Colour against the card
Judge shade under neutral daylight, never under warm shop lighting. Hold the swatch over the card rather than beside it so the edges touch and the eye cannot cheat.
Sampling
Read the cloth before you read the price
An A4 swatch costs you nothing but the courier. It is the cheapest way to find out whether a construction is worth quoting, and the fastest way to kill an article that is not.
What you can ask for
By code, or by requirement
You do not need to know our article codes. A requirement written as a specification is enough to work from.
- By article code
- You already know the code or have seen it on a card or in a previous shipment. Name it and we cut that cloth.
- By requirement
- You know what the fabric has to do but not the code. Write it as a spec — for example “TR 65/35, 240 g/m², navy” — and we match it.
- By reference sample
- Send a piece you are trying to replace, or a photograph plus the fault you want fixed, and we work back to a construction.
- By end use
- If the fabric still has to be chosen, describe the garment, the season and the target price band and we propose the closest articles.
A requirement such as “TR 65/35, 240 g/m², navy” tells us composition, weight and colour, which is enough to come back with a match. Minimums for the article are confirmed per order and are not affected by the sample, subject to confirmation.
After the swatch arrives
What happens next, in order
Sampling is where most sourcing time is lost. This is the sequence we follow so you know which stage you are in and how long each one runs.
You read the swatch
Colour, handfeel and weight against the card and against whatever you are replacing. Tell us what is right and what is not — the objections are more useful than the approval.
We answer the objections
Shade adjustment, weight, width, finish or a different construction. If the answer is “this article cannot do that”, we say so at this stage rather than after the order.
Handloom or lab dip
A woven or dyed match of the colour before any bulk yarn is committed. Usually 7–10 days for preparation, excluding courier transit; subject to confirmation for the article and the shade.
Development sample
A sample of the construction when you need to see the cloth itself, not as a swatch. Usually 20–30 days for preparation, excluding courier transit; subject to confirmation.
Garment sample
A made-up garment when the cloth has to be judged in the finished piece. Cost and lead time are quoted separately from fabric sampling.
Bulk
Only once the sample is signed off. Production and shipment timings are confirmed per order, subject to confirmation at that point.
Handloom, lab dip and development sample timings are usual values and are confirmed per order, subject to confirmation.
How to read a swatch
Six checks worth doing before you reply
An A4 piece will not tell you everything. These six will tell you whether the article deserves a place in your next range.
Metamerism
Two matches can agree under one light and split under another. If you know the light your buyer will check under, tell us and we match to that one.
Handfeel
Roll it between finger and thumb for softness, fold it and release it to see how it creases and recovers, and feel the surface for hairiness or a stiff finish.
Weight in the hand
An A4 piece is around 1/16 of a square metre, so a 240 g/m² cloth is roughly fifteen grams — close to two sheets of office paper. Weight is a balance, not a sensation, and the number on the spec sheet is the reliable one.
Construction
Hold it up to the light or use a pick glass: yarn count and density explain most of the difference in how a fabric behaves, cleans and wears.
Stretch and recovery
For anything with elastane, pull across the width and length and release. What it does after thirty seconds tells you more than what it does immediately.
Next step
Swatch approved? Then the numbers matter.
Once you have the cloth in hand, ask for the price on your own quantity and colour. Minimums, lead times and availability are confirmed per order, subject to confirmation.