Introducing: Chic Steals DIY Patterns! And the Peter Pan Collar Pattern

Jan 11, 2012 | Fashion

I’ve been hard at work over the last month or so putting together – you guessed it – a line of DIY printable patterns!

What I truly loved about designing my own line – 5 years ago now! – was thinking up ideas, but the actual manufacturing of a clothing line (in multiples) to sell in stores was where the headaches started.  It was such a huge expense to do, and at the end of it when things didn’t sell, I was left with excess inventory that no one wanted.  All that money, time, and skills wasted; all the fabric and notions no longer usable.  This is an affliction that all clothing lines have, as long as they’re operating via the push manufacturing model; that is, they manufacture the clothing first, and then push it on the consumer after they have the stock and hope that it sells out.  Retailers as big as Forever 21 and The Gap are, season after season, stuck with excess inventory and styles than don’t sell, ultimately to be sold at below cost (less than what it cost to manufacture), donated, or even destroyed (as in the case of H&M).  It’s a huge waste of time, not to mention resources.

I think a different model is what many people are looking for.  Patterns that you can print at home, and either make yourself or bring to a tailor, truly make the experience of creating clothing uniquely personalized to everyone.  It requires a higher investment of time and effort, but in the end you are rewarded with something that you made yourself, that has created little if no fabric waste, and has no leftover unsold pieces at the end of the season.  It can be something you love because of that extra investment, and you can even create it repeatedly, in numerous colors/style for yourself, with minimal cost to you each time.

Thus I decided to launch a line of printable patterns, focused on bringing current trends to all, offering up numerous Variations and Design Ideas for each piece, and making the instructions as easy to follow as possible.  You don’t have to wait for these pieces to come to a store near you…they’re here now, and available at your fingertips.  The only thing missing is a little dose of YOU into each project!

First up:

The Removable Peter Pan Collar

4 Patterns Included

6 Collar Variations (with instructions for each)

Numerous Design Ideas for each Variation (embellishment, material, and construction ideas)

—->Hundreds of Possibilities!

For this particular pattern, I’ve created 6 Variations with the How-To (& photos):

   The Lace Collar

{A single layer of lace with ribbon tie}

The Overlay Collar

{Crochet layered over a fabric backing, with woven tie}

The Embellished Collar

{Fabric collar constructed to hold the weight of embellishments, with front closure}

The Finished Fabric Collar

{Fabric collar with finished sewn edge and front closure}

The Open-Front Fabric Collar

{fabric collar with finished sewn edge and center chain closure}

The Oversized Fabric Collar

{Fabric collar with finished sewn edge, slightly larger than the other Variations, with front closure}

The sizing is one-size-fits-all [up to a 15 3/4″ circumference neck].

Right now I’m beginning the line with accessories, and hope to move on to offer graded patterns at some point in the future.  Here are some features of my line of patterns that differentiate them from the other patterns out there on the market:

• Current, on-trend styles
• Meticulous instructions with accompanying photographs
• Always include a number of variation instructions for each pattern (other patterns usually only offer 1 or 2 variations per pattern)
• Accurate, vector-based patterns (nothing hand-drawn, sketchy, or lopsided)
• Affordable prices on-par with other downloadable patterns
• Licenses available for purchase so that you can use these patterns to create your own line of finished pieces and sell them (like in an Etsy store!)

This pattern (for home usage)  is now available for purchase in my Etsy store for $5.00.  Within 24 hours of your purchase I will email you the pattern and instructions in PDF format.  I’m also available for any questions or support if you run into any issues with your purchased pattern.

Buy Now!

Chic Steals DIY Peter Pan Collar Pattern on Etsy

I’d love to know what you, my lovely readers, think!  Please let me know!

xoxox
Carly

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