Someone asked me this on my YouTube channel, and I loved it: can you attach a garment to a linear measurement in CLO3D?
The short answer is yes. I’ve shown you before how to attach fabric to a measurement that goes all the way around the avatar, like a waist or bust line. (Watch that one here if you missed it.) Today we’re attaching to a straight line instead, and it works exactly the same way.
Why attach fabric to a straight line?
I use these lines all the time when I’m draping in CLO. Pinning fabric to a straight line on the avatar lets you hold a piece in place on one spot, the way you’d pin muslin to a dress form, and then watch how it falls. It’s one of the most fun ways to work in CLO3D.
What you’ll need
- An avatar or mannequin in your scene
- A pattern piece. A simple square or rectangle works great for practicing, and the size doesn’t matter.
- A tape line drawn on the avatar
Step 1: Draft a pattern piece
Draft a square in the 2D window. Don’t worry about the exact size. We’re just testing how the attachment works.
Step 2: Draw a straight tape line on the avatar
Use the basic avatar tape tool to draw a line on your avatar. In the video, I drew mine straight up her arm. Finish the line when you’re happy with where it sits.
Step 3: Attach the fabric to the line
This is the same process you’d use for a measurement that goes around the body:
- Select the Attach to Avatar Tape tool.
- Click on the pattern piece you just drafted.
- Click on the tape line.
- Hit Simulate.
You’ll see the square attach right onto the line. Gravity still applies, though, so the fabric hangs down from where it’s attached, just like real fabric would.
Step 4: Try a line across the body
Next, I drafted a second, slightly longer square so I could tell the two apart. Then I drew another tape line straight across the front of the mannequin and attached the new piece to it.
When you simulate this time, the fabric doesn’t wrap around the body. It stays on that plane. That’s the big difference between a straight line and a circular one.
Tip: If your piece flies off somewhere unexpected (mine did!), just reset it and simulate again. You can let the fabric keep sliding along that plane, or stop it once it lands where you want it. I kept mine right there in the front.
Linear or circular? You get both
So there you have it. You can attach a piece of fabric to a straight line in CLO3D. It doesn’t have to be a circle, but you can still use a circle whenever you need fabric to go around the body.
- Circular measurement: fabric wraps around the avatar (waistbands, bodices, skirts).
- Linear measurement: fabric stays on one plane (draping a panel, placing a piece on the front of the body, working along an arm).
Got a CLO3D question?
If you’re stuck on something inside CLO3D, or in digital drafting in general, leave your question in the comments on the YouTube video. Your question might become the next video!
Just getting started with CLO3D and not sure where to begin? Grab my free CLO3D Beginner Roadmap. It walks you through what to learn first so all those buttons feel a lot less overwhelming.
And if you want more quick CLO3D tips like this one, subscribe on YouTube.
Happy patterning!
