Development
The Prototyping and Production of FERAL
The Concept
The first "sample" of the FERAL hoodie dates all the way back to 2018, when I was a wee 15 years old. I had combined a damaged mink jacket which I had purchased on a family trip to Thailand with a heather gray "Flame Logo" Thrasher Magazine hoodie. As a naming convention, we'll call this Sample 0.
Sample 0 used a strip of real mink fur (RIP) as a trim piece which would surround the hood opening. At the time, I hand sewed the strip on which looked incredibly low rent. That being said, I thought it looked very cool. It is hard to recollect why I started this project but as I grew older I found myself still proud of the project going on years later.
Now, fast forward over 8 years later, industrial design degree in hand, I am returning to the project in an attempt to reboot one of my favorite personal creations. I do not have any experience making clothing, or any type of soft goods for that matter, however I posses the ability to learn and I trust my taste, two skills of which I'm sure will prove invaluable.
Defining FERAL
Basing the FERAL on that of Sample 0, there are two requirements: The garment must be a pullover hoodie, and the hood rim / edge must be surrounded by fur, easy enough. However, a prompt with very few requirements gives an equal amount of opportunities to innovate as it does fuck up. I wanted to avoid this from becoming a generic hoodie silhouette with fur tacked on, it needed to be reserved, pragmatic, and intentional.
The problem with many hoodies is that the actual fit has remained unchanged for the past 30 years. I wanted FERAL to be shorter, wider, and more focused than something like a champion blank. The recipe which I had finalized for the FERAL hoodie was as follows:
heavyweight cotton fleece + boxed / cropped body + dense natural fur + vintage wash
Below is the preliminary diagram for which I am basing Sample 1
Initial Renders
Having a diagram of a hoodie is all great and dandy but to understand how this was actually going to look on a person, I needed a render. For this I consulted our dear friend, ChatGPT 5 with image creation. After what we can assume was a few gallons of water usage, it produced the images you see below. These are reflective of what the final product will hopefully look like, however came at a cost of painstakingly writing and revising prompts.
The render is to serve as a target in which I will be focusing my efforts. I suspect this is going to be an iterative process as all things in design are. I will be legitimately shocked if Sample 1 looks like the render.
Sample 1: Failure Pt.1
Sample 1 is undeniably a failure, point blank. That being said, it provided valuable information as to why and how it can be mended going forward. From even a passing glance we can identify a multitude of issues. Most glaringly is the overall fit and cut of the actual pattern for the fabric.
The hoodie is too long and thin, leading to the initial issue of looking like a generic hoodie with fur attached. Second, it is missing the dropped shoulder seam, a key component of what makes the silhouette look boxy. Lastly the hood opening is far too small, resulting in what I have dubbed the "Kenny from Southpark" effect. A person without their fingers could count on their hand how many times someone has said "Kenny from Southpark looks cool".
Sample 1 demands a return to the drawing board and a revaluation of the whole pattern.
The Teachings of Sample 1
As previously stated, Sample 1 needed work and to do so I essentially restarted the whole project. New diagrams, new drawings and more clarification of requirements. Something I have learned now dealing with manufacturers is that you must be as detailed and concise as possible while simultaneously not overcomplicating the description.
Instructions must not leave anything up to interpretation as the manufacturers interpretation of an image or reference might be completely different than the author's intention. It is almost parodoxical that the most important details must conveyed in the least amount of words as possible as to not introduce confusion.
Going forward, Sample 2 was almost a complete redesign of sample 1, only keeping one singular measurement the same; the wrist hole ribbed cuff length. In fact, calling it "Sample 2" is genereous, it is essentially Sample 1 of an entirely different pattern.
From my understanding, Sample 2 should in theory fix many of the problems with the first iteration. The entire pattern has been redrawn from the bottom up in order to make it shorter, wider, and include a much stronger dropped shoulder effect. Unfortunately, I don't posses the software to test garment dimensions and will not be able to see the effect of the new measurements until the hoodie has been constructed.
Sample 2 Progress
Immediately from the progress photos that my manufacturer sent me, we can see that sample 2 is much more closely aligned with the concept renders. This is primarily due to the revised dimensions, it is much wider, shorter, and has the desired dropped shoulder seam.
That being said, there are some visual hiccups I will need to verify in person once the product is physically in my hands. Most notably is the sleeve length. The pooling / stack by the cuff hem looks more substantial that I would like, however this must be verified on a person, not a mannequin.
This is a promising update while I wait for the fur to be attached to the hood.
Sample 2 Details
While a 500 GSM hoodie with fur is an incredible idea, I needed certain affordances that would separate my product from the innumerable amount of TikTok shop dupes that would inevitably copy my design.
The top priority was the logo hit. First and foremost was to avoid the typical chest hit. The logo is intended to be understated and feel like a discovery. The bottom right pocket placement allows the logo to remain as a feature without shoving branding in an onlookers retinas. For the color, I wanted a semi contrasting dark red, which would be paired with the same color thread for exposed interior overlock stitching.
Contrast interior stitching in the same oxblood red thread allows for a fun easter egg of intentional construction.
Sample 2 Visual Review
I am still yet to receive the physical sample, but the construction has been completed. So far this looks pretty good, the proportions are working and the overall cut of the pattern looks successful.
I am particularly happy with the drop shoulder. I was really in debate how to get that effect since as previously iterated, I have never developed a pattern or a dims chart previous to this project. I still don't have the hoodie in my hands so only so much can be said as far as the quality or construction but if its anything like the photos suggest, I should be pleased with the result.
These are extremely promising updates and I am satisfied with how the cohesion of the materials are working together to form what I believe is hitting the original marks of understated exoticism.
