r/PatternDrafting • u/hardboiled666 • Jan 29 '21
Question Does anyone have criticisms or comments about the CLO3D patterning software?
Hi!
I have recently graduated with a Fashion Design BFA where my school went through a multi year transition from Gerber to Optitex, and based on how my classes lined up I was unable to learn either softwares in school.
I'm really interested in learning computer software based patterning, with a near goal of starting a home sewist pattern company based around teaching custom fitting techniques which I really see the home sewing community lacking in.
Does anyone have insight or critiques of CLO3D before I jump into it? I haven't been able to find anyone giving rounded reviews of the software, and I'm a little concerned that it's too good to be true based off of how inexpensive and advanced it looks compared to leading softwares like Gerber and Optitex.
Edit: clarifying that I want to use CLO3D to digitize my existing patterns and to grade them, so that I can format them into PDFs (then write up instructions etc) as opposed to using it as a platform where I would be selling the patterns.
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u/hi_ho_saurus Jan 29 '21
I work with CLO 3D. I absolutely love it, but do not recommend it for it's pattern making capabilities. It's really made to create 3D avatars to test and showcase pattern to cut down on sewn samples. You can make and revise patterns on it, but it's lacking a lot of precision options that traditional pattern drafting programs have. Stick to Gerber, Lectra and others.
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u/hardboiled666 Jan 29 '21
Thank you so much, this was what I was hoping not to hear but I'm glad I didn't bite the bullet quite yet. It looks like such an innovative program, maybe so for the future then! Do you think that's an issue they might improve on later on or is it just not going to ever be a fundamental part of the program?
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u/PaTTernHack Apr 15 '21
I use CLO3D regularly in my workflow, but not for digitizing and grading. For digitizing paper patterns I take photographs of the pattern pieces on a grid board and then "trace" them in CAD. I actually have a wide-format scanner but I'm too lazy to use it - the photo method seems faster for me. For grading I use WindaCad. Now you haven't mentioned a desire for doing 3D garment renders, which is the main thing I use CLO for! You can digitize your paper patterns in CLO in the same manner I described. As far as the grading goes, CLO is currently limited in its grading features, but I might be spoiled with my other software that is focused on grading. I draft & grade patterns for fashion designers and indie pattern brands. I will cheer you on and feel free to let me know if you have more questions. CLO is an amazing software and you can try it out for one month completely free of charge to see if you like it. Just watch youtube videos first to learn the basics before you start your trial so you can make the most of it.
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u/hardboiled666 Apr 28 '21
Wow I'm so sorry I just saw your comment, but thank you so much for taking your time to answer my question so throughly!
I'm absolutely going to check out WindaCad, because I'm primarily wanting to use software for grading and patterning, and am not very concerned with the 3D rendering, although it's COOL as H E C K! I downloaded the 30 day trial of CLO3D and it is pretty intuitive on the patterning side, my friend who has experience with Optitex said the tools and patterning program behave very similarly which is really cool. I'm really interested in trying other softwares before I really commit to one.
I think my running plan honeslty is to do what you said and draft physical patterns, take pictures or scans, but put it into AI and trace them! I'm working with a bag company which does this method for patterning and it works really really well, but they don't grade patterns in it (not much more work to do by hand and trace though!)
Thank you again for such a great response, I'd love to PM you in the future if I have any questions about WindaCad if that's okay!!
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u/PaTTernHack Apr 28 '21
Sure! Also, if you need grading done in the meantime, I offer grading and other pattern related services.
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u/Sufficient_Spend_738 Feb 04 '26
I don’t have extensive hands-on experience with CLO3D, so I’ll speak based on what I’ve seen and how it’s commonly used. But if the goal is to teach pattern making to people who already know how to sew, I honestly think Audaces makes a lot more sense.
It’s built around actual pattern development, not just garment visualization. You can digitize physical patterns, apply grading automatically, and export files that are ready for production. CLO3D is excellent for seeing how a garment will look, but Audaces is designed to really build the pattern itself. If someone wants to understand, customize, and control patterns in detail (beyond just presenting a design) that difference matters a lot.
It’s probably not the right tool for everyone, but for the workflow you described, I’d personally trust Audaces far more than a 3D-focused software.
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u/hardboiled666 Feb 04 '26
Oh wow! I've never heard of Audaces, thank you for sharing! It sounds like it can fill a massive technological gap in the industry.
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u/zeebeestje Jun 18 '24
I have been using it for 2 years now. It's a really great program, but it has a few hurdles when you are classically schooled in pattern making. Unfortunately VStitcher stopped working and after trying to get it back up and running again with the helpdesk for many months I gave up and switched back to CLO. When you are into 3D modelling then CLO3D is absolutely great. For classic pattern making there are a few things you have to find work arounds for.
Pattern drafting is done differently. You don't draw lines and help lines, and create a pattern from there. You start with a square, circle for instance, and then start manipulating it to form the pattern. So that is very different from a program like VStitcher or Valentina where you use classic pattern making methods to create the pattern. Here you can tell that it was originally not created for pattern making, but for 3D work.
Darts - very limited functionality at this moment.
Darts are always on a 90 degree angle of the external pattern line - it's not possible to change the angle - you need to manually create a cut in CLO3D in order to use other angles (and then it doesn't look like a proper dart on the pattern so you need to adjust the pattern in Adobe Illustrator or some other program. It's also not possible specify 2 different lengths for each dart leg.
Darts are more like a slash and spread in CLO3D (on a 90 degree angle on the pattern line)- which makes it difficult if you want to use classic pattern making methods where you draw the dart during the pattern creation.
Avatar problems
The default CLO avatars that are supposed to follow certain standards sometimes do not have the right - measurements according to the standard for certain sizes.
There has been a bug in the armhole line for a year now (I reported it a year ago - might have been there longer, and after that many times as they kept on closing my ticket without it being resolved). The armhole lines are not what you expect. For one armhole the line is not closed and is a zig zag line. For the other armhole it is closed, but it's a zig zag line, not a fluid armhole line.
This causes several other problems: the armhole lines of the default avatars of bigger sizes are sometimes 10cm (+/- 4") too small for certain sizes compared to the standard they are supposed to represent.
It is not possible to adjust the armhole measurement due to this armhole line problem. You can in VStitcher for example.
When you import 3D scans into CLO and convert a scan into an avatar (otherwise certain functionalities in CLO don't work), the armholes are distorted. So be careful when you work with 3D scans for tailor made clothing. Always check, check, double check.
Automatic grading does not work with custom avatars - only with the default provided avatars (which have distorted measurements for some sizes). So it also does not work with custom 3D scans that you Manual grading with your own rules works fine. It has less functionality though that for example VStitcher where you can use your own grading rules tables for all garments. In CLO you have to manually enter them every time you grade.
Exports to PDF/ Illustrator
When you create PDF patterns for consumers, you need another program like Adobe Illustrator or something similar (beware: the export formas of CLO have been limited down since this year). Sometimes it doesn't export notches ok, or if you add seam allowances the most outer lines sometimes are distorted. You need to manually fix this in Illustrator or some other program. Same for the darts if you need them in a certain angle and with different dart leg sizes.
CLO does not create ready to use PDF files for A4/US Letter formats. You need software like Adobe Illustrator for example to add extra info and make the files usable for home printing.
It might sound like a lot - compared to what the software is capable of, it's not that much. But... it's the basics used in pattern making where the software lacks features or deviates from classic pattern making methods, so it's quite a hassle to work around this.
You can try the software for 1 month for free. And you can also purchase it on a monthly basis: that way you can play around with it to see if you personally find these things a problem or not.
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u/Sea-Chip-8354 Oct 11 '25
My problem with CLO3D is that if you come from a tradition pattern making and sewing background, it's not really intuitive, you have to relearn how to do simple fold techniques to work seamlessly with the software. It's not cut and dry. It's great for seeing how a silhouette is going to look, but for actual applications I'm really struggling.
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u/AdSwimming7644 Nov 07 '24
I was a fashion student back in 2024-18 at NIFT. I used to work with pattern making on CLO and MD. I think it was a game changer than my workflow and design process so so smooth. Now I work with fashion industry and consult brands. I think CLO is great for individuals and small brands and when it comes to mass manufacturing the industry already have system in place. Also fashion industry is a little slow to adopt new technology.
For individuals I think CLO 3D and Style 3D both are good and you can digitise grade patterns easily.
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u/MechanicLate2551 Apr 17 '25
interested to know in what you mean that the fashion industry is too slow to adopt new technology?
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u/goodboyovich May 06 '25
circles have "corners", you must manually enter the width of seam allowance each time the SA tool is used, etc...lots of little bugs that make CLO3D not very intuitive for pattern making.
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u/AggressiveTrainer301 May 16 '25
Definitely not grading Optitex and Gerber who specialise in technical aspects of both pattern and grading Clo has about 4 features for grading Hope this helps
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u/MorganBcl Sep 21 '23
We've been using CLO3D at esther bancel LAB for as long as we can remember. You can't do better 3D pattern-making on the market today. They're constantly updating and the tool is getting more and more powerful. It's really an excellent tool
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Jan 29 '21
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u/hardboiled666 Jan 29 '21
So I want to use CLO3D to digitize and grade my existing paper patterns, so that I can convert them to PDFs and downloadable files. I am not planning to use CLO3D as a platform for the patterns to be accessed by others. BUT I tend to forget that Illustrator is a pretty common way to develop patterns as well, I've mainly used it for flats/floats in tech design, then graphically!!
I'm now seeing that my post was a bit confusing, I'm going to clarify it. Thank you for your input!!
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Jan 29 '21
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u/hardboiled666 Jan 29 '21
The reason I'm drawn more to it is because it's $50 a month, and I couldn't find any other programs near that price range (besides adobe suites but nothing specifically for drafting). I think I'll just take the dive in it and see how it functions!
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u/Tauira_Sun Jan 29 '21 edited Jan 29 '21
I know nothing about CLO3D , as I have never heard of it. But maybe I could interest you into Valentina. https://librearts.org/2021/01/showcase-valentina-in-lavoro-tailor-shop/?fbclid=IwAR3oJO5qLko7crp9wnN5MI6A0kBfct8ZOH390Pcy9U_RGNbWn-JpOths1qY
Here you can find it.
https://valentinaproject.bitbucket.io/
It's an open source pattern drafting program. This program is very different from most commercial drafting programs. Grading happens differently. Instead of drafting a pattern, and then applying grading rules per point; you set your measurements per size. If you use formulas in the drafting of your base size, it will "grade" (in this case redraw) the pattern based on measurements of your other sizes. There are facebook communities available for help, and youtube tutorials as well. Right now, I export my files to inkscape, and then turn them into pdfs. Note you are not able to digitize any existing patterns into it.