We’ve all been there; in the local or online quilt group, ‘Look what I made’, ‘Oh, that’s lovely, can I have a copy of the pattern?’
When we’ve only just started, and let’s face it – it’s not a cheap hobby, it’s so tempting to take a copy if offered and add it to our pile of ‘I’ll get to it one day’ and we don’t spare a thought to what effect this can have on our small industry. Patchwork and quilting has been around some considerable time but if we want the UK to increase in production of fabrics, shops and designers then we need to take a bit of responsibility as front end users.
And it’s here I get off my soap box and tell you, ‘yes you can have free patterns whilst remaining ethical’. There are plenty out there from designers that launch free Block of the Day/Week/Month to fabric producers that create designs to promote their new fabric ranges. I would only add a word of caution that if you plan on teaching (design your own or ask permission) or sell, (design your own or, you guessed it, ask permission!) Some designers will happily allow you to teach if all your students have purchased the pattern individually. Some free Block of the Day/Week/Month designers will do the same if all the students download their own copy and thus expose themselves to the associated adverts that the designer makes their living from.
So, where’s a good place to start? Most patchwork fabric producers have at least a few free patterns to download which they use at the retail shows to demonstrate their fabrics to the trade. These can then be added to their websites for the public to download and access for personal use. From Moda’s Bakeshop, which is probably one of the biggest collections of free patterns for all sorts of things, to smaller fabric producers who are also worth a look such as Oakshotts Fabrics, Lewis and Irene or Makower.
Pinterest is also a favourite. (Be careful you don’t go from spending most of your time sewing to most of your time looking!) Check out designers too – Pat Sloan (and her I love to make quilts site to) and Bonnie Hunter kindly do block release or mystery patterns, where you don’t know what you are making, and it can be great fun joining with others, watching the progress as the quilt progresses. I took part in Pat Sloan’s Winter Solstice block a week last year and no, still not finished it! I usually see one or two of these at the shows the following year. I know there are many fans of Kathryn Kerr’s 365Challenge which has started again this year which is hard core quilting! (And yes, I signed up for this but don’t think I’ll manage it.) Our very own UKQU is doing a mystery quilt pattern which I’m sure will have many quilters intrigued. (And don’t forget to check out the free downloads on here too!)
There is such a wealth of free patterns out there that you could keep busy until you finally use up your stash. I don’t know about you though, but every time I go to a show I end up bring a new pattern home that I just had to buy!
Feature Image – Deborah Kemball, Oakshott Fabrics
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