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Compare textile resources.
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| Decision field | Free accountFOURSOURCE Supplier NetworkGlobalRemove | Free downloadAFIRM Restricted Substances ListGlobalRemove | Open accessYarn Database EU Dyers and MakersEuropean UnionRemove | Open accessFreeSewingGlobalRemove |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Decision fit | ||||
| Primary job | Source production | Check standards | Choose materials | Find patterns & fit |
| Also useful for | No additional job recorded | No additional job recorded | No additional job recorded | No additional job recorded |
| Area | Production | Standards | Yarn | Patterns & fit |
| Best for | Searching global apparel and textile production capabilities | Building a product chemical-restriction baseline | Finding independent EU yarn or fibre dyers with off-Ravelry purchase routes | Custom-fit home sewing patterns |
| Know before using | The company count is a changing platform claim. Search fields, profiles, certificates, locations, and account access do not independently verify the legal entity, factory ownership, capability, capacity, certificate validity or scope, compliance performance, delivery, or project fit. Confirm the site and subcontracting, credentials with issuers, samples, audits when appropriate, specifications, contracts, and commercial terms. | AFIRM states that its list is guidance, not legal advice, an industry standard of care, or a guarantee of completeness or brand acceptance. It does not replace current law, a customer's stricter RSL, manufacturing-input controls, a product-specific risk and sampling plan, accepted laboratory methods, supplier controls, or performance and safety testing. | It is one curator's intentionally selective, off-Ravelry-oriented database, inventories change, and paid supporters can receive rotating priority placement; verify availability, fibre claims, shipping, and terms directly. | A generated pattern is not independent fit evidence or a production-ready graded block. The result still depends on accurate measurements, the selected design and options, ease assumptions, fabric behavior, construction, and representative test garments. An account stores saved patterns and measurement sets, so review the platform's privacy terms before retaining personal measurements. |
| Practical access | ||||
| For | Apparel brands | Apparel brands | Makers | Makers |
| Location or jurisdiction | Global | Global | European Union | Global |
| Access | Free account | Free download | Open access | Open access |
| Format | Marketplace | Reference | Directory | Software |
| Source type | Commercial marketplace | Industry organization | Community database | Open-source project |
| Source and review | ||||
| What the source establishes | FOURSOURCE's current public network page presents an operator-reported global company count and country or territory search. It says logged-in users can narrow results by compliance certificates, product groups, fabric types, target groups, minimum order quantities, and other fields, with a free-trial and supplier sign-up route. | AFIRM's current About page identifies the Apparel and Footwear International RSL Management Group as a member-driven organization collaborating on chemicals management and assigns annual RSL maintenance to its RSL Committee. AFIRM publishes a 2026 multilingual Restricted Substances List for chemicals in finished apparel, footwear, accessories, and related materials, with a material-specific testing matrix. Its FAQ says the list does not cover product-performance testing, distinguishes the finished-product RSL from manufacturing-input lists, and tells suppliers to check each customer's brand-specific requirements and testing acceptance. | The individually researched database offers free listings and sortable yarn, fibre, designer, editor, accessory, and location views; the EU page spans multiple countries and direct seller profiles. | FreeSewing's official documentation says the browser editor drafts a selected design in real time from a measurement set rather than scaling or grading a standard-size pattern. Users can adjust design options and export the generated result, including as PDF; saving the pattern to an account is optional and is used to revisit it later. |
| Linked page reviewed | Jul 21, 2026 | Jul 30, 2026 | Jul 15, 2026 | Jul 21, 2026 |
| Next review due | Jan 17, 2027 | Oct 28, 2026 | Jan 11, 2027 | Jan 17, 2027 |
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