Short answer: upload your artwork to Spoonflower, set it for sale in the Marketplace, and earn a commission every time someone orders it on fabric, wallpaper or home decor. You design once; Spoonflower handles the printing, shipping and payments. Here's how to do it — and do it well.
In five steps:
Once uploaded, your design is available across Spoonflower's whole range — quilting and apparel fabrics, peel-and-stick and traditional wallpaper, plus home decor such as cushions, curtains, napkins and tea towels. One strong pattern can sell on dozens of different products without any extra work from you.
You need design software you can already use — Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop (or Affinity, or Procreate - and there are others). The skills that actually matter are making a seamless repeat and attractive designs with good contrast. You don't need to be a Spoonflower expert to start; you need to be a designer who can prepare files correctly.
Spoonflower pays you a commission on every item sold that features your design. Uploading and listing are free, and because it's print-on-demand there's no stock to hold, nothing to ship and no admin on your side. (Check Spoonflower's current commission rates, as the tiers change from time to time.)
Want the full step-by-step — from seamless repeats and colour management to designing murals with AI-assisted workflows My Book, The Surface Pattern Design Playbook walks you through the whole process, written for designers who already know their tools. Save months of working out how to be a pattern designer, I've gone through that whole process and written up what you need to know so you can get up to speed in days!
Yes — uploading and listing your designs is free. You earn a commission only when an item sells.
It depends on how many designs you list and how well they match demand. It's passive income: each design can keep earning for years after you upload it.
No. Spoonflower prints, packs and ships every order and handles the payment. You just design and list.
A clean seamless repeat, on-trend themes, and coordinating collections rather than one-off prints.
Earn from your design skills
Create & sell patterns for fabric, wallpaper & murals — on Spoonflower & beyond. Client-free, commute-free, creative work you can do from anywhere.
See the book →
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