I was asked a question about portraying texture in clothing and felt the answer would be interesting to most you designers as well.
This can be very difficult at times, depending on the textile you are trying to represent. One of the techniques I use, and find works quite effectively, is to do a rubbing.
What is a rubbing you may ask?
Well it is when you place a textured surface under your drawing paper and literally rub the graphite of your pencil on top of your paper and over the textured surface you placed underneath. Patterns for almost any textile can be replicated by using this method. Experiment with plastics, metals, wood objects, or even very heavily textured fabrics themselves.
You will find this drawing tip to be very useful, especially when trying to draw fabrics like knit. Don't forget that the rubbing can be a simple suggestion of the texture, and doesn't have to cover the entire garment in the illustration.
To learn more about drawing fashion and techniques like these, check out my Fashion Drawing DVD