Colour Variant Management
One design, many colours. Each colour variant is a first-class record with its own MPN, sticker, and public QR page — all linked to the parent design and searchable individually.
How colour variants work
A fabric design (identified by its design number) defines the construction: blend, warp, weft, weave, GSM, GLM. A colour variant is a version of that design in a specific colour. The construction stays the same; the colour differs. SampleLedger stores each colour variant as a sub-record of the parent design — linked, not duplicated.
What each variant gets
Unique MPN per variant
Each colour variant gets a Material Product Number (MPN) that is unique within the sample. Auto-generated by default. MPNs can be manually set if your organisation uses a specific coding convention.
Individual QR sticker per variant
Every colour variant generates its own sticker and QR code. The public spec page for a colour variant shows the specific colour alongside the parent design's construction specs.
Variety count auto-sync
The variety field on the parent design reflects the current count of active colour variants. Adding or removing a variant updates the count automatically. It cannot be manually set to an incorrect value.
Type tags for variant classification
Mark variants with type tags: yarnDyed, pieceDyed, topDyed, warpChange, weftChange. These tags are searchable and filterable across your entire sample library.
The structure: design → variants
Plain weave · 65/35 poly-cotton · 160 GSM · 58"
Searching for design 1042 returns all four variants. Filtering by pieceDyed returns variants 003 and 004. Each variant has its own sticker, QR code, and public spec page.
Why not use separate sample records?
Library bloat — a range of 20 colours becomes 20 separate records with no visible relationship between them.
Broken relationships — there is no way to see that Design 1042 in white and Design 1042 in sky blue are the same construction.
Duplicate construction data — warp, weft, GSM, GLM, blend, and weave are repeated identically across every record in the range.
Complex colour filtering — finding all pieceDyed colourways across your library requires custom workarounds instead of a simple tag filter.
The variant model keeps construction data in one place and colour data attached correctly. One design, many colours — without duplication or fragmentation.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a limit on colour variants per design?
No limit. A design can have as many colour variants as needed.
Can I soft-delete a colour variant without deleting the parent design?
Yes. Individual colour variants can be soft-deleted independently. The parent design and other variants remain active.
What happens to the variety count when a variant is deleted?
The variety count updates automatically to reflect only active variants. Soft-deleted variants are not counted.
Can I search across all colour variants by colour name?
Yes. Colour is a searchable and filterable field across the entire sample library.
Every colour, tracked correctly
Build a sample library where each colourway is a first-class record — with its own MPN, sticker, and QR page.