Written by: Kristen Moore

Published on 03/05/2024

WOW! We’ve reached the LAST post to my current blog series all about crochet pattern design! If you haven’t read the others, feel free to check them out at the links below:

Crochet Pattern Design - Designing With Originality

Crochet Pattern Design - Getting Started

Crochet Pattern Design - Helpful Tools and Resources

Crochet Pattern Design - Publishing and Navigating the Testing Process

I hope you’ve learned SO much through this series and are feeling really encouraged to begin your design journey. It’s never too late to start! If these posts have encouraged you, I would LOVE to hear about it! You can message me on Instagram or email me here at kristen@junebugandjames.com.

Now, let’s dig in for the last time! This post is going to be short and sweet, but hopefully include a TON of concise info for you to know what your pattern needs. In this post I’m going to include the answers to a recent poll I did on Instagram. I asked my following what they believed was the number one essential thing that made a great crochet pattern.

I thought about condensing these answers at first…and then I thought the helpful part of this is to see how many times certain things were mentioned and to see a trend with what the majority of answers liked to see.

So, here they are!

Clear Photos! Finished item AND tutorial photos.
Printer friendly.
Text formatting to make it easy differentiating rows/rnds.
Easy to follow/easy flow.
Video tutorials for tricky parts.
Nice layout, some effort put in.
The right hook for the pattern.
Pictures that the text references.
Using a tech editor and pattern testers.
Flow and readability.
Progress photos, especially of difficult rows or stitches.
Clear, bright pictures.
Clear instructions.
Photos to explain the tricky parts.
Lots of pictures to help explain details!
Yarn recommendations.
Uniqueness.
Adding in the minor details.
Clear and concise instructions!
Beautiful pictures.
Clear notes before the pattern starts!
No sew!
Clear directions and lots of step pictures.
Pictures with arrows or other markings to help explain the directions.
Overly detailed instructions and pictures.
Low sew!
Detail! All the pictures and explanations.
That it’s easy to read/understand the instructions.
Very clear instructions with pictures for tricky parts.
Videos for more complicated parts.
Detailed pictures!
Clear directions. Large font. Videos.
Clear and concise instructions. All the extras don’t matter if the instructions aren’t clear.
Lots of pictures.
Video tutorials for the tricky parts.

Basically, I think we can boil a great crochet pattern down to being about clarity, conciseness, extra helpful notes/recommendations, and clear photos/videos to explain all tricky parts. Of course, the actual pattern instructions need to make sense and the math needs to add up, but I think that’s a given. ;)

I think it’s also important to note that your pattern should reflect YOU and your style/brand. If you have a bright and colorful brand with bold fonts, then I think it’s acceptable for your patterns to reflect this. In this case however, you might also consider including a printer friendly version of your pattern in the files when they purchase from you so the makers who enjoy printing out the patterns don’t have to worry about using up a lot of ink.

Personally, if I could choose one thing to tell you to focus on the most when it comes to your crochet pattern, it would be ensuring every single line is consistent throughout. This means if you say, “place 6 sc in MR” in one part of your pattern, be sure to word it the exact way for the other part of your pattern where it’s needed.

Make sure the font you use is consistent throughout the whole pattern, as well as the font size. Sometimes I do add little notes on the side of my pattern to add tips or clarification, and for these I will make the font a tad smaller. But overall, it should be the same throughout.

Be sure the spacing throughout your pattern is equal and consistent.

Make sure your details section is filled with concise information. Try not to include any unnecessary details. It might be helpful to ask yourself if you would need that extra information. If you were testing this pattern, would you be able to understand well enough without it?

These are all areas a tech editor will absolutely be able to help with. They’ll be able to inspect your pattern line by line, catching any inconsistencies and helping you find your own style. If you’re struggling, I would highly suggest reaching out to a professional!

I think we can all agree how valuable photo and video tutorials can be! If you’re including them, make sure they are all extremely clear and easy to follow. I also like to advise that photos are referenced directly in the instructions of your pattern and are on the same page as the instructions referring to them. This is totally personal preference, but I tend to have a harder time following patterns when I have to keep going back and forth to the photos being referenced on another page.

All in all, you want to make sure your patterns flow well and are easily read. It will take a lot of practice, and I highly recommend taking your time with your first pattern to make sure you have things mostly how you want them.

Over time, your style may change and that is totally fine. You can always go back and update past patterns. I would say if you’re making any changes to the actual pattern you will want to make sure your customers know so you can send them the updated version.

If you need some extra help, I’ve created a basic pattern template that you can use to input your pattern information and be sure the layout is consistent. This template includes all the formatting you need and where to add certain details! It is fully customizable so you change the fonts and colors as you wish to make the pattern your own. It’s a great starting point if you’re wanting to design your first crochet pattern and aren’t sure where to begin when it comes to layout and format. You can check it out in my shop on Etsy!

This brings me to my last challenge for you…

Decide on the style of writing you want to use in your pattern and what is most important to YOU. Will you choose to use lowercase stitch abbreviations (sc, dc, hdc), uppercase stitch abbreviations (SC, DC, HDC), or just capitalize the first letter of each abbreviation (Sc, Dc, Hdc)? When you write about increases and decreases, how will you word this part (dec or sc2tog)? How will you write about the materials needed in the pattern, and will you list all forms of measurements for yarn needs (yards, meters, ounces, grams)? Whatever style of writing you choose to use, the most important thing to remember is to keep it consistent throughout the entire pattern.

Well, that is all for now, friends! I truly hope this series answered your questions when it comes to designing your first crochet pattern and knowing what is involved in the process. I hope it was just thorough enough to provide you the basics, but not too overwhelming if you’re just getting started.

If you have any other questions, or feel like I left something out, please feel free to contact me and let me know! This series doesn’t have to stop at five posts, I could definitely add more information if needed!

I have enjoyed every minute writing about my crochet pattern design journey and sharing all the information I wish I had when I was first starting out. Thank you so much for hanging out with me and reading along!

Crochet Pattern Design - Tips for Writing a Great Crochet Pattern

Perceval Puffin Crochet Pattern

Crochet Pattern Design - Publishing and Navigating the Testing Process