While there are a number of premium programs available for the designing of clothing, clothing design software is one of the areas where there is very little available that is actually free. Nonetheless, this does not mean that there is not free software out there that can assist in the designing of clothing. Some of the following are basically work-arounds, but if you don’t want to front a three-digit price tag, they can provide economical solutions.
Second Life Software
This might sound like a strange suggestion, but it really works. There are a number of second-party programs designed to assist in designing of clothing (among other things) in the video game, Second Life. Fortunately, despite this being a video game, the models are sufficiently realistic and the options sufficiently varied that the programs can be used for designing clothing.
While second life allows for highly varied fabrics, you will not be able to actually download patterns from what you design. Nonetheless, you can take screenshots of your designs and then use them to design pattern later. This software can help give you some ideas and allows for great variety.
Photoshop
Photoshop isn’t free, but since a number of people have it anyway, it is basically free for those people. There is actually quite a bit of fashion design that can be done directly in Photoshop. Colors, of course, are the easiest things to change on a person’s clothing, allowing you to experiment with different color combinations using an original photography.
You can also use Photoshop to alter the dimensions of the clothing that people are wearing, and even to cut-and-paste clothing from one person to another in order to create new combinations. Of course, all of this requires a great deal of expertise with Photoshop (more expertise than you would need for a premium clothing design program). Nonetheless, it is a viable option for those experience with Photoshop.
T-Shirt Design
Because a number of companies sell designed T-shirts right over the internet, there are a number of T-shirt design sites that have their own, built-in design programs. Of course, this is very limited in functionality, but those who love making T-shirts have a great deal of different options. A site like Zazzle, for example, will even let you import your own images from Adobe Photoshop.
These online programs, of course, are trying to sell you T-shirts. Nonetheless, you are under no obligation to purchase the shirts you design, so you can feel free to play with their design programs.