Where have all the patterns gone?
A
lot has changed in the world of home fashion since I first started
blogging in the 2000's. As a beginner I amassed a pattern hoard that
I'm almost embarrassed
by. I collected most of them through secondhand shops. I had to buy
two Sterilite dressers to house them and eventually that wasn't
enough. They're now in boxes upon boxes. I remember when we were
moving into our first house and my husband's friend, who was kind
enough to help us, commented on how heavy my book boxes were; imagine
his face when I told him it was just paper patterns. I think I have
somewhere in the neighborhood of 300. I'm supposed to be selling off
the majority of my collection but recent changes in the sewing retail
industry have caused me to hesitate. Apparently Fabricland has
cleared out all of its patterns. I haven't been in the shop much
since the pandemic started, partially because I have a serious fabric
stash problem, but also because I haven't been sewing nearly as much.
On my last visit they had patterns in a large bin on clearance but I didn't realize it was the beginning of the end. This is depressing news. I've heard mixed ideas as to why it happened, assumptions fall somewhere between restructuring and the trade wars, but it doesn't really matter what the reason was as much as that it did happen. Tissue patterns have been an essential asset for beginners and advanced sewists alike. Many people will become impacted by this decision and those looking to break into the hobby will have a harder time. I can't even buy these patterns online unless it's through a third party seller at a significant markup. Going forward I will have to become reliant on my pattern hoard, thrifting, and my limited drafting knowledge to get me through. Of course there are PDFS...if you're into that sort of thing. The Big 4 are still producing patterns but not all of them are available for print at home, which seems dumb when you realize they stopped shipping to Canada, too. I hate spending time taping the pages together and getting everything perfectly aligned. I had to buy a paper cutter just to do my Burda coat (which I'll hopefully write about soon) and it took the greater part of an afternoon to assemble the print out! Nevermind cutting the materials which is exhausting enough. Also you can't "tissue fit" with printer paper. It produces a lot more tracing an adjustment problems that most novices won't be able to tackle.
Before
things ended, I managed to get a few of McCall's more contemporary
designs. They took on some "influencers" to produce
patterns for them. I have no idea who Brandi is but her stuff is kind
of cheap looking (some of it in a skanky way). And confession time: I
have almost always hated anything by Mimi G, her patterns look really
tacky to me. I don't know why Simplicity went kind of all in on her.
I get what they're trying to do with the Know Me Line (apparently
also her?) but it too seldom has anything that looks quality, there's
a lot of frumpy looking garments in the collection. It's funny how
hit and miss it can be. I was pleased that some of their stuff post
pandemic was starting to look more polished off but their newest
releases look dowdy and bizarre. There's a lot of ill fitting
clothing in terrible fabric choices, I thought they had moved beyond
that. It was cool to see the Gunne Sax re-releases even if the sample
photos leave a lot to be desired; more poor fabric choices and
construction issues. I did buy a PDF copy of one of them that I had
always wanted but was unwilling to pay $45 for it on Ebay, with the
PDF I only paid $5.99 USD plus tax, and of course the eventual
headache of assembly. I doubt it will look very good without
significant alterations, they have that 80's big everything problem
lol but I'll do my best. The only designs that look really good to me
right now are coming from Burda, but they're sort of falling behind
the times. It must be a challenge to produce relevant fashions that
can last more than a few years but their catalogue is enormous and
readily available for print at home which is nice when you've got no
other options!
I
know that most people shrugged this "pattern shortage" off because they're obsessed with
insert
name
(indie
pattern maker). I purchased a few indie patterns on Etsy over the course of the pandemic and they're not without their issues. Size inclusivity is a problem. One bodice I bought was not made for
large chested women. It had atrocious fit problems in the shoulder
area that I couldn't work out, and the instructions were abysmal as they were largely dependent on a video that was not in English. And
even though the designer did get back to me with an adjustment
suggestion their response felt somewhat shitty like it's a me problem
and that the bodice wasn't designed for boobs. Another designer had
fantastic full color photo instructions in their pattern and I was
really pleased with the price point and the final product. There is good and bad out there and because they are independent these designers are only accountable to themselves, and maybe their partners or shareholders. Sometimes they can lack professionalism; they may misuse social media, uphold fringe politics, steal ideas and/or treat their consumer base like crap... (r/craftsnark anyone?). Beyond makers with sketchy political views, I'm not a huge fan of the shopping process; finding something reliable is
difficult. I found it harder to find reviews on indie patterns that
weren't obvious endorsements by friends and influencers (I guess the
knitting scene has a similar problem). Now with AI slop flooding the
market it's going to be even more complicated to vet out good designers.
See that makes me sad, to think I'll never get to walk into a store and
flip through the big catalogue and stumble upon something really cute
or cool. Nothing is ever going to match that experience. This is the end
of an era.
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