Resources for pattern designers
Images of my more recent designs from left to right: Downtown socks (pattern coming soon), Salt Spring crochet bottle holder, and Hornby crochet sweater vest (pattern coming soon!)
Just beginning your journey into pattern designing? In this blog post I share all the resources (from people to websites) that I have found useful in my first two years as a knitting and crochet pattern designer. These tools have given me so much guidance, from size grading, consistent pattern writing style and promoting my patterns, that I wanted to share them with you.
This is also the topic of one of my Youtube episodes, if you prefer video format, you can find the link below. Don’t forget to give the video a like if you do, and let me know if it was helpful, or what resources you use!
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Just to note, any people of resources I mention, i have not been paid to do, I do not have affiliate marketing or anything like that, these are simply things I have used or bought myself and found useful.
So let’s get into it.
I have been a passionate knitter and crochet for over 10 years now and started designing and publishing my own patterns around two years ago, in 2022.
This blog is for new, beginner, and wannabe knit and crochet designers. As someone who is still very much like an amateur myself, I’m going to share with you the resources (and by resources I mean people, websites and tools etc.) that I have found really helpful in my learning journey. I’ll start with useful resources for the designing process, tech editing, testing, ending with promoting your new pattern.
Before we go on, make sure to subscribe to my newsletter to stay up to date with me, as in my next blog and vlog I’ll be sharing all of the valuable lessons I’ve had in the last couple of years, as well as all the major mistakes and messes i’ve made as a pattern designer - so you don’t have to!
And once you’ve read all this, let me know in the comments which resources you have found helpful - I’d love to see them!
First up, pattern designing…..
DESIGNING
There are so many websites and online resources I have used to help me in the design process. When it comes to grading patterns, for items that are more than one size, I find the Craft Yarn Council a useful foundation for measurements. They provide measurements up to a 62 inch chest (157 cm), 52 inch (127cm) waist and 62 inch hips.
The website of Sister Mountain, of same name on instagram, has also been a great resources in my designing journey. The have lots of useful blog posts to consider when designing, and even holds regular sweater design schools. But there’s one particular resource of theirs, available for free, that I have used with every design- the yardage calculator. This spreadsheet comes autopopulated with the formulas needed to figure out how much yarn will be needed per size, even though you have only knitted one. It works just as well for crochet patterns. I can’t recommend it enough. Check out their website, because there’s so much more on there.!
Another couple of designers and tech editors I have found to be a wealth of knowledge is Sarah Walworth and Kristina McGrath of Tech Tip Talk. I watched a lot of their Youtube videos, where they talk to other designers as well as share their own expert knowledge. Last year I got their book, which walks you clearly and concisely through every step of developing a pattern from grading, writing the pattern, the value of a style sheet for consistent pattern writing (which I’m working on as it would be so so helpful), and testing patterns.. Both tech editors themselves, they are experts in the field. This book has been worth every penny (that my mum paid, to buy it for me for Christmas!).
Outside of that, there are a lot of designers and makers on Youtube that are very useful to watch, for example, Andrea Mowry. She has a weekly Youtube vlog, where she answers questions submitted by makers. Joji Locatelli is also very interesting, I love her patterns and in her videos she often goes into her design process. Jen and Bess of One Wild Designs are also very knowledgeable. Although they have’t posted on yt for a little bit, they have lots of interesting discussions about design, fit, and inclusivity in pattern designing.
Finally, just generally watching other maker blogs has been helpful. Everyone has different experiences in making, and when they share their experiences you can learn from them. For example, i recently watch an old Fruity Knitting episode, where they were talking about a cardigan steeking project they had recently completed - I have yet to try out steeking, but I felt I learnt more about the process, just through listening to them talk about it.
Now on to tech editing…
Me with my copy of The Knitting Pattern Writing Handbook
TECH EDITING
My first couple of patterns (both hats) were actually not tech edited (tested, but not edited). I chose not to do that for financial reasons, so although I had them tested, so I think they are good patterns, they were probably benefit from a retrospective tech edit!
However, by my third and fourth design, where I was designing different garments, I chose to look into getting a tech editor. I had both a crochet pattern and knit pattern that I was working on.
Initially I didn’t know where to start, but a quick google led me to the Tech Editor Hub. It’s really easy to use, you simply submit what you’re looking for, a little bit about yourself and the pattern(s) you’re working on.
Once submitted, I then received a bunch of proposals from tech editors - and this was the hard part - selecting the people that you want to work with. Everyone was so lovely and seemed to have great experience.
In the end i selected two, and over a year later I’m still working with them both - Hannah of Work of Our Hands and Jerrah of Robinns Tech Editing.
They have both been integral to the quality of my patterns! I have learnt so much from them, they highly skilled they are at noticing every tiny detail and inconsistency in your pattern. As a new designer this has been great, as there were some elements of the design that I just didn’t consider before these tech editors highlighted it to me.
So the biggest recommendation is getting a tech editor, yes it is an expense, but the difference it can make to the quality and integrity of your pattern by being able to say that it is been professionally tech edited, is invaluable.
in summary, using tech editor hub to find people, it couldn’t be easier!
Up next, pattern testing…..
PATTERN TESTING
When it comes to finding pattern testers, there’s not one source for me. I have a pretty small presence on social media, my reach is quite low…so here’s what I do:
I publish a reel and a static post on Instagram, with a call out for tester, including a link to the google form in my bio. Instagram accounts such as Size Inclusive Collective, Fat Test Knits and other accounts will also often share tester calls (as long as the pattern is size inclusive with a fair testing period).
If i get a low response from that after a day, I’ll head to Ravelry (which I note is not accessible to everyone) and post in their Testing Pool forum. I’m usually successful in getting a handful of responses there.
I know there’s also the platform Yarnpond, but I haven’t tried that yet.
Because my testers can be coming from two different sources, I often have just been keeping test groups to an email chain (I also encountered a weird glitch with instagram, where it wasn’t allowing me to create groups). In the future I might look to create a Discord group, as email chains can get a little confusing sometimes.
So the resources I use for getting testers and managing test groups are Instagram, Ravelry and email. I did note a couple of other recommendations I have heard, but haven’t tried myself, so if you have, let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
Final stage, promoting your patterns….
An image of a variety of yarn
PROMOTING YOUR PATTERN
Before we get into this section, I feel the strong need to clarify, that I am not necessarily recommending these resources because they are guaranteed success in pattern sales, I can’t speak from too much experience in that yet, so I don’t necessarily have the answers but I can point you to all the tips and tricks I’ve found, including some that I still need to learn and apply myself.
This truly is the main area I need to work on going forward.
But here are some pointers to go away, listen, read and learn yourself! Essentially my recommendations here come down to three people:
Tian Connaughton Tian posts lots of useful information on Instagram, but she also published the ebook, Pattern Launch Plan. I purchased the ebook last year and it is a wealth of information for how to plan your pattern launch, from understanding your audience to long term marketing, long past the launch date. I highly recommend giving her a follow ond having a look at the resources and services that she provides.
Pam of The Crochetpreneur - Pam is on a mission to empower win to turn their crochet hobby into a successful business. She has many resources available for free, including the annual Crochet Business Summit, where she invites other craft business owners to speak on a variety of topics. It’s well worth joining in one year. She also has memberships and communities, that I haven’t invested in yet, but I know to do so would be highly valuable.
Nina, of She Knows SEO - Not a craft person at all, Nina comes from the travel blogging sphere, but nevertheless, a lot of the information and knowledge she shares through her website, social media, and Youtube channel is useful for anyone looking to work on building their website and getting it ranked on Google. I have applied a lot of what I’ve learnt from her content, and my website has been performing better because of it.
TO CONCLUDE
That concludes my key useful resources, please share yours below, I’d love to hear them, and help others who are beginning their journey into pattern designing.
Make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss my next installment, where I’ll talk all about the lessons I’ve learnt and confess how much of a hot mess I have been in my first couple of years as a knit and crochet pattern designer!
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