Thursday Tip // How to find indie patterns online

Whether you’ve just started out or you’ve been here awhile, you probably already know there are about half a bazillion pattern companies out there and a plethora of sewing pattern options for the home sewist. As a new sewist this can certainly feel overwhelming.

Obviously anyone can do a google search for “indie sewing patterns” but if you are new to the sewing world then sometimes it’s hard to know what to look for or whether a particular pattern will be worth it or lead to a successful sewing experience. That’s where our tips come in and we hope you find them helpful.

First of all, it is absolutely not a shock, but there is A LOT of sewing inspiration on Instagram! Surprise, surprise, we know. It seems like sewists favour this platform and pattern designers seem to as well.  

Tip #1 - Instagram

Instagram is my favourite place to look for pattern inspiration and find new designers. For the most part, sewists will use hashtags or tag the company of the patterns they are using. If you look in the comments for pattern hashtags you can use those hashtags to search for other posts that include the same pattern. When you type in the hashtag and you see it has a couple hundred posts under it then that is usually a good indication that the pattern has been well received and a good number of people have had success with it. Keep in mind not everyone gets the hashtag totally correct and spelling errors can mean multiple hashtags for the same pattern.

After you have found patterns you like, a quick google search can help you find where to purchase the pdf patterns, usually from the pattern company’s website. Some companies have both PDF and paper patterns and if they wholesale their paper patterns then they usually have a list of stockists which will show you where to buy their patterns locally or online.

If you found your way here then you probably already know we do a weekly “Style Time” series, (now on our grid! Also in story highlights) where we take a RTW inspo pic and pair it up with a fabric from our shop and then make pattern suggestions to go along with it. We try our best to select patterns that are size inclusive, have been carefully drafted (to the best of our knowledge) and that are attainable for beginner to intermediate sewists.

Tip #2 - Online Fabric Shops

If you are a fabric first, pattern second kind of person then start by checking the details in fabric listings online to see if they recommend specific patterns for those fabrics. You can even do this if you already have the fabric but can’t decide what to make with it. A lot of indie fabric shops will do this (we do!) and directly link the patterns to the designers website or if they stock paper patterns you may be able to find them on the shop’s website to go along with your fabric order.

Tip #3 - Pattern Databases

The Fold Line is a UK based company that offers a wide range of indie patterns in an easy to use pattern database. Their search tools allow you to search for patterns by pattern designer, garment type, style/shape, pdf or paper, commercial or independent company, fabric type, sewing level, price and size range. All patterns are available for purchase through their site but we always advocate for purchasing the PDF pattern directly from the designer whenever possible. This ensures the designer receives the most profit from the sale of their product. It’s a great search tool though!

The Curvy Pattern Database was started a few years ago to allow sewists to easily find indie pattern companies with patterns that go up to a minimum of a 60” body hip measurement. You can search by choosing imperial or metric using your body measurements as the minimums and find companies that include your size in their range. So far this is only a pattern company database but I believe they have hopes to expand to a specific pattern search option as well, which would be amazing!

Zero Waste Design Online (ZWDO Collective) is an international collective that develops online educational resources in the field of zero waste design and systems thinking for fashion. ZWDO Collective is a non-for-profit organization that is passionate about eliminating cutting waste in the fast fashion industry by creating new pattern cutting and design methods to reduce fabric waste. While they are primarily focused on educating designers and changing the way fashion is produced they are also a collaborative community of researchers, educators and designers that welcome open dialogue about zero waste design and include home sewers in their e-learning platform.

ZWDO has a zero waste pattern library which is growing as pattern designers add their own patterns and edit them as they like. ZWDO does not take a commission from the purchase of these patterns and links them directly to the pattern designer’s site for purchase. You can search by keyword, garment type, garment category, bust or no bust, pattern format and pricing. 

If you are interested in zero waste design they have some courses to check out as well as lots of resources for reading more. 

*Follow all of these accounts on Instagram as well for the most up to date information.