Enter to win a spot in the next UGTR Workshop! (Submissions closed)

From time to time we hear from students inquiring about Pattern Observer scholarships. Well get excited everyone…because we are thrilled to be offering a FREE spot in the upcoming Ultimate Guide to Repeats Workshop!! Over the next week we will be accepting your submissions in either video or written form, and will be choosing one scholarship recipient to take part in the workshop free of charge!

In your submission you should address these three topics:

1) Tell us about your passion for this industry! (Why do you want to study textile design? Why do you want to learn about repeats?)

2) Explain why you need this course! (What do you need most help with in your repeats? What do you hope to gain from the course?)

3) How will The Ultimate Guide to Repeats help propel you forward in your textile design career? (What are your goals for the course and beyond?)

There are two ways to enter:

1) Record a short video (two minutes or less), upload the video to YouTube or Vimeo and post the link in the comments here

-OR-

2) Write a brief response (please keep it to 500 words or less) in the comments

All entries must be posted in the comments by Monday October 14th at 12pm PDT. Submissions are now closed.

Good luck everyone!!

The Ultimate Guide to Repeats Workshop is an intensive eight week workshop which shares the secrets to developing professional patterns and repeats for the textile design marketplace. The last three weeks includes a freelancer’s bootcamp, in which you will work with industry leaders to learn how to communicate, execute and invoice for the skills that you learned in the first five weeks. You’ll leave this course knowing exactly how to put these newly acquired skills to work within your business! The next workshop begins October 28th. Read all about it here.

  1. Hi Michelle
    I took part on the last “The ultimate Guide to Repeats”, but, unfortunatelly, at this time I had a full-time job and no time to make the exercises and to watch the videos. At the same time I was sick, with a “pneumonia” and wasn’t able to follow all the instructions.
    Because of that I also don’t download the videos to watch them later. Is there a chance to try it again? I think all the informations you gave on this course were too important to lost them.
    Thanks
    Gaby Braun

  2. I’ve been in love with pattern and color and its application in textile and home decor, from very early on. I need professional help with learning how to make my art work well on textiles, as I am venturing into the industry at a rapid pace and need to learn fast! So far I’ve been guessing (a lot) or just limiting my designs to print at 1 yard pieces for fear of cutoffs! I need to learn how to make them ~flow~ So I think this course will help me greatly as a brand new hire as a freelancer!

  3. Please pick me! I love pattern design! I feel that patterns bring an energy to a person’s wardrobe, home decor, or website! Patterns complement different textures and colors creating a unique overall appearance.

    I really need this class to improve my pattern making skills. I am talented in different mediums and computer softwares but I really need some fine tuning in regards to pattern design.

    My background is in fashion design and graphic design but I would love to steer my career path towards textile design. I feel that fashion and graphic design marry those two backgrounds perfectly. Please pick me for this opportunity to help me steer towards this goal.

    Thank you very much.

    Sincerely,

    Marlene Kennedy

  4. Dear Michelle,
    I am grateful for this opportunity to apply for a scholarship. My need for this course is based on two things: my lack of resources due to unemployment and my lack of skill in this part of the design process. I have desperately wanted to take this course for a while now.

    I was 40 years old when I was first introduced to “surface pattern design” as an occupation. In an instant I knew that was what I wanted to do. It brought all my many loves – geometry, flowers, colors, photography, my Swedish heritage – together under one roof. I immediately enrolled at the California School for Professional Fabric Design in Berkeley. That was in 1997.

    For the past 15 years, I have been taking baby steps towards my goal. I completed courses in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, I wrote a business plan through Women’s Initiative, took courses in marketing, licensing and contracts and additional design courses.

    Three years ago I was laid off from my job and I thought it was the perfect time to pursue my passion of surface pattern design (instead of taking another job “just to pay the bills.”) I worked furiously on my portfolio and begin designing my website. Well, the realization that I need more resources and much more support has set in. I accept the fact that it might be years before I can make a good living as a surface pattern designer. I have just taken a part-time job “to pay the bills” and to fund my dream!

    In the past, I have created repeats through trial and error. I’ve just been “fudging it.” This part of the design process is very time consuming (because I don’t know what I am doing!) and a source of frustration for me. I would like to learn how to create a repeat in a professional and skillful way and be able to add this skill to my portfolio!

    Again, thank you for this opportunity.

    Sincerely,
    Linda Grimes

  5. Hi! Michelle

    I love the pattern world, because is an opportunity to create for everybody and for the street, not for the museum and an elite. It allows me to explore the abstract world I like and transfer it in a Fabric. For that I want to learn all repeating tricks and resources. I’m interested in make balanced random layouts.

    I think that course can help me to improve my designs and to be more prepared to sell them. I want to be a professional pattern designer.

    I follow your page and I want to do all courses! But now I’m unemployed and can’t pay it. I’m very interested in The sellable sketch and Building your textile design business. I think are very interesting.

    Thank you for sharing your resources, I think you are doing a great job.

  6. This course would benefit me and my business in so many ways. I quit my job as a mental health support worker last year to develop my creative skills in order to establish a social enterprise supporting locally disadvantaged women. I completed a foundation diploma in fashion and fell in love with pattern design.

    I’m now selling cushions featuring my first collection of prints and will soon be employing local women to work with me producing my further pieces. I would love to be able to develop my pattern making skills further to allow me to create a more versatile range of work in the future to help me provide employment opportunities for more local women.

  7. Hi Michelle,

    Just saw your email on the great opportunity for the scholarship and my eyes lit up 🙂

    I would love to be considered for selection, as although I am quite new to the wonderful world of surface design, I realise that actually it has been an unknown passion of mine for a while, I just hadn’t unlocked it yet.

    My passion for the industry:
    I studied Textile design GCSE level at school, but here I studied more of the dress making side of things, I’ve never been a dab hand on the sewing machine, but give me a pen and paper to draw designs and patterns and I couldn’t stop. Repeats really inspire me, and everywhere I go I now seem to notice patterns in all kinds of places. I feel this course would really help me in unlocking this further, and would be a valuable asset to my designs.

    Why I need this course:
    I studied graphic design at University, but I have lately taken a full circle in my passion for design, and I realise that surface design is what I love best and what I hope to make a career out of. This course would help me get to grips with repeats (I struggle with this), what’s popular, and what type of repeats work (I also struggle with this)I know I have an ability to draw, but I certainly need guidance with releasing its potential, it would mean everything.

    How it would help me in my career:
    It would help in so many ways, but a few are getting a decent portfolio that I am really proud of submitting to clients, having constructive criticism would really help me out, as currently I design patterns, but they may not work as well as they could. Also, I feel it would help my confidence at no end.

    This year has been a bit of a struggle, as I have been caring for my boyfriend who broke his leg twice, this year. Which has left my confidence a bit shattered with designs and where to go..this course would help in boosting it, and helping me make more of a step into surface design.

    I appreciate you offering this opportunity to someone, and for taking the time to read my comments.

    Best wishes
    Liz

  8. When I started to paint directly on fabric, I knew I had tapped into a deep calling as an artist and designer. As a life long visual artist with a passion for fabrics, materials, fibers, it made perfect sense to unite my love of color, pattern, design, texture and composition with objects that we can feel, touch, wear. I am self-taught when it comes to textiles, right down to my use of Photoshop and Illustrator. I have been able to translate my visions into the marketplace in the most modest respect and the only thing holding me back from fully realizing my potential is my lack of knowledge when it comes to repeats! I have attempted to learn it on my own, to no avail. The Ultimate Guide to Repeats is what I need to propel and excel both creatively and professionally. I need hard-core professional guidance, outside of myself. I live to learn and soak up knowledge and I can’t even imagine the level of excitement my work will take with The Ultimate Guide to Repeats under my belt!
    I honestly feel inauthentic even calling myself a textile designer without having nailed repeats. I know that once I have this skill, I will be able to design freely and not feel creatively confined by my limitations. I know that with your class, stepping into a true professional textile career is not only possible, but it will happen.
    The Ultimate Guide to Repeats will give me the foundation I so desperately need to confidently dive into a career, be it as a designer for hire or with my own freelance career. Thanking you in advance for your consideration!

  9. Hi Michelle!

    I would love to be considered for this amazing scholarship opportunity. I’m a freelance designer for The McCall Pattern Company, designing for both their McCall’s and Kwik Sew brands.

    My passion is the bright and colorful world of the baby and kids market, which I hope to capture in my “Lollipop Rainbow” brand of surface pattern designs.

    I currently use other designer’s fabrics in my sewing patterns and for years, have dreamed of developing my own collection. I can’t think of anything more exciting than creating sewing pattern concepts for McCall’s using my own textile designs!

    I am thrilled to be a part of your Sellable Sketch Workshop. And it would be amazing to have the opportunity to join you in both of these wonderful courses to help take my career to the next level.

    There is so much listed in the “Ultimate Guide to Repeats” workshop that I would love to learn… thanks so much for this opportunity!

    Sincerely,
    Susan Cousineau

  10. Hello Michelle,

    I have loved working with fabrics since I was a kid and my mom let me sew her scraps together for doll clothes. I worked at a fabric store as a teenager, and took fashion design courses thinking that was the obvious career choice – it wasn’t. Then I spent many years as a closet textile artist, working with dyes, paints, fabrics and threads in quilt-form and otherwise. I’ve been obsessed with textiles for most of my life… I didn’t realize that a career in textile design existed, until I was 30-something years old and I saw an ad for a fabric design school. I knew right away it was what I wanted to do and I attended classes and workshops there for 2 years, when I was finally forced to quit due to economic circumstances.

    The worst part of all, is that I was so close to graduating and completing my portfolio. The only thing I had not mastered was designing in repeats. I know how to create a repeat from any croque or motif – what I don’t know is how to create one from scratch – either by hand or on the computer – one that doesn’t look stilted and unbalanced, anyway.
    I need this course because it can provide me with the missing information and training that I was unable to receive at the other school I attended.

    I hope to continue selling my textile designs and plan to further those efforts through multiple venues, including Etsy, CafePress and more traditional vendors as well. I have been saving to take this and some of your other courses, (the aforementioned economic difficulties have eased up a bit, but things are still tight), right now it is at least a year away before I will be able to afford to attend. I would love to be able to make a living doing the thing that brings me so much enjoyment and provides me with a creative outlet and this course, The Ultimate Guide to Repeats would be the first step to doing just that.

    I am very appreciative of the opportunity to receive a scholarship to your course, thank you for taking the time to read my application and thank you for this awesome opportunity!

    Sincerely,
    Lynette Squillante

  11. I made my first quilt, a choo choo train pattern, in 1992 to decorate my son’s nursery. Since then I have been an avid quilter. Due to stresses working in an information Technology career, tight deadlines, carrying a pager, and being on call 24×7, I’ve always marveled as to what it would be like to have a career that, while it would still take a tremendous amount of effort, would be a lot more enjoyable.

    It took a very long time to even fathom that I could start my own business. About a year ago I volunteered to test a quilt pattern for a designer. During the process I asked her about her business because designing fabric prints and quilt patterns was something I thought I could actually do too. She didn’t give up many details but did offer up that the business was not very lucrative. Last month I noticed that she had a few new lines and several new patterns on the market and was in a spread in a very popular quilting magazine so I think things have turned around for her. Regardless, I had figured that was her experience and would not necessarily be mine.

    I have begun my journey, but it is all on my dime which is to say, my husband and I take a small allowance each pay for whatever we wish. If we didn’t have a personal allowance then it could cause some strife regarding opinions on how our money should otherwise be spent as our priorities are very different. You see, he doesn’t share my vision about starting a company but he is glad that it is costing very little upfront and so there is very little risk.

    Thus far I have done a few lessons with my son’s Illustrator book in hand, enrolled myself in a $65 course on How To Really Start Your Own Business offered by some local business volunteers, registered a company Trade Name but have no business to speak, and a $99 Illustrator class. The latter class did not really focus on textile prints except for one small section. It was my instructor who recommended your site and another one as additional resources. Quite frankly I don’t have enough in my fun money account to cover the cost at this time. I am currently furloughed and suspect the government will get its act together in a reasonable time but until then I have plenty of time to spend in your classroom.

    With regard to pattern repeats, I do know just from quilting that fabrics are a series of organized patterns that repeat. What I don’t know is how to make them look great and how I would submit a design to a company.

    I honestly don’t expect to become rich and famous but I do wish to be able to say that I have tried when so many others don’t even take the first step. It would also be nice to prove myself to my husband.

  12. Dear people from Pattern Observer,

    My name is Liz Perez, my friends call me Lizy. I currently work as a graphic designer and translator, however my dream is to become an internationally renowned surface pattern designer, textile designer and illustrator. I love reading books by Dr. Seuss and other classics and my favorite picture book is “Where the Wild Things Are” by Maurice Sendak.
    My passion for design and illustration has been a long one. I have been sketching and doodling ever since I can remember. It was my over-active creative mind that finally led me to the world of surface pattern design, and following my heart I decided to learn more about it and pursue this field. I would be very very happy to finally be able to combine my love of illustration with my surface pattern design skills. After doing some research about different courses, I came across your site and would love the opportunity to become one of your students, participate in your workshop and learn to develop professional patterns and repeats for the textile design marketplace. However, at this time I am not able to afford your course due to the fact that most of my funds have gone to getting the necessary software.
    If I am blessed with your scholarship, my goal after completing the course is to focus on marketing my services to the home décor and apparel industries. I would also love to become one of your contributing writers once I establish my name in the industry and contribute my work and blog articles on a regular basis to guide other students and spread the word about your courses and workshops.

    Thank you for your kind support of artists everywhere 🙂

    Best Regards,

    Liz Perez

  13. I started collecting a few yards of my favorite patterns a few years ago to use as burp cloths. Mind you I don’t have a kid yet, nor am I close to it, but how could I pass up whimsical owls and hilarious little characters in beautiful colors. So when I started learning about licensing art I realized the beauty of creating those unique illustrations and patterns! I’m actually pretty enthralled with all things baby when it comes to fabric! Clothes, blankets, curtains, and anything else that goes in a nursery can be absolutely swoon worthy with the right patterns and I would love to design those patterns myself and stop sounding so baby crazy!

    This course would be a huge boost in knowledge for me. While taking Lilla Rogers Make Art That Sells course I realized how little I knew about creating a repeating pattern. So while I dream up fun patterns in my head I have no way to make them a reality. Honestly when I went to create my textile repeat for an assignment from Make Art That Sells, I had no idea what I was doing. It wasn’t until after I was done with the assignment that I thought to Google it and realized just how wrong I was and how embarrassed I should have been. As a long time Photoshop user I am still surprised to find new things within the program that I’ve never used! I come to this e-course as a blank slate ready to learn things the right way and far beyond my current comprehension!

    This course would come at a perfect time for me on my journey. I am starting the second part of Make Art That Sells with lots of enthusiasm and drive to build a licensing career. In fact I just put my deposit down on a booth at Surtex for 2014. While I know I can muddle my way through creating some basic repeats I think this class can help give my illustrations the added wow factor to make a great repeat pattern. I am hungry for knowledge to help build a strong and fierce career! I recently watched the free webinar on the Importance of Collections and really enjoyed hearing from you so I can only image how well this course could go! My goals for this course and beyond are to come away with the ability to put together fascinating repeats that I can use to build my portfolio for Surtex.

    Thank you for this opportunity to join your amazing e-course I hope I am lucky enough to get selected! The scholarship spot would greatly help me as all my money is going towards my booth at Surtex it would be quite some time before I could afford this class on my own.

  14. Hi Michelle,

    Ever since I was a little girl, I have been fascinated with layout. In junior high my mother would come into my room in the middle of the night on any give weekend to find me, yet again, rearranging the furniture. Once my mother realized that this obsession translated over to packing the car for family trips, she was on board. This led to a summer job merchandising at our local Charlotte Russe, which brought on my interest in design school.

    I was a fashion design & merchandising major out of high school but ended up going back to college later in life because I wasn’t completely fulfilled by fashion alone…something was missing. I majored in fine art and graphic design and my first job in the industry was as a graphic design assistant. One day when there wasn’t any more work for me to do, they told me I could leave early or I could stay and learn how to make a print. What is a print I asked…. and then I fell in love!! The joining of fashion, art and layout…it was my dream job.

    After nearly nine years in the industry as a print designer and apparel design assistant I have finally made the decision to take a large step back from my full time clients and give my surface design business my all. Being only a few short months away from the revamp/relaunch of my business, the funding for any more classes is non-existent. I took The Sellable Sketch and just recently finished BYTDB (both of which I loved) and UGTR would round out my learning experience with Pattern Observer.

    Working with clients is something I absolutely know I will continue doing, and as a self taught surface designer, I can mess with a layout for hours until it looks right, but I have not been properly trained to do repeats. I hate to admit that I still don’t know how to do a half-drop! I know this class would help tremendously, not only in what I can offer my clients, but understanding repeats would make me a better designer. This class was next on the list, and I would love the opportunity to fill this spot. Thank you for the opportunity to apply for it!

    Leslie Galland

  15. VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
    VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

    Dear Michelle,

    When I listen to music, I see pattern. When I clean my kids room and find their kaleidoscope, I can get lost looking inside it for ages. I find pattern everywhere and have spent much time admiring so many printed fabrics. Now I want those fabrics to be mine.
    My background is in jewellery design where I loved creating repetitive links to make chains or bracelets but in the last five years I have transitioned to the 2 dimensional world and venturing into the world of surface pattern design. While I can manage a photoshop half step repeat of a single motif, I have other more organic designs that finish at the edge of my sketchbook but I am not quite sure how to get them to that roll of fabric stage and to look professional. How to avoid the unintentional gaps and directional issues associated with fabrics are just some of my many questions.
    I have so much I visualize being able to create with the help of a workshop like this that would take my designs to the next level and open up a whole other area for me to explore.

    Thank you for considering my application.

    Kind regards

    Claire

    VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
    IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
    OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
    OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

  16. As a young child, I can remember staring up at my Grandma’s curtains while I was supposed to be napping, gazing at the floral fabric and trying to locate the same flowers over and over down the length of the panel. I didn’t know at the time the multiple flower arrangements were called “repeats,” but the memories serve to show a glimpse of my inherent interest in pattern. Fast forward to today, and you can find me as a corporate graphic designer who longs to pursue surface design someday. The birth of two children over recent years has kept me clinging to my corporate job, but this mama knows in her heart that her passion inherently lies elsewhere. I have the enthusiasm and even some of the technical skills — but I sorely need some guidance around translating ideas and designs into repeats.

    While I’m eager to learn the best practices for creating different types of repeats, I’d also love to go beyond the technical aspects. I’m interested in seeing firsthand the thought process of professionals, especially surrounding the approach to choosing the right type of repeat for a particular design. Ultimately, my goal for the course is to gain the skills and mindset to make refined, professional patterns vs. simplistic repeats.

    The UGTR course would equip me with the knowledge and confidence I need to begin pursuing a career change — one that would build upon existing skills, but be directly related to my personal interests. My goals for the future take into account my little girls as inspiration — I’d love for my designs to be applied as modern, fresh yet age-appropriate patterns for kidswear and other children’s products. Thank you so much for a chance to take the next step towards this goal with the UGTR course!

  17. Dear Michele

    I am so excited about this workshop.I beleive
    it is the exact help I need in order to bring
    my lively and unique designs to the marketplace in a professional manner. I will make you proud!
    I am a self employed Landscape Contractor and my work tends to slow down from fall to early spring so a scholarship would be a blessing.
    Thank you for your consideration in advance,
    Cheers,
    Joan Artz

  18. I was so happy to see that you were offering a scholarship for the UGTR course. I have been wanting to take this course for a very long time. Unfortunately I have been out of work and have not been able to afford it.

    My passion for the industry has always been there but it came to the light just recently. I have done visual merchandising for years and also have a degree in fashion design. Color, texture and pattern have always been apart of my life. I was so happy to find recently that surface and pattern design was something that I could make a living at. I was always obsesses with pattern and color. Now I was obsessed with that I could create it!

    Why I need this course: I need this course because there is so much that I don’t know about, composition, telling a cohesive story, using and getting the most out of pohotoshop and illustrators. Also the community and the support I feel is also invaluable. I have the talent, I just want to make the most of it. I want to embark on a new career in my life, to finally to do what I love and this course would help me on the path to doing that.

    UGTR Course will help propel me forward on the path to doing what I am passionate about. I want to see my designs on home accessories and fashion. I want to have the beginnings of a great portfolio to show and feel confident to have a blog to showcase my work.I want to be confident in my repeats and on the path to my new career. Also hopefully hopefully be able to take your sellable sketch course.

    Thank you for your consideration

  19. Dear Michelle,

    This year I worked with you during The Sellable Sketch to develop my 1st collection focusing on a camo inspired collection for swimwear. I enjoyed every second of the process!

    In 2012, I attended an artist residency in Puerto Rico for 3 months. I went there with the intention of designing a new material based on a question: What would be a conversation between an architect and a sunbather? This led me to researching plant based fibers, studying different methods of weaving with indigenous weavers and artisans and interviewing tropical modern architects. I spent hours studying various swimsuit patterns on the beaches of Puerto Rico! When I returned home back to my studio, I was excited by all my bizarre findings and I instantly knew I wanted to develop prints for swimwear. Luckily, I stumbled across The Sellable Sketch which gave me clarity towards how I can combine my fine art based photographic skills and my experience as a stylist for fashion & interiors into a thriving textile print & surface design business. My future goals are to attend Indigo Paris in 2015 and secretly I dream of designing fashion prints for Kenzo!

    Learning repeats by myself has been challenging for me. Currently I am battling with a stubborn print which I am trying to put into a half drop repeat layout but I’m still going round in circles! I also need to learn how to add more diversity to my print layouts. Illustrator is a new program for me and I feel UGTR would give me a real reason to dive in and explore what it can do. I am eager to enter the workplace after working in isolation for so long. Right now, I have no physical connection to the textile print industry and I long to be part of a design team. However, not fully understanding the technical aspect of repeats is holding me back in my process and my confidence to step out into the world. I desperately need to take the UGTR course and hope to be the lucky one!!!

    Thank you for reading my story,

    Rohini : )

  20. I would be really excited if you would consider me for the Ultimate Guide to Repeats Scholarship, as I am dedicated and passionate about building a successful career in textiles. I have always had a love for textiles; I have a degree in Design Crafts from De Montfort University, specializing in screen-printing. Currently I am a Printed Textiles Technician at Kingston College in London, I am also in the final year of my postgraduate PGCE teaching qualification to become a Art & Design Teacher. Whilst doing my degree, I particularly enjoyed designing pattern with a screen, repeating on the print table and playing around with placement, colour and fabric. Since moving to Kingston College I have discovered a passion for working in Photoshop. There are so many possibilities to create something desirable when working with digital images in combination with my own illustrations. My goal since I graduated is to go to the Royal College of Art to study Textile Design. I love learning about new aspects of textile design and I am working hard to learn as many processes to add to my portfolio as possible. As I am working full time and training to become a teacher, an online course is perfect for me, especially as this course opens up opportunities to work and gain knowledge from industry professionals.
    It would be hugely beneficial for me to learn how to produce repeats, as I want to be as advanced as possible in Photoshop/Illustrator. I feel that the Ultimate Guide to Repeats will provide me with the knowledge that I need to nurture the vast passion for textiles I already have. My single focus is to have a career in textile design, I teach Art & Design to level three students at college and it brings me so much joy to be able to share my knowledge with younger aspiring artists. It also pushes me to evaluate my work and grow myself as an artist.
    My goals are simply to learn as much as I can within the industry and become confident with the digital textile market. I plan to study at the RCA on a postgraduate textile degree, and have a long career in textile design. It would mean the world to me if you could support me whilst I am working hard to complete my life ambitions by granting me with the Ultimate Guide to Repeats course.

    Many Thanks for your consideration.

  21. Hello Michelle,

    this is Patrizia from Italy. I don’t know if I really need such a course but I prefer to submit my request to discover if I need to improve my skills. I have been working on manufacturing and retail for 15 years. I am a seller, buyer, consumer, user and I like to share my experiences about products.

    Since I left my previous work I said to myself I wanted to run my own business that I can do it starting from zero and if there is something else I can do is just making a course to test my skills and to find other ways and new inspiration for my next designs.

    I have a lot of motivations that give me the willing to do it but they are all personal and they really hurt me so I prefer not to say. I would like to make this course and think nothing else because it’s the only path I see will help me.

    Thank you for your time.

    Yours,
    Patrizia

  22. Hello Michelle,

    Since I was a small girl sitting next to my mother and watching her sew, I have been fascinated with textiles. Also since I was a small girl, I have been drawing pictures. My passion lyes in seeing those ideas on paper printed on a piece of fabric. Four years ago I decided to continue my education and study art & design. I have learned so much about 2 dimensional design and color! I almost have completed my Bachelors Degree in Liberal Studies with a minor in Art & Design. This class would just tie it all together as I need to know how to create repeats.

    This course would give me the foundations for taking my designs from the drawing board to print! I would hope to learn how to create repeats smoothly and how to create a file that a buyer can execute. I’ve heard a little on the webinar of a process used to keep creating new collections, and I think this would be a great tool in creating groupings over and over.

    My goals are to be able to create designs from my home, (as my husband travels all week and I must be home for my two children) and sell the copyrights of my designs and eventually look into licensing my work, if that is right for me. I am an artist, I draw, paint, and create work in photoshop and illustrator. I so need this to complete my dream of being a designer and getting paid for doing what I LOVE! I also need to make some money so I can pay off my student loans! I think we surround ourselves with ideas and thoughts of things we love, and if someone surrounded themselves with my ideas and art on fabric, it would warm my heart that I touched them in some way.

    Thanks for the opportunity,
    Michelle K

  23. Dear Michelle,

    My name is Ellie Keebler. I am a recent graduate of Stephens College, graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Fashion Design and Product Development. I found my passion for digital print design during my Junior year at Stephens in a Computer-Aided Design course. While we learned the basic aspects of creating repeats and tosses, I challenged myself to learn more advanced techniques and was very pleased with the results of my projects. My professor suggested for me to enter a print design competition sponsored by AATCC (American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists). I was challenged to create two unique prints inspired by birds for active-wear designs. I ended up placing second in the competition, and that was a pivotal moment for me. I knew that digital print design was something I wanted to explore and master. From there, I took that passion with me to my senior year at Stephens. I incorporated original prints into my senior collection of five garments by having them printed on silk. I went further to create even more digital prints into my final portfolio of work.

    I need to take the Ultimate Guide to Repeats Course, because thus far I have been self-taught. My skills in Photoshop and Illustrator are intermediate, which I feel has inhibited my design capabilities. I want to learn how to make the process of cresting repeats easier. Learning how to use the new pattern tool in CS6 would also be incredibly beneficial to my work. Through this course, I hope to become closer to mastering the print design process. I really need to learn how professional print designers work in order to take my portfolio to the next level. I believe that if I was given the opportunity to take the UGTR course, then I would be able to pursue my dreams as a digital textile designer.

    After taking the course, I will have gained the skills necessary to create an outstanding digital print portfolio that I can use to pursue my next career goal. I aspire to attend Graduate School for textile design in San Francisco. I believe it is necessary to present an outstanding portfolio in order to be accepted into the program. I truly believe the UTGR course will help me do just that and guide me in the right direction to developing my skills as a digital print designer.

    Thank you so much providing this amazing opportunity to your followers and for taking the time to read my entry!

    Best regards,

    Ellie Keebler

  24. I started sewing my own bags when I was at university because I was both a poor university student and I could never find a bag style I liked. I would search all the local fabric stores as well as second hand shops to find beautiful and unique pieces of fabric that I could use to sew my bags. It wasn’t easy to find fabrics that I liked and I soon realised my interest wasn’t so much in bags or sewing, but actually the fabric and fabric design. This was the start of my interest in textile design.

    Since then, I have done a few screen-printing workshops and while I did start studying a basic textile course, I’ve since stopped this to have a family.

    I’m really keen to re-ignite my passion for textile design and learn as much as I can about repeats, because it’s something I still want to pursue as a career. Being able to study the UGTR online just makes it so easy and accessible for all of us out there that don’t have the time or opportunity to do any formal studies.

    I’ve experimented with repeats on my own, but I feel as though I have yet to master how best to design (and hide) a repeat and what types of repeats are suitable for different industries/applications. I hope I can learn some tips and tricks to build up a folio that will either help me secure an in-house design job in the industry or be able to licence my artwork out. One of my dreams would be to have my very own fabric collection – perhaps with the very designs I was looking for when I was sewing my own bags!

    Thanks Michelle for this opportunity!

    Beck

  25. Hi Michelle

    What an amazing opportunity. I’ve had a love of art and textiles for as long as I can remember which led to me studying Printed Textiles at University. For the past 9 years I’ve had a really successful career in Teaching Art and Textiles and it’s been fab to share my passion with others :O) I started a family last year and have not returned to teaching..I feel I need to inject a bit of me back into me! So I have given up a safe career, throwing caution to the wind to do what I love which is textile design. I feel like I’m re-learning everything all over again as I hand rendered all my designs as a student and now its all gone digital..Eeek, very scary! I really need to feel more confident with producing a digital repeat in order to be successful in this industry. Your course would be like a key to unlocking this new world I’m trying to enter! Thank you.

  26. I know that there will be lots of worthy applicants for this scholarship, but I really hope that I will be selected to improve my pattern repeats.

    After an earlier career in computing, I was lucky enough to study textile design 12 years ago as a mature student. While we learnt about drawing, colour theory, printing and dyeing, we did not learn about creating repeats. My particular interest was in hand dyeing manipulated fabrics, exploring the unpredictability of the manipulation techniques and the dyes. The emphasis at college was on motifs and concept pieces that the buyer would later put into repeat. Of course, this was also before Photoshop and Illustrator were widely taught.

    Fast forward to now, and I have left art lecturing to focus on textile and surface pattern design. Recently I have been caught up in the administrative side – website, facebook, networking, etc. – and have lost touch with my passion for creating imagery and design. I would really love to take this course to help me create flowing and organic repeating pattern designs. While I can already use Illustrator (to some extent) to create geometric patterns, I really want to learn how to create repeating patterns based on my loose-style drawings, watercolour paintings and hand-dyed fabrics. My search for creating repeats is resulting in me designing with the end repeat in mind. While this has its place and its benefits, I am finding it too restrictive. I want to return to creating artwork first and repeats second. I love the organic, hand crafted, and almost random effects that I can create, but don’t know how to make them into sellable repeating patterns. I still remember at my degree show a buyer for a major fashion retailer said that while my designs were on trend, they were only looking for designs already in repeat. This comment has stuck with me, but I have never been able to make this artwork into satisfactory repeats.

    If accepted for this scholarship, I look forward to joining a supportive and positive community that will help enable me to fill my portfolio with repeating patterns that speak of my style rather than an ‘Illustrator’ style.

    Thank you for this opportunity.

  27. Hi Michelle,
    I write to you from Spain.
    I follow your blog since the day I discovered it and I have always found your courses very tempting…

    Since childhood I’ve been fascinated by prints and patterns, I think it must be a inheritance from my grandmother, who used to were clothes with bold prints… I am always immediately attracted to them. In the last few years I’ve been dreaming about becoming a pattern designer.

    Trained in fine arts, I have spent the last years working in an architecture office. Four months ago I decided to risk it all, quit my job and go for pattern. Although I have no previous experience in the sector, I have learned to make rapports investigating here and there and I read everything that falls into my hands. But I must admit that when I start working, I feel lost. I don’t know how to organize myself, which goals I should set for myself, if my drawings can have meaning and value to other people… well, I am a sea of doubts. So, for me, doing this course would be like winning the lottery. It believe it would give me the opportunity to delve into the profession, solve many of my doubts and allow me to work more confidently and precisely.
    Thank you very much!
    Carmen

  28. Hello,

    I’m Laurie Lynn Thomas and am currently in my last year as an illustration major at RCAD. Previously, I’ve taken fashion design courses at SCAD before I transferred. During the last five years, I’ve tested the waters with my illustration work on useful products to sell at shows. I’ve gotten great feedback but I feel limited in what I can do with centered images.

    I’ve looked up online tutorials and read some books but I’m still in the dark of what makes a unique and desirable pattern collection. I can get things to repeat in both Photoshop and Illustrator, but I’m having some difficulty merging my love for illustration and fashion seamlessly. What I mean is, I’ll either think of the illustration or think of how a pattern will repeat, but can’t seem to get the two to match.

    I need a clear-guided course. I can find plenty of material for illustration but not enough for surface design. I’ve also taken some small business classes but I know this boot camp course will give me the push in the right direction and industry specific knowledge.

    I’m working on my first collection (after some testing with repeats) for the Designnext competition. I’m keeping in mind what my illustration professor says about my working being too stiff. I see that as a manifestation of my fear of “not getting it right”. I know confidence is a key ingredient to making great design in any field. My hope during and after the course is learning to quiet that little voice in my head and use more of my brain to create.

  29. Dear Michelle,

    Lately when I’m feeling anxious or having trouble falling asleep I think about patterns. It started when I moved from the US to the UK to be with my British husband and as a graphic designer in a new country it has been difficult to find my place. I started making patterns in my spare time and just recently realized this is something I can do for both fun and to make money. Now I think about patterns I love and patterns I want to make and it makes me feel more free to know that I have options and won’t always have to rely on an employer.

    I have studied tutorials online for creating repeats, but as a graphic designer, I know it’s really important to be professional and to provide technically accurate files. From the Ultimate Guide to Repeats course I am hoping to gain additional professionalism and the confidence to pitch my work to companies. I can’t wait to think about patterns all the time and not just in spare anxious moments!

    Kind regards,
    Annie

  30. Forgive me if this is a repeat post, but I posted a few days ago and have not seen my post displayed so here goes again:

    Thank you so much for offering this scholarship.
    Having a history in painting and photography, I was unaware of the surface design industry but once I discovered it (and discovered Pattern Observer)I was hooked. I take delight in seeing patterns everywhere and get inspiration from all walks of life; through the lens of my camera and a yearly aide trip to Fiji, teaching art to school children are just two areas of inspiration. I am hooked on pattern now and would be so thrilled to see them produced on textiles, both for the bolt fabric and home decor industry. I am hugely excited at the prospect at being able to earn from my patterns, not least for furthering my aide work.
    I have had your courses bookmarked for a while now. I have tried my hand at repeats and kind of managed to do basic ones but would love to be able to make repeats from my paintings – I can’t figure out how to make the overlaps and edges repeat properly. I just seem to be stumbling along and not really knowing what I am doing. I feel this course would be so helpful and useful! Also the freelancers bootcamp sounds amazing. I don’t have the confidence to approach anyone with my patterns yet – this will be the stepping stone I need!
    My goal is to be successful licensed designer, and dare I say it – to one day show at SURTEX. I can see myself making repeats with my eyes closed after this course (well, you know what I mean!)It will be great to not spend hours fumbling away when I could be creating more art. I am serious about surface pattern design and am so grateful for the courses you offer at Pattern Observer. I hope to sign up for the Sellable Sketch and Building your Textile design Business some time next year.

    Jocelyn Friis

  31. I live in Kerala, a beautiful place in south India, surrounded by greenery and coastal beauty. When you combine the above with a passion for patterns and illustrations, what you get is myriads of patterns of leaves, boats, docked ships, fishes, birds, flora and fauna…but unfortunately most of them remain in my head. Why is that a beautiful pattern moves me, excites me but I myself don’t have the mojo to put all my creative juices on paper? Is there a method for channelizing my creativity? Maybe UGTR has the answer…
    Until I discovered the free resources on you website I was using one of the most inefficient ways to create my patterns! A mother of 2 (also doing an online degree) would love to avail all the time saving tools on the planet to materialize my great ideas. UGTR is perhaps the answer…..

    Being where I am, technology is the only way I can connect with fellow pattern designers.( And so many of you out there are doing such inspiring work!) And lastly, conversion rates are not too kind when you come from a developing economy.
    I have been struggling for the mojo, a structured regime/ understanding and the help of a supportive programme and I know UGTR is my answer. Michelle you always mention that you find so much happiness in helping designers realise their passion….I am waiting for the day I realise and materialize my passion….. And every day is a tiny step towards that goal.
    My name is Reshma Rahiman, 27 years old, a textile design graduate from the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, India. My country is rich for its rich and diverse history of traditional textiles. And I can’t wait to put all that creative energy around me in a methodical, structured programme that will efficiently utilize my talent. Thank you for patiently reading my post.Thank you for your random act of kindness:)
    Love…
    Patterns

  32. Hi !

    I´m in love with patterns and textures since i´m a child i guess.. i have a wide collection of vintage clothes just because i love a texture or a shape or even a color.
    I´m one of those romantic vocational ones… i guess..

    I really need professional advice to grow up as a pattern designer, for me this would be the best experience in my life, i know it.
    I don´t know if i will be a good pattern designer one day, but i want it with my full heart. My daughters and my cat are agreed that i deserve this beautiful gift.

    The only thing i can say it´s that the pattern course is the best one online yet, and it would be so nice to enjoy it for free, but the best part for me is the bootcamp, and not everyone can enjoy it due the price. I don´t think it´s expensive because i know it worth it, but it´s not so a fair price for people that are living in another countries were the sallaries are almost ridiculous. I live in one on this countries, Spain, a very little and beautiful land in south europe.

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