Garment Support and Structure
Adding structure to a garment is one of the more challenging aspects of garment construction. One of the best ways to learn this technique is to look through history. There are several different ways in which you can support a garment.
Supportive Materials
There are a wide variety of supportive materials that you can use when preparing to add shape to your garments.
Netting
Net is a transparent, open mesh fabric and is one of the oldest materials around. The amount of net applied to a garment depends on the volume that you want to add.
Padding
If you are looking to emphasise parts of the body and add support and shape, you can apply a padding technique.
Shoulder Pads
Shoulder pads are added to accentuate the shoulder area and were very popular in the eighties.
Fusing/Interlining
If you would like to add body or stability to certain areas of your garment, you can interline/fuse at certain parts of the fabric.
There are some critical points of a garment that sometimes need reinforcement. For example, a waistband on a skirt. Other examples include cuffs, collars, buttons, and buttonholes, which also need to stand up and look the same after several washings. Fusing will ensure that these key points will remain intact.
Corsetry
A corset is a close-fitting bodice that is stiffened with boning and is made to shape the body in a fashionable silhouette. In this century, corsets are used to control and shape the bust, waist, and hips.
Boning
Today, corsets are constructed from plastic like Ridgeline O or metal. Metal boning requires a special casing process and plastic boning can be stitched onto the foundation.
Adding Volume to a Garment
There are several different ways to add volume to a garment, which includes gathers, darts, drapes, and pleats.
You may want to add volume to your garments to create a larger silhouette or change the dimensions. Whatever your reasons, you can create volume using one of these techniques.
Adding volume with drapes.
Adding volume with flare
Adding volume with fabric
Finishes, Buttons and Trimmings
You now have a completed garment with support and structure, which you designed from a sketch. Now you need to apply the finishing touches that will take your apparel to the next level. Here are some of the most common finishing touches you might want to apply:
Lining
Facing
Fastenings
Finding a Clothing Manufacturer for Your Line
If you want to thrive in the fashion industry, it is important to focus on getting your designs through the production process and to do that, you need to find a clothing manufacturer.
If you want to nail your production process down, there are a few tips that will help you find the right factory for you:

Work out beforehand what you want out of a factory
Do thorough research
Visit the factories first

Creating a Garment Tech Pack
A garment tech pack is a critical portion of the production process that takes lots of planning and preparation.
Your garment tech pack is a means of communication that will ensure that these details will transfer over to production.
A garment tech pack is broken into several sections. Make sure you learn and understand each section:
Cover Page, Inspiration Page, Callouts Page, Print-Fabric Replacement Page, Colourway Page, Bill of Materials Page, Fold Page, Label Placement Page, Proto Specs Page, 1st Fit Specs Page, 2nd Fit Specs Page, 1st and 2nd Fit Comment Pages and a Graded Specs Page
Preparing to Produce Your Line
There are a few things that you can do to ensure that your garments are manufactured smoothly and everything goes according to plan.
Here is a checklist for you:
Create a Detailed Tech Pack
Request a Sample Before Going to Production
Iron out the Details with Manufacturers
Create a Development Calendar with Your Factory
Track all Comments and Revisions in Your Tech Pack
As you move through production, think of your samples and your tech pack comments as a tracking system or a master log.
It is important that you hold on to all the input that you logged from the beginning so you can reference these changes later.