whileshenaps.com

Sewing, blogging, and creative business.

Pattern Design Week: Topic #4 The “Whys” and “What Ifs” of Selling Patterns

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This week I'm talking about how to turn your craft projects into
pattern instructions that you can package, market, and sell online. Whether you
sew softies or do another type of craft, creating patterns is a great way to
add an income stream to your handmade business. Pattern sales produce small
bits of income that can flow in while you are in your studio being creative.  

In this series Iā€™m focusing on creating patterns to
distribute digitally as PDFs. On Monday we talked about how to choose a good
project to turn into a pattern. Tuesday we explored breaking the project
instructions down into manageable steps. And yesterday was all about layout and beauty shots.

Today I'm really excited to bring you a video workshop on the whys and what ifs of selling patterns. In this 26 minute workshop I chat with fellow plush maker and Etsy shop owner, Claire Chambers, about:

  • Why crafters might want to consider branching out into selling PDF patterns.
  • Whether selling patterns will diminish demand for your finished items.
  • The timeline of creating a pattern and the basic steps involved.
  • How to list your patterns clearly so that customers know exactly what they're getting.
  • What your expectations should be for providing customer support.
  • And whether you should allow customers to sell items they make from your patterns.

Claire had some great questions and my hope is that hearing us chat will help you in your own thinking about these issues. A big thank you to Claire for being an awesome guest! Here's the video. I hope you enjoy it!

Comments

  1. Shirley says

    The one question I have, that no one can seem to give a definitive answer to, is about copyright infringement. I know that some designers do stipulate that items made from their patterns can’t be sold, but in researching this, I have come to understand toys to be categorized as “useful goods”, therefore the use of the patterns for those toys cannot be dictated. Short of suggesting a copyright lawyer, can you comment on that or steer me to another source of information? This link is the only information I have found that a layman can understand: http://www.tabberone.com/Trademarks/CopyrightLaw/Patterns.shtml By the way, I must apologize for calling you Amy…I don’t know what’s up with that…grey matter malfunction I guess! Thank you for doing this video and blog series! Very helpful indeed–I’m anxious to get my Christmas orders done so I can work more on my patterns and put some of your expert advice into action! Thanks again for all you do!

  2. abbyjane says

    Hi Shirley,
    I'm not an expert on copyright issues by any means. So sorry I don't have any useful information to share on this issue. 

  3. Rachel L. says

    Hi Abby!
    My December was so busy with custom orders that I missed this whole series about pattern selling when it first came out. It is fantastic! And so perfect, as I am hoping to figure out a way to get some more (passive) income streams going this year. I feel pretty protective of my doll and animal designs, but I have several bag/pouch designs that I’m not interested in selling finished products of anymore that I’m thinking of turning into patterns. Thanks so much for your valuable info in this blog series! You are a treasure!
    Rachel L.

  4. abbyjane says

    Hi Rachel,
    I can totally understand that protective feeling. When I was making birds I held my patterns close and contributed other projects to book and magazines. I knew I wanted to do something with them all as a whole and I'm glad, in retrospect, that I didn't share them until I was ready to. But making patterns to sell is a great way to grow your business. Good luck with it!

  5. Rachel L. says

    That’s a really good point, too. Maybe over time as I move on to new doll and animal designs, I’ll feel ready to let the older ones “out.” Or maybe some of my future doll/animal designs will be straight-to-pattern designs, even.

  6. abbyjane says

    Maybe set as a goal to have one new doll design go straight to a pattern this year. It's certainly worth a try! You're known for your beautiful dolls and I think a doll pattern might be really successful for you, Rachel.

  7. Margaret says

    Thank you for your series on creating PDF patterns. I was getting stuck in the process and now I have new ideas of how to get the job done!

  9. Jamie says

    All the links for the earlier lessons are broken (the Monday, Tuesday, etc)! šŸ™ Is there another spot on the site where I can find them? I was so excited to see a discussion on the topic!