We don't use patreon. Patrons can subscribe directly through PayPal.
We don't need the Patreon approach because everything on the site is available for free. Being a patron is completely optional.
It boils down to the fact that all are patterns are made-to-measure. So we need your measurements, thus we need a way to store them. That's why a (free) account is needed.
The reason why you need an account is explained in the FAQ on our new beta site: https://beta.freesewing.org/en/docs/faq
It boils down to the fact that all are patterns are made-to-measure. So we need your measurements, thus we need a way to store them. That's why a (free) account is needed.
There's no catch.