How to Download & Print Your PDF Sewing Patterns

This step-by-step guide outlines:

• where to find your purchased pattern files on the website;
• how to download your patterns;
• how to print them at home including what setttings to use;
• and lastly, the best ways to join the pages together accurately & quickly.

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ACCESSING YOUR PATTERN(S) IN YOUR ACCOUNT

1) Click on 'My Account' on the menu bar.   

   

2) Log in using your email address & password. 

     

3) You will now see your account page listing your Order History.

The big pink button 'View My PDF Patterns' is where you'll find all your purchased pattern files, ready to download. 

 

     

4) They will each be listed under their order number.    

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DOWNLOADING YOUR PATTERN(S)

5) The next step is to download the pattern files you want to use. 

Click on file needed & save it to your computer for printing & your phone or ipad for reading.

   

WHICH PATTERN FILES SHOULD I DOWNLOAD? 

Most people download the tutorial & then either the print-at-home or the copy shop version.

Some patterns will have 3 files:

• Tutorial
• Print at Home pattern
• A0 Copy Shop pattern

Others will have 2 files:

• Tutorial & Print at Home pattern combined (pattern is at the back)
• A0 Copy Shop pattern

CAN'T FIND THE FILES YOU DOWNLOADED?

This is generally because your computer downloads automatically without asking you were you want to save it. Look in your downloads folder - Internet Explorer for a Windows computer & in Finder for a Mac. Just search 'Pattern Emporium'.

WORRIED YOU'LL RUN OUT OF DOWNLOADS?

Don't worry about the download count. If you run out because of a dodgy internet connection, just email me via the 'contact us' tab and we'll reset them for you.

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PRINTING AT HOME   

6) Get Adobe Reader: 

Download Adobe Reader if you don't already have it on your computer. Here's the link: https://get.adobe.com/uk/reader/ It's a free program.

You will use this program to open & print your pdf files. You will need it on any computer you're printing the actual pattern pages from. 

   

7) Open & read page 2 of the tutorial.

Open the pattern's tutorial file in Adobe Reader (the one with the picture on the front). 

Read page 2. This is the contents page & will tell you what your pattern contains. 

Familiarise yourself with what's in the tutorial. There is a LOT of information contained in our tutorials from fitting to printing.

Some Print-at-Home patterns are found in their own file. In others, you'll find them at the back of the main tutorial. 

   

8) Next, find the Printing Guide in the main tutorial.

In most of our tutorials you'll find a page printing guide.

This show you which pages to print for the style you want to make, so you don't need to print all the pattern pages. Below is one of our newest ones. 

You will need to know what size (or sizes, if you're multi-sizing) you are before you print.

   

   

9) Get familiar with layers:

If you're not familiar with layers, this is an awesome feature available in Adobe Reader.

It allows you to 'switch off' the sizes you don't want to print.

You will need to know what size (or sizes, if you're multi-sizing) you are before you print.

For more information on layers, click here. A new tab will open so you can save it to read later. 

Pictured below is a pattern page with all sizes, followed by the same pattern page with all the layers turned off except size 16.

   

10) Let's check up your printer settings

So that your pattern prints to scale, it's important to have your printer settings correct.

Once you open the print box (file > print) you will have the following options:

PAGES TO PRINT: Write in the page numbers you actually want to print. Most of the time, you don't need to print them all. See the guide in your tutorial to help with this.

PAGE SIZE & HANDLING: Here choose either 'Actual Size' or 'Custom 100%'.  Then deselect (untick) 'Choose paper source by PDF page size'.

ORIENTATION: Choose 'Auto Portrait/Landscape'.

PRINT: Select the print button. 

   

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JOINING THE PATTERN PAGES TOGETHER     

WHAT WILL A PRINTED PATTERN PAGE LOOK LIKE?

PAGES: When you print out your PE pattern pages correctly, you will see the colour pattern lines neatly contained inside a rectangle (border) on each page. 

TRIANGLES:You will also see a little triangle with a number inside along some edges. These are to help you join your pages together accurately. 

LAYOUT SUMMARY: In most tutorials, you will also find a Pattern Layout Summary that shows you what the pages look like, all stuck together.

   

IS THERE A SPECIAL WAY TO JOIN THEM TOGETHER? 

PROBLEM: Our home printings aren't always that reliable for accuracy. Sometimes pages print out and don't align as precisely as we'd like them to. This is especially true for ladies wear because of the large number of pages we print. 

SOLUTION: First join the pages in separate rows. Then, once all the rows are complete, you can stick those rows together to create the whole pattern.

 

   

TO TRIM OR NOT TO TRIM: 

TRIM: Trim along the base & right of each box. Then align along this line, matching the triangled number with it's pair, on a flat surface in the order outlined above.

NO TRIM: Click HERE  to watch our video for a quick & easy method that i use that requires no trimming.  This link will take you to the Pattern Emporium YouTube channel. 

   

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