There is a story behind every piece of clothing - a journey that leads from the initial idea to the finished product. Of course, this is no different when making our Wombly clothing. Every pair of trousers, every top and every bodysuit is created through many individual work steps that are carried out by many different people at several locations. We would like to use our Pepe trousers as an example to show you the path our clothing takes before it finds a new home in your wardrobe.
Inspiration and Design
Since we at Wombly produce clothing items that are tailored to specific needs, the initial exchange with our target group, i.e. parents and carers, plays a central role. Fortunately, we are always able to provide advice to families with premature babies or children with disabilities or chronic illnesses through calls on social media and contacts with an employee in mobile aftercare.
During appointments (via video call or in person), we have everyday scenarios as well as the medical accessories and care routines explained to us in detail. We learn when, how often and for what purpose clothing needs to be put on, taken off or opened. And in this context, we get information about where there are problems with standard clothing and what details would make medical care and everyday life easier.
For example, we came up with the idea for developing the Pepe pants through feedback from a family whose child wears an orthosis on his leg. The parents complained that getting dressed and undressed was difficult. Therefore, they wished for a children's pair of trousers that can be fully opened on the side. Additionally, it should be possible for the child to put them on independently as much as possible.
Pepe trousers – with magnetic closure and side opening to the knee, up to size 140
Wishes like these are very helpful for us. Lina, our designer, who is also one of the managing directors, uses them to design new clothing items based on them. She creates sketches and digital drafts, which are discussed in the team and presented to the advisory parents.
A detachable zipper was included in the design of the Pepe pants, which allows the entire side to be opened completely. To make it easier to put on, Lina has added pull-up loops to the design as well as magnetic buttons and Velcro on the waistband. This is how the pants are B. can also be opened with one hand and is also suitable for children with muscle weakness.
Selection of fabrics and colors
In addition to the functionality of our clothing, the look is of course also the focus. We want our clothes to be colorful and cheerful so that children feel comfortable in them. At the beginning of the collection development, Lina creates a color and pattern tableau that includes around ten colors - some colors come in a lighter and a darker version. With every new design she bases herself on this tableau. We have some fabrics dyed in the desired color during production. We choose other fabrics that we order in smaller quantities in colors that roughly fit the tableau.
For the Pepe trousers we chose light blue. The trousers are made of a soft organic cotton fabric that is visually reminiscent of jeans. This makes it very suitable for everyday use and is very popular with children between the ages of 3 and 10.
We select the type of fabric based on the desired functionality: whether jersey, corduroy or knit - the focus of our considerations is always whether the fabric supports the purpose of the garment and, for example, is warm or particularly durable.
It is part of our company philosophy to only use fabrics made from certified organic cotton that have been produced under fair conditions. Therefore, we exclusively have our fabrics manufactured in Germany and Turkey, regularly ensuring the quality of the fabrics and working conditions on site.
Sample production
Leonie at the Working on a sample part
Once the concept is in place with all the adaptive details and the choice of fabric, Lina passes on her design to our employee Leonie, who constructs an initial basic pattern in our Wombly studio in Berlin, while our clothing technicians Lena (also managing director) and Emira select suitable fabric suppliers and producers . A sample piece is sewn and the fit is first tried on a doll.
We have several dolls in different sizes available, so we were also able to test the Pepe pants in several sizes. For the development of premature baby clothing, we are fortunate to have a premature baby doll that is very lifelike in terms of size and weight. Because we do not try on very small premature babies for medical and respect reasons If you can and want to do this, this is a good way to verify fit and size. We also often use them for photo shoots.
Our premature baby doll (in tube body Lumi and Bonding Cape Nika )
After trying it on with the help of the dolls, there are often adjustments to the cut. Afterwards you geten our production sites (in Poland or Portugal) a one size pattern to create a prototype so we can see if all the details so can be processed as we wish. If this is the case, then Leonie creates the different ones from the basic pattern required sizes, from which again sample parts gemanufactures become. We send these to selected families for fitting and testing and let us give detailed feedback.
Testing phase in family everyday life
Our sweet models Iliya and My in Wombly clothing
The test phase in everyday family life is an important step. We can only determine whether our clothing actually makes everyday life easier for families with premature babies, sick children or children with disabilities if they put our clothing through its paces. For this reason, part of the clothing journey is that we continually send out sample pieces to families from our (social media) community to try on (and keep) and ask for well-founded feedback.
With the Pepe pants, the main aim was to find out whether children can really put the pants on and take them off on their own and whether the loops, for example. B. are too long or too short and whether the knee patches work well with an orthosis or prosthesis. We also had to check whether the leg width was sufficient.
Of course, it is particularly practical when we find volunteer families from Berlin who would like to test our clothing. If this is the case, Leonie will take our sample pieces home to the family and try them on. Some families are also kind enough to come to our office for the fitting. This is very helpful because our other employees can then see the fit and functionality live and discuss the part and possible changes together.
Creation of a Sample Size Set
A few minor adjustments may be made. If everything finally fits - in the truest sense of the word - our production sites produce a so-called 'sample size set' in the next step. This means they make the garment once in each size we will order. This means that we can best notice grading errors this way. Maybe the pants fit great in the 98, but there was a mistake when grading and the crotch in the 134 was too low. We can correct things like this before releasing them for production.
Final Production
After all these steps, production release finally takes place. Our production gets the 'GO' from us to finally produce our clothing and gets started. Then we just have to wait, because it usually takes a few weeks before we receive the first finished new items of clothing. When we were finally able to receive the Pepe pants, we were really happy. Because it is always a special moment to hold a piece of clothing in which so much work and passion has gone into, ready and finished, in your hands for the first time and finally making it available to the general public.
Retail sale
And then the time has finally come. The path of Wombly clothing is coming to a temporary end. A new piece of clothing is ready for sale. The Pepe trousers join the Wombly trousers range and are waiting for happy wearers. To ensure it sells well, our photographer takes great photos and Lina writes an informative product description. And then the good piece can be purchased via our Wombly shop after it has traveled a very long way from the idea to the finished production.
(Image credit | Wombly adaptive kidswear & Jens Neumann)
