation in fabric width is best addressed by planning
“markers to different widths and to sort pieces into batches according to their measured widths;
additional labour costs are outweighed by the material savings.” These statements have clear impli-
cations for manufacturing zero-waste garments, as a zero-waste marker is made for a specific
width. While this was not directly addressed in this study, a solution could be designing garments
that allow for slight variation in parts. Evidence of increasing “mass-customisation” within fashion
production exists, with specific implications for design, marker-making and cutting (Abernathy,
Dunlop et al. 1999: 145-50). Although the objective is to offer “custom fit” in a mass-produced
garment, extending the idea to “custom appearance” seems plausible. David Pye (1995(1968):
59-60) notes how the reign of standardised products since the Industrial Revolution has sidelined
116 | chapter 4: opportunities for manufacturing zero-waste fashion

imperfection and serendipity in design, but designing fashion without fabric waste could open
opportunities to explore these notions when it comes to fashion manufacture.
4.1.2 Fabric selvedges

Tyler (1991: 34) discusses the problems caused by wavy selvedges in conventional production.
Selvedges are the two long edges of a fabric length. In woven fabrics these are woven in a
particular manner to prevent fraying. Some knit fabrics are knitted as a tube and then cut to a
flat length, sometimes with glue used on the edges to create stable selvedges. Selvedges can be
wavy, meaning they have not been subject to the same amount of shrinkage as the rest of the
fabric. Conversely, selvedges can also be tight, meaning they have shrunk more than the fabric.
In this study selvedges were incorporated into the garments, except in one. The cotton jersey
used in the slashed top (T-Shirt 4007) had stiff glue along each selvedge that I could not
incorporate into the design. The glue was visually undesirable to incorporate into the garment
externally, and too rough in feel to incorporate internally. Not all glues are problematic,
however; a different jersey from the same fabric manufacturer also had glue along the selvedges
but due to its softness it posed no problems. In conventional fashion design and manufacture,
selvedges are rarely incorporated into the garment design. Cutting them off, whilst also a solu-
tion for wavy or tight selvedges, provides the cutter with a visual confirmation that the plies to
be cut are aligned.
In designing a chambray shirt for Timovsthang (spring/summer 2002-03, Figure 4.1) I
incorporated the selvedges into the front placket and back yoke (the white stripes in the
images below are the selvedges), and this shirt was cut in small production runs of multiple
garments without any particular difficulty. The fabric was stable and an even width through
the length, and the small quantities (15 or less per size) enabled accurate laying and cutting of
the fabric. Similarly, the denim coat ( Jacket 1005; see figure 3.14 in Chapter 3) uses both
selvedges as external visual elements. The denim was stable but incorporating both selvedges
into a zero-waste garment in mass-manufacture would require further testing. In an online
discussion forum (which requires membership; the discussion is included as Appendix D)
Kathleen Fasanella (2011a) points out that “the pressure on opposing selvages aren’t equal so
one side will buckle slightly” [if sewn together]. Nevertheless, Fasanella discusses the use of
selvedges in jeans; these are cut using both selvedges of the fabric. This contradicts the state-
ments from Tyler (1991: 69) and Chuter (1995: 129) somewhat (section 4.1 above) that both
selvedges cannot be lined up.

Figure 4.1: Shirt by Timovsthang (2002) utilising selvedges as external details
Shaeffer (2001: 49-50) discusses the use of selvedges to stabilise seams internally in haute couture.
The potential of utilising selvedges as structural stabilising components in ready-to-wear is underex-
plored; the difference to haute couture is that these would be machine-stitched rather than hand-
sewn. The garments in this study did not explore this, partly because the need for stabilising is less
significant in menswear than in womenswear. Menswear garments, including those created in this
study, tend not to have as many open necklines or armholes as womenswear. I have, however, used
selvedges as stabilisers in other contexts; the technique is adaptable for ready-to-wear.
4.1.3 Cutting time

In discussing marker planning (how the pattern pieces will place on a fabric width most effi-
ciently) in conventional fashion manufacture, Fasanella (1998: 114-115) advocates aligning the
edges of two separate garment components in a marker as much as possible to speed up the
cutting process. In designing and manufacturing without fabric waste this occurs automatically.
When fabric waste has been eliminated from the marker, each cutting action contributes

towards separating two garment components from the original fabric piece, where in conven-
tional cutting only one piece is being separated most of the time. Whilst no attempts were
made in this project to quantify the time saving, the saving could be considerable. It was my
experience that cutting even relatively complex garments of many components, cutting was
faster than “normal” for this reason. Formal research on gains in cutting time in manufacture is
welcomed; this would need to occur in a real-world industry situation, beyond the scope of this
study. Notably, Fasanella’s text demonstrates that in conventional fashion manufacture the
responsibility for the speed of cutting is with marker planning and therefore fashion manufac-
ture. As marker planning and –making becomes a part of designing without fabric waste, the
responsibility for speed of cutting shifts from manufacture to design.
4.1.4 End-of-ply losses

When multiples of garments are cut during manufacture, the required amount of fabric is laid
on the cutting table in folded layers. Each layer, or ply, will provide the components to the
number of garments in a marker; a marker one several garments marked on it. According to
Tyler (1991: 69) “the limpness and extensibility of fabrics and the limitations of spreading
machinery necessitate an allowance of some fabric at the ends of each ply. These losses… are
typically 2cm at each end, or 4cm per ply.” Some stable fabrics may permit smaller allowances
and some unstable fabrics may require more.” End-of-plies – the folds at the ends of each ply
– can be a significant source of fabric waste (Figure 4.2). If a garment requires 1.5 metres of
fabric and there are 50 metres on a roll, 33 garments can be cut from the roll. The end-of-ply
loss will amount to approximately 1.33 metres, or 2.7% of the entire roll.
Figure 4.2: End-of-ply losses created during cutting, typically 2cm at each end of ply (Tyler 1991: 69)

Not unlike designing for variable fabric width, with limits, end-of-ply losses can
be designed for, with some limitations. To truly account for end-of-plies and the fold at
the end of each ply, it would be necessary to design a garment with “flexible components”
and design the marker in a way that these components were placed at each end of the
marker. This is not necessarily always feasible, depending on garment type and the
desired design. Knit fabrics and soft, unstable woven fabrics (e.g. chiffon) could result in
more significant challenges, which design can address to only a limited extent. Never-
theless, it would be advisable to design the marker so that ends of plies were areas with
some degree of flexibility (generous hem allowances, for example) though at times this
may not be feasible. The slashed jersey top is designed in such a way that each end of the
marker is composed of hems and ends of the lacing cords. Whilst variability in the hem
is undesirable, in this garment small variation would hardly register, as the looping of the
slashes distorts the garment hem regardless. Similarly, the cords could feasibly withstand
variation of a few centimetres. This garment is an example of fashion design being able
to predict and address a problem that could (but would not necessarily) arise during
manufacture; designing a garment that can tolerate some variation in the length of each
ply during cutting.
The garments created in this study were cut from single plies so no end-of-ply
losses occurred. This does raise the question: is the above method of laying fabric for
cutting the only option in the manufacture of clothing? This may be a case of saving
time. It is faster to lay the fabric in folds (plies) in one continuous length than to separate
each ply by cutting. Further research on a technological solution to this is called for. For
example, could a computer-operated machine cut a length of fabric to the required
marker lengths and lay them? Some of the garments in this study do propose one less
technologically oriented solution that could reduce if not eliminate end-of-ply losses per
garment. Several garments were designed into a marker where one end was an irregular
shape, but one that matched the exact same shape when rotated 180 degrees. This in
effect means that such garments would be cut in pairs, which form a rectangle, as required
by manufacture. This is illustrated in Figure 4.3. This only works in fabrics that can be
cut in two ways (fabrics without an obvious nap or one-way print, stripe or check), but
its potential is nevertheless to be acknowledged.

Figure 4.3: A marker for a single shirt, and a marker for two shirts.
4.1.5 Fabric flaws

A fabric flaw or fault is “any feature within the usable width of a fabric that would downgrade
the resultant garment” (Tyler 1991: 30). No fabric flaws were encountered in this project other
than the stains in the vintage kimono silk, discussed in section 3.2.3 of Chapter 3. The issue of
fabric flaws is partly subjective. For example, a hole in a fabric could end up on or near a seam,
potentially compromising the structural integrity of the garment. This is safely described as a
flaw. On the other hand, a slub or other inconsistency in the weave or knit is usually also consid-
ered a flaw, but a visual one. A number of companies I have worked for would sell such garments
at a discounted rate through sample sales or factory outlets. What if, however, such flaws and
imperfections were embraced? Once again, this raises questions about our expectations for
uniformity in mass-produced garments. What if, for example, a fabric “imperfection” in a
garment was embroidered to highlight it? With careful design, this could be possible. Poten-
tially, such garments could be sold as unique pieces at a higher price, rather than relegating
them to a discount rack. It could be that zero-waste fashion design and manufacture, within
conventional industry practices and mindsets could magnify some of the challenges that fabric
ordinarily poses for garment manufacture. I propose that we need to be more critical of some
conventions, and search for and experiment with new possibilities.
Since cutting fabric is the source of many of the challenges relating to fabric waste
elimination, manufacturing methods that avoid cutting fabric deserve further examination. In
terms of fabric waste in knitted garments, fully-fashioned and seamless knitting are likely to
increase in prominence (Allwood et al. 2006: 33), as either the garment or its components are
knitted rather than cut to shape, resulting in little yarn waste and no fabric waste. Nevertheless,
designing and making through cutting and sewing knitted fabrics can be a design choice; the

methods of construction and the resulting garment appearance are necessarily different in cut
& sew and the fashion designer may prefer these for a particular design. Other possibilities exist
for non-woven fabrics. Fabrican, developed by Dr Manuel Torres, (Gundry 2008: 287-289)
allows the spraying of fibre directly onto the wearer to create a garment, a method of production
perhaps more in line with objects of industrial design rather than fashion. Australian artists
Oron Catts and Oinat Zurr of Tissue + Culture created Victimless Leather (2004) by growing
cells onto a biodegradable polymer base. Similarly, their Semi-Living Seamless Jacket is grown
into the jacket shape using cells (Braddock & O’Mahony 2005: 146-7). Whilst at developmen-
tal stage, this technique could have commercial applications in the future, as some of the ethical
and environmental issues relating to leather harvesting and tanning could potentially be avoided
(while possibly raising new ones – Catts and Zurr used human cells for some of the work).
Sustainable fashion design and manufacture are about embracing diversity of materials and
methods (Fletcher 2008: 38) and research into new possibilities of creating fashion deserves
encouragement. Where cutting and sewing is determined to be the most appropriate method
of fashion creation, fabric waste should nevertheless be included as a criterion.
4.2 Zero-waste garments and grading patterns
Grading is “the process of systematically increasing and decreasing the size of the master pattern
to create a range of sizes” (Moore, Mullet et al. 2001: xv). In this study, the code “grading patterns”
refers to moments where grading was a consideration during practice. The aim of grading is to
retain the design (the appearance and fit criteria) unchanged through the resulting sizes. Grad-
ing is a method of producing a number of sizes of a garment (and body) shape; grading does not
aim to fundamentally change the garment shape. For this reason it is advisable to keep the
number of sizes of a garment design to five or less, for example, extra-small, small, medium, large
and extra-large (Fasanella 1998: 170-1; see Figure 4.4). With the emergence of ready-to-wear
clothing, grading became necessary in order for the fashion industry to efficiently offer ranges of
sizes of garments for consumers to choose from. Grading is done once the fashion designer and
the patternmaker have approved the garment patterns, and when there are confirmed orders for
the garment style. Whilst pattern cutters are generally trained in grading, either manually or
using CAD technologies, there are also pattern graders who are only trained in CAD grading
but not necessarily pattern cutting. Figure 4.4 illustrates a nested, graded back panel of a garment.
Nesting refers to having all of the sizes overlaid with each other.

Figure 4.4: Nested, graded back panel of a garment (Aldrich 1990: 143)
Grading a zero-waste garment may initially seem challenging. The garment components have
been designed to configure on a fabric width so that no fabric is wasted – there is no space
between the components for them to grow. Through grading a larger size than the original,
many of the garment components grow both horizontally in the direction of the warp grain,
and vertically in the direction of the weft grain. Whilst it is difficult to generalise the amounts
of growth, generally the largest relative growth occurs horizontally in chest, waist and hip
circumference; the amount of vertical growth is relatively less. Vertical growth is easily addressed;
the larger size will simply require a longer length of fabric. Horizontal growth is more of a chal-
lenge; as the garment components grow, their overall configuration will expand beyond the
width of the fabric. Similarly, grading a smaller size than the original is not without challenges.
As the garment components become smaller, spaces emerge between them on fabric, creating
fabric waste. However, these challenges arise from the assumptions that the overall configura-
tion of the garment components, the marker, remains unchanged, and that the conventional
rules and methods of grading are used. These need not be the case.
This study proposes five possible pathways to creating a range of sizes of a zero-waste
garment. As becomes apparent, in some pathways grading remains in the conventional domain
of manufacture, whilst in others it shifts from manufacture to design. Due to time constraints,
grading the garment patterns was not undertaken in this project. Rather, I did some visual test-
ing to get a sense of the impact of grading on some of the garments created in this study. The
five pathways I propose are:

1. One-size-fits-most
2. Conventional grading
3. Designing each size individually
4. Using a different fabric width for each size
5. A hybrid method
4.2.1 Pathway 1: One-size-fits-most1

The need for grading can be eliminated by designing a garment that will fit individuals across a range
of sizes. None of the garments in this study follow this pathway; even the somewhat loose hoodie
(T-shirt 4006) would best be produced in two or three sizes. Yeohlee Teng has designed such garments
throughout her career, describing them as “the ultimate efficiency” (Luther 2003: 18). Teng’s skirt in
the Yield exhibition (McQuillan & Rissanen 2011: 12-17) is adjustable to almost any waist size. This
pathway is limited to loose, adjustable or wrapped garments, and occasionally garments made from
fabrics with considerable stretch. During the zero-waste collaboration between Parsons and Loom-
state Organic in 2010-11, it was decided to manufacture Andria Crescioni’s winning anorak in one
size only; the anorak was loose and adjustable through drawstrings.
4.2.2 Pathway 2: Conventional grading

Grading in the conventional manner remains an option. The benefit of this pathway is the
familiarity and speed of the process to industry practitioners; grading remains within manufac-
ture and digital technologies allow for fast grading. The subsequent sizes are likely to create
fabric waste; conventional grading occurs without marker planning as a consideration. Not all
of the garment components necessarily grade, whilst the ones that do, do so unevenly depend-
ing on the garment design. Once each component has been graded, it is unlikely that they will
configure on fabric in a way that does not create fabric waste. Is it then truthful to claim a
garment to be zero-waste, if in fact only the original size is?
4.2.3 Pathway 3: Designing each size

Each size can be re-designed using the original size as the starting point and a guide. The visual
aspects of the designed garment will be retained as close to the original as possible across the result-
ing sizes while ensuring each size is zero-waste. Whilst relative to conventional grading this path-
1 “One-size-fits-most” is my preferred term, as the commonly misused “one-size-fits-all” implies that the garment was test-
fitted on the largest living person.

way may be time-consuming, one could argue that this is an example of deeper engagement with
fashion design practice than what may be the norm (Van Kopplen & Vaughan 2003). Instead of
handing over the patterns of a garment to a grader to produce patterns for a range of sizes, the
fashion designer, working with the pattern cutter and/or grader, is responsible for each size; grading
becomes a criterion for fashion design rather than manufacture. Changes to the design are inevita-
ble but these would need to be kept to a minimum, in order to satisfy the expectations of retailers
and consumers. One womenswear company, Materialbyproduct in Melbourne, Australia, produces
size ranges of zero-waste garments (Dimasi 2009). Each size is visually slightly different; the retail-
ers and presumably consumers are satisfied with this. The key aspect to note is that whilst different,
each size is beautiful in its own right; the appearance and fit criteria are not compromised while the
fabric waste and manufacturability criteria are adhered to.
In order to design each size, the designer would first need to determine the garment compo-
nents that need to grade and by how much. These components may need to be given priority in the
re-design process, as they may set the limits for the pieces that do not necessarily need to grade (for
example, pockets, tabs, epaulettes, etc.) and smaller pieces that grade in one direction only (cuffs,
collars, etc.) When it has been determined which components need to grade, two options emerge
for the redesign process, depending on the garment design: changing or retaining the configuration
of the garment components in the marker. Each will now be examined.
Pathway 3A: Changing the marker configuration

Once the garment components have been assessed for the need for grading, they need to be
examined on the fabric width to see how similarly they may configure in comparison to the
marker of the original size. A number of strategies exist to facilitate the redesign process. For
example, pattern pieces that can be added or deleted to affect grading are a possibility. In 2003
Ahshui, a Sydney womenswear label, produced a skirt (not zero-waste) composed of several
identical panels (gores), which measured 5cm at the waist; the skirt only had the one pattern
piece, with the waist finished with a bind (Figure 4.5). Rather than grade the panel piece, the
number of panels changed for each size, as the grade amount was also 5cm. For example, if a
size 10 skirt were composed of 14 panels, then size 8 would be made from 13, and size 12 from
15 panels. This technique would only be appropriate for relatively simple garments, such as the
skirt mentioned, where most of the growth through grading happened in one direction. Impor-
tantly, it would be unlikely result in a zero-waste marker for each size, except possibly where – if
size 10 were the original size – sizes 8 and 12 were marked and cut together. It is nevertheless

an example of somewhat ingenious way of eliminating the need to grade a pattern piece.
Figure 4.5: Gored skirt that eliminates the need for grading
Changing the marker configuration is likely to result in considerable changes in garment

appearance. The marker for Endurance Shirt II (created in 2011) is considerably different
from the marker for Endurance Shirt I (created in 2009). These are illustrated in Figure 5.2 in
Chapter 5. Although the two shirts are the same size and thus the exercise of adapting a
garment from one fabric width to another does not directly relate to grading, it is possible to
nevertheless see that changing the marker for each size can significantly impact on garment
appearance; the elbow patches from the early shirt were eliminated in the later one. Therefore
it would seem that retaining the original marker as much as possible would better facilitate
adhering to the criterion of fabric waste in grading.
Pathway 3B: Retaining the marker configuration

A number of possibilities exist for retaining the original marker configuration across sizes.
Relative fullness in a garment
In some garments where fullness (defined as amount of fabric considerably larger than the body

it covers) has been designed into the garment, it may be possible to not change the outline of
each garment component to produce a range of sizes. What changes is the relative amount of
fullness in a component. Pleats, tucks, darts and gathers can be employed to control fullness
across sizes. For example, the wool trousers (Pant 2004) could be graded to a smaller size through
the large front waist dart.
Materialbyproduct has created printed tops and dresses that have a number of vertical
pleats through the body. A larger size will have relatively less fabric in the pleats than a smaller
dress; each dress contains the same total amount of fabric regardless of size (Dimasi 2009).
Gathering can be used similarly. If a garment has a large amount of gathering in an area,
absorbing all or some of the grade into the gathers is possible. A smaller size would have an
amount of fabric gathered into a shorter length while a larger garment would have the same
amount gathered into a longer length. This would alter the design slightly by creating an uneven
density of gathers across sizes, but it is nevertheless feasible in some instances. With approval
from the designer and operations manager, in 2008 I graded the bodice of an evening dress for
a client whilst not grading the full, gathered skirt component. This was done to save grading
time and therefore production costs, as the number of garments to be manufactured was rela-
tively low and the dress was only manufactured in three sizes. The gathered peplum of a blouse
by Zandra Rhodes demonstrates this approach (Figure 4.6). While the waist of the blouse that
the peplum joins onto grades in the conventional manner, the peplum component remains the
same size across the three sizes. If a larger size range were to be produced, problems could arise
but this method works when three sizes are produced, as in the case of the Rhodes bodice.
Figure 4.6: Zandra Rhodes bodice and graded pattern, in Zandra Rhodes (2005: 34-36)

Seam allowances
In this study I considered different seam allowance amounts for different sizes. If only two or three
garment sizes were to be produced, and/or the variable seam allowances were limited to few
garment components, this could be feasible. The collar, collar stand and cuffs of the Endurance
Shirts would grade like this. The outline of each pattern piece would not change from size to size;
simply, the notch for the seam allowance would move. Particular problems could arise with this
approach during manufacture, however, if a larger size range was required, and/or if more garment
components were graded in this manner. As the machinist uses the seam allowance as a visual
sewing guide (Fasanella 1998: 130), the wider it becomes, the more difficult it becomes to sew. This
approach would require additional vigilance from the operations manager as well as all the machin-
ists. If this approach were to be adopted the larger size would need to be designed first to ensure it
fitted on the fabric, or, if a median size were designed first, it would need large enough seam allow-
ances to create the larger sizes, which would have smaller seam allowances.
It is possible to create a symmetrical pattern configuration (marker) of a garment where
the central part (and/or possibly other components; for example, the selvedge areas) could
tolerate some variation in terms of the appearance criterion. For example, the central part of the
double-wool jeans (Pant 2003) marker is primarily composed of belt loops. The marker would
change slightly for each size but varying the width of the belt loops for each size would allow
these changes to be somewhat minor. Furthermore, as discussed in section 4.1.1, the width of a
fabric may vary along its length. The allowance for variation within the appearance criterion
could benefit manufacturing in that slight variations in fabric width might be overcome.
Figure 4.7: Pant 2003 marker; shaded area indicates belt loops

The grade amount is generally larger horizontally than vertically, which can make the
conventional way of cutting on the lengthwise grain problematic, if more or less the same
marker composition is to remain through the sizes. In other words, if the marker is tight for the
sample size, usually in the middle of the size range, the larger sizes may not fit on the same
width. Cutting on the cross-wise grain may be a solution is some instances. Shirt 3002 is one
example of this. In some fabrics it could even possible to cut part of the garment on the length-
wise grain and some crosswise; I used both grains in the denim coat ( Jacket 1005; Figure 3.14
in Chapter 3). Whilst switching grain is not feasible or desirable in many fabrics (e.g. knits,
one-way stretch, velvet, one-way check, stripes and prints unless a particular visual effect is
desired, etc.), it may be in some cases.
With some garments in this study, interlocking angles can bring about flexibility as well
as challenges with grading. As shown in Figure 3.6 in Chapter 3, if a rectangle is divided into
two equal parts with a diagonal line, the resulting angles in the two parts will be the same. I
conducted a visual grading experiment with two of the square-cut pants (Pant 2004A and Pant
2004B). In trousers, the waist often grades 5cm (sometimes 4cm in menswear), or 2.5cm for
half waist. The hem circumference grades half of that, 1.25cm. Therefore, if these trousers were
graded conventionally, the angle on the left leg would no longer match the angle on the right
leg. I propose that the horizontal grade amount is kept at 2.5cm throughout the leg length, thus
preserving the matching angle. The exaggerated waist dart on the right leg and the hem dart on
the leg left can be used strategically to facilitate this. Figure 4.8 demonstrates the original
pattern, the impact of conventional grading on the angles, and the proposed solution.
Sleeves grade similarly to trousers in that the grade amount is larger at bicep (usually 1.25cm)
than at wrist (usually 0.625cm). Matching angles were used in the wedge shirt (Shirt 3002); the
CF angle matches the angle of one of the sleeve seams. Through conventional grading the CF

angle would remain the same, while the sleeve seam angle would change. This shirt had two
sewn tucks at sleeve hem; I propose that to grade this shirt, the seam angle would be kept the
same and the hem tucks are used to absorb any “excess grade” (grading up) or release fabric as
needed (grading down). Figure 4.9 illustrates the original pattern, the impact of conventional
grading on the angles and the proposed solution.
Mixing two sizes in a marker

The marker of the slashed jersey top (T-shirt 4007) is such that mixing two sizes in one marker
could make grading more feasible. Two garments of the original size (Medium) fit across the
fabric width, on the left in Figure 4.10. On the right are a Large and a Small. There are two
limitations with this particular example. The vertical garment length has not graded, although
this could be addressed by having a smaller hem allowance on the Large, and larger on the
Small. The other limitation is that one would be cutting the same number of Smalls and Larges,
irrespective of the actual orders received (Fasanella 1998: 117).
Figure 4.10: T-shirt 4007: two garments in original size on the fabric width, and two garments,
smaller and larger than the original.
4.2.4 Pathway 4: Using a different fabric width for each size

Historical examples of shirts demonstrate an approach to grading that could potentially offer a

solution for “simple” zero-waste garments of knitted fabrics. As noted by Baumgarten et al.
(1999: 60, 108), the marker, or configuration of garment components on a length of fabric, did
not change when a smaller or larger garment was required. Rather, a narrower or wider fabric
was used. This was feasible at a time when a garment was made to order for a person, and the
range of fabrics available was smaller but similar fabrics (in this case shirt linens) were available
in a range of widths. In contemporary ready-to-wear manufacturing, fabric mills and wholesal-
ers usually impose a minimum quantity per fabric (e.g. 100 metres, or one roll, etc.). Given that
the looms would require some adjustment for different widths, and the time frame required to
weave the different widths to quantities required by the received orders, it is unlikely that using
a number of different fabric widths would be feasible or cost-efficient in a contemporary indus-
trial context. Some garments made from knitted fabrics, however, provide an exception. It is not
uncommon to see “basic” t-shirts and tank tops made from tubular knit fabrics (for example,
jersey, rib), which allow the elimination of side seams in the garment. These fabrics are knitted
in a range of “widths” (more accurately diameters, given the fabric is a tube) to allow the manu-
facture of a range of sizes. Fasanella (2007a) notes that for most woven fabrics this would not
be feasible. In a more “complex” garment, for example, a pair of pants with pockets and other
components, the mix of pieces, their orientation and placement on the marker, and the resulting
mix of different grade amounts would possibly complicate rather than ease the problem of
grading through use of different fabric widths.
4.2.5 Pathway 5: A hybrid method

Given the variability of garments within a collection, the varying size range requirements of a
company, and variations in grade rules, grading needs to be resolved on a garment-by-garment
basis; no single pathway exists. Moreover, in many cases combinations of the previous four
pathways are likely. With the bodice shown in Figure 4.6, Zandra Rhodes breaks with some
grading conventions. For example, the outside parameters of the sleeve patterns on the bodice
(see pathway 3B) do not grade, to allow the marker composition to remain the same across the
markers for the three sizes. Only the hole that joins the sleeve to the armhole in the bodice,
enclosed within the larger square, grades. The bodice pieces, on the other hand, are graded
almost conventionally, although the bodice length is the same for the middle and the largest
sizes. This would suggest that the most appropriate way to resolve grading largely depends on
the garment style and the number of sizes required.
The vast majority of grading in industry is now done using CAD, although a person

always checks a graded pattern (Fasanella 1998: 121). Manual grading is time-consuming, and
regardless of the grading pathway taken, CAD grading has the potential to speed up the process
when fabric waste is a criterion for design and manufacture. Managing scale would also be
easier; the reduced scale that one works on with CAD would allow faster visualization of
potential issues that could arise during grading a particular garment.
As this chapter has demonstrated, there is no one solution in regards to grading. The
most appropriate solution needs to be determined on a case-by-case basis, depending on the
garment type, garment style, the size range that is required, and fabric type and width. Overall,
however, in designing fashion without fabric waste, this study suggests that grading needs to
become a criterion for fashion design as well as for manufacture, bridging the gap between
design and manufacture. Whilst placing grading in design might seemingly make the design
process more complex, the overarching suggestion posed by this study is that deeper levels of
communication between different roles in the industry can facilitate zero-waste fashion design
and manufacture. This will be discussed further in section 4.5.
4.3 Zero-waste garment construction
This section builds on the previous two on cutting fabric and grading. For the most part, and
depending on how the garment and its patterns are designed, a zero-waste garment is
constructed not unlike a conventional garment. Construction conventions are somewhat rigidly
discussed in literature, partly for the industry’s economic need for standardised and cost-effec-
tive procedures. Just as I departed from some pattern cutting conventions in this study (section
3.4.5 in Chapter 3), I broke with some construction conventions. This points to my secondary
argument, that garment construction, pattern cutting and design are inseparable. How a
garment is constructed is a design decision, and in this study resolving the fabric waste criterion
at times justified breaking with conventions.
The most common convention broken with in this study concerns how darts are pattern
cut and sewn. This breaking with convention is evident in all of the square cut trousers. The
convention is that of trueing dart ends at seams; trueing is the blending and straightening of a
seam line where the dart meets it ( Joseph Armstrong 1995:10). A dart refers to the reduction
of fabric in a particular garment area by means of sewing in order to create form and fit ( Joseph
Armstrong 1995: 11). To maintain a straight waist seam in the square-cut trousers, the darts

were not trued in pattern. Rather, a wider than usual seam allowance (2cm as opposed to the
common 1cm) was used, and the trueing was done during sewing. Figure 4.11 shows the differ-
ence between the conventional approach to trueing a dart in pattern and trueing a dart during
sewing, as in this project.
Figure 4.11: A visual comparison between a conventional, trued dart and trouser waist darts in this study
Using a wider than usual seam allowance can create challenges during manufacture. The
machinist uses a seam allowance as a visual guide during sewing (Fasanella 1998: 130) and
departing with convention could result in confusion and/or an incorrectly constructed garment.
This is primarily a communications issue. I employed machinists to sew all of the square-cut
trousers in this study. I communicated the dart construction verbally and with a toile and the
garments were constructed as I had intended. However, given the somewhat longer supply
chains and lines of communication in industry, it is not uncommon for there to be no direct
communication between the designer and/or pattern cutter and the machinists in the factory.
Such departures from convention would need to be communicated clearly through the various
individuals in the line of communication.
Cooklin (1997: 10) regards hem and seam allowances as an economic loss; they are
fabric hidden inside the garment and should be kept to a minimum. The wider 2cm seam
allowance in this case facilitated resolving the fabric waste criterion and is arguably justifiable.
Furthermore, Cooklin’s stand does not account for other potential benefits of wider seam
allowances in some instances. If strategically placed, they can facilitate later garment alteration
and/or repair as discussed in section 3.2.1 in Chapter 3, potentially prolonging the useful life
of a garment. In zero-waste fashion design and manufacture, garment details such as seam
types, and hems need to be determined relatively early as these impact upon the overall marker.
Resolving the overall design and its marker and then changing a seam allowance would change
the marker. To sum, zero-waste garments may require a more considered design and manufac-

turing approach than some conventional garments. From a sustainability perspective, I argue
that this is a positive possibility for an industry that historically has directed much effort
towards unsustainable product proliferation.
In all fashion manufacture, including zero-waste fashion manufacture, it is at time
necessary to “waste” some fabric to facilitate garment construction. For example, sometimes
seam allowances are trimmed after the seam has been sewn; the trimming cannot occur
beforehand, as the machinist would not have enough fabric for accurate handling on the
sewing machine. Quantitatively this waste is negligible, and it is best not considered waste,
as it has a specific function during construction. In a sustainability context, ideally this waste
would be collected and recycled; in my experience, currently this rarely occurs.
4.4 Zero-waste fashion design and CAD/CAM
A myriad of constantly improving CAD/CAM systems exist for fashion design and pattern
cutting, grading and marker planning and –making. These were not used in the project for two
reasons: I am not trained in any of the available systems, nor were such systems (nor an opera-
tor) available to use in the project. Instead, manual pattern cutting, grading and marker-making
methods were employed. Through industry work I am, however, familiar with the capabilities
and functions of these systems, and I propose that existing CAD/CAM systems for pattern
cutting, grading and marker-making would lend themselves to fashion design without fabric
waste without the need to change the systems whatsoever.
The brief foray into experimenting marker composition on graph paper early in the
project felt initially promising. Working on scaled down patterns felt more manageable – it was
easier to get a sense of the “whole” than it often was when working on full-scale patterns. A
brief exploration into the capabilities of CAD/CAM systems has revealed that they can offer
many of the same benefits. Such systems currently reside in the domain of fashion manufacture,
rarely crossing over to fashion design although this gap is being bridged by development of new
systems incorporating fashion design and pattern cutting (for example, OptiTex). The focus
here, however, is on the first generation of CAD/CAM systems for pattern cutting, grading and
marker planning and –making, and the new uses for them that could arise from fashion design
without fabric waste.
CAD pattern cutting and fashion design
Holly McQuillan uses a combination of Adobe Illustrator and manual pattern cutting

and draping methods to create zero-waste garments (McQuillan 2011: 93). For example, she
might develop the initial garment shape through draping, digitise the resulting patterns and then
explore different possibilities on the fabric width digitally. Similarly, Andrew Hague developed
a zero-waste shirt (Fletcher 2008: 153) using Adobe Illustrator rather than pattern cutting soft-
ware (Rissanen 2008b). It is noteworthy that Adobe Illustrator is not intended for pattern
cutting; rather, McQuillan and Hague have adopted existing software for a new use. Figure 4.12
shows McQuillan’s digital design development for a hooded jacket using Adobe Illustrator.
Figure 4.12: Holly McQuillan’s design exploration process using Adobe Illustrator (McQuillan 2011a: 92)

CAD and grading zero-waste garments
Most grading is now done using CAD systems; they are fast and therefore cost-effective. In
zero-waste fashion design and manufacture, CAD could make the exploration of the different
grading pathways faster (see section 4.2 on grading) than is possible through manual methods.
In particular, where each size is designed, CAD would allow the designer to determine quickly
which pieces need to grade and how much. Furthermore, CAD would facilitate fast exploration
of the graded pieces on the fabric width.
CAD/CAM marker making

With fabric waste as a design criterion, marker making shifts from manufacture to design.
Conventionally the responsibility for efficiency in fabric usage has been with the marker-
maker; in zero-waste fashion design the responsibility for fabric waste shifts to the designer
(and pattern cutter where the two are separate roles). Marker-making – the placing of
garment components on a fabric width as efficiently as possible – might seem a primarily
technical task, but research reveals that human imagination and ingenuity are crucial to
marker-making, whether the aim is zero-waste or not. According to Gray (1998: 31), some
CAD/CAM “systems offer an automatic procedure [for marker-making] but none has yet
to beat a human performing the same task.” Tyler (1991: 55-57) presents findings from a
comparative study of marker efficiency between an experienced marker planner, a beginner
and an automatic CAD marker planning system. While it must be noted that two decades
have passed since the study, with enormous developments in computer technology in that
time (Tyler notes this, page 56), the beginner marker planner achieved slightly higher effi-
ciencies than the CAD system, while the expert planner achieved considerably higher effi-
ciencies constantly. More recently, in their detailed comparison between CAD and manual
approaches to pattern cutting, grading and marker making, Ondogan & Erdogan (2006: 66)
note that contrary to their original hypothesis, the use of CAD in marker-making was not
superior to a manual approach in terms of speed, but better efficiencies of fabric usage were
achieved through CAD, possibly demonstrating improvements in technology. Tyler’s study
included one expert whose years of experience were not stated, while Ondogan & Erdogan’s
study involved five CAD and five manual operators, the latter with 15-20 years industry
experience each.
Interestingly, Ondogan & Erdogan find that manual pattern cutting of the first
pattern was considered significantly superior to CAD, while CAD offered significantly

faster grading. This suggests that CAD as it currently exists should not replace human
imagination but rather, be driven by it. In discussing the use of computer technology in
creating A-POC garments, Dai Fujiwara from Issey Miyake considers the human
imagination an indispensable raw material (Kries & von Vegesack 2001: 72). While
efficiencies brought about by computers, whether in time or fabric usage, are welcomed, a
statement from Ondogan & Erdogan (2006: 67) deserves attention: “Nowadays the shelf
life of a product is not long enough to justify the time, labour and expense necessary for the
design and production manually. This in turn makes CAD extremely important for apparel
production.” From a sustainability perspective it is a concern that brief shelf lives of fashion
garments are taken for granted in that study. I propose that CAD be harnessed in fashion
and design and manufacture to create new efficiencies in materials and time; returning to
the previous statement, the saved time could be used to strategise for prolonged product
shelf and use lives.
4.5 Zero-waste fashion design and fashion industry hierarchies
Section 3.4.1 in Chapter 3 discussed the impact of the fabric waste criterion on the relationship
between fashion design and pattern cutting: pattern cutting is fashion design. This chapter has
suggested that in zero-waste fashion design and manufacture grading and marker making are
also design. It now emerges that the criterion could facilitate transformation in the hierarchies
that exist in fashion manufacture, with possible positive implications for both design and
manufacture. In this study I performed all of the roles in the hierarchy. While such a situation
is often not feasible in industry, it does point towards deeper levels of engagement between the
different roles.
The hierarchical division of labour in fashion design and manufacture has its roots in
practices established by Charles Frederick Worth in the late nineteenth century (de Marly
1980: 22). Worth was the first fashion designer in the modern sense, establishing the role as a
predominantly creative profession (Rennolds Milbank 1985: 24-36). Although Worth is
exclusively associated with haute couture, the fashion designer as a creative force driving fashion
is arguably equally established in ready-to-wear. Figure 4.13 illustrates the conventional
hierarchies of roles in fashion design and fashion manufacture.

Figure 4.13: Conventional fashion design and fashion manufacture hierarchies
In the first half of the twentieth century, Frederick Winslow Taylor’s Scientific Management
(Taylor 1913: 39-40) was influential in the hierarchical organisation of many industries, includ-
ing fashion manufacture. In Europe and North America in particular, the Second World War
(1939-1945) also impacted on the industry. Sladen (1995: 104-5) and Waddell (2004: 27)
discuss how the Utility Scheme in the UK during World War II strengthened the hierarchical
organisation of the fashion manufacturing industry, in order to cope with rationed materials
and reduced workforce. Breward (2003: 34) and Kawamura (2005: 65) discuss the institution-
alised mythology surrounding the fashion designer and how the myth facilitates the promotion
of fashion. Fletcher (2008: 186-7), on the other hand, argues that the myth of the genius
designer has negative implications for consumers’ perception of their own skills and knowledge
relating to garment alteration and maintenance.
McRobbie (1998: 39) provides a convincing critique of fashion design education in the
UK leading up to and during the 1980s, arguing that historically there has been a desire for
academics to separate fashion design from manufacture: “As part of the process of professionalism,
fashion design distinguishes itself vigorously from production”. Fashion designers, as a legacy
of their education, disavow the more menial side of manufacture, thus reproducing the
traditional class divides in their working practices. McRobbie highlights many of the problems
that this arguably causes for both fashion design and manufacture (59-60). In closing, McRobbie
presents a challenge, “which is to envisage new forms of collaboration and co-operation (and
also social insurance) which reflect the creative, unstable, experimental and fluid patterns of
work in fashion” (189).

With fabric waste as a fashion design criterion, a reorganisation of the hierarchy could
occur, because a close, engaged relationship between design and manufacture is required. Roles
traditionally separated from design, pattern cutting, grading, marker planning and –making all
become indispensable components of fashion design. Figure 4.14 illustrates a comparison between
conventional hierarchies and a new possibility for industry organisation. As Chapter 3 demonstrates,
zero-waste fashion design includes pattern cutting as a practice of design. With manufacture, the
scope of design (including pattern cutting) expands to grading and marker making.
Figure 4.14 Comparison between conventional hierarchies and a new possibility for industry organisation
The diagram and how I performed these roles in this study might suggest that the roles of
designer, pattern cutter, marker planner and maker would merge to one role, thereby eliminat-
ing one or more of these roles and sources of employment. I am not, however, suggesting this.
I am proposing that the kinds of communications that occur between these roles could, and
probably should, be transformed. In zero-waste fashion design and manufacture, the pattern
cutter (if a separate role from designer), pattern grader and marker planner and maker need to
be an integral part of the design process of a garment. Whilst this sounds a simple proposition,
the current hierarchies and consequent structures in industry pose formidable challenges for
this. For example, with off-shore manufacturing the pattern grader and marker planner are
likely to be in a different physical location to the designer and pattern cutter; in some instances,
the pattern cutter may be off-shore as well. The implications of such somewhat common situ-
ations should be the subject of further research in the context of zero-waste fashion design and
manufacture. Where all roles are in the same location (at least in the same city if not the same

building) greater potential for transforming the kinds of communications could exist; future
research should investigate this further.
Perhaps the greatest challenge to transforming the industry is the traditional elevation of
fashion design above the rest of the industry roles. As noted earlier, McRobbie (1998: 59-60)
and Fletcher (2008: 186-7) point towards different problems that this causes for design itself,
the industry as well as consumers. At the same time, Fletcher & Grose (2012: 157-179) and Fry
(2009: 41-103) present entirely new opportunities for design, including new ways of engaging
not just with the rest of the industry, but with humanity in its entirety.

5.
CONCLUSION:
DESIGNING A FUTURE
FOR FASHION DESIGN
I
n the light of escalating levels of fashion consumption, and increased environmental and
social impacts associated with it (Allwood et al 2006: 11-14), fashion designers and fashion
companies ought to have the space, time and economic incentive to design and produce less
– in a material sense – but with more consideration and with an in-depth understanding of
the complex nature of fashion and sustainability. This project supports this view and contrib-
utes to this understanding. More broadly, there is a pressing need to decouple fashion design,
production and consumption from continuous economic growth. New visions for the future
of fashion design – fashion design that functions towards sustaining all of us – are inseparable
from new economic models, and new business models fostered by those. Conversations with
countless fashion designers during this project have revealed that often fashion designers are
constrained by the economic expectations of the company they work for. Therefore, real and
meaningful changes towards a sustained and sustaining fashion industry require close collabo-
ration between fashion design, fashion design education, economists, policy makers and
consumers, and likely other stakeholders.
In Chapters 3 and 4 I discussed in length the opportunities for designing and manufac-
turing zero-waste garments. I have summarised the key findings of this study regarding zero-
waste fashion design in the following eight points. My aim for this brief summary is to provide
a simple yet robust framework for anyone planning to practice zero-waste fashion design.
With each finding, the section that discusses it in detail is included:
142 | chapter 5: conclusion:

chapter
designing
5: conclusion:
a futuredesigning
for fashion designfor fashion design | 142
a future
1. Pattern cutting is integral to zero-waste fashion design practice; it cannot be treated as a
separate phase or somehow “less than” fashion design. (Section 3.4)
2. Balancing the criteria of garment appearance, fit and cost with fabric waste is key: all are of
equal significance, though the balance varies during the design process. (Section 3.2)
3. Balancing tailored and square-cut pattern cutting approaches can facilitate later fabric
waste elimination. (Section 3.3)
4. In zero-waste fashion design marker planning and making are design rather than manufac-
turing activities. (Section 3.5)
5. In zero-waste fashion design pattern grading is design rather than manufacturing activity.
(Section 4.2)
6. Openness and flexibility regarding outcomes, tempered by a critical approach to aesthetics,
are key to designing zero-waste garments successfully. (Section 3.4)
7. Zero-waste fashion design cannot function within conventional fashion industry hierar-
chies. Equally, it can facilitate rethinking these hierarchies. (Section 4.5)
8. Zero-waste fashion design needs examining in its broader context of fashion and sustain-
ability. A zero-waste garment is not inherently “good”; the context is decisive. (Section 5.6)
This chapter closes the current project, while aiming to point towards new ones. The first section
in this chapter sums up the key argument: pattern cutting is fashion design, even if fabric waste
(or sustainability) is not a criterion for design. Drawing from the key argument the second
section briefly reviews what shifts might be necessary in fashion design education in order for
zero-waste fashion design to be incorporated into it. The third section proposes new research
areas emerging from this project. The fourth section reflects on the success of using practice in
this project to examine the research question, and how that led to the key argument. Further
opportunities for the use of practice in research will also be discussed. The fifth section proposes
that sustainability can provide a platform for new kinds of creativity in fashion design. The
chapter and this thesis close with a proposal for us all. Much work remains to be done around
sustainability in fashion, and sustainability in society. This is work that invites participation
from all of us in order for it to be successful. I propose that this work will not be as difficult as
may currently seem, despite its complex challenges. A shift in our collective mindset about the
world – made of people with a natural propensity for empathy – will make this work easier and
more rewarding than how we might currently see it.
chapter 5: conclusion: designing a future for fashion design | 143

5.1 Zero-waste fashion design and pattern cutting
In an essay titled To cut is to think, Germano Celant (1996: 22) states: “The cut is the soul of cloth-
ing.” It is partially the cut that transforms cloth into clothing, but I question whether most clothing
today can claim to have a soul. The essay title, however, rings true for zero-waste fashion design, and
should for all fashion design: we should think with every cut we make into cloth. Cutting and
making garments are fashion design. As a practice, fashion design could be seen as a rich fairground
of various crafts and critical thinking, and needs to be taught as such. Patternmaking (USA,
Australia) and pattern cutting (UK and to lesser extent Australia) are often presented and used as
interchangeable terms, depending on location. This project suggests that pattern cutting is never-
theless more descriptive of a fashion design practice of the future. Its creative scope is broad, and it
suggests action rather than re-action. Alternately, patternmaking could be renamed pattern design
(Fasanella 1998: 130; Van Kopplen & Vaughan 2003). This project, as well as the works of Julian
Roberts, Holly McQuillan, Yoshiki Hishinuma and many others, has demonstrated that pattern
cutting can be a powerful design ideation tool like sketching is. This is not to say pattern cutting
should replace sketching; each has its own unique advantages and the two are complimentary. For
example, in designing Endurance Shirt I (figure 5.2) I used sketching extensively. Sandra Ericson
and her company, Center for Pattern Design, have been championing pattern cutting-led designers
like Shingo Sato, Roberts, McQuillan and myself. The significance of cutting – mutilating – cloth
is reflected in the title Roberts, McQuillan and I chose for a joint research project, The Cutting
Circle (thecuttingcircle.com). On one hand we see the cut as essential to design practice, and on
the other, we recognise that the cut has implications beyond our initial intentions as designers. To
cut is to take a risk, whether an aesthetic, economic or ecological risk. It is also, however, liberating;
St James (2010) notes that once the first cut – a disturbance – has occurred in the fabric, the fear of
failure dissipates: “Once the fabric is cut it’s no longer perfect, no longer pristine, no longer
untouched, and can both mentally and literally be transformed.”
Relatively early on during practice in this project I realised that how I had previously
designed – mainly through sketching – was not working in this project. Pattern cutting became
part of the design process. The function of a garment pattern is not only to help realise the design-
er’s idea aesthetically and produce a garment of appropriate appearance and fit at an appropriate
cost (all of these specific to the company employing the designer) but also, the pattern should
facilitate efficient construction time during manufacture and be efficient in terms of fabric use even
if fabric waste in an ecological sense is not a criterion. Whether or not fabric waste is a criterion,
144 | chapter 5: conclusion: designing a future for fashion design

the garment pattern impacts on the other three criteria. The garment appearance and fit are entirely
inseparable from the garment pattern, and depending partially on how the garment pattern is
designed impacts on the cost of the garment. Pattern cutting is therefore fashion design.
Figure 5.1: Comparison of initial criteria for fashion design in this project,
and proposed criteria for fashion design in the future.
Figure 5.1 shows on the left the criteria for fashion design that emerged from the practice in
this project, discussed in detail in Chapter 3. The four primary criteria were appearance, fit, cost
and fabric waste. On the right is what I propose as criteria for fashion design moving forward.
What I had earlier considered to be secondary criteria can be viewed as subsets or sub-catego-
ries of the four new criteria: appearance, fit, cost and sustainability. The new sustainability
criterion covers considerations relating to environmental and social issues not included by the
criteria of fabric waste, future transformability and physical durability; fabric waste is one sub-
category under sustainability. The four criteria are of equal importance; fashion design is a

process of finding a balance between them. Sustainability cannot come at a cost to appear-
ance, fit or cost. For all of its courage and sheer hard work, Kelly Cobb’s “100 mile suit” – a
man’s outfit made from materials sourced within 100 miles of her home, received criticism
for the garments’ appearance and fit (Fasanella 2007c); whether the garments were costed is
unclear. A number of people have privately noted the complex construction of some of my
garments, notably the Endurance Shirt of 2009 and its follow-up, Endurance Shirt II of
2011 (Figure 5.2). These shirts would not be appropriate in terms of cost or manufacturabil-
ity for a lower-priced product line; however, future transformability, including repair and
alteration, was a criterion during designing these garments, resulting in a number of addi-
tional seams that might at first seem unnecessary but that in fact facilitate later garment
alteration. I argue that a larger initial investment made in the construction of these two
garments, with a resulting higher cost, can be offset by later repair and alteration, resulting
in a prolonged usable life for the garments.
Figure 5.2: Endurance Shirt I and patterns for Endurance Shirt I and II
The table in Figure 5.1 is a simplification; particularly the criterion of sustainability is too
complex to discuss at the necessary length here. As a guide, Parts 1 & 2 of Fletcher & Grose’s
Fashion & Sustainability (2012) provide a useful framework to break down the criterion. Part 1
of the book concerns transforming fashion products while Part 2 focuses on transforming fash-

ion systems. (Part 3 is about transforming fashion design practice; the three parts are insepara-
bly linked.) As Fletcher notes (2008: 166-169, 175), appropriateness is key; different garment
types are used by the wearer in different ways and at different intensities, and this variability
needs to be accounted for during design. Therefore, the different sub-categories under sustain-
ability will bear different weights depending on the garment being designed. As an example,
where durability and future transformability were key criteria for the two Endurance Shirts,
they would not necessarily be for a garment that would need to be disposable – for example,
in designing a hospital gown used by patients with infectious diseases. I also acknowledge that
the table barely points towards the human aspect of sustainability, whether it is the right to a
living wage by the machinist, a cotton picker’s right to work in a non-toxic, non-life threaten-
ing environment on a cotton field, or a fashion consumer’s right to a satisfying self image
through the means of fashion. Perhaps these could be covered by a sub-category of “ensured
quality of life for every individual along the fashion chain”.
Fashionability may seem somewhat at odds with sustainability; it is easy to associate
fashionability with fast change. I propose that the connection is an unnecessary one to make.
Some contemporary fashion designers, who show a new collection twice a year, do not equate
showing seasonal collections with making obsolete the previous season’s clothes. Issey Miyake
puts it bluntly: “To change every six months…is crazy. It’s designer suicide.” (Frankel 2001:
48). A statement from Maison Martin Margiela elaborates: “We have always had garments
that we continue to propose for many seasons in a row (in some instances twelve!). It remains
more important for us that someone finds their way of dressing as opposed to a way of dress-
ing as prescribed by anyone else or an over-riding trend.” (35) Fashionability here refers to
appropriate appearance and fit at a particular point in time; it in no way implies that that the
appearance and fit somehow become inappropriate at a particular speed. As an example, Dr
Gene Sherman, Executive Director of the Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation in
Australia, could be described as “fashionable”, given that part of her past wardrobe is now
housed at The Powerhouse Museum in Sydney. Some pieces in her current wardrobe are more
than a decade old (Gwilt & Rissanen 2011: 119). While fashion changes as society does, the
pace of real fashion change – that is, the change in what most of us wear – is not as fast as the
fashion media and many companies would have us believe.
This project demonstrates that a fashion designer with an understanding of pattern
cutting and garment manufacturing practices, particularly pattern grading and marker
making, is able to design garments while greatly reducing or eliminating the amount of

fabric waste produced in the production of the garment. Zero-waste fashion design may
differ from design processes that are currently being taught within fashion design courses
worldwide, but the skills learned during fashion design education as well as through work-
ing in the fashion industry can be harnessed for an approach that eliminates or dramatically
reduces the amount of fabric wasted. This project demonstrates that existing skills and prac-
tices can have value added to them by utilising them in new ways. Moreover, I argue that
pattern cutting is fashion design.
5.2 Zero-waste fashion design education
From August to December 2011 I taught the first course titled “Creating a Zero-Waste
Garment” at Parsons The New School for Design, partnering up with a New York-based
company Loomstate Organic. The primary findings from this project, as outlined in Chapters
3 and 4 of this thesis, were used to develop the course curriculum. The course received a substan-
tial amount of publicity, as well as fashion industry interest. Partly as a result of this interest, I
was also invited to develop and teach some one- or two-day intensive zero-waste workshops at
Columbia College Chicago (Chicago, USA), Kwantlen Polytechnic University (Vancouver,
Canada), Massey University (Wellington, New Zealand) and California College of the Arts
(San Francisco, Canada). I was also invited to deliver lectures on zero-waste fashion design in
South Korea, Australia and Finland, as well as companies in New York. While the extent and
nature of the publicity would suggest that teaching zero-waste fashion design is somewhat
limited to Parsons (for example, Rosenbloom 2010; Zalopany 2011), it needs to be acknowl-
edged that Lynda Grose (California College of the Arts), Arti Sandhu (Columbia College
Chicago) and Holly McQuillan (Massey University) have supported students in exploring
zero-waste fashion design for a number of years. Each takes a somewhat different approach; in
McQuillan’s case, she shares her own approaches with students, while Grose and Sandhu refer
to McQuillan and myself, as they have not practiced zero-waste fashion design themselves but
recognise its value in fashion design education. For example, when Samuel Formo was working
on his zero-waste jacket (Rissanen, 2009a), Grose, his teacher, approached me via email,
followed by an email conversation between Formo and I. Furthermore, some entrepreneurial
students have decided to explore zero-waste fashion design in their final collections, for exam-
ple Laura Poole (University of Technology Sydney, Australia, 2010) and Simone Austen (Fach-

hochschule Hannover, Germany, 2011; Figure 5.3). Mark Liu, who completed his Bachelor of
Design at UTS in 2004 just as I was commencing this project, focused on zero-waste fashion
design for his MA Textile Futures at Central Saint Martins in 2007; Liu contacted me for
advice on the project and his subsequent business through 2007 and 2008.
Figure 5.3: Zero-waste garments by Laura Poole (2010) and Simone Austen (2011)
Reflective journal entries were a weekly requirement within the course at Parsons, to provide a
space for the students to reflect on and recognise their own learning. Work from the course was
exhibited in the Aronson Gallery at Parsons in February 2011, alongside reflective statements
from the students (Appendix E). In my experience of teaching the course, the most significant
challenge for students was to understand that they could not design the garment in its entirety
through sketching garments; each student realised this at a different point in the course.
However, once students began to understand the potential of designing fashion through pattern
cutting, their design processes moved forward speedily. A.C. elaborates: “I have come to realize
that there is no right or wrong way to create a garment, and by using unconventional methods
such as zero-waste I have come up with interesting new silhouettes and design details that I
wouldn’t have thought of otherwise.” This is echoed by G. G. who calls zero-waste fashion
design “the freedom to explore your creativity to develop new and interesting ideas”. A garment
designed by Andria Crescioni (Figure 5.4) was chosen by Loomstate Organic and was manu-
factured for November 2011 retail launch.

Figure 5.4: Andria Crescioni parka in calico (2010) and denim (2011).
Drawing from this research and my experiences of teaching zero-waste fashion design, I argue
that a key challenge for including zero-waste fashion design in fashion design education is that
pattern cutting is at times taught as somehow separate from or at best supportive of fashion
design, while fashion design is presented as inspiration and market research, fabric and colour
selection, and extensive sketching. Pattern cutting tends to be presented as subsequent rather
than concurrent to fashion design. Furthermore, pattern cutting courses as well as texts tend to
present pattern cutting as a somewhat closed, rule- or convention-bound and technical process,
rather than the open, creative and creating process it can be. These factors might risk condition-
ing students and thus future fashion designers to perceive pattern cutting as a primarily techni-
cal endeavour – which it also is – potentially preventing them from seeing the creative and
sustaining potential of pattern cutting in fashion design. I argue that pattern cutting and
making garments are inseparable from and integral to fashion design, because the garment
pattern is inseparable from the criteria of appearance, fit and cost, as well as sustainability.
During my undergraduate study, I received a robust yet limited and limiting education in
pattern cutting. We were assessed on how accurately our patterns reflected the sketch. Such a

narrow approach denies the opportunity to use pattern cutting as a dynamic design ideation
tool, one that could lead to unexpected forms somewhat more easily than sketching. At the
time of writing, I have taught fashion design for over eight years, mostly dominated by sketch-
ing. In that time I have seen the same sketched ideas from students countless times; students
tend to sketch what they already know. It is more challenging to draw the unknown, the new.
Pattern cutting, combined with sketching, can enrich the exploratory ideation phase in a design
project. In September 2011, third year students in the BFA at Parsons were encouraged to use
the letters of the alphabet as a basis for designing a t-shirt through pattern cutting. While it is
early to assess the success of the project, preliminary results would suggest that incorporating
pattern cutting into the design process impacted positively on the students’ exploration of form.
A broad challenge for fashion design education is that for a long time, sustainability-
focused or –related courses were only offered as electives. This was the case for the zero-waste
fashion design course I developed for Parsons, although current conversations at the school
include faculty workshops, which could in the longer term mean that zero-waste fashion design
could be incorporated into core courses. Overall, the situation seems to be slowly shifting. There
are now degrees focusing on sustainability in fashion, such as the MA Fashion and the Envi-
ronment offered by London College of Fashion, established in 2008, and a Masters program in
Sustainability in Fashion offered by ESMOD Berlin, established in 2011. Whilst the increased
presence of sustainability issues in fashion design education is to be commended, the challenge
is to incorporate it into core courses at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Presenting
“sustainability” as somehow separate from “conventional” fashion design is risky, in that it can
marginalise the complex, inevitable problems that the industry and humanity are facing, while
potentially doing a disservice to students’ learning.
For future courses on zero-waste fashion design, a key issue to address is the relationship
between fashion design and fashion manufacture. As Chapter 4 demonstrates, certain chal-
lenges for zero-waste fashion design arise from manufacture. This thesis calls for closer collabo-
ration between fashion design and fashion manufacture; this needs to be supported by educa-
tion in both. If the two reside within different departments or institutions, collaborative projects
between them should be developed and fostered. There are areas of expertise unique to each, but
the goals are common, and these goals rely on the specific fields of expertise. Demolishing the
traditional hierarchies of the industry is also required; traditionally fashion design has domi-
nated the way in which the industry is presented to the public through media. Remarkably,
more than a decade ago McRobbie (1998, 2000), called for bridging the gap between fashion

design and manufacture in fashion education, albeit for different reasons. McRobbie noted the
financial difficulties that fashion designers in the UK ran into, when they were encouraged to
set up their own businesses soon after graduation on one hand, but were not knowledgeable on
manufacturing or business practices on the other. A new reason can now be added to the over-
all rationale for introducing manufacture and business into fashion design education in a richer
way: sustainability.
5.4 New research areas in fashion design
The contextual research (Chapter 2) in this project demonstrates that fabric waste can be addressed
through fashion design using three primary methods: cut & sew, fully-fashioned and A-POC. This
project focuses on cut & sew, the most common of the three, contributing towards a stronger foun-
dation from which to identify new research topics. This section begins with potential new research
topics relating to cut & sew, and then discusses the other methods, and some speculative issues that
arose during this project relating to them. The section concludes with some potential prospects for
research into the larger context of fashion design and sustainability.
Interviews with the living designers covered in Chapter 2 could potentially uncover
detailed accounts of their design processes, thereby enriching the field of knowledge. The find-
ings from this project could be utilised to develop the interviews. For example, in the case of
some designers it is unclear whether the fashion designer is also the pattern cutter. Informally
this process has partially taken place during the curation of Yield; while writing the catalogue,
Holly McQuillan and I spoke informally with most of the included designers about their work-
ing processes. It seems that not one designer works in the same way (McQuillan & Rissanen
2011), a point highlighted when McQuillan and I co-taught a zero-waste workshop in New
Zealand in 2011. Our working practices are different, which made for a richer workshop. The
participants could see the possibility of creating their own way of creating zero-waste garments.
This research has not included the dominant industry situation where the designer and
pattern cutter are two individuals, rather than one as in this research. Such a situation could
dramatically differ from the design situation in which the practice in this project took place and
therefore some of the findings from this project might not be directly transferable to that situ-
ation. An investigation into a zero-waste fashion design approach involving a team or teams of
a fashion designer and pattern cutter would deepen our understanding of zero-waste fashion

design in a more common situation in industry, where the fashion designer and pattern cutter
are two individuals. In particular, situations where the designer and pattern cutter are in differ-
ent physical locations (relatively common with off-shore manufacturing) could create unfore-
seen challenges that invite further research. The research could ask: If the interpretation and
realisation of a “zero-waste” idea occurs substantially through pattern cutting, what are the
implications for fashion designers who do not have an understanding of pattern cutting? What
challenges does a geographic separation between the fashion designer and pattern cutter present
for zero-waste fashion design?
Based on the practice undertaken in this project, I believe that CAD (Computer-Aided
Design) pattern cutting and marker making systems offer great potential for speeding up parts
of the design process. In particular, exploring the potential of the initial pattern shapes on a
fabric width was time-consuming. A CAD system would allow doing this relatively fast, while
allowing fast documentation of design attempts that did not work. In my case, each garment
resulted in several full-sized, “failed” markers, some of which represented more than an hour of
work each. Working at a reduced scale on a computer screen rather than at full scale on a
cutting table would be faster. Pending funding, I will receive training in OptiTex, one such
CAD system, in 2013 (no CAD system was available at UTS when the practice phase was
completed) and I will be examine how much faster I can design using CAD as a tool alongside
manual methods, which I do not expect to abandon. In my practice, manual methods at the
early phase of designing in particular seem indispensable to me.
A common question from industry is regarding the speed at which zero-waste garments
can be designed. While CAD may bring some benefits in this regard, whether CAD is used or
not, as one’s skills build up, the design process becomes faster. While I did not time the design
processes, my experience of four different periods of design – 2008 for the Bad Dogs exhibition,
2009 for Fashioning Now, early 2011 for Zero-Waste: Fashion Repatterned, and mid-2011 for
The Cutting Circle, tells me that I have become faster as my expertise and skills have developed.
A formal comparative study of speeds of designing in conventional fashion design and zero-
waste fashion design, of designers of varying levels of expertise in both, could be helpful in
providing the industry with statistics about speed; this might help with allaying some of the
concerns industry may have about zero-waste fashion design.
Although the approach taken in this project focuses on cut & sew, some questions arose
relating to fully-fashioned and A-POC. Perhaps the most interesting question is around fully-
fashioned weaving: that is, weaving the garment pieces to their required shapes. While Burn-

ham (1973: 10) suggests that some basic garments were historically woven to shape, up until
recently I knew of no contemporary mass-produced example in fashion (hand-woven examples
are not unheard of ). In 2009 I was contacted by Siddharta Upadhyaya of the company August;
the company’s Direct Panel on Loom (DPOL) technology implies that this is fully-fashioned
weaving. The company website (http://august.synthasite.com/, viewed 10 May 2011) states:
“Using DPOL, one can produce ready to stitch shaped woven garment components which are
finished at the edges by selvedge.” The technology is patented, and available to other companies
as a service. Whether other companies have taken this up to date is unclear from the August
website. I encourage further research in this area.
Other, less commonly used methods of fashion creation also warrant further research.
Issey Miyake’s A-POC, launched in the late 1990s, has not to date to my best knowledge been
adopted by other companies. From a waste perspective, however, the technology seems to
possess great potential. It would be particularly interesting to see how a designer with a differ-
ent aesthetic to Miyake’s would use the technology. Finally, more recent developments, such as
growing “fabric” from living tissue or spraying fibre directly on the body (covered briefly in
Chapter 2) may have greater future potential as the technologies develop.
As the previous section on education suggests, more formal research on fashion design
education is needed. Particularly, current approaches to teaching fashion design and pattern
cutting require investigation. How do these vary, if at all, from university to university, and
country to country? What are the different foci globally in fashion design education overall?
On pattern cutting, I’d like to make a personal call for a new kind of pattern cutting manual;
this project provides direction towards one that makes no separation between fashion design
and pattern cutting.
The issues relating to manufacturing zero-waste garments in Chapter 4 could be
researched more formally through practice, that is, through manufacturing zero-waste
garments. It was beyond the scope of this project, both temporally and financially to manu-
facture any of the garments in any great number. Alternately, the researcher could team up
with a company that already manufactures zero-waste fashion, such as Materialbyproduct in
Australia, and actively test the speculative findings from Chapter 4 through this means.
Without doubt some real challenges would emerge, but ones that would likely be resolved
through closer collaboration between design, manufacture and business management. Relat-
ing to that, some broader questions exist around the links that might need forging between
fashion design, manufacture and economics in the context of sustainability. Any shifts in

design or manufacturing practices need to be integrally supported by the company business
model, which could pose new challenges for a company on the whole. This, however, could
provide rich opportunities for interdisciplinary research, bringing together fashion design
and economics.
5.4 Reflecting on practice in research
On reflection, incorporating fashion design practice as a research method within the project has
resulted in rich project findings. This project utilised fashion design practice to investigate the
practice-oriented research problem. The findings were then articulated for other fashion design
practitioners, so that they might be able to make connections to their own practice, enabling
them at least hypothetically to modify their practices. What can other practitioner-researchers
learn from this project? What potential does this method have for other design disciplines, such
as visual communication design or product design?
A key finding, the inextricable link between fashion design and pattern cutting, emerged
from the practice in this project. This resulted from a shift in perception, reflected in a journal
entry from 13 March 2007: “It’s almost as if I’m learning to design again.” On reflection, I was.
Once I had realised that pattern cutting had to be actively present in the design process, the
practice started to move along. Through trial and error, I essentially taught myself how to design
fashion without creating fabric waste, to provide myself an understanding of a possible process.
Whilst I had many hunches about this kind of designing before the practice or the project
commenced, the practice slowly revealed the unknown. Some hunches were confirmed, others
discounted, but most significantly, unexpected discoveries and design solutions emerged from
practice.
UTS requires each research student to present the progress from the first year of research
in a doctoral assessment. During the first year I anticipated grounded theory, particularly the
approach described by Strauss & Corbin (1998), to be an integral aspect of the research design
of this project. On reflection some five years after my assessment the link between grounded
theory and how I used practice in this project is clear to me. Both are “up-from-data” approaches.
The creation of codes and the eventual categories in this project is similar to grounded theory
approaches. A more formal investigation into richer use of grounded theory in practice-based
research seems warranted.

5.5 Sustainability as a creative catalyst in fashion design?
“I never saw any point in stopping at the way in which a conventional wisdom
decreed a jacket should be cut. Early on, I realised how important it is just to be
curious. You mustn’t be frightened or hide behind pre-conceived ideas. You have
to experiment. You just do it and it’s beautiful because you discover an energy there
which feeds you. There are no rules.”
John Galliano in McDowell (1997: 80-81).
In and of itself, zero-waste fashion design does not pose great limitations to creativity in fash-
ion design. This relies, however, on the designer accepting that he/she needs to perceive and
approach fashion design practice in new ways. Pattern cutting needs to be integral in the
design process; it is a key ideation tool. This could pose a challenge to a designer without some
knowledge of pattern cutting, although in a potentially positive sense, it could mean a lack of
preconceived ideas about the potential of a two-dimensional shape in three dimensions. This
could lead to new forms and possibly be an entrance to previously unseen possibilities.
Designing without wasting fabric is knowing the space one is working within. When
one knows the parameters of that space, the possibilities are endless. In terms of fabric itself,
it must be noted that the space is open rather than closed. While the end result – the
marker, or pattern configuration on a fabric width – is enclosed within four sides (the
selvedges and the marker ends), during the design process there are only three closed sides
(Figure 5.5).
Figure 5.5: The working space for zero-waste

Of course the designer can choose to add a new criterion, that is, a preconceived marker length;
this was the case for Samuel Formo’s jacket and David Telfer’s coat in Yield (McQuillan &
Rissanen 2011); both had wanted to create the garments from as little fabric as possible. The
pyjamas I made for Zero-Waste: Fashion Re-Patterned in 2011 were similarly limited in size, due
to the fact that I was creating the garments from two 60-year old bed sheets (Rissanen 2011b).
The length of each sheet, and therefore my working space, was predetermined. This was actually
an enjoyable challenge, and partly responsible for the silhouette of the trousers, as the length of
the sheet, balanced with the width of the waistband, determined the trouser leg width, while
the width of the sheet determined the trouser leg length (Figure 5.6).
Figure 5.6: Pyjamas made from two sheets of predetermined size.
Notably, all design exists and functions within set parameters and criteria. In the case of
fashion design, the three primary criteria have been appearance, fit and cost. Not unlike Formo
and Telfer’s work, occasionally resource use in fashion design can become a significant criterion.
For example, it was during the Utility Scheme in the UK during and after the Second World
War, from 1941 to 1952 (Sladen 1995). The Victoria & Albert Museum in London has several
Utility garments by prominent UK designers of the era in its collection (Mendes 1984: 89-90).
Despite the quantified limitations imposed on design at the time regarding the amount of
fabric, number of buttons, number of pleats and many other features in a garment, one could

argue that these garments were and are beautiful. I would not propose a limit on resource use
on a garment per se – this would depend on the overall life cycle assessment of a garment – but
we need to remain aware of and learn from historical instances where resource scarcity may
have been a catalyst for human creativity. A current example is the website AfriGadget (http://
www.afrigadget.com/ viewed 10 July 2011), which documents ingenuity in creation in a situa-
tion where abject poverty is a constant presence. For a novice, zero-waste fashion design is best
viewed as a game in which creative negotiation of limits will lead to victory.
5.6 Beauty: A paradigm shift for fashion?
“Calculating, industrial society is obliged to form consumers who don’t calculate;

if clothing’s producers and consumers had the same consciousness, clothing would
be bought (and produced) only at the very slow rate of its dilapidation.”
Barthes (1990(1967): xi)
“We make no pretense to knowing what’s ahead… People may come to look upon
clothing as investments to keep and wear all their lives. On the other hand, they
may come to desire clothing cheap enough to be soon discarded.”
Kidwell & Christman (1978: 207)
“Design timely things, things that can last longer by being able to change over
time. Design things that are not finished, things that can keep on by keeping on
being repaired and altered, things in motion.”
Tonkinwise (2005: 27)
For fashion design practitioners and the industry to adopt zero-waste fashion design, a major
paradigm shift is required within the industry and among consumers. Fletcher (2008: 60-61)
discusses Donella Meadows’ list of places to intervene in a system. According to Meadows, the
mindset or paradigm is the most effective place to intervene and the mindset that requires
particular attention in regards to fabric waste and sustainability in fashion is a rethinking – or
redesign – of fashion design and its role not only in the fashion industry but also in society in
general. What I am pointing towards is beauty in fashion.

Fashion design and fashion consumption, and consequently fashion design education,
are in a state of flux. Design is often described as problem solving; arguably the design problem
in fashion has predominantly been the relentless creation of seemingly new styles at the lowest
possible price appropriate to a market as fast as possible, to simplify crudely. It is time for us to
reconsider the nature of fashion’s design problems. These problems are complex and challenging
but also rich and stimulating. For example, while the prospect of designing a system in which a
garment exists with us may seem daunting, it is also exciting. As explored in length by Fletcher
(2008: 60-73; 2009: 374-378), transformation at the level of systems requires new ways of
observing the world we inhabit.
Figure 5.7: Sell wearing
For the last year of this project I had a post-it note above my desk at work, stating “Sell ‘being
clothed/wearing’ as a service instead of ‘clothing’ as a product” (Figure 5.7). Zero-waste fashion
design as I have defined it in this project, is product- rather than systems-focused. The zero-
waste philosophies that inform every aspect of operations in companies like Alabama Chanin
and Dosa Inc point towards the bigger picture. Both companies operate in a way that no textile
waste leaves the company premises, including factories; everything is used. Alabama Chanin
works with local artisans in Alabama, while Dosa Inc works with artisans in India (McQuillan
& Rissanen 2011: 66; Fletcher 2008: 71); both companies use textile waste as embellishments
on fabrics and as filler for cushions, as two examples. An even larger picture, however, is before
us. How do we create fashion – fashion as an industry of systems and fashion as a product – that

is zero-waste? The kinds of zero-waste garments, from a strictly fabric waste point perspective,
created in this project could be created to serve the current business models of fast fashion
companies like H&M (Raper Larenaudie 2004). These business models are arguably inherently
ecologically unsound (Lee 2007), in that they are designed to encourage the purchasing of large
volumes of garments, of garments that are designed and made to last, and to be possessed, a
relatively short time. Even if such companies adopted zero-waste fashion design, the levels of
consumption their business models perpetuate would remain unsustainable. The population of
the entire developed world could refrain from buying a single garment for a year (and probably
longer) with negligible impact on a personal level as far as “being clothed” is concerned, while
leading to the collapse of a global industry and the loss of hundreds of millions of jobs. What I
am pointing to is that zero-waste fashion design is not “good” in and of itself; it needs to be
examined in a much broader context. Furthermore, entirely new ways of thinking about how
the industry could exist and function while allowing humanity to flourish are required. This
points towards a new, expanded vision for fashion design: as well as designing and making
garments, fashion design needs to design the consumption, wearing and using of garments, and
design, collaboratively with other fields, the systems in which the wearing and using occurs. All
of these require examination through a lens of beauty.
Leppens (2000: 37) has called for the establishment of an Australian Federation of fash-
ion designers modelled on a similar federation in France, in order for Australian fashion design-
ers to better compete in the international fashion market. Leppens also notes that France has a
well-established guild system to protect professions. Certainly this is an interesting proposition
in light of fashion design and sustainability. With relatively small financial investment, anyone
can become a fashion designer by starting a small business. As the current environmental crisis
worsens, it is fairly easy to surmise that in the near future fashion design practice may be
increasingly governed by ecologically led legislation. This might be somewhat easier to control
if the professions of fashion designer and pattern cutter were defined and governed by a guild-
like system, with specified minimum skill levels and demonstrated awareness of ecological
issues surrounding the practices. Caution, however, should also be applied. Fletcher (2008: 187)
critiques the glorification and mythologising of fashion design by the media and the industry,
and the resulting “passive fashion” and “deskilled” consumers. The elevation of the fashion
designer to a mythical genius, with its associated personality worship, has been part of fashion
since Charles Worth in the mid-nineteenth century. This is a formidable challenge for the
industry and education to overcome. The problems we face are too complex and interdiscipli-

nary for one designer, university or company to solve, and designer ego and its perpetuation
through media can only be a hindrance. New inter-disciplinary collaborations are needed, not
for endless product “innovation”, but to propose and explore multiple solutions to the problems
we face. The fashion industry hierarchy that places the designer at top, and the paranoia that
cripples knowledge sharing within the industry, need to be done away with. This is already
happening. Since 2006 I have shared the progress of this research on my blog, and there are
similar examples throughout the Internet: Holly McQuillan, Julian Roberts, Otto von Busch,
Caroline Priebe, Tara St James of Study NY and Titania Inglis, to name a few. This knowledge
sharing is driven by a common goal of a transformed industry and society, and ultimately, a
better quality of life for everyone.
This project demonstrates that pre-consumer fabric waste created during fashion manu-
facture is an ecological problem as much as it is an economic one. This is not to say that the
economic concern is unimportant. Designing wastefully should make no economic sense but
nevertheless fashion businesses make a profit despite wasting on average 15 percent of the
fabric they use. Profitability increases could come from reduced waste management costs and
speedier cutting procedures; future research could quantify these. As companies like Alabama
Chanin and Dosa Inc show, a zero-waste philosophy can inform a business model, ensuring
profitability in the long term. In her foreword to the Yield exhibition catalogue, Lynda Grose
(2011: 6) points toward a possible future direction: “Zero waste … brings a new logic and
imperative for design and for the fashion sector as a whole. Through its pluralistic and enchant-
ing aesthetic it subtly notes the drivers underpinning human consumption and opens up the
potential for social change. It questions the nature of design and of making clothes, mobilizes
designer-makers, gives form to an inspiring new order and yields the potential to transform not
only the way we design, but also the way we think.”
Zero-waste fashion design ultimately is a philosophy of making garments – just as Paul
Palmer’s (2001) vision for zero-waste is a “being-in-the-world” – where cloth and the processes
of design and making, and the wearing of garments, are valued in new ways. Our common goal
should be to make “sustainable fashion” a redundant term, by working towards fashion that
sustains and is beautiful. This is possible by working towards not only more sustaining design
practices and supply chains, but by adopting a more holistic approach that includes the cultural
and economic systems within which garments are worn and used. I believe that beauty is key in
the kind of questions we need to ask. If a child is taken out of school for several months to pick
cotton for no pay, as is currently the case in Uzbekistan, to provide cotton for a seemingly beau-

tiful blouse, is the blouse really beautiful? If we knew that a homeworker in New York City, who
did not receive a living wage, made a seemingly beautiful designer dress, is the dress really
beautiful? If a seemingly beautiful image in a fashion magazine results in a teenager to set an
unrealistic, unhealthy goal for him/herself regarding body weight, is the image really beautiful?
And then, if we knew that a seemingly beautiful shirt contained only 85 percent of the cloth
required to make it, meaning a loss of 15 percent of the investments embodied in the fabric,
really, is the shirt beautiful? What I call for is a holistic vision for beauty in fashion: fashion that
does not negatively impact on the quality of life of any individual touched by it. At the time of
finishing this thesis, this is a concern for over seven billion of us - humanity.
This project has investigated one solution to one problem with the aim of inspiring fash-
ion designers to adopt sustainability thinking, including a concern for fabric waste, into their
practices. This project aims to also inspire fashion designers to engage in research. My goal is
also to inspire all of us, users of fashion, to ask more questions. Our future looks brighter the
more possible solutions we have at hand. Go forth fearlessly. Drawing from experience, I assure
you that you will not travel alone.

APPENDIX A:
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
This glossary fleshes out the brief definitions and descriptions introduced in Chapter 1 and
used throughout the thesis. During this study I have recognised that there is some variation and
overlap in the terms that are used in industry, literature and education in fashion design, and
more so in other related fields such as fashion studies. Fashion design as a field of academic
research is young, and transparent terminology and language usage are imperative for fostering
cohesive discourse among the international research community. Nevertheless, local variations
in language use should be celebrated. Where relevant, I explain the rationale for using one term
over others. Overall, with the exception of “pattern cutting”, the terminology used arises from
Australian industry and fashion design education, but where relevant, terms used in the UK
and US are also included here to ensure the accessibility of this research internationally. This
appendix begins with an examination of fashion, proposing the term “designerly fashion” – a
term from within and for fashion design. Definitions of zero-waste garment, fashion design
and pattern cutting follow.
Fashion
“He has some interesting ideas which he repeats without touching the dress.”
— Fabienne Falluel on Roland Barthes’s The Fashion System, in Koskennurmi-
Sivonen (1998: Foreword with acknowledgments, no page number)
“Amongst the entire body of academic work relating to fashion, there is scarcely a
word written by a practising designer, or given a designer’s perspective’.
— White & Griffiths (2000: 70), in Campbell (2010: 113-114)
During this study I have been asked to define “fashion” a number of times; as I see it, fashion is
at the heart of this research. I see and experience fashion as an intrinsic part of human material
culture, as a consumer, designer, researcher and teacher. I perceive fashion as a potentially posi-
tive force while acknowledging that it often does not exist as such. During this research fashion
has proven difficult to define, yet I strongly feel that the field of fashion design can and must
contribute towards a discourse about fashion and make such discourse its own while engaging
164 | appendicies
with the related fields of fashion studies and dress history. Many existing discussions about
fashion seem insufficient in light of fashion design practice. Therefore, the propositional term
of “designerly fashion” is introduced here, nevertheless noting that throughout the thesis the
shorter “fashion” is used. Fashion in this thesis refers to physical clothing: fashioned fashion
garments. Fashion is not always a result of fashion design; for example, within a subculture, a
“fashion” may originate through members of the subculture experimenting with customising
and wearing clothes. This thesis, however, focuses on designerly fashion: fashion garments
designed by design teams and manufactured by the fashion industry.
The word “fashion” has its roots in Latin and French (Kawamura 2005: 3). While the
etymology of a word should by no means be accepted as the current meaning of a word per se,
it reveals that historically “fashion” has material roots. The Latin “facio” means to make, create
or compose, while “factio” refers to making, doing. The French “une façon” means a way of doing
or making up, while “façonner” means to shape, make or work. From Latin and French, fashion
thus emerges as a practice as de Marly (1980: 24) notes: “Fashion is une façon, a way of doing
things - in other words, a style.” In a designerly sense, therefore, a design team of experts creates
fashion. The team traditionally consists of a designer, pattern cutter, cutter, machinist, grader
and marker-maker, although every company is different in its organisation. Designerly fashion
is a synthesis of the areas of expertise. On this basis fashion production, or rather, creation, is
independent of the institutions and “fashion cities” as stated by Kawamura (2005: 40), that is to
say, designerly fashion can be created anywhere the team is located.
Debates on the nature of fashion have historically taken place outside of fashion design.
The study of fashion design (as distinct from fashion studies) is gradually finding its niche along-
side design studies. This is an emerging area of research, lagging some decades behind both
fashion studies (the study of fashion in historical, cultural and sociological contexts, as exempli-
fied by the journal Fashion Theory) and design studies (the study of design, represented by the
journal Design Studies1). As evidence of this recent emergence, two new journals emerged in
2008 on fashion (design) practice: Fashion Practice (by Berg, publisher of Fashion Theory since
1997) and International Journal of Fashion Design, Technology and Education (published by
Taylor & Francis). No long-established tradition exists for fashion designers or other practition-
ers to move into research on their own discipline or practice. This also is changing, as evidenced
1 A search for “fashion design” within Design Studies on April 7, 2008 yielded only the same two articles as a search three years
earlier, from 1993 and 2001. A search for “industrial design” resulted in 60, “product design” 167, “graphic design” 20 and “interaction
design” in 45 articles. “Interior design” faired similarly to “fashion design”, with four articles. Design Studies may inadvertently
discourage papers on fashion design. As of July 2011, four out of five keywords in a paper submission must come from the journal’s
list, and “fashion design” is not included, while “product design”, “graphic design” and “interaction design” are.
appendicies | 165
by fashion design academics participating in the Research Into Practice conference series and
publishing in the associated journal, Working Papers in Art and Design, organised by the
University of Hertfordshire in England. The conference ran biennially from 2000 to 2008.
Nevertheless, the recent lack of avenues for rigorous fashion design discourse posed
certain challenges for this study, particularly in the early phases. Margolin (2001: 16) defines
discourse as “the conversation that takes place within the community that leads to a greater
understanding of its shared subject.” Further, discourse contributes to research standards by
“critiquing research and by exploring its implications for further investigation”. Poggenpohl et
al (2004: 589) could be discussing fashion design studies when they state: “…the lack of a
specific design discourse with ongoing development, argument, criticism, research findings etc.
hampers development of design as a discipline and prevents design from contributing its
knowledge more broadly.” The authors nevertheless note that design’s “lack of an infrastructure
is both a problem and an opportunity” (604). In the case of this study, both the challenge and
the opportunity are situating it in an appropriate context: fashion design and manufacture, and
sustainability. Fashion design and fashion manufacture tend to be examined separately;
Fasanella (1998) is one commendable exception. As for sustainability in fashion design and
manufacture, the first books of notable rigour on the topic by Fletcher and by Hethorn &
Ulasewicz were published in 2008.
Fashion garments and the activities that occur to create them can be divided into differ-
ent categories, even if the boundaries are soft. Jenkyn Jones (2002: 25-28) divides fashion into
two broad categories: haute couture and prêt-à-porter (ready-to-wear). This study sits within
ready-to-wear fashion, distinguished from haute couture by the mass-manufacture of garments.
Haute couture2 is the highest level of the fashion system in France. An industry body protects
the industry heavily, and the garments are made-to-order and –measure, from fabrics that may
be hand-woven or woven to order, and most of the sewing and embellishment is done by hand.
It also differs from ready-made clothing in that a client may have some say in the design of the
garment. For example, a neckline might be adjusted for modesty, or a colour changed slightly
to suit the client, as long as the overall integrity of the garment is preserved (Martin & Koda
1995: 23). Whether haute couture exists outside of France is up for debate but garment design
and making practices prevalent in haute couture are practised worldwide. For example, Kosken-
nurmi-Sivonen (1998) presents a case study of Riitta Immonen, a Finnish designer whose
practices best fit into haute couture, while Palmer (2001) outlines the reproduction of haute
2 French for “high sewing”.
166 | appendicies
couture garments in Canada. Shaeffer (2001) has attempted to make haute couture practices
accessible to everyone.
Sorger & Udale (2006: 110-115) break ready-to-wear down into luxury super brands,
mid-level brands and designers, independent designer labels, casualwear and sportswear brands,
high street, and supermarkets. The garments created in this study best fit into “independent
designer label”, which is defined by a small team, a high level of control over aspects of design
and manufacture, and the designer’s ability to juggle many different skills. The study, however,
aims to contribute new knowledge towards fashion practices across all levels of ready-to-wear
fashion. The primary difference between the levels concerns garment cost; fabric and labour are
two primary sources of garment cost. While some fashion design and pattern cutting practices
may differ across the levels, the focus in this study is on commonalities in practices.
Leppens (2000: 10-14) discusses the terms “fashion” and “fashion designer” in some
length, noting that fashion “is less often described and analysed by the actual designers than by
sociologists and historians. Yet it is the primary goal of designers to create dress and they might
be expected to have something to contribute on the subject.” (9) There has been little discourse
on what “designerly” fashion is or could be, while (as Leppens correctly points out) sociologists
in particular have been proactive in defining fashion. A sociologist, Crane (2000: 1) proposes
fashion to be “strong norms about appropriate appearances at a particular point in time”, divorc-
ing fashion from physical clothing. Kawamura (2005: 1) goes further, claiming that “fashion
and dress/clothing, are different concepts and entities which can be or should be studied sepa-
rately”. Kawamura (44) further separates the concepts of “clothing” and “fashion”: “Clothing is
material production while fashion is symbolic production. Clothing is tangible while fashion is
intangible. Clothing is a necessity while fashion is an excess. Clothing has a utility function
while fashion has a status function.” (44). As a fashion designer I do not question the validity
of Kawamura’s “fashion” in a sociological context. Kawamura’s fashion does not exist without
consumption, while designerly fashion, I argue, is grounded in production: design teams (and
less commonly individual designers) design fashion. In a design context, fashion is made “real”
through making; this implies that fashion designers alone do not create designerly fashion;
there are teams involved.
Sustainability is strongly though not exclusively concerned with the materiality of
consumption and production, therefore fashion in a sustainable, designerly context comprises
the physical clothes we design, make, wear, care for and dispose of. On the other hand, Shove’s
(2003) approach to sustainability in practices of everyday life suggests that the attributes
appendicies | 167
(symbolic value, change, novelty, etc.) of Kawamura’s “fashion” are equally important. A differ-
ent view of fashion emerges from Fletcher (2008), in a seminal text on sustainability and fash-
ion and textile design. In contrast to Kawamura’s “fashion-as-excess”, Fletcher reclaims fashion
as a positive aspect of culture (173-4). While directing the text at fashion designer and fashion
design students, Kawamura (2005: 2) does not investigate ideas about “fashion” within the
fashion design community. Au (2001, 2003, 2004) provides such an investigation, through
three grounded theory studies of fashion designers and their inspirations. Au does not use the
term designerly fashion but the studies inquire into fashion designers, fashion design educators
and students’ ideas of fashion. A strong sentiment that designerly fashion is rooted in produc-
tion (or making, or creation) comes through, with links to the social and cultural context of the
moment. This also emerges in Koskennurmi-Sivonen’s (1998: 281-284) discussion of Riitta
Immonen’s work. It is clear that fashion has a significant temporal aspect, with consequent
implications for sustainability. Fletcher (2008: 161-181) discusses speed in the context of fash-
ion and sustainability, and this discussion is expanded by Fletcher & Grose (2012: 126-130),
noting that fast and slow speeds are complementary in fashion as they are in nature, society and
culture. Koskennurmi-Sivonen (1998: 282) notes how garment timelessness was important to
both Immonen and her clients, perhaps in contrast to a company like H&M that changes the
entire store contents within three weeks (Raper Larenaudie 2004).
To sum, fashion in this study concerns material garments, physical manifestations of exper-
tise of a number of individuals. While the express aim behind the garments created in this study
has been to investigate zero-waste fashion design, an underlying concern for resilience has informed
the design processes: it has been my aim to create garments to live in and with for a long time.
Zero-waste garment
Zero-waste garment in this thesis refers to garments that have been designed and made to contain
all of the fabric required to make them; pre-consumer fabric waste is eliminated through design
that integrates pattern cutting. Such a garment does not address the vast quantities of wasted
garments created by the dominant pursuit for economic growth; zero-waste garments as defined in
this thesis could easily contribute towards this larger issue of post-consumer waste, if created within
the dominant fashion system. Natalie Chanin, founder of the US company Alabama Chanin, has
built a zero-waste philosophy into the company business model, pointing towards a holistic
approach for the whole of the fashion industry (McQuillan & Rissanen 2011: 66).
168 | appendicies
Fashion design
“This designer is about the most unhappy and unnecessary species of the day. He
is uncreative by profession, unprepared for any task but copying, and unaware of
the possibilities of his profession. There are practically no schools to give him an
adequate training, because there are no adequate teachers. The designer lives on
what he calls inspiration – a good and wholesome word which, by common
consent and abuse, was perverted into the contrary of its original meaning. Inspi-
ration, as the designer understands it, is far from the sublime moment of spiritual
communion with divinity; to him it simply means the copying of insignificant and
meaningless details from past epochs or foreign countries, which he cements
together into that pastiche called THE STYLE.”
Bernard Rudofsky (1947: 223) on fashion designers
“Fashion is very important. It is life-enhancing and, like everything that gives

pleasure, it is worth doing well.”
Vivienne Westwood in The Independent, 21 February 2001, (Sorger & Udale 2006: 28).
A question about what a fashion designer is and what a fashion designer does is also a question
about design. What is design and what is designing? I acknowledge a vast and useful debate over
the past several decades, which is perhaps best summed by Walker (2009(1989): 42-43), who
notes the insufficiency of definitions of design, in that design can refer to process, result, product
or look, and that language changes over time. While I will close with a look at fashion design in
the second decade of the twenty-first century, a brief history necessarily opens the discussion.
The birth of the modern fashion designer within the French haute couture is well docu-
mented (for example, de Marly, 1980: 14-23). Charles Frederick Worth (1826-1895) was the
first modern fashion designer: he was responsible for creating the visual aesthetic of the
garments he supplied to clients. Previously, determining the visual aspects of a garment had
been a collaborative effort between the client and a tailor or dressmaker. Worth established the
role of the fashion designer as a predominantly creative profession from the 1860’s onwards.
Just as fashion exists at many levels, so does fashion design, from haute couture to ready-to-
wear to mass market. This research focuses on fashion design at ready-to-wear level. As noted
earlier, this study treats “fashion” as a designed and made entity, acknowledging that other
approaches of examining fashion exist.
appendicies | 169
Wiberg (1996: 140-148) provides a critical account of the emergence of the industrial
designer. While the context is textile design, Wiberg’s study has relevance for fashion design.
With the cataclysmic societal shifts that accompanied the two world wars, the fashion industry
gradually shifted from haute couture to ready-to-wear, with the latter surpassing the former in
significance by the late 1960s. Both the designer and the pattern cutter (see next section on
pattern cutting) were important in the shift from made-to-order clothes to mass-production;
to some extent the differentiation of these roles is a result of this shift.
As noted earlier, few focused larger studies about fashion design have taken place. In a study
into the opportunities of Australia fashion globally, Leppens (2000: 3) presents a designer-centric
definition of a fashion designer: “…a fashion designer is an observer and catalyst, uncovering,
legitimising and popularising underlying currents in society.” “Fashion design…should reflect the
identity, creativity, ingenuity and social insight of a designer.” In contrast, Fasanella (1998: 35)
provides a business-centric perspective: “In industry, designers are the managers of the product
development department. Their task is to translate the vision and purpose of the company’s specialty
into products that consumers wish to buy. This is difficult because designers rarely get to design
products they like; designers must produce items that represent the needs of the company.” Fasanella
(19) states that good design in fashion generates “profit for a manufacturer”.
Fashion design manuals aimed at undergraduate fashion design students provide some
information about fashion design, although how much of what is presented is grounded in
critical study of the profession is open to question. Manuals of this kind seem to be primarily
based on the authors’ opinions. In their manual, Sorger & Udale (2006) break down the funda-
mentals of fashion design. Chapter 1, “Design and Research” is separated from pattern cutting
in Chapter 3, “Construction”, by Chapter 2, “Fabrics and Techniques”. What does this mean?
Elements of fashion design that the authors cover are: being “fashionable” (12), researching a
theme (16-25), communicating the theme (26), designing (28), understanding the body (30-33),
silhouette, proportion and line, details, fabric, colour and texture (34-47), and communicating
ideas through rendering (48-53). Notably both Sorger & Udale (2006: 12) and Jenkyn Jones
(2002: 8-10) suggest that a certain personality type is required of a fashion designer. The latter
also states that above all, a designer needs “talent”: “the ability to research, absorb and synthe-
size ideas and skills” although this talent is not defined further ( Jenkyn Jones 2002: 9). Jenkyn
Jones (76-84) classifies silhouette, line and texture in “elements of design”, while repetition,
rhythm, graduation, radiation, contrast, harmony, balance and proportion fall under “principles
of design”. More manuals could be analysed but they are very similar in content. To sum, fash-
170 | appendicies
ion design is primarily described as the responsibility for the aesthetics of the garment. Pattern
cutting is categorised under making, which is afforded less significance.
Pattern cutting
Despite this study being located in Australia, where “pattern making” is the dominant term (as
it is in the US), I deliberately choose to use the UK term “pattern cutting” in this thesis. For me,
the inclusion of the word “cutting” implies a closer engagement with cloth, particularly in the
context of zero-waste fashion design. Winifred Aldrich is a UK-based fashion designer and
pattern cutter and one of the most published authors on pattern cutting in fashion design. The
texts by Aldrich (1990; 1996; 2002, to give a few) are noteworthy in that she does not make a
clear distinction between fashion design and pattern cutting, although in the industry these
often are two hierarchically separate roles. Aldrich (2002) offers a concise yet thorough history
of pattern cutting. She explains how it developed from tailoring and dressmaking into a profes-
sion of its own gradually, with the rise of ready-made clothing. This is perhaps the broadest
available history of pattern cutting in its scope.
In much of the industry and according to much of the literature on fashion design and
pattern cutting, the pattern cutter develops the designer’s idea (usually presented as a sketch)
into a pattern, either manually on card or on a computer using a CAD (computer-aided design)
system. The first pattern is used to cut out the garment in fabric. Fasanella (1998: 35-36) regards
pattern cutters “the technical backbone of the production process. Their task is to translate
“fuzzy” (a sketch) into concrete fact. They develop the engineering blueprints which manufac-
turing needs in order to produce a design cost effectively. Fasanella’s criteria for a competent
pattern cutter include perfectionism, concern with detail, superior sewing ability and effective
communication with design, sampling and production. Sorger & Udale (2006: 105-107) some-
what concur, noting the role’s emphasis on accuracy to achieve good fit and to make construc-
tion easier. Nonetheless they acknowledge that the designer may also be the pattern cutter.
Countless manuals on pattern cutting (or pattern making, if by Australian or US authors)
present pattern cutting as something that supports fashion design in realising ideas. Writing
outside of fashion and pattern cutting, Pye (1968: 55) states: “The workman is essentially an
interpreter.” Perhaps then, according to some in fashion the pattern cutter is the workman, the
interpreter, applying technique through workmanship to interpret the designer’s idea.
In contrast, Almond (2010: 16) asks more of pattern cutters: they need “openness to and
an awareness of experience; self-reliance, independent approach to finding solutions; flexible
appendicies | 171
playful attitude towards manipulating concepts”, overall proposing pattern cutting as a creative
endeavour. Jenkyn Jones (2002: 115) is more reserved but along similar lines: “Pattern drafting
can seem a very dry, dull and mathematical subject at first until the magic of it starts to work
under your fingers and you realize the infinite possibilities that can be achieved with a snip here
and a curve there.” In the context of zero-waste fashion design, Fasanella (1998: 36) points
towards a key insight of this study, that pattern cutting is fashion design: “Education and expe-
rience is strongly recommended, as their [patter cutters’] task is the most critical link in the
entire production process. Pattern makers have more control over waste, sewing problems, and
quality than any other single person in the company.”
The final word in this appendix will go to Julian Roberts, writing in 2003 in an online
book that led to the print version (Roberts 2008). The 2003 version is no longer available but I
have it on file; the language is richer in the original: “Pattern-cutting is about possibilities &
what if ’s & experimentation & fuck-up’s & cool new things which unexpectedly surprise you.
New ways of cutting come to life through a mixture of luck, risk & mistake. Being an amateur
is always an advantage.”
172 | appendicies
APPENDIX B:
BRIEFS FOR DESIGN EXPERIMENTS
[AS THEY WERE 8 DECEMBER 2006]
Note: The experiment numbers do not YET necessarily refer to the order in which the
experiments are conducted.
Findings from literature are used to develop design briefs for a series of experiments. Some
experiments also build on the findings of previous experiments. Some may be conducted more
than once. The findings from these experiments are then utilised to develop a design brief for a
collection of menswear. Utilising results from the experiments in the collection will give the
experiments a ‘real-life’ grounding, and the knowledge generated by the experiments is arguably
better communicated to industry practitioners through a collection of clothes. The collection
aims to show that fabric waste can be eliminated from all types of garments.
Capping the number of experiments at five; why?

Is the collection an experiment?
Documentation of experiments
R5 Thinking during the experiments (protocol analysis)
R5 Thinking after the experiments: Review, Reflect, Refine (‘What is done differently here in relation
to more conventional design practices?’; ‘What is going on here?’)
R5 Physical ‘evidence’ generated in the experiments:
R5 Sketches of garments with notes
R5 Sketches of patterns on graph paper, with notes
R5 Written notes (What kinds of notes? Reflective, descriptive, etc.)
R5 Paper patterns (with notes)
R5 Card patterns (with notes),
R5 Fabric toiles (with notes)
R5 Photographs
R5 Connection between thinking and physical evidence: How do I show what I was thinking while
I was creating the different aspects of the evidence? Are the notes enough, and if not, why not?
R5 If I carefully date and time all of the above evidence, a chronological analysis of each experiment
is possible. I can talk through the evidence in chronologically, recording and later transcribing this
appendicies | 173
talking. I can then analyse the talking itself. Do I need to do this?
R5 Involvement of peers? Who, why, what?
R5 At this point, 8 December 2006, I think videotaping the experiments and then talking through
the video will produce an unmanageable amount of data that would need transcribing.
A question about production cutting

Normally in mass production, the pieces of a garment are plotted on a rectangular length of
fabric. This is because it is fast to cut a roll of fabric into rectangles of uniform size. These
rectangles are then placed on top of each other and several garments are then cut at once. Is it
feasible to cut a roll of fabric up into lengths with non-linear ends? Is zero-fabric-waste fashion
design (and all clothing production) limited to working within a rectangle of fabric? One
experiment could involve a designing within a piece that didn’t have non-linear ends; note that
to eliminate waste the ends do have to be exactly the same.
Aspects not yet covered by the below experiments:

What kind of researching is this? (See Datum introduction)
Can ‘wasted’ fabric be incorporated into ‘decorative’ elements? This could be explored
more in the collection. For example, it seems quite easy to make a ‘conventional’ t-shirt and
design an appliqué using the waste pieces.
Curves: can these be eliminated with straight lines through the displacement of pieces in
relation to one another? How can curves be ‘force’ to interlock?
EXPERIMENT 1
Use the sketch and pattern of an existing design, and test various ways of placing the pattern
pieces on a particular fabric width. When the least wasteful way of cutting the garment has
been discovered, look at the gaps between the pattern pieces (fabric waste) and begin to rede-
sign the garment by incorporating these gaps into it. Use sketching, informed by what is
happening on pattern, to explore different possibilities of incorporating the wasted fabric into
design. Modify the patterns until waste has been eliminated. (Is zero-waste more important than
the design outcome here? Should it be?)
Questions this experiment will address:
What are the implications of trying to eliminate fabric waste from an existing, ‘wasteful’ design? How
much modification does the design need? Can the amount of change be quantified?
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How can sketching be used in designing out fabric waste?
What advantages does designing through sketching present? What disadvantages does it present?
What advantages does designing through patternmaking present? What disadvantages does it present?
EXPERIMENT 2
This experiment draws from the works of Yoshiki Hishinuma, Yeohlee Teng, Issey Miyake and
Julian Roberts, among others.
Decide on the garment type and begin to draw interlocking shapes on a rectangular
length of fabric and see what kind of garment can be made out of these shapes. (This experi-
ment could be conducted separately for different garment types.) There are three segments to
this experiment, differentiated by the types of shapes to be drawn on the length of fabric:
Draw only rectangular interlocking shapes to make a garment.
Draw only curved interlocking shapes to make a garment.
Draw a combination of rectangular and curved interlocking shapes to make a
garment.
The same could be done on graph paper; if fabric width is determined, and the
garment size (for example, men’s 48) is known, it may be possible to plan and
design the pattern to scale, but perhaps much faster.
What are the implications of this kind of designing, where the garment is related back to the body
after its patterns have been designed? This kind of designing does not rely on sketching initially to relate
the garment to the body. Although fabric waste reduction/elimination is not a goal in his work, Julian
Roberts exhibits a similar approach in his designing. The patterns of the garment are designed and the
garment is made up to find out what it looks like; sketching is not used. How well Roberts is able to
predict the final appearance of the garment, and its relationship to the body, is unclear. There is some
evidence (Quinn, 2002) that Roberts allows a degree of unpredictability in his garments.
Is it that clear-cut: When designing through sketching, one tends to relate the garment to the
body? Through patternmaking it may be easier to design independently of the body initially, and once
the issue of waste has been addressed, relate the garment back to the body.
What about sketching quick pattern layouts, as opposed to sketching garments? Is this a different
type of sketching? (See graph paper above)
Is it through experience or practice that one becomes able to consider fabric waste and the body
appendicies | 175
on pattern simultaneously?
Are there different levels of relating the garment to the body? For example, a fitted shirt with
darts and a close-fitting collar echoes the body in a way that the body is identifiable in the garment even
when it is not worn. On the other hand, the jumpsuit made of triangles by Hishinuma gives some
indication of the body through its openings, but when not worn, it is difficult to ascertain how the
garment is worn and what it looks like when it’s worn.
EXPERIMENT 4 (Not enough ‘meat’ on the bones)

Working on a mannequin, design a garment from one rectangular piece of fabric, slashing into the
piece and then displacing the slashes onto other parts of the slashed piece. If an entire piece is cut
away from the main fabric rectangle, this piece is to be incorporated into the garment somehow.
What are the implications of waste elimination if the piece of fabric isn’t broken up in the first place?
When designing through sketching, one tends to divide the garment up with seams. This goes back to
one of the fashion design fundamentals: line. One common way of creating line in a garment is through
seaming. The pieces of the garment are thus determined in sketch; to eliminate waste, these then would
need to be interlocking when flat.
EXPERIMENT 5 (late in series of experiments/ in the collection?)

This experiment will draw from the findings of experiment 1.
Design and patternmake two garments simultaneously in the same fabric, within one
length of fabric. Before commencing the experiment, the garment types (e.g. a jacket and a pair
of trousers) need to be determined. The pattern pieces of the two garments’ components will be
mixed within the one length, and they are cut together.
Is it easier to eliminate fabric waste by designing more than one garment together? Men’s suit, whether
two- or three-piece, are cut together, and Teng maximised a 7-metre piece of fabric by designing three
different dresses within it simultaneously.
What does one need to know about sizing if designing like this? If the garments form a suit, they
need to be for the same size.
What does one need to know about sales strategy if designing like this? For example, are
176 | appendicies
these garments going to be sold together, like a suit, or are they two ‘independent’ designs, to be sold
separately?
EXPERIMENT 6 (late in series of experiments/ in the collection?)

Design and patternmake a zero-waste garment in a particular fabric width. Then try to adapt
the same garment design to a different fabric width. Is this done by trying to plot the largest
pattern pieces first, and then filling the gaps with smaller ones, and filling any further gaps
through modifying the garment design?
How much modification is necessary?
Experiment 8 (late in series of experiments)

Using a zero-fabric-waste from an earlier experiment, examine the interlocking of the patterns,
trying to assess how the same garment can now be adapted to different sizes. Develop two
versions of the design, one a size smaller and one larger than the original design, using one of
the size charts used widely by industry.
Can a size range of a zero-fabric-waste garment be created without modifying the design? Width-
wise grading might be possible if garment was cut on cross-grain, i.e. perpendicular to the selvages.
How much modification is needed?
Is it possible to include the grade amount in the seam allowance? This would mean that each size
would have different amounts of allowance on some seams. What are the implications with this? How
feasible would this be in industry?
Questions this experiment is likely to raise:
What alternatives exist to traditional grading in order to achieve a size range of a garment design?
What level of variation in appearance/proportion between each size would be deemed accept-
able at retail level?
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APPENDIX C:
JOURNAL TRANSCRIPTION, CODES AND CATEGORIES
CATEGORIES – UPDATED 20 JANUARY 2012
Body and Garment Body measurement

Body measurement Breaking rules
Body and design Creative move
Comfort in wearing Design decision
Design through drape Design for manufacture
Garment Fit Design ideation
Garment dimension Design limitation
Garment measurement Design through pattern
Garment type Fabric grain
Garment component Fabric waste
Masculinity Fabric width
Openness to possibility Garment measurement
Space awareness Garment type
Grading patterns
Time and design Increasing complexity
Article/reference Interlocking shapes
Design decision Julian Roberts
Design ideation Leftover fabric
Garment durability Marker planning
Future transformability Number and size of pattern pieces
Garment repairability Openness to possibility
Grading patterns Pattern alteration
Article/reference Pattern sketch
Laundering [LCA] Procedure
Openness to possibility Reducing complexity
Order of pattern pieces Scale – Management strategies
Perceived mistake Seam elimination
Procedure Shape awareness
Time gap Shape library
Uncertainty regarding outcome Space awareness
Splitting and slashing shapes
Pattern cutting as fashion design tool
2D/3D visualization Design for manufacture
Aesthetics in design Breaking rules
226 | appendicies
Construction Design Opportunities for fabric waste elimination
Cutting through design
Design briefs 2D/3D visualization
Design for manufacture Aesthetics in design
Design in context Breaking rules
Economic saving Creative move
Fabric grain Design for manufacture
Fabric sourcing Design ideation
Fabric waste Design potential
Garment component Design through drape
Garment yield Design through pattern
Grading patterns Design through sketch
Marker planning Economic saving
Multiple fabrics Fabric manipulation
Procedure Fabric waste
Seamless knitting Folding
Shape library Future transformability
Striped, printed, checked fabric Garment component
Garment repairability
Challenges for fabric waste elimination Interlocking shapes
through design Marker planning
2D/3D visualization Openness to possibility
Aesthetics in design Originality in design
Fabric grain Pattern sketch
Breaking rules Procedure
Creative move Reducing complexity
Design decision Referencing in design
Design for manufacture Scale – management strategies
Design ideation Seam elimination
Design limitation Seamless knitting
Design satisfaction Serendipity in design
Design through pattern Shape awareness
Design through sketch Shape library
Fabric waste Space awareness
Increasing complexity Splitting and slashing shapes
Marker planning Symmetry and asymmetry
Pattern alteration Time gap
Perceived mistake Twisting
Openness to possibility Using photography in design
Reducing complexity
Scale – management strategies Sketching as a fashion design tool
Shape library 2D/3D visualization
Time gap Aesthetics in design
Uncertainty regarding outcome Creative move
appendicies | 227
Aesthetics in design Exhibition of project work
Garment component Article/reference
Design decision Design briefs
Design ideation Design in context
Design through sketch Practice-based research
Garment dimension Reflective writing
Openness to possibility Research method
Pattern sketch Research administration
Procedure
Scale – management strategies Fabric and fashion design
Serendipity in design 2D/3D visualization
Shape awareness Striped, printed, checked fabric
Uncertainty regarding outcome Design through drape
Fabric faces
Successful strategies in fabric waste elimination Fabric grain
– now combined with ‘Opportunities for fabric Fabric manipulation
waste elimination’ Fabric sourcing
Fabric waste
References to literature and extant examples of Fabric width
zero-waste/less-waste fashion during practice Interlining
Andrew Hague Leftover fabric
Article/reference Multiple fabrics
Bernard Rudofsky Striped, printed, checked fabric
David Pye
Design for manufacture Design and sustainability
Dorothy Burnham Aesthetics in design
Article/reference Breaking rules
Julian Roberts Fabric waste
Kate Fletcher Future transformability
Madeleine Vionnet Garment durability
Mark Liu Garment repairability
Otto von Busch Kate Fletcher
Practice-based research Laundering [LCA]
Rei Kawakubo Otto von Busch
Research methodology
Sonia Delaunay
Julian Roberts
Thayaht
Yeohlee Teng
Yoshiki Hishinuma
Zandra Rhodes
Practice-based design research

Article/reference
228 | appendicies
Entry Date Page Experiment/ Content (verbatim) Image/Visual/Sketch Code 1 Code 2 Code 3 Code 4 Code 5 Code 6 Code 7 Code 8 Code 9 Code 10
Garment type
1 4-Mar-07 2 T-shirt 4001 Photo taken late Dec 06 Photo of t-shirt drape front on stand, grain illustrated Design through Body and Fabric Grain N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape design
2 4-Mar-07 3 T-shirt 4001 waiting to be put on card/pattern. Not sure if aim was clear; Sketch of half pattern of t-shirt on page 2 Pattern sketch Uncertainty Seam Reducing N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
one piece in the sense that front, back and top of sleeve in regarding elimination complexity
one piece. Will need sleeve gusset and underarm gusset. outcome
3 7-Mar-07 3 T-shirt 4001 The above is to say, this top was not part of the experiments Sketch of half front and back, indicating grain Body and Design through Fabric Grain N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
in a formal way - this was the first serious go that I had at design pattern
making something
4 7-Mar-07 4 T-shirt 4001 Three tucks on each side to bring 'excess' fabric back onto Photo of t-shirt drape shoulder showing tucks. Design through Body and Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
the body. Photo taken late Dec 06. drape design component
5 7-Mar-07 5 T-shirt 4001 dart/tuck at arm junction - need to check in toile if this Photo of drape armhole front showing tuck dart in armhole Design through Garment Body and Garment fit N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
restricts movement. Late Dec 06 drape component design
6 7-Mar-07 6 T-shirt 4001 Fabric on cross-grain. Not stretchy across the body. Need to Photo of draped back, with grain drawn on top Design through Body and Fabric Grain Garment fit Comfort N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
check in toile whether uncomfortable. Late Dec 06 drape design
7 18-Mar-07 7 T-shirt 4001 I revisited this t-shirt in march 07 - transferring the drape to N/A Design through Design through Time Gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
flat pattern. These images (two) are on pages 40-41. There drape pattern
is some recording of this on pages 31-33.
8 18-Mar-07 7 T-shirt 4001 Top with gathered sleeve. Drawing looks feminine. Sketch 1: shows the flat pattern of the sleeve. Sketch 2: Design through Design Garment Fabric Waste Masculinity Fabric N/A N/A N/A N/A
Proportions rethought [arrow] masculine. This was an idea shows the sleeve silhouette. sketch ideation component manipulation
to use the waste areas between the sleeve and back and
front, by shirring the excess with elastic.
9 26-Feb-07 8 Pant (no code) Pant out of two gores. No inside leg seam. Slash for crotch. Sketch of pattern showing two gores, crotch slashes, Pattern sketch Design Fabric Width Referencing in Referencing in Seam Shape Splitting and N/A N/A
See Thayaht's tuta. Gusset to [text missing]. Pant seams, placement on a width of fabric. ideation design design elimination awareness slashing
experiment. Drawing from Thayaht. Bypassing curved shapes
crotch seam.
10 7-Mar-07 8 Pant (no code; have started working on this in GRAPH PAPER N/A Time gap Scale - N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
same as management
26/2/07)) strategies
11 8-Sep-06 8 Pant (no code) Pant based on Thayaht's tuta. Pant width? - determined by Sketch of pant pattern showing one piece pant, CB & CF Pattern sketch Order of Design Fabric Width Referencing in Garment Seam Fabric N/A N/A
hip measurement. Do I work out larger pieces first? indicated, as are gusset and waistband. pattern pieces ideation design dimension elimination manipulation
12 Dec-06 9 Singlet To explore (from Dec 06). V-neck bias singlet? Sketch of rectangle with diagonal slashes in diagonally Pattern sketch Design Shape Splitting and N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
opposite corners. ideation awareness slashing
shapes
13 Jan-07 10 Shirt Shirt experiment. Symmetrical shirt, symmetrical pattern N/A Design through Body and Creativity and Design Symmetry and Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A
[arrow] work on half only. Diff. when placing block - limiting - pattern design originality Limitation asymmetry Awareness
preconceived idea of how a shirt should be. 'Comfort' -
knowing or being aware of dimension.
14 4-Mar-07 10 Shirt When sketching patterns, graph paper may be useful, esp. Sketch of shirt pattern, with comment 'I need to work in Pattern sketch Design Scale - Fabric Width Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
once fabric width is known. graph paper. Dec 07 ideation management awareness
strategies
15 30-Jan-07 11 N/A Interpretation and realisation of idea to me happens through N/A Design Design through Research Referencing in Referencing in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
patternmaking [arrow] What does this mean to designers ideation pattern administration design design
who don't make or aren't capable of making their own
patterns? Typologies (?) of fashion design. (sketch) [arrow]
draping [ arrow] sketch/pattern [arrow] toile. Sketch [arrow]
patterns [arrow] toile } no waste problematic with this, most
companies' approach. Pattern [arrow] toile (Julian Roberts).
Combinations of above (write down examples). Sample
[arrow] (sketch) [arrow] pattern [arrow] toile. Kawakubo:
crunched bit of paper [arrow] pattern [toile] . Typologies of
patternmaking 1) from sketch 2) from sample 3) from
draped pieces 4) from an idea
16 12-Feb-07 12 T-shirt 4004 T-shirt drape 12/2/07. Shoulder - excess from back could Sketch 1: shoulder gusset, neck and armhole. Sketch 2: Design through Design Body and Garment Fabric Waste Design for Fabric Garment fit N/A N/A
become gusset for neck. As armholes difficult to drape harness drape ideation design component manufacture manipulation
exactly, I will use an existing armhole & transfer it on when
appendicies
the drape is taken off the mannequin. Sleeve - using

existing sleeve that corresponds to the above armhole, I'll
add darts to it to make it as rectangular as possible.
Possible harness/ internal. To hold the fitted (right-hand)
side in place, an internal harness maybe necessary. If not,
the loose side will allow it to 'collapse' & not stay where it
best fits the body. Right side seam: the seam allowances
are large, allowing grading to larger sizes. To make sewing
easier, a stitching template would need to be made. PTO. In
| 229
mass production, the machinist is guided usually by a seam

allowance that is uniform along the length of a seam. (pearl
pins should not be used)
17 13-Feb-07 12 T-shirt 4004 Taking drape off mannequin. Twisting - not balanced N/A Design through Design through Garment Fabric Width Body and Shape Splitting and Design through N/A N/A
horizontally between front and back - not perfect rectangle pattern drape component design awareness slashing pattern
to begin with [arrow] to be fixed on card pattern. Too much shapes
fullness at back - back had more fabric, left armhole slit not
halfway between selvages [arrow] will be repositioned, this
will make back neck slightly smaller. Armholes transferred
from existing t-shirt patterns - same pattern to be used for
sleeve. 5cm hem to be added on card. How will left armhole
slit be finished? How will neck be finished? Ideas after
cardboard pattern for main body and gusset made: gusset
could be cut out from front neck. See next page.
18 13-Feb-07 13 T-shirt 4004 Gusset from front neck. Armhole cutouts could become part Sketch 1: gusset from front neck, armhole facings from Pattern sketch Design Design through Fabric Waste Design Subtraction N/A N/A N/A N/A
of left armhole facing. Sleeve could come from here. This armholes. Sketch 2: sleeve from hem. ideation pattern measurement design
excess had bugged me on the mannequin. Fr. Armhole
26.8cm. Gusset 1.8cm. B. armhole 24.2.cm } 52.8cm
[arrow] Could go wither way - 100% waste, or some waste,
with more emphasis on aesthetics [arrow] could do both.
19 19-Feb-07 13 unclear So far design has used - sketching - draping - N/A Design Design through Design through Design through Time Gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
patternmaking. All have, to me, been important aspects of ideation drape pattern sketch
the process but I could imagine another designer bypassing
one, possibly two of the mediums. Note: initial idea was
sketched roughly a week before the draping/patternmaking.
20 4-Mar-07 14 T-shirt 4004 idea scribbled down in early Jan 07. Note sleeve: is it Sketch of t-shirt and two sleeves showing possible use of Design Design through Fabric Waste Garment Shape Time Gap N/A N/A N/A N/A
possible to add darts and make the sleeve more darting. ideation sketch component awareness
rectangular?
21 15 T-shirt 4004 Front Photo of draped t-shirt 4004 front Design through Body and Design N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape design ideation
22 16 T-shirt 4004 Back Photo of draped t-shirt 4004 back Design through Body and Design N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
230 | appendicies
drape design ideation

23 23-Feb-07 17 T-shirt 4004 With this t-shirt, width was determining factor from start Photo of draped t-shirt 4004 shoulder area without gusset Design through Body and Fabric Width Design Design N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape design ideation limitation
24 18 T-shirt 4004 Front-flat photo of t-shirt 4004 drape flat - front Design through Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape pattern
25 19 T-shirt 4004 Back-flat photo of t-shirt 4004 drape flat - back Design through Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape pattern
26 20 T-shirt 4004 left shoulder photo of t-shirt 4004 drape left shoulder Design through Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape pattern
27 21 T-shirt 4004 right shoulder - front - flat photo of t-shirt 4004 drape right shoulder - flat Design through Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape pattern
28 18-Mar-07 22 T-shirt 4004 This was an attempt to use darts to create a more photo of patterns so far for t-shirt 4004 Design through Body and Fabric Garment Reducing Splitting and Shape N/A N/A N/A
rectangular sleeve piece with darts. The dart ends, pattern design manipulation component complexity slashing awareness
however, made the pattern more complex/'wicked' than it shapes
was before
29 23 T-shirt 4004 N/A close-up photo of the sleeve and gusset pattern for t-shirt Design through Garment Body and N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
4004 pattern component design
30 7-Mar-07 24 T-shirt 4004 Very wide seam allowance - a stitching template would photo of right front side seam/ t-shirt 4004, showing sewing Design through Grading Design for N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
make sewing easy. Grading could perhaps happen through lines, hem and waist position pattern patterns manufacture
seam OR each size would have different seam allowance
widths.
31 13-Mar-07 25 T-shirt 4004 Sleeve. This was an attempt to turn an 'awkward' shape into photo of darted sleeve pattern, noting that the negative Design through Shape Garment Fabric Fabric Waste Reducing Symmetry and N/A N/A N/A
a more rectangular one by adding darts. The darts, space left by half a sleeve looks like half a sleeve, too: pattern awareness component manipulation complexity asymmetry
however, worked to turn the sleeve into a different, still mirror image.
awkward shape. See comment re: mirroring though.
32 18-Mar-07 25 T-shirt 4004 This led to further thinking about sleeve mirroring - see as entry #31 Design through Garment Shape Symmetry and Time Gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
page 43. pattern component awareness asymmetry
33 19-Apr-07 25 T-shirt 4004 See also page 113 for further development as entry #31 Design through Garment Shape Symmetry and Time Gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pattern component awareness asymmetry
34 26 Stuck in article: 'Fashioning a future' by Maggie Alderson, N/A Referencing in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
10/3/2007, The Sydney Morning Herald, Good Weekend, p. design
51. No notes
35 27 blank page N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
36 7-Mar-07 28 Pant 2001 If you look at the sketch from 26/2/07, (top, p. 8) it's reverse A graph paper drawing of the pant pattern layout on 150cm Scale - Design through Body and Design Fabric Width Fabric Symmetry and Time Gap N/A N/A
of the above - I expected the waist to be bigger. But, as the wide fabric. Various measurements are included (pant management pattern design ideation manipulation asymmetry
entire hem is in one piece, with only half the waist, it's length, hem circumference, inside leg, finished waist), and strategies
ended up the other way. the following comments: "I've just realised I've left out seam
allowances", The gap [arrow] this is for the fly piece,
pockets, under-crotch gusset, which is needed with a cut
like this and everything else I want. Do a rectangle version
too where hem=half waist. It may be that waist is too small
to allow for back dart and better fit." The pattern layout
includes the following pieces: two legs (not a pair but two
left legs), gusset, two back pockets, fly, waistband, two
waist gussets (or yokes).
37 7-Mar-07 29 Pant 2001 While drawing on graph paper for first time - a pair of pants. N/A Scale - Procedure Design through Grading 2D/3D Reducing Design through N/A N/A N/A
First things I drew down: the two legs & waistband - these management pattern patterns visualization complexity pattern
are the things I know a pant needs. Not necessarily a strategies
waistband - a facing would be ok. I forgot to include seam
allowances with the leg pieces - have added them after.
Next step: full scale, then make up toile to see how well this
works. Try working a larger piece of graph paper - scale at
the moment too small, very fiddly. Make 'blocks' to scale,
work with these. Could be very useful for planning grading -
instantly visible what is possible and what is not.
38 7-Mar-07 30 Pant 2001 I do think the graph paper could have huge implications for N/A Scale - Design Referencing in 2D/3D Reducing Procedure N/A N/A N/A N/A
the project, maybe even fashion design. Does anyone management ideation design visualization complexity
design fashion like this? Yeohlee Teng? This seems much strategies
more manageable than working in full scale (less daunting).
I don't think it's possible to resolve the entire design like this
but you can 'plan' it quite effectively. I do want to see the
toile now to determine how this works as a pant.
39 10-Mar-07 30 It seems that when working on patterns, a question that N/A Design through Design Shape Creativity and Fabric Waste Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A
emerges repeatedly - one that the designer/patternmaker pattern ideation awareness originality possibility
needs to ask him/herself - is 'What could this shape
become?' What I mean is that when making a pattern piece,
the piece might have a cut-away area of an irregular,
'unrecognisable' shape, yet if waste is to be eliminated, that
shape needs to be part of the garment.
40 10-Mar-07 31 T-shirt 4001 Putting on card the draped t-shirt from Dec 06 with three Sketches of the body pattern and undersleeve/gusset Design through Design through Garment Design through Garment Pattern sketch N/A N/A N/A N/A
tucks. I've only used the drape as a loose guide as it was pattern. pattern drape component pattern component
'roughly' draped - sleeve and back weren't long enough,
nothing was 'accurate'. The t-shirt is very basic in many
ways - I imagine to use this as a block or a starting point for
other designs. Underarm gusset shape? After making it, the
gusset looks more like an undersleeve of a two-piece
sleeve.
41 10-Mar-07 32 This references Vionnet's work and I draped such a jacket Photocopy from Surface issue #63, 2007: article on Fabric Waste Referencing in Design Design through Design Design Creativity and Increasing N/A N/A
two years ago. I abandoned it because from a waste point designer Greg Lagola. I've underlined the quote: "How do I design decision drape ideation potential originality complexity
of view I did not see any potential with it. wrap an essentially two-dimensional form, fabric, around a
three-dimensional body?" That's what the comment about
all fashion design refers to.
42 10-Mar-07 33 T-shirt 4001 The t-shirt (Dec 06) is similar in concept? Already it looks N/A Fabric Waste Seam Time Gap Shape Number and Garment Striped, N/A N/A N/A
like eliminating waste in a design like this (where body and elimination awareness size of pattern component printed,
sleeves are cut in one) seems very difficult. Why pursue it? pieces checked fabric
I'm going to put it aside for a while and return to it. Maybe
it's that it seems that less waste is created if there are less
pieces. In this case the underarm gusset is awkward unless
pieces from several pieces which could look interesting in a
stripe.
43 10-Mar-07 33 General. Are there more than one way of approaching no- N/A Shape Design Scale - Fabric Fabric Waste Reducing Design Splitting and Creativity and Openness to
waste? The graph paper way seems to attempt to fill the Awareness ideation management manipulation complexity potential slashing originality possibility
fabric while 'keeping all pattern pieces in check' - staying strategies shapes
aware of the pieces. On the other hand, the t-shirt above
(Dec 06) was developed without particular regard to waste -
then again, it is nowhere near no-waste at the moment. But,
I do have a few ideas of how to make it so: 1) piece the
gusset & fill the gaps left by the main piece, 2) cut neck
area into 'wedges', leave or rather, develop into decorative
feature, 3) rethink side seam area; as in the look of it. Could
also be shirred, tucked, etc. etc.
44 10-Mar-07 34 Pant 2001 Pant drawing on graph paper 7/3/07 [arrow] Full-scale N/A Scale - Design through Uncertainty 2D/3D Openness to Time Gap N/A N/A N/A N/A
translation 10/3/07. I'm not sure how these pants will look management pattern regarding visualization possibility
like but they may be quite funny. strategies outcome
45 11-Mar-07 34 Pant 2001 I've drawn the pants on spot&cross paper almost as per the N/A Scale - Procedure Pattern Design Notions and Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A
graph paper drawing but some things have changed. management alteration measurement trims details
Because I messed up the seam allowances on graph paper, strategies
some things weren't clear to follow. I've shifted the back
waist gussets to next to the pockets & made them the same
width as the length of the pockets. I've split the waistband -
it now has a CB seam, so it takes 4cm more fabric in length
than on graph paper. The waistband is a single layer - I
imagine the back of it to be waistbanding which can be
purchased ready made. I only used 1cm seam allowances
on the pockets to begin with & but now think 2cm would
allow doubleturning, making a cleaner finish. Just realised -
inside legs (front versus back) don't match either on graph
paper or full scale - fixed (only had to move notch markings)
46 11-Mar-07 35 Pant 2001 Cont'd. To sum. Total length of piece in this case was Sketch showing six folded pockets (40x25cm folded to Fabric Waste Design Marker Number and Leftover Fabric Procedure Multiple fabrics Garment N/A N/A
determined by length of pant - the main leg piece takes up 20x25cm) taking up full width of fabric. ideation planning size of pattern details
the entire length. There are no curves in this design. pieces
Largest pieces (legs) were placed in first, then gusset,
appendicies
waistband, patch pockets, fly shield and facing; the size of

welt pockets was determined by what was left. [arrow]
pocket bags for the welt pocket would be in another fabric -
the size of bag can be engineered to fabric width so no
waste is created. For example, if fabric is 120cm wide:
[sketch, see next column]. Total waste left:
17mmx190mm=32.3cm2. 48mmx10mm=4.8cm2.
51mmx26mm=13.26cm2. 32mmx56mm=17.92cm2 =
68.28cm2. Total fabric piece 150cmx117.8cm=17,670cm2.
| 231
Waste percentage: 0.38%. Note: industry average is 15%.

47 11-Mar-07 36 Pant 2001 Continued. I haven't mentioned this but have been aware of N/A Design through Symmetry and Fabric faces Body and Design Body and Leftover fabric N/A N/A N/A
it since doing the graph paper: I have two left legs. What pattern asymmetry design measurement design
this essentially means is that if made in a fabric with two
different faces, one leg will be on the other face. Pocket
placement not determined yet [arrow] will be done during
making of toile. The pant really was designed through a
series of measurements, some of which relate to the body
(e.g. waist) while others were design choices (e.g. hem
circumference). [arrow] Go back to drawing and determine
all body and design measurements i.e. which was which.
[arrow] Then list what was determined by the amount of
available fabric. Late 11/3/07 Pattern has been transferred
to card, ready for cutting a toile.
48 11-Mar-07 37 General: Fabric may be wasted during construction. N/A Design for Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Sometimes the machinist needs to trim away fabric but it is manufacture
essential for ease of construction for that fabric to be there
in the first place. Also, overlocking trims a minimal amount
of fabric as it sews. The research is not concerned with
these; it's safe to assume that this waste almost always
would amount for less than 1% of total fabric used.
49 11-Mar-07 37 Grading: in some garments cutting on the weft rather than N/A Grading Fabric Grain Fabric Waste Openness to Breaking rules N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
warp grain may be justifiable to allow horizontal grading. patterns possibility
50 12-Mar-07 37 Measurements. Body: Waistband length. Design: hem N/A Body and Leftover Fabric Garment Design Design N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
circumf, w'band width, B. pkt width. Body and design: pant design dimension decision Limitation
length. Available fabric: b. pkt height, crotch gusset, welt
pockets, piece to be sold with garment.
51 12-Mar-07 38 Pant 2001 The pants. Seam mostly 2cm wide - See Cooklin 1997 N/A Design for Future Breaking rules N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
[arrow] industry average 5.5% of fabric in seam manufacture transformation
allowances. In this pant, prob more, given the width. But, of garment
232 | appendicies
arguably ok as future alteration more possible, or rather,

possibly easier to achieve without adding fabric.
52 12-Mar-07 39 Grading/general. About four years ago, a friend, Michael Sketches showing single pattern piece, with 5cm width Grading Breaking rules Design Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Yung from Ahshui (his label) designed a skirt that was cut indicated at waist, as well as finished garment. patterns measurement pattern
with one pattern piece: because the difference between
each size is 5cm usually, he didn't need to grade the pattern
. Rather simply a different number of panels was cut
depending on size, for example: Size 10 - cut 14, size 12 -
cut 15, size 14 - cut 16. The waist was finished with a bind
facing; the bind was purchased separately. [arrow] Contact
Michael - see if possible to photograph skirt and pattern.
53 18-Mar-07 40 T-shirt 4001 Flat drape for Dec 06 t-shirt. See pages 31-33 Photo of drape, flat. CF & CB are indicated, as is the Design through Fabric Grain Fabric Body and Garment Seam N/A N/A N/A N/A
sleeve. The tucks at neck are visible by the pins. drape manipulation design component elimination
54 18-Mar-07 41 T-shirt 4001 Pattern. Undersleeve/gusset after seam allowance was Photos of patterns for body and the undersleeves as per Design through Body and Garment Leftover fabric Shape Design for N/A N/A N/A N/A
added. Undersleeve/gusset before seam allowance was comments. Also, leftover piece at neck is shown in photo. pattern design component awareness manufacture
added; front elbow shortened to match top sleeve
measurement [arrow] quite a curved sleeve.
55 13-Mar-07 42A What I've done so far. The studio work over the past N/A Procedure Design Design through Uncertainty Referencing in Openness to Leftover fabric Marker Fabric width N/A
fortnight has been insightful, I think. I feel I can more ideation pattern regarding design possibility planning
confidently plan the rest of the practice for the project now. outcome
I'm also confident that practice plays an important role in the
project; for me, an irreplacable part. The pant was quite a
quick exercise - felt easy, although the toile isn't made yet,
it's difficult to assess the design. How it actually looks
(although I've got a pretty good idea) and whether it works
as a design or not. I was initially going to sketch it but
decided to keep an open mind in regard to the outcome, in
somewhat similar fashion to Julian Roberts works. I
think/expect that a number of aspects will need refining: leg
shape, fit around waist & hip, pockets. I've left pocket
placement open; will work partially through toile - try leg on,
see where pockets are likely to work. The process was
simple or felt so: After placing legs & waistband on the
fabric width, the remaining area determined gusset size,
pocket size. As the process advanced, the leftover became
more awkward to work with, placing the welts, pocket
bearers and fly pieces. The amount of waste (0.3%) was a
pleasant surprise.
56 13-Mar-07 42B Is this kind of writing furthering the research? I'm not sure it N/A Scale - Design Design through Openness to Uncertainty Fabric Waste Design through 2D/3D Increasing N/A
is. The above has very little insight & is not critical, management ideation pattern possibility regarding sketch visualization complexity
necessarily. I had a thought yesterday that perhaps I could strategies outcome
try to write about me in the third person, as a critical
observer. I will give this a go. Timo attempted to design a
garment through its pattern on graph paper - a pair of pants.
From the process it seems that designing a garment that
wastes very little fabric is not particularly difficult. At this
point, Timo has not sketched the designnor made the toile
so he doesn't know exactly what the pants looks like.
Perhaps this may be one of the more difficult aspects of
zero-fabric-waste designing - simultaneously 'designing out'
waste while designing a garment of a particular appearance
[I'm having trouble articulating this]. Through sketching a
garment, one makes explicit to onself and other what s/he
wants the garment to look like. When designing a pattern
(whether no waste or not) one needs to possess an
understanding how 2D shapes (the pattern) translate into a
3D garment. Or, be open to an unexpected outcome when
toile is made up. You could say the 'designs'/ideas so far
have been quite simple. I expect more complexity to
permeate the work as it progresses. It's almost as if I'm
learning to design again. Starting with easy, the aim is to
make this more challenging as I go.
57 13-Mar-07 43 Sleeve thoughts 13/3/07. Mirror image [arrow] cut 2 pairs Sketches of sleeve head patterns interlocking, as well as Garment Splitting and Interlocking Symmetry and Garment fit Shape Pattern sketch N/A N/A N/A
like this. Could work on a loose fitting shirt. Same for lower lower sleeve interlocking, and one with comment "this won't component slashing shapes asymmetry Awareness
half of sleeve [arrow] OR [a sketch of a different version of a work". The sleeve in the latter is ccut in two pieces, with shapes
lower sleeve] sleeve split through centre. The sleeveheads interlock but
one sleeve is thrown off-grain. See also p. 25. looking at
pattern shapes important? It helps with imagining new ways
of interlocking.
58 18-Mar-07 43 See also page 57. This tested out further. As per entry 58 Garment Splitting and Interlocking Symmetry and Garment fit Shape Pattern sketch Time gap N/A N/A
component slashing shapes asymmetry Awareness
shapes
59 13-Mar-07 43 Grading: A hunch: it is possible to design a garment where N/A Grading Design for N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
all grading was achieved through seam allowance change patterns manufacture
(I.e. smaller the garment, larger the seam allowance)
[arrow] Design largest size, to ensure it fits on fabric.
60 18-Mar-07 44 Pant 2001 Photos taken 11/3/07 (pages 44-47). After pattern was Photo of calico with pant pieces marked on, with leg pieces Fabric Waste Garment Pattern Design for N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
made, I marked the pieces on calico, ready to cut. See page and selvedge indicated, and the comment: "allowance for details alteration manufacture
28 for comparison. When I did the marker on dot&cross some distortion in the calico".
paper (before card pattern_ I added the fly facing, pocket
welts and pocket bearers; these do not appear on the
original graph paper drawing.
61 18-Mar-07 45 Pant 2001 Distortion in calico meant that this side was out by around a Photo of calico as above, but showing gusset, pocket, etc. Fabric waste Garment Pattern Design for Fabric Width N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
centimetre. The pant was designed for 150cm wide fabric - Difference between pattern layout is noted, selvedge is details alteration manufacture
the calico is 157cm wide, hence the gap. indicated as is the distortion in the fabric and its impact.
62 18-Mar-07 46 Pant 2001 Waste 0.38% of total. See page 35. [pointing to 'repair Photo of calico as above, but showing yokes, fly pieces, Fabric Waste Garment Garment Future N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
piece' in marker layout] This could be sold with the garment, etc. Amount of waste remaining is highlighted, as is the details Laundering transformation
to be used for repair or to test laundering. 'repair piece'. of garment
63 18-Mar-07 47 Pant 2001 The pattern pieces on card. Photo of the pant card patterns. Cutting instructions (as in Design through Design for N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
how many to cut of each piece) is indicated. pattern manufacture
64 10-Mar-07 48 Attempt at woven singlet. I don't think I should limit myself Pattern sketch on graph paper. Unfinished. Scale - Design through Design Design through Pattern sketch Design Fabric Width N/A N/A N/A
to the exact half-width to begin with. Strap 32cm, includes management pattern ideation pattern Limitation
6cm overlap [arrow] slash 32cm strategies
65 10-Mar-07 49 #2. I think draping might be the way to go with this one. Pattern sketch on graph paper. Unfinished. Scale - Design through Design Design through Pattern sketch Design through Fabric Width N/A N/A N/A
55cmx250cm piece perhaps. management pattern ideation pattern drape
strategies
66 18-Mar-07 49 This didn't get any further - I had trouble visualising the Sketch of a bias singlet, showing spiralling seams. Design Design through Fabric grain Splitting and Fabric 2D/3D Referencing in N/A N/A N/A
pattern, with seams on the straight warp grain, but with the ideation pattern slashing manipulation visualization design
garment hanging on bias and hem on fold. This is what I'm shapes
after: a bias singlet where the neck is achieved through a
slash. The entire singlet is double, with hem on fold. The
seams would be on straight grain and thus spiral. The
straps go to points but joined like this: [sketch]. They could
be twisted before joining to avoid gape in the armholes.
67 18-Mar-07 50 Pant 2006 Pant #2 - rectangle version where total hem = hald waist. Pattern sketch on graph paper. Comment on waistband: Design Design through Scale - Design through Pattern sketch Multiple fabrics Shape Design for N/A N/A
Half waist/total hem - 43cm (same as pant #1). Pant length "Waistband has 'built-in' interlining in self". ideation pattern management pattern awareness manufacture
111cm. For this pant, I will try to bypass making this full strategies
scale on dot&cross, instead making card pattern directly
from this graph paper plan. Problem with back yokes:
flowthrough [arrow] CB will look like this [arrow to sketch].
68 18-Mar-07 51 Pant 2006 Straight' pant/pant #2 on graph paper. CB is a problem - I'm Sketch of leg pattern for a straight leg square-cut pant. Body and Garment fit Shape Body and Openness to Grading Design for N/A N/A N/A
not sure how I can get a 'good' shape that will actually Where a wedge is cut out for the CB, there is a comment design Awareness design possibility patterns manufacture
resemble the waist/bum area, with what I've drawn so far - for the left-over: "gusset perhaps"
on the left. Based on pant #1, I think it may be better to
have the CB on an angle, maybe something like this:
[sketch of pattern]. This would mean that the hem needs to
be bigger than the half waist. [arrow] Start again. [arrow]
How would a tapered leg work with this principle? i.e. a pant
with a crotch gusset [arrow] Need to explore. [arrow]
Grading not possible with what I'm designing at the moment
[arrow] Design one where legs are cut across rather than
along selvages. Or, see page 43: Design largest size,
appendicies
smaller sizes through seams allowances. And, see next

page.
69 18-Mar-07 52 General/methodology: I'm feeling more and more that rather N/A Practice-based Design briefs Time Gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
than stick to rigid briefs and follow them to a tee, I should research
respond to what I'm finding out & tailor future practice as I
go. That's not to say the briefs to date are worthless; I think
it's important to keep checking that the practice doesn't get
'stuck' around one issue or group of issues, but that it is
covering all the issues raised both from literature and
| 233
practice, and LATER ON, from peers.

70 18-Mar-07 52 Pant 2006 Cont'd from previous page: Once the pant design has been N/A Aesthetics in Scale - Grading Design for N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
toiled and I'm satisfied with the design I should try and design management patterns manufacture
develop other sizes of the same design on graph paper and strategies
see how that works. I should also do this with other garment
types.
71 18-Mar-07 53 Pant 2006 Attempt #2 from page 50. Although I said before I'd skip Graph paper drawing of the pant with all pieces, and waste Scale - Design through Design Design through Pattern sketch Garment Fabric waste Uncertainty N/A N/A
dot&cross, I think I will do it, just to check this works. [arrow] amount calculated: 0.158%. Also, there is a comment: "Not management pattern ideation pattern details regarding
(half hour later) I will go directly into card pattern. Once sure if belt loops should be included in the marker in strategies outcome
that's done, I'll do the dot&cross for reference; I think it general - in production they could be strip-cut separately for
needs to be done for all designs. General: I've just take an all the sizes, without wasting fabric. The only exception
photo of this while it's still very much in progress; I'll take would be if selvage was to be used as a finish.
more as it progresses.
72 18-Mar-07 54 Pant 2001 General: cost. I've just cut out the first toile for pant #1 (see Piece of calico: the leftover waste from Pant 2001 toile. Design for Economic Garment yield Fabric waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pages 44-46 for the calico with markings). Two things that I manufacture saving
didn't expect or anticipate: 1) The cutting out is really fast
because each cut is 'releasing' two pieces from the whole.
This could be exciting, although the cutting is not the most
expensive part of manufacturing, the overall impact might
not be that big. And number of issues relating to cutting in
production still need further thought. What are these
issues? 2) This struck me when I did the first graph paper
but I was reminded again: the pants take 118cm fabric.
234 | appendicies
From memory this is less than most pants I've worked with,
but needs to be checked.
73 18-Mar-07 55 Yesterday I did some freelance work for a client (R.G.). The Sketches of markers showing a wasteful and a less Industry work Splitting and Shape Fabric Waste Fabric Width Fabric Grain Pattern sketch Marker Economic Striped,
pattern was for a dress with a long full skirt of six pieces: wasteful way of cutting out the skirt pieces. slashing Awareness planning saving printed,
front, two side fronts, two side backs and a back. To get the shapes checked fabric
fullness she desired, each panel was very close to the width
of the fabric at their widest. If each panel had the grainline
through the centre, the marker would have looked
something like this: [sketch]. Without consulting the client, I
decided that changing grainlines on the side fronts and
backs wouldn't affect the overall look significantly and was
able to do this: [sketch]. I gave her a diagram not unlike this
and she was very pleased. My concern was waste, hers
cost, but we were both left happy. This wouldn't work with
one-way fabrics, stripes or checks, unless the overall
impact (how the patterns on the fabric relate between each
panel within an overall whole) was considered.
74 18-Mar-07 56 With another client, FABRIC WIDTH became a Sketch of dress patterns on width of fabric, indicating Fabric Width Striped, Fabric Waste Shape Space Industry work Pattern sketch Design Creativity and N/A
consideration. The fabric had a double border: a border border print. printed, Awareness awareness ideation originality
print running along each selvage. Whilst making the pattern, checked fabric
I had to be aware how much space was left between the
front and back skirt to ensure the bodice fitted in between:
[sketch]. So, when i've said in the past that very rarely does
FABRIC WIDTH need to be considered with Cut & Sew
making, it was nice to come across a situation where it
needed to be considered. I was able to make a pattern that
matched the designer's initial idea; it would have been
interesting to see the design changes if this wasn't the case.
When I say 'the designer's idea', I in fact mean a dress that
was given to me to copy. Nothing was changed - every
detail was copied as was. Whether this can be regarded as
design, I don't know.
75 18-Mar-07 57 Interlocking sleeves. See also page 43. 1) Two left blocks - Photos of the three sleeve patterns described, with Garment Interlocking Symmetry and Pattern sketch Fabric faces Garment fit Design through N/A N/A N/A
not a good interlocking - also needs a fabric that has no comment: "Note: I used an existing sleeve pattern from a component asymmetry pattern
'wrong' side unless designed to use both sides of fabric. 2) size 40 (Euro 50) shirt".
Two right fronts - very close interlocking but they are the
same front just as 1) is two left backs. 3) Left front & right
back: not good, but could be worked on. This is what I need
to concentrate on. The underarm could be raised as could
the sleeve head to make the two meet; kind of like
averaging the two to make them meet.
76 18-Mar-07 58 Pant 2006 See page 53. This is where I paused; the legs + yokes, Photo of graph paper drawing of Pant 2006 from p. 53 N/A Scale - Pattern sketch Garment Design Design Openness to Time Gap Design through N/A
gusset, waistbands & loops were in place. Apart from loops, when it was incomplete management details decision ideation possibility pattern
these were the pieces I knew I needed.I took the pause to strategies
have a think about what I wanted the rest to be - pockets,
etc. Zip guard and fly facing are missing from above,
although 'required' pieces.
77 18-Mar-07 59 Pant 2006 This is the completed pattern. I didn't time it but this took Photo of graph paper drawing of Pant 2006 from p. 53 once Scale - Pattern sketch Garment Design Design Openness to Time Gap Design through N/A N/A
another 20 or so minutes to 'fill up'. it was incomplete management details decision ideation possibility pattern
strategies
78 19-Mar-07 60 Sleeve - cont'd from p. 57. I can cut one sleeve without the Sketch of sleeve patterns showing interlocking Garment Pattern sketch Splitting and Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
centre seam; the other (right) sleeve would have a seam component slashing awareness
through the centre. Other curves to consider. Front armhole, shapes
back armhole - shirts, t-shirts, jackets. Front crotch, back
crotch - pants, jeans. Neck/front, neck/back - shirts, t-shirts,
jackets.
79 19-Mar-07 61 Singlet in jersey. Not sure… why the basic singlet shape? Sketch of singlet front pattern, with slashing used to create Pattern sketch Shape Splitting and Fabric Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
self-facings to create the armhole and neck curves. awareness slashing manipulation possibility
shapes
80 21-Mar-07 61 What about a v-neck with smocked straps? Sketch of smocked singlet, with pattern sketch showing Design Pattern sketch Design through Fabric Openness to Symmetry and Slashing N/A N/A N/A
rectangular pattern shape with slash for neck, and ideation sketch manipulation possibility asymmetry
comment: "smocked sides [at hem] - smocked with fabric
double".
81 1-Dec-06 61 Sleeves. Sketch of sleeve patterns showing that the two seams are a Garment Pattern sketch Fabric Width Openness to Fabric N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
different length, with comment: "This side is longer & could component possibility manipulation
be used for the back. It could be tucked, gathered, etc. to fit
into the front seam". Selvedge is also indicated in the
sketch.
82 12-Mar-07 62 20/3/07 Notes taken at Zoe Sadokierski's Doctoral N/A Practice-based N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Assessment. NOTE: Not transcribed as not directly related research
to my practice.
83 20-Mar-07 63 Serendipity in fashion design, and particularly in designing N/A Uncertainty Serendipity in Referencing in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
like this [arrow] see Julian Roberts; also, I've written about regarding design design
this previously - WHERE? [arrow] Doctoral Assessment outcome
paper p. 9 - in relation to David Pye (1995(1968): 59-60)
worth another look. Also Kridt paper p. 6.
84 20-Mar-07 63 Problem: only one selvage can be lined up precisely at N/A Uncertainty Design for Fabric Width Design N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
cutting, according to Chuter (1995: 129). Is this correct? regarding manufacture Limitation
outcome
85 21-Mar-07 63 Pant (no code) Grading pants: Problem: in a conventional grade [the] grade Sketch showing the conventional amounts of horizontal Grading Breaking rules Design for Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
amount at waist is different to grade amount at hem. This is grade in a pant. patterns manufacture details
done to keep the overall proportion across sizes as similar
as possible. What about a pant where the hem was graded
the conventional amount but the front and back waist had
pleats that accommodated for the difference?
86 21-Mar-07 64 Pant (no code) Comments: "The rest, another 2.5cm/size, could be Sketches of pants, contemplating whether grading could be Grading Breaking rules Design for Garment Pleating Openness to Shape Pattern sketch N/A N/A
incorporated into the pleats, I think. Worth thinking about incorporated into pleating. The square-cut rectangular pant patterns manufacture details possibility awareness
while working in the pants." With a pattern sketch of pattern would grade 2.5cm.
conventional 'tailored' pants, comment: "What to do with
this?", pointing to 'leftover' area in crotch and inside leg.
87 21-Mar-07 65 Shirt (no code) Oslo Shirt Experiment Brief. Refer to 'Repairability' Sketch of three variations of pattern for lower part of sleeve, Design briefs Shape Garment Seam Shape Fabric width Scale - Multiple fabrics Garment N/A
experiment brief. Semi-tailored - may include some with comment "this seam can be anywhere on the sleeve". awareness component elimination Awareness management details
elements of 'square-cut' but also use interlocking Sketch of shirt yoke pattern with comment "Fold? - could strategies
sleevehead. One piece body - eliminate side seams? use the seam from Major Project dress". Sketch of half of
Armholes could become elbow patches. Need actual fabric shirt body pattern with comments "Elbow patch?" [in
ASAP - WIDTH! Begin design on graph paper, refer to block reference to leftover armhole]; "Dart tucks?"; "or should I
pattern for armhole/sleeve. Make a scale block? Shoulder eliminate shirt tails now?" [in reference to curved sleeve
angles - darts, tucks, gathers etc. Neck curve? Yoke? Collar hem]
& cuffs with self-interlining.
88 21-Mar-07 66 This is the first of four sections in 'Julian & Sophie's School Page 1 of Intro in the School of Patterncutting with my Referencing in Serendipity in 2D/3D N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
of Patterncutting (Julian Roberts & Sophie Cheung). I've comment: "unpredictability - serendipity. See DA paper" I've design design visualization
included the first section here because I think it's a good also highlighted the passage: "They [line drawings] are
example of communicating ideas about form, cut & making useful in describing 'how' something is made, but not 'what'
very simply & clearly. it will make, or result in."
89 21-Mar-07 67 Page 2 of Intro in the School of Patterncutting with Referencing in Body and Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
highlighted passage: "a garment is just a hollow tube, and a design design dimension
pattern simply defines a negative-space, through which the
body travels" and my comment "This is such a simple yet
insightful observation. There are some garments that aren't
tubes (e.g. apron) & and some that the wearer turns into a
tube (wrap shirts and dresses). One could argue that all
subsequent information on the website comes down to this
one observtion."
90 21-Mar-07 68 Page 3 of Intro in the School of Patterncutting. No Referencing in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
comments. design
91 21-Mar-07 69 Pant (general) What is a pant? A tube (at the waist) that divides into two Page 4 of Intro in the School of Patterncutting. A sketch of Referencing in Pattern sketch Seam Body and N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
tubes. possible pant waist if pant was cut as circular, with design elimination design
comment "This doesn't work"
92 21-Mar-07 70 Page 5 of Intro in the School of Patterncutting. No Referencing in Pattern sketch N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
comments. design
93 21-Mar-07 71 Page 6 of Intro in the School of Patterncutting. Comments: Referencing in Pattern sketch Openness to Uncertainty N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
"There is a similarity here to the Zandra Rhodes bodice of design possibility regarding
the seventies, with square sleeves." Pointing to Roberts' outcome
pant diagram: "After working on some of the 'square-cut'
pants, this could extend the possibilities." "In menswear
cutting like this would perhaps suit soft fabrics best (but, it
depends...); fleece, suitings"
94 21-Mar-07 72 Page 7 of Intro in the School of Patterncutting. Highlighted Referencing in Design through Serendipity in Openness to Uncertainty N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
passages: "A pattern… it's more like a story which unfolds design pattern design possibility regarding
in stages, ending up in a garment". "Pattern-cutting is about outcome
possibilities & what-ifs… luck, risk & mistake" My comment:
"serendipity"
95 27-Mar-07 73 Not how many view patternmaking I would argue [in Page 8 of Intro in the School of Patterncutting. Highlighted Referencing in Design through Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
reference to comment, see right] passage: "As these patterncutting concepts include a free- design pattern possibility
hand non-representational approach ot patterncutting, they
are in their nature hypothetical and open to interpretation.
Whoever implements them, automatically adds something
of their own style to them."
96 22-Mar-07 74 Because it seems that smaller scale patterns are easier to Scale - Reducing Procedure Design through Using Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A
appendicies
work with (to see what's there without it overwhelming you). management complexity pattern photography in awareness
I can take photos of the pieces of a block, print them & cut strategies design
them out. Then use these to try and see what to do with
them.
97 27-Mar-07 74 T-shirt 4001 Cutting the toile (Toile #1). This t-shirt (or top) needs a lot of Sketch of half of body and sleeve, with comment "What Fabric Waste Garment Seam Pattern sketch Striped, Splitting and Scale - Openness to Shape N/A
work to become no-waste - it's an awkward shape. But I about cutting the undersleeve in one with top sleeve" component elimination printed, slashing management possibility awareness
think what keeps attracting me to this idea. By cutting the checked fabric shapes strategies
sleeve in one with the body, I've eliminated the awkward
armhole & sleevehead shapes. While cutting the toile, I had
| 235
some fresh ideas about redesigning the garment for no-

waste. For a while I've felt this t-shirt should be in a stripe,
to highlight the cut. Cutting the entire body & top sleeves in
one with CB (or CF) on fold takes a long lenth of fabric, with
lots leftover. To try next: CB as a seam, piecing where the
two sides overlap. I'll do this full-scale, using dot&cross
paper.
98 27-Mar-07 75 T-shirt 4001 Photo of left body of t-shirt on fabric, with right body Using Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketched on top of photo. Areas where the two pieces photography in awareness
would overlap are shown. design
99 27-Mar-07 76 Thayaht's tuta Italian version of the cut of Thayaht's tuta. No comments. Pattern sketch Design through Referencing in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pattern design
100 27-Mar-07 77 Thayaht's tuta I've stuck these diagrams of Thayaht's tuta here for English version of the cut of Thayaht's tuta. The gusset is Pattern sketch Referencing in Time Gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
reference - I realised after looking at them again after a long circled, see comment in previous column. design
time that I'd remembered some aspects differently. The
crotch gusset is different to the one I've used in my pants.
I'll try this out in the next pair.
101 27-Mar-07 78 T-shirt 4001 Cont'd. I hadn't actually marked a grain on the sleeve. Photo of right top sleeve pattern on fabric that has body Garment Fabric Grain Garment fit Procedure Design Splitting and Using N/A N/A N/A
Because the top isn't tight-fitting, I have leevay on the grain - chalked in. component potential slashing photography in
the sleeve doesn't have to be on the stretchiest grain. The shapes design
above is what I ended up cutting. On the right is one
236 | appendicies
alternative I tried. Both show that the shapes as they are at

the moment are quite awkward. But, I view thsi first toile as
an opportunity to evaluate fit. Once that's out of the way, I
can begin testing the design's potential through splitting it
into pieces.
102 27-Mar-07 79 T-shirt 4001 General: There is something very important about looking at Photo of left top sleeve pattern on fabric that has body Garment Shape Using Fabric Waste Leftover Fabric Reducing Procedure Seam Splitting and N/A
the patterns of the garments I'm working on, to be able to chalked in. component awareness photography in complexity elimination slashing
find new solutions to dealing with, or rather, using up waste. design shapes
And: This t-shirt (above) suggests that sometimes it may be
ideal to eliminate some awkward/wicked shapes first and
creating one awkward shape and then splitting the pattern
into smaller interlocking pieces.
103 27-Mar-07 80 T-shirt 4004 Cannibal' version of t-shirt #2. To get the sleeve and gusset Photo of chalked in t-shirt ready to cut. Shoulder gusset is Garment Subtraction Uncertainty Using N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
I've taken them out of the t-shirt body itself. I have a hunch labelled with comment "will create neck hole". Sleeve is component design regarding photography in
of how this will look but we'll see once the toile is made up. indicated. outcome design
104 27-Mar-07 81 T-shirt 4004 Photo of t-shirt after cutting. Armhole leftover pieces have Leftover Fabric Garment Pleating Uncertainty Subtraction Using N/A N/A N/A N/A
been circled with comment "These are the right armhole details regarding design photography in
cutouts - which I'll use as facings for the slash for left outcome design
armhole." Negative space left by sleeve is circled with
comment "I reckon I can turn this into some kind of pleat."
105 27-Mar-07 82 T-shirt 4004 This is the version where I've cut the sleeve & gusset froma Photo of t-shirt after cutting. Facing pieces are circled with Leftover Fabric Garment Aesthetics in Using N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
separate piece. I want to know how the design works like comment: "I actually like the width of the facing pieces details design photography in
this & if it does, I'll then factor these two pieces & something better than in the cannibal version." design
new into the overall whole.
106 29-Mar-07 83 Pant 2001 Toiles (x4) made yesterday. Pants. Very funny. The gusset Photo of front of pant toile. Garment Garment fit Referencing in Aesthetics in Fabric N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
is much bigger than necessary & not an entirely appropriate component design design manipulation
shape. Two options - make it smaller & change the shape,
pending a proper fitting - see Thayaht's tuta's gusset for
reference, pages 76-77. Or, exaggerate it dramatically -
make it obvious. At the moment on the front the gusset
looks 'rude' - suggestive of female genitalia. Waist to hip
area doesn't fit well, esp. at the back. These are also
waisted - they reach the natural waist & this requires a more
refined shape. But, some things 'worked well': I think the leg
shape has lots of design potential, esp. with the dart.
107 29-Mar-07 84 Pant 2001 When I do the next two 'square-cut' pants, I will refine the Garment Garment fit Aesthetics in Garment Multiple fabrics N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
waist area & the gusset. Another thing that worked: I cut the component design details
fly facing with self-fabric interlining. Normally this is fused
but I cut it with an extra layer which folds under and works
like the fusing.
108 30-Mar-07 84 Pant (no code) What about cutting the fronts in one? Three sketches of pant fronts, one with an exaggerated Garment Design through Openness to Seam N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
gusset, two with fronts cut as one. Comment with last one: component sketch possibility elimination
"gusset cut in one, folds into the underside of the crotch"
109 12-Apr-07 85 Pant (no code) Once square-cut pant fit has been finalised, a few things to Pattern sketch of symmetrical square-cut pant. Pattern Design through Pattern sketch Garment Symmetry and Scale - Fabric faces Garment fit N/A N/A N/A
test out. Left & right leg - this will allow the use of one side sketch of asymmetrical square cut pant. pattern component asymmetry management
fabric only. Earlier versions would have one leg on one side strategies
of fabric, the other on the reverse. Asymmetrical pant: to
balance the legs, gusset may be asymmetrical. Yokes? This
one worth planning out on graph paper. Also need to
explore (tailored) jeans fit. Basic fit about to be toiled.
(Tailored) trouser fit. Need to develop a pattern & toile.
110 8-Apr-07 86 T-shirt 4004 The initial t-shirt, with sleeve cut separately. This needs to Photo of first toile. Garment Garment fit Body and N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
be anchored to the body. component design
111 12-Apr-07 87 T-shirt Cont'd. T-shirts/Knit-tops (meaning garments cut from Procedure Referencing in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
(general) knitted fabrics). Square-cut: explored in one-piece (sleeves design
with body). Tailored: explored to some extent in whole width
of fabric tees. To sum. Broadly two approaches: Square-cut:
use of geometric pattern shapes, including gussets to make
garments. Tailored: use of curved pattern edges (*) to
create garments that closely reflect the body. Of course,
countless hybrid approaches exist. (*) Note: tailored
approaches have slowly changed over the centuries in
Europe. Also, square-cut varies from quite simple to quite
complex. Womenswear: Dresses: an extension of shirts.
Skirts: probably the easiest; principles learned from others
easily applied? Evaluate further in the project. Design &
make examples?
112 8-Apr-07 88 T-shirt 4004 The 'cannibalistic' version - sleeve has been cut from left Photo of t-shirt front, with comment pointing to left hem: Subtraction Garment Garment Garment Fabric N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
hem & shoulder gusset hole forms front neck shape. "Only this much is continuous join, or fold" design component component component manipulation
113 8-Apr-07 89 T-shirt 4004 Sketch of t-shirt front, with comments: "bind neck?"; [arrow Design through Garment Splitting and Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pointing to bottom of left sleeve] "no longer needs to be one sketch details slashing component
piece, if open all the way" shapes
114 15-Apr-07 89 T-shirt I've held on this t-shirt as well as the one on p. 86 - not sure Time gap Design Garment fit Comfort Body and N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
(general) where either is going yet. I've tried this one on yesterday & potential design
thought it had more potential than when I first had a look at
it two weeks ago. I need to revist it over the next couple of
days. The idea of fitted/loose appeals to me & the garment
feels quite comfortable - it's not falling off as much as I
thought it would. I do think it may still need some kind of
harness to anchor it on.
115 12-Apr-07 90 Shirt (general) Square-cut shirt: need to develop pattern & toile - there Procedure Garment fit Body and N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
maybe more than 'one kind', see opposite. Tailored shirt: design
about to be toiled - a fitted shirt. Note: 'tailored' here means
the use of curved pattern edges to create garments that
reflect the body shape underneath.
116 12-Apr-07 90 Jacket Square-cut: not necessary? Similar to square-cut shirt Procedure Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
(general) because for same part of body. Tailored: with two-piece component
sleeve and collar-revere.
117 12-Mar-07 90 Pant (general) Overalls: once pants and shirts have been explored, Procedure Referencing in Time gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
develop. 1) square cut (not unlike tuta); 2) tailored design
118 12-Apr-07 91 Shirt (general) Square-cut shirts. Front and back sketch of square-cut shirt that is based on a Design through Garment Body and Garment fit N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
jacket I made in 1999. Comment pointing to shoulder: sketch component design
"Yoke/Gusset at neck to accommodate slope of shoulder."
119 16-Apr-07 91 Jacket [pointing to sketch above]: This shape would work better as Design Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
(general) a jacket. potential possibility
120 12-Apr-07 91 Shirt (general) But also could be: like the shirts shown by Shep & Cariou Sketch of square-cut shirt from Shep & Cariou 1999. Referencing in Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
1999 for example. Or see the work of Hishinuma. design possibility
121 12-Apr-07 92 Print-out titled "Notes on practice 12/4/07". Comment Procedure Practice-based Reflective Design briefs N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
added: "This has implications for some of the experiment research writing
briefs - perhaps rethink the briefs. Or, refine the briefs." This
was in reference reflections on practice already conducted.
122 12-Apr-07 93 Second page of above. Comment: "19/4/07: See also page Procedure Practice-based Reflective Fabric Grain Time Gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
115", referring to thoughts on grainlines. research writing
123 12-Apr-07 94 Third and last page of above. Procedure Practice-based Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
research writing
124 12-Apr-07 94 Meeting with Sally. Write up comments from others; others' Procedure Practice-based Garment fit Comfort N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
reactions/my reactions to reactions. Photograph garments research
on. Feeling the garment on - write about this. PhD as
argument - discuss in a chapter. Richard J Bernstein -
objectivity/subjectivity: Beyond Objectivism and Relativism.
Appendix: Pragmatism, Pluralism and the Healing of
Wounds. from New Constellation. Also in relation to
Downton; Gray & Malins.
125 12-Apr-07 95 Toiles to be sewed today: Fitted shirt (body, yoke, sleeves Procedure N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
only); Fitted jean block (legs front & back, yokes,
waistband); Square-cut pant -altered; Hipster square-cut
pants.
126 12-Apr-07 95 Next meeting: PR; Argument: write up - creating an Procedure Practice-based N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
argument around practice. Write up comments from sewing research
day. Talk to people.
127 15-Apr-07 95 Comments while toiling - first toiles made 28/3/07: Alana External Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
asked me if I was going to use fluid fabrics & to me it reactions writing
seemed she was 'judging' what I was doing as finalised
designs. At that point, ironically fabric wasn't a consideration
to me. I'm not sure she understood I was only
experimenting with cut at that point. Yesterday (14/4/07)
Fleur, a friend with long fashion retail background, was very
impressed with the hipster square cut pant - "very
contemporary leg shape" or something along those lines.
128 15-Apr-07 96 Old' notes I found. 4/3/07: Rethinking experiments: Graph Design through Scale - Reducing N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
paper - designing patterns more manageable this way. pattern management complexity
appendicies
Worth giving a go. strategies

129 15-Apr-07 96 Old' notes I found - part 2. 5/3/07: Fashion design Design through Reflective Practice-based Procedure N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
practices/Categories. 1) Sketch (or photograph - copying) - sketch writing research
Pattern - Toiles - (Design alt.) - Pattern alt. - Sample
garment. These categories used in an attempt to ensure
accessibility of research to industry practitioners with
various ways of practice. Not all will be covered in project
(copying from sample garments, photos - these are not
about designing a zero-fabric-waste garment) - nor do they
| 237
need to be. For example, Zandra Rhodes' way of designing;

implications for this should become clear from experiments -
use of drape instead of paper. From initial manifestation of
idea to garment. If sketch alone 'reigns supreme', zero
waste prob. not possible as it wasn't necessarily a
consideration when sketch made. However, if sketch tried to
'pre-empt' fabric usage, and the design (& designer) was
open to change, then perhaps possible. Design guides:
Fabric, Pattern Design & Garment Design: -based on
literature; may be added to; may change after practice.
Notes: observe/reading. Journal/auditable/trackback -
auditors involved - Book: 'Researching Your Own Practice:
The Discipline of Noticing', Mason. 'Writing with Invisible Ink'
130 16-Mar-07 97 Many manuals on fashion design seem to work from N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
assumption about what fashion design is. They aim to
generalise the practices although a manual would need to.
Is there critical questioning of practices? Why not/Why?
131 17-Mar-07 97 Categorisation of fashion design and patternmaking N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
practices (Stockholm Nordes paper) - relevant/pertinent
ONLY to Cut & Sew & Jigsaw Puzzle; not knitwear design
or A-POC always - some differences. Include Joe Au's
studies (keep brief), Katherine Townsend, Yeohlee Teng,
Julain Roberts (also Quinn - criticise), Zandra Rhodes,
Caludia Eckert/Seitamaa & Hakkarainen? Review
patternmaking manuals: Aldrich: "Fabric, Form and Flat
238 | appendicies
Pattern-cutting"
132 16-Apr-07 98 24/5/2005 Thoughts on and problem-solving (eliminating) Time gap Fabric waste Referencing in Garment Design Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A
fabric waste. [an old document from 2005, with following design details potential awareness
comments from 16 April 2007]: See further - are there any
concrete examples [of Vivienne Westwood's approach to
thrift]? Rudofsky tried to achieve this [simplification of
sewing] with his range of clothes. Now I know this [that
altering a finished pattern will alter the overall marker], after
cutting out a few toiles. Tricky for menswear but worth
considering [regarding covered buttons]. Turn into an
experiment, using a 'traditional' t-shirt pattern [using 'waste'
as applique]. See also Escher [regarding interlocking ogee
shapes].
133 16-Apr-07 99 From 2006: I think this dates from Feb' 2006 [a document Time gap Practice-based Procedure Design through Collection N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
from 2006 with subheadings "Fabrics for collection", research sketch development
"Garments in the collection (22)" and "Other ideas and
thoughts"]. Will be difficult [in reference to sourcing
'sustainable' fabrics]. 16/4/07 Why would you do this -
possibly tricky in industry, to sell the same amount of two
different shirts [in reference to designing and cutting two
shirts together]. This has been turned into experiment brief
[design for repair/alteration]. Design: sketching cannot be
used as extensively, or to 'finalise' a design - this will have
to be done on pattern. 16/4/07 See also pp. 108-109 for a
plan for the collection from August 2006. I now feel the
collection may not need to be this big for the research (22
pieces) but it could be, to reflect 'real world' better.
134 24-Apr-07 99 But it [sketching] can be used very well to explore Design through Openness to Time gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
possibilities and to 'make visible' possibilities sketch possibility
135 16-Apr-07 100 First page of experiment briefs from 6/3/07 Design briefs N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
136 16-Apr-07 101 Second page of above. Comment: "16/4/07: I think I need to Design briefs Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
identify different types of sketching: -graph paper (pattern); sketch
sketch of garment; pattern diagram; sketches of garment
details, etc.
137 16-Apr-07 102 Third page of above Design briefs N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
138 16-Apr-07 103 Fourth page of above. Comments: "Use silk satin (leftover Design briefs Fabric width N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
from wedding dress) to make the shirt - narrow width an
interesting limitation."
139 16-Apr-07 103 Fourth page of above. Comments: "I have listed elsewhere Design briefs Future Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
more components: -pieces for removable collar bones; - transformation details
additional cuffs, collars, etc.; - Last section in Oslo paper - of garment
print out and include here"
140 13-Apr-07 104 Objectivity. I've realised much of what I've done with the Objectivity Practice-based Body and Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
garments is design, in the sense that only few research design writing
measurements are 'set' ie body measurements. I've
been/felt reluctant to add details to keep the garments
'neutral' but this is bollocks - I've fiddled with the details
along the way anyway. What, if any, role does 'objectivity'
play in design. Is all design subjective? Is all my practice
subjective? Does it matter? I think objectivity nevertheless is
important here - perhaps in the way i look at what I've done,
rather than in the way I do things. Is there such a things as
'objective practice-based research'? The practice is
subjective (I need to explain how) but the thinking about it
should be as objective as possible?
141 13-Apr-07 105 Thesis as argument. What is an argument? Zero-fabric Practice-based N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
waste fashion creation is possible, feasible and desirable research
within contemporary fashion design practice. I will show you
why I believe this.
142 14-Apr-07 105 Fashion creation methods? A diagram of fashion creation methods, with the following Practice-based N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
designers mapped on it: Yeohlee Teng, Julian Roberts, research
Zandra Rhodes, Vivienne Westwood, Issey Miyake
143 13-Apr-07 106 Pant 2002 Fitting notes - hipster square cut pants. Back waist in as Sketches showing waistband and yoke being turned into Garment fit Pattern sketch Pattern Number and N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pinned (12mm each side, 24 mm total), add 12mm to one piece. Sketch of leg dart on outside, with comment alteration size of pattern
length. Raise hem dart end 6cm, take 6cm more into each "Slash dart open, hem down with overcast stitches" pieces
dart at hem. Add 15mm to each leg all the way through,
adjust waist dart accordingly - may end up two waist darts.
Lower gusset 2cm front and back. Add 3cm to crotch length
in gusset. Bottom of fly can be raised, for 15 cm zip.
Shorten waist darts 2.5cm. Join yoke and waistband, cut
double. Raise waist 1-1.5cm at CB if possible. What about
sewing dart on outside?
144 28-Apr-07 106 Pant 2002 [in reference to lowering gusset, above]: Back gusset Garment Time gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
cannot be lowered. Later: neither can front. I've shortened component
the fly.
145 14-Apr-07 106 Shirt (no code) Fitting notes/shirtblock. Add 1cm [to shoulder]. Raise neck Sketch of shoulder alteration. Garment fit Pattern N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
at CB 0.5cm. Extend all darts to hip. Move front darts alteration
towards sides 1cm.
146 16-Apr-07 107 Just came across a book on Tangrams, puzzles based on Referencing in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
geometric shapes. I think there may be some helpful design
concepts in the book; there are some similarities to Jigsaw
Puzzle, too.
147 19-Apr-07 107 Shirt (no code) Cutting 2nd shirt toile. So far, it seems I've broken the shirt Sketch of shirt pattern pieces: body, yoke, upper sleeves, Procedure Seam Splitting and Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
down into 'smaller units' - body (back & fronts combined), lower sleeves. Comment: "Once all of these fit, I can begin elimination slashing awareness
yoke (in one piece although double), upper sleeve (left & designing collars & cuffs & other components, with what is shapes
right sleeve interlock to become a rectangle) & lower sleeve left over.
(left & right sleeve interlock to become a rectangle.
148 16-Apr-07 108 Print-out of 'Plan for the collection' dated 7/8/06, first page Procedure Practice-based Collection N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
research development
149 16-Apr-07 109 Print-out of 'Plan for the collection' dated 7/8/06, second Procedure Practice-based Collection N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
page research development
150 19-Apr-07 110 need to write about grainlines: facing grain (working at Fabric Grain Breaking rules Industry work N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Vallen), skirt grain/chevron (working at Vallen), shirt yoke
grain/chevron (observation on bus)
151 19-Apr-07 110 Sketch of t-shirt/singlet, sketch of skinny jeans with 'fat' Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pockets. sketch
152 19-Apr-07 110 Further on comments from others. About a month ago External N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Alison asked how many looks (complete outfits) I was going reactions
to design. I think I said 'I don't know' but what I really
thought was, I'm not designing looks - I think designing like
that is most appropriate if you are planning to do a catwalk
show. I've always felt that designing separates, that can
come together in various looks, is much more
contemporary.
153 19-Apr-07 111 Shirt (no code) [photograph of comments written on pattern] -darts Sketch of left and right sleeve patterns Pattern Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
extended to hem (the shirt was too 'hippy'); 12mm added to alteration component
shoulder width each side; armhole reshaped, underarm
notch moved towards front 12mm; back neck raised 5mm at
CB; sleeves developed: fully interlocking top left & right
sleeves, lower right sleeve in one piece, lower left sleeve in
two pieces.
154 19-Apr-07 112 Shirt (no code) Photo of top sleeve patterns, with comment "There is some Using Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
distortion in the photo; these actually interlock fully" photography in component
design
155 19-Apr-07 113 Shirt (no code) I cut the second toile out today. I've printed the pattern Photo of shirt patterns. Using Shape Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pieces here, to help me with design and achieving photography in awareness writing
interlocking. The initial idea (the fact that they could possibly design
interlock like this) for the sleeve came whilst looking at a
pattern piece - see page 25 - it was this photo that led to
this realisation.
156 19-Apr-07 114 Shirt (no code) The shape left behind from the shirt armhole. I think it will Actual fabric piece from cutting the toile, with two sketches Shape Fabric Waste Leftover fabric Garment Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
become an elbow patch. of elbow patch: one on outside of sleeve, one on inside. awareness details sketch
157 19-Apr-07 115 Grainlines. Yesterday I worked at New Twist; they look after Sketch of chevron on skirt indicating grains. Sketch of wrap Fabric Grain Breaking rules Industry work Striped, N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
(=own) labels Mint & Vallen among others. Regarding my skirt pattern and marker with comment regarding marker printed,
thoughts about grainlines (see page 93), two interesting sketch: "This is badly drawn but the difference in grains was checked fabric
things come up. First a skirt in a stripe - I placed the grain actually quite dramatic.
neither on the straight nor the bias, to get a 'sharp'
chevronat CF & CB. the skirt show that it is possible to use
any grain, for visual impact, or other reasons. Later, I was
working on a wrap skirt. The ties were pretty much on bias,
but to fit the facing in, I changed the grain to straight. What I
mean: to fit the facing pieces on the length determined by
the main skirt piece.
158 19-Apr-07 116 (Grainlines continued) Finally, on the bus a guy in front of Sketch of shirt back and yoke pattern showing grain, and Fabric Grain Garment Striped, Splitting and Breaking rules N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
me was wearing a striped shirt. The back yoke was cut in conventional yoke. component printed, slashing
appendicies
three pieces (two outside, one lining, presumably): The checked fabric shapes
stripes formed a chevron at CB but were far from true bias;
they followed the shoulder seam. Most yokes are cut in one
piece.
159 19-Apr-07 116 Pant 2003 Jeans block. I toiled this today - 2nd toile. Photos to follow Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
shortly. I incorporated the selvedge into the inside
waistband.
160 19-Apr-07 117 Pant 2003 Photo of jeans block patterns Using N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
photography in
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design
161 19-Apr-07 118 T-shirt 4001 Notes on pattern pieces of one-piece t-shirt. I sewed the Photos of pattern notes Writing on Uncertainty Design for Garment fit N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
toile today - photos shortly. Some potential with the way I patterns regarding manufacture
made the neck but needs more thought. [Pattern notes]: outcome
13/4/07 For the next toile I'll leave the neck uncut, but will
put the tucks in and see what happens; Seam allowances
have been changed to 12mm (they were 25mm); I've made
the front side seam 12mm longer than the back to
accommodate for shrinkage; The sleeve now has no tucks,
for easier construction; 24/4/07 and a cleaner look - it
looked messy & unsympathetic to the body. 13/4/07 For the
next toile I'll sew the CF seam closed to the notch; 19/4/07
I've lowered the [CF] notch to ensure head fits through
162 24-Apr-07 119 My competitors (this is an attempt to begin building the Design in Collection N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
context in which I'm designing.): Yamamoto, Miyake, context development
Comme des garcons, Margiela. Theme of collection?
Straight curves. A curved straight line.
163 24-Apr-07 120 Objectivity - need to clarify position in first chapter. Objectivity Practice-based N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Knowledge & Reality - perspective, need a position. research
121 BLANK [first page of second journal] N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
164 4-Jun-07 122 T-shirt 4001 Photo of t-shirt toile with comments: [in reference to CF] Using Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
"make seam wider, lower the v-neck"; "could the seams be photography in sketch
240 | appendicies
angled?". New lines were sketched on top of the design

photograph.
165 4-Jun-07 123 T-shirt 4001 Looks like a hood (idea similar to Michael Hockey's S/S Photo of t-shirt toile neckline, with comments: "Selvedges Using Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
2008 collection although done completely differently) but form the seam allowances on CF" photography in possibility
isn't. design
166 4-Jun-07 124 T-shirt 4001 Close-up photo of neckline from side with comment: "A lot Using Aesthetics in Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
going on here - not sure if this is resolved" photography in design component
design
167 4-Jun-07 125 T-shirt 4001 Close-up photo of CB neck with comment "Get rid of tuck - Using Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
looks like a mistake"; a photo of CB neck with comment photography in component
"The hood that's not?" design
168 24-Apr-07 126 Print-out of 'Notes on practice 24/4/2007', first page Practice-based Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
research writing
169 24-Apr-07 127 Print-out of 'Notes on practice 24/4/2007', second page Practice-based Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
research writing
170 24-Apr-07 128 Print-out of 'Notes on practice 24/4/2007', third page Practice-based Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
research writing
171 27-May-07 129 Stockholm [Nordes conference] / thoughts. Journal like a Practice-based Reflective Design in Design Collection N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
quilt (or fisherman's coat from Awaji Island) that gets added research writing context Limitation development
to in form of later notes - layered, where beginning, end and
everything in between are visible. I wish I'd kept a journal
like this from the start and not worried about separate
design and research journals (neither ever took of anyway,
properly). Theme for the collection: Alana thought it would
be no-waste, but that would make the entire no-waste issue
'temporary' - worth only the attention of one collection. I'm
proposing it can be a way of designing, not a 'theme'. At the
Oslo conference a Norwegian fashion designer (I forgot her
name) suspected no-waste designing would be really
limiting; she said to her the look of the garment, intertwined
with self-expression was the most important thing in design,
and she wasn't sure she'd be interested in designing in such
172 27-May-07 130 a way I tried
Print-out to (quite badly)
of 'Thoughts explain
on Design that it is limiting
for Disassembly' but
dated N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
27/5/05
173 27-May-07 131 Print-out of 'Thoughts on problem-solving (eliminating) N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
fabric waste dated 24/5/2005
174 27-May-07 132 Print-out of 'Thoughts on Aesthetics' dated 2005 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
175 27-May-07 133 Old notes from 2005 stuck in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
176 27-May-07 134 Print-out of 'Thoughts and notes on sustainability in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
general' dated 27/5/05, first page
177 27-May-07 135 Print-out of 'Thoughts and notes on sustainability in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
general' dated 27/5/05, second page
179 27-May-07 137 [in reference to page 136] The page opposite is from over Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
two years ago (early 2005) - I still remember what I was writing
getting at, if misguidedly. I was thinking about how better
made (but more expensive) clothes would last in use longer.
I've long since realised the problem with fast fashion - is
much more complex - it was discussed quite a bit at the
conference in Oslo. A number of things are missing from the
'calculations'; material inputs, transport, laundering,
disposal, etc. But, a nice thought, if naive.
180 27-May-07 138 Notes from 2005, with some comments added 27/5/07 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
181 27-May-07 139 Sketches from 2004 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
182 27-May-07 140 Sketches from 2004 and 2006 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
184 3-Jun-07 142 Thoughts from Nordes conference (I shouldn't have left this Reflective Fabric waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
so late). I was asked why we should bother about waste - I writing
talked about the damaging nature of fibre
extraction/cultivation and other processes that follow
(dyeing, etc.); fabric is a sophisticated product. Someone
asked me about aesthetics ("What about aesthetics in all
this?"); I think I answered 'incorrectly' or not what she was
asking - I talked about how some designers have perceived
no-waste designing as limiting but that it's emerging in my
practice as not so. But, in general, aesthetics, or the
regards for cisual aspects, is embedded in the practice
anyway.
185 143 blank page N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
186 144 Old notes on 'Design in context' by Penny Sparke N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
187 145 Old notes on 'Haute Couture' by Richard Martin & Harold N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Koda
188 146 Print-out of 'Thoughts on labelling garments' dated 27/5/07. N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Comment 27/5/07 (two years later): "Kate Goldsworthy is
looking into uniform-content garments I think (polyester), for
recycling."
189 147 Inside some interesting thoughts from early 2005 on 'good N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
fashion design' [in reference to old notes]
190 3-Jun-07 148 Meeting with Julian Roberts yesterday - thoughts. I asked if Julian Roberts Breaking rules Sketching Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
he sketches before he cuts (=makes a pattern) & he sad he pattern
no longer does. He also said he used to get into trouble in
his student days because his garments didn't look like his
sketches. Once he was out of college, he dispensed with
sketching. He noted that he did do illustration work for
others, though. When I noted that my students tend to
regard fashion design & patternmaking as separate things,
he responded that not only that but: fashion design -
patterncutting - sewing. This is not unlike the hierarchies I
listed when I first started my PhD. See page 141!
191 3-Jun-07 149 JR was openly curious about Australian fashion and I hope I Julian Roberts Mark Liu Yoshiki Marker N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
wasn't too negative about it. I should email him & tell him Hishinuma planning
about labels like Toni Maticevski, Tina Kalivas, Akira &
Youth World & Romance Was Born. He was very generous
& asked me to email him if I had more questions (I said I
did) & also if he wanted me to comment on any written
work. I think he'd be great to comment on the practical work
and issues arising from that. Questions/comments so far for
him: Would it be possible to analyse a couple of garments
of his, inc. patterns, in detail? Share all the designers that
uncovered so far: Danish paper + Hishinuma + Mark Liu. JR
mentioned talking to Savile Row tailors & how they'd talk
about chalking things - the suit pieces - directly onto fabrics
& about the emotional connection to the lines of the
garment; this was no mere technical step.
192 3-Jun-07 150 Julian Roberts cont'd. He mentioned doing projects where Julian Roberts Breaking rules Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
students would cut according to prints on fabric ("cut your pattern
coat according to your cloth"?) He also noted the rigidity in
the way patterncutting is taught in various courses; he tells
the students to just get in, experiment; there are no rights &
wrongs, just experimentation.
193 4-Jun-07 150 More than anything, JR's design process is of interest to me Julian Roberts Breaking rules N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
- I need to look through it again and see what I don't know.
Possiblity of doing a no-waste project with first-year
students?
194 3-Jun-07 151 Meeting with Mark Liu today. (MA student from St Martins Mark Liu Breaking rules Design N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
who emailed me examples of no-waste dresses that he did potential
as part of a textile project, not a fashion project). All
garments with seams on outside? Sewing - difficult?
Sketching in initial stages? All dresses? Draping?
Patterncutting?
195 3-Jun-07 151 TESS - tiling software - like MC Escher. Creates interlocking Mark Liu Breaking rules Bias garment Seam N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
shapes in tiled systems. Construction difficulties: seam allowance
allowances on curved seams, no sitting flat. Solution:
clipping of seams incorporated into cut lines; close to
stitchlines in areas of lots of shaping. Mainly dresses but
also a skirt & jacket, Mark also mentioned a pair of spiral
jeans, although I didn't see these. Almost all seams on
outside. Also, sometimes 'printed' waste vut and applied as
decoration, not unlike lace applique in Shaeffer's Couture
Sewing Techniques.
appendicies
196 3-Jun-07 152 18th century shirt as explained to Mark. EMAIL HIM MORE Quick sketch of 18th century square-cut shirt. Mark Liu Historical N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
IMAGES. reference
197 4-Jun-07 152 I do think it's interesting Mark has created these no-waste Mark Liu Zandra Sonia Historical N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
garments within a textile design course & project. There are Rhodes Delaunay reference
some strong similarities in his design approach to the way
Zandra Rhodes works - or is there? Need to think this
further - the similarities & the differences. Zandra: Textile
first, then garment. Mark: Textile & garment simultaneously.
Look into Sonia Delaunay again.
| 241
198 4-Jun-07 153 Progress report planning. Comments on progress. Book Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
chapter: benefits of writing: articulating findings to date to a administration
broader audience. Boost in confidence in own research.
Norway conference: writing, presenting, general
attendance: contacts. Stockholm conference: writing,
presenting, general attendance, papers. Practice. Diary-
keeping/journalling. Position re: objectivity - readings.
General.
199 4-Jun-07 154 Need to email Alexandra Palmer & find out what the book Historical N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
was she mentioned, poss. From the 70s. She said the reference
author ( a woman) was a pinoeer re: fabric waste.
200 4-Jun-07 154 Re: Mark Liu. It was reassuring to find someone else Mark Liu Fit N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
interested in the issue of no-waste, someone who also had
had trouble finding information regarding it. I did feel Mark's
work was stronger as a textile design rather than a fashion
design project - even he felt the dresses weren't as well
made as they could have. The shapes, mostly, were quite
conventional and safe. Some weren't resolved yet (even he
thought that); one strapless dress had tucks in the top edge,
presumably to reduce gape; these had clearly been added
after the dress was made. But, he's working in a new way
for him & has no prob been quite smart in beginning with
242 | appendicies
the simpler shapes.

201 4-Jun-07 155 Jacket 1002 To do at home: choose an old USVSU garment to turn into a Research Fabric waste Collection N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
zero-waste design. OR should this be part of the collection? administration development
Rather than one of the experiments. Or both? Because it
would be interesting to see how difficult this is in general,
maybe I should start with the jacket and re-design that.
Possibilities: Juha denim jacket? Vanity tee? Snake tee?
202 4-Jun-07 155 Mark spoke of the need for tolerance of error with all the Mark Liu Design for Error margin N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
garments - something he is thinking further. manufacture
203 4-Jun-07 156 Jacket 1002 Juha jkt without pockets. Sketch of Juha jacket [USVSU winter 2004] N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
204 7-Jun-07 156 Been reading book on Riitta Immonen by Ritva Historical Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Koskennurmi-Sivonen; ready-to-wear: imagined reference e
client/wearer. Haute couture: real client. Interesting as is the
book overall. I bought it in Finland more out of general
curiosity but it may have a greater significance for my work
than I thought.
205 7-Jun-07 157 Fabrics for collection: local as much as possible. Yeohlee Yeohlee Teng Bernard Historical Aesthetics in Fit Vivienne Design for Collection Fabric N/A
Teng learned "how to do patterns" when she was nine (p. Rudofsky reference design Westwood manufacture development sourcing
142) [12/6/07 Interesting: 'how to do' versus 'how to make'
versus 'how to cut' patterns.] She's interested in "how
clothes will affect the wearer's posture, gait and gestures,
whether you can lounge or pose or have an attitude in
them." (p. 142) - Not unlike Vivienne Westwood. (Still
Yeohlee book) Richard Martin on Rudofsky: "...Rudofsky's
only clothing design was scientific experiment." BUT, these
were also sold, no? But perhaps Martin has a point - it's like
that question posed to me in Stockholm: "Where are the
aesthetics in all this?" (p. 152) "In Yeohlee's three-
dimensional art, the flat pattern is a recreation at parity with
the beauty of the garment itself." (p. 152) P. 153: "Yeohlee
accords the fabric a respect, bordering on religious awe."
206 7-Jun-07 158 Pattern sketch of possible shirt Design through Design through Fabric Waste Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pattern sketch possibility
207 7-Jun-07 158 T-shirt 4001 Why not design the waste into an applique? Or other Openness to Design Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
decorative elements, whatever they may be? possibility potential
208 7-Jun-07 159 Spatial intelligence? An audience member brought this up at Space N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Nordes (not doing my presentation but someone else's - I awareness
have to check the notes from there) - something of
signicance to me.
209 10-Jun-07 160 Article on Christian Lacroix designing for theatre. N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
210 11-Jun-07 161 Keyword list from Design Studies, one of the key journals in Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
design. Where is 'fashion design'? e
211 8-May-07 162 Notes and sketches from Victoria & Albert Museum visit. Historical N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
reference
212 8-May-07 163 Notes and sketches from Victoria & Albert Museum visit. Historical N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Comment from 11/6/07: Judging by these notes & sketches reference
I didn't get much out of the V&A. But, it was exciting to see
so many things I've previously seen in books; I actually
found the underwear and menswear most exciting.
213 21-May-07 164 Print-out of email from Mark Liu Mark Liu N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
214 21-May-07 165 Image of a Mark Liu dress and pattern layout Mark Liu N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
215 21-May-07 166 Print-out of second email from Mark Liu Mark Liu N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
216 21-May-07 167 Image of a second Mark Liu dress and pattern layout Mark Liu N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
217 12-Jun-07 168 Print-out of Johan Redstrom's blog post on Nordes N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
conference with comment from 12/6/07: "Johan Redstrom's
review of the Nordes conference, followed by a nice
response to my thank you email."
conference.
conference.
conference.
conference.
222 11-Jun-07 173 Print-out of Johan Redstrom's email N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
223 12-Jun-07 174 Mark Liu spoke of a need for a margin of error in his work Mark Liu Error margin Design for Fabric width Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
(ASK HIM ABOUT CUTTING AND MAKING MULTIPLES) manufacture possibility
and I've mentioned this on page 63. Design/Patternmaking
consideration: One selvedge of the two need to have some
flexibility. KEEP THIS IN MIND! What does it mean in
practice? Design the cutting layout from one selvedge
towards the other?
224 13-Jun-07 175 Print-out of email to Julian Roberts Julian Roberts Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
writing
225 13-Jun-07 176 Article by Rebecca Earley Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
226 13-Jun-07 177 Article by Rebecca Earley Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
227 21-Jun-07 178 Pattern sketch of possible shirt Design through Design through Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pattern sketch possibility
228 29-Jun-07 179 Just found this buried in studio Pattern sketch of tapered square-cut pant Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pattern
229 18-Jun-07 179 Cardigan? Why not Pattern sketch of cardigan Design through Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pattern possibility
230 29-Jun-07 179 Early thinking about collection 2005 notes about the collection Research Collection N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration development
231 29-Jun-07 180 Blurb about research for web Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration
232 29-Jun-07 181 Print-out of web article on Fiona Carswell N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
233 8-Jun-07 182 Print-out of email regarding DAB Lab Gallery Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration
234 1-Feb-07 183 Sketch of overall Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch
235 1-Jul-06 183 Diagram of collection planning Research Collection N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration development
236 14-Jun-07 184- Print-out of Autumn 2007 Progress report Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
187 administration
237 29-Jun-07 188 Texts that discuss fabric waste directed at manufacturing, Research Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
not fashion designers; reflective of how fabric waste is administration
approached currently in the industry. Thesis: need a review
of all these texts early on.
238 29-Jun-07 189- Notes from 2005 on fabrication and trims Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
191 administration
239 5-Jul-07 192 T-shirt 4004 See sleeve with darts on p. 14. Explore further - I don't think Reflective Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
I fully resolved or explored this before moving away. Darts writing possibility
could be replaced by tucks & gathers.
240 5-Jul-07 192 Meeting with Sally - the last one for now. Thesis - get out of Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
way what can be . Most of context (literature) is down; need administration
to reshape into thesis from conference papers. Cameron -
how to prepare.
241 5-Jul-07 192 Why do I keep returning to rectangles? Sketch of asymmetric t-shirt Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch
242 5-Jul-07 193 Print-out of Julian Roberts' dress pattern from Fashion- Article/referenc Julian Roberts N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Incubator e
243 5-Jul-07 194- Print-out of article on fashion design from Fashion- Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
195 Incubator. e
244 5-Jul-07 196 T-shirt 4001 See p. 122 re: angled seam. It would make more sense to Sketch of t-shirt with CF seam allowances on an angle on Design through Reflective Seam Fit Time Gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
have the angle this way: [sketch]. More is then taken in at outside sketch writing allowance
the waist, making the top more fitted there. The other way
around could be trickier.
245 6-Jul-07 196 Sketch of trouser waist with blow drape. Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch
246 8-Jul-07 197 Continue w'band into bow, which could become pkt flaps; Photograph of drape of trouser waist based on sketch from Design through Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
could also be on side, could be on front. p. 196. drape possibility
247 10-Jul-07 198 Shirt (no code) Photograph of front and back of shirt toile Using N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
photography in
design
248 10-Jul-07 199 Shirt (no code) Alteration not done yet - need to do! Two detail photos of shirt toile from page 198. Garment fit N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
249 10-Jul-07 200- Typed notes on where things are at and what needs to be Research Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
201 done. Comment on p. 201: "This should be a monthly administration writing
activity; review what still need doing, update list as
appendicies
required."
250 10-Jul-07 202 T-shirt 4003 Cutting t-shirt toile #3/or toile 1/4003. Cutting two lefts (with Sketch of undersleeve. Sketch of CF. Garment fit Fabric face Fabric Waste Openness to Design through Design N/A N/A N/A N/A
CB seam) rather than a pair might allow a tighter fit but possibility sketch potential
rolling of jersey needs to be considered as fabric has a
definite wrong and right side - this toile cut as pair, with cf
on straight. Using some of the 'awkward' waste pieces for
decorative applique might work particularly well with this
style. Neck needs to be resolved on the mannequin once
the toile is made. Underslevees cut as pair on straight grain.
| 243
I'll put a zip on the front - I see this version as a cardigan

type thing.
251 10-Jul-07 203 T-shirt 4003 Photograph of t-shirt 4003 front with zip. Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch
252 10-Jul-07 204 T-shirt 4003 Photograph of t-shirt pattern Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pattern
253 10-Jul-07 205 T-shirt 4003 Cutting out 4003. A pair was cut. The 'awkward' waste Photograph of pattern on fabric width with other half of body Openness to Fabric width Design N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
shapes could become applique. marked on fabric. possibility potential
254 10-Jul-07 206- Conference relevance statements from March 2007 Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
207 administration
255 11-Jul-07 208 Generous' waistband for bum crack. Two sketches of trouser waistband Design through Garment fit N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch
256 11-Jul-07 208 T-shirt 4003 I think 4003 is a good one to experiment further with graph Graph paper Scale - Aesthetics in Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
paper - it should be fairly easy to transfer to scale as it's on management design drape
dot & cross. BUT, I need to design the neck first ie make the strategies
toile & work on the design on the stand.
257 11-Jul-07 208 T-shirt 4003 Chest may be a bit tight & pull open - possibility. Garment fit Openness to Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
possibility design
258 12-Jul-07 208 T-shirt 4004 What if slashed through here? Open shoulder seam to Sketch of t-shirt with slash placement indicated. Design through Design through Slashing Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
slash, first slashed end to back, back to front. sketch drape possibility
259 11-Jul-07 209 Grading/pants. Changing the angle rather than grading Sketch of trouser pattern indicating angle change. Second Design for Grading Breaking rules Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
entire length - make leg width smaller but letting out dart - sketch crossed out. manufacture patterns possibility
each size slightly different. This could work in combination
244 | appendicies
with seam allowance change. What if asymmetrical pant.

Start again.
260 15-Jul-07 209 I think what I've been doing with the sqaure-cut pants could Reflective Shape library N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
be described as building a 'shape library' - I've created quite writing
a few new shapes today to toile.
261 15-Jul-07 210 Two sketches of trousers on body, thinking about waist Design through Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
height. sketch possibility
262 15-Jul-07 211- Pant (general) Pants so far. 2001: crotch gusset, yoke best incorporated Sketches of the six trouser ideas with pattern sketches. Design through Design through Research Shape library N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
212 into waistband?; leg widest at knee, waisted. 2002: crotch sketch pattern administration
gusset, leg widest at knee. 2003: 'tailored' jean fit; hipster.
2004: hipster, asymmetric; leg widest at knee; crotch
gusset. [p. 212] 2005: Square-cut tapered; hispter. 2006:
Square-cut straight-leg; waisted; based on 2001.
263 16-Jul-07 212 T-shirt 4003 Sewing day. 4003: CB is on weft grain (across fabric) and Fabric Grain Shape Space Comfort Design for Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A
rolls a lot. I think I need the seam, otherwise the pattern awareness awareness manufacture possibility
piece would be too long. I do think the seam needs to be on
the outside of the garment to make it more comfortable to
wear; the rolling makes it difficult to sew but also is bulky
(although not as much if overlocked) - a plain seam on
outside could work, then letting it roll. Or flatlock, or
stretched seam with babaylocked edges, etc. I need to work
on neck & pkt areas on mannequin.
264 16-Jul-07 213 T-shirt 4003 4003 cont'd. I thought I could incorporate machine Sketch of t-shirt front indicating embroidery placement on Design Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
embroidery into the pocket. pockets. potential sketch
265 16-Jul-07 213 Pant 2005 Tapered pant. One-piece fly - still need to refine but worked Breaking rules Reflective Design for Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
quite well - zip would be tricky, button fly would be better. writing manufacture durability
Only one gusset used in toile - whether two is necessary or
even desirable, I'm not sure (ie double-layered gusset - is
this stronger?)
266 16-Jul-07 213 Pant 2004 Asymmetric pant. Darts could be on outside, esp. pressed Two sketches of darts, sketch of pant back. Grading Design for Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
flat through centre. See page 209 - grading - would work on patterns manufacture possibility
this style. B. waist darts also outside? Back knee darts on
outside?
267 17-Jul-07 214 Pant 2006 Straight leg, waisted square-cut pant. Order of Design for Research Construction N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
assembly/this worked much better than what I did manufacture administration design
yesterday: 1) B. Darts, 2) Fly facing to CF/left, 3) Waistband
to left front, 4) Waistband to right front, 5) Fly to right front,
6) CF seam, 7) CB seam, 8) Close waistband, 9) Inside
legs, 10) Hem, 11) Gusset. Stylenumbers now listed at back
of this journal.
268 16-Jul-07 215 Pant 2004 Photograph of pattern pieces Shape Space N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
awareness awareness
awareness awareness
270 16-Jul-07 217 Pant 2006 Photograph of leftover space created by two back crotches Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
awareness
awareness awareness
272 16-Jul-07 219 Pant 2002 Photograph of one-piece fly on toile Breaking rules N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
273 17-Jul-07 220 Pant 2002 Photograph of knee dart on toile Breaking rules Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
design
274 17-Jul-07 221 Pant 2002 Photograph of back waist darts on toile Breaking rules Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
design
275 17-Jul-07 222 Pant 2001 Photograph of fly stitch on toile Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
design
276 17-Jul-07 223 Pant 2001 I sewed the waistband in as a facing instead, & topstitched Photograph of toile showing dart construction and facing Breaking rules Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
where indicated with dotted line. Back darts on 2nd toile of stitch. design
2001, sewed 17/7/07, folded flat along centre on the outside
of pocket.
design
design
279 17-Jul-07 226 Pant (general) To avoid the godet-like flare happening where the gusset Sketch of modified gusset pattern and leg Aesthetics in Gusset Construction N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
ends at the inside leg, a different way of construction might design design
be in order: split current gusset in half; join gussets to CB's;
join CB; join CF's; join inside leg?; OR join inside leg, the
crotch last?
280 20-Jul-07 226 Pant (general) Gusset could also have curves for better inside leg shape Aesthetics in Gusset Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
design Awareness
281 19-Jul-07 227 T-shirt 4003 1st toile on mannequin; pocket stitch could become Photograph of toile on mannequin Aesthetics in Design N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
embroidery design potential
282 19-Jul-07 228 T-shirt 4003 Photograph of back neck of toile. Aesthetics in Fit N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
design
283 19-Jul-07 229 T-shirt 4003 Sewing of zip versus collar needs thought Photograph of top of zip in toile Aesthetics in Construction N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
design design
284 19-Jul-07 230 T-shirt 4003 Photograph of t-shirt pattern Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
awareness
285 20-Jul-07 230 T-shirt 4003 I need to work out half way of fabric & perhaps redesign Fabric Width Design Openness to Error margin N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
bottom back & sleeve to make them fit mirrored on a width potential possibility
of fabric. Also, increase selvage trim to 2.5cm (from 1.5cm)
to allow for inaccurate marking.
286 19-Jul-07 231 T-shirt 4003 Photograph of pattern detail showing CF neck dart and Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
front hem mitre. awareness
287 19-Jul-07 232 T-shirt 4003 Gusset - most of undersleeve no incorporated into main Three photographs of pattern details. Shape Gusset Construction Seam Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
piece. Use 3mm seam to join collar to neck, on outside; awareness design allowance design
collar will hide. Shoulder tuck from under the collar. CB
seam: 2.5 allowance, will be sewn a plain seam on outside
& allowed to roll.
288 22-Jul-07 233 T-shirt 4003 I think this base top can go in a few directions (which I think Sketches showing design detail, and a short-sleeved Design Openness to Shape library N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
it always could have), in a variety of fabrics: jersey, loop- hooded version. potential possibility
back fleece, even a soft woven. A jacket?
289 22-Jul-07 234 T-shirt 4004 First toile from March manipulated on the mannequin. The Photograph of manipulated toile front Design Aesthetics in Time gap Masculinity Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
way 4004 was so oversized I don't think was wearable or potential design possibility
sexy - you kind of drowned in the fabric.
290 22-Jul-07 235 T-shirt 4004 Photograph of manipulated toile back Design Aesthetics in Time gap Masculinity Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
potential design possibility
291 22-Jul-07 236 T-shirt 4004 Alteration to first toile 22/7/07: slashed and twisted Photograph of shoulder detail Design Aesthetics in Time gap Masculinity Openness to Slashing Twisting N/A N/A N/A
potential design possibility
292 22-Jul-07 237 T-shirt 4004 4004 22/7/07 thoughts Four photographs of toile front with variations drawn on top Design Design through Aesthetics in Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
potential sketch design possibility
293 23-Jul-07 238 T-shirt 4004 I'm thinking self-fabric now rather than contrast Four photographs of toile front; two with variations drawn Design Design through Aesthetics in Openness to Multiple fabrics N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
on top potential sketch design possibility
295 240 + List of style numbers Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
back administration
inside
cover
297 242- Article on Shinmi Park Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
243 e
298 24-Jul-07 244 T-shirt 4004 Change to yoke. Trace of two yoke patterns superimposed on top of each Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
other. awareness
299 30-Jul-07 244 T-shirt 4004 There was too 'much' in the yoke, hence the reduction in Shape Fit N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
angle. I've also taken it in closer to the neck to allow for awareness
collar.
300 30-Jul-07 245 T-shirt 4004 This is the grain I used in the first toile. Trace of two yoke patterns with shoulder seams partially Shape Space Fabric grain N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
butting. awareness awareness
301 30-Jul-07 246 T-shirt 4004 This is the grain I used for the second toile (cut but not Trace of two yoke patterns with shoulder seams completely Shape Space Fabric grain N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sewn as yet) - grain matches front, while in first toile grain butting. awareness awareness
matched back (as on previous page)
302 24-Jul-07 247 T-shirt 4004 Trace of old and new sleevehead on dot & cross paper Fit Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
awareness
303 248 Doubled-sided photocopy of two old square-cut shirts. Historical Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
reference e
304 30-Jul-07 249 Pkt ideas - cargo pockets using same darting ideas as Quick sketches of pocket ideas and t-shirt Design Aesthetics in Openness to Design N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pants. Fold this in paper or fabric to see. Two darts. Triangle potential design possibility potential
tee.
305 250- Article on 'green' fashion Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
251 e
306 252 Article on 'curated' wardrobes Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
307 253 Article on Christopher Kane Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
appendicies
308 30-Jul-07 254 I'm starting a separate fabric folder today, with all info to Fabric Fabric Waste Laundering N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
date on fabrics. This should allow me to begin sourcing. I sourcing
can't remember if I've written it here before but I also think
it's ok for me to use fabrics I already have; fabrics that have
been sitting on rolls for 3-6 years have to date, in a way,
been 'wasted'. But, if I use white cotton jersey for example, I
really need to think about design that enables wearer to
LAUNDER LESS. See Oslo paper and expand.
309 30-Jul-07 255 Possible fabrics (see fabric folder). Hemp/cotton denim, Fabric N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
| 245
Org. cotton denim? (Oz suppliers?) Org. cotton shirtings, sourcing

Cotton printed tablecloths (organic), Hemp Shirtings? Org.
cotton jersey, Old jersey, cotton, have already, Non-woven
(Smith Family), i-Merino wools, Vintage kimono fabrics,
Bark cloth, Drizabone? Nettle, Treetap? Ingeo, Peace Silk.
310 30-Jul-07 256- Print-out of online forum discussion on organic fabrics: "I Fabric Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
261 think this discussion, spanning 2004-2007, is indicative of sourcing e
the situation in Australia"
311 30-Jul-07 262- Print-out of email conversation with All Eco Fabric Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
263 sourcing e
312 31-Jul-07 264 SAPERE AUDE. Dare to know or Dare to be wise. From N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Kant's 'What is Enlightenment?'
313 265 Print-out of online article on Mark Liu. Mark Liu Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
314 3-Aug-07 266- Print-out of online discussion on how to reuse or recycle Fabric Waste Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
267 scrap fabric. e
315 11-Aug-07 268 SMH article on Northern Territory intervention Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
316 14-Jul-07 269 Image of nylon loom from 1960s. Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
317 269 Image of tattooed guy. Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
318 14-Aug-07 270 CTS reading by Raelin (in Leadership section) may be Reflective Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
helpful in methodology chapter - social reflection, share writing administration
reflective practice, importance of dialogue.
319 24-Oct-07 270 Print-out of Facebook conversation with Mark Liu Mark Liu N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
320 31-Oct-07 271 Searches for theses on patterncutting (UK) - Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
'technical'/manufacturing rather than design-oriented. administration
246 | appendicies
321 271 Photocopy of kimono in two fabrics Historical N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
reference
322 272 Press release of Ninna Berger Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
323 273 Press release of Minna Palmqvist Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
324 14-Aug-07 274 Article on Kevin Rudd and innovation Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
325 14-Aug-07 275 Article on fashion and technology Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
326 3-Nov-07 276 Print-out of article on fashion design from Fashion- Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Incubator. e
328 23-Oct-07 278- Print-out of article on Danielle Meder's t-shirt using Julian Article/referenc Julian Roberts N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
280 Roberts' technique on Fashion-Incubator e
329 23-Oct-07 281 Print-out of article on mentors and artisans on Fashion- Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Incubator e
330 6-Oct-07 282 Print-out of article on Ouroboros patterns on Fashion- Article/referenc Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Incubator e awareness
331 25-Aug-07 283 Print-out of Facebook conversation with Mark Liu Mark Liu N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
332 284- Print-out of article on Madeleine Vionnet exhibition at Kent Article/referenc Madeleine N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
289 State University Museum e Vionnet
333 31-Oct-07 290- Print-out of Spring 2007 progress report Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
293 administration
334 23-Nov-07 294 Article on Cornell PhD program in apparel design with Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
comment: "Interesting view of fashion design, in comparison e
to Westwood for example, who calls it an applied art."
335 23-Nov-07 295 See "What is my argument?" p. 127 - More appropriate to Research Reflective Laundering Design N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
say the hypothesis was that zero-waste design was feasible administration writing Limitation
- then this kind of practice was tested out & evaluated
against literature on manufacturing practices etc. Trying to
argue it is feasible will not work. In some circumstances it
may be, others not, esp. in light of 'Materials Management'
text. Or, should it be that most of the circumstances that
prevent fashion designers from eliminating waste can be
addressed. Confused. See p. 254 r: laudering: having
bought two pairs of jeans that one is not supposed to
launder, I've started to freeze the jeans when they get
smelly. This gets rid of odours. Doesn't solve the problem of
stains, esp. in light colours but something to think about.
336 23-Nov-07 296 To do/fashion: Sketch up all designs to date & put up on Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
wall. Identify possibilities, gaps (esp. jackets) administration
337 16-Jan-08 296 Pant grading/possibilities. Cutting on cross allows horizontal Grading Fabric Grain Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
growth. Cutting on cross and length? Pleats - 'absorbing' patterns possibility
grade. Angles/see p. 209. Hardest: Changing the cutting
configuration + poss. adjusting/altering the design.
338 17-Jan-08 297 A strategy for grading: work out what must grade ie Sketch of tapered pant pattern Grading Design for Design through Openness to Design N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
limitations. Work out possibilities in light of limitations. patterns manufacture pattern possibility Limitation
Thoughts. To allow grading, use this area for elements that
don't grade?
339 18-Jan-08 297 Procedure: develop silhouette first; design details will be Research Reflective Design Design in Procedure N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
limited somewhat by these ie fabric & shapes leftover. From administration writing Limitation context
larger (silhouette) to smaller (details) - this not unlike
designing a range in industry.
340 18-Jan-08 298 Grading - allow some waste (1-2%) in original sample size, Grading Permissible N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
to accommodate traditional forms of grading. patterns waste
341 18-Jan-08 298 Shirt 3002 Experiment: 3002. Mark pieces so far: Body 1 pair, Sleeve 1 Reducing Fabric width Striped, Shape library N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pair, Placket facing 1 pair, Yoke 2 pairs. Then begin complexity printed,
designing the rest, ie collar, cuffs, pocket, reinforcements, checked fabric
using what is left. Fabric width 150cm, repeat for 120cm
width. Fabrics to get: 120cm vertical stripe, 150cm vertical
stripe.
342 17-Jan-08 299 Shirt 3002 Sketch of shirt body and sleeve patterns Design through Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pattern awareness
343 18-Jan-08 299 Shirt 3002 120cm wide: poss. Better to split body piece; otherwise 'too Sketch of shirt body pattern Design through Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
much' fabric to use up. pattern awareness
344 18-Jan-08 300 Exhibition: line walls with markers, in dot & cross paper. Research Exhibition of N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration project work
345 18-Jan-08 300 Pant 2003 Jeans - use odd-shaped leftovers between leg pieces for Design Fabric Waste Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
applique. See p. 306-307. potential design
346 18-Jan-08 301 Shirt 3002 Drape without sleeve; too kimono-like; long sleeve should Photograph of drape of front and back. Design through Openness to Shape library N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
fix this (was my thinking at the time) - could do short sleeve drape possibility
with tailored armhole.
347 18-Jan-08 302 Shirt 3002 Photograph of body drape flat. Design through Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape awareness
348 18-Jan-08 303 Shirt 3002 Photograph of front, back and side drape with long sleeve. Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape
349 18-Jan-08 304 Shirt 3002 Photographs of sleeve details Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape
350 18-Jan-08 305 Shirt 3002 Patterns so far. These were used for experiments on page Photograph of pattern pieces for body, sleeve, yoke and Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
298. placket. awareness
351 18-Jan-08 306 Pant 2003 Photograph of leftover space created by front crotch and Shape Space N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
back leg awareness awareness
352 18-Jan-08 307 Pant 2003 Could also become a side waist gusset if side seam Photographs of four leftover spaces created by various Shape Space N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
eliminated. pattern pieces. awareness awareness
353 18-Jan-08 308 Pant 2003 Jeans yoke - possibilties Four photographs of different variations of placing two Shape Space N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
yokes close to each other. awareness awareness
354 18-Jan-08 309 T-shirt 4006 Quarter-circle interlock top drape. 7/2/08: See p. 324 for Three photographs of drape. Design through Striped, Time gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sleeve drape printed,
checked fabric
355 18-Jan-08 310 Jacket 1001 Photograph of front drape. Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape
356 18-Jan-08 311 Jacket 1001 Photograph of back drape. Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape
357 18-Jan-08 312 Jacket 1001 Two photographs of shoulder details Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape
358 18-Jan-08 313 Jacket 1001 Poss. Pkt details. Three photographs of drape details Design through Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape possibility
359 18-Jan-08 314 T-shirt (no Too different in feel to anything else. Drape/interlock stripe Photograph of drape back. Design through Striped, Design in Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
code) Nov '07. drape printed, context design
checked fabric
360 18-Jan-08 315 T-shirt (no Photograph of drape side. Design through Striped, N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
code) drape printed,
checked fabric
361 18-Jan-08 316 T-shirt (no Photograph of drape front Design through Striped, N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
checked fabric
362 18-Jan-08 317 T-shirt (no Photograph of shoulder detail Design through Striped, N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
checked fabric
363 19-Jan-08 318 Pant 2007 Leggings. Play with stripe. Sketch of legging front and two leg patterns Design through Design through Shape Striped, Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch pattern Awareness printed, possibility
checked fabric
364 19-Jan-08 318 T-shirt 4006 Stripe interlock. Hood? See p. 309 for drape. Sketch of hoodie front and back. Design through Striped, Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch printed, possibility
checked fabric
365 19-Jan-08 319 Pant 2007 Waist pieces from first legging toile. 'Fly' on top CF crotch. Photograph of leftover fabric pieces after cutting toile. Shape Striped, Openness to Leftover fabric N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
awareness printed, possibility
checked
fabrics
366 26-Jan-08 320 Shirt 3003 Details from hand-embroidered circular table cloth that will Photograph of embroidery detail with comment "Print on Openness to Striped, Multiple fabrics N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
become a shirt in the collection (combined with another top?" possibility printed,
fabric for sleeves etc) checked
fabrics
367 26-Jan-08 321 Shirt 3003 Photograph of embroidery detail. Striped, N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
printed,
checked
fabrics
368 1-Feb-08 322 Patternmaking - difficult if unable to 'see' - imagine - the Design Design through 2D/3D Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
garment, whether designed by person making the pattern or limitation pattern visualization design
appendicies
another designer. Patternmaker needs to have a clear

mental image of design = garment, for pattern to be
succesful in terms of design interpretation.
369 1-Feb-08 322 Two sketches of sleeves: a 'regular' set-in sleeve, and a set- Shape Design through Breaking rules N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
in sleeve with disparate sleeve seam lengths with note awareness pattern
'ease'.
370 1-Feb-08 323 The Bad Dogs motif, by Harri, 6. Shape created by Harri, aged 6. Striped, N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
printed,
checked
| 247
fabrics
371 7-Feb-08 324 T-shirt 4006 See page 309 for body. Sleeve drape. Three photographs of bias sleeve drape. Striped, Design through Bias garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
printed, drape
checked
fabrics
372 7-Feb-08 325 Element of marker-making - being able to see the whole - Reflective 2D/3D Design Design through Marker N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
HARD BECAUSE 'WHOLE' DOESN'T EXIST YET. Many writing visualization Limitation pattern planning
insights from experiments, not collection
373 8-Feb-08 326 T-shirt 4007 Slash & loop ideas. 11/2/08 This technique also works in Five photographs of drape variations using slash & loop. Design through Openness to Fit Slashing N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
wovens, with some limitations; could be used instead of drape possibility
sewing, in darts, to take in excess.
374 8-Feb-08 327 T-shirt 4007 All shaping created by slashing and looping. Tank top. Sides Two garment ideas. Sketch of long-sleeve top + pattern Design through Design through Shape Slashing Design in Gusset N/A N/A N/A N/A
join here. Gusset to hem edege, to here. Worn on its pieces. Sketch of tank top front. sketch pattern Awareness context
own/over shirt.
375 11-Feb-08 328 From a Glad Wrap container [piece of metal cutting edge]; Sketches of how two perpendicular slashes might create a Design through Slashing Folding Openness to Fabric waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
cut so none wasted, including holes. Neckline (shirt, t-shirt, neckline through folding. sketch possibility
jacket, etc).
376 6-Feb-08 329 Print-out of article from Environmental Leader on Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Greenwashing. e
377 14-Nov-08 330- Print-out of Facebook conversation with Mark Liu Mark Liu N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
331
378 9-Feb-08 332 Print-out of article from Yorkshire Evening Post on skills Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
shortage in fashion. e
379 333 Print-out of article from The Press Association on skills Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
shortage in fashion. e
380 333 See top on p. 327 - same concept. From Burnham 1973. Photocopy of 17th century shirt from 'Cut My Cote', with Historical Design through Dorothy N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch of modified sleeve based on the shirt. reference sketch Burnham
381 334 19th century device to stop boys from masturbating. Four photographs of the device. Historical N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
248 | appendicies
reference
382 21-Feb-08 335 Exhibition meeting. Research context? History of dress, Exhibition of Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
contemporary fashion design, contemporary manufacturing, project work administration
sustainability & design. The work: clothes, patterns,
journal/process. Ready end of June. Last week of July. 4
weeks, 1 week install, 3 weeks show. Wall - page from
journal. Catalogue: # of pages, title page, essays, biog.
Sydney fashion festival Aug 13-17. Fencing wire to hang.
Room 3x2.5x4. Proposal. Media release end of March.
Images ready. Also, use as prelude to show in December.
383 28-Feb-08 336- Print-out of article from Inhabitat on Mark Liu Mark Liu Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
337 e
384 22-Feb-08 338 Print-out of article from Treehugger on Mark Liu Mark Liu Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
385 14-Feb-08 339 Print-out of article from International Herald Tribune on Mark Liu Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Estethica and Mark Liu e
386 13-Feb-08 340 Article from SMH on 'green' textiles Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
387 8-Mar-08 341 Burnham p. 34 "…it is impossible to study anything Article/referenc Dorothy N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
intelligently without a knowledge of its skeleton, and cloth e Burnham
widths are the bones of costume design."
388 9-Mar-11 341 Thesis title: Fashion creation without fabric waste creation - Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Cut & Sew clothes. administration
389 20-Feb-08 341 Bottega Venetta A/W 08. This could be made no-waste. Photograph of look from Bottega Venetta. Fabric Waste Openness to Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
possibility e
390 342 Shirt 3003 Three sketches of tablecloth shirt, of front and back, and Design through Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sleeve pattern shape. sketch pattern
391 11-Mar-08 343- Notes from IFFTI 2008 conference in Melbourne. Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
344 e
392 11-Mar-08 344 Less launder shirt. Inside collar band/stand in darker fabric, Sketch of shirt collar Design through Laundering N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
also top of collar & inside cuffs. Sun bleaching. Tie-dye sketch
effects? Shibori techniques.
393 11-Mar-08 345 No iron shirt. Main collar twisted to prevent ironing. Same Sketch of shirt collar Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
with cuffs. Then handwash garment to finish. sketch
394 11-Mar-08 345 Photographs of me & Karen (& anybody else) sewing Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration
395 11-Mar-08 345 Shirt 3003 Circle shirt. Watch out for costume silhouette. Sketch of shirt front. Design through Masculinity Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch design
396 13-Mar-08 346 Denim with bone or horn buttons Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
design
397 13-Mar-08 346 Collection fabrics/Hemp Gallery (AUS). Silk/hemp - shirting. Fabric Research Collection N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
8 Hemp/cotton denim - pants, jackets. 706 heavy hemp sourcing administration development
canvas - pants, jackets. Hemp/yak hair.
398 20-Feb-08 346 Ferragamo A/W 08. Belt, partially covered under tube, Photograph of look from Ferragamo. Article/referenc Openness to Fit N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
hoiking tube up. e possibility
399 347 T-shirt 4007 Print-out of exhibition application showing three views of Research Exhibition of N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
toile for T-shirt 4007 administration project work
400 348 T-shirt 4007 Photograph of toile front Design through Slashing N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape
401 349 T-shirt 4007 Photograph of toile back Design through Slashing N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape
402 350 T-shirt 4007 Photograph of toile side Design through Slashing N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape
403 351 T-shirt 4007 Photograph of Margiela Artisanal garment from 2008 using Article/referenc Slashing N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
the same technique e
404 11-Mar-08 352 Exhibition. Hanging markers/dot & cross with photographs Sketch of possible way of exhibiting markers. Exhibition of Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
of garments in staircase. Window/level 4 - like shop window project work administration
but better.
405 11-Mar-08 352 Fletcher/see applique on p. 189. Patchwork coat ike Awaji Kate Fletcher Historical Garment Laundering N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
island coat - eternal use life. Handwashable! Supplied with reference durability
half a metre/metre of fabric "Keep this, put away,
replaceable" Detachable lining.
406 11-Mar-08 352 Large label handstitched to inside back (easy removal). Sketch of possible care label Laundering Garment Future Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Print on bias on calico - raw edges. Front and back for clear durability transformation
identification. Printed with image of garment + care
instructions + suggestions for future transformation + info on
design & making (location) + source of fabric + amount of
waste
407 11-Mar-08 352 Shirt 3003 Tablecloth shirt. Print: short story of its discovery & note of Fabric Design in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
its beauty and characteristics. sourcing context
408 6-Mar-08 353 Circles. Three sketches of circular shapes on a fabric width and the Shape Space Fabric Waste Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
kinds of waste shapes they create. awareness awareness possibility
409 353 Jacket 1005 Jacket ideas Two sketches of jacket ideas Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch
410 29-Feb-08 354 Print-out of thesis chapter outline with notes. Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration
411 16-Mar-08 355 Print-out of thesis chapter outline with notes. Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration
412 17-Mar-08 356 Print-out of email from Sally McLaughlin Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration
413 12-Jan-08 357 Print-out of article on waste in a garment factory Article/referenc Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
414 358 Conclusions chapter. Fully-fashioned + Jigsaw Puzzle - into Research Practice-based Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
conclusions. Research further. Incorporation of woven cut + administration research method
knit fully fashioned. Investigate the potential for fully
fashioned weaving. Investigate potential of JP in various
levels of industry. List some examples of potential. Potential
for methodology - other areas of design. Articulating design
practice for other practitioners.
417 [inne cover of Journal #4] Good practice in journal writing Research Practice-based N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
based on Owain Pedgley's PhD administration research
418 361 From one of Otto von Busch's 'hacking' projects. Photocopy from Otto von Busch showing remake process Article/referenc Otto von Busch Future N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
for a pair of pants. e transformation
419 29-Apr-08 362 Pant 2007 Cod-piece built into the leggings. "anatomically almost Sketch of leggins with comment "seams on outside, Design through Aesthetics in Fit Construction N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
correct", testicles not squashed in like in conventional pressed open, flat-locked through centre, to hold" sketch design Design
pants.
420 1-May-08 362 Pant 2007 Can the codpiece come from the crotch leftover? It should, Several sketches of leggings and leggings patterns Design through Design through Shape Striped, N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
if possible. sketch pattern Awareness printed,
checked fabric
421 3-May-08 362 Pant 2007 Side view. Not denying their existence. Side view sketch of leggings codpiece. Design through Masculinity Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch design
422 1-May-08 363 Pant 2007 Pattern was split along here, inside legs joined. Photograph of leggings block pattern. Shape Using block N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
awareness patterns
423 1-May-08 364 Jacket 1002 Patterns for Juha jacket late 2003. This is the jacket I chose Photograph of jacket pattern pieces. Shape Fabric Waste Andrew Hague Kate Fletcher Aesthetics in Collection N/A N/A N/A N/A
for experiment 1 - it mirrors Andrew Hague's account of awareness design development
making the shirt in Fletcher's book. This experiment is
better done now than earlier as I now have a clear sense of
the collection & how it'll look. And no, waste is not more
important than 'design' (see brief opposite).
424 1-May-08 365 Jacket 1002 Experiment 1 brief. Highlighted: "Is zero-waste more Three photographs of the jacket from 2003. Research Aesthetics in Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
important than the design outcome here?" Comment: "No. administration design
The design is what matters."
425 1-May-08 366 Pant 2007 Hem facings. Check where these came from. Button tab Photographs of four leftover spaces created by various Leftover Fabric Design Fabric Waste Time gap Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
built into codpiece? Eliminate these - not usable. pattern pieces. [same as page 319] potential possibility
426 1-May-08 367 Pant 2007 Not sure if this [codpiece] is possible with 'scraps' opposite. Sketch of leggings front. Leftover Fabric Design Fabric Waste Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Studio/test limitation sketch
427 1-May-08 368 Shirt 3003 Circle-shirt draping 15-16/4/08. Four photographs of drape with lots of comments regarding Design through Aesthetics in Fit N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
fit and aesthetics written on photographs. drape design
428 26-Apr-08 369 Shirt 3003 Tablecloth shirt. Surrender to certain measurements: length Design Measurement Aesthetics in Shape Space Julian Roberts N/A N/A N/A N/A
predetermined by tablecloth size because I wanted to keep limitation design awareness awareness
embroidery at hem. As soon as yoke pattern done, I did
some quick interlocking exercises to see the negative
spaces, the new shapes. J. Roberts: subtraction
patterncutting. Me: Additive design.
429 26-Apr-08 370 Shirt 3004 One piece tailored shirt. Returning to second toile 26/4/08. Two photographs of toile details. Time gap Collection Fit Masculinity Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Aspects of shape, line clearly 'wrong' in light of collection & development design
its feel - back darts - into panel seam, exaggerating narrow
appendicies
waist. 28/4/08 - three darts angled for more flattering look.

430 1-May-08 371 Shirt 3004 Some sympathy cut could improve. Five photographs of toile with paper photocopies of shibori Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
fabrics pinned on, with a print-out of possible print design design
below.
431 1-May-08 372 Shirt 3004 Stitching to 'bleed' - continue patterns to outside areas. Photograph of toile back with shibori fabric pinned on, Design through Design Aesthetics in Multiple fabrics N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
embroidery drawn on. drape potential design
432 1-May-08 373 Shirt 3004 Photograph of toile back with comments regarding look of Aesthetics in Design through Multiple fabrics N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
applique. design drape
433 30-Apr-08 374 Shirt 3004 Internal belt to hold in place and avoid cutting. May be Sketches of shirt with variations in applique shape. Design through Design Multiple fabrics N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
| 249
elastic in casing? Contrast kimono panel. sketch potential
434 3-May-08 375 Print-out of fabric spec from All Eco with comments: 11/4/08 Fabric Fabric width Collection Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Great for a width exercise. 3/5/08 BUT not necessary now sourcing development administration
that I've got the kimono fabrics to work with.
435 9-Apr-08 376 Jacket 1003 Tunnel jacket/velour. First toile/cotton jersey. Using two- Design through Julian Roberts N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
piece sleeve from Juha jacket. Velour - one-piece. pattern
436 13-Apr-08 376 Jacket 1003 The first two go's at this didn't work; I inadvertently twisted Two pattern layout sketches with comments "This what I Design through Julian Roberts Twisting Space N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
the whole thing & it was impossible to get on. Another read should have done" and "This is what I did - twice - NEXT!" pattern awareness
of Roberts' school made me realise what went wrong. Four photographs of toile, and a photograph of flat fabric
after cutting sleeves to show pattern layout.
437 2-May-08 377 Jacket 1003 This was something I tried two weeks ago; instead of cutting Print-out from Julian Roberts' school showing tunnel Design through Julian Roberts Uncertainty Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
out circles like Roberts above, I cut out a top sleeve & technique. pattern regarding e
undersleeves for a jacket, creating the holes for the tunnel. I outcome
didn't look at Roberts' notes, though, & sewed the holes
together wrong'; it was not possible to get the body through
as the tunnel was not continuous - rather, there was one
main tunnel & one internal tunnel. What was exciting - no
knowing at all what would emerge from this free-hand
exercise.
438 378 Print-out of article from style.com on fashion in 2007 Article/referenc Design in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e context
439 378 Photograph of Gaultier waistcoat from eBay Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
e
250 | appendicies
440 379 Dancing? See crochet lace with girls Photograph of figures made from buttons and photocopy of Design Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
crochet lace potential design
441 380- Do's and Don't's from Vice magazine Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
381 e
442 382- Beading on top? Bleed. Three photocopies of lace Design Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
383 potential design
443 2-May-08 384 Pant 2007 Codpiece/leggings. These measurements based on first Three sketches of codpiece with measurements indicated Body Aesthetics in Fabric Waste Design through Leftover Fabric N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
toile and … me. Note: if waistseam is raised, codpiece measurement design sketch
might need to end where waistseam is now. Plan: make
pattern as drawn above, then try to reconcile with waste
pieces.
444 2-May-08 385 Pant 2007 Awkward shapes. But, let's toile this first & check the shape Trace of two codpiece pattern pieces Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
of the codpiece. awareness
445 2-May-08 386 Pant 2007 Shape of the crotch at the moment, after cutting out Trace of crotch shape and negative space created by it Shape Space Design Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
codpiece area. 3/5/08 - pockets? Incorporate into ankle awareness awareness potential possibility
area? Use as interlining/filling for codpiece (will take long to
dry) Hem facing?
446 2-May-08 387 Pant 2007 From a waste point of view, this & other knit garments, Trace of three codpiece side pieces Shape Space Fabric Waste Design in Seamless N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
should be integrally knitted awareness awareness context knitting
447 3-May-08 388 T-shirt 4006 Photograph of drape from 7/2/08, two sketches showing Design through Striped, N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
collar revere that becomes a scarf, with notes on details sketch printed,
checked fabric
448 3-May-08 389 T-shirt 4006 Cardi will need left & right pattern because of different Two sketches of top front showing buttonhole options. Design through Fabric Grain Striped, N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
stretch. Also, more ease to fit over a shirt. sketch printed,
checked fabric
449 19-Mar-08 389 Collarless shirt pullover. Belt exposed at back. Taken off Two sketches of shirt idea, front and back. Design through Collection N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
range board 3/5/08 - enough shirts/ideas for shirts, this sketch development
doesn't fit in.
450 3-May-08 390 Large check grey wool. Incorporate grade into pleats. Sexy Two sketches of pleated pants. Design through Grading Fit Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
bum a must. sketch patterns design
451 1-May-08 390 Jacket 1002 Sketch of cropped denim jacket, and sketch of complete Design through Collection Design in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
look with denim jacket, tablecloth shirt, leggings. sketch development context
452 1-May-08 390 Shirt 3003 Sketch of cropped denim jacket, and sketch of complete Design through Collection Design in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
453 1-May-08 390 Pant 2007 Sketch of cropped denim jacket, and sketch of complete Design through Collection Design in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
454 3-May-08 391 Catalogue contributors? Vicki - male body. Peter - waste in Research Exhibition of N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
fashion. Val. Alison - design. Alana. Alex Palmer. Sally - administration project work
method. Me: the collection. Kees: foreword?
455 4-May-08 392 Jacket 1005 Sketch of jacket front with pattern sketch and three detail Design through Fabric width Space N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketches indicating selvedge. sketch awareness
456 4-May-08 392 Shirt 3002 Sketch of shirt front with fringing indicated, with photocopy Design through Design Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
from 'Art of Manipulating Fabric' showing fringing. sketch potential design
457 8-May-08 393 Pant (general) This was a completely new concept & a revelation to me Print-out from Fashion Incubator forum about cut of pants Shape Pattern sketch Article/referenc N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
where the back crotch is cut in an S-shape awareness e
458 30-May-08 394 I did this two weeks ago - the black tape really brings out Photocopies of lace and thread codes from NearSea Fabric N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
the 'girls' Naturals, and a photocopy of vintage lace with tape sourcing
threaded through
459 8-May-08 395 Pant (general) Reversible? Tucks will be a problem (reverse); pockets Front and back sketch of sleeveless overalls Design through Design details Uncertainty N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
[ditto]; reversible zip with applied placket on one side, built- sketch regarding
in placket on the other outcome
460 9-May-08 396 Army blanket Rough sketches of coat and pant ideas Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch
461 11-May-08 397 Jacket 1004 Front and back sketch of blanket coat Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch
462 11-May-08 397 Old comments from Fletcher's book: p. 71 Dosa's products Article/referenc Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
come with a sense of energy and touch of the maker and e design
support rural communities" - 'hand' to come through in each
garment. One collction a year - me too: 2010 summerwinter
463 12-May-08 398 Shirt 3005 Blue stripe and blue Japanese fish fabric Front, side and back photograph of toile with drawing on Openness to Design through Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
top possibility sketch pattern
464 15-May-08 399 Jacket 1005 Waistband to finish B50, F56 = 106. 10cm wide. If tuck Four sketches showing front, waistband detail front and Design through Design through Body Design details N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
here, no need for tuck @ U/A? back, pattern layout sketch pattern measurement
465 17-May-08 399 Collar stand, collar, cuff - this [collar stand] has perhaps the Design Body Design details N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
least 'design freedom' - needs to 'connect' shirt and collar, limitation measurement
accommodate neck
466 22-May-08 400 Pant (general) 30/5/2008 the idea behind the seam line shapes was to Three sketches of pant, one of jackets Design through Shape Space Symmetry Time Gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
make them symmetrical along a horizontal axism to allow sketch awareness awareness
multiple interlocking
467 23-May-08 401 Jacket Large check short jacket. 30/5/2008 This was partly based Front and back sketch of jacket Design through Time Gap N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
(general) on a jacket I did in 2002 for Timovsthang sketch
468 23-May-08 402 Jacket 1004 Sketch of coat front with comments pointing out body and Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sleeves being too long sketch
469 30-May-11 403 Jacket 1002 This was sugggestive of breaking up the large check pattern Sketch of jacket front. Design through Striped, N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
with lots of seams sketch printed,
checked fabric
470 24-May-08 403 I'm concerned there are more 'square-cut' things in the Shape library Design in Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
collection than 'tailored' - Am I really being 'truthful' to context writing
industry by doing this? BUT, I think the cuts of the garments
are generally on the more inventive side.
471 30-May-08 404 Shirt 3003 Circle shirt first toile May 2008. One idea was to incorporate Three photographs of toile. Design through Using N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pocket here. sketch photography in
design
472 30-May-08 405 Shirt 3003 Circle shirt underarm gusset. Underarm gusset from bottom 2 sketches of center back shirt Design through Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
from CB. This will reduce some of the excess fullness too. I sketch pattern
didn't want the gusset in contrast fabric - brown gingham
473 30-May-08 406 T-shirt 4007 2nd Toile May 2008. CF will look like the side. Neck facing Three photographs of toile. 1 sketch of pattern Using N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
needs sewing down before looping. Hems - 1cm twin photography in
needled. Back neckfacing fold back. 45 minutes for marking design
and cutting. 30 minutes for sewing. 1 hour for looping.
474 11-May-08 407 Note the weaving: not straight across but in sections. Fully Article from The Sun-Herald May 11. 2008 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
fashioned weaving possible?
475 30-May-08 408 Jacket 1004 Mixed Fibre Blanket 152 x 203 cm Made in China Weight - Two sketches plan for cutting rectangular blankets. Design through Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
1.4kg. $14.40 AUD. x2 needed for a coat (+maybe a sketch pattern
vest/bag?). Given that I cant get the blanket I want, I might
buy two of these. (5 minutes later) I just bought two knowing
the size, I can start draping. Sleeves cut out - Julian
Roberts. 29-May- 2008 Loops for scarf.
476 29-May-08 408 One sketch for scarf. Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch
477 29-May-08 408 One sketch for jacket Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch
478 29-May-08 409 Grading. Waistband. Can be any length - just leave excess One sketch for pants Grading Openness to Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
as exension/can even be some length across sizes ie patterns possibility sketch
extension length changes. ACTUALLY, A LOT OF THINGS
CAN BE ANY LENGTH. Esp if exaggerated to begin with.
Jacket waistbands, collars, cuffs, belts, epaulettes. Bias
binding - always some waste as easier to manouver BUT
best perhaps cut as strips in production.
479 1-Jun-08 410 End for Fake Organics Article from the Sunday Telegraph June 1, 2008 Referencing in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
design
480 5-Jun-08 411 Exhibition Invites are paid. Image 300dpi. Media Release Invite diagram Research Exhibition of N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
for the invite Tuesday. administration project work
481 5-Jun-08 411 Pant crotches - name in Hetty Johnson's honour N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
482 9-Jun-08 411 Image for Exhibiton image plan Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration
appendicies
483 6/7-June 412 Jacket 1004 Shoddy Coat Drape. Noteworthy: I draped the collar Three photographs of the draped coat Openness to Design through Garment Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
2008 already, unlike the shirt, BUT, I am open to some change; possibility drape component awareness
this was more about getting the shape that joins to the neck.
484 7-Jun-08 413 Jacket 1004 Blankets. Shoddy Blanket Coat. Collar/yoke. One piece. two blanket diagrams, measurement and diagonal CB,CF. Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Lace on inside hem? Front and Back plan for jacket pattern
485 8-Jun-08 413 Jacket 1004 Organza on straight grain inside pleats for support. Belt with Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
lace: Reversible? No buttonholes through blanket => Maybe component
| 251
sewn studs
486 9-Jun-08 414 Jacket 1004 I also kept the shape left 'behind' by the neck/shoulder area. Photograph of pattern on blanket Shape Fabric Grain Striped, Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Cuffs maybe? Armhole partly cut, the 'Fits' has been awareness printed, component
incorporated into sleeve. Grainline - I did this so the stripes checked fabric
would fall on an angle when I put the drape on the
mannequin again, the fabric was collapsing a little. 10cm
Hem.
487 8-Jun-08 415 Shirt 3002 Changes to 3002/Wedge Shirt. -Waist tucks -> inverted yoke diagram Garment Garment fit Garment Fabric grain Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pleats - these looked better, less clumsy in first toile (I component measurement possibility
unpicked the original tucks and repinned them). -u/a gusset
to give lift to sleeve; toile was very difficult to move in. I
estimated 10cm to be enough to lift but 2nd toile will show it
it is. -Neck filled in - but, I realised only today that I
accidentally made the shirt and neck bigger. The placket
was meant to be a placket facing; by sewing it wrong, I
added 2.5cm to the body circumference (this was actually a
good thing but then the neck was out). -The yoke 'grew'
2.5cm to both front body and back body; the front was a
design choice, the back came about so the front and back
are still level. But, having looked at the toile, I think back
252 | appendicies
joke seam will be ok too. -CB has a split at the bottom, for
better hang and fit - I like the look of splaying open, too. -As
I've noted on pattern, sleeve packet length and shape will
probably depend on leftover fabric. -Also, grain on yoke is
'flexible'
488 8-Jun-08 416 Shirt 3002 Strategy: reducing garment to piece clusters? SHIRT 3002: Reflective Splitting and Space N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Body and sleeve interlock, placket is two rectangles, four writing slashing awareness
yokes interlock with little waste but these three groups are shapes
flexible how they relate to each other in space (flat on
fabric), leaving considerable flexibility for the design of the
remaining pieces: collars, cuffs, pockets, epaulettes, etc
489 9-Jun-08 416 Jacket 1004 Transfering Shoddy Coat drape to card pattern -Vest - Design through Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
drape with leftover pieces once coat body and sleeves and drape
collar are resolved. -If organza interlining used, how much
should and can I worry about waste. At the moment doesn't
look promising in that respect. -Symmetrical coat - as only
one body piece fits on one blanket, this may be the more
manageable thing to design (less complexity)
490 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
491 9-Jun-08 417 Important note: Sleeve placket can be any shape of length Three photographs of patterns- 2x Body, 1x Sleeve all with Garment Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
depending on what's available. Pattern as thinking aide; I've notes on dated 8-June-2008. component pattern
made similar lists with a few patterns. Note the propositional
nature (use of questionmarks.)
492 29-May-08 418 Hood with built in shrug to keep on. Detachable sleeves? Two sketches, 1 x flat, 1 x illustration Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Interlocking set-in sleeves and 'tailored' armhole. sketch
493 12-Jun-08 418 This was an idea, based on an old idea from 2004 that I Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
toiled then. But, I've decided to go with one of the jersey sketch
tops I was working with early last year.
494 11-Jun-08 419 Jacket 1004 Thoughts on coat/blanket 1004? Prior to draping, I didn't Reflective Design through Fabric Waste Garment Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
have clear enough sense of the garment in my mind to writing sketch durability Awareness
sketch. I had sketched a number of versions and two
aspects (if not more) came through with I began draping:
the overall silhouette (to the knee, relatively fitted, 'sharp'
shoulders reminiscent of the military) and fabricgrain, or
more specifically, angling the stripes in the blanket, rather
than having them horizontal. While this may create new
challenges for waste elimination, (see ponots of main body
pattern on the blanket) I think it's visually more interesting
and flatterning to have them on an angle. At the moment,
my plan is to toile and fit them body, collar and sleeves, and
then decide on pockets, cuffs and other details as well as
assess the nature of the vest to be designed from the
pieces left over. A pant was rejected primarily for three
reasons: 1. Likely that garments sold as set - pften bottom
half of the body not same size as top. 2. not enough fabric
left over for pant (except shorts but winter; not a 'shorts'
fabric) 3. fabric not substantial enough for pants, will wear
quckly (though, same argument could be said about fabric
in general.)
495 12-Jun-08 420 Antonio Marras - The humor in the styling appealing. Viktor newspaper clipping Referencing in Construction N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
and Rolf - Staples as seem finish also funny design design
496 12-Jun-08 421 I think this could be a pattern for a top. What fabric? Which Illustration Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
grain? (and I don't need any more ideas!) Or the circle could pattern
be sewn back on by stretching (if jersey) or outside could be
tucked/gathered onto circle.
497 12-Jun-08 422 A photo of an Issey Miyake shirt off Ebay - collar smaller photograph of collar. Referencing in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
than collar stand - challenge convention. design
498 11-May-08 422 Research trip that didn't happen Bad Dog invite Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration
499 13-Jun-08 423 Selvedges of a silk; have the hand-embroidered words silk swatch with embroidered fabric info Fabric N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
(fabric info?) done so that they've easily unpicked if sourcing
selvedge is incorporated into the garment.
500 14-Jun-08 424 Jacket 1002 An exercise to do: place jacket (Juha) pieces directly to Research Fabric Waste Garment Leftover fabric N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
calico, 'design in' leftovers (pockets etc). Maybe leave collar administration component
out, or only trace in edge that fits into neck. Same with
Sleeves.
501 1-May-08 424 Not sure where: Limits to creativity (most common comment Reflective Openness to N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
from other designers); on one hand liberating and other at writing possibility
times very limiting, needing to surrender to 'waste
elimination'. In those situations best approach was to leave
problem at hand, return to it and generally multiply
alternative solutions emerged.
502 14-Jun-08 425 T-shirt 4006 Cardigan 4006 Not sure if this idea for the neck will work; diagram of flat pattern for cardigan Design through Garment fit N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
will find out in toile pattern
503 14-Jun-08 425 T-shirt 4006 I worked on the Cardigan 4006 today and changed the Reflective Garment Construction N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pattern quite a bit from January. The hem is no longer writing component design
curved but with a darted corner; the hem angles match
those on the sleeves. The sleeves were too fiddly to turn
from draped pieces to card pattern so I ended up
patternmaking them from scratch. The sleeve is actually
bigger than the armhole so I will stretch the armhole to the
sleeve. Still need: Facing for zip.
504 14-Jun-08 426 T-shirt 4006 Cardi 4006 I made the changes to pattern (and design) diagram of flat pattern where sleeve attaches Body Reflective Design N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
while preparing to cut the toile - some things 'jarred' and at measurement writing decision
the same time, it looked like the body length and sleeves
could interlock nicely with minor changes so I made them
505 16-Jun-08 426 T-shirt 4006 Stripe cardigan - leftovers: BIAS: Mobius scarf (Vionnet, see Fabric waste Design in Fabric grain N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Kirke's book) => to be 'sold' with cardigan. STRAIGHT: context
Facings for Front
506 16-Jun-08 426 Interesting thing about the vintage kimono fabrics : Fabric grain Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
selvedges are all neat, not tight; perfectly usable in a
garment even externally.
507 16-Jun-08 427 Shirt 3002 Wedge shirt in stripe cotton (above): no contrast fabric. Cut cotton swatch. Flat pattern illustration. Shirt illustration. Design through Space Shape Garment fit Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
parts of sleeve this way placket direction, A chunk needs to pattern awareness Awareness component
be taken off somewhere as. The problem is two bodies and
sleeves don't fit on the length I have so sleeve will need
splitting. Incorporate placket and part of front use selvedge
as a finish.
508 15-Jun-08 428 Jacket 1004 As I'm designing the blanket coat first and vest second, Reflective Design Aesthetics in Fabric Waste Garment type N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
does it mean these are very few restrictions design wise on writing limitation design
the coat? In many ways the vest design will be very limited
as per the leftover fabric but a vest is one of the easier
garments, perhaps? These are no sleeves, no collar to
worry about.
509 30-Jun-08 429 Jacket 1004 Shoddy Coat. I should note that this has been aon photograph of coat toile on mannequin Time gap Garment fit Using N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
mannequin for two days (photo taken today) and made 1.5 photography in
weeks ago. Tabs to hold pleat in place. design
510 16-Jun-08 430 Two somewhat different solutions to the same problem; one Crème Royal Cheese packaging opened flat Referencing in Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
using curves and one suing straight lines. design awareness
511 431 Two somewhat different solutions to the same problem; one Castello Blue packaging opened flat Referencing in Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
using curves and one suing straight lines. design awareness
512 432 Another example of straght lines cut and folding. One piece Tasmanian Brie packaging opened flat Referencing in Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
into a 3D shape. design awareness
513 18-Mar-07 433 Pant (general) (half hour later): I will go directly into controlled pattern. Pattern flat for square cut trousers Time gap Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Once that's done, I'll do the dot and cross for reference; I writing
think it needs to be done for all designs. Not sure if the belt
loops should be included in the marker in general - In
production they could be strip-cut separately for all sizes,
without wasting fabric. The only exception would be if
selvage was to be uesed as a finish. Not the only!
GENERAL: I've just taken a photo of this while it's still very
much in progress; I'll take more as it progresses.
514 28-Aug-06 433 Pant (general) Something very immature about this kind of designing and Time gap Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
thinking. Something really bugs me about this, not sure writing
what? Maybe it's unimaginative; 'standard' beltloops,
rectangle pockets, regular waistband, etc.
515 19-Aug-08 434 Exhibition space. Six mannequins in a row will be crammed. exhibtion floor plan Exhibition of Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Wall height 2.5 metres. 15 cm of floor needs empty as project work administration
powerpoints. Maybe 2 mannequines in window, 4 in straight
line, they would even allow oassage from both ends. 10
lights moveable.
516 26-Jun-08 435 Shirt 3002 Wedge Shirts. Buttoning : more closely at top shirt illustration with buttons Design through Garment Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch component design
appendicies
517 27-Aug-08 435 T-shirt 4006 Stripe interlock: sew in black, (safety stitch) coverlock in Aesthetics in Construction N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
pink? design design
518 28-Jun-08 436 T-shirt 4006 Stripe interlock hoodie/cardigan. I should attempt to transfer Garment Space Shape N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
the patterns to graph paper and integrate interlocking and component awareness Awareness
hood shapes; it seemed yesterday there were few different
possibilities. But quicker? => Take photos of th ealternate
interlocking possibilities, determine hood.
519 29-Jun-08 436 Trascripting and coding In the early phases I seemed very Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
| 253
rigid about what a gament 'needed' and what certain details writing
(eg wristband) needed to be like. Now I think I'm much more
open to a variety of possibilities. For example, a shirt sleeve
placket doesn't necessarily have to be rectangle - Can be
any shape with one edge that matchs the slash it goes into
(if there is a slash).
520 29-Jun-08 436 Grading (breaking rules) A few weeks ago I graded a dress Grading Design in Design for N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
for a client and through consultation, decided not to grade patterns context manufacture
the skirt part up. The skirt was very full (4m in
circumference) and loss of 5cm from the larger size would
hardly be noticeable. I did grade the skirt for the smaller
size as the sample machinist had trouble gathering the
fullness. All this was done to save time - the orders hadn't
been very big.
521 30-Jun-08 437 Not sure how valuable it's been to spend a lot of time on Seamless Referencing in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
knit garments (in jersey or interlock). The technology exists knitting design
for these to be integrally knitted, with little to not waste.
Though from research poiunt of view it has been valuable -
have learned from each. But need to discuss that in the
future prob integral knitting will be the dominant
methodology for knits (see Allwood et al)
522 22-Jun-08 438 I don't think I saw all the possibilities at the time. This could photocopy of pg 43 Time gap Openness to Garment Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
254 | appendicies
BE MADE TO WORK. EXPLORE. possibility component writing

523 22-Jun-08 439 Shirt 3004 Maybe with the tailored shirt I need to think about the seam four sketches of sleeves. Time gap Openness to Garment Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
placement on the sleeve more. It can be anywhere and possibility component writing
could even spiral slightly. => Dart or tuck to make seams
match.
524 30-Jun-08 440 Exhibition - research into a methodology of making. Theme - flow diagram Exhibition of Research Practice-based N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
this collection - touchstone, not the focus of. Guide to the project work administration research
exhibition. Contextualise - practice based research. Role of
exhibition. Have as a sheet too. Blurb about garment with
plot x pattern diagram. Claim about proper reuse copying ok
as long as copy no-waste. Sustainability and how it has
informed collection. Theme
525 30-Jun-08 441 Shirt 3002 3002 - 2nd Toile - 1st Toile never got photographed. Five photographs of shirt toile Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration
526 30-Jun-08 442 T-shirt 4006 2x photographs of Hoodie Toile Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration
527 30-Jun-08 443 Jacket 1004 Definitely needs a belt - proportions much better. Horsehair 4x photographs of Blanket Jacket Toile Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
on belt only? design
528 4-Jun-08 444 Shirt 3002 Wedge shirt. Cream silk/hemp and black and white kimono 4x sketches of wedge shirt Garment Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
silk + cotton crochet with navy silk. Left over from cuff facing component design
top stitched on yoke or to have as a gusset. Facing rather
than a cuff. Corchet waist band with silk ribbon threaded
through see pg 394.
529 6-Jul-08 445 TO GET - Silk Ribbon/Navy-Black. Black hairdye for 2x illustrations of shirt Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
horsehair. 130mm/measure toile. Brown gingham and pink component
check kimono.Box pleat in collar at CB.
530 7-Jul-08 446 Stitch samples for tailored shirt in silk hemp. 3x silk samples Construction N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
design
531 7-Jul-08 446 Shirt 3003 Circle Shirt. Yesterday made a 2nd toile and fitted it - much Before and After diagrams of sleeve. Shape Garment fit Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
better. But, I've changed the lengths of CF and CB and this awareness pattern
changes the sleeve. When I made back seem, point of
radiation for tucks changed - shen fitting, I'd realised the
back waist tucks had to radiate from top of side seam.
532 7-Jul-08 447 Shirt 3003 Circle shirt yoke. What to do with neck. Part of cuff, elbow Flat pattern for yoke Garment Shape Aesthetics in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
patch, epaulette, part of pocket. Overall quite happy with component awareness design
shirt but worried if it's 'plausable'. A bit costume , a bit
feminine, perhaps. But lets see last toile. Yep, I think will be
best.
533 8-Jul-08 448 Exhibition and collection planning list Exhibition of Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
project work administration
534 449 Exhibition and collection planning list Exhibition of Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
project work administration
535 449 For peer audit: Findings - using garments. Slow design Research Practice-based N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
process, creative thinking, openness to alternatives, administration research
perhaps the greatest asset; lack of, the greatest threat.
Grading - one of the larger manufacturing issues to solve.
536 450 Exhibition and collection planning-get ready easiest to list Exhibition of N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
hardest project work
537 8-Jul-08 450 Pant (general) Square cut pants Finally relented, will test out curved diagram for crotch pattern Design Shape Garment fit N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
gusset. Hopefully there is now less bunching under the decision awareness
crotch.
538 9-Jul-08 450 Label in tearaway so comes off in wash with signature. By a ideas for labels Design in N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
fashion designer. By Timo Rissanen but it's yours now. context
Fashion. Timo Rissanen, make a stamp will then wash off.
539 451 stamp => timo rissanen 2008 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
540 451 exhibition floor plan diagram for floor plan layout Exhibition of N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
project work
541 13-Jul-08 452 Trying to balance 3 big issues: Make it look good. Make it fit Reflective Aesthetics in Garment fit Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
how you want. Make it No-Waste - and this tends to writing design
become overwhelming.
542 452 Pant 2007 Leggings - Applique is the way to go. Combo with yoke Aesthetics in Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
facing hem. design
543 452 Pant 2007 What I've designed so far is things that I believe will make Shape Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
waste elimination easier. Eg leggings - angles of main awareness
seams help pieces interlock into rectangles.
544 453 T-shirt 4006 / Stripes interlock 172 wide Fabric Width N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Pant 2007
545 14-Jul-08 453 T-shirt 4006 Cardi Once fitted 2nd toile, design rest on dot and cross, Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
use 2nd toile (hood etc) administration
546 453 NOTE: Sometimes joining pieces (eliminating seems) Seam Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
seems to make waste elimination easier (eg parts without elimination
side seems) but other times it makes it harder. (shirt yoke
cut in one - early experiment) WHY?
547 453 Exhibition - Planning each look. Exhibition of N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
project work
548 14-Jul-08 454 Pant 2005 Double wool 154 cm wide.Skinny Pant 2005. Finalising pant illustration Fabric Width Openness to Order of N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
design on dot and cross paper => the possibilities are possibility pattern pieces
endless as to how to interlock - there are only four pieces
(leg, waistband, fly and gusset)that are 'set' (I know they fit
and work) and as to how they get placed can result in
countless variations. HOWEVER, there is one issue: TIME.
The exploration of ideas takes a lot of tim so decisions need
to be made as quickly as possible. I explored 2 variations
and will settle on one.
549 15-Jul-08 455 Pant 2005 Looking at 2005 'final 'marker, grading will be an interesting Space Grading Design for N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
problem to explore. awareness patterns manufacture
550 455 Grading - knits - is it reasonalbe to assume that multilple Grading Fabric width Design for N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
widths could get knitted for production. patterns manufacture
551 455 Pant 2005 2005- reinforment pieces and larger seems used Construction Future N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
(waistband) as per Oslo paper. design transformability
552 16-Jul-08 455 T-shirt 4006 Hoodie Big thick drawstring - white cotton. So far with Pant illustration of drawstring and hem diagram Garment Construction Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
2005 and hoodie 'final' laying out (=design) of garment not component design pattern
as time consuming as expected. Sew hem before zip but
leave hem loose facings width from beginning to end.
553 16-Jul-08 456 Pant 2007 Leggings are a dead-end as far as waste is concerned so Front and back sketch of leggings, two sketches of cod Fabric waste Aesthetics in Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
I'm allowing some waste. 10 mins later - no waste? See piece design sketch
below. While working on dot & cross I realised legs were a
different width. To avoid all this (above) (& I think I should or
might) cup could be ruched or NO SCROTUM.
554 16-Jul-08 457 I think better to waste some than force it all in. Reflective Fabric Waste N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
writing
555 17-Jul-08 457 Shopping list/Greenfield list of things to get Research N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
administration
556 17-Jul-08 458 Pant 2007 George pointed out leggings are 'set' in length - for a tall Front and back sketch of leggings with applique Garment Garment fit Aesthetics in Space Grading Design through N/A N/A N/A N/A
person - because of knee seam placement and cuff. measurement design awareness patterns sketch
Looking at pattern layout, a shorter version is (easily)
possible. While I decided on knee seam placement based
on aesthetics, it happened to make upper length same
length as lower length on the pattern. Changing both the
same amoubt would not be too difficult.
557 459 T-shirt 4006 Sketch of eyelet for hoodie by George Plionis Design through Garment N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
sketch component
appendicies
558 17-Jul-08 460 T-shirt 4007 Jersey width 160- 2+2cm (selvedges). Selvedges simply not Fabric Fabric Waste Fabric width N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
usable because of glue in this particular style - slash top. - sourcing
>this something that needs collaboration with fabric mill.
The glue is hard.
559 17-Jul-08 460 Pant 2004 Wide check 156cm wide. Denim 152.5cm wide. Fabric Width N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
560 17-Jul-08 460 Pant 2003 Wool jeans. Aiming to make pattern/marker symmetrical but Space Reflective N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
this doesn't mean garment has to be. Interesting. I also awareness writing
think that the square-cut things are easier to develop then.
| 255
APPENDIX D:
FASHION INCUBATOR DISCUSSION
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Claudine's silk blouse

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Kathleen F. Posted: Wed Mar 02, 2011 9:26 am Post subject: Claudine's silk blouse
Site Admin
Place holder for today's entry; I need the link for my post. I'll come back later and
post my comments in advance of tomorrow or wednesday's follow up.
Also, if you get here before I do, no need to wait on me.

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Kathleen F. Posted: Wed Mar 02, 2011 10:30 am Post subject:

Site Admin
Okay, here are my rough notes on today's entry, no photos yet for documentation
but I'll suss it out tomorrow.
Claudine's blouse is really quite complex and there's several things going on. It's
also an ambitious project. You only go into it knowing you will have to do several
Joined: 09 Sep 2005 iterations.
Posts: 6443
Okay, pattern and fit wise, this style is very tricky to critique for several reasons,
one of which could be because it is shown on a mannequin that quite possibly, is
not the size the blouse is intended to fit. Keep that in mind.
What I think is really neat about Claudine's work is that she shows the garment
inside out. I think you'll agree that can take a lot of confidence.
1 of 9 12/4/11 12:56 PM
256 | appendicies
Strengths:
Look at the back view, specifically the sleeves. I suspect these sleeves are better
than typical. Namely, they're shaped to hang on the front of the body (that is
where your arms are, they aren't on the sides of your body) and to fit forward in
the front armhole. I say this because you can see folds radiating vertically from
the sleeve cap down just past the back elbow dart. Imagine if you will, the sleeves
on a body with the arms in a normal position (slightly forward) and those folds
would disappear. The other reason I think the sleeves are cut forward on the body
is due to the little back wrinkle showing the horizontal back spread is cut for range
of motion. Still, there is no sure way to know unless the garment can be seen on
the body for which it is intended to fit.
Sewing... looks pretty solid. There is little to quarrel with but there's something
about overlocking that front seam that has me ill at ease and I'm at a loss to
define it. I totally understand why the front seam was overlocked but with the
facings, it's causing a bit of a problem at the fold-over where the two sides join. If
this seam had not been overlocked, there might have been less of a bump.
Pattern design (engineering, sewing) I think a deeper hem allowance (total 2") is
called for if you're making better goods. This is a nice fabric (silk charmeuse) and
the price is moderate ($140) so I'm not quibbling with value at all.
I would have done the front facings differently. I like that they are one piece with
the front (clever and less work imo). I would have pivoted out that dooptey doop
of the facing near the armhole.
I don't know if this piece has any fusibles in it. If it were me, I'd put in some
whisper thin at the hems (sleeve too, they'll wear longer) and crossing the fold
line of the facings and entire facing. Actually, I would want to be certain that
shoulder point where front and back come together is solidly reinforced.
The one front side of the neckline (the longer right side, viewing) could be taken
up a hair, it looks a little loose. The way I would do this is to take out a vertical
1/8" to 1/4" on that side (making it narrower). It looks like the (left) side is doing
all the work of holding up that neckline.
2 of 9 12/4/11 12:56 PM
appendicies | 257
The only major-ish thing are the front gathers. Assuming this should fit this form
more or less, I would raise the gathers a bit (see photo above). I would also take
out some fullness, maybe that last third (gathers that lie just below the bottom
arrow). Again I could be off because those gathers would be good on a fuller
busted gal (Claudine's dimensions are 38" bust, 35" waist, 41" sweep) but taking
out the lower gathers would get them off the tummy which may help slim the
figure a bit.
Finishing... The hem is buckling. Sure, she could have pressed the hem flat and
eliminate that but I don't think she was looking for a crisp line to finish it off (and
I would agree). It did need some sort of pressing but it could be an equipment
issue. I think a hand held steamer could help. In most cases like this (nice blouses
not intended to have hard lines), these are pressed on a blow up dummy. I really
don't know what the solution would be with her equipment set up. Another
possibility is a very light fusing to full out that fold line.
_________________
Please don't PM me. Use the email button or via kathleenATfashion-
3 of 9 12/4/11 12:56 PM
258 | appendicies
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Kathleen F. Posted: Wed Mar 02, 2011 10:44 am Post subject:

Site Admin
oh, there is also a minor thing going on with the CB seam. I can't tell
pressing or a cutting issue. Claudine, are those selvages at CB? That i
question I'll ask you, I can't tell. I used to exploit selvages -they're aw
handy!- but then I learned there can sometimes be problems. It show
denim but often, the pressure on opposing selvages aren't equal so on
Joined: 09 Sep 2005 buckle slightly. If you cut using selvages you intend to join together li
Posts: 6443
seam, you can minimize any distortion if you cut the back from the sa
the goods rather than the opposite side. Otherwise, you have to cut th
a tip.
_________________
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Claudine Celebuski Posted: Wed Mar 02, 2011 11:54 am Post subject:
Member
Kathleen F. wrote:
oh, there is also a minor thing going on with the CB seam. I can't tell i
pressing or a cutting issue. Claudine, are those selvages at CB? That is
only question I'll ask you, I can't tell. I used to exploit selvages -they'r
handy!- but then I learned there can sometimes be problems. It shows
Joined: 25 Feb 2011 in denim but often, the pressure on opposing selvages aren't equal so
Posts: 24 will buckle slightly. If you cut using selvages you intend to join togethe
Location: NJ Summit the CB seam, you can minimize any distortion if you cut the back from
same side of the goods rather than the opposite side. Otherwise, you h
cut them off. Just a tip.
They are selvedges at center back. I did not know that about selvedge
unequal. I like the suggestion of moving the gathers up. This is the se
iteration of this blouse that I made, and I already moved them up a b
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Claudine Celebuski Posted: Wed Mar 02, 2011 12:26 pm Post subject:
Member
Quote:
Finishing... The hem is buckling. Sure, she could have pressed the hem
and eliminate that but I don't think she was looking for a crisp line to f
off (and I would agree). It did need some sort of pressing but it could
equipment issue. I think a hand held steamer could help. In most case
Joined: 25 Feb 2011 this (nice blouses not intended to have hard lines), these are pressed o
Posts: 24 blow up dummy. I really don't know what the solution would be with h
Location: NJ Summit equipment set up. Another possibility is a very light fusing to full out th
line.
appendicies | 259
seem to agree. I have a feeling that I will just give in and start pressing hems.
I am leery of fusibles. I tend to use them very sparingly. If I were to fuse the
hem, how to go about it? Should I fuse just the hem allowance? Or fuse the hem
from the point of the stitching to the raw edge?
Your suggestion of a steamer made me smile. Coincidentally, I ordered a hand

held steamer today. I'm not sure what a blow up dummy is, but it may be out of
my price range at the moment.
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Lisa Bloodgood Posted: Wed Mar 02, 2011 12:42 pm Post subject:
Renewing Member
Claudine, I've never had a problem with the fusible interfacing that is that nylon
tricot (knit) kind. Kathleen says when you fuse the hem, it's the hem allowance
plus a bit (1/4"?) so that the fold line has fusible. It has really helped with the
blazer type jackets I've made, but they're heavier fabric than your charmeuse. I
don't know if that kind is too heavy, but I've seen another tricot fusible that was
Joined: 02 May 2007 way lighter and finer threads.
Posts: 563 _________________
Location: OR Portland
Lisa Bloodgood
seamstress, designer, artist, costumer
I sewed this
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Esther Posted: Wed Mar 02, 2011 2:22 pm Post subject:

Moderator
re: the hem pressing
I learned in school to not press the hem before sewing, but rather after as part of
the finishing process. Perhaps that is what your teachers meant?
Joined: 18 Mar 2006

Posts: 1315
Location: ID Spudville
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Claudine Celebuski Posted: Thu Mar 03, 2011 1:09 am Post subject:
Member
Kathleen F. wrote:
Pattern design (engineering, sewing) I think a deeper hem allowance (total 2")
is called for if you're making better goods. This is a nice fabric (silk charmeuse)
and the price is moderate ($140) so I'm not quibbling with value at all.
Joined: 25 Feb 2011 I would have done the front facings differently. I like that they are one piece
Posts: 24 with the front (clever and less work imo). I would have pivoted out that
Location: NJ Summit dooptey doop of the facing near the armhole.
I'm glad you mentioned the deeper hem allowance. I may make the hem deeper
to conform to the 2" that you suggested in the future. A couple of people
5 of 9 12/4/11 12:56 PM
260 | appendicies
Fashion-Incubator User Forum :: View topic - Claudine's silk blouse http://fashion-incubator.com/phpbb/viewtopic
commenting on the blog mentioned that a narrow hem would work better
am inclined to disagree.
"dooptey doop of the facing near the armhole" near the armhole front or b
Pivot how? Are you talking about the inside-out photo?
Esther, My finished work that I was graded on did not have pressed hems
classes that I took were couture construction classes at FIT in New York. M
teacher was an old man who had a couture dressmaking business in the c
50's and 60's, so it is entirely possible that his views are a bit archaic. My
about using fusibles very sparingly also came from him.
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Kathleen F. Posted: Thu Mar 03, 2011 2:04 am Post subject:

Site Admin
Claudine Celebuski wrote:
I get a lot of flack for my lack of hem pressing. I learned in school that a he
should never be pressed flat, but very few other people, even fashion peop
seem to agree. I have a feeling that I will just give in and start pressing he
Joined: 09 Sep 2005 As a designer, it is also up to you to design the finished effect. I don't thin
Posts: 6443
Location: NM Albuquerque agree this hem should be pressed flat, I think a soft line is good for this st
Esther says you shouldn't press hems until the item is finished. I follow th
half the time (jackets no, tops & pants, yes). I know she is right but for on
what's the harm? If you pre-press this before stitching, you can use a leng
wool folded in half and set it at the blouse fold line and press over that. It
create a soft line but prevent it from becoming too crisp.
Quote:
I am leery of fusibles. I tend to use them very sparingly. If I were to fuse t

hem, how to go about it? Should I fuse just the hem allowance? Or fuse the
hem from the point of the stitching to the raw edge?
You should fuse the depth of the hem allowance plus 1/2" to cross the fold
looks nasty when people stop the fusible right at the fold line, I can see th
time.
I totally understand your teacher being anti-fusible. As I teased Esther the

day, I'd probably be anti-fusible too if I were 20 years older. He/she was
anti-fusible because when they came onto the market, the technology was
there yet. Since then tho, it has matured beautifully. Just don't use the
homesewing stuff. Pam Erny has some lovely products. You need to test t
effect.
Here are some entries that may be helpful:

http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/how-to-apply-interfacing/
http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/interfacing_10_tips/
appendicies | 261
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Esther Posted: Thu Mar 03, 2011 2:53 am Post subject:

Moderator
Quote:
Esther says you shouldn't press hems until the item is finished. I follow th
about half the time (jackets no, tops & pants, yes). I know she is right but
one-offs, what's the harm?
Joined: 18 Mar 2006

Posts: 1315
Location: ID Spudville The truth is this is what I was taught, it's not what I actually do. I gue
bad student. Whether I press before or after sewing depends entirely on
fabric, equipment available, and perhaps my mood. I do know that when
the line using an industrial hemmer, it is best to press the hem AFTER fo
things. It's ok to be flexible on this so long as you get the result you need
Regarding the 2" hem on the blouse, I have only one concern. I would be
the hem stitching showing through to the right side unless extreme care
taken by hand stitching. I can't imagine getting a decently looking hem w
charmeuse on most of the hemmers I've used. I guess I fall into the side
narrow hem. You could even consider a rolled hem with a Merrow machin
would be my preference, even for a $140 blouse, though maybe this is to
class?). The only way to know is to experiment and see what you like.
Back to top
Member
Kathleen F. wrote:
If you pre-press this before stitching, you can use a length of wool folded
half and set it at the blouse fold line and press over that. It will create a so
line but prevent it from becoming too crisp.
Joined: 25 Feb 2011

Posts: 24
Location: NJ Summit That's a good suggestion. Thanks.
Back to top
Member
Kathleen F. wrote:
As a designer, it is also up to you to design the finished effect. I don't thin

agree this hem should be pressed flat, I think a soft line is good for this st
Joined: 25 Feb 2011

Posts: 24 If it were just me making clothes for myself in my cave, I would agree w
L i NJ S i
262 | appendicies
Fashion-Incubator User Forum :: View topic - Claudine's silk blouse http://fashion-incubator.com/phpbb/viewt
I am planning on re-doing all of my photos, and I will press the hem t
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Kathleen F. Posted: Thu Mar 03, 2011 6:18 am Post subject:

Site Admin
Claudine Celebuski wrote:
But reading the comments on the blog, I realize that the hem is distrac
don't want people who have no idea how things should be done (I'll ca
"customers") to think my blouse is not made well because the hem is n
pressed.
Joined: 09 Sep 2005
Posts: 6443
At the risk of making myself unpopular, I don't think we're talking abo
thing. Yes the hem stands out because it is not pressed. But pressing
mean it must be a hard pressed crisp line. The option is what kind of
Using a soft press does not mean the hem will continue to stand out.
it's your product and your decision.
_________________
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Claudine Celebuski Posted: Fri Mar 04, 2011 1:34 am Post subject:
Member
Thank you to Kathleen and everyone who commented. Even if I disag

suggestion, it is enlightening to know what people are thinking when
my work. This was actually very exciting. Perhaps I need to get out m
At this point, I am thinking that the changes that I will make for my n
Joined: 25 Feb 2011
Posts: 24
are:
Location: NJ Summit
test some fusibles and interface the hem. I have a collection of fusible
occasionally. I believe they are good quality. I bought them from Stei
Stoller in New York.
Interface the shoulder seams to reinforce them.
Move the gathers up.
Widen the hem to 2". Soft press it during construction.
Take the facings and make them slightly smaller than the blouse.
Sew the front seam differently to take out the bump at the neckline w
pieces meet
Did I miss anything?
appendicies | 263
Fashion-Incubator User Forum :: View topic - Claudine's silk blouse http://fashion-incubator.com/phpbb/viewto
Kathleen F. Posted: Fri Mar 04, 2011 2:18 am Post subject:

Site Admin
Btw, I updated yesterday's entry to include links to your etsy shop and
I apologize for the oversight.
I like your plan but then I would .
Joined: 09 Sep 2005 About interfacings, I'm not suggesting the ones you have aren't good (
Posts: 6443
Location: NM Albuquerque not) but do keep in mind that you probably need a much broader variet
than you may think. I just went and counted mine, I have at least 22 d
kinds, you have to test which are the best performing for the fabric you
After awhile you get a feel for which are best so you don't need to test
but you get a surprise still every once in awhile. For dummies and proto
use one of the knit tricots (even on wovens) because their performance
uniform on so many things.
Other than the links I left before on interfacing (do see those if you hav
one, an "expert" chat I did on PR may also be helpful and illuminating.
follow the link to the transcript. In part, it explains the terminology of
competence, how we gauge quality levels in the industry (iow, single n
"couture"). A follow up entry is a refresher on basic industrial sewing co
which may also be helpful.
I'm also very excited, laud you for your bravery and am looking forwar
your next project. If you follow up, I will do yet another entry on it to c
before and after. I think it would be very exciting for everyone to see h
dramatic the differences will be. It is amazing how little things add up t
refined patina. That's the whole point of the RML series.
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264 | appendicies
APPENDIX E:
REFLECTIVE STATEMENTS
FROM STUDENTS, JANUARY 2010;
ZERO-WASTE COURSE SYLLABI

FROM FALL 2010 AND FALL 2012
Statements from students in the first Zero-Waste Garment course, Fall 2010, solicited
in January 2011 for the exhibition of their work at Parsons The New School for Design,
New York City.
C.Ca.
O-waste garments are not just about creating a product to sell. They are about exposing the design
process, and invoking curiosity about how and where a garment is made. 0-Waste garments are a
symbol of human effort to make a better future, and by having the intention of sustainability these
fashion statements are given a greater meaning. 0-waste garments are made to inspire others to
make their own efforts towards a more sustainable future.
G.G.
Zero-waste is more than pattern-cutting - It is an ethos of designing.
One that calls upon your conscious to create, in tandem, with your aesthetic. The freedom to
explore your creativity to develop new and interesting ideas. A nod to a sustained future in which
design reassures that we can live harmoniously. Zero-waste reveals the potential to innovate and
inspire.
E.D.
After taking the Zero-Waste Garment course, I now view zero-waste as method through which I
can challenge myself in a way that is meaningful to me. I like to set boundaries for myself because
it stretches my mind while helping me focus - and within every boundary there are endless possi-
bilities, so I never have to worry about my work becoming less creative. I see zero-waste in the same
light. It is a method that should continue to be explored because it allows designers to express
respect for their resources and for life on the planet while doing something they love.
appendicies | 265
A.C.
Incorporating zero-waste techniques into my design process has given me the opportunity to
completely re-think how clothing can be made. I have come to realize that there is no right or
wrong way to create a garment, and by using unconventional methods such as zero-waste I have
come up with interesting new silhouettes and design details that I wouldn’t have thought of other-
wise. When designing ethically-minded clothing we usually look first to our choice of fabric, but
with zero-waste we are forced to really consider how the fabric is going to ultimately be used, which
is just as important in my opinion.
C.Ce.
To me Zero-waste design is a process that works horizontally and thus more purposefully. Where
there is equal importance put onto each step and the final garment is the culmination of these well
thought out steps. It pushes you as a designer to think deeply into a design and suddenly all
elements have a specific reason for existing and nothing is arbitrary. It lets the garment take you to
it, once you begin the process leads to the finish. And the finish is not just any garment but a piece
which changes the impact of manufacturing and works towards a more sustainable industry all this
coming from solely within the design itself.
J.A.
Bartering with fashion, as it stands, is a tentative transaction; more often than not I have found that
no matter the value of my sacrificial exchange, I must always succumb to the beast’s heavy hand.
And though I am only a short distance into my travels through this foreign land, it seemed clear that
this was an inevitable element in the complex process we exalt as design. But what if—you caught
the beast by surprise—what if you launched your attack from behind, turned the process on its head,
and let the game commence in reverse; zero waste puts design in its place. It exemplifies necessities
more true than aesthetic and marketability; it harvests garments that are honest and true, garments
that are complex out of necessity, not the superfluous necessity to be complex, or as it stands,
“designed”. Zero waste trumps fashion at its own game, and as one vehemently opposed to the
game, I will air on the side of the “un-designed”.
No flat segment of tensile material wants to find a portion of itself missing here, another
absent there, just as no individual wants to lose a finger or a toe; every flat segment of tensile material,
however, envisions itself as any given garment and as tradition has told, the creation of any given
garment requires the waste of a portion here, the negative of a neckline, another there, the inverse of
a collar. Decency should implore then that it is only humane to ensure that a given segment of mate-
rial will not be divorced of its fingers and toes, but the reality of these convictions however is this:
tradition must be defiled. So to the dregs with tradition! We will use every last portion to insure that
that segment of material, though reorganized, remains whole and with all its fingers and all its toes!
M.E.H.
Through the process of designing a zero waste garment, I realize that many of the elements develop
from exploration as well as critical thinking. Whether using draping methods or intricate, geomet-
rical pattern pieces, the designer must tackle the negative space as equally as the positive space,
akin to a jigsaw puzzle, while taking into consideration the final look of the garment. Ultimately,
zero-waste (demands or requires or necessitates a whole new way of thinking about (the construc-
266 | appendicies
tion of ) everyday items, like clothing. As designers, we are responsible not only for producing
creative, yet workable, solutions, but to foresee and address possible problems. Zero-waste is a way
to produce commercial garments by applying a new concept to traditional methods that results in
sustainable change.
N.L.
A challenging design process, which seems to be restricting yet, opens up possibilities for innova-
tion. In a field like fashion, where everything has already been made, it’s refreshing to come across
such an inspiring process. What’s also interesting about the process is that there isn’t a formula,
meaning that there are multiple ways in which each individual designer can work to come up with
an end result. Zero Waste is a method that would save company’s money in the long term, would
assure good, thoughtful design and is sustainable. This method definitely has potential for growth
and if integrated properly with technology can be very efficient.
J.H.
After taking a course Zero Waste Garment, I found that even though there are certain limitations
set in constructing the garment, it really doesn’t stop you from making an interesting design. At first
I thought that there wasn’t really a possible way of making an attractive zero waste garment but
happily enough I found that incorporating zero waste within my design process I came up with
ideas that I might never have come across before. I especially like the spontaneity that comes with
designing a zero waste garment along with utilizing all the materials and having no waste.
appendicies | 267
Parsons The New School for Design
Fashion Design Department
Zero-Waste Garment
Course Syllabus and Curriculum
Course Title: Zero-waste garment

CRN: 7133
Academic Year: Fall 2010
Instructor: Timo Rissanen

Office: 232 West 40th Street, Room 1107
rissanet@newschool.edu
Dean, The Fashion School Mr. Simon Collins

Office: Parsons The New School for Design
th
560 Seventh Avenue, 5 Floor
New York, NY 10018
Course Description
This course presents a new way of exploiting and building upon the students’ existing fashion design
and patternmaking skills with focus on sustainability in fashion design. It introduces the students to
designing a garment without creating fabric waste in the process. In designing and producing a zero-
waste garment, the students will develop a deeper understanding of the relationships between cloth,
fashion design, patternmaking and draping, and in a broader sense, the connections between
material, design process and final product, and the broader context in which these connections exist.
On completion the students will be able to utilize patternmaking and draping as tools for innovative,
sustainable fashion design. In this course sustainability provides a tool for the students to examine
their design practices in a critical light. Commercial considerations arising from the partnership with
Loomstate will ground the coursework in a real-world context.
Learning outcomes:
Upon completion of this course, students should be able to demonstrate:
An understanding of sustainability issues in fashion design. In particular, students will learn

about the various types of textile waste and strategies to minimize them.
An ability to address one type of pre-consumer textile waste through strategic fashion design.
An ability to use patternmaking as a dynamic tool in creative fashion design through an
understanding that existing skills may be used in unexpected ways.
A better understanding of the interrelationship between cloth, two-dimensional pattern and
three-dimensional garment
A more critical understanding of fashion design in its broader industrial and social context.
An understanding of designing fashion for a market and for manufacture.
Course Requirements
All assignments are to be completed fully and on time. Project deadlines are unbending and late work
is not tolerated even due to illness. Attendance is mandatory. Three absences result in a final grade
of "F", and two “lates” count as one absence.
Attendance will be taken at 3:00pm; students will be considered absent if they arrive after the first
30 minutes of class. All assignments are due at 3:00pm unless otherwise specified. Reflective
journals must be brought to every class along with required supplies for those days designated as “in-
class work days”. Class participation represents a percentage of the final grade.
Incomplete work is not reviewed by instructor and is graded accordingly.
1
268 | appendicies
Evaluation and Grading
Undergraduate Grade Descriptions
A Work of exceptional quality, which often goes beyond the stated goals of the course.
A- Work of very high quality.
B+ Work of high quality that indicates substantially higher than average abilities.
B Very good work that satisfies the goals of the course.
B- Good work.
C+ Above average work.
C Average work that indicates an understanding of the course material; passable.
Satisfactory completion of a course is considered to be a grade of C or higher.
C- Passing work but below Good Academic Standing.
D Below average work that indicates a student does not fully understand the assignments.
Probation level though passing for credit.
F Failure, no credit.
WF Withdrawal Failing. Instructors may assign this grade to indicate that a student has unofficially
withdrawn or stopped attending classes. It may also be issued when a student fails to submit
a final project or to take an examination without prior notification or approval from the
instructor. The WF grade is equivalent to an F when calculating the grade point average (zero
grade points) and no credit is awarded.
Supplies
Reflective journal: format to be determined by student with instructor’s consultation
List sketching, patternmaking, draping and sewing supplies
Selected Resources
www.loomstate.org
http://www.fashion-incubator.com/tutorials/
www.katefletcher.com
www.localwisdom.info
www.wgsn.com (access through the library website)
www.style.com
www.Vogue.com
www.NYTimes.com (Tuesday and Thursday Style Section)
www.businessoffashion.net
www.jcreport.com
Recommended texts
Sustainable Fashion and Textiles by Kate Fletcher
Cut My Cote by Dorothy Burnham
Madeleine Vionnet by Betty Kirke
Yeohlee: Work by Yeohlee Teng & John S. Major
Costume Patterns and Designs by Max Tilke
The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Sewn Product Manufacture by Kathleen Fasanella
The Art of Manipulating Fabric by Colette Wolff
Couture Sewing Techniques by Claire Shaeffer
2
appendicies | 269
University Fall 2010
April 5–30 (Registration for continuing students)

Registration
Aug. 23–27 (Reg for new students; late reg for continuing students)
Classes Begin Mon., Aug. 30
Convocation Thurs., Sept. 2
Last day to add a class Mon., Sept. 13
Last day to drop a class Mon., Sept. 20
Last day to withdraw from a class with a grade of W

Undergraduate Students Fri., Oct. 15
Parsons Graduate Students Fri., Oct. 15
All Other Graduate Students Mon., Dec. 20
Holidays: Labor Day: Sat., Sept. 4 - Mon., Sept. 6

Rosh Hashonah: Wed.-Thurs, Sept. 8 eve*–Sept. 9
Yom Kippur: Fri.–Sat., Sept. 17 eve*–Sept. 18
*No classes that begin Wednesday and Friday 4:00 p.m. or after and no
classes all day Thursday and Saturday.
Thanksgiving: Wed.–Sun., Nov. 24–28:
Winter break: Tues.–Fri., Dec. 21–Jan. 21
On Tuesday, Nov. 23, classes follow the Thursday schedule.

Make ups and
On Monday, Dec. 20, day classes do not meet and evening classes
Rescheduled Days
follow the Wednesday schedule.
Spring '11 Registration Nov. 1–Nov. 29 (Arranged by program)

Juries Arranged by Program
Classes & Exams End Mon., Dec. 20
NSO Session A 8/30-12/20

NSO Session B 8/30-10/29
NSO Session C 10/11-12/20

Registration April 2-27 (registration for continuing students)
August 20-24 (Registration for transfer students and late registration for
continuing students)
New students register over the summer for the fall term. Please see the New Students Web page for
more details.
Classes begin Monday August 27

Last day to add a class Monday September 10
Last day to drop a class Monday September 17

Undergraduate students Friday October 12
Parsons graduate students Friday October 12
All other graduate students Tuesday December 18
Holidays
Labor Day weekend Saturday September 1-Monday September 3
Rosh Hashanah Sunday September 16 evening*-Monday September 17
Yom Kippur Tuesday September 25 evening*-Wednesday September 26
*Sunday and Tuesday classes scheduled for 4:00pm or later do not meet. No classes meet on
Monday and Wednesday. See rescheduled days below.
Thanksgiving Wednesday November 21-Sunday November 25
Winter Break Wednesday December 19-Friday January 25
Make-ups and Rescheduled Days

On Tuesday November 20, classes will follow the Wednesday schedule. Tuesday December 18
daytime classes will not meet.
Spring 2013 registration November 5-30 (arranged by program)

Classes and exams end Mon., May 14
Graduation Fri., May 18
270 | appendicies
To get you started:
Basic design guidelines

Reflect upon your design work to date in a critical light and try to identify your opportunities for
learning exist. This course is an opportunity for this learning; feel free to discuss this with the
instructor. This course will require an openness to a variety of solutions throughout the design
process so while ideas will become clearer through the process, try not to commit to one end result
too early.
It is not uncommon for fashion design students to think of the body in terms of a front and a back, and
as a consequence often the front tends to receive more attention during designing than the back.
Remember, the body does not have seams – consider the body as one whole; Madeleine Vionnet’s
work is worth investigating in this respect.
Reflective Journal guidelines

The size and format of the reflective journal is up to you, but keep in mind that you will be bringing this
to class each week – keep it user-friendly for you and the instructor. Nevertheless, the journal should
communicate you as a designer. You are to work on the journal each week and all entries must be
dated. Please refer to the end of the syllabus for further guidelines.
Research
Research is an ongoing process. While it precedes design, the research process will continue and
focus during the design process. While research will initially drive design, at times you may find
design driving more focused research in order for you to get deeper into the topic.
Please do not include fashion images as part of your research. It is very difficult to create something
new by looking at something that already exists.
Documentation
Please bring a camera to every class or organize to share one with another student. Print out
photographs of your process each week and include these in your journal. You should write notes in
your reflective journal through the problem-solving process, as well as sketch fearlessly – sketching
allows designers to think and problem-solve.
271 | appendicies appendicies | 271

Creating a Zero-Waste Garment
Curriculum Fall 2012
Class meets Thursdays 9-11.40am, 32 W 40th St, room 1106
th
Classes begin Thursday August 30 2012.
th
Classes end Thursday December 13 2012.
________________________________________________________________________________
Week 1: Introduction, Research and Explorations (8/30)

Lecture: Introduction to zero-waste fashion design
Assign: Read document on Reflective journal at the end of the syllabus.
Reflective journal:
Research: identify 3-5 moments from the past 12 months where you have felt
inspired and document these visually and verbally.
Learning: what do you want to learn from this course?
________________________________________________________________________________
Week 2: Research and Explorations (9/6)

Exercise one: Fashion tunnels: Draping with muslin
Using two rectangles of muslin*, without cutting into the pieces, drape 5-10 ideas in class and
document through photography, sketching and writing.
*The pieces should be the full width of the muslin and each should be at least 40” in length. It is
recommended that the two pieces are a different length. You can replace muslin with another woven
fabric but use a light color as dark colors photograph poorly.
Exercise two: Signatures

On a piece of paper, draw your name or initials. Cut through some or all of the lines and using tape,
begin creating three-dimensional garment form. Repeat two more times, to result in three different
forms. Document through photography, sketching and writing.
Due: Reflective journal
Assign: Reflective journal:

Design: explore two of the strongest ideas from class through sketching in reflective
journal
________________________________________________________________________________

Just cut: Cutting and draping with muslin
Interpret elements of inspirational moments from reflective journal into lines on flat muslin pieces from
last week. These lines could be slashes, they could start from the muslin edge or not, they could
separate a piece enclosed within a larger piece, etc. – there are no rules. Without trying to predict the
results, drape 5-10 ideas with the resulting piece(s) of muslin and document through photography and
sketching.
Assign: Reflective journal: Identify two of the strongest ideas from Weeks 1-3. Plan how you
would most effectively explore these further through cutting and draping in next
week’s class, and come to class in Week 4 prepared accordingly.
Research: Determine which of the inspirational moments from last week’s task you
feel most strongly about and identify a few possible paths that your research could
take from here.
Assessment 1:
Reflective journal.
________________________________________________________________________________
Week 4: Design – Phase 1: Silhouette (9/20)

This week you need to decide on the garment types (e.g. jacket, dress, etc.) that you will design in
this course. In class you will begin to pattern cut and/or drape the basic shape (e.g. body and sleeves

Assign: Zero-waste marker
________________________________________________________________________________
th
Week 11: November 12 2010
Design
Due: Zero-waste marker
Assign: A toile
________________________________________________________________________________
th
Week 12: November 19 2010
Final fittings, resolving design issues with garment
Due:
Assign: Alterations
________________________________________________________________________________
th
Friday November 26 2010: Thanksgiving holiday
________________________________________________________________________________
rd
Week 13: December 3 2010: Student peer review of 5-6 best pieces
Loomstate presentation on merchandising (TBC)
Designing for manufacture – key issues
Due:
Assign: Final alterations to toile

________________________________________________________________________________
th
Week 14: December 10 2010: Final presentation of garments to Barneys (TBC)
Due: Fully finished toile of garment
Assign:
________________________________________________________________________________
th
Week 15: December 17 2010: Course finishes
Due: Fully finished toile of garment

Garment patterns and marker, cutter’s must, specification sheet
Reflective journal
Assign: Exhibition briefing with Jonathan Kyle Farmer
th
Monday December 20 2010: Projects sent to Loomstate
_________________________________________________________
February 5-7 2011: Install exhibition in the Aronson gallery.

February 8-16 2011: Exhibition of coursework in the Aronson gallery.
February 17 2011: De-install exhibition.
7
Parsons The New School for Design
School of Fashion
Zero-Waste Garment
Course Syllabus and Curriculum
Course Title: Zero-waste garment

PUFD 2020-A
CRN: 7515
Academic Year: Fall 2012
Instructor: Timo Rissanen

Office: 232 West 40th Street, Room 1107
rissanet@newschool.edu
By appointment only.
Dean, School of Fashion Simon Collins

Director of Academic Affairs Yvonne Watson
BFA Director Fiona Dieffenbacher
Office: Parsons The New School for Design
th
560 Seventh Avenue, 5 Floor
New York, NY 10018
212 229 8966
Course Description
This course presents a way of exploiting and building upon the students’ existing fashion design and
pattern cutting skills with focus on sustainability in fashion design. It introduces the students to
designing a garment without creating fabric waste in the process. In designing and producing a zero-
waste garment, the students will develop a deeper understanding of the relationships between cloth,
fashion design, pattern cutting and draping, and in a broader sense, the connections between
material, design process and final product, and the broader context in which these connections exist.
On completion the students will be able to utilize pattern cutting and draping as tools for innovative,
sustainable fashion design. In this course sustainability provides a tool for the students to examine
their design practices in a critical light.
Learning outcomes:
Upon completion of this course, students will have gained a substantial introduction to sustainability
issues in fashion, and they should be able to demonstrate:
An understanding of the various sources and types of textile waste, and an ability to minimize
one type of pre-consumer textile waste through strategic fashion design.
An ability to critically reflect on one’s own learning, and use reflection as a strategic tool in
fashion design.
An ability to use pattern cutting as a dynamic tool in creative fashion design through an
understanding that existing skills may be used in unexpected ways.
An understanding of the interrelationship between cloth, two-dimensional pattern and three-
dimensional garment
A critical understanding of fashion design in its broader industrial, cultural and social context.
A foundational understanding of designing fashion for a market and for manufacture.
Course Requirements and policy regarding grading late submission

All assignments are to be completed fully and on time. Project deadlines are unbending. In case of
illness leading to absence or late submission, the instructor must be notified in advance. Attendance
is mandatory. Three absences result in a final grade of "F", and two “lates” count as one absence.
Work is considered late if it is not turned in on time when it is due. Students are given one week to
turn in late work. This is due at the beginning of the next class session, at which point the work (if
deemed passable) will receive the highest passing grade of a D. If not, the work will receive a grade
of F.
In the event of a holiday, students will be required to turn their work in on the day after the holiday by
1

9:00 a.m., and again, if the work is deemed passable, it will be capped at a grade of D. If not, the work
will receive a grade of F.
There are no incremental degrees of 'lateness' and therefore no incremental lowering of grades in
between the date when work is originally due and the next class session when late work is due.
We realize there will be exceptional circumstances where faculty will need to exercise discretion. In
these instances faculty are encouraged to work with Advising towards a solution for the particular
student on a case by case basis. (Please read the Attendance Policy in the syllabus regarding
extenuating circumstances).
Attendance will be taken at 9:00am; students will be considered absent if they arrive after the first
30 minutes of class. All assignments are due at 9:00am unless otherwise specified. Reflective
journals must be brought to every class along with required supplies for those days designated as “in-
class work days”. Class participation represents a percentage of the final grade.
Incomplete work is not reviewed by instructor and is graded accordingly.
Evaluation and Grading

Undergraduate Grade Descriptions
A Work of exceptional quality, which often goes beyond the stated goals of the course.
A- Work of very high quality.
B+ Work of high quality that indicates substantially higher than average abilities.
B Very good work that satisfies the goals of the course.
B- Good work.
C+ Above average work.
C Average work that indicates an understanding of the course material; passable.
Satisfactory completion of a course is considered to be a grade of C or higher.
C- Passing work but below Good Academic Standing.
D Below average work that indicates a student does not fully understand the assignments.
Probation level though passing for credit.
F Failure, no credit.
WF Withdrawal Failing. Instructors may assign this grade to indicate that a student has unofficially
withdrawn or stopped attending classes. It may also be issued when a student fails to submit
a final project or to take an examination without prior notification or approval from the
instructor. The WF grade is equivalent to an F when calculating the grade point average (zero
grade points) and no credit is awarded.
Required supplies
Reflective journal: format to be determined by student with instructor’s consultation; brought to class
each week.
Design, pattern cutting and sewing equipment brought to class each week.
Recommended texts
Burnham, D. 1973, Cut My Cote. Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto.
Fasanella, K. 1998, The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Sewn Product Manufacture, Kathleen Fasanella,
Las Cruces NM.
Fletcher, K. 2008, Sustainable Fashion and Textiles. Earthscan, London.
Fletcher, K. & Grose, L. 2012, Fashion & Sustainability. Design for Change. Laurence King
Publishing. London.
Gwilt, A. & Rissanen, T. 2011, Shaping Sustainable Fashion, Earthscan, London.
Kirke, B. 1991, Madeleine Vionnet. Chronicle Books, San Francisco.
Major, J.S. & Teng, Y. (eds.) 2003, Yeohlee: Work. Material architecture, Peleus Press, Mulgrave.
McQuillan, H. 2011, ‘Zero-Waste Design Practice: Strategies and Risk Taking for Garment Design’, in
A. Gwilt & T. Rissanen (eds.) Shaping Sustainable Fashion, Earthscan, London, pp. 83-97.
McQuiilan, H. & Rissanen, T. 2011, Yield, New York.
Rissanen, T. 2008, ‘The Creation of Fashion without Creating Fabric Waste’ in Hethorn, J. &
Ulasewicz, C. (eds) Sustainable Fashion: Why Now? Fairchild Books, New York.
Rissanen, T. 2011, ‘Designing Endurance’, in A. Gwilt & T. Rissanen (eds.) Shaping Sustainable
Fashion, Earthscan, London, pp. 83-97.
Rudofsky, B. 1947, Are Clothes Modern? Paul Theobald, Chicago.
Shaeffer, C. 2001, Couture Sewing Techniques. The Taunton Press, Newtown.
Teng, Y. & Major, J.S. 2003, Yeohlee: Work. Peleus Press, Mulgrave.
Tilke, M. 1956, Costume Patterns and Designs. A. Zwemmer Ltd, London.

Select Online Resources
Fashion Incubator http://www.fashion-incubator.com/
http://www.fashion-incubator.com/tutorials/
Kate Fletcher http://www.katefletcher.com/
Local Wisdom http://localwisdom.info/
Yield http://yieldexhibition.com/
The Cutting Circle http://thecuttingcircle.com/
Ecouterre http://www.ecouterre.com/
Center for Pattern Design http://www.centerforpatterndesign.com/
15% http://sweatshop-in-shop.com
Designers/practitioners
Timo Rissanen http://timorissanen.com/
Holly McQuillan http://hollymcquillan.com/
Holly McQuillan’s portfolio http://issuu.com/foyacollective/docs/portfolio_holly
Holly McQuillan’s Wolf/Sheep http://issuu.com/foyacollective/docs/wolf_sheep_workbook
Julian Roberts http://julianand.com/
Tara St James http://4equalsides.com/
Yeohlee Teng http://yeohlee.com/
Titania Inglis http://blog.titaniainglis.com/
Carla Fernandez http://www.flora2.com/ (downloadable book)
Caroline Priebe http://pleasesavemefrommyself.blogspot.com/
Alabama Chanin http://alabamachanin.com/
David Telfer http://davidtelfer.co.uk/
Dosa Inc http://www.dosainc.com/
Materialbyproduct http://materialbyproduct.com/
Friederike von Wedelparlow http://vonwedelparlow.com/
Laura Poole http://newwaysto.wordpress.com/
Simon Austen http://simone-austen.com/
Some useful posts

Holly McQuillan
http://hollymcquillan.com/2011/11/10/risk-dress/
http://hollymcquillan.com/2010/12/20/developing-design-for-yield/
http://hollymcquillan.com/2010/11/25/progress-for-no-waste-less-waste-exhibition-at-chicago/
http://hollymcquillan.com/2010/11/11/yield-piece-in-progress/
http://hollymcquillan.com/2010/09/25/twinset-war-peace-sent/
http://hollymcquillan.com/2010/08/19/war-peace-zero-waste-typographic-fashion-design/
Timo Rissanen
http://timorissanen.com/2011/04/05/zero-waste-fashion-re-patterned-photos/
http://timorissanen.com/2009/08/20/no-waste-and-less-waste-fashion-designers/
http://timorissanen.com/2009/08/11/some-more-photos-from-fashioning-now/
http://timorissanen.com/2009/09/14/sam-formos-zero-waste-jacket/
http://timorissanen.com/2009/09/13/the-hoodie-an-attempt-to-explain/
http://timorissanen.com/2010/07/20/updated-zero-waste-and-less-waste-designers/
Caroline Priebe
http://pleasesavemefrommyself.blogspot.com/2010/08/manuals-certifications-standards.html
276 | appendicies
Registration April 2-27 (registration for continuing students)
August 20-24 (Registration for transfer students and late registration for
continuing students)
New students register over the summer for the fall term. Please see the New Students Web page for
more details.
Classes begin Monday August 27

Last day to add a class Monday September 10
Last day to drop a class Monday September 17

Undergraduate students Friday October 12
Parsons graduate students Friday October 12
All other graduate students Tuesday December 18
Holidays
Labor Day weekend Saturday September 1-Monday September 3
Rosh Hashanah Sunday September 16 evening*-Monday September 17
Yom Kippur Tuesday September 25 evening*-Wednesday September 26
*Sunday and Tuesday classes scheduled for 4:00pm or later do not meet. No classes meet on
Monday and Wednesday. See rescheduled days below.
Thanksgiving Wednesday November 21-Sunday November 25
Winter Break Wednesday December 19-Friday January 25
Make-ups and Rescheduled Days

On Tuesday November 20, classes will follow the Wednesday schedule. Tuesday December 18
daytime classes will not meet.
Spring 2013 registration November 5-30 (arranged by program)

Classes and exams end Mon., May 14
Graduation Fri., May 18
appendicies | 277
To get you started:
Basic design guidelines

Reflect upon your design work to date in a critical light and try to identify your opportunities for
learning exist. This course is an opportunity for this learning; feel free to discuss this with the
instructor. This course will require an openness to a variety of solutions throughout the design
process so while ideas will become clearer through the process, try not to commit to one end result
too early.
It is not uncommon for fashion design students to think of the body in terms of a front and a back, and
as a consequence often the front tends to receive more attention during designing than the back.
Remember, the body does not have seams – consider the body as one whole; Madeleine Vionnet’s
work is worth investigating in this respect.
Reflective Journal guidelines

The size and format of the reflective journal is up to you, but keep in mind that you will be bringing this
to class each week – keep it user-friendly for you and the instructor. Nevertheless, the journal should
communicate you as a designer. You are to work on the journal each week and all entries must be
dated. Please refer to the end of the syllabus for further guidelines.
Research
Research is an ongoing process. While it precedes design, the research process will continue and
focus during the design process. While research will initially drive design, at times you may find
design driving more focused research in order for you to get deeper into the topic.
Please do not include fashion images as part of your research. It is very difficult to create something
new by looking at something that already exists.
Documentation
Please bring a camera to every class or organize to share one with another student. Print out
photographs of your process each week and include these in your journal. You should write notes in
your reflective journal through the problem-solving process, as well as sketch fearlessly – sketching
allows designers to think and problem-solve.
278 | appendicies
Creating a Zero-Waste Garment
Curriculum Fall 2012
Class meets Thursdays 9-11.40am, 32 W 40th St, room 1106
th
Classes begin Thursday August 30 2012.
th
Classes end Thursday December 13 2012.
________________________________________________________________________________
Week 1: Introduction, Research and Explorations (8/30)

Lecture: Introduction to zero-waste fashion design
Assign: Read document on Reflective journal at the end of the syllabus.
Reflective journal:
Research: identify 3-5 moments from the past 12 months where you have felt
inspired and document these visually and verbally.
Learning: what do you want to learn from this course?
________________________________________________________________________________

Exercise one: Fashion tunnels: Draping with muslin
Using two rectangles of muslin*, without cutting into the pieces, drape 5-10 ideas in class and
document through photography, sketching and writing.
*The pieces should be the full width of the muslin and each should be at least 40” in length. It is
recommended that the two pieces are a different length. You can replace muslin with another woven
fabric but use a light color as dark colors photograph poorly.
Exercise two: Signatures

On a piece of paper, draw your name or initials. Cut through some or all of the lines and using tape,
begin creating three-dimensional garment form. Repeat two more times, to result in three different
forms. Document through photography, sketching and writing.
Assign: Reflective journal:

Design: explore two of the strongest ideas from class through sketching in reflective
journal
________________________________________________________________________________

Just cut: Cutting and draping with muslin
Interpret elements of inspirational moments from reflective journal into lines on flat muslin pieces from
last week. These lines could be slashes, they could start from the muslin edge or not, they could
separate a piece enclosed within a larger piece, etc. – there are no rules. Without trying to predict the
results, drape 5-10 ideas with the resulting piece(s) of muslin and document through photography and
sketching.
Assign: Reflective journal: Identify two of the strongest ideas from Weeks 1-3. Plan how you
would most effectively explore these further through cutting and draping in next
week’s class, and come to class in Week 4 prepared accordingly.
Research: Determine which of the inspirational moments from last week’s task you
feel most strongly about and identify a few possible paths that your research could
take from here.
Assessment 1:
Reflective journal.
________________________________________________________________________________

This week you need to decide on the garment types (e.g. jacket, dress, etc.) that you will design in
this course. In class you will begin to pattern cut and/or drape the basic shape (e.g. body and sleeves
appendicies | 279
for a jacket). The two garments could create a look (e.g. trousers and top) or they could be the same
garment type (e.g. two dresses).
Due: Assessment 1: Reflective journal due for in-class critique. 7 minute presentations.
Assign: Research: continue

Toile to test basic shape fit
________________________________________________________________________________

Toile fittings in class.
Due: First toile
Assign: Assessment 2:
Write a short (250 words maximum) synopsis of the research informing your design
work.
Alterations to patterns based on fitting.

Fabric choice needs to be finalized for week 6: you need to know the exact fabric
width in order to design.
_________________________________________________________________________________

Determine whether you need to make another toile of the basic shape. Once you are satisfied with fit,
begin exploring pattern shapes on the fabric width, documenting through sketching and photography,
reflecting on progress and possibilities through writing.
Due: Synopsis on research

Altered patterns
Final fabric choice
Assign: Finalized first pattern and toile

________________________________________________________________________________
Week 7: Design – Phase 1: Silhouette (Mid-Term: 10/12)

Continue exploring pattern pieces on fabric width, documenting through sketching and photography,
and reflecting on progress and possibilities through writing.
Due: Assessment 2: In-class critique:

Research synopsis
Finalized first pattern and toile
Reflective journal
Assign: Reflective journal

Based on exploration of pattern pieces on fabric width, visually document 15 possible
ideas for further designing. These could be ideas for garment details (e.g. collars,
cuffs, etc.) based on the exploration of pattern pieces on fabric.
________________________________________________________________________________
Week 8: Design Phase 2: Zero-waste garment (10/19)

Design: Continue exploring possibilities on fabric width.

15 design ideas
Assign: Reflective journal: Identify possible opportunities and limitations for finalizing your
garment design. Plan following week’s class accordingly.
________________________________________________________________________________

Design: Continue exploring possible solutions for your garment design according to your plan.
Due: Plan for this week’s class
280 | appendicies
Assign: Continue design and pattern cutting
Reflective journal documentation
________________________________________________________________________________

Design: Continue exploring possible solutions for your garment design according to your plan.
Assign: Zero-waste marker on final fabric width

________________________________________________________________________________

Design: Assessing issues with garment, pattern and marker; exploring possible solutions.
Due: Zero-waste marker on final fabric width

Reflective journal
Assign: Final garment

________________________________________________________________________________

Design: fittings, resolving design issues with garment
Due: Toile for fitting

Reflective journal
Assign: Alterations to garment, marker

________________________________________________________________________________
Thanksgiving break
________________________________________________________________________________
Due: Final garment, marker

Reflective journal
Assign: Final alterations to garment and marker

Reflective statement on own learning in the course (100 words maximum)
________________________________________________________________________________

Classes finish
Due: Assessment 3:
Finished garment
Garment patterns and marker, cutter’s must, specification sheet
Reflective journal
________________________________________________________________________________
Week 15: Exhibition of work, critique (12/13)
appendicies | 281
Assessment tasks:
Assessment Task 1: Drape exercises documented in reflective journal

Due: Week 4
Weighting: 15%
Documentation of in-class work
Reflection on in-class work and own learning
Research
Initial design exploration
Assessment Task 2: Design phase 1: Silhouette and shape

Due: Week 7 (mid-term)
Weighting: 35%
First patterns and toiles for garments
Reflective journal
Please note: your garments may not be zero-waste at this point but you should have
your final fabrics selected at this phase.
Assessment Task 3: Design phase 2: Two zero-waste garments

Due: Week 14
Weighting: 50%
Completed markers for garments demonstrating zero-waste
Finished garments
Reflective journal
282 | appendicies
REFLECTIVE JOURNAL GUIDELINES
You are asked to keep a visual reflective journal during the course. The reflective journal is a place
for you to have conversations with yourself about your progress. Entries should be made at least once
a week. The purpose of this commitment is to enable you to begin to examine the extent of your
learning and to develop an ability to critically reflect on the design process that you are engaged in.
The ability to reflect is key to being an effective learner.
The reflective journal provides you with a ‘bearing’. In Visualizing Research, Gray and Malins (2004)
suggest that your research is like a map without any landmarks. Your journal is the means of creating
structure, borders, and spaces as to what territory you are intending to investigate. The nature of
research means that it is not always possible to state exactly what the outcome will be, but it is
important to speculate, and forecast what you might envisage happening.
WHAT IS REFLECTION?
Critical reflection is an important component of research and design processes, as well as your
learning. Reflection is a process of reviewing and thinking critically about our activities in the world
around us. It goes beyond describing what we do, to thinking about why we do things, whether they
have gone as intended, why we think they worked well (or didn’t) and how we might do them
differently next time. Recording these reflective thoughts can help us crystallize our understanding of
experiences, make connections between different aspects of our work and identify possible
improvements. Recording personal reflections has the added benefit of documenting learning over
time through recognizing the changing nature of your reflections.
Reflection includes constantly testing the assumptions and actions related to our work. Brookfield
(1995) describes reflective teaching in the following way - design can be thought about in a similar
way:
"Critically reflective (teaching /design/practice) happens when we identify and scrutinize the
assumptions that undergird how we work. The most effective way to become aware of these
assumptions is to view our practice from different perspectives. Seeing how we think and work
through different lenses is the core process of reflective practice."
In the case of design/practice, the different "lenses" that Brookfield refers to could include your
personal beliefs, and the perspectives gained from students, colleagues, the client, potential users,
audiences and your contact with the project brief and the designing process as a consequence of
research, creativity and analysis, and management and presentation issues.
GUIDELINES FOR REFLECTIVE WRITING

Many of us reflect on our creative process, designing experience, interaction with others, project
management issues, but do it in our heads. Sometimes we write notes to ourselves about things that
did or didn't work well in our process. A reflective journal is an effective way of having a coherent
process for thinking about these reflections more deeply and making connections between these
thoughts and other sources of information.
A reflective journal operates at two levels:

1. DESCRIPTIVE WRITING
Descriptive writing is not reflective. It simply describes events and does not attempt to provide
reasons for these events or thoughts about their implications. Descriptive writing is useful for recalling
what happened, and we’d expect that your reflections would include it, but description alone is not
adequate for the level of critical reflection we expect in your reflective writing.
2. REFLECTIVE WRITING
Reflective writing is different from the descriptive writing used in diaries or records of meetings.
Hatton and Smith (1995) provide a useful way of recognizing different types of writing. The terms
they use are not particularly important, but note the distinctions they make between the different
types:
Descriptive reflection includes both a description of events and some reasons for why they
occurred.
Dialogic reflection (as in conducting a dialogue with yourself) involves a greater stepping back
from events and exploring alternative explanations and courses of action in context. The
writing might make more connections with a range of experiences from differing perspectives
including team interaction, meetings with clients, research methodologies, management and
communication issues, creative processes, literature and other sources. These might begin to
10
appendicies | 283
reflect back on earlier reflections and challenge earlier assumptions. This is the type of
writing that we hope your reflective journal entries will demonstrate.
Reflection can also be thought of in relation to action:

Reflection on action allows you to look at your past work (where you are now) and allows
reflection on the early phase of development.
Reflection in action is based in presence, in relation to your current questions, thoughts and
practice.
Reflection for action formulates the principle thoughts for the future of your research i.e.
planning, action, testing etc.
The following questions can act as a guide for your reflective entries in your journal, to gauge the
progress of your research:
What has been your experience of your research process this week?
How well did you do it? How valuable was it?
What has been your experience of observing the world around you?
What did you learn? What didn’t you learn?
How did you feel about it? (Please avoid using ‘I like’ to describe feelings.)
What sources of information did you find? How valuable were they?
Why did you make certain decisions?
What was the most difficult thing?
What was the most satisfying thing?
What would you have done differently?
While reflective writing is expected, formality is not and there is no single right way to develop a
reflective journal. Reflective journal entries can include disconnected paragraphs, stuck in post-it
notes with later annotations and odd sentences indicating thoughts to be followed up at a later date,
research/designing information provided these are later tied together or complemented with more
critical and informed reflections.
Make a habit of writing something (however small) at least once each week. Make sure that you put
dates on your reflections and that you keep them together in some way in the journal supplied.
Reflecting progressively in this way will then provide a rich range of material for you to work within.
The importance of careful documentation

Organizing your research is a key element in the managing of your research and provides you with
invaluable skills.
Studio ‘tools’ might include but are not limited to: sketchbooks, portfolio, digital photographs, 3D
prototypes, toiles, and fabric swatches, magazine cuttings (not limited to fashion images), contextual
and reference materials. All of these elements become central to the development and progression of
your research, and can be articulated around this list:
Background
Contextual material/evidence
Information on methods
Evidence, evaluation, analysis
Conclusions and discussion
Bibliography
The reflective/research journal becomes a key tool for planning, describing, evaluating and
summarizing your thoughts and feelings about your research. It will have a bibliography, which should
be added to continually.
Visual devices
Mind maps, matrices and diagrammatic visualizations are all useful visual means of evidencing your
thinking and research directions, tools such as Mindgenius (http://www.mindgenius.com/).
Photography is a key visualizing method, but should always include annotations to provide
information such as who or what is in the photograph, when and where it was taken, and why it is
relevant to your research.
For designers sketching is an important visual thinking tool. Leonardo da Vinci kept a journal full of
notes and sketches throughout most of his life. The sketch book was where da Vinci (practitioner-
researcher) demonstrated his understanding of detail, accuracy and analysis, structure and form,
11
284 | appendicies
function and interaction, materials and their characteristics, expression and compositions, appropriate
use of media, change and development of a concept, and the various design development stages a
piece of work might go through.
Gray and Malins suggest that this is ‘the first coherent example of what might be called a Visual
Research Method. Visuals are used in many disciplines to:
Gather and/or generate data
Organize, describe and communicate ideas
Explain or understand a phenomenon or situation
Propose and persuade
Evaluate, analyze and interpret
Resolve and communicate findings
Visual perception and visual thinking (particularly the work of Rudolf Arnheim that explores how the
mind interfaces with the world of reality) in visual arts prompts a multi-sensory/multi-media method as
a mode of inquiry: There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to the reflective research journal, and there
is allowance for you to create the kind of document, which best suits your activities.
‘Most reflective journals would contain contextual references. Many practitioners amass great
collection of visual examples of other practitioners’ work and some selected examples could be
included in your journal, However it is not enough to simply paste in a postcard or magazine cutting –
do not forget to provide details about the work and, most important, what you think of it and why it is
significant’ (Gray & Malins, 2004, p. 60)
It is the place for different types of information, to monitor the pace and progression of the work,
schedules, charts, etc. It could be considered as a diary or log of the documentation of work
(research) in progress, with contextual references, with analysis and evaluation of process or
progress. It is a store where the information is ‘bound’ together in its purpose, aim and objective.
Finding the right method for you is the important factor.

The reflective journal and the process of reflection might include different phases. It will probably
include elements of:
Description
Identification of processes and material investigation
Factual descriptions of what you did and what happened next
Reflection
Asking ‘how’ and ‘why’ questions about the progress of your research
Summary
Pros and cons/strengths and weaknesses
What does it all mean?
Identification of new areas of research, and different research paths that have become
evident as a result of your current research journeys
All of this will be based on doing, reflecting, summarizing and testing.
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Zero-Waste Fashion Design:: A Study at The Intersection of Cloth, Fashion Design and Pattern Cutting

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ZERO-WASTE

cloth, fashion design and pattern cutting

University of Technology, Sydney

Signature of Timo Rissanen

13th of May, 2013

I dedicate this project to my mum and dad. Kiitos.

Figure 1.4: Shoddy coat and vest

Figure 1.6: Garment pattern diagrams by Burnham (1973), highlighting waste

Figure 1.7: Garments designed by Rudofsky and Fernandez

Figure 1.8: Garments designed by McQuillan

Figure 1.9: Andrew Hague’s shirt

Figure 1.10: Garments by the author from 2008 to 2011

Figure 1.11 Garments designed by Julia Lumsden

Figure 2.6: Knitted and woven A-POC garments by Issey Miyake

Figure 2.7: Cut & Sew coat by Balenciaga

Figure 2.8: Zero-waste dress by Mark Liu (2007).

Figure 2.9: Hierarchies of roles in the fashion industry

Figure 2.10: Fashion sketches by Jonathan Kyle Farmer

Figure 2.11: Dress and pattern by Julian Roberts (2011)

Figure 2.12: Cape and pattern by Yeohlee Teng (1982)

Figure 2.14: Madeleine Vionnet draping on a doll, 1923 (Kirke 1998).

Figure 2.16: Cut of kimono (Tarrant 1994)

Figure 2.21: Dress by Madeleine Vionnet (1919)

Figure 2.24: Dress by Zandra Rhodes (1979)

Figure 2.25: Coat by Yeohlee Teng (1997)

Figure 2.26: Zero-waste coat by Holly McQuillan

Figure 2.27: Garments by St James, Priebe and Formo

Figure 2.28: Garments by Carla Fernandez

Figure 2.29: Garments by Whitty and Lumsden in Yield

Figure 2.30: Zero-waste duffel coat by David Telfer

Figure 2.32: Timeline of this study

Figure 2.33: Good practice in journal writing (Pedgley 2007: 473)

Figure 3.1 Entry 339 from January 18th, 2008

Figure 3.3 Journal page 399 with coding

Figure 3.5 Trousers designed through pattern cutting on graph paper.

Figure 3.6 Matching angles in square-cut trousers and shirt

Figure 3.7 Conventional fashion design approaches

Figure 3.9 Design of leggings demonstrating function of shape library building

Figure 3.10 Journal pages demonstrating shape awareness development

Figure 3.14 Jacket 1005 and pattern

Figure 4.1: Shirt by Timovsthang (2002) utilising selvedges as external details

Figure 4.8: Impact of conventional and adapted grade on seam angles

Figure 4.9: Impact of conventional and adapted grade on seam angles

Figure 4.13: Conventional fashion design and fashion manufacture hierarchies

Figure 5.5: The working space for zero-waste

Figure 5.6: Pyjamas made from two sheets of predetermined size.

Figure 5.7: Sell wearing

Certificate of authorship iii

CHAPTER 1: Introduction to zero-waste fashion design 1

1.1.1 Fabric waste and the waste management hierarchy 5

1.1.2 From embodied economic investments to embodied environmental investments 10

documentation of zero-waste fashion design 13

1.2.1 An emerging interest in zero-waste fashion 13

pattern cutting techniques into design practice 15

contemporary fashion design and manufacturing processes 19

1.3.1 Fabric waste elimination from a fashion design perspective 19

from a fashion design perspective 20

1.3.3 Fabric waste elimination from a manufacturing perspective 22

from a manufacturing perspective 23

1.4 Overview of thesis and structure of the investigation 23

1.4.1 Definitions of terms 24

CHAPTER 2: Towards a zero-waste fashion design practice 27

2.1 Fashion creation methods and fabric waste 28