The Pattern Project

Mathematics education

Mathematics, being an abstract discipline, frequently leaves people feeling disconnected from the calculations they perform, as they seem devoid of real-world significance. Unlike other science subjects such as biology, chemistry, and physics, which often feature engaging projects and innovative project-based learning approaches, mathematics has lagged in this regard.

Drawing Sewing Patterns

At the same time I always felt like textiles and sewing is a technical discipline. I got interested in sewing patterns, which are the 2D pieces that are cut out of the fabric to make a garment. For my Final Bachelor Project of Industrial Design I started to explore whether I could apply high school mathematical theory to draw the patterns of a shirt. This turned out to be an interesting exploration since making a shirt allows for a very creative use of geometry.

From there I developed an educational project around sewing pattern drawing. Where students have to figure out what calculations they need to do in order to get the right shapes and lengths to make a pattern pieces that fit onto each other and a shirt that fits their body. Since shirts can have many different designs, there is room for exploring geometrical pattern shapes.

NLT module: Fast Fashion

After my graduation I developed this project further into an interdisciplinary hands-on high school project for the NLT association, called Fast Fashion. Not only the mathematical pattern drawing is a part of this project module, but also the entire process of making textiles is included, involving chemistry and biology.