If you are interested in creating textile designs or surface designs then this guide will prepare you for the key design considerations when designing fabric patterns and print designs.
There are two main ways you can develop your prints – either:
- starting with an artwork to turn into a print, OR;
- designing specifically for the purpose of using it as a print.
If you already have a completed artwork and you are interested in turning it into a textile print or having it printed onto products, there will still be design considerations that needs to be made about how you will repeat the artwork, the printing method used etc.
When you are designing specifically with the intention of creating a repeating print, thinking through these design considerations before you start the design process will enable you to create fantastic prints that will work.
End Use for the Print Design
The key difference between art and design is that design has an end use, purpose or function and designers have to consider how the product will function.
Artists are free to create and express themselves without the thought of function. That does not mean that art cannot be translated into design. However, when preparing artworks to be translated into textile prints or creating print designs from scratch, the end function needs to be considered.
Sometimes these considerations will be minor, and other times they will have a greater impact on the artwork created for the print. Having regard to what the end use of the product may impact on the other decisions made regarding colour, scale, repeat etc.
Think about the size of the end product, this will often have a big impact on the scale (size) of the print design.
If you are designing textiles for fashion garments, the type of garments can have an impact on many of your design choices. Designing swimwear prints is different than designing for street wear or children’s wear.
Likewise, if you are designing textiles for the home, the type of prints that work for lamp shade covers, or cushions might be different to those you would design for a couch covering, drapes or a duvet cover.
The end use of the product could also have a major impact on the print method used and the fabrication. So if you are designing a print for a specific end use then this could impact on the print method, which in turn could impact on the color usage in the print design.
Target Market
The end user is another consideration that will impact your design choices. In most cases this will impact the most on the subject matter and style of the print design, but will also impact the colour choices, scale, repeat type etc.
What is their age, personality, style, budget and what are they looking for in a design? If the print is for fashion, are they wanting a print that will flatter their figure? Do they want to be in tune with the latest fashion trends? Or are they more focused on looking sophisticated and stylish?
If the print is for homewares, then what style does the target customer have in their home and what do they want to complement that? Are they looking for a stand out piece or do they want something that coordinates well with other pieces?
Why the end user would want that type of print, what the print represents for them and how that makes them feel will have an impact on the types of products the print would work best for.
Asking yourself the following questions about the end user may help you with your design considerations:
- Age
- Sex
- Lifestyle
- Personality
- Budget for spending on the end product
- How/Why/When & Where they will use the end product
- What does the print convey about them
Colors
Color is a very obvious design consideration and also one of the most important. Different customers will be attracted to different colors and different types of end products will work best in particular colorways.
For some designs you want the colors to pop and stand out, and for other designs, the colors should blend and be more subtle.
You can use as many colors as you like in your print designs, but a good rule of thumb for a fantastic print is to have no more than 3 predominant colors. One of these should be the background color, one the main focus color and the third the “zing” color that makes the artwork “pop”. Any additional colors in the design should be used less predominant to accent the design.
You may want to offer the same print in multiple colourways. Sometimes even just changing the background color can have a completely different effect for a design.
Thinking about the number of colours used in a design will also have impact on the printing method chosen, as not all print processes work well for all designs. You may want to test print onto different fabrics as this can also impact on the vibrancy of the colours when printed.
When designing for fashion it is important to think about what season you are designing for. The colors used in winter are quite different from what you will see in summer fashions. Having regard for the season and also color trends will be important if designing for high fashion. If you are designing fashion textiles for production, you will need to be at least 1 year ahead of the current season at an absolute minimum.
Scale
Imagine a floral print design (sorry guys, you’ll have to pretend you are a female for this exercise) – now imagine yourself wearing a cami top with this floral print… what size are the flowers? Now imagine yourself wearing a printed floral kaftan, what size are the flowers on this? And a swimsuit? Now what about a duvet cover? And a feature cushion? Now a phone case? A gift card? A coffee cup?
I’m sure as you used your imagination to put a floral print design onto all of these different products you would have changed the sizing of the flowers in the designs to suit the different products they were on. This is where scale comes in.
In fashion, different print sizes can be more flattering for different figure types. Generally speaking a larger scale print will be more slimming on a larger figure than a very small tight print.
The size of the end product will also play a role in the scale of the print. As an experiment, try scaling the print larger or smaller than you would normally and see what effect this creates – sometimes it might surprise you.
If you are taking an existing artwork to print on to a product, test out zooming in on a particular area or detail. You may be able to create several different prints from one artwork by scaling up and focussing on one small area of the artwork and you could even turn this into a co-ordinating collection!
Repeat Types
There is more than one way to repeat a pattern!
The standard repeating print is known as a block repeat (also known as a tile, full drop or basic repeat), but there are other ways you can repeat your prints too.
Each original artwork piece that is then repeated is known as a 'tile'. In these examples we are using a motif to clearly show the repeat, however the whole tile area could be filled with a design, making it harder to see where each tile starts and finishes.
Block Repeat
A Brick (horizontal) or Half Drop (vertical) repeat is where the patterns is aligned halfway across the original pattern in the same way a brick layer lays bricks. This is the second most commonly used repeating print type behind the block repeat.
Brick Repeat
Half Drop Repeat
Tossed repeats are when the motif’s are spaced out “randomly” or tossed across an area and then repeated. In this case other motifs have been added to create interest.
Tossed Repeat
A Mirror Repeat is where the pattern tile is reflected or "mirrored" horizontally and vertically. However you can also create a mirror repeat that is just horizontal or vertical too.
Mirror Repeat
Diamond Repeat
A Diamond repeat looks similar to a half drop repeat, but is actually different. The corners of the tile cross below the tile above in a diamond shape, whereas the half drop repeat is kept in line with the tile above.
To illustrate the difference between them, I have added some spots to the corners of the tile.
Using the exact same tile, you can see the difference between the half drop and the diamond repeat. By looking at the positions of the spots, you can more clearly see the difference between a half drop repeat and a diamond repeat.
Diamond Repeat
Half Drop Repeat
Your Signature Style
Your print designs will inherently take on your own signature style, but it is still good to try to keep your designs in line with that style – especially if you are a known artist or brand that people already know/like and follow.
Infuse your own style into the design variations in the print collections that you create.
Infuse your own style into the design variations in the print collections that you create. Going off on a completely different tangent may alienate or confuse your customer base. That is not to say don’t experiment with different styles and techniques – you may find a way to work something completely different into your own style and extend your appeal to reach more people.
If you have found a style that you like that is completely different or opposite to the style that you are known for, you could produce this range under a different brand or aimed at a different target audience and label it as the “xyz” collection.
Take Your Surface Designs to the next level
If you would like to learn how you can improve your art skills so you can create textile and surface designs that stand out, Tracy's online program Paint Art That Sells is for you!
The course takes you through a wide range of art mediums and techniques, starting from very simple techniques to get quick results right through to advanced artworks.
Along the way she shares inspiration, business and marketing tips and ideas, contacts for manufacturers, patterns and templates for products and much more so you have everything you need to take your print design business to the next level.
Coordinates & Collections
Depending on the purpose for the print design, you may want to create coordinating prints or a collection of prints within the same style or theme.
For example if you are designing quilting fabrics, you may want to create several prints that coordinate together around a colour theme.
If you are designing textiles for fashion, you may want to create several prints that may or may not necessarily coordinate together, but fit within an overall theme or style for a collection.
When designing your prints, you may like to think about what other prints you could create that would coordinate or fit into the same collection.
Putting your print designs into collections can also help your work stand out when presenting your work as a textile designer at trade shows or in your portfolio to prospective employers and even when displaying on social media or on your website.
Here is an example of one way that you can create a collection based around a "hero" print by expanding on that print with other elements to create coordinating prints that can be used in a product range.
Art Mediums
When creating your artworks to turn into print designs, having reference to the end use of the product, the customer, the print method etc. could impact the art mediums you use to create artwork for the print. Watercolour may not be suitable for the chosen end purpose, perhaps pen and ink is, or acrylics, or alcohol inks… or maybe the design lends itself to a digital illustration.
Fabrication
Is your print going on flowy silks, sheer fabrics, stretch fabrics or thick woven linens? The vibrancy of the colours and printing methods chosen could be impacted by the fabric choice for the end use.
Do the textiles used need to be high performance fabrics with special qualities like moisture absorption for sports wear? Or does it need to have be resistant to fading for long time sun exposure/outdoor usage? Or water resistant? The print dyes and the printing processes used will need to be considered for these types of use cases.
Also consider the washing and care of the fabric. If you are creating textiles for babies or children then they will need to be easily washed in a washing machine without fading, cracking or shrinking and you would generally choose a cheaper fabric. You may also need to consider fire safety as there are legal requirements for safety standards and labelling when selling children’s textile products and even other special use products (even for adults).
Print Method
In many cases, digital or sublimation printing will be used for most of your print purposes. However, you may want a screen print design, or hand done block or stencil printing.
Different print methods have different end effects, and work differently on different fabrics so it is important to consider the end use and desired effect. For example, sublimation printing can be very bright, however it does not work as well on natural fibers like cotton or silk as it does on synthetic fibers like polyester.
Make sure you find out from the printer what the properties of the print are and how they are best used. Find out about the care of the finished fabric, it’s heat and fade tolerances, which fibers you can print on and how that might impact on color vibrancy, how the print works on stretch fabrics when stretched etc. It is important to get familiar with the qualities of the print method chosen for your end work.
Remember when you are creating your designs that you don't have to know everything there is to know about repeating your prints or the print production. If you waited to learn everything than you would never get started. Start creating, have an end product in mind and don't be afraid to ask your printer questions. You will learn so much by giving it a go and exploring the endless world of surface design. The first step is starting.
Tracy xx
