Review of programs that will help you create a pattern for clothing

All lovers of fashionable and creative clothes, sewn by hand, professional designers and cutters can make their work easier at the very beginning - when creating a pattern. Our mothers and grandmothers, in order to sew a dress "not like everyone else", armed themselves with tracing paper, a pattern, a ruler, pencils and other tools and painstakingly, calculating number by number, measurement by measurement, drew a project of the future masterpiece on paper. Today, creating clothing patterns has become much easier thanks to the emergence of a number of computer programs for their construction.

Review of computer programs for constructing patterns

All developed computer applications are very convenient and significantly speed up the construction of the model project, saving time. They differ in the internal interface, the presence of a set of capabilities, complexity or, conversely, simplicity of the process.

Valentina

The program for constructing patterns "Valentina" is convenient and simple, and also has a number of features that needlewomen love. Among the main characteristics:

• The application is absolutely free, you just need to go to the official website of the developers and install the application on your computer, and no demo versions.
• A program for cutting out clothes in Russian. The developers also offer detailed instructions on how to use the application, which can be downloaded from the same site.
• The main difference from other resources is the parametric function, which is useful if you have a sewing production. It changes the existing drawing according to the size.
• Valentin has a wide range of tools for constructing points, curves, arcs and even ready-made parts.
• The application allows you to set seam allowances, which is very convenient for further work.

After installing Valentina on your computer, you can immediately start creating a drawing. All the tools needed to create a pattern can be found right in the main window. Among them:

• Bisector points, perpendicular points, shoulder marks and darts.
• Lines that can be assigned length, color, designation, type (solid, dotted).
• Formulas that calculate parameters taking into account the entered data.
• Figures that allow you to create them without using points, but to immediately apply them in the drawing.
• The Operations tab allows you to work with ready-made parts, rotate, spin and drag them.
• The base of measurements and their use in drawings is carried out using the additional program Tare, where you can save, change and add standard and special measurements.
• All entered data and obtained drawings can be saved and worked with in the future.

"Valentina" is a wonderful application for creating patterns, easy to use, can be used by amateur seamstresses or owners of a sewing production. The Russian interface and a wide range of tools allow you to quickly understand the program and create unique models quickly and easily.

"LEKO"

Another program for creating patterns that can be downloaded for free on the Internet is Leko. For a beginner, this program may be difficult, since it is not very automated and requires manual input of formulas and algorithms, which is not familiar and convenient for everyone. The program database includes:

• Ready-made clothing designs that change according to the measurements entered.
• Gradation of patterns.
• Economical layout of details on fabric.

The program does not require installation and can work from storage devices.

"GRAFIS" (CAD GRAFIS)

CAD "Grafis" (computer-aided design system) is a very advanced and convenient resource for modeling all types of clothing and a generator of ideas for a cutter. You can download "Grafis" for a fee from the official website cadrus.ru. The range of possibilities of CAD "Grafis" is very wide. In addition to the routine work of the designer, it allows:

• Create a basic foundation for developing your own clothing lines.
• Perform automatic gradation by size.
• Automate the construction of seam allowances.
• Perform layout on fabric automatically and manually.
• Save time with a user-friendly interface and a large library of basics.

Due to its capabilities, the program has become very popular, and knowledge of it is put forward in the requirements for employment in design agencies and sewing workshops.

Pattern making software FittinglySew2

The FittinglySew2 clothing pattern creation program was developed in England. Its Russian-language version can be purchased on the distributors' website fittinglysew.ru after reviewing the demo version. The cost of the program as of January 2020 is 20 thousand rubles. The FittinglySew2 program allows you to:

• Use basic patterns and ready-made drawings.
• Model using a set of tools.

• Print the model on A4 paper.
• Perform optimal layout.
• Create drawings from a photo from a magazine or PDF file.
• Create a customer base with measurements.

To learn how to use the program, there are video tutorials on the FittinglySew2 distributors' website, and distance learning is also available.

"Cutter 2.76 / 1.44 Lite"

"Cutter 2.76 / 1.44 Lite" is a very simple and accessible program for constructing and printing model bases according to the customer's measurements. Only the demo version is available for free. If the program's capabilities meet your needs, you can download it from the developer's official website dmitry-prog.ru/ru/main_rus.html, paying $ 40 (the price is valid as of January 2020). The application offers ready-made bases for products and individual parts, which automatically change when measurements are entered.

The following model bases are programmed:

• Women's dresses, jackets and coats of straight and fitted silhouette with different types of collars (stand-up, one-piece, jacket, shawl and others) and sleeves (shirt, single-seam, double-seam).
• Women's and men's trousers, jeans, skirts of different shapes and different waist positions.

The big advantage of the program "Cutter 2.76 / 1.44 Lite" is that it does not require installation, you can launch and work with it from storage devices.

OPTITEX 11

Optitex 11 is a great clothing design software with many features including:

• parametric patterns;
• a unique ability to do fittings on a 3D mannequin, and several models at the same time;

• selection of fabric texture, color scheme, finishing elements;
• independent analysis of the model's fit on the figure according to established measurements with possible suggestions for making changes;
• obtaining an accurate pattern based on a model drawn on a mannequin;
• selection of layout of patterns on fabric to save it.

The OptiTex 11 program can be downloaded from the official website Optiтex.сom, after having reviewed the demo version. There is also e-training on how to use the program (the application is quite complex due to the presence of many functions), 24-hour support service, online help. The cost of the program depends on the distributor (there is no official one in Russia, although there are versions in Russian). There are also Russian-language copies of the program on the Internet that can be downloaded for free, but they do not provide all the functions of the program.

REDCAFE

The RedCafe app will appeal to both novice seamstresses and professionals. You can download it from the official website redcafestore.com, for this you will have to register by creating a personal account.

The pattern designer allows you to work with lines, dots and ready-made parts, which can be changed in color, type, thickness, given names, copied, moved, etc. The application can also:

• carry out pattern gradation across the entire size range;
• construct seam allowances;
• group pattern pieces into objects;
• You can digitize and print out the pattern you like from the book.

RedCafe is distinguished by the presence of ready-made patterns that can be edited, making changes to your taste and size. In addition to the existing basic patterns, you can download collections of patterns from professionals into the program, including from the Burda-Moden magazine. It is also possible to create and print your own drawings, which will be saved in your personal account. The RedCafe application will also help you create a knitting pattern.

Beginner cutters who want to try their hand at automated programs without downloading can use online services. In this case, you will not be able to create your own unique designs, use them in other sizes, or save them for further work with the pattern. But if you need to quickly create one pattern based on ready-made models, then an online pattern creation service can help with this.

Among the programs that have online versions, there are several. Below is a list of them with explanations.

Fanreal

A very convenient resource with detailed instructions. It will require registration and creation of a personal account. But it will save measurements that can be used when creating other patterns. Fanreal allows you to create new patterns, select sizes, choose the style and color of the product, add seam allowances, lay out the details on the fabric. There is one big minus - patterns cannot be printed in full size, only scaled.

MakeMeDress

Another online resource that allows you to create a pattern very quickly and for free, you can find it at: http://makemedress.com. It is based on a single method of constructing clothes, has a wide base of basics. It is very easy to use the resource, and the finished pattern can be saved to your computer or tablet.

Designing clothing patterns has received a new round of improvement and acceleration of the process. With the help of software applications, when creating clothing patterns, you can significantly save time, labor and financial resources, and for enthusiasts, special programs are a unique opportunity to become designers of their own clothing line and the owner of a sewing production.

The programs are not very difficult to use, anyone can learn to work in them, and instructions, video tutorials and even online training are included for training. You just need to download them and you can start creating unique design solutions, embodied in patterns made by hand.