WOOHOO!!! this will be year 6 of HACK CLUB!!! this is my annual year-long class, held virtually over Zoom so that we can have participants all over the world! so far, we have had students from Austraila, Scotland, Canada and England in Hack Clubs past. this class has really become the core of my teaching life, and also a community that i enjoy immensely! many students have taken it repeatedly, and grow and improve their skills every year.
over time, the class has evolved from focusing on drafting your own patterns from scratch (though you can still do that!) to *hacking* or customizing patterns, whether they are self-drafted or purchased. to me, this is really where the magic (and fun) happens! once you have a simple tried-and-true pattern that fits you, you can spin it off into myriad other variations and styles. and THAT is what HACK CLUB is all about.
it will be a more casual, more playful style of class (hence the word “club”). this format is aiming to strike the right balance of guiding and motivating you through a year-long journey of building your own handmade wardrobe, in manageable chunks, without too much fixed zoom time. here are the hignlights:
- the emphasis will be on the HACKING, or pattern styling, rather than drafting the original patterns. in each monthly live zoom session (on saturdays, 12-2pm EST) i will demonstrate several ways within one category to hack/revamp/add design elements to your pattern. this is really the fun part of pattern drafting and garment designing, but we usually don’t have time to get to it in most of my classes where we start with drafting the pattern. NOW WE WILL!!!
- this means there are (at least) two possibilities: either you have already drafted one or more patterns, hopefully with me, either in a past Design Your Own Wardrobe class or one of my Creativebug videos. in this case you will be working with those patterns as your starting point. OR, if you have not drafted any patterns yet, you will be drafting them on your own time by following my Creativebug videos, with support from me as you work through them. we can have fittings and pattern and sewing questions at the tuesday check-ins, which will be on tuesday evenings (dates listed below) between the saturday sessions. we can also schedule private zoom fittings if needed. i believe this will be a much more efficient way to handle the drafting of the patterns. a third possibility is that you could work with one or more simple purchased patterns, and not do any drafting from scratch. lots of options!
- to clarify, i will not be teaching how to draft each pattern from scratch, or how to sew them. all of that material will be accessed through my Creativebug video workshops, which you can view 24/7. you will need to subscribe to Creativebug to watch these (more info below in the “registration” section). however, i will provide support by offering fittings, pattern and sewing advice, and questions answered in our Slack channel and our tuesday check-ins.
- outside of our live sessions, this class will be largely self-directed,, and it will be entirely up to you how much, or how little work you do each month. you might try out one hack on one garment each month. or you might manage two or three. as we progress and you have more options, you can start combining hacks in one pattern, creating infinite possibilities… also each hack will lend itself to some patterns more than others (like, you probably won’t add a hood to a pair of leggings) but you can work with any patterns you like for each one. you could use a variety (skirt/pants/boxy/shift/leggings/t-shirt) or all one pattern (boxy, shift or t-shirt would be best suited for this plan).
- again this year, we will have 4 optional saturday afternoon “work sessions” after our regular classes, from 3-5pm EST, on the dates indicated below.
- all sessions WILL be recorded for viewing, and available for the full calendar year.
class description
once you have a sewing pattern that fits as you like, it can become the foundation for infinite variations by using pattern “hacks”. a simple pattern for a pullover top can become a hoodie, a jacket, a dress, a sweatshirt, a tunic, a jumper, a t-shirt, a smock… whatever you envision. add seams, gathers, flare, pleats, collars, cowls, hoods, cuffs, plackets, yokes, facings or other design details, one at a time or in combination, and you’ll see that there really are no limits!
this year-long format will allow us to focus on one category of pattern hack each month, and take a deep dive into it. you might draft one or more of the hack variations, and then try them out in a garment of your own design each month.
you may have drafted your own pattern/s in a previous class with me, and you can use those as your foundation/sloper patterns for this class. alternately, you can draft your own by using my Creativebug videos, and getting support (muslin fittings, drafting and sewing questions) in our monthly tuesday evening check-ins and in the Slack group. OR, you can bring a purchased pattern (listed below) to use as your starting point. if using a purchased pattern, i suggest that you have made at least one muslin or test garment from the pattern in advance, to confirm you are happy with the fit or size chosen. in our live virtual saturday sessions, i will demonstrate a variety of pattern manipulation techniques, and then you can apply some of them to design one or more variations. before you know it you’ll have a closet full of handmade clothes!
there will also be bonus topics like flat garment sketching, inspiring books, cool sewing details, and whatever else i come up with (or you request). i’ll be working along with you all on my own projects, incorporating the monthly hacks. i want this to be a FUN, dynamic, interactive group experience!
skill level required: i have found from past experience that this class will work best for at least *advanced beginner* to intermediate sewists, meaning you have sewn at least a few garments before. the more beginner you are, the more challenging this year-long journey will be, and i think it could be pretty overwhelming, especially if you have anything else going on in your life! if you are a more advanced sewist, no problem! you can challenge yourself with more complex projects. as for pattern drafting, you could have anywhere from little/no experience, up to fairly intermediate experience, and adjust your level of projects accordingly.
there will be one live 2-hour session per month (on zoom) in which i demonstrate the hacks and you work along with me (or just watch, and then work along with the recording later). these will be on saturdays, noon-2pm EST, usually the 2nd saturday of the month (this year, all but August are the 2nd saturdays).
in between those saturday sessions, there will be one live 1.5-hour “tuesday check-in” on zoom, on tuesday evenings from 6-7:30pm EST. these are very much about what YOU need from me, so that means questions, requests for additional demonstrations, fittings, sewing help and whatever else may arise. it’s great if you can submit questions or requests in advance, so i can best prepare to answer or demonstrate, or have samples at hand to explain things. i often ask for an RSVP earlier that day or the day before, so i don’t show up to an empty zoom room. we often end early if there aren’t many topics, questions or fittings, but you are always welcome to come for just part of it.
all sessions, both the saturdays and the tuesdays, will be recorded and available for viewing until the end of the year. i do prefer that you come to the live class and participate as much as possible! i love a lively, engaged class with lots of questions and discussion! but of course i understand that conflicts will arise.
there will also be a Slack group for 24/7 sharing of progress, chatting, questions, successes and fails etc. this is really where much of the beautiful community-building takes place! we all started an accountability channel last year which i think was very useful.
if you have questions, please email me or leave them in the comments below for all to see.
schedule
saturday sessions, live on zoom, 12-2pm EST:
#1 – february 8 – pattern lines and CF adjustments
#2 – march 8 – adding seams (optional work session after)
#3 – april 12 – slash and spread
#4 – may 10 – pockets (optional work session after)
#5 – june 14 – collars, cowls and hoods
#6 – july 12 – plackets, yokes and facings (optional work session after)
#7 – august 16 – sleeves and cuffs
#8 – september 13 – hemline shapes and vents (optional work session after)
#9 – october 11 – pleats, gathers and ruffles
#10 – november 8 – surface dimension
#11 – december 13 – clone it and wrap party!
tuesday evening check-ins, live on zoom 6-7:30pm EST:
2/18, 3/18, 5/6, 5/20, 7/1, 7/15, 9/2, 9/23, 10/21, 11/18
supplies
it’s hard for me to specify exactly the supplies you’ll need, because there are so many possibilities for how many (and which) patterns and garments you’ll make. you will definitely need the basic pattern drafting supplies, which i will list here. and i can provide a list of purchased boxy top patterns if you’d like to work all the hacks on an existing pattern. you can also find other simple patterns to use.
it would also be a good idea to stock up on inexpensive, non-precious fabrics to make muslins, wearable muslins, or experimental garments. this could be the fabric called muslin, thrifted sheets or tablecloths, sale fabrics, thrifted XL T-shirts (for knit projects), etc.
- Pad or roll of paper, at least 14″ wide (can be newsprint, drawing paper, etc). 18 x 24″ is a great size for a pad.
- Notebook
- Pencil, eraser, sharpener
- Ruler (18″ x 2″ clear sewing ruler is best)
- Tape measure
- Paper scissors
- Clear tape
- optional: Hip curve, French curve, or other curve tool
registration
the price for the whole year will be $320. our first session is february 8, so please get in touch ASAP if you’d like to join the fun! my goal is to have about 30 participants.
if you are planning to also draft the core patterns with my Creativebug classes, you’ll need to subscribe to Creativebug as well. i’d love it if you use my affiliate link to subscribe, which earns me a small commission. it’s extremely affordable (about $7 per month gets you access to ALL classes and teachers, and you can download one class each month to keep forever. and there are always specials, like right now (January 2025) you get a year at just $2/month!) and also many libraries offer it. PLUS, use the code CALPATCH to get a 60-day free trial! i currently have 12 pattern drafting and garment sewing workshops there, plus there are teachers like Leisl Gibson, Sonya Philip, Heidi Parkes, Kristine Vejar, Natalie Chanin, Rae Hoekstra and lots of others. many of the classes come with downloadable patterns too!
spots will be first-come (i.e. paid!), first-served. i do prefer payment by check in the mail (so old fashioned, i know! but it eliminates fees) but i can also send you a square invoice, or you can use zelle, venmo or paypal.
hopefully i’ve covered all the basic info?
email me (cal at calpatch dot com) to reserve your spot, or if you have questions!
