---
title: "Fabric and Apparel Patternmaker"
description: "Draw and construct sets of precision master fabric patterns or layouts. May also mark and cut fabrics and apparel."
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/fabric-and-apparel-patternmaker"
last-updated: "2026-10-09T10:57:55.138Z"
---

# Fabric and Apparel Patternmaker

**Category:** Production · **SOC code:** 51-6092 · **O\*NET-SOC code:** 51-6092.00

Draw and construct sets of precision master fabric patterns or layouts. May also mark and cut fabrics and apparel.

Also advertised as: Cutter; Designer; Fabric Cutter; Pattern Designer; Pattern Maker; Pattern Technician; Production Pattern Maker; Sewing Pattern Layout Technician.

## At a glance

- **Median annual wage:** $62,750 (BLS OEWS, May 2025)
- **Median hourly wage:** $30.17/hr
- **Wage range (10th–90th percentile):** $33,790 to $123,540, with the middle half between $42,620 and $93,930
- **Total US employment:** 2,950
- **Typical entry education:** High school
- **Preparation required:** Some preparation — O\*NET rates this "Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed"
- **Projected growth:** -15.0% over 2025–2035 (BLS EP, 2025–2035)
- **Annual job openings:** 200 openings a year
- **AI-resilience score:** 30/100 — a NueCareer heuristic over O\*NET work activities and context, not a BLS or O\*NET figure

## Pay

National wage distribution, BLS OEWS, May 2025, across 2,950 US jobs.

| Percentile | Annual wage |
| --- | --- |
| 10th | $33,790 |
| 25th | $42,620 |
| 50th (median) | $62,750 |
| 75th | $93,930 |
| 90th | $123,540 |
| Mean (average) | $71,420 |

### Pay by state

The 13 highest-paying states, by median annual wage. The cost-of-living-adjusted column divides the state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, so the columns answer different questions: the first is what the job pays there, the second is what that pay buys there.

| State | Median annual wage | Cost-of-living adjusted | Employment |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| NY | $101,230 | $93,800 | 670 |
| CA | $89,010 | $80,392 | 930 |
| PA | $65,900 | $67,540 | 40 |
| IN | $59,400 | $63,646 | 50 |
| MO | $56,490 | $62,202 | 50 |
| OR | $55,740 | $53,927 | 30 |
| OH | $49,220 | $53,054 | 30 |
| NC | $48,180 | $51,078 | 270 |
| MA | $47,680 | $45,084 | Not published by BLS |
| VA | $45,390 | $44,894 | 40 |
| MS | $41,060 | $47,221 | 30 |
| TX | $34,930 | $35,989 | 70 |
| FL | $33,790 | $32,674 | 380 |

## Outlook

BLS projects employment to move from 3,000 in the 2025–2035 base year to 2,600 by the end of the cycle — a loss of 500 jobs, or -15.0%. Declining: -15.0% against 3.5% projected for all occupations over the same cycle. About 200 openings a year are expected on average, counting openings from growth as well as from workers leaving the occupation permanently. Source: BLS EP, 2025–2035.

## How to get in

- **Typical entry education:** High school diploma or equivalent (BLS Employment Projections).
- **Preparation level:** Some preparation — O\*NET's preparation band for this occupation is "Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed".
- **Related work experience typically required:** None.
- **Typical on-the-job training:** Moderate-term on-the-job training.

### Education people in this job actually hold

O\*NET surveys incumbents, so this distribution describes who is in the job today and can differ from the BLS entry requirement above.

| Education level | Share of workers |
| --- | --- |
| High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED) | 40.7% |
| Bachelor's Degree | 26.4% |
| Some College Courses | 18.6% |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 11.5% |
| Less than a High School Diploma | 2.9% |

## What the work involves

- Mark samples and finished patterns with information, such as garment size, section, style, identification, and sewing instructions.
- Draw outlines of pattern parts by adapting or copying existing patterns, or by drafting new patterns.
- Position and cut out master or sample patterns, using scissors and knives, or print out copies of patterns, using computers.
- Make adjustments to patterns after fittings.
- Create a paper pattern from which to mass-produce a design concept.
- Examine sketches, sample articles, and design specifications to determine quantities, shapes, and sizes of pattern parts, and to determine the amount of material or fabric required to make a product.
- Determine the best layout of pattern pieces to minimize waste of material, and mark fabric accordingly.
- Trace outlines of specified patterns onto material, and cut fabric, using scissors.

## Skills and knowledge

### Essential skills

- Critical Thinking — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Listening — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Reading Comprehension — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Speaking — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Mathematics — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Learning — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Monitoring — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Writing — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Transferable skills

These are the skills that carry into other occupations, and they drive the related-occupation and career-change rankings on this site.

- Judgment and Decision Making — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Time Management — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Quality Control Analysis — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Complex Problem Solving — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Operations Monitoring — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Social Perceptiveness — importance 2.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Coordination — importance 2.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Instructing — importance 2.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Knowledge areas

- Design — importance 4.2 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Mathematics — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- English Language — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Production and Processing — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Education and Training — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Engineering and Technology — importance 2.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Abilities

- Visualization — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Near Vision — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Originality — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Information Ordering — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Written Comprehension — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Oral Expression — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

## Who it suits

O\*NET rates every occupation on the six Holland (RIASEC) interest areas, on a 1–7 scale. This occupation's strongest areas are Realistic (R), Artistic (A), Conventional (C).

| Interest area | Score (1–7) |
| --- | --- |
| R — Realistic | 5.65 |
| A — Artistic | 5.40 |
| C — Conventional | 4.17 |
| E — Enterprising | 1.45 |
| I — Investigative | 1.34 |
| S — Social | 1.31 |

### Personality fit

These scores are **derived by NueCareer**, not published by any government agency: they are cosine similarities between a personality type's trait profile and this occupation's O\*NET interest and work-style ratings, expressed 0–100. Treat them as a starting point for exploration, not as evidence that a type belongs in a job.

| Type | Fit score (0–100) |
| --- | --- |
| ISTJ | 65.8 |
| ISTP | 64.9 |
| INTJ | 62.4 |
| ISFP | 60.3 |
| ISFJ | 60.1 |

Best-fitting types: ISTJ, ISTP, INTJ.

## Related occupations

O\*NET's primary related occupations, in its own ranked order.

- [Patternmaker, Metal and Plastic](https://nuecareer.com/careers/patternmaker-metal-and-plastic) — median $58,000
- [Sewer, Hand](https://nuecareer.com/careers/sewer-hand) — median $36,480
- [Patternmaker, Wood](https://nuecareer.com/careers/patternmaker-wood) — median $49,630
- [Tailor, Dressmaker, and Custom Sewer](https://nuecareer.com/careers/tailor-dressmaker-and-custom-sewer) — median $41,640
- [Fashion Designer](https://nuecareer.com/careers/fashion-designer) — median $80,960
- [Layout Worker, Metal and Plastic](https://nuecareer.com/careers/layout-worker-metal-and-plastic) — median $63,870
- [Cutter and Trimmer, Hand](https://nuecareer.com/careers/cutter-and-trimmer-hand) — median $38,020
- [Sewing Machine Operator](https://nuecareer.com/careers/sewing-machine-operator) — median $36,670
- [Etcher and Engraver](https://nuecareer.com/careers/etcher-and-engraver) — median $43,310
- [Molder, Shaper, and Caster, Except Metal and Plastic](https://nuecareer.com/careers/molder-shaper-and-caster) — median $46,170

## Sources

- **O\*NET** — O\*NET 31.0 Database, August 2026. https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html
- **BLS OEWS** — BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. https://www.bls.gov/oes/
- **BLS EP** — BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2, 2025–2035. https://www.bls.gov/emp/
- **BEA RPP** — BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024. https://www.bea.gov/data/prices-inflation/regional-price-parities-state-and-metro-area

---

This bank includes information from the O\*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. NueCareer has transformed the data by joining it to BLS wage and projection data and deriving facet, personality-fit and AI-resilience scores. BLS and BEA data are public domain (17 U.S.C. §105).

O\*NET content is used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). How these figures are sourced and derived: https://nuecareer.com/careers/methodology

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