I thought I would talk about this particular subject today. I feel like it's important. Pattern development, whether sewing, knitting, or crochet, etc... Doesn't need to be done by someone who has gone to college or has a degree, or even someone who has certifications or expensive programs and teams. A lot of folks learn through trail and error, apprenticing under others, small classes and courses, are self-taught, or from books. And that is okay!
Over time as I learned to do a lot of this by myself I slowly learned what quality looked like, what standards I should try to emulate or keep whether industrial or creative community standards. I didn't go to college for it. I started sewing in high school. I did learn some flat pattern in high school but not a lot. I think I did a skirt flat pattern. Most of what I learned was alterations, or typical drape and fit and alter styled learning and construction. A lot of the cosplay or costume community learns this way too. Some folks even using tape and plastic to create patterns. I personally never did this, I think I wanted to try to learn to properly draft. That's fine, it's not for everyone.
I still have much to learn. And I am alright with this. I think nothing needs to be set in stone immediately. Life is a journey after all, so is art and creativity. So if you're someone that really wants to learn to construct your own patterns whether sewing or crochet or whatever it may be. The first step is to learning the base craft. After building that confidence you'll start learning more professional tricks, tips, or learn to alter, or even experiment and craft your own stuff.
If I could share any piece of advice it would be to go at your own pace, and to not compare yourself to others. I know that's easier said than done but if I could have seen more adults talking about this and the actual time it took to learn their crafts growing up I think it would have helped a lot. That's what's neat about the modern internet and social media dynamics currently. Everyone is opening up and talking about process more, they're more vulnerable and more honest about how long it took them to learn things. A lot of folks not even formerly learning but learning from the school of hard knocks even if its more expensive. They share their failures and share how to not make the same expensive mistakes. I appreciate this current mindset and I hope it never disappears. I like seeing innovation.
Now lets talk about crochet for a moment. I'm still new to crochet myself. I've only been doing it for a few years now. I have learned a lot and will likely continue to learn. But what I like about the current stage I am in. Is that I have moved from making others projects to finally creating and designing my own some of which I had aspirations to make over a decade ago! That's how long I was sitting on learning a new skill and creating and bringing ideas to fruition.
After enough confidence was build I was able to start playing and testing my own ideas on scrap yarns or just generally playing and frogging until stuff works. I often keep a notebook on hand and jot my notes down. I think I'm to standard? My written instructions I feel are clear enough, but if they need work at all it can only go up from here from when I first started jotting my ideas down.
Here are a couple shots from previously drafted works that were in development stages already officially published. As you can see I even spilled water on my paper lol. Life isn't always perfect or glamorous I have sm polished.
(Above are examples of a free pattern recently released.)
I do see a lot of creatives online still gatekeeping a lot but thankfully not as much these days. I see snarky things once in a while, like "you shouldn't share you're process," "you're creating more competition," or that "you are giving away trade secrets," etc... Frankly that's b*llsh*t in my honest opinion. No one would ever innovate or pass anything down for the benefit of continuation of society, or learn anything if we gate kept everything. That's just dumb. Not saying you can't make a living teaching. Not saying it should always be done free either. You should absolutely value your skills and time. I think that is up to that person's prerogative and the thing they do, what they decide to share or not.
As for the sewing side of things and pattern drafting. I am super grateful that I have inherited my grandpa's rulers and stencils in my teen years. They're from the 30's by the way, and I've managed to keep them in tip top shape because these kind of tools aren't always cheap. Especially draftsman's tools. So if you ever have a chance to inherit something of value even if it's little value to you in that moment, always appreciate it. Because you never know and you can also gift it to someone that will use and treasure it, or if you keep it you might find out you'll actually need and use it. A lot of us take for granted the little things, or things that aren't necessarily high value dollar wise. (If you can't tell, I'm not speaking from a minimalist perspective, but I wouldn't say I'm maximalist either. I am just surviving. Poverty mindsets and holding onto things I guess. But there is a difference between that and hoarding, which isn't good.)
While I'm not educated college wise on pattern drafting, if you're making something for yourself and yourself only and not worried about industry standards. There isn't exactly a right or wrong way to do things per say, no hard and fast rules, though one will learn from a lot of failure, wasting resources if one isn't methodical or careful. The measure twice cut once, still applies.
In my time being online, I've seen so many different pattern drafting hacks, things I've wanted to try but never did, or things I refuse to try because of waste or because I already know how to do something more efficiently. Not knocking anything! All you can do is go up from where you are at, and there isn't anything wring with learning more efficient methods of doing things over time. For example, I've always wanted to try the painters tape and plastic methods for drafting but never have because I draft and its faster to just do what I already know and not waste materials.
A long time ago, I found a few books from a thrift store that are actually really old college books and they are helpful, though I've not fully been through either of them and don't always understand everything I'm looking at, especially the software side of things. I can't stress how important reading is and education, whether self taught or through an institution. If I had to suggest or recommend books, I would definite recommend Vogue Sewing by Harper and Row no matter the version or age. Mines from the 80's. The information there is practical and never goes out of fashion no matter the style, even if the examples for styles themselves are outdated. It's funny how some subjects no matter what still will always maintain relevancy.
My other suggestions is PATTERNMAKING for Fashion Design by Helen Joseph Armstrong (I have the second edition) but much the same, I don't think it matters what edition you use. This ne is a good solid flat pattern industry standard text.
I also have another college book called Textile Science by Kathryn L. Hatch which talks a lot about textile... well science, chemistry, fabric material make ups, flammable v non-flammable, dyes, organics v inorganics, etc... (If you like chemistry you will like this book.)
And last but not least because I gave it away and don't have it anymore but have a tendency toward buying educational material. It any of the Idiots books. The Idiots Guide to Sewing. This one is good for those starting out. I lent it to my mom because it had stuff in it she didn't know how to do anymore and needed refreshers on.
Outside of books and thrift stores if you're low on funds, there are way more than enough blogs, vlogs, etc... on teaching sewing, costume work, props, and all sorts of stuff online free. But with the way the internet is going and this video game and dvd digital content ownership copyright b*llsh*t I would heavily recommend investing in physical material as an asset to fall back on.
As for continuing discussion on pattern drafting overall, when I draft, I sometimes go through 2-5 drafts before I achieve the fit I want. I don't know if that's a failing on my part or if that is standard. But this was why I quit sewing clothing or costumes. Because muslin fitting is expensive and pattern drafting for those areas is time consuming and expensive resource wise. But in all fairness I'm not college educated and I was doing heavy complicated stuff. Which I regret never posting online. :/ (Boy I could have had a photo resume and maybe I could've gotten an apprenticeship somewhere. If wishes were fishes right? Trying to get into a better habit of documenting what I do. It's hard. Executive function burn out struggles...)
If you're adaptable and resourceful, you can still do a lot despite financial restraints or poverty. My goal here is to show folks, you don't have to be completely miserable. You just have to shift your mindset and what you might be able to access and actually do. I had to go through a nasty grieving process though. I wish we lived in a meritocracy but we don't. So a lot of skill, hard working, and ambitious people get left behind because of where they live, who they are or the family they come from, lack of resources and connections, or even because of generational poverty. That said, it's not completely impossible to still enjoy life and create.
Part of my grieving process was leaving fashion sewing and cosplay and costuming behind. Instead I took up quilting and was able to do a lot with recycled materials, but I even had to grieve that to a degree as well, because it can be expensive too. Batting, backing, and even if you want to stretch your legs, the more complex the pattern, the more the cost goes up because of fabric consumption. I went through a quilt designing phase that never fully came to fruition and have tons of ideas on paper that were never executed.
So here I am once again readapting and shifting my mindset once more. And I found that I can do smaller things like toys or smaller crafts and still get the dopamine reward and sense of accomplishment off of it. (Well, yes and no... Cuz sometimes it's more a sense of relief than anything.)
As I've been doing my smaller pattern drafts for sewing. I found I've been able to get away with 2-3 iterations. Which is far more sustainable for me and less time consuming, as well as a lot less materials consuming. Especially if I'm confident enough to know something will work without testing minus maybe a small section. For example a small seam on my sweet roll pattern. Instead of wasting fabric for testing. I used the cardboard that came off of my trash bag box since it was empty and tape tested fit, trimmed down and adjusted. Where my first draft was rulers and measurements, my second was that plus tested stencil corrections. So if an arc was incorrect, I used the trimmed down tester to correct the draft line.
What also saves me time when drafting is retracing/transferring my own drafts and correcting them. A lot of people are anti-tracing but that's just plain ignorant. Leonardo da Vinci used techniques like camera obscura or pouncing in combination with drafting, and mastered drawing techniques. It's about being efficient with your time and speeding up the process, not cheating.
Of course no technique is ever learned in a vacuum, no matter what you do, whatever the discipline. You learn the tools of the trade from others, sometimes schools, sometimes other artists, sometimes experimentation, picking and choosing what works best for you and you're own methodology or constraints, or streamlining your own process and making it yours.
And for those struggling out there. I want you to know, you can do a lot even with limited tools. I don't have a lot of tools. Please don't ever surrender to the I can't excuses. I did for too long and it destroyed my mental health. You can, you just have to think differently and adapt. Sometimes the means borrowing stuff and/or renting, sharing a communal resource, or making due with dollar store equipment. Where there is a will there is a way! Don't get discouraged, just shrink your goals and projects to something manageable and achievable. Instead of making a Master Chief cosplay, maybe make a polymer clay sculpture instead. I know it sucks because you have this desire or goal and this cool idea. But scaling your projects will help your mental health in the long run and you can scaffold off them later.
I hope you guys found this enlightening or helpful. My hope is to not discourage you, but encourage people to shift their mindsets and approach creativity in a more accessible way. Until next time.
