Wednesday, 26 November 2014

Zelda

Hi, I'm back after a long quiet spell. However, my inactivity in blogging works in inverse proportion to how busy the rest of my life is....and I have been beavering away like the veritable headless chook (I love mixed metaphors)

My enterprise in setting up an independent clothing designer business is progressing...I've just been sidetracked down the long and winding road. Months back I explained that I felt daunted by the task of grading my clothing patterns (drafting into multiple size fittings) and had sent them away to a specialist company. Six weeks later they had done only half of one pattern so I got them back. The business couldn't be based on a turn around like that!

During my researches on the internet to find a company that would do the grading I discovered an excellent online course that would upgrade my rusty skills and knowledge to the digital era. So I took on the "Pattern Workshop" and for two months have been educating myself in the programs Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Indesign, specific to designing clothes patterns for publishing in PDF format. It has been both frustrating and elating.

I'm now within a week or 2 of putting out my first design for "testing". This is the last stage of the design process where the pattern and instructions are sent out for checking to people who sew them up and give feedback.

This is the pattern cover I designed for the womens top I call "Zelda"


Zelda pattern cover



a version of Zelda

 Despite the challenges I've had a great time pulling this design together and can't wait to start on the next one. I have at least another 15 patterns that are already styled in my workshop and another 50 ideas that are niggling to be made real, so now the greatest frustration is where to start and not having enough hours in the day!