Pattern software for leatherworkers
The easy way to make leather patterns.
PatinaCAD is pattern software made just for leathercraft. Draw a wallet, a card holder or a bag, add stitching holes that match your pricking irons, then print it true to size or send it to your laser cutter. It's free, and there's no expensive, complicated design program to learn first.
- Free
- No sign-up
- Nothing to install
- Your patterns stay on your computer
Made for leatherwork
Only the tools you need
Stitch lines, pricking irons, gussets, card pockets, rounded corners. The tools are the ones you use at the bench, not the hundreds of menus of a general drawing program.
Easy to pick up
Your first pattern today
Open the demo card holder, or follow the ten-step first pattern in the guide. Each tool tells you what to click next, and sizes are typed in millimetres or inches.
Free, and yours
No subscription, no sign-up
Use every feature for free. Your patterns stay on your computer, and what you make with them is yours to sell.
How it works
From an idea to a pattern you can cut.
Draw the pieces
Start from a rectangle, a bank card or a banknote, or trace a photo of an old pattern. Round the corners and set the stitch line in from the edge.
Add the stitching holes
Choose your pricking iron and click the stitch line. The holes go in evenly, with one on every corner, and line up from panel to gusset.
Print or cut
Print at actual size, with a ruler on the page to check, or export the pattern for your laser cutter or 3D printer.
Your patterns
Your patterns stay on your computer.
No sign-up, no subscription, nothing uploaded. Save a pattern like any other document, keep it with your project photos, and open it again whenever you like. Your designs are yours.
Nothing to lose
Your work is kept safe as you go. If the browser closes, your pattern is there when you come back.
Saved where you choose
Save each pattern into any folder, and share or back it up like any other file.
No account to manage
No email address, no password, no trial that runs out.
- Card holderToday
- Bifold walletTuesday
- Watch strap, 20 mm12 Sep
- Tote bag panels2 Sep
What you can do
Everything between an idea and the leather.
Stitching holes that match your irons
Choose a diamond, French, flat or round iron, or add your own. The holes are evenly spaced, with one on every corner.
Stitching holesGussets that line up
Copy a panel's holes onto its gusset, so the two pieces match hole for hole.
Gussets and box stitchPrints at actual size
Every printout has a 100 mm ruler to check with a steel rule. Big patterns spread over A4 or Letter pages.
Printing patternsReady for your laser cutter
Export your pattern for laser and cutting machines, with outlines and stitch holes kept apart.
Laser cuttingTemplates and jigs you can 3D-print
Turn a pattern into a sturdy template to trace around, or a jig that holds the piece while you work.
3D-printed templatesPockets that fit
Size wallet and card holder pockets against real bank cards, banknotes and coins before you cut.
Card and banknote sizesWhy not a general design program?
CorelDRAW and Illustrator weren't made for leather.
General design programs can draw a pattern, but they cost a subscription or a licence, take months to learn, and leave the leatherwork to you.
| Compared | General design software | PatinaCAD |
|---|---|---|
| Made for | Logos, posters, illustrations, engineering | Leather patterns |
| Learning | Hundreds of tools before your first pattern | Only the tools a leatherworker uses |
| Stitching holes | Placed one by one, or with workarounds | Laid out for your pricking iron |
| Cost | Often a subscription or a paid licence | Free |
Questions
Frequently asked
Short answers to what leatherworkers ask first. There are more on the FAQ page, and every feature is explained in the docs.
More questions and answersIs PatinaCAD free? Do I need an account?
It's free, and there's no account or sign-up. There's no subscription and no trial that runs out.
What do I need to use it?
A computer with Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari, on Windows, Mac or Linux. There's nothing to install.
Where are my patterns saved?
On your own computer, as files you can copy, back up and share. Nothing is uploaded, and if the browser closes, your work is still there when you come back.
Can I sell what I make with PatinaCAD?
Yes. Your pattern files are yours, and so is everything you make from them. Sell the leather goods, or sell the patterns themselves.
Will my printed pattern be the right size?
Yes, as long as you print at 100% (“Actual size”, with “Fit to page” off). Every printout has a 100 mm ruler so you can check it with a steel rule, and you can correct a printer that is slightly off.
I've never used design software. Can I still use it?
Yes. Open the demo card holder to see a finished pattern, then follow the guide's first pattern: ten steps from a rectangle to a pricked, printed card holder.
Free to use
Start your next pattern.
Open PatinaCAD and explore the demo card holder, or start from a blank page.