THE Q & A SERIES
Pattern Hacking vs Patternmaking: What’s the Difference?
If you’ve been sewing for a while, you’ve probably come across the terms pattern hacking and patternmaking and maybe even wondered where one ends and the other begins.
At In the Folds, we love both. They each offer a way to take your sewing further, to experiment and make something that’s truly your own. But they sit at different points on the creative spectrum. Let’s take a closer look.
Marden Shirt Hack Kit
What is Pattern Hacking?
Pattern hacking is the art of adapting an existing pattern to make it your own.
It might mean changing a neckline, lengthening sleeves, turning a dress into a top, or combining features from two patterns. You’re starting with a professionally drafted base, a pattern that already fits and functions well, and using it as a launchpad for your creativity.
Because you’re not drafting from scratch, hacking is an approachable way to experiment with design while building confidence in how patterns work. It teaches you to think about balance, proportion and construction without needing to understand the full drafting process.
In short, pattern hacking is customising with curiosity.
You can explore our top tips for pattern hacking here and view our range of pattern hacking guides here.
What is Patternmaking?
Patternmaking goes a step further. It’s the process of drafting patterns from scratch or developing original designs using blocks (or slopers) as the starting point.
Rather than modifying an existing pattern, you’re working with key body measurements, lines and shapes to create the foundation of a garment. Patternmaking requires an understanding of how two-dimensional shapes translate into three-dimensional form and how darts, seams and curves work together to create fit.
While it sounds more technical, it’s also deeply creative. Once you understand the principles, you can design almost anything you can imagine and achieve a level of fit that’s uniquely yours.
We have many FREE Patternmaking Tutorials which cover the essential skills:
• How to add seam allowance
• How to move a dart (pivot and cut and spread methods)
• How to notch patterns
• Drafting a bodice block
WHERE THEY MEET
The beauty of sewing is that pattern hacking and patternmaking aren’t separate worlds, they overlap.
When you hack a pattern, you’re learning the logic behind patternmaking, how lines, curves and darts shape fabric. And when you start patternmaking, you use the same creative instincts you’ve honed while hacking, experimenting, testing and refining.
You don’t have to choose one over the other. Think of pattern hacking as the doorway into patternmaking. Each project teaches you something new about how garments come together, and each gives you the freedom to make clothes that feel more you.
Happy sewing,
Emily
READY TO EXPLORE?
If you’d like to dip your toe into patternmaking, join this month’s issue of Curated, where we’ll guide you through a pattern hack that introduces fundamental drafting techniques. You’ll walk away with a beautifully fitted party top and a new sense of creative confidence.
For more issues of the Q & A series, you can check out the archive here.