by helene.goedl -

20 | Designing A Digital Fashion Garment – The Final Project

For my final project, I decided to draft a pattern for pants in CLO3D. I am following a tutorial for the basic shape and will modify the garment according to my design preferences.

Preparing the Avatar

To begin the process, I decided to modify one of the default avatars from the CLO library to my own measurements. This was relatively easy and it’s a quick method to get a fairly accurate representation of your body in the digital space. However, the problem with this method is that body proportions vary greatly from person to person and the distribution of certain measurements creates a very different base shape of the body. Even though CLO allows you to input a lot of specific measurements, such as knee, leg and calf circumference, it does still calculate the spaces between the input custom measurements automatically, resulting in certain idiosyncratic body shapes to be lost in the process. For example, the difference between my high and low hip measurement is quite substantial and creates a dip at the hip area but there is no way (that I could find) to represent the shape between those two measurements inside the avatar editor. So to get a very accurate representation of your own body, you would have to make a custom model from scratch and load it into the program. For this project, I decided to go with the approximately correct model achieved by modifying the default avatar.

Drafting the Pattern

After the Avatar was prepared, I started developing the pants pattern according to this tutorial. 

First, I had to calculate some measurements as listed below.

Pants measurements

Avatar:
Hip: 97 cm  (31.2in)
Half hip: 48,5 cm (19in)
Waist: 65 cm (25.6in)
Outseam: 95cm (37.4in)
Inseam: 75cm (29.5in)
Knees: 18in
Ankles: 13.75in

Measurement Percentages (of half hip in inches):
21% 3.99in
55% 10.45in
47% 8.93in
10% 1.9in
20% 3.8in

Math:
Front Waist: 25.6 / 4 + .375 = 6.775
Back Waist: 25.6 / 4 – .375 = 6.025
Front Knee: 18 / 2 +.75 = 9.75
Front Ankle: 13.75 / 2 – .375 = 6.5
Back Ankle: 13.75 / 2 + .375 = 7.25 

The pattern drafting process was very similar to the analog process on paper and gave me lots of flashbacks to pattern drafting class. Especially when following an instruction with different measurements, there can be some confusing moments in the process and my lack of practice over the last years definitely showed while I was developing the pattern. 

Following the tutorial was a very helpful way of getting familiar with all the tools in the 2D Pattern drafting window. Some of them I found to be less intuitive than I originally thought while going though them in the overview tutorial series. For example, the curving tools don’t respond in the way that I would expect and the way I know these types of tools from other programs, so they were challenging to use in the drafting process. 

At the end, I did manage to construct the pattern and I could move on to arranging the pieces on the avatar and sew and simulate the garment.

Fit Issues, Modifications and Fabric Choices 

I tried to correct this issue by re-measuring the inseam of my avatar, going back to the pattern in the 2D window and comparing the measurement to the inseam on the pattern. By gradually editing the curvature and approximating it to the inseam measurements, I managed to somewhat resolve the issue, although the result was still not perfect. 

After sewing, I noticed some significant bunching  issues around the crotch area, a typical issue in pant patterns.

After I was mostly happy with the base pattern, I started modifying it by changing the leg shape, adding a waistband and a zipper. I also experimented with the fabric options from the CLO library and settled on a black woven cotton fabric for the final pant model. 

Sewing Issues and Draping

After I made my modifications, I simulated the sewing again and ran into some issues, especially resulting from new pattern pieces on the waistband and zipper fly that where supposed to be sewn over top of each other. As you can see in the screen capture below, the program was confused as to how to arrange the overlapping seam lines and unfortunately, I was not yet able to find a solution for this issue. Another problem I had was with the developing of the waistband, which was not included in the pattern pieces from my original pattern so I had to develop it myself and as mentioned before, my lack of practice showed once again. The waistband could be improved, especially in the curvature on the side seams.

After the sewing, I draped the garment on the avatar, which was fun but also confusing sometimes, because the mesh of the avatar sometimes interacts strangely with the mesh of the garment model.

When I was happy with the draping, I took the garment model into the final processing step in CLO.

Animation, Render and Import into Blender

As a final step in CLO I took the model into the animation workspace. This workspace is quite easy to use and intuitive for anyone who has used a similar 3D program before.

I chose a preset walk cycle from the CLO library, which worked very well and smooth. For the final render, I went with the invisible avatar render. I exported the model, including the walk cycle animation as an alembic (.abc) file. I then loaded the model into Blender, where I had some issues with the fabric of the model not translating well from CLO. Because I wasn’t able to find the cause of the issue, I decided to use a similar cotton fabric material from Blenderkit for the pants model. Finally, I created a little scene, animated some camera movement and rendered the model with Cycles.

Final Product

Final Thoughts

I really enjoyed the process of getting familiar with CLO3D. During the initial phase of learning the basic functions of the program, I had the impression that it would be quite easy to work out the final project. However, while working on my final piece, I realized which functions of the program are still not as clear to me as I thought and which features I need more practice with. Additionally, I learned that there are other methods of developing pattern in CLO, as I have seen some tutorials where users cut out and drape on the 3D model in a more free-form approach. This is something I would like to try out in future projects, because I realized while developing the pattern in the „traditional“ way, that my knowledge on pattern development is quite rusty and I need to either brush up on it or find other methods for reaching a good end product. Another aspect I would like to work more on in the future is the fabric export and modification options because I had some issues with this in my final project.

Overall, I will definitely keep learning more about CLO and hopefully get better and figure out solutions to probelms I was not able to fix this time around.

by helene.goedl -

19 | Designing A Digital Fashion Garment – CLO3D Tutorials and Program Review

After completing the full introduction tutorial series on CLO3D’s official YouTube channel, I want to share my thoughts on the program and the series of tutorials before I talk about making my own garment in my final blogpost. 

Overall, my experience with learning the program through the tutorials is very positive. Not only is the tutorial series very comprehensive and easy to follow, they also provide free practice files and update the videos regularly to reflect updates in the program. The topics are well selected and well paced in the structure of the tutorial series and everything you might need to get started with the program is covered in the videos.
In the unlikely case that the tutorial series doesn’t cover a function you specifically need, CLO also frequently posts tutorials and videos on their channel covering specialty topics and new updates of the program. Additionally, there is a community forum on the CLO website where you can ask any questions that might come up as you use the program.

My final impression of the program so far is that it is an extremely well thought out tool for professional designers. CLO includes many thoughtful functions and modification options which show that it is a program catering to a demographic of professionals. It incorporates many industry standards, from international sizing options, diverse avatars to Pantone color selections.

I would recommend picking up this program to anyone who wants to add a tool to their repertoire of fashion design tools. As for people without a background in fashion design, I think the program is well enough explained to be picket up by novices, but they might struggle with some functions and applications. 

In my next and final blogpost, I’m excited to report on the process of designing my first custom design piece in CLO3D. 

by helene.goedl -

18 | Designing A Digital Fashion Garment – Preset Fabrics, Materials, Presentation and Customization in CLO3D

I decided to skip some sections of the tutorial series in my blogposts as they are only relevant for internal processes in CLO and would not be relevant to discuss outside of the application context they are used in. Instead, I decided to move to the final part of the tutorial series and explain about fabrics, materials, presentation and customization options in CLO. 

CLO comes with a very extensive catalogue of preset fabrics you can use through your subscription. It also allows you to load fabrics purchased from online libraries. Further, you can customize the default or loaded fabrics in the fabric property editor. 

Using and applying the fabrics is very easy and intuitive. You simply have to select a fabric from the library and drag and drop it into the object browser, from where you can apply it to the entire garment or just individual parts of the garment. This can be done in multiple ways, all of which are very intuitive. 

Customization can be applied to default fabrics and offers the standard modification settings that are used in most 3D softwares in which you can model fabrics. The color editor, in which you can customise your fabrics exact color lets you choose either a self determined color value or it lets you pick from exact Pantone color catalogue. This can be useful for translating the garment from digital to analog as Pantone colours are frequently used as references in fabric production and dying processes. 

Apart from colours, CLO also allows you to import and apply your own pattern designs and customise various things about it like scale and position. There is also an option for applying graphics to garments, which comes with lots of customisable settings, from normal maps to roughness maps and other modification possibilities. Trims and hardware can also be selected from the CLO preset library or imported as OBJs if they were modelled in a different software.  

by helene.goedl -

17 | Designing A Digital Fashion Garment – Cloth Simulation in CLO3D

In the tutorial series of the CLO3D software on YouTube, there is a dedicated tutorial all about the basics of the cloth simulation function and the particle distance setting in CLO. Having used other 3D software before, I am familiar with the terminology of these settings, but until now, I have not yet fully understood how they work and what exactly they mean for cloth simulation. 

The CLO3D tutorial is limited to the basic simulation settings offered inside CLO and only briefly explained what particle distance does in the garment settings. But even this small explanation is already very helpful in understanding the purpose of the setting. 

One aspect of CLO that is interesting to mention in contrast to other 3D programs is that the standard mesh construction uses triangular shapes rather than square or rectangular mesh. This is because the triangular shapes are better suited to creating fabric that is meant to drape over the body. CLO offers the function of changing this setting but it is advised to keep it at the triangular setting for optimal performance. 

Another point that is addressed in the tutorial is the issue of collision. Since 3D objects are constructed of mesh, they can entangle and pass through each other, which is important to know when draping garments in CLO. 

Finally, CLO offers several simulation settings that each have their different pros and cons for different use cases. The settings can affect the accuracy of the garment draping as it is being simulated.  

by helene.goedl -

16 | Designing A Digital Fashion Garment – Critical Pattern Components and Modification Options

In the last blogpost, we learned how to develop patterns from scratch in CLO3D. In this post, we will explore some critical pattern components and the most common way of pattern modification – the dart. 

Previously, we established that there are two basic ways of developing a pattern for a garment in CLO, that is, working with geometric base shapes or using the free drawing polygon tool. As mentioned in the last post, it takes some experience to know what the base shape of a pattern piece should even look like, which is why I remarked that at this point of the learning process of CLO, we have arrived at the point where I would expect people without prior pattern drafting experience would start struggling. To demonstrate the challenges that might come up at this point, I will use the example of a seemingly simple garment to develop – a basic sleeveless top.

Even with an apparently simple base shape, there are critical pattern parts which require some knowledge of pattern drafting to get right. Notoriously, the armhole is one such critical point. The anatomy of the human body makes it difficult to navigate this area since there are a lot of curves and a lot of movement is expected, so patterns must accommodate for adequate mobility in this area of the garment.

In classic pattern drafting, there are usually mathematical formulas that tell you where to place lines and curves using the measurements of your model’s body. When drawing the shape of the pattern freehand with the polygon tool in CLO, you are bound to run into issues as the freehand drawing is simply not precise enough and will lead to messy armhole shapes if you don’t have a lot of experience and a good feeling for developing the shape in the 2D window.  

The most common way of modifying patterns to accommodate curves in the body is the so-called dart. A dart is a small added seam in the garment that takes in parts of the fabric and allows the garment to better fit the shape of the body. CLO also has a dart drawing feature, which is simple enough to use but will be another case of functions that might be too confusing for users without previous pattern drafting experience. 

Dart placement and shaping is another of those notoriously difficult things to learn in pattern drafting. The functions in CLO will certainly offer a lot of help to users experienced in pattern drafting, but might have their limits as well, since darts are sometimes a matter of shaping the mockup garment directly on the body. They not only depend on the individual body shape of the client for whom the garment is made but can also be influenced by the undergarments that are expected to be worn underneath the garment. To put it simply, dart placement and shaping is a whole science in itself and could fill many many blogposts on its own.   

by helene.goedl -

15 | Designing A Digital Fashion Garment – Pattern Drawing from Scratch 

After the last Blogpost, where we saw how already existing patterns are placed on the Avatar, this time, we will start drawing patterns from scratch in CLO3D.  

In CLO, if you want to draw a pattern from scratch, you have several drawing tools that are similar to the tools found in programs like Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop or InDesign. The program offers the option of drawing predefined shapes like rectangles or ellipses, or you can draw free shapes. 

The rectangle tool is the most useful for pattern drafting, as most shapes in standard clothing patterns are developed from rectangular base shapes with curves added to accommodate the shapes of the body. But  the free drawing polygon tool is also useful because it with a little practice, you can directly develop the base shape of the pattern piece without making the detour of modifying a rectangle shape. The polygon tool also comes with the function of drawing bezier curves while left-clicking and dragging when drawing the shape. This is useful for users who have previous experience with digital drawing programs but might take some getting used to for users who are not familiar with this mode of drawing yet. 

As with all the program’s tools, CLO also offers a wide variety of functions for drawing specific measurements to fit a premeasured shape. In the previous blogpost about pattern development, I talked about how I believe the 2D + 3D layout of CLO would make it easier to understand patterns for users without previous knowledge of sewing and pattern drafting. In this case, I think it might be the opposite case. I believe users without prior pattern drafting knowledge will find the process of developing patterns from shapes or even drawing them free hand very daunting and confusing. Even though CLO has many useful features to make the process easy, I can see how these functions might overwhelm people who are new to the process of pattern drafting. 

In the next Blogpost, we will take a look at critical pattern components and pattern modification options.  

by bernadette.poessnicker -

02/10 Fazit und finales Video

Ich konnte aus dem Semesterprojekt einiges für mich mitnehmen und bin mit dem Ergebnis zufrieden.
Während dem Ausarbeiten der finalen Sequenz hatte ich das Gefühl, gute Fortschritte zu machen. Das Zeichnen ist mir immer leichter von der Hand gegangen und die Zeit, die ich pro Frame gebraucht habe, wurde immer weniger.

Finales Video

Da es schwierig geworden wäre, für die Frame by Frame Sequenz (die doch recht kurz ist) ein Sound Design zu gestalten, habe ich die Sequenz in After Effects noch etwas gestreckt, und mehrere Durchläufe der Animation aneinandergereiht. Dadurch wurde ich hinsichtlich der Sounds flexibler und konnte noch einen kleinen Abspann hinzufügen.

Export aus Procreate Dreams

Export aus After Effects mit Sound

Lernziele

Besser im Zeichnen werden

Auch wenn ich in diesem Semester noch mehr über Anatomie und wie man den menschlichen Körper bestmöglich zeigen kann, lernen hätte können, bin ich mit meinem zeichnerischen Fortschritt zufrieden. Vor allem die Übung und immer wieder zu Überarbeiten hat mir weitergeholfen und mir auch einen Weg gezeigt, wie ich bei zukünftigen Projekten schneller in die Umsetzungsphase kommen kann.

Neue Software kennenlernen

Wie ich schon in anderen Blogbeiträgen beschrieben habe, bin ich sehr zufrieden mit Procreate Dreams und kenne mittlerweile die wichtigsten Funktionen. Das wird mir bei zukünftigen Projekten zugute kommen.

Mich mit Frame by Frame Animation beschäftigen

Mir gefällt der Frame by Frame Stil nach wie vor und es hat mir große Freude bereitet, selbst ein kleines Projekt in dieser Technik umzusetzen. Bei zukünftigen Projekten kann ich auf dieses Wissen zurückgreifen und es möglicherweise auch auf unterschiedliche Weise einfließen lassen.

Ich hoffe, es macht Spaß, das Video anzuschauen/anzuhören! 🙂

by bernadette.poessnicker -

02/09 Sound Design & Musik

Um die Stimmung des Videos zu schaffen/zu verstärken und die Optik der Animation zu unterstreichen, habe ich mich entschieden, ein eigenes Sound Design zu gestalten. „AMA“ von Julie Gautier, hat mich nicht nur visuell, sondern auch mit dem Pianostück, das unterlegt ist, inspiriert. Mein Sound Design soll eine entspannte und immersive Atmosphäre zu erzeugen und vor allem die Unterwasserwelt widerspiegeln. Hier möchte ich die Stilelemente, die ich gewählt habe, zeigen.

Stilelemente und Stimmung

Meeresrauschen & Wellen
Das Meeresrauschen ist ein zentrales Element des Sounds. Es vermittelt ein Gefühl von Ruhe und Weite. Als konstantes Hintergrundgeräusch erzeugt es eine beruhigende Atmosphäre, die die Zuschauer zusätzlich in die Szene eintauchen lässt.

Tropfen
Die Geräusche von Tropfen, die ins Wasser fallen, sind eine rhythmische Komponente. Diese habe ich mit den Synthesizern und Glockenklängen imitiert.

Ein- und Ausatmen
Das Einatmen zu Beginn und das Ausatmen zum Schluss bildet einen dramaturgischen Kreis und schafft Spannung. Gleichzeitig wird die Thematik Tauchen und Unterwasser aufgegriffen.

Piano
Ich verwende Pianoklänge als musikalisches Fundament. Die Melodien sind minimalistisch und klingen eher sanft.

Synthesizer-Elemente (Rauschen, leichtes Dröhnen …)
Die Synthesizer-Klänge fügen eine mystische Note hinzu. Damit kann ein Klangteppich erzeugt werden, der einen fließenden Übergang zwischen den verschiedenen Parts ermöglicht.

Verwendete Technik
Als Software zum Aufnehmen habe ich Reaper verwendet. Zur Klanggestaltung habe ich verschiedene Synthesizer (KORG) und einen Reverb verwendet.

Zwei Spuren mit Meeresrauschen und Tropfen beinhalten Sounds von Freesound.org – ebenso ist das Ein- und Ausatmen ein fertiger Sound, der hier Verwendung gefunden hat.

Workplace Reaper

Zusammenfassung:

Die Kombination aus den verschiedenen Elementen erzeugt eine beruhigende Klanglandschaft. Die akustischen Stilelemente unterstützen die Visuals und machen meiner Meinung nach einen großen Teil des Eindrucks aus.

Sounds & Musik des finalen Videos

by bernadette.poessnicker -

02/08 Finale Sequenz

Feedback zum ersten Test in Procreate Dreams

Die Konturen, die nicht in jedem Frame neu gezeichnet wurden, wirken statisch und stören den Fluss der Animation. -> Ich zeichne alle Konturen in jedem Frame neu.

Arbeitsschritte

1. Import des Referenzvideos

Das aufgezeichnete Referenzvideo habe ich als MP4 in den Canvas (12 fps) importiert. Die Transparenz auf etwa 20% geregelt.

2. Übertragen der Konturen

Nachdem ich das Video in höher aufgelöster Form organisiert hatte, war es um einiges einfacher, gewisse Details der Konturen in die Animation zu übertragen. Trotzdem habe ich mich aus Zeit- und Stilgründen dazu entschieden, Haare, Zehen und FInger zu stilisieren.

Konturen

3. Shading

Da ich die Thematik Wasser auch in der finalen Animation aufgreifen wollte, habe ich mich dazu entschieden, Outlines und Shading in unterschiedlichen Blautönen zu gestalten.
Entgegen meiner ersten Idee, die Flächen der Figur eindimensional zu gestalten, habe ich mich für ein verschwommenes Farbenspiel beim Shading entschieden, dass die Sonneneinstrahlung von der Wasseroberfläche andeuten soll. Trotzdem habe ich darauf geachtet, Dreidimensionalität in die Figur zu bringen. Zusätzlich habe ich Gaußsche Unschärfe, sowie eine leichte Körnung für das Shading verwendet.

Shading, Hintergrund und Ebenen in Procreate Dreams

4. Hintergrund / Vordergrund

Der HIntergrund soll ebenfalls die Wasserthematik aufgreifen und die Sonneneinstrahlung. Hier habe ich mit unterschiedlichen Pinseln in maximaler Größe versucht, interessante Texturen zu schaffen. Auch die Effekte aus Procreate Dreams waren hierbei sehr hilfreich. Um der Animation mehr Raum zu geben, habe ich den Hintergrund dupliziert und im Vordergrund mit unterschiedlicher Transparenz sowie unterschiedlichen Ebenenmodi belegt.