Name and label pattern pieces

What you are trying to accomplish

Give every digital piece a meaningful identity and enough printed information that you—or another maker—can cut it without guessing. In PatternForge, the piece name and an Add Label marking are related but different:

• The piece name identifies the object throughout the app and is printed in the automatic piece-information block.
• An added label is optional text placed where you choose on the piece.

Why it matters

Names such as “Piece 1” are temporary placeholders. They become confusing as soon as a project includes fronts, backs, sleeves, facings, lining, or mirrored parts.

A useful printed piece should communicate its identity, how many to cut, whether it goes on a fold, and any material or construction note that cannot safely live only in your memory. PatternForge automatically builds some of this from the piece name and readiness details. Added labels are best for extra instructions, placement notes, and clear on-piece reminders.

Step by step

1. Select the traced piece. In the right panel, replace the placeholder name with a specific sewing name such as Front Bodice, Back Neck Facing, or Pocket Bag. Press Enter or click away to save it.
2. Include material or orientation in the name only when it distinguishes separate pieces, such as Front Bodice Lining or Left Front for a genuinely asymmetric design.
3. Open Get it ready and answer How many to cut? Choose a common chip or enter a custom positive quantity.
4. If the piece is a half pattern intended for folded fabric, use 1 on the fold and answer the half-or-whole question carefully. Do not use this choice for an already complete full-width piece.
5. Add a piece note for cutting or sewing information that belongs with this piece.
6. To place visible text, choose Add Label, then click or tap inside the owning piece. Type the label before leaving the inline editor; an empty label is removed.
7. Use a quick preset when it says exactly what you mean, such as CUT 2 or CUT 1 ON FOLD. Otherwise write your own concise, unambiguous text.
8. Select the label to edit multiple lines, font, size, emphasis, alignment, spacing, color, or rotation. Keep decorative styling secondary to legibility.
9. Position the label inside the piece where it will not collide with darts, grainlines, notches, or tile joins. Preview the actual export rather than judging only on the worktable.
10. Repeat the same naming and readiness check for every small facing, pocket, lining, interfacing, template, and placement piece—not just the main garment pieces.

What success looks like

• No finished piece is still called “Piece 1,” “Untitled,” or another placeholder.
• Names remain understandable when the source photo is hidden.
• Every piece has a deliberate cut quantity.
• True cut-on-fold pieces have a real fold edge, not just typed words.
• Added label text is readable, inside the intended piece, and does not cover essential markings.
• The exported piece-information block states the name, cut instruction, line meaning, and other available metadata correctly.

Common problems and recovery

Pattern Check says the piece is not named

Replace the generated placeholder with a descriptive name. Changing capitalization or adding spaces to “Piece 1” does not make it meaningful.

Renaming the piece did not change an added label

They are separate objects. Rename the piece in its header, then edit any custom label text that should match.

The label disappeared while you were adding it

PatternForge removes an empty draft label. Choose Add Label again, place it inside a piece, and enter text before closing the editor.

The label belongs to the wrong piece

Delete and recreate it inside the correct piece, or use the object controls if the current surface offers re-parenting. Recheck the Objects list before export.

The text is too small or crowded in the PDF

Increase the label size, shorten the wording, use multiple lines, or move it to a quieter area. Confirm it in Preview at the final paper setting.

“CUT 1 ON FOLD” is typed on a whole piece

Remove the misleading label and set the real fold behavior through Get it ready or the Fold controls. A whole piece placed on folded fabric would cut a double-size result.

The cut quantity is right but the material is unclear

Use a clear piece name or piece note. Material metadata is currently less prominent in the main readiness flow, so verify the printed piece-information block and instruction cut list before release.

Quick safety check

Hide the source photo and read the pattern as if it came from someone else:

• Can every piece be identified by name?
• Does each piece say how many to cut?
• Is fold status represented by real piece behavior, not only text?
• Are labels readable and attached to the correct piece?
• Could a maker distinguish main fabric, lining, interfacing, and paired pieces without asking you?

Related tools and next step

Add a grainline, set up cut-on-fold behavior, and place notches and balance marks. Finish by reviewing the project in Pattern Check and in the exported print preview.