I recently led an hour-long LIVE workshop on Spoonflower’s Instagram channel teaching how to design and paint a tiled pattern by hand. For those who don’t know, Spoonflower.com is a print-on-demand site that creates beautiful fabric and wallpaper substrates from your own designs. They even sell manufactured home goods you can get from your own pattern designs. It is the perfect resource for designers and sewing enthusiasts interested in creating home decor, fabric, apaprel and fabric-related products.
They asked me to provide a fun design workshop that would appeal to their audience. I thought it was the perfect time to preview my upcoming Skillshare.com class on making tile patterns. Using tracing paper, a pencil and ruler, graph paper and paints you can create an intricate pattern design by hand. I learned this technique many years ago when I started studying fabric and pattern design. This was learned long before computer-generated design was taught and I find these processes to be fundamental to understanding pattern design composition. I use it ‘til this day! I had a great time and loved seeing the classwork that was sent to me. Everyone had such creative pattern ideas and gorgeous paintings!
In the workshop I show you how I created this pattern and the materials I used to paint and color it. The replay is available on Spoonflower’s IGTV channel and can be watched anytime. To watch you much have an Instagram account. Log in and head over to Spoonflower’s account to view their IGTV channel and all their informative, instructional videos on sewing and design techniques and tips.
