Clothing Design Software – Best 3D Software for Cloth Design

We're going to take a look at 7 of the best 3D Cloth Design software that can help you work on your 3D animations, game development or VFX projects, also, of course, to fashion design projects. This list will include dedicated Cloth Design software. So 3D packages like Lender, Maya Max, Zrush, and so on won't be included in this video. So, without further ado, let's jump right in. Starting off with none other than Marvelous Designer, a software that needs no introduction in the CG industry. It is known for its prominent role in VFX for movies and TV shows, addition to game development. So what its primary target is the entertainment industry.

Marvelous Designer Clothe Designer Review

It still covers all the functions which are commonly found in fashion software. But hold on. First, let's provide a quick context for those who are unfamiliar with it and these kind of tools in general. Marvelous designer, like other tools of this kind, is divided into two connected workspaces, one for 2D and another for 3D Clothe Design. One of the aspects I personally like about the 2D workspace in this program is how identical it is to the pen tool found in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. Also, we get to work with the combination of what is known as the polygonal tool to draw any shape we desire and the curved tool for creating curves and arcs in the 2D patterns, with the inclusion of control points at the end of each line for more control and precision.

Then we have the 3D workspace where we can import any 3D model of our choice and position the 2D patterns exactly where we need them to be. On top of that, we have a range of sewing tools at our disposal. You can use them to connect patterns and simulate anything made out of fabric, such as hats, and pants, and accessories, and so on. It also offers alethora of sculpture tools to adjust the size, shape, and style of the clothes after the simulation, addition to remeshing and UV editing tools, which is great.

Law 3D Vs Claw 3d – What's the Difference?

Moving on to our next software, we have the Archimesis of Marvelous Designer, which is known as Law 3D. Interesting enough, the reality is that these two applications or software are from the same company and they are relatively similar in terms of the interface and workflow. You might find the interface of Claw 3d a little bit or slightly more challenging at first glance, but it remains almost the same nonetheless. It basically has the same fundamentals of the polygonal and curve tools and workflow of Marvelous Designer, as well as most of its 3D functionalities and class simulation. Now you might be wondering if they are the same, then what's the point?

Claw 3D Vs Marvelous Designer

Well, the difference is that Claw 3D is developed to be used within the fashion industry, specifically with several features that are essential in physical garment production. For example, the ability to import and export in the DXF format affine the time to export the digital garments for manufacturing purposes. On the other hand, Marvelous Designer is widely used by 3D artists, whether it be game developers or VFX artists. Claw 3D also incorporates features aimed at optimizing productions. For example, it has a stress map which visualizes the pressure distribution in various sections of the design to check its durability and how comfortable it is, which is really important.

Claw 3D Prototyping Software For Fashion Designers

However, while it is primarily designed for fashion, it still includes the ability to export in formats such as OBJ and FBX to be potentially used in software like Real Engine or Blender. It is also worth highlighting that Claw 3D has its own built-in V-Ray render engine to texture and generate high-quality renders for designers directly within the software without the need for any third-party application. Let's now switch our focus to Tuka 3D, another virtual prototyping software that primarily focuses on fashion design. What's interesting is that this software doesn't include a 2D pattern creation section. Instead, it concentrates solely on the 3D aspect, as it was designed toward, in conjunction with their dedicated 2D pattern-making software known as Tuka Cat. But you can still use other cat software for this task. So the typical workflow begins with designing a pattern in the 3D space directly within the body of a chosen 3D model by using the Place Point system. Once the shape starts taking form, you can then import it into a cat software for further refinement and cleanup.

Cloud 3D Software Review – Is It Worth It?

But most importantly, to us is the 3D capabilities of the tool, and let me tell you it is very strong in this aspect. First, the software, as expected, provides a realistic and accurate simulation of fabric behavior, addition to a stitch and edges menu, when you can adjust things like weight and stiffness for further control, as well as the ability to edit the designs after the simulation. For example, with the distributed drape tool, you can tweak the edge of a collar to fold it over the rest of the design. On top of that, it has a built-in system to evaluate the fit and comfort of the garments on the virtual model to make the needed adjustments before sending them to physical production.

This, along with an extensive fabric library, also the ability to render real-time animations, addition to other stuff. Next, we have this teacher. While this one doesn't have a dedicated pattern creation section, it can be a nice software for those who are already comfortable with designing patterns in Adobe Illustrator or a cat software, and just using this teacher to transform them into a 3D design by using its wide range of fabric libraries, or even import yours if they are not enough. On a side note, all the same fabrics have the same physics as real-life fabrics to ensure an accurate simulation, and, of course, that also offers all the traditional tools which are expected from this type of software. This includes texturing options for applying colors, trends, and patterns to virtual garments, and the ability to evaluate the fit and comfort of designs, as well as realistic renders for presentation purposes. We also have Optitax.

This software can be considered a compact tool with, once again, only expected tools from the previous tools, so we won't cover them in detail again to avoid repetition. But as a summary, it also has a user interface which is divided into two sections: one for adjusting 2D patterns, which may not be as advanced as Cloud 3D, for example, but it is still fairly solid, as you can always integrate it with Adobe Illustrator instead, or you can update the details in real time, such as changing the colors or adding textures.

It also includes a 3D workspace for simulation, creating textures, animations and renders. So what's interesting about this particular software? Well, unlike some of the previous tools we mentioned, this software works with other types of 3D models, such as furniture, which can bemodeled in other 3D packages. then the nesting tools of this software can figure out the amount of fabric and additional materials which are required in the production process, which can save you valuable materials, time and effort. Moving on now to Taylorova, a free online 3D software which focuses on efficiency and speed to help us create designs in just minutes.

Simple Workspace Which Could be Used for Designing 2D Clothes

Generally, it has a very simple workspace which could be used for designing 2D clothes by mixing and mixing various silhouettes from its rich library, as well as the ability to choose the colors and patterns, using features to adjust the body, measurements, and design preferences, such as a specs menu, to edit different sizes for the waist, sleeves, and so on. It also provides tools to visualize the created patterns in 3D and to see how the finished garment will look like. And, speaking of that, you can download the pattern files and print them to be used in your sewing projects.

So when it may not be as advanced as some other software, it is still a good tool which is easy to work with and can be accessible instantly, especially because it is free. Last but not least, we have Odessa's Fashion Studio. Now this one is really interesting because it offers a pure 3D workflow, as it eliminates the 2D pattern creation process entirely. Instead, we can create, modify, and visualize garments or virtual models directly within the 3D space. This software has a lot of features, among them a cutting tool for removal of the clothing parts, a pinching tool to manipulate the positions of the different areas, and the loosening up of designs, and many other tools which can allow you to edit various aspects of the digital garments.

Additionally, this software has all the expected functions, such as an easy texturing and pattern creation, realistic and fast fabric simulation, and the freedom to design all sorts of clothes and types. And, of course, it has some rendering capabilities for presentation purposes. In fact, your designs can be even displayed with animations within a virtual set. In addition to many other features that can make this software an interesting alternative, especially for users who don't like the 2D pattern creation workflow and want a full 3D experience.