Most had emailed me asking bout d Q above. Want to know how to design? Then you should learn the basic of design elements – Color, Line, Shape, Scale, Space Texture & Value!

These are all the important fundamental pieces that make up any piece of work. If you wanted to start a design course (which cost you thousands), this will be the very first thing that you are thought, confirmed & guaranteed. So, take the tips written below as your guide. Remember, all elements are important!

Now, lets talk about COLOR. Color has a huge impact on the mood of design you created. A red color flower represents strong emotions eg. love, anger, passion, while blue can make the design feel calm, cool and peaceful. The whole implementation of color on your design must matched and followed the rules of color schemes. So, learn about the color wheel & color theory, because, the color wheel is one of the 1st place i turn for color inspiration and guidance when choosing a color scheme.

Next, is LINE. Are your line straight or curve ways?  Your hand drawn lines can say a lot about the mood you are setting with your design. A straight & thin lines are more corporate or intelligent. If you want a chaotic design, the you might need a straight, thin lines and colliding at all sorts of crazy angles. It may appeared a lil bit personal appeal if your lines are less straight and orderly.

Did you know that SHAPES can convey a mood just like any other elements? Shapes like squares and triangles tend to indicate masculinity, while shapes like circles are more feminine. Thats’ why most of the flower design begin with a circles as a base line! Some more, circles very pleasing to the eye. So, lets create a lots of circles…heheee..

To have balance, proportion and contrast to your design, you’ll need SCALE & SIZE. What is size? Size is the actual dimensions of an element on the fabric and scale is the element relation’s to it’s original. We use scale and proportion to indicate the actual size of an object (such as flower sized 5 cents vs 20 cents) or to emphasize the difference in the sizes of two objects.

Next, is about SPACE. Space is often referred to as white space which gives the design some breathing room and the eye a place to rest. Too much space on the fabric can seem unfinished, like missing something. Little space left on the fabric (a crowded design) can make you feel claustrophobic, simple term – headache! So, try to balance all the elements when you do sketches. Try not to overdo or you may start with a simple design first.

TEXTURE is one more fun element to experiment with. Usually, we take into consideration the materials used in the final sketch. Try to visualized the output before you start embroidering. Usage of stones, sequins and others materials will give a difference view of texture on top of your fabric.

Lastly, the VALUE. the value can really add unity to your designs if you pay attention to this neglected element. The value can bring together parts of the design to make then balanced eg. using elements similar in a high intensity value (light, towards the white end of your design) can create a subdued tone, where values lower in intensity (darker, towards black) can be ominous and foreboding. Using values on either extreme of the design has a very dramatic effect!

So, try to remember all the elements above when you start the process of designing. Make sure you had incorporate all elements in to your design to have an output which is tailored to the customer needs.

As for next lessons, we will look into sketches!

Wassalam