Hoodie tech pack: measurements and details

The essential measurements

A hoodie shares its base measurements with other tops, with a few additions of its own:

• Chest width: measured flat, 2.5 cm below the armhole.
• Body length: from the highest point of the shoulder to the hem.
• Shoulder width and sleeve length (from shoulder seam to cuff).
• Hood height and width: measured flat, at the widest point.
• Kangaroo pocket: width, height and opening angle.
• Cuff and hem ribbing: width and height.
• Drawcord length.

Fit: the oversized question

Most streetwear hoodies are cut oversized: dropped shoulders, wide body, long sleeves. If that is your intention, say so explicitly and reflect it in every measurement — an oversized hoodie can add 15 to 20 cm of chest width over a regular fit. A fitted hoodie is the opposite brief. The silhouette note at the top of the tech pack is what aligns your pattern maker with your vision.

As with all knits, add tolerances (±1 cm is standard) so quality control can distinguish a defect from a normal variation.

Fabric: fleece weight and face

Hoodies live in fleece. Specify the composition (100% cotton or cotton-polyester blend), the weight in GSM — 280–320 GSM for a mid-weight hoodie, 350–450 GSM for the heavy, structured streetwear feel — and the inside finish: brushed (soft, warm) or loopback (lighter, more breathable). The outside face can be standard or treated against pilling; if a clean surface matters for printing, say so.

Ask for a fabric swatch before sampling: the difference between a 300 and a 400 GSM fleece is something you feel, not something you read.

Hood, pocket and drawcords

Specify the hood construction: two-panel or three-panel (the three-panel hood stands better), lined or unlined, and whether it crosses over at the front. For the kangaroo pocket, give its dimensions and the bartack reinforcements at the corners — the detail that keeps it from tearing.

Drawcords need a length, a material (flat or round, cotton or polyester), a finish (metal tips, dipped ends, knotted) and eyelets or buttonholes for the openings. Each of these is a line in the tech pack.

Ribbing, stitching and branding

Cuffs and hem are usually a 2×2 rib with elastane for recovery — specify the rib height and composition. For stitching, cover the main seams and any flatlock or coverstitch details. Prints and embroidery get their artwork, dimensions and placement measured from fixed reference points.

In Atelia, the hoodie tech pack is generated from your design with guided fields for all of these points — the app structures the document exactly the way partner factories expect to receive it.

Prints, embroidery and placements

Heavy fleece is an excellent base for embroidery and puff prints, but the tech pack must say so explicitly. Give each artwork's dimensions and its placement from fixed points: a chest logo is measured from the shoulder seam or the collar, a back print from the back collar, a sleeve print from the cuff. On a hoodie, remember that the kangaroo pocket and the hood limit the printable zones — mark them on the flat sketch.

For embroidery on thick fleece, ask for a stitch-out on the actual fabric: density that works on a t-shirt can pucker a 400 GSM fleece.

Common hoodie mistakes

The classics: a hood specified without a panel count, so it arrives flat and shapeless. Drawcords without a listed length or finish, so they come short and frayed. A pocket without corner bartacks, so it tears within weeks. And a fleece weight chosen from a photo, so the "heavyweight" hoodie drapes like a sweatshirt. A hoodie has more components than a t-shirt — every component is a line in the tech pack, and every missing line becomes a decision made without you.

Sizes and grading

A hoodie size chart grades like other tops — typically +4 to 6 cm of chest width and +2 cm of length per size — with two additions: the hood and the pocket grade too, or they look comically small on the largest sizes. Give the grading rule for every measurement in the chart, not just the body. For oversized streetwear fits, many brands keep one wide body across several sizes and only grade the length; if that is your intention, write it down, because it changes the pattern work entirely.

And wash-test the sample before approving it: fleece shrinks, and brushed fabrics can pill. Note the before and after measurements in your project so the factory can pre-shrink the fabric or adjust the pattern if needed — a fix that is easy at the sample stage and impossible after production.