The Making

The Making

CLAVISHOUSE · PROCESS

From idea to garment

Every design starts on paper or in conversation — a phrase, a fragment, something worth chasing. From there:

  1. A brief is written. What does this piece mean, who is it for, which tradition does it draw from?
  2. The visual is built — sometimes hand-drawn, sometimes drafted with AI illustration tools and then rebuilt by hand, sometimes with an outside artist when the piece calls for one.
  3. The drawing is refined in Photoshop and Illustrator: typography reset in the chosen typeface, palette snapped to exact brand values, composition rebalanced, symmetry corrected.
  4. The piece is reviewed against existing marks and known artwork before release. Anything that reads too close to someone else's work is redrawn or dropped.
  5. Production runs through Printify's premium partner network — Monster Digital, SwiftPOD, Ink Blot and Fulfill Engine — chosen for print quality and durability rather than speed alone.

On AI

We use AI illustration tools as part of the drafting process, and we say so on every page where it matters. The AI is a drafting partner, not the artist — compositional decisions, palette, typography and final craft are human work.

Read the full disclosure →

Materials

  • Heavyweight tees: 100% ring-spun US cotton, 6.1 oz, garment-dyed after construction, pre-shrunk, tubular knit with double-needle stitching
  • Tanks: carded and ring-spun cotton, up to 7.1 oz on the heavier styles, side-seamed for shape, tear-away labels
  • Cropped pieces: 100% organic cotton, medium weight, or a cotton-poly blend where the cut needs the drape

On garment dyeing

Most of our pieces are dyed after the shirt is sewn rather than before. The colour sits unevenly, softens at the seams, and varies slightly between batches. This is why a new ClavisHouse tee already feels like one you have owned for two years — and why no two are identical.

On longevity

We design for the kind of wear that earns marks rather than tears. A piece should look like yours after a year, not exhausted.

A drafting partner, not the artist.

Where this came from →