How to design a pattern collection

A guide for surface pattern designers

When you first start out as a surface pattern designer it’s very normal (and actually good!) to design with individual prints in mind.

One day you might focus on a jungle themed pattern. Once that’s finished, you might try a Rococo themed damask, the next day you might move on to a retro floral. (This is exactly what I did when I first started!)

Designing in this way helps you to focus down on what you like designing and allows you to develop your unique, individual style.

However, whilst this is a great way to develop as an artist in the early stages, if you continue in this way forever you are missing out on some of the deeper creative opportunities that come from designing in collections.

In this blog post I'll be covering:

- what a pattern collection is

- why it’s important to create in collections

- How to plan your own collection

- How templates can help structure a collection

Although I am not a ‘collection expert’, for the past year I have been designing almost exclusively in collections and regularly sharing these to my portfolio, Instagram profile, and Spoonflower shop. Since I started doing this I have had a definite increase in licensing enquiries and opportunities – I don’t think that is a coincidence, and I’ll be explaining why as we go through.

What is a pattern collection?

For those of you who are just starting out, let’s quickly cover the basics!

A pattern collection is a group of patterns that form a cohesive whole.  Usually they are tied together with a unified colour palette, they share similar motifs and often tell a story.

There is a lot of debate among surface designers as to how many patterns actually make up a collection.

Some would define 3-6 patterns as a mini-collection and 7+ as a full collection.

Others would say you haven’t got a full pattern collection until you have 12 or more prints.

Don’t get hung up on exactly how many prints there need to be. Unless I’m designing a collection for a particular purpose and there is a guide on how many I need to create, I usually aim to create about 6-8 prints (but I also create smaller collections of just 4-5 designs.) You can always add more if you need to!

Pattern collections tend to follow a loose formula. Again there are no hard and fast rules on how they are made up but usually they include:

• One hero print. This is the star of the show. It usually is the most detailed and uses most of the colours in your palette.

• A couple of secondary prints. These prints are not as detailed as the hero and may not include all the colours in the palette but they still have plenty of interest and support the hero print.

• A number of blender/coordinate prints. These prints are much more simple and their role is to act as a bridge between the busier more colourful prints.

Why is it important to design in collections?

There are lots of reasons it is a good idea to design in collections:

It makes your portfolio look professional. Collections show that you can do more than just create one pretty pattern. They prove you know how to build a set of designs that work together—something clients and art directors often look for.

It has more visual impact. A portfolio full of random, unconnected designs can feel a bit messy. But when your patterns are grouped into collections, it looks more polished, focused, and impressive.

It shows you're creative and strategic. Designing a collection takes planning and intention. It shows that you’ve put thought into your work, not just creatively but in how it could be used in the real world.

It makes your work more appealing to buyers. Many industries - like fabric, stationery, and home decor - prefer to work with collections. Having several patterns that go together makes your work easier to sell and use in a range of products.

How do you plan a collection?

The answer to this question could be covered in a whole series of blog posts there is so much to say! But for now I will stick to some main pointers (and perhaps go into more depth in future posts or classes!)

Obviously the following tips are from my own experience of designing in collections. This is certainly not ‘the only way’ or ‘the right way’. Every artist finds a method that works for them, but sometimes it can be helpful to have a framework to build on if you are just getting started. So if that’s you, I hope this might be helpful!

1. Decide on a theme. This could be something personal or interesting to you or it could be a seasonal theme (think, Christmas, Spring etc.) Sometimes I even base a whole colelction around my entry for the bi-weekly Spoonflower Design Challenge!

   
   

2. Choose a palette. I would suggest going for a limited palette or 4-5 colours. This will create a cohesive and unified look across your collection. If you’re stuck choosing palettes check out this post for some tips.

3. Design your hero print. It’s a personal preference what order you create in but I always find it easiest to design the hero first. This will set the tone for the rest of the patterns. Your hero print should be the most detailed out of all your prints but how detailed it is will depend on your own artistic style. Try and include most, if not all your colours in your hero print.

4. Design your secondary prints. In a collection of 6-8 patterns I usually design 2-3 secondary patterns. These are going to be less detailed, but fit in with the story you begin to tell with your hero. For example, if you have created a rainforest theme for your hero print with various flowers, animals and insects, pick one of these details to use as a focus for your coordinate. Your coordinates will use a number of colours from your palette but not all.

5. Finally design your blender prints. These will be much simpler and maybe even just include one or two colours from your palette. If you need some more in-depth help with ideas for this I have lots in this post, but for these patterns think along the lines of dots, stripes, and simple, scattered designs.

As you design your collection, keep the following things in mind:

• Try to have a range of scales. The hero print will usually have the biggest scale, but make sure you have a range throughout. I nearly always include a smaller ditsy print to create some balance of scales.

• Try to vary the style of pattern. (Eg don’t just create a collection full of symmetrical designs, or a collection made up exclusively of trailing florals) We all gravitate to certain styles but a balanced collection won’t just be made up of one style. Here are a few to try: symmetrical, geometric, trailing, ditsy and scattered.

• Try to vary the intensity of the patterns in the collection. By this I mean have some designs that are packed closely with very little space, and have others that have open space. (In general my style is to have closly packed designs with very little open space. I have to be intentional about creating patterns with more open space.)

• If your collection is intended for fabric, include some non directional prints. These are patterns that work which ever way you turn them. This is very helpful for sewists!

• Frequently put the patterns together to check they are working as a whole. I often scale them down on one canvas and then move them around to check they all work with each other!

• Use the same brush and textures throughout. This is debatable, but I nearly always use the same brush and same texture for each pattern in my collection. This gives it a unified, cohesive look.

• Even with your blender prints try to tell your story. If you are creating a dog themed collection, instead of a polka dot blender print, why not use paw prints? If your collection is space themed, why not use stars? This shows you have been intentional about how the prints work together as a whole.

• Keep in mind that although everyone loves florals, it’s important for SEO and marketing purposes to try and include something other than florals as well (this is hard for me!). Patterns are more marketable if they have specific, searchable motifs in them. (I don’t mean you can’t include floral prints, just try to have a few prints with other motifs in them too!)

How templates can help you build a collection

If you know me, you'll know I love a good template and I create them for myself all the time so I don't have to start from scratch with every single pattern I create! (Anyone else love a time saving hack?!)

Using a set of templates can help you to provide a varied collection that is full of interesting patterns that contrast and yet complement each other. It will mean you won't get stuck just making the style you are most comfortable with.

Let me explain...

In my new templates pack I have included 20 templates that are divided into 5 sections:

• Simple

• Flowing

• Ditsy

• Symmetrical

• Trailing

Each section includes 4 unique templates in that style.

(Thank you to those of you who had some input into what styles would be included!)

In my recent 'Garden Ducks' collection I chose a number of templates from different sections of the pack to create a varied set of prints.

The three secondary prints you can see below are each based on a template from a different section of the pack.

The floral blender pattern below is based on one of the templates from the 'simple' section.

I used another template from the 'simple' section to create a scattered butterfly print that included plenty of open space.

Although I added to it quite significantly, I used the same simple template to get the placement of the ducks in the hero print.

(I then also added some simple lined blenders too to complete the collection!)

• The templates pack features 20 unique templates so it was easy to mix and match a few I thought would work nicely together in my collection.

• Using the templates meant I didn't have to start from scratch with each new pattern I created.

• I was able to vary the styles of pattern I used by choosing templates from different sections.

• As the repeats are already worked out in each template, I knew each pattern ws going to look balanced so I could just work on the fun part of illustrating on the top!

The templates pack will help you to explore lots of different styles of pattern and is perfect for helping you to build a stunning and balanced collection!

If you've found this post helpful or you'd like a more in depth look at any of the points I've covered, do let me know in the comments section below!