Transcripts
1. Welcome: [MUSIC] Hi. My name is Nina
and I'm also known as Duit. I'm an illustrator,
I'm a pattern designer based in Belgrade, Serbia. I spend time creating
art that gets licensed for various
products like books, magazines, calendars,
greeting cards, and fabrics. So far I've licensed two fabric collections
for Cloud9 Fabrics. The first one called
the Easy Life, just came out at the
beginning of this year. In this class, I'll share
with you everything I know about creating and licensing
pattern collections. I want to give you a headstart and make it easier
for you to achieve your dreams of becoming a pattern designer with a
licensed fabric collection. When you're just starting out, pattern collections
can seem overwhelming. You need to unite all
the parts and pieces, not only for one print, but for a number of
prints that need to work as a cohesive unity. In the first part of the class, we'll dive deeper into
better understanding what a pattern collection is and
how to approach creating one. We'll talk about all the
things you're not sure about, like the number of prints, as well as the types of prints and repeats
in a collection. Last but not least, we'll explore what makes a collection coordinated
and unified. I've organized all
this information into comprehensive step-by-step
guide that will give you the clarity and confidence to start planning your
first collection. In the second part of the class, I'll share with
you how I created my pattern collections
and how I got my first licensing
deal for fabrics. I'm taking you behind the scenes and you'll
hear all about my imperfect and clumsy process from not knowing
what I was doing, to getting a licensing deal and collaborating with
Cloud9 Fabrics. This part is filled with
real-life advice you'd hear from a friend and lots of takeaways related to learning
from your mistakes, promoting your work
even if it's imperfect, navigating licensing
agreements, working with a creative
director, and many more. This class is for beginner and intermediate pattern
designers who want to start or get better at
creating pattern collections. Grab a favorite
notebook and a pen, and let's get started.
2. Project: [MUSIC] The project for this
class will be to write down an actionable plan for
your pattern collection. This will be a GPS
that'll help you navigate this big
design project, so take notes as we go. To make it easier for you, I've made a PDF
collection planner that you can download from
the class resources. You can use it digitally
or you can print it out. But most importantly,
fill in the blanks with your collection plan to make a strong base for your project. This will be something
you'll come back to many times while working on all the prints in
the collection. Once you're done,
go to the project and resources section
of the class, click on Create Project button, and share your collection plan. If you're in doubt, if you're indecisive or simply need feedback for
a specific part, let me know about it
in the class project. I'll be here to help you out.
3. What is a Pattern Collection?: [MUSIC] Okay. Let's start
from the beginning. Let's see how we can define
a pattern collection. We can say that a
pattern collection is a gathering of various
prints coordinated by theme, style, and the color palette. You can also think
of it like this, each print in a collection is
a piece of art on its own, but when you place all
these prints together they create a new
complex art piece. I like imagining
pattern collections as musical compositions
played by an orchestra. You have all these
different instruments, all these different notes, you have a theme and a story, you have bars that
are quiet and slow, you have bars that are
powerful and grandiose. You have complexity
and you have harmony. Ultimately, you have emotions that are
being transmitted. Now, if we compare it
to something visual, making a pattern
collection is like doing a bedroom makeover, where you'll pick different
designs for wallpaper, cushions, pillows,
bed-cover, and curtains and it all
needs to work together. Now, let's take a
moment to look at a few beautiful
pattern collections published by various
fabric companies. Don't go into detail now, just try to observe
each collection as one complex art piece. The first one is Wild by Leah
Duncan for Cloud9 Fabrics. Now let's take a look
at Vintage Garden by Rifle Paper Co for cotton
and steel fabrics. This one is Viva La Vida by
Faya Guanipa for dear Stella. Last but not least, here's my first licensed
pattern collection, The Easy Life for
Cloud9 Fabrics. In the next lessons, we'll look at every aspect of making a pattern
collection until this seemingly huge project becomes easily
manageable and fun, and most importantly, until
you feel confident and encouraged to start
making plans for your own beautiful
pattern collection.
4. Number of Prints in a Collection: [MUSIC]. So first things first, the number of patterns
in a collection. How many do you need? The number of prints
in a collection will vary depending on the intended market or specific requirements
of the fabric company. Mini collections will
have 3-4 prints. They could be licensed for
stationary stationery, clothing, or packaging
for example, while standard full
collections can have 7, 8, 9, 12 or more prints
and they could be licensed by companies that
print and sell fabrics. You can research different
fabric companies and see how many prints they
include in their collections, as well as whether they include different color ways for
the same print or not. For example, my collection
for Cloud9 Fabrics has eight prints in total without
additional colorways. Collections from Art
Gallery Fabrics have 12 prints with different
colorways for certain prints. Collections for Cotton
and Steel feature at 10 prints and
a few colorways. Dear Stella Collections have eight prints and
additional colorways, while Windham Fabrics have
seven prints plus colorways. Now you might be
wondering where to start or what number to choose. So here are my recommendations. If you haven't made a
pattern collection before, a good place to start
without feeling overwhelmed is a
mini collection. Mini collections are not
only a good way to warm up before deciding to
develop a full collection. There are also amazing
portfolio pieces and you might even
want to switch from developing single
patterns to making a mini collection each time you're working
on a new design. So if you're going to
make a mini collection, three patterns will
be just about right. Now if you're
planning to develop the standard full collection, eight prints will be perfect for a strong and solid collection. Naturally, unlike
a mini collection, a full collection
takes more time, more focus, and good planning. As you saw, some companies have collections that include
more than eight prints. I personally wouldn't worry
about it because with eight, you have everything
set in place. Once a certain company wants to collaborate with you and
license your collection, they can easily
ask you to develop additional prints and additional
colorways if necessary. My biggest advice is
to keep focus and try to avoid spreading yourself
thin with this project. There are so many possibilities, and if we try to pursue
them all at once, we'll lose the thread. So to wrap it all up for a mini collection,
create three patterns. For a full collection,
create eight patterns. At this stage, don't include
different colorways you can play with that once your
collection is completed.
5. Types of Prints in a Collection: Let's talk about different types of prints in a
pattern collection. In a collection, whether
it's mini or full, you'll find three types
of prints: a hero print, also called the main print, a coordinate or a
secondary print, and a blender print. Each of these prints
is defined by its complexity and hierarchy
within the collection. Let's go into more detail with each print to
understand it better. A hero print is the main
print in a collection. This is the star of the show, is the most detailed
and complex pattern. A hero print sets the scene, tone, and story for the
rest of the collection. A hero print is
like that striking, memorable part of the
musical composition. When creating your
pattern collection, you can use the hero
pattern as your base and starting point and then develop other prints
in relation to it. A coordinate or a
secondary print is less complex than a hero, but more complex than
a blender print. This type of design is
somewhere in the middle. You can think of it as
a print that continues the story from the hero print
and develops it further, but it's never overpowers it. A blender print is the most simple type of
design in a collection. These prints create an overall
harmony in the collection. If a pattern collection
were musical composition, a blender print would be the quiet and slow
part that gives us space to process and breathe. These prints can provide
a visual balance for complex heros and somewhat
complex coordinate prints. They still continue telling
the story of your collection, but in a more subtle
and abstract way. Now, let's see how it all
looks placed together. A mini collection will have
one hero, one coordinate, and one blender print, and this is how it would look if my full collection was
a mini collection. A full collection can have
one or two hero prints, four coordinates, and
two blender prints. This is how it looks
in my example. If you need a bigger collection, you can easily develop two more blender prints later
for a total of 10 prints. Now, let's take a look at a
few pattern collections from Cloud9 Fabrics to see if you can distinguish these
types of prints. The first one is Idea
Garden by Meenal Patel. The second one is All that
Wander by Juliana Tipton. The third one is Jungle
Dreams by Beck Ng. What you might notice is that sometimes it's easy
to make a distinction while other times you find yourself wondering
if something is a hero print or more
complex coordinate, or if something is a more subtle coordinate
or a blender print, and that is completely fine. Take this distinction
of pattern types as a general guiding rule
because ultimately your pattern collection
will have its own structure of complexity and
its own hierarchy. That's why it's good
to start working on your collection from the
most complex design, the hero print and create the rest of the
prints accordingly while constantly making
comparisons between each print. In this way, you'll create an internal collection structure and gradual harmony
between complex, medium, and simple prints. The bottom line is, be guided by these
external rules while creating your
own internal rules.
6. Types of Repeats in a Collection: [MUSIC] When creating
a pattern collection, your goal is to make
a visual unity. But at the same time, each part of that unity
needs to be diverse. You don't want a
collection where everything looks too alike. Just like you don't
want an orchestra made out of only trumpets. One way to add interests
and variety to a collection is to use different types of
repeats and arrangements. This goes hand in
hand with what we talked about in the
previous lesson. The most basic types
of pattern repeats are full drop or grid. This one is the
most simple repeat. The pattern swatch
repeats in the same way, both vertically
and horizontally. The vertical half-drop,
also known as drop. This repeats the swatch
drops by half vertically. The horizontal half-drop,
also known as brick. here the swatch moves
by half horizontally. Which one of these
you'll use mostly depends on the arrangement
of elements in the pattern. Half drops are great for hiding the repeat or making it more interesting when you
have bold elements. Full drops are great for pattern swatches
that are filled with lots of different elements
in a random arrangement, or they can be great for simple patterns where you
want to show the repeat. Now, when it comes to the
arrangement of elements, there are many different types. I'll just name a few to give you an idea of what you could
use in your collection. But the possibilities
are numerous. We have a diamond
arrangement where elements are arranged and repeated
as a diamond shape, tossed, where elements are
tossed and arranged randomly to create a
non-linear, interesting repeat, dot arrangement, simple repeat made out
of small elements with empty space in-between
that repeat as dots. Element arrangement can
also be directional, where elements go in just one direction,
two-directional, where elements go in two directions, and
non-directional, where elements go in
different directions, making this fabric easier
for cutting and sewing. When making your
pattern collection, try to use different
types of repeats and different arrangements to
add interest and diversity. Both of these will depend on
the type of pattern you're making and what you
want to achieve. Is it a hero, a coordinate, or
a blender print? Is it complex or simple? Do you want to hide the
repeat or make it obvious? Is your pattern
swatch made out of many different elements
or a few similar ones? In case you want to
dive deeper into the arrangement of
pattern elements, and if you're interested
in learning more about developing and improving your
individual pattern designs, you can later watch my class, key principles for making
outstanding patterns.
7. What Makes a Collection Coordinated?: [MUSIC] For pattern collection
to work as a unity, it needs to be coordinated. Here is a great
definition of the word coordinated from the
Oxford dictionary. It reads, bring the
different elements of a complex activity or organization into harmonious
or efficient relationship. In this lesson, we'll talk about the various aspects that make a pattern collection
coordinated. These are collection story, motifs, color palette, and last but not least, style. [NOISE] All patterns
tell stories. Even single standalone
patterns tell amazing stories. But a pattern collection
can tell a more elaborate one and that story if
told in the right way, can tie all the prints together in a
coordinated collection. A great thing about a story
is that it can be one of the main guiding
threads that you will follow while developing
your collection. When you start working on
your pattern collection, pick a theme and think about
a story you want to depict. You can ask yourself
these three questions. What is inspiring me right now, what I want to show an express, and what emotions or
memories do I want to evoke? Once again, making
the hero pattern first is a great starting point. This design can help
you pick a theme and set the stage for the
rest of the collection. Once you have that one, stick to the story idea
and develop it further. Think about how each
new pattern will enrich your story and give it more
layers and complexity. If you want to hear more about storytelling and pattern
design and see me go into details while developing
one narrative pattern, you can later watch my
class storytelling in pattern design illustrate
a narrative pattern. It will be listed in the
Class Resources section. Here is an example
of a story from my pattern collection
named easy life. You can see all the prints from the collection and I'll read you a short description I wrote. The easy life is about finding beauty and joy in simple things. It transports us to the imaginary countryside filled with magical plants and flowers, colorful houses, and
friendly animals. It's a place where busy thoughts quiet down and we can get immersed in the delights of the natural world
that surrounds us. [NOISE] Now let's talk about the motifs you'll
use in a collection. The main question designers
ask is whether they should repeat the same motifs throughout
the collection or not? The answer is yes. You can use the same motifs
from a hero print for example and repeat them in a coordinate or
a blender print. This can visually unify the
prints in a collection. But at the same time, you shouldn't make the use
of the same motifs obvious, you still want diversity
and not a copy paste. A good way to repeat
the same motif is to create a similar
look-alike motifs, as well as to give
them a different use. In this way, the
repetition will not be instantly apparent instead, a viewer will see it as a subconscious connection
between the prints. Here are some examples
from my collections. You can see how I've reused the same motif on these prints in a
completely different way. It's not something
you'll see right away and it connects the
prints beautifully. Here for example, you
can see how I reuse the same leaves in these prints. Each leaf is drawn individually and is
slightly different, but the style is the same. [NOISE] Color palette is a
strong asset when it comes to visually unifying all the
prints in a collection. One way to approach building
the collection palette is once again to start working
on your hero pattern first. Since that pattern will be the most complex print with
lots of different motifs, it will also be the most
colorful one and therefore, it will include all the colors, or at least all the main
colors you'll be using. Once you have that, you can start working on coordinates and blenders
and you can start thinking about how
you can distribute these colors differently
in each print. Some prints like
heroes will have 8, 10 or more colors, while simple blenders will
have two or three colors. Some prints will have
a dark background with light contrasting elements, while others will have light background with dark
details, for example. Prominent designs might use contrasting or
complimentary colors, while subtle designs might use the same color in
different shades or tints. Because of all these
things mentioned, it's good that your color
palette is versatile. You can now see the
color palette I used for my second collection
through the window. I usually design the
whole collection using a working color
palette and I make final color adjustments
at the very end. What works best for me
is to print my designs, lay them on the table, move them around, and observe the color placement. It's like a game pick
the odd one out. At that point, I'm looking
for even distribution of colors and harmony
of the prints. I'm looking to see if
all the prints can be mixed and matched as
if I'm making a quilt. I'm also looking
to see if I have a particular color
that is present in all the key prints because
this will serve as a color highlight that
additionally unites everything. If something is not quite right, I make color changes
and observe again. [NOISE] Last but
not least, style. It comes as a cherry on top. What is style and how
can we easily define it? It's something that
belongs to you, it's the unique way in which you express yourself visually. Something like your
art signature, your unique visual language. We could say that a style is a set of refined
visual preferences that one can easily
translate into final artwork that
looks recognizable. When working on a
pattern collection, it's good to pick one style and keep it consistent
in all the prints, because this will perfectly
unite everything. You might have a developed
illustration style so you won't have to
think about it a lot. But if you like switching and experimenting with different
techniques and mediums, different styles of drawing, or different uses of color, which is completely fine we're all developing and changing, in that case, you
will have to be more intentional about the
use of one style. Here's what you could do. Determine a style you'd like to work with and develop
the hero pattern or develop a hero pattern and determine the
style you used. Observe the pattern
and write the list of things you see
about that style. Is a detailed? Did you use a lot of linework? Is it complex or is it simple? Did you use some
particular textures like watercolors or crayons? Most importantly,
what was the logic behind creating the
motifs you've created? What was the logic behind
using the colors you used. Once you start working
on the rest of the designs for the
collection keep in mind all the things you observed and stay
consistent with them. A great thing about working in many or full collections is that they'll help
you become better at using one cohesive style. If you're a beginner still
developing your style, you can find some practical
exercises in my class. Observing is learning from still life to
finding your style. All listed in the class
resources section. Now when you look at the
prints for my collection, you can see that my style is simple and bold with
carefully placed details. It's mostly flat colors and
shapes that resemble cutouts. For details and line work, I used a pencil brush
to add some texture. I also tried making everything just a bit quirky and imperfect. What I was able to observe
in my work is that I've found the style
base that works for me, which can be described
as simplified, bold, graphic, and vintage. Even though I love experimenting
and trying new things, I'm always keeping that base unchanged and I'm upgrading
it from different angles.
8. My Collection Story: Creating: [MUSIC] In this lesson
and the next one, I'm taking you behind the
scenes and you'll hear all about my imperfect
and clumsy process from not knowing what
I was doing to getting a licensing deal and collaborating
with Cloud9 Fabrics. This part of the
class is filled with real-life advice you'd
hear from a friend. I hope it will demystify this whole process and encourage you to pursue your
dreams no matter what. To make it easier to follow, I've divided it into different chapters named by
the key takeaway points. Let's start with
how I've created my pattern collection
and what I've learned. The first takeaway point
is all in good time. In other words, learn, believe in yourself, do the
work and it will happen. Maybe not when you expect it, but it will happen
at the right time. Just like a lot of beginner
pattern designers, I was drawn to making
individual patterns. Mostly complex
floral prints that could work as heroes
or coordinates. At that time, that felt like the most
interesting format in which I could explore
and develop my skills, as well as showcase
what I've learned. I still do, I still enjoy
making these types of patterns. Even though getting in
the mindset or working in many or full collections
came after quite some time. I was already a licensing individual prints
and illustrations. In other words, there
is no right or wrong. Be gentle to yourself and see where you are at this moment. Maybe you need more time to
develop your design skills, or maybe you feel ready
for a new challenge, a bigger project, which
is a pattern collection. Not knowing what you're
doing is completely fine. I love talking about this
one because it always seems like everyone around you knows what they're
doing except you. But believe me when
I tell you at first, no one knows what they're doing. Naturally, if you don't
know what you're doing, you'll make mistakes and fail
and then you'll try again. It's just a matter of how to navigate that and
keep believing in yourself because it always
takes time to get good at something new and figure
out how it all works. Before this first
collection I licensed, I made a few collections that
I was not quite happy with. They were not very
well-planned out, the prints were not
well-coordinated, and the collection
story was non-existent. I just couldn't see
the bigger picture. I had all these pieces
that needed to fit nicely and work together
and I had no plan at all. Even if I tried making a plan, it wasn't a solid plan, so I didn't stick to it. That's why in this
class I wanted to help you by taking apart
each piece of the collection making
process into something that is easy to understand and
work on step-by-step. That's why I've created the PDF collection planner for
you to explore your ideas, write them down and make a strong base for
your future project. The next one is do
it for the process, not the final outcome. Getting from Point A to Point B can be very
quick for you, or it might take some time. It all depends on your
unique situation. Even though the ultimate goal of making a pattern
collection is to license it and finally
see printed on fabric, that shouldn't be the only
reason for making it. What I've learned, and this is related to pattern collections and
anything I do in life is that what keeps me
motivated is to enjoy the process without being
fixated on the ultimate goal. This puts me in a
healthy mindset, where my happiness does not
depend on the final outcome. This might not be a
pattern design skill, but it is a mindset
skill that will create a strong base for
everything you do. Does this mean you
shouldn't try to license your collection or you
shouldn't think about it? Of course not, licensing
of fabric collection should be the goal you want to accomplish as a
pattern designer. This only means
that both creating and licensing are
part of the process, a part of the game you play
and you should enjoy it. Even if it doesn't
work out today, you'll wake up tomorrow
and try again. Just enjoy navigating
this new challenge. What's interesting is
that there is actually scientific proof behind
what I'm saying. There was a study conducted
with kids who love to draw, no matter what, they were motivated by simply
doing what they love. In this experiment, they took
those kids and place them in an environment
where they offered them a reward for drawing. In that way, they
switched their mindset from enjoying the
internal process. They started doing it because of the final external outcome, which was the reward. Guess what happened at the
end of this experiment? Those kids, when the
reward was taken away, were unmotivated to simply
enjoy drawing as they used to. This takes us to an
important takeaway; it doesn't have to be perfect. This applies to creating and licensing
pattern collections, as well as individual patterns, collaborating with clients
or doing anything you want, both personally and
professionally. Nothing has to be perfect
and you don't have to be 100% ready for anything
you want to do. Now, it's interesting
to note that my first licensed collection started as an unfinished
full-collection project. It consisted of six prints and none of them
were blender prints. My goal at the time was to make a set of
coordinated patterns and send them to
Uppercase Magazine for their surface
pattern design guide. Until that point, I already made a few collections that
didn't quite work out, as I mentioned, but
I learned a lot from my own mistakes and I finally
knew what I was doing. I was really happy with
these six sprints. The idea was to send
them to Uppercase, which I did, make two
blender prints later, and complete the collection. Then I was planning to finally finish organizing my portfolio and setting up a
new website that will suit me and the
work I was creating. After that, I was going to make a list of fabric companies
I'd like to work with, find their emails, send
them my collection, and hopefully get a
licensing deal and see my patterns
printed on fabric. But as with everything
in my life, it didn't really
go as I planned. A few months later, I heard back from
Uppercase the prints were picked for an upcoming
Surface Pattern Design Guide. But even better than that, one of the prints,
the diamond repeat, got selected to be
on the cover of Surface Pattern Design
guide that year. That pattern is still one of
my favorites and now it's printed on cotton fabric in
the initial color palette. After that, I posted all six
sprints on my Instagram. For some time reference
that was January 2021. Uppercase with my inside
cover came out in March 2021 and then
life happened. Months and months went by, I was busy and involved
in other projects and I somehow never found
time to finish this one. It shouldn't be a surprise. It was already the
end of February 2022 when I finally focused again on my pattern
collection project. I made a list of
fabric companies I wanted to collaborate with. Cloud9 Fabrics were on
the top of that list and I started working on
my website and portfolio, which were an essential
step forward. A few weeks later, middle of March 2022, the website was still
not done and therefore, I still didn't
send those emails. But believe it or not, I did receive something. It was a message
from none other than Cloud9 Fabrics asking me about licensing a
pattern collection. I can't even describe how
I felt at that moment. I was elated, beyond excited because
that coincidence just seem totally unbelievable. It's one of those
moments in life when everything
miraculously aligns and works out at the exact
moment in time and it becomes a lot better than what
you planned or hoped for. Next takeaway is the first
time you're a beginner, next time you're a pro. Creating my first
pattern collection was a bit clumsy and I felt for a long time like I didn't know what I was doing, but I was determined
to learn and persistent enough to keep
at it no matter what. Even though at times it's
hard being a beginner, it's the most exciting
part of the process. It's like taking a road trip to place you've
never been before. It's a journey of discovery and each little win
feels incredible. Don't stress about it, just let yourself explore
and have an open mind. The second collection
I worked on was a lot faster to create. This time, I felt like all the pieces of the puzzle
were fitting together. It all made sense. I knew exactly how to approach this big project step by step. I had a good plan
and I was able to manage all the necessary tasks. I started with a
collection story in mind. That story helped
me set the tone and gave me ideas of what I
was going to illustrate. This time, I was able to be
more intentional instead of just testing and seeing
what works and what doesn't. I knew exactly how prints in a collection relate
to each other, how I can vary their complexity, how I can create my
own internal rules and what methods I can use to
make the prints coordinated. It felt like I was upgrading and perfecting the whole
creation process. I'm immensely proud
of this collection. I feel like it helped me
evolve my style and technique, and also it includes some of the best pattern designs
I've made so far. You can see all the
prints together now. I'll read you what
I wrote about it. Through the window collection is inspired by vintage
nursery rooms. It plays with the
idea of a window as a magical passage that connects the inside world with
the outside world. Beautiful wallpapers
and curtains and neatly dressed
doll, adjuster toy, a music box and a
rocking horse start moving and vibrating in sync
with the outside world. Once we open the window
to let in the light, flower sense and the
sound of insects buzzing. Everything I learned and
followed while creating this collection is here in the class in the
previous lessons. I'm sure all of
that will give you more clarity and help you get to this point a lot
faster than I did.
9. My Collection Story: Licensing: [MUSIC] In this lesson, I'll
share what I've learned from licensing my
pattern collections. This part as well is divided into a few main takeaway points. The first one is
share your artwork with the world and
see what happens. The first step towards
getting a licensing deal, whether it's for individual
prints or full collections, is by sharing your artwork. It could be as simple as sharing it on your
Instagram page. If you feel like your page still doesn't get a
lot of visibility, you could participate in
many pattern challenges and proms hosted by other
artists or art agents. You can post your work on
your website portfolio, as well as through blog posts. You can send your work to a
magazine like Uppercase for their surface
pattern design guide or any magazine in the field, whether printed or online, that does interviews or post about emerging
pattern designers. You can also make a list of fabric companies
you want to work with and email them your
pattern collection. A good way to showcase it is to create a
presentation sheet like this one where all your
patterns are neatly organized. If you live in the US and/or have sufficient
funds to travel there, you could exhibit at some of
the major trade shows for surface design and art licensing like Surtex or Blueprint. But even if you're not
in that situation, there's no reason to be
discouraged and see it as a disadvantage because everyone is connected via the Internet. From my experience, connecting with companies
and sharing your work online is a very fruitful way to get your art
seen and licensed. As you already know, I send the prints from my
first collection to Uppercase and they got published in their Surface
Pattern Design Guide, and I also posted
them on Instagram. Even though at the time I still didn't finish my
website portfolio, Cloud9 Fabric saw my
work on Instagram and contacted me about
licensing a pattern collection. What I learned was
that at the beginning, you won't necessarily
have everything ready. So start with one or two ways in which you're
sharing your artwork and then upgrade and
explore new different roots until you establish a
system that works for you. It takes time. Be patient. Go at your own pace
and most importantly, don't stress about it. The next takeaway is
agreement first, work next. This goes without saying and when you're working with
professional companies, you won't even have to ask. This was the case with many
companies I worked with, as well as Cloud9 Fabrics. After we made a
selection of prints and before I started working
further on the collection, they sent me a licensing
agreement to review and sign. I'm no expert when it comes to contracts and
agreements and most of my knowledge comes
from a book called Graphic Artists Guild Handbook : Pricing and
Ethical Guidelines, as well as my experience
of reviewing and signing different agreements
with different companies. I know a lot of you might feel overwhelmed with this
part of the work because reading agreements and trying to navigate legal language
at the beginning feels like you're
studying astrophysics. But it's not. It's
not that hard. Here are just a few
things to know. First one, get this book. It's huge and not everything
in it will be of interest, but it's such a great source
of information to have. Whenever I'm in doubt, I look for answers in this book. Next one is carefully read the agreement and
keep in mind that if some parts of the
agreement don't work for you or they're not
written fairly, which means they're
written to suit and protect the
company and not you, you can always ask for the
alteration of that agreement. I did that a few times with some other companies and the
book I just mentioned was the main source I used to be
able to rewrite and offer edits to the agreement which those companies
accepted straightaway. The third one is, most
licensing agreements are pretty similar so pay
attention to copyright. Mostly you want to retain your copyright than
the terms of use. How long the company will have the right to use your artwork? It's usually 2-3 years and if all goes well and the
collection is successful, you can renew the license. Territory. It can
be worldwide or for example a specific
territory like Europe. In most cases, it
will be worldwide. Exclusivity. Will this license be
non-exclusive or will it be exclusive for a
specific type of product? For a pattern collection
printed on a bold fabric, the exclusive license will
be more likely to happen. Last but not least, payment. One part of it is
how much and how you will get paid and
the second part is keeping track of what
you're earning by receiving monthly or quarterly
sales statements, which is something
that should also be specified in your agreement. These were just the main
points to keep in mind. There is, of course, a lot more. But just take your time. If you're not sure
about something, check the book I
mentioned and check their examples of
licensing agreements. If you've done your
homework and there are still parts you have
trouble understanding, feel free to ask the company
you're collaborating with for any kind of clarification
of the agreement. It's not silly at
all and trust me, nobody will look down
upon you for doing that. The third and final
takeaway on the menu is working with a creative
director is a gift. Especially if you're a loner
self-represented artist who is mostly
working on your own, which includes being subjective, also trying to be
objective when it comes to evaluating
your own work. What a great opportunity it is to work with someone
who has a lot of knowledge and industry expertise when it comes to
pattern collections. You and the creative director
of the fabric company are collaborating together and you both have the same goal in mind, perfecting your
pattern collection and making it suitable
for the market. Your idea, uniqueness, and style will be
there no matter what that's why at the first place they
wanted to work with you. But your collection might need
to be tweaked a bit so it fits nicely in the licensor's
particular market. This will, by no means, break your integrity
as an artist. It will just make the
final product even better. Be open to feedback and
ask questions and grab this incredible opportunity to learn and perfect your
creation process. You will be able to implement all this new knowledge into
your future collections. I was lucky to work
with Michelle, who's a co-founder
and an amazing Creative Director
at Cloud9 Fabrics. She initially selected eight potential patterns
from my Instagram, five of which were the prints I created for the collection
I never finished. The other two were
new patterns and one was an illustration that I
later turned into pattern. Of course, she right away
asked me whether I had blender prints
because there were not on my Instagram page. After I send her some
new patterns and a few blender prints
I was working on at the time but didn't post, all the prints were
selected and we had the initial cohesive collection that needed some color tweaks. Just seeing how she picked the prints for this
collection and learning about the logic behind it was really interesting. Also hearing the
feedback and following her suggestions about color changes was
incredibly helpful. Here's how this initial
print selection turned into a coordinated
pattern collection. Then a year later that turned
into a fabric collection. Pretty amazing. Now, for the second collection, it was a lot easier. I learned so much
with the first one. This time, to begin with, I had a completed collection. The prints were unified
and well-coordinated. I had a good balance
between all the prints. Michelle and I worked on fine-tuning the colors
for the collection. You can now see the
initial color palette. Michelle's feedback was
that it needed more blue overall so it's appropriate
for the full delivery. The idea was to introduce
a darker blue color alongside the light blue color and use them in all key prints. The second feedback was that
the color combination for these two floral prints
made them look too similar. Both had a gold and
pink combination. She said that it will
be good to change that and distinguish
these two prints. You can now see how
the final collection looks after I implemented
all these changes. If I'm not mistaking, this collection will be available
in 2024 so it will take some time before
it's announced on their website and before
I get the fabric samples.
10. Final Thoughts: [MUSIC]. Well guys
were at the very end of this class and I
just wanted to say, thank you for spending time
with me and following along. I hope this class becomes a pattern collection
guide that you can come back to whenever
you're in doubt. I hope that by now
you already feel less overwhelmed with
this big project and you feel encouraged to take it step-by-step until all the
pieces start fitting together. Remember, all of us were
beginners at some point and none of us knew what we
were doing so take it easy, be gentle to yourself, go at your own pace and most importantly, enjoy the process. Creating pattern
collections is not only about unifying and
coordinating prints, it's about giving life to
a whole new visual world and it all starts with you and
the idea you have in mind. Grab some paper and pen
and start planning. I'm looking forward to seeing your collection outlines and hearing about what you learned. If you feel like you need more encouragement
or feedback for a specific part of the collection plan let me know about it in
the class project, I'll be here to help you
out and cheer you on. By the way I love to hear
what you think about this class so don't forget
to rate and review it. As always, if you
have any questions or if something was unclear, feel free to ask anything in
the discussion section of this class and I'll get back
to you as soon as I can. To get notified about
my next classes, follow me here on Skill-share
and you can also keep in touch with me on
Instagram at DIUJDI, or you can subscribe to my
newsletter through my website. I'm sending you lots of
love and good vibes, and I'll see you
in the next one.
Di Ujdi, Illustrator & Art Explorer
