November 19 2020
Everything you need to know about swimwear manufacturing. How to develop a line, find supply chain partners, and get your product made!
July 29 2020
The key to success in any start up is self accountability. This fashion SMART plan will keep you focused and on track to meet your business goals.
June 6 2020
One more thing before you get started on the fun part of your clothing line - get your accounting and bookkeeping in order. The earlier the better. Believe me, it's a nightmare when tax season rolls around and your books are a mess. The easiest way to keep your financials stress free is to keep track of them in real-time. If you are just getting started, or even if you are an established brand that always seems to find themselves in a panic around tax time, try these fashion accounting tricks to make your clothing line finances easy.
May 24 2020
Does this sound like you? It's always been your dream to start your own clothing line. You see a need in the market, you are passionate about a product - there is just one problem. You know nothing about fashion. That's ok. To get you started, here is my first lesson, fashion design for beginners - the importance of merchandising.
May 17 2020
For years I have been trying to learn the rules of football (the American kind) so I can follow along while my friends watch. What do you think has been more helpful to me - an article that lists all the players on the field and what they do or a deep dive into how a football is made? Obviously the first post with an overview of all the players.
Think of developing and producing your garments like me learning football. To start off you don't need to know every single little detail of a tech pack or how to comment on fit samples. In the beginning, you just need to know the players in the game, or in the case of the garment manufacturing process the steps to follow.
May 12 2020
How to create a brand guideline for your clothing line, and 11 fashion branding tips from pros to help you create a cohesive brand image.
May 6 2020
Before you launch your sustainable startup, you need to make a clothing line business plan. The guide takes you through all the steps w/ real brand examples
May 1 2020
How to start a clothing line for free - the truth is there are some costs to start a clothing brand, but with these free tools and advice, you can save money.
April 25 2020
Sustainable Clothing Manufacturing - how to find the right factory partners that align with your values, and what to look for sourcing sustainable textiles.
April 8 2020
Times are tough for the fashion industry. Especially for small businesses that might not have the portfolio diversification or cash reserves that larger companies have. But, virtue + vice is here for you. That is why I made this ultimate fashion grant list that you can apply to now for aid.
I will continue to update this list as more grants become available.
February 23 2020
RAYON vs COTTON. Which fiber is more sustainable? How are they made? Which performs better and creates better clothing. Everything you need to know.
January 13 2020
This article complete with free downloadable workbook will take you though all the steps to help you come up with the perfect clothing brand name.
November 9 2019
Textile printing is fabric dying but, in a very controlled way that creates patterns. Learn about textile print machines, techniques and design.
November 3 2019
Deadstock refers to old fabric that hasn’t been able to sell. Maybe there are small damages, maybe the company who purchased it ordered too much, or maybe there is a small little-known industry secret.
July 30 2019
What is the difference between mechanically, chemically, and thermally recycled cotton? And could textile recycling make fast fashion sustainable?
July 24 2019
Ok, you have an idea. Maybe you have even gone out and started to source fabrics. But, how do you turn your idea into reality? Well, simply put the answer is the tech pack. And as always virtue + vice is offering an in-depth guide for free.
July 18 2019
Ok brands, I hear you. You all want to make your clothing the best quality ever. You want them to be able to last for years and maybe even be passed down from generation to generation. But, how do you actually make that a reality? A lot of brands claim they offer top quality - but do they really? The secret- is having a good garment quality control procedures in place. This is often a step most forgotten about by new fashion designers because tbh it is the least fun or glamorous. But, I would argue it is the most important in creating a high-quality product. So, here is a reference, as always for free, of everything you need to check, test, and assure, in order to create the best product ever, complete with a garment quality control checklist to make things easy.
July 5 2019
A step by step fabric sourcing guide to help prep, stay organized, and find fabric suppliers. Includes email and excel templates.
May 22 2019
How a zero waste design shirt by four rabbit was made ethically and sustainably over the course of 10 days and in 4 different cities in India
May 20 2019
From basic budget backpackers hostels to sleeping in the actual chambers of past Mahrastha this list of the best hotels in Jaipur has something for everyone.
ALL OF MY FAVORITE PLACES TO EAT, SLEEP, SIGHTSEE, AND SHOP. This is a 3 part series of posts where I dive deep into all of my favorite places to hang out, eat, and stay. This week I'll give you my honest review of the best hotels in Jaipur.
May 13 2019
This week we are going to take everything that we have learned, along with some new knitting info and determine what is the best white t-shirt on the market. It turns out all you need to know are the very fundamentals of knitting to figure out if you are buying a quality product or garbage that a marketing team made you think sounded fancy.
April 16 2019
Woven fabrics interlace two sets of yarns at right angles. The horizontal width-wise yarns are weft yarns or pick yarns. And, the vertical yarns in a piece of fabric are warp yarns or ends.
January 24 2019
It may sound counterintuitive, but the secret to manufacturers and brands incorporating more sustainable and ethical practices while increasing their bottom lines may be to produce less and to produce slow(er) fashion.
January 5 2019
Thinking about starting a career in fashion? This is everything I wish someone had told me about jobs in the fashion industry.
Back in 2004 when I was applying for colleges and trying to figure out what I was going to do with the rest of my life, I didn't realize that there are jobs for all different personalities, talents, and abilities in the fashion industry. For some reason, I thought “designer” was the only job in fashion. I have never been particularly artsy, and don’t know how to sew, so working in fashion never felt like a real option.
December 27 2018
I had the opportunity to visit Poland in September on a trip sponsored by The European Union and Polish Investment & Trade Agency. And, not only was I was blown away by their manufacturing capabilities, but the country as a whole. Poland is probably the best-kept manufacturing secret in Europe right now. So, now the secrets out, Poland for manufacturing is where you need to be.
December 20 2018
Yarns are the often forgotten about secret to creating more sustainable fabrics and garments. By understanding them we can create garments that will last longer and perform better, here's how...
December 4 2018
Rayon was the first synthetic fiber, and originally consumers hated it. It wasn't until the invention of nylon, which made women's nylon stockings a possibility that the world became obsessed with synthetic fibers and faster fashion.
How did one little fiber change the fashion world forever? We'll get to that. And, talk about how other synthetic fibers continue to shape fashions hottest trends.
November 22 2018
The fourth topic of TEXTILES 101 is Luxury Wool.
Before you buy that discounted, to good to be true cashmere, educate yourself on some of the worlds most sustainable and rare luxury wool in the world. Cashmere, yak, camel wool, guanaco, mohair, alpaca, vicuna, angora, shahtoosh.
November 6 2018
This weeks topic of TEXTILES 101 is Animal Fibers, specifically - what is wool? Before you head out for your holiday shopping or invest in any itchy Christmas sweaters, make sure to read this guide.
October 23 2018
New to the fashion world? Welcome :) To help catch you up to speed, virtue + vice is offering free mini-courses. We will be releasing a new chapter bi-monthly. The courses will take you from the very first step in the fashion supply chain, textile fibers, all the way through to the finished product in stores. Our first crash course is TEXTILES 101. The second topic of TEXTILES 101 is Natural Plant Fibers.
October 22 2018
Sham Shui Po is a fabric market located in Kowloon and is one of Hong Kongs best-kept fashion secrets. Designers looking for deadstock - Sham Shui Po is your holy grail. Basically, it's where Chinese mills, from fast fashion to high-end, sell off their deadstock.
October 10 2018
New to the fashion world? Welcome :) To help catch you up to speed, virtue + vice is offering free mini-courses. We will be releasing a new chapter bi-weekly. The courses will take you from the very first step in the fashion supply chain, textile fibers, all the way through to the finished product in stores. Our first crash course is TEXTILES 101, which answers, what are textiles, and how do we know if they are sustainable or not.
The first topic of Textiles 101 is WHAT ARE TEXTILE FIBERS? And, why are they important in sustainable fashion design? Get ready to learn everything there is to know about the very first step in designing a product.
September 28 2018
India as a country, has a rich tradition of textiles. Today, Jaipur in Rajasthan and Ahmedabad in Gujarat have become international hotspots for handloom and khadi Indian made fabrics. Textiles are a living history book. They are a window into a countries history and culture. To understand the importance of Khadi, first, we need to explore its evolution. The art of handloom and Khadi has helped India to gain independence and shape it into the country it is today.
September 21 2018
Move over organic and fair trade, the newcomer to the sustainable and ethical fashion scene is clothing made by harnessing the power of astrology. The health and wellness area is seeing a growing market in apparel thanks to biodynamic farming.
June 7 2018
Joining the movement can often feel like a daunting and expensive undertaking to newbies. After doing your first bit of research you probably learned our closets are packed with unsustainable plastic fibers, toxic dyes, and in many cases slave labor.
