To sell, or not to sell patterns? If you're already selling crochet and knit patterns, feel free to skip down to the resources section (lots of goodies for you there!). If you're only selling knit or crochet patterns, I cannot encourage you enough to expand into the other category. This may require the heavy lift of first learning the other technique, but in doing so you can literally double your market. And finally, if you're not selling patterns, stay with me. Selling finished products is a great way to get your sea legs and build a bit of brand credibility, but eventually it puts a cap on your business. With only so many hours in a day, you're limited to the number of items you'll be able to produce each year. For example, if you can only crochet 1,000 pieces, then your business caps and plateaus at 1,000 products sold. There is the option to hire people, but that investment and risk may not be feasible or of interest. An alternate path for expansion is through selling patterns. These digital downloads allow your business to grow outside of the time constraints imposed when producing finished goods. In this section, I'll walk through some common fears that hold many makers back from pursuing this strategy for growth. Fear 1:"I worked so hard on this. I don’t want to just give it away for $5." That’s understandable. It seems tough to reduce your hard work to the equivalent of a sandwich (or if you're in New York, half of a sandwich). But the reality is that it will be 100, 500, or 1,000 $5 purchases. Let's say you've designed a chic scarf. In the following scenarios, I'll unpack the often misleading nature of price per product versus price per hour. Scenario A: Selling it only as a finished product Let's say it takes you 2 hours to make it, you sell it for $50, and it uses $12 in materials. If you sell 25 of them, that's $1250 in revenue, minus $300 in supplies, for a total profit of $950. It required 50 total hours, which means you are earning $19 per hour. (Note that that per hour rate is not including marketing, customer service, shipping, etc., so it is a bit inflated). Scenario B: Selling it as a pattern Let's say it takes you 8 collective hours to write and produce the pattern (assuming the product was already designed for your finished product collection). It cost you the same $12 in yarn supplies, and your selling price is $5 (this seems so low...insert panic. Stay with me!). With a lower price point and less seasonality (people don't wear knits all year, but they do knit all year), you can expect to sell in higher volumes than a finished product, so let's say you sell 200. It's safe to assume that over the course of your selling, you have to answer a few questions and possibly update the pattern, so let's double your initial hours and add another 8. In this scenario, you're looking at a revenue of $1000, minus $12 in supplies, for a total profit of $988. It required 16 total hours of work, earning you a rate of $61.75 per hour, or roughly 3x the dough you were making for finished products. If you're writing a pattern for a product that's not already designed and in your collection, you could double your hours and still make $30.87 per hour. A note: It's important to note here that money typically isn't the end goal or primary motivator of our decisions as makers. This section is written specifically to address the misleading notion that a low price point won't amount to a significant increase in revenue. Fear 2:"I want to keep this design for myself. I don’t want anyone else making it." With a heavy heart, I so wish that sometimes we could just keep our dearest ideas to ourselves. The reality is, you can't both share your work with your following and keep it to yourself. The fact is, if you’re reading this, it is literally your hope and a huge part of your job to put your work in front of as many people as possible. And with that, comes imitation. If you have a good idea, it will be imitated. I’m just going to say that again really quick. If you have a good idea, it will be imitated. I don’t share this to discourage you, but to help you anticipate what will happen next in order to make strategic decisions. In my experience, if you don’t release the pattern, someone else will. This means that they will be first-to-market, capture the greatest share of buyers, and receive the credit by all those not aware of where the design originated. This blow will be felt on many levels (financially, personally, emotionally). The tighter I've tried to hold onto an idea for myself, the more it hurt to watch it be imitated. When I made the shift to share, I experienced such freedom in letting it go. Even if you don’t do it for the sake of those who want to make your piece, do it for yourself. Trying to police the Internet is a path to burnout. Fear 3:"But if other people sell it in their shop, my finished products won’t sell as much. I’ll just put fine print that says that they can’t resell." To be honest, I just haven’t found this to be true. I have experienced the most growth in my shop as I share my work and allow others to benefit from it as well. When I first released my patterns I said that others couldn’t sell the finished product, which at the time, I thought was brilliant and protected my work. What happens is that people simply won’t credit you when they work on your pattern and sell the finished product. It’s like trying to hold water in your hands. It just doesn’t work. I changed my wording to say that they could resell but I asked that they kindly tag me. What was the result? I now regularly get tagged on Instagram when people use and sell from my patterns. This isn’t an ego boost, this is turning your customers into marketers. Every time someone posts a WIP and credits my pattern, it almost always generates sales of that pattern. If you hold your work tightly, it often leads to bitterness and actually closes you off from growth. It’s a scary transition, but a necessary one. Fear 4:"Well, um, okay, I don’t actually know how to write a pattern." Don’t let this hold you back. Writing a pattern is far less intimidating than it sounds. Not to mention, makers are gracious. I can't tell you how many typos and errors I've found in my patterns over time, and yet everyone's finished pieces were just fine. There is no golden standard of pattern perfection. If you can jot down the directions for how to make it, in a way that others can then produce it themselves, they will be grateful. There are no pattern police. My rule of thumb is this: write it as if you were teaching your best friend. Then ask a friend or two to test it, run it by a tech editor (see below), then update your pattern to account for any questions or issues. Release it, and continue to revise your pattern over time. Customers will have questions, ask about different yarns, want to know how to adapt it for a different size, etc. These are all opportunities to update your pattern and make it stronger for your next customer. I consider all patterns an ongoing WIP, so release your best effort, and know that you'll perfect it over time. --- Still not sure where to start? Uneasy with the technical jargon? Really want to ace it out of the gate? I GET IT. In Modern Crochet, I have an entire section on how to read a pattern, all the standard vocabulary and rules, a complete stitch abbreviation list, and tons of examples. I highly recommend this resource for those who want to up their pattern reading + writing skills. Modern Crochet Each time I sat down to write Modern Crochet, I tried to imagine the dream resource I wish I had on day one, and the one I wish to consult in my office today.For first-time crocheters, I recalled the things that held me back, that made the craft seem intimidating and unappealing, and the teaching techniques that helped me learn the most. For seasoned crocheters, I reflected on the hacks that I felt differentiated my work, the resources that I consult time and time again, and the ways I pivot and add nuance to existing skills to get more modern results. grab a copy Tech Editing Admittedly, I slept on using a tech editor for *so* long. I always just used testers, which was great, but it meant that my language was a little sub-par even if it was understandable. I used tech editor, Emily Reiter to review my book, and I cannot recommend her enough. I sent her what I thought were perfectly written patterns, and she absolutely schooled me. It was a humbling, but much-needed wake up call. Like many of you, I have no formal background in crochet and am entirely self-taught. For about ~$25/pattern, you can look and sound like a total pro, and seriously reduce the number of customer questions you'll likely get later (making the tech edit fee worth every penny). Learn more: Fiat Fiber Arts, Emily ReiterEmail: emily.tony08@gmail.com Note that she is currently crochet only. Resources Unlike finished products, writing patterns requires a few additional resources to do the job efficiently and professionally. I've designed a suite of templates that will allow you to radically improve your existing pattern collection, or effortlessly launch your new pattern collection. As part of the Masterclass, your access includes unlimited use of these best-selling resources: Guided Notes Take guided notes as you design crochet + knit patterns. With all the right prompts, you won't miss a detail. No more sketching on napkins, looking up stitch abbreviations, or memorizing hook sizes. download now Yard Calculator A life-saver for pattern writers, this tool allows you to confidently calculate the number of yards that went into a project. No more guessing, counting skein wrappers, or wildly overestimating to cover your bases.One effortless tool. One confident maker. download now Pattern Template This editable Canva template is a maker-must-have, allowing you to beautifully format your knit + crochet patterns in minutes. No Canva experience or subscription necessary. Simply save as PDF + upload to Etsy, Ravelry, or anywhere else you sell patterns. Includes 14 fully customizable pages. access now Password: DDPT Seals for Pattern Listings Give your patterns a clear + cohesive thumbnail image with this Canva template. Choose from a variety of shapes, and then feel free to edit font, color, opacity, and placement. access now