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No Comments Birth of a Black Cat Creations Pattern, #1
Ever wonder what goes into the creation of a quilt pattern? Think it’s a snap? Well, over the next few weeks, we’ll share that process with you – or at least our process. Each person’s is different.
For us, the creation of a pattern can start with a doodle on graph paper or playing around on a quilt design program. Once inspiration came from a tile floor in a bathroom. Sometimes it’s the fabric that inspires us. The manufacturers today do a great job of creating gorgeous lines of fabrics that just leave us drooling. We have folders of designs that have never made it to the cutting table because they just didn’t work or we were waiting for just the right fabrics to come along. You start cutting and piecing and you know instinctively when something is good and will appeal to other people. Those are the ideas that come to life.
A big part of our inspiration are the quilt shops. Having worked in shops, we know what they need to sell fabric and lots of it. A good pattern can do that for them. They are trying to sell the fabrics put out there by the manufacturers – the same fabric that inspires us. It’s our job to make a product that will not only sell for us, but will also sell fabric for the quilt shops and the manufacturers. We all sort of depend on each other.
And, yes, we design patterns because it’s just fun, but also because we want to put a little money away. It’s been great to do something we love and be able to do it while raising kids and running a household. To be honest, Judy and I just wanted to be able to buy fabric whenever we wanted without dipping into the household stash. I think you can say we’ve accomplished that and more.
Once you have an idea that you think is doable, then comes the fun. Picking fabrics and deciding just how you’re going to put this thing together so that anyone can pick up your pattern and make one just like yours. No problem? Not always. Sometimes a design looks nothing like it’s original concept once your finished. They evolve and take on a life of their own.
Stay tuned. Each week we’ll make a new blog entry that will take you into the actual steps of creating the finished product – a completed pattern.
Amy Cotham & Judy Reynolds
