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How to Create a Garment Pattern Book

Making a new pattern for a quilt or article of clothing can be a long process. There are, however, books out there that share patterns by offering cutout shapes and diagrams. The readers still must do most of the work, but on any given page they'll see what shapes to use and how many of each are needed. This is a huge help to those new to the craft and veterans that need a quick project without the hassle of making measurements and counting blocks. Making a pattern book takes a little work, but is one way you can save your designs for later projects or to share with family and friends.

Things You'll Need

  • Art program
  • Word processor
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Instructions

    • 1

      Open your chosen art program and look over each pattern individually. If you've scanned drawings into the computer, you may have some faint lines that need tweaking.

    • 2

      Use a bold brush in a size of your choosing to trace over the pattern's outline. This will take some time, but you want to make sure the pattern's easy to follow once it's been cut out. Type the measurements inside each piece so readers can measure the pattern to make sure the inches or feet are correct. Whatever instructions are involved should also be written in the art program and either kept to one side of the page or listed beneath the pattern itself.

    • 3

      Save your files to your desktop as you'll be importing them into a word processor when laying out your book. Before you close the program however, change the dimensions of the images to fit the trim of the book you'll be creating. For example, if you're making a book that has a 5.5-inch by 8.5-inch trim, you want your images to be a little less than that because of margins. Depending on the printer you use and the layout you pick, the margins could range from one half of an inch to over an inch wide.

    • 4

      Open your word processor and click on "File," and then "New." Choose a blank document and click "Okay." Once the new file loads, the first thing you'll want to do is change the dimensions to match the ones you'll be using when it's printed. So if you plan to publish a book that's 5.5 inches by 8.5 inches, you'll want to type those numbers in under "Layout" and "Size." However, since this is a pattern book, you may choose to keep it at 8.5 inches by 11 inches due to the size of the patterns.

    • 5

      Import one image per page as you don't want things to look too cluttered. For those using Microsoft Word, you can import images by clicking on "Insert," and then "Picture." Browse your computer for the image you'd like to use and click "Okay." You'll do this for each pattern you've made. It'll take some time, just make sure they're laid out properly. If a part of the pattern's missing, doesn't fit on the page or covers more than one page, you'll have to open that art program and resize the image so that it fits correctly.

    • 6

      Publish your book by uploading it to sites such as Createspace, Lulu and Lightning Source. In most cases, your file will need to be converted into a PDF file. You may do this by using Adobe or any other free PDF software such as Primo PDF and Nuance PDF Reader. Once you've uploaded your files and they've been approved, order a proof copy to check and make sure everything looks right. If things check out, you may then approve the book for publication and public distribution.

Book Publishing

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