Wild Ginger Cameo 5 Patternmaking Software Part 2

A few people have contacted me to ask about how it is going with the Cameo 5 pattern drafting software after reading my first post about it, so I thought I would do a quick update... the truth is that it isn't going as well as I had hoped.  I haven't produced a pattern with successful grading at this point.  But, to be fair, I haven't spent an enormous amount of time on it.  I spend about a Saturday every 3-4 weeks, during which time I have to relearn some of what I learned the last time, then become extremely frustrated at not getting any workable items out of it.  So, it doesn't inspire me to rush back to tinkering with it.

The software was expensive (around $2,000) and not being able to use it is disappointing and frustrating me.  But not because the product is inherently bad... mostly because I am finding the resources to learn how it works are slim and the learning curve very steep.  There are some tutorials that are included and I was excited to see there was a book for it that could be purchased for $35.00.  I purchased the book, only to find that the information is exactly the same as what is available in the tutorials already, but just written out.   I got the book to get more information and expected to find it for that price.  I don't find the explanations provided sufficient to make this product work.  I am a computer geek for a living.  I know my way around a computer, but this is really tough.

Here are some examples of what is frustrating me.

1. Funky mysterious curves when grading. This is a sleeve from the Project Peggy dress pattern I put up for free on Craftsy.  (Here is my post about making the pattern and pictures of the dress)
I drew the sleeve in the pattern designer and here are the results when trying to grade it.  I have gone back to the original pattern piece so many times to try and correct whatever I can, but I can't see what might be creating this mess.  It is also impossible to redraw the lines manually at this point. 

 
This is another example on some neck facing.

 This is the entire dress when graded.  It doesn't look too bad if you don't examine things closely.

But, then more trouble comes in and brings me to my second frustration point.

2. Inexplicable sizing shenanigans.  Here is an example: 

 

It is hard to see in the screenshot, but there are different colored lines for the different sizes.  When I follow the bottom purple line, it is the last line at the bottom of the hem, so it is the largest size.  It is also the top line at the top of the neckline.  But wait... it is also... the narrowest line at the waist?  If it were grading properly, wouldn't it be the widest one?

Here is what I am getting from this:  Us chubby girls should wear the shortest skirts.  You thin girls need to cover up.  It is known.

I was thinking that maybe the issue is that I can't draw patterns correctly... so I tried again on a dress I created from the pattern library and didn't make modifications to it.  Same issue.

I contacted the support for Wild Ginger and they are quick to answer.  Lisa Shanley is extremely responsive and when I mentioned that I couldn't get the software to work, she reiterated that there is free support and that to help me, she would need some files.  She said she is sure there is a simple step I am neglecting and that she could help.

I have yet to take her up on it, but I am sure that she is right.  I am sure it is something simple I am not doing that is also not obvious in the book or tutorials.  The truth is that I don't have tons of free time to play in the sewing lab and most of the time it is far more attractive to make myself a pretty dress than it is to be frustrated by this software and not have anything to show for it.  So, I choose the sewing.

I'll definitely work on this again, just maybe when I take a week or two off from work and can really get into it.  They seem like nice people at Wild Ginger who really want the software to work for the people who purchase it and I am not ready to give up completely yet.  But right now, I just want to sew something pretty.

Wild Ginger Cameo 5 Patternmaking Software Review

After a year and a half salivating over the idea of getting patternmaking software, doing some research and reviews, I finally made a purchase about three weeks ago.  After considering other products, I purchased Wild Ginger Cameo 5.

I thought I would be able to decide if I wanted to buy the software after downloading and playing with the demo.  But, in the demo, all of the tutorials and help are either disabled or scaled down so that they were essentially useless.  If that is all they had, I wouldn't have made a purchase.  But the company offers a full money-back guarantee until 15 days after purchase, so I figured that would be the real demo.

I got three packages: the basic software, the grading tool, plus a women's pattern library.  There was a sale on Thanksgiving for 20% off and I got the whole suite for about $2000.00 USD.   Which is a lot of money, but there are three things this software can do that the other, less expensive packages don't seem to do (or don't seem to do well).

1. The ability to sell the items you create
Some patternmaking software has restrictions on selling the items you create from it.  They are cheaper, but if I can't (eventually) sell what I make, it really defeats the purpose of creating anything in it.  I wouldn't go through the trouble of creating something digital if it is just for personal use - that can be done on paper.

2. Editing and creating patterns from slopers (easily)
After following just a few tutorials, I was able to enter in my slopers, based on my own measurements.

While I am nowhere near fully functional in the program, I feel like I am making some progress.  Thanks to the tutorials, I can slash and pivot, slash and spread, move darts, segment and make curved lines.

When I was making the curved lines on the sleeve cap, I was able to easily segment the lines, put in points and make arcs fairly easily.  I have tried to do that with other pattern-making software and found it difficult.

The next step is to take them and make some other patterns out of them.  For example, I'd like to make an empire waist out of the bodice and attach it to the skirt just like you would for pen and paper pattern drafting, but since I was able to draw the sleeve cap, I am not worried about that.

3. Grading
I have only gone through the tutorial project for grading on Cameo 5, but what little I saw of the grading had me dazzled.  Here is the result of following the tutorials and grading a skirt.  Different sizes!

Making the measurement tables and entering in the data for grading is a bit of a process, but when it comes time to create the actual grading markings, it is ONE BUTTON.   Grading by hand is so time-consuming, but this was so easy in comparison.   Also, you can save the file as a PDF and it prints perfectly with markings and labels for taping the pages together.

To use the software, it is still essential have to know how to construct a pattern on paper.  It doesn't replace that kind of skill, but it does make process easier.  For example, I find that slashing a digital pattern piece is easier than doing the same thing with paper.  Also, there tools for measuring lines and making sure pieces fit.  I was able to click a few times to make sure I had enough ease in my sleeve cap.  Measuring those curved lines is harder on paper.

The customer service seems good so far. I had one question about the purchase price, then again one about the installation and they were both answered right away.  Good customer service is a big plus.

Bottom line: While I have yet to make my own graded pattern with this software (only the tutorial so far), I can see that I am not far from it.  I am excited to keep using it and happy this is the software I chose.  It is more expensive than PatternMaker Grading Studio, but this is already so much better and  less clunky.

My next project is a clutch handbag that I will make into a PDF pattern and give away.  I have some ideas and can't wait to try and make them into a pattern.

Read part two of the review.