CLO Virtual Fashion updates Marvelous Designer 11
Originally posted on 28 October 2021. Scroll down for news of the latest update.
CLO Virtual Fashion has released Marvelous Designer 11.0, the latest update to the 3D clothing design tool, overhauling the user interface to make it more customisable, and integrating the online garment store.
The update also adds new retopology features, and the option to partially solidify parts of a 3D garment.
Convert 2D patterns into animated 3D clothing
Widely used by games and animation studios, Marvelous Designer enables artists to design 3D garments in the same way as real-world clothes, by stitching virtual 2D pattern parts together.
Users can import an animated character model, drape clothing over it, then export the result back to a 3D application in Alembic or FBX format, as an OBJ file sequence, or as a Maya cache, PC2 or MDD cache.
As well as simulating the effect of gravity on a garment, it is possible to create wind animations.
Marvelous Designer 11: revamped, more user-customisable interface
Marvelous Designer 11 overhauls the software’s user interface, raising the number of workspace windows that can be displayed simultaneously to four, up from two in the previous release.
Users can also now duplicate any window as a pop-up, dock the duplicate in the interface, resize it, or group it with other pop-ups into a tabbed layout.
It is also now possible to relocate the toolbar to any side of a window, or to hide it entirely.
The Animation Editor gets a new layout intended streamline workflow, plus the option to set playback frame rate on a global basis, rather than every time a new animation is imported.
In addition, users of the Windows edition of the software can now browse and buy readymade garments from CLO Virtual Fashion’s online store from directly within Marvelous Designer.
Retopology: new Patch tool and ‘ghost’ display of topology points across sewing lines
New features include the Patch tool, which enables users to set up even all-quad topology for a garment by quickly blocking out rectangular or triangular patches in the 2D view, as shown in the video above.
In addition, ‘ghost’ versions of the topology points along the edges of one 2D pattern part are now displayed along the edges of other parts to which it will be sewn, ensuring that vertices align properly at seams.
Paint directly onto a 3D garment to select which parts to Solidify during simulations
It is also now possible to apply Solidify – used to preserve folds and wrinkles in a 3D garment during simulation – only to selected parts of that garment.
Users can select which parts to solidify by painting directly onto the mesh in the 3D view.
In addition, it is now possible to assign displacement maps to 3D garments, and to bake displacement maps inside Marvelous Designer’s UV Editor for export.
There are also a number of smaller new features, which you can find listed at the links below.
Updated 25 February 2022: CLO Virtual Fashion has released its latest update to Marvelous Designer.
The patch – it’s officially Version 6.1.645, but it is available for Marvelous Designer 11 – adds the option to export a 3D avatar from the software in FBX format with skeleton and skinning information.
Other changes include support for UDIM file naming conventions when exporting textures, and thumbnail previews for physical property presets, showing how fabric will drape under gravity when the preset is used.
Pricing and availability
Marvelous Designer 11 is available for Windows 10+ and macOS 10.14+. The software is rental-only, with personal subscriptions costing $39/month.
Enterprise subscriptions cost $1,700/year for a node-locked licence, and either $2,000/year or $2,200/year for a floating licence, depending on whether you need offline authentication, up from the previous release.
Read an overview of the changes in the latest update to Marvelous Designer 11 on the product website
Read an overview of the new features in Marvelous Designer 11 itself
Read a full list of new features in Marvelous Designer 11.0 in the online release notes