FAQ

Why create Valentina? Aren't other patternmaking tools available?

 * Valentina users have full access to pattern creation. Some patternmaking tools allow limited modification to patterns provided as additional add-on purchases.
 * Valentina's interface is based on the holistic workflow of patternmaking. It is more user-friendly and more efficient than if it were created by modifying an existing tool designed for another purpose.
 * Valentina uses open data formats which are readable by any computer system. Other pattern files can be used only by designers, patternmakers, and manufacturers who have purchased compatible systems. Valentina's commitment to open data formats is intended to increase collaborative efforts between users regardless of native language, skill set, or computer system.
 * Valentina is open source code, which means it will remain focused on the needs of its community of small independent designers, patternmakers and manufacturers. Functionality can be extended to be what the users want it to be!

How can I grade patterns with Valentina? Can I create individual patterns for myself or for a customer?

 * Valentina users can create a range of sizes for each pattern using measurement files, allowing for precise sizing customization. Other pattern making software allows additional size creation through 'grading rules' based on averages of large databases of measurements, which may or may not reflect realistic body measurements. Some software tools require an add-on purchase in order to have 'grading' capability.
 * Valentina patterns can fit an actual person, of any ethnic group, using precision formulas and real body measurements.

Can I use my current patternmaking techniques with Valentina? How is Valentina different? How can I learn patternmaking techniques?

 * Users can use any patternmaking method they wish in Valentina.
 * Most patternmaking techniques use basic measurements and average proportions. Patterns made using basic measurements and average proportions require manual pattern adjustments to finish patterns for full or small busts, waists that are close in size or larger than hips, wide shoulders, muscular backs and necks, prominent abdomens, short or long waist lengths, etc. Valentina aims to provide tools to reduce the amount of manual work required for patternmaking.
 * There are many books which approach patternmaking by using formulas. Current books by Winifred Aldrich or Mueller and Sohn, or vintage books by M.Rohr or Ester Pivnick are good sources. Specific documentation for using Valentina is currently under development.

Can I use Valentina commercially?
Yes, you can. Valentina is free software, it doesn’t put restrictions on the kind of work you produce with it.

What’s the Valentina’s license, and how do I comply with it?
Valentina is distributed under terms of General Public License v3 and later. In a nutshell, this means:


 * You are free to use Valentina, for any purpose
 * You are free to distribute Valentina
 * You can study how Valentina works and change it
 * You can distribute changed versions of Valentina

Note that once you distribute modified version of Valentina, you also must publish your changes to the source code under GPLv3+ as well.

Someone sold or tried to sell me Valentina on a 3rd party website. Is this legal?
Yes, under terms of the General Public License this is perfectly legal, provided that the seller also gave you the source code of Valentina and any modifications he/she introduced.

Which platforms Valentina available for?
The Valentina team working on supporting of three main platforms: Microsoft Windows™, GNU/Linux™ and Apple Mac OS X™. You can download versions for these platforms from our download page.

Is there a Getting Started Guide, a Tutorial or Manual somewhere?
Whole this Wiki is a good place to start. We recommend look our new User Manual. (Because we are still moving it. Visit our old User Manual). For those who prefer video tutorials we have several video about Valentian on Youtube.

Is it legal to use copyrighted pattern making system in my patterns and publish it openly?
Questions about copyrights, trademarks, and patents have come up during the development of Valentina. We've done our best to investigate what is possible when working with pattern systems. Usage of different systems for design and analysis to achieve an outcome or product is common practice in engineering, and pattern making is an engineering discipline.

As a general rule, in any discipline it is considered acceptable to convert published instructions from text and drawings into code.

Specifically about patternmaking, here's the background on legal thought in this area:

Food, clothing, and shelter are basic human needs. It is difficult to obtain patents, trademarks, and copyright for cooking recipes and food preparation methods, architecture designs and building methods, and clothing design and manufacturing techniques. Machines, mannequins, and specialty gadgets can be patented. But the methods (instructions) cannot be trademarked, copyrighted, patented, or otherwise restricted.

Pattern systems, like any business, can have a trademark on use of their company branding. You can mention the pattern system which was the basis for your pattern(s), but you can't advertise your patterns using their company logo or name. There are no copyrights or restrictions on use of the formulas. Pattern system publications have copyrights on text and images, so you can't copy-paste from the books (except in a review and discussion of the method along with attribution of the source). Copy-pasted text & images can't be included in distribution with your pattern. But you can develop your own images and write your own instructions. Since the methods aren't copyrighted, you may use the vocabulary terms from that method in your patterns and discussion about your pattern (Even though it is not legally required, it is probably good manners to mention where the terms come from). Most engineering disciplines have a precise, shared vocabulary due to this ability to refer to nomenclature used in an analytic method. [Note: Patternmaking traditionally doesn't have a "sharing knowledge" community similar to most scientific and engineering communities. Valentina is trying to fix this!]

What is the difference between Valentina and Seamly?
In 2017 Seamly forked off from it's parent project Valentina (another open-source pattern-making software). The two are now considered separate projects.

When do you release the next version of Valentina?
We release both updates to the current stable version and development versions.

We cut new updates of the stable version in two cases: 1) some newly introduced bug is knowingly affecting a lot of users; 2) the amount of improvements and bug fixes is large enough to justify an update — typically, a few dozens of each, but there is no rule.

From time to time we will release unstable/development versions. It is highly depend on the current development stage and time we have for this.

Why can’t you announce dates of future releases?
Currently Valentins's team is small and at this point we don't have the resources to plan time-based releases.

Instead we provide a feature-based roadmap that roughly outlines, in what order we will be implementing various popular requests made by users.

I’m a developer. How do I help you?
Great! Please check the wiki for introduction on Valentina development.

I’m not a developer. Can I still help you somehow?
Absolutely! Here are some of the ways you can help us:


 * Post awesome pattern online and tell people you made it with Valentina.
 * Help new Valentina users in an online forum you visit.
 * Write a great tutorial on getting something done with Valentina and post it online.
 * Do a Valentina workshop in your local community.
 * Improve translation of Valentina and/or its user manual into your native language.