Surface pattern: paper to fabric
I thought I’d give a little sneak peak into how I took my dripping brush strokes design from paper to fabric. This isn’t an explanation on precisely how to make repeat surface patterns, but rather just an insight into the steps that were involved in my process, in case you are also interested in seeing how your artwork would look printed onto fabric.
I started by mark making on watercolour paper using Indian ink and an assortment of brushes. I didn’t really have a plan, I just loosely played around and had fun with it. I think I even just used a wall paint brush that I had lying around from redecorating my kids’ rooms. Notice the imperfections, the splatters, drips and blooms. It doesn’t have to be a masterpiece to get the ball rolling!
Next, with the help of several Skillshare tutorials, I scanned the artwork into Photoshop, removed the white paper background and turned this into a seamless repeat pattern. I experimented with different adjustments and landed on this blue on black version I though would translate well into garment sewing. (The blue on the computer screen in the photo is not accurate, in reality it is much darker and more nuanced.) Also, how good is Photoshop’s pattern preview mode!
Then, a lot of time passed before I actually plucked up the courage to upload my pattern (at the recommended 150dpi) to Spoonflower and order a few swatch samples. I am still in the process of learning how dpi resolution affects the scale of a design. Somewhat counterintuitively, the higher the dpi the smaller the scale. I am getting the hang of estimating the scale based changing the dpi and judging the preview thumbnail but am sometimes still surprised by the divergence in the actual printed swatch. I think it’s going to take a fair bit more trial and error and I make a point to order the samples in a range of substrates so I can explore all the different fabric options. I guess it just goes to show how important proofing is before ordering meters of fabric for a sewing project or selling your design.
This is the dress I made with this fabric, check out that swoosh!