Digital printing on textiles has greatly improved as printing technology advances. One of the advantages of printing directly on fabric is the ability to create unique designs and have them printed directly on the textile. One-of-a-kind printed fabrics can be created for garments, promotional products and home decor.
For large scale prints, a flatbed printer or roll-based ink jet printer can be used to print directly onto the fabric. This method can be useful for printing a repeated pattern onto large yards of fabric. Synthetic or natural fibres with a tiled image are imprinted into the material.
For DIY enthusiasts or small scale prints, an inkjet printer will also have the capabilities to print on fabric. Paper backed fabric is made specifically to be able to feed through the printer. Once the print is finished, peel back the paper and the printed fabric is ready for use.
At KeenART Media, we offer artists and designers fine art prints on a selection of fabrics that would be great for printing original designs and patterns on. If you want to find out how to make your own patterns, we did some research on which programs are available to create fun and creative patterns that can be printed on fabric.
SUMMARY
This article lists some programs and software that are capable of generating patterns. They will be divided up into four categories:
These applications supply you with a library of different shapes and preset patterns. The toolbars are designed to be simple so that you are able to customize the appearance of the pattern and shapes quickly and easily.
Pattern Cooler is a web-based application that has many preset patterns that you are able to customize. You can easily change the colors and the size of the pattern with their editing toolbar. It also has a feature that allows you to add texture if you want to change the texture of the material you are printing on.
According to the website, they have a library of over 1000 patterns. All the patterns are preset with their own color scheme but you can easily change it to suit your project. Editing with this software is simple and allows you to see your changes would look when the pattern is tiled. One downside is that you cannot add your own shapes or combine any of the patterns. However, with a wide selection of patterns, you will save a lot of time and you will definitely find something that works for your project.
This application is free for non-commercial use. For a subscription fee, professional designers and artists can have access to high resolution files and a license to use the patterns commercially (will vary depending on the subscription).
Seamless Lite is a free website application that is made by ColourLovers.com. In this program, you can choose from their library of shapes and lines to create a seamless pattern template. This allows you to create your own unique pattern instead of editing premade ones.
You must sign-up for an account in order to have access to your pattern template and to be able to change the colors. This website is also a community based website so your pattern template will be shared with the rest of the community but no one can use your pattern for commercial use and you must be credited for creating the pattern.
One unique thing about the editing toolbar is that there is a layers panel, similar to one you would find in Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator. It allows you to easily select your shapes to change the size and placement. The website also allows you to download an SVG files so you can edit it with a vector-based program such as Illustrator. With this capability, you are able to make high resolution images for large scale printing.
BG Patterns is a free website application that allows you to create patterns using shapes from their library. They also allow you to upload your own shapes, which gives you countless options for creating patterns.
The pattern is generated on a full screen with a minimalist toolbar set off to the side. You can directly select the shape and adjust the size and placement and see it change in real time. They also have a layers toolbar that will be handy if you have many shapes to edit or if you want to put one shape on top of the other. You can change size of your pattern but using the scroll wheel on your mouse. Unfortunately, the size is limited to 600 x 600 pixels and it only saves as a jpg format. But it will be large enough to print a small pattern on large pieces of fabric or paper.
Patternico is also a web-based application that allows you to create patterns using shapes from their library and they also allow you to upload your own shapes.
Similar to the previous website, it allows you to directly select your shapes to make changes. The files are also saved as JPGs but you have the option of changing the size of your work space to make bigger patterns and you're not limited to square patterns. One downside is that when you create a bigger work space the pattern window might run off the edge. If you have a small screen it might not be practical for making large patterns. However, they offer a large selection of shapes and icons to use and you are able to use your own shapes.
SIMPLE PATTERNS
These applications can only make one type of pattern. In this section, we look at pattern generators that only uses lines.
Patternizer only uses lines to create patterns. You can create your own striped design with your favorite colors or if you are very creative, you can create interesting geometric shapes using only lines.
The interface is very easy to use. You can change the shape, size and the angle of your stripe to create a pattern. It is for those who only want striped, plaid or checkered patterns. A downside to this program is that it isn't seamless. Unlike the other websites we've looked at so far, the pattern is set to your monitor size. This is fine if you aren't going to be printing on large sheets of fabric. It will be useful for small projects.
You can create a free account to save all your patterns, but it isn't necessary. Another featuere of this site is that they will generate the code for your pattern so you can use it on websites.
As the name states, this website is to make plaid patterns only. It is more mathematical than the other generators since it is a very simple interface. The stripes are measured in pixels, so if you aren't familiar with it you might need to go through some trial an error to get a hang of it. However, once you do, the patterns are very intricate and fun. The patterns are saved as PNG files and they are seameless.
Adobe Illustrator is a vector graphic editing program. It allows you to make vector graphics and has the capabilities to make large graphics without compromising the quality. Adobe Illustrator CS6 and newer has a pattern making options that can make seamless patterns without having to worry about alignment. Unfortunately, older versions of the program do not have this option so you would need to match up the seams yourself.
Adobe products are one of the most popular and most used by graphic artists and designers, so there are a lot of online resources and tutorials. This makes the software a lot more powerful that the ones we've talked about so far because of the wide range of capabilities and online resources. The program has many tools and functions that allow you to create simple to complex graphics.
You are able to purchase a subscription or buy the program to make your graphics. It may be a good investment if you are planning on making custom designs for commercial use. You will be able to use your own designs and have the freedom to tweak and change it easily.
Adobe Photoshop is one of the most well-known photo editing tools in the industry. It allows you to make vector graphics to use in patterns. It doesn't have the pattern option, but you are still able to make a seamless pattern with it.
You can use the pen tool to draw out a shape or use one of the shapes pre-loaded with the program. You would need to carefully calculate where the shape needs to be in order to have the pattern be seamless. There is a "define pattern" option that allows you to save your pattern as a fill option. This will come in handy to preview your pattern. Unlike Illustrator or the pattern generating websites, it would be best to make the shapes as large as you can, because it isn't a vector-based graphic editor the image quality of the shapes can be affected if you have to enlarge it.
You can purchase a subscription or buy the full version of Photoshop. It is a versatile program that lets you edit photos and you are able to make vector graphics for your patterns.
BG Maker allows you to draw your design on their grid work space. It may look analog and less fancy than the Adobe programs, but don't judge the way it looks. The program is simple but very effective for making patterns.
By allowing designers to draw on the grid, it will create the vector image and show you how the pattern will look. The pattern will be seamless and the shapes can be as unique as you want them to be. You can easily change the size of the pattern by adding more pixels to the grid which reduces the stress of worrying about the image quality and if it will be seamless.
If you aren't used to drawing graphics by filling in each pixel or you can't visualize an image this way, this might not be the program for you. It is great for simple graphics if you're just starting out and once you get the hang of it, you can definitely start making more complex shapes.
The software is free to use and you can download a PNG file to edit.
Plain Pattern is a tool developed by Kenneth Cachia that allows you to make seamless patterns from SVG shapes. This is a useful tool for those who have SVG shapes that they want to turn into patterns. It's also great for people who have Adobe Illustrator CS5 and older, since the pattern option is not available on these platforms.
You are able to use your SVG files to create endless amount of patterns not and worry about if they are seamless or not. The working space is limited to 800x800 pixels but it allows you to scale your shapes to maximize space if you have a large piece of fabric you want to print on.
The web-based tool is free to use and is constantly being updated and improved.
Repper is a pattern generator that uses photos instead of shapes. If you have a photo that you've taken or a artwork that you've scanned you can now turn them into patterns.
You upload your image and it will generate a pattern based on a section of your image. The work space will show how your pattern would look and what section of your image was used to create the pattern. You can move and resize the crop box to change the pattern. There are numerous patterns that can be generated from the shapes in the photo. There is a size limitation but you can make small intricate patterns with images.
The program is free to use but you must share your pattern to the community. However, your pattern is protected by the creative commons license. Anyone who uses your remixes your pattern must attribute the owner.
If you don't have the experience in making vector graphics, or you simply haven't the time, at KeenART Media we can take care of that for you. Our talented graphic designer can retouch or completely recreate your images for a nominal fee, so that your fine art or canvas prints look just the way you want.
If you have any questions about our shipping methods, products, or services, please do not hesitate to contact us. Our knowledgeable staff are always happy to answer your enquiries and provide suggestions or advice.
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