Tag Archives: print your own fabric

‘Everyday Experiences’ Textile Collection by Krystal-Anne Knafl

We’re super excited to announce that our next featured artist from The Designer Project will be ever so talented, Krystal-Anne Knafl from Miss Apple Designs! 

Miss Apple Designs is about sorting inspiration from everyday experiences and turning them into fun designs. From chickens in classrooms to people’s gardens, each piece is digitally hand-drawn and given its own colour story. Ultimately, these designs are made to be a part of your own fashion story and hopefully inspire your fun and creative side as well!

Keep reading to find out more about Krystal-Anne Knafl and her fun loving ‘Everyday Experiences’ Collection! 

 

Sarah’s Orchard Garden is inspired by orchard pot plants resting in the Queensland sunlight. These bright purple hues with pops of white and yellow provide layers and dimension that keep the eye flowing.

Sarah’s Orchard Garden would be the perfect print for fashion garments and accessories such as shawls and scarves!

Chickens With Hats is a playful print that is balanced out by warm, earthy tones. The Chicken motifs add such a fun element to the design and hats add a subtle layer of ‘extra’ to these adorable chickens.

We think Chicken With Hats would look amazing on some funky mens fashion garments! Think board shorts or button up shirts

Crazy Plant Lady presents various plant leaf motifs in wonderful shades of green. The contrasting pinkish maroon background really helps the plants truly be the feature of this piece.

Crazy Plant Lady is such a great print for any homeware project! Bedding, blankets and throws or even cushions as well!

Summer Salad is inspired by the beauty and colours of Australian produce. This print features a range of vegetable motifs, each in varying sizes and colours which creates a fun and colourful design. We love the combination of realism and Krystal’s own twist to the illustrations.

We think Summer Salad would work perfectly for both home and fashion projects such as tote bags or aprons!

 

 

All of our project ideas above are suggestions only as the possibilities are endless with Krystal’s funky and fun collection! Each of Krystal’s designs can be found in our Fabric Shop, so head on over to be inspired for your next DIY project! 

Gouri Babshet – The Designer Project

It’s been so wonderful having the delightful designer Gouri Bashet, as our current feature artist of The Designer Project and have adored sharing her absolutely lovely textile designs. Gouri has put together a guest blog for you all, which shares a bit of background info on herself, some behind the scenes of her creative process and as well as what inspires her and this collection.  

Keep on reading to find out more about Gouri Babshet and her creative style! 

Designer Fabrics_Custom Fabrics_Gouri Babshet

 ‘Gouri Babshet’

I’m a surface pattern designer and illustrator from India who is based in Melbourne, Australia with my husband and two kids. Being in Melbourne and surrounded by beautiful nature has become the source of my inspiration. My patterns and designs are known to be bright, cute yet delicate that are inspired from my love for nature and colours.  

digital fabrics_designer fabrics_gouri babshet_Delightful Roses Olive 2‘Delightful Roses – Olive Design’

I’m a former techie who is a creative soul since childhood. I am also a self-taught artist with an absolute love for drawing, crafting, scrapbooking and quilling…just to name a few! I like to think I have a keen eye for colours and just love to bring in bright, detailed and colourful aesthetics with a modern and feminine touch to all of my designs. 

‘Work in Progress Design’

digital fabrics_designer fabrics_gouri babshet_morning meoldy collection

‘Morning Melodies Textile Collection’

Nature is my biggest inspiration. I take long walks in the nearby walking trails, creeks and wetlands and capture beautiful images of birds, animals and foliage that serve as a starting point for my design process. I put together a mood board with the images from my inspiration and color palettes that go with the current theme. Then I start by sketching loosely in procreate app on my iPad Pro which is such a versatile tool in art making. 

Designer Fabrics_Custom Fabrics_Gouri Babshet_Design Moodboard ‘Design Inspiration Moodboard’

Designer Fabrics_Custom Fabrics_Gouri Babshet_Design Sketches 2‘Rough Bird Sketches’

These sketches are refined and transferred to Adobe illustrator to create vector motifs using colour palettes I create using adobe colour tool. The final motifs are tossed in a repeat pattern that can been transformed into beautiful fabric, home decor, stationery and other products. 

‘Rough Bird and Floral Sketches’

digital fabrics_designer fabrics_gouri babshet_Chirping Birds 1

‘Chirping Birds Design’

If you want to collaborate with us on The Designer Project and become part of this creative club, please apply! Send us an email with your portfolio and why you would like to be part of this initiative, and we will be in touch! 

Summer DIY Dress from Unique Designer Fabric!

digital fabrics_poppy fabric_designer fabric_ella party dress

Recently, one of our wonderful team members Ella, took on the project of creating the most stunning party dress out of our newest natural fabric, Poppy!  

Ella is our Studio & Production assistant here at Digital Fabrics and also works very closely with The Designer Project. Constantly seeing all of the amazing designs from our Aussie Designers, she decided to feature one of the prints for her dress. Ella has put together a blog post for you all, showcasing the behind the scenes of her latest project as well as her thought process and why she was inspired by The Designer Project. 

Keep on reading to find out more! 

 

When I first found out we would be stocking our new Poppy fabric, I knew I just had to make something from it. Organic Cotton Sateen…? Yes please!  

I love to work on my own textile designs for my projects but this time, I decided to have a little scroll through our Fabric Shop online. Through working closely with The Designer Project designers, seeing all of their amazing collections in our Fabric Shop and knowing all the love that goes into them, I knew I wanted to order some prints to support our local artists for my next project.  

Once I saw the design ‘Maggie May’ by Madeline Hawkins, I knew exactly what I wanted to do.  

‘Maggie May by Madeline Hawkins’

digital fabrics_poppy fabric_designer fabric‘Maggie May digitally printed on Poppy organic cotton sateen fabric’

I then went on a hunt for the perfect dress pattern to match the vibes of the design. I came across DIY Daisy on Instagram and scrolled through her website and discovered her ‘Gathered Rectangle Dress’ tutorial.

I don’t tend to use patterns as I love to make up custom pieces that are perfected to my body shape, or just using clothes that I currently own and loved the shape and fit of to base my new garment on. For this project though, I wanted to find a pattern to work with so that none of this gorgeous custom fabric went to waste. 

I love the shape and fit of Daisy’s dress, and how easy it was to put together! I ended up making a mini dress version to create a more ‘party dress’ vibe though. I ended up ordering 2 metres of Madeline’s print, but only need about 1 metre of fabric to create the dress (I’m a size 8/10 or S/M for reference)

digital fabrics_poppy fabric_designer fabric_ella party dress_2 digital fabrics_poppy fabric_designer fabric_ella party dress_5 digital fabrics_poppy fabric_designer fabric_ella party dress_4

Since I had another metre spare and a few off-cuts, I also used Daisy’s ‘Trapezoid Skirt’ tutorial to create another wonderful piece with the ‘Maggie May’ print and also a little bandana for my cat Luna (which she sadly did not want to wear for photos) !

digital fabrics_poppy fabric_designer fabric_ella long skirt_2 digital fabrics_poppy fabric_designer fabric_ella long skirt_3 digital fabrics_poppy fabric_designer fabric_ella long skirt digital fabrics_poppy fabric_designer fabric_ella party dress_luna

‘Ella and her cat Luna’

Poppy was such a great fabric to work it, it was smooth and easy to sew and to gather as well! The print also turned out so beautifully on the fabric and the sateen sheen paired perfectly with the style of the design. It also happens to wash super well, even after a few washes it still looks lovely and bright! 

digital fabrics_poppy fabric_designer fabric_sewing‘Poppy fabric being sewn’

digital fabrics_poppy fabric_designer fabric_washed‘Poppy fabric washed and unwashed’

The dress feels so special to me, knowing I’ve helped support one of our Australian Designers.  

Working at Digital Fabrics, I see so many wonderful prints come through our studio doors and am always wondering what amazing projects people are working on and what the fabric will be turned into. It’s always a pleasure working on my own projects using custom fabrics from my place of work. I feel very lucky being able to see the behind the scenes of it all as well as being able to create the finished piece. 

 

 – Ella x

 

Ideas for your leftover Fabric Scraps

Whether you have been making your own garments for years, or are just starting out, there is nothing better than sitting back and admiring your finished works. Our brains get a kick out of engaging our artistic side, and getting creative helps release those feel-good endorphins. But, with any work of art there is always the clean-up part which can be a bit of a drag. And, if you’re anything like us you are probably wondering what you can re-use as opposed to throwing your custom fabrics straight into the bin. As proud supporters of the slow-fashion movement, we are big fans of limiting our carbon footprint in any way possible and fabric wastage is no different.

So instead of putting those fabric scraps into the bin, here is how you can re-use your fabrics to not only make some funky new creations, but also do your part to help break the wastage cycle.

Mesh Beach Bag

Summer is here and that means plenty of beach days, and this creation from Sew Simple Home  not only looks great but also keeps that pesky sand where it belongs. All you need is your spare fabrics, some matching thread and mesh fabric which you can buy online or at stores like Spotlight. The mesh allows you to store your items and simultaneously acts as a sift for any sand or dirt.

Scrap Busting Shorts

We hate to harp on but summer really is the DIY designer’s dream when it comes to quick and easy clothing and accessories. These shorts are a great project made by our friend & creator, Carly B using her leftover Digital Fabric Scraps (scroll to the bottom to read how)! and are perfect company with the mesh beach bag to go over any bikini bottom or one-piece.

HalfSoyBean has a terrific YouTube channel and with some matching thread you will be on your way to busting out some brand new, sustainably-made bottoms for those warmer months.

Scrap Key-Fobs

Keys – we all have them and we all easily lose them. How many minutes have you wasted trying to find the house keys, that letterbox key or your spare car key? Those days are long gone with Lo and Behold Stitchery’s scrap key-fob.

You can wave goodbye to tacky key rings or uninspiring lanyards and those smaller fabric scraps with some basic sewing supplies, clips and a basic key ring.  Be careful though, you may start getting requests from loved ones for one of their own, or better yet, they make a perfect present for that special someone who needs their keys permanently hung around their necks.

Homemade Heat Packs

Hoosier HomeMade are on the money with their homemade heat pack.

The beauty of this project is they have multiple uses outside of keeping warm in the colder months – where it be for nursing injuries, treating blocked pores or those time-of-the-month cramps. All you need for this little gem is your spare fabrics, matching thread and some long-grain rice and in no time you will have a funky little gift idea for the upcoming festive season.

And there you have it! Four quick and easy projects that utilise your spare fabrics, just in time for Christmas. Happy creating.

 

Party in patchwork style this festive season!

We’ve adored Carly B from the first time we landed on her Instagram, and to our delight she has made her signature patchwork dress entirely of Digital Fabrics Designer prints! With party season fast approaching, creating a staple summer piece has been on Carly’s mind, and she’s created this stunning pastel dress, perfect for twirling in. As if we could love her anymore, for bonus points, she took the leftover fabric scraps and made a pair of shorts too! Truly a kindred spirit of the DF way. Come along and sew your party dress with Carly, here is her amazing DIY dress tutorial!

With party season fast approaching, creating a staple summer piece has been on my mind! To my delight, Digital Fabrics reached out to help make my dream dress a reality & let me reassure you, the process from start to finish was simply divine. 

I started with the most difficult task. Choosing my fabrics! I decided to browse through the unique range of Australian designer/artist designed prints, looking for five (or so) prints that would tell a summer story (Click Fabric Shop, Designer Fabrics for this storefront). I immediately fell in love with a print by Sue Michael called ‘The Shack’. My family have visited a rundown, wholesome beach shack on the Gold Coast for most of my childhood, and this heartwarming art reminded me of my childhood filled with sandy days, pink zinc on my nose & sweet summer days spent in the ocean. Basing my design around this print, I then selected 4 other prints that felt complimentary and ordered! 

I got 5m of Cotton Poplin in total, which was 1m of each print to make my patchwork style dress. Please know that you have the option of ordering samples of fabrics to see what the fabric is like before you place your order, if that’s something you like! You can also get your own designs printed on their fabric (in a huge variety of fabric kinds too), so if you’re artistically inclined & want to order your very own fabric – you can! 

As everything is printed in Sydney, Australia they arrived at my doorstep in Brisbane/Meanjin quickly. The quality of the fabric was delightful to see (the Cotton Poplin is reminds me of the cleanest, crunchiest hotel sheets) and it was so cool to see all 5 of my designs printed on one single 5m length of fabric. Love seeing that low waste production! I hand washed each print separately, letting them dry on the line & giving them a good press. 

What I used 

– 5m of cotton poplin from Digital Fabrics 

1M JOAN MEADOW ( designer MADELINE HAWKIN) 

1M DILLY DAISY 

1M BEACH SHACK GREEN FIELDS ( designer SUE MICHAEL) 

1M MRAMOR ICE 

1M MY HEARTS GARDEN ( designer SUSANNA APRIL) 

– matching thread 

– elastic for arms 

– self drafted pattern ( you can find similar patterns on Etsy 1. 2. 3. ) 

Make time: 5 hours (ish) 

Level: Beginner 

Let’s make it! 

To begin I played with fabric placement until I was happy & then cut out a front and back bodice piece as well as front and back facings. At patchwork seams I overlocked them together & then sewed a straight stitch beside it to secure. (If you don’t have an overlocker you can use a zig zag stitch to finish edges, no problems.) You could topstitch this seam down too if you’re feeling fancy! 

I then cut out two straps, testing them on myself to see what length they needed to be. You could definitely do bow straps if you’re wanting a sleeveless dress. 

To attach the straps, I sandwiched them between the facing & bodice pieces. This part is a little tricky as you need to sandwich the straps at the front and back of the bodice – it will create a burrito like shape. Then I sewed all along the top of the bodice, securing everything. Turn right side out & give it a good press. Optional topstitch along the neckline if desired. 

Next, I added puff sleeves! I made each sleeve different, with one sleeve featuring two different fabrics spliced together for that patchwork effect. 

I cut two sleeves and sewed the side seam with fabric right sides together. 

After pressing that seam, I turned up the bottom edge 1.5cm and sewed, and then turned it up again but this time leaving space for elastic to go through. (Leave a gap for that elastic to be threaded through as well! We’ll close it up later.) 

I then sewed two parallel lines in my longest stitch along the top of the sleeve & gathered it so it fit perfectly in my garment. I pinned the sleeve right sides together and stitched between the two stitches but this time in my regular stitch length. I overlocked this edge, removed my basting (or gathering) stitches and voila! 

This is when I like to add the elastic which I just using a safety pin & threading it through. After the little opening is closed up the sleeve is DONE! YIPEE!! Revel in your sweet puff sleeves friend! 

Side note: I later decided I wanted little ties threaded through the elastic channel of each sleeve. I cut thin strips of scrap fabric, folded in edges & then folded in half (like bias tape) and sewed them closed. I snipped tiny openings on the right side of the sleeve & threaded them through. There’s probably a better way to do this but that’s just how I did it. 

Skirt time!! I am a sucker for a very gathered skirt, so I went a little overboard with the gathers in this one. I wanted a two-tier skirt with pockets and lots of volume, and boy is that what I got. 

Basically, the process for the first tier and second tier were exactly the same, except the first tier has pockets, & the second tier has a hem & needs more fabric than the first. 

For the first tier I cut strips of fabric from all of the different prints out to create two 170cm long panels that were 26cm wide. I also cut out 4 pockets. 

I sewed and overlocked all of the patchwork pieces together so I had these 

long strips. Then, I attached my pocket pieces (with edges overlocked) right sides together on my panels about 1.5 inches down. I overlocked the pockets on and pressed the seams towards the pockets and also did a lovely little topstitch to keep that looking flush and tidy. Then I attached the two skirt pieces together with right sides facing to make one big loops with pockets. 

Woohoo! 

To gather the skirt I sewed two parallel lines in the longest stitch length (sound familiar? hehe!) along the top edge of the skirt & pulled those stitches very gently until the skirt became the length of the bodice. I then pinned the skirt to the bodice, sewed it on, overlocked and removed the visible basting stitch. 

The 2nd tier is almost an identical process except it just requires a lot more fabric. I proceeded to cut out many more strips of fabric (this time at a longer width of about 32cm) and attach them all together to make a long strip. I didn’t measure this tier but it should be the top tier length x 1.5 at the very least. I estimate mine was about double the length. I sewed the gathering stitches again, gathered it up with upmost patience, pinned it to the 1st tier and sewed it on! I had to do the pinning a few times to ensure the pattern placement was as ideal as possible, as sometimes the fabrics would all end up matching & I really wanted there to be a difference between each section of the dress. 

After a little playing I finally got the right balance however. The final step them was hemming it which I wizzed through & gave it a good press for a sweet crisp edge. And then she was done in all of her twirly, full skirt glory!! 

From an array of divine fabrics to a sweet patchwork summertime party dress. 

All in all, I adored bringing this piece to life. It was so inspiring to work with prints designed by such excellent artists & it felt like an honour to piece them together. The quality of the fabric and printing kept astounding me & I know I will be treasuring this piece for summers to come. From the swirls of the ocean, to the happy flowers that remind me of the sun & pink zinc & of course the centre piece of the dress which was The Shack print, I truly feel transported back to my favourite holiday destination – the beach. 

Bonus Scrap Busting Shorts! 

At the end of this project, I was blessed with a small treasure trove of delightful scraps & I knew I had to push myself to make them into something! I had to, not only because I love working with scraps, but because Digital Fabrics are no wastage and employ sustainable production methods themselves! Had to match that energy. 

Digital Fabrics are print-to-order which means that every fabric that they print is used. They print ethically using non-toxic water-based inks & they boast of efficiency, quality & consistency with their product – which I have seen with my own eyes! 

So, feeling inspired, I had to get to work on reducing my fabric waste with a scrappy pair of high waisted play shorts! 

A great point of inspiration and reference for these shorts can be found at HalfSoyBean’s youtube channel! which I will link below! 

I was able to make enough patchwork fabric from my Digital Fabrics scraps & was able to reduce my own fabric waste to a small pile of white selvage & some very small pieces. A huge success! 

Thank you so much to Digital Fabrics for supplying this gorgeous, Australian designed & printed fabric. If you sewed along, please feel free to tag us @digitfalfabrics & @fromcarlyb & share your creations with us! 

 

A Merry Sustainable Christmas

On of our passion here at Digital Fabrics is sustainability and making it accessible in the fabrics industry. And it’s Christmas, so in the spirit of giving we love to share some clever ways to spread sustainability in a festive way.  

Christmas Wrapping with Fabric (Furoshiki)

furoshiki wrap ideas christmas presents wraped in fabric

Image via Pintrest

In Australia alone we use more than 150,000km of wrapping paper over Christmas. That’s enough paper to wrap the planet nearly four times, which is far too much only to be discarded immediately after opening gifts! We’ve been adoring the art of Furoshiki that has been practiced in Japan for 1200 years with its distinctive style of fabric-wrapping. Furoshiki is a beautiful way to display thoughtfulness, as well as being eco-friendly. Here’s a great guide on Furoshiki wrapping. Or you might like to follow our DIY Beeswax Wrap tutorial, which is perfect for wrapping smaller presents. The terrific part about this is that the wrap can then be used to cover leftover food after Christmas lunch!

Homemade bon-bons

diy christmas bon bon idea

Image Jasmine Dowling for Etsy 2017

We love this stellar example of getting creative in a sustainable way. Christmas bon-bons are a staple at every festive lunch or dinner table. Often inside store-bought bon-bons are useless plastic toys that serve no real purpose further than a quick laugh and just create more waste each year. Jasmine Dowling crafted these adorable bon bon’s on her blog, which would work perfectly using our tea towels, doubling as a Christmas gift for everyone at the table! Alternatively, ordering 1-2m of your favourite festive fabric (hooray for small order quantities!) and carefully cut and hem to fit. Inside the paper roll you could include some essential oil rollers, home-made mini cookies or handwritten jokes to keep up with tradition. Much more thoughtful and memorable than mini dice or a nail file from typical bon-bons.

 

Festive Placemats with Digital Fabrics tea towels

Really elevate your Christmas table aesthetic by using our designer fabric tea towels as placemats, full of Christmas spirit and more ethical than your typical rubber placemats only to be brought out once per year. We love imagining how a classic Aussie coastal inspired Christmas table would come together with Cass Deller’s Summer Christmas fabric, paired with pretty pastel table decorations.  You can find more Christmas fabric designs from Australian designers that suits your taste in our online Fabric Shop!

Or you can always go one better, ordering approximately 2.5 metres of fabric (for the average 6 seater dining table) and you’ve got a stunning tablecloth that will last for years to come. We recommend Cotton Linen fabric for the perfect billowy-ness, beautiful colour reproduction and is easy enough care.

It’s easy to feel the festive spirit this time of year and want to give extra for those you cherish. But we prompt you to consider how to translate giving ‘more’ into more thoughtfulness; for our environment, for our impact and creating lasting memories with loved ones.

Please share with us your Christmas creations on Instagram by tagging @digitalfabrics, we’d love to see them!

‘Take Delight’ Textile Collection by Nicole Spencer

It’s come that time again to introduce our newest featured artist of The Designer Project for the month of November! Introducing the lovely and amazing Nicole Spencer from Ebb & Flow Design. 

Ebb & Flow creates designs that are full of florals and nature, with colour palettes drawn from the beautiful outdoors. Nicole loves to create designs that flow across the page and as you can see, she kinda has a thing for flowers!

Each of Nicole’s beautiful designs can be printed onto any of our fabrics. Keep reading to find out more about Nicole Spencer and her ‘Take Delight’ Collection! 

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Fresh Pickings is a combination of both paintings and elements of things picked from the garden. We love how it dances across the page and is a sweet reminder that seasons change and beautiful things await us. The blue tones of this design work so well with the floral motifs. 

Fresh Pickings could work for a variety of fashion and home projects, perhaps some lovely pillowcases and napkins? Or maybe a new beach kaftan! 

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Sunny Days is full of wonderful summer florals, with a few hand painted elements. Inspired by summer days, fresh sunflower blooms, and the warm sunshine, it’s a fun print for the warmer days ahead.  

We think Sunny Days would be such a fantastic print for homewares such as picnic rugs or tea towels, perhaps even some sweet, summer pants! 

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Hidden Beauty, a gorgeous print that features hand painted elements. With the florals peeking out from the foliage in this design, it reminds you not to miss the little moments of beauty hidden in the unexpected moments. 

Hidden Beauty would be perfect for kids clothing such as dresses and pants or even a lovely matching pants and top for you! 

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Swept Away showcases soft pink leaves and petals, scattered across the design. Think the wind carrying all the freshly fallen leaves across the ground, reminding you that as one season ends, a new one begins. 

Swept Away is such a versatile print! We think it would be amazing for homeware projects such as cushions, tea towels and throw blankets! 

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Sunshine Swirls, a sweet and simple print. It incorporates painted elements, scanned in florals as well as different textures. Full of warm, sunny colours to make you think of twirling around the yard, with a picked flower in hand. 

We this Sunshine Swirls is such a wonderful design for fashion garments such as long flowing skirts and dresses. 

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Pick a Posy is a lovely design that incorporates small painted elements. It’s a sweet reminder of little posies, gathered rustically but little hands, small gestures of big love – joy in its simplest form. 

Pick a Posy would be the perfect print for summer dresses for yourself and the kids, or even a sweet little baby swaddle! 

 

All of our project ideas above are suggestions only as the sky’s truly the limit with Nicole’s sweet floral collection! Each of Nicole’s designs can be found in our Fabric Shop, so head on over to be inspired for your next DIY project! 

Production Cut-off dates 2022

Time is quickly rolling towards the end of 2022 and our annual break. Digital Fabrics will be closing on Tuesday 20th December 2022 and opening up again Monday 16th January 2023. Please take note of the following order cut-off dates to ensure you don’t miss out on any orders you want to squeeze into the year.

Please note that “Print & Make” orders refer to custom products which require digital printing and then our custom making and finishing services, such as tea towels, cushion covers and scarves. We are almost booked out for our “Print & Make” orders for 2022 so please get in touch with us sooner rather than later if you are needing products by Christmas!

CUT OFF DATES FOR ORDERS REQUIRING DELIVERY BEFORE CHRISTMAS
– Friday 25th November – Cut-off date for ‘Print & Make orders + delivery’ (depending on quantity)
– Monday 2nd December – Cut-off date for ‘Printing only orders + delivery’

CUT OFF DATES FOR ORDERS BEING PICKED UP
– Friday 5th December – Cut-off date for ‘Print & Make orders pick-up’ (depending on quantity)
– Monday 12th December – Cut-off date for ‘Printing only orders pick-up’
– Tuesday 14th December – Cut-off date for ‘Express Printing only orders pick-up’

– Orders for delivery, submitted after 14th December are more likely to be printed and dispatched in the New Year unless it’s an express order
– Any sample pack orders submitted after 19th December will be dispatched in New Year after January the 16th
– From 7th of December all orders will be dispatched via Express Post

Christmas in the Hamptons by Lulu Pawlik

“Christmas at the Hamptons” design by Brianna Pawlik

 

Fabric Projects the Kids Will Love

The Australian spring hasn’t quite begun the way we are used to. The sunny beach trips have turned into rainy weather days at home, meaning it becomes all that more difficult to keep the kids entertained. With a gloomy couple of months ahead, we understand the need to reduce screen time and find some indoor activities to keep the young ones busy. So, get ready to swap their iPads for some creativity as we have put together a list of really easy and simple fabric craft projects for kids to keep those rainy-day blues away!

Reusable Sandwich Bags | by A Beautiful Mess

The average Australian household uses 170 zip-lock sandwich bags per year, so this project will not only bring a little flare to school lunches, but will also save you money and bring down your carbon footprint. These reusable lunch bags can be brought to life with some cotton fabric, some thread and velcro, making it an easy project to occupy an afternoon. With the money you will save from buying plastic zip-locks, you can further customise these bags with our designer fabric shop that will no doubt become a household hit. How about these cute fruity fabrics?

Reusable lunch bags. Image: A Beautiful Mess

No-Sew Capes | by Little Pink Monsters

Halloween is just around the corner so why not get ready for some trick-or-treating with this easy project that is totally needle free. All you need is 1.5 metres of fabric, 90cm of ribbon and a pair of scissors and you’re on your way to the unveiling of the next Superman or Wonder Woman. And, let’s be honest, Halloween is fun for adults too, so don’t be surprised if you need some longer fabric! Shop our Halloween inspired fabrics here.

DIY Little Red Riding Hood. Image: Little Pink Monsters

Trick or Treat Black - Kathrin Legg

Trick or Treat Black Halloween fabric – Kathrin Legg

Making Memories

With Christmas around the corner, we know you’re always looking for ways to create memorable gifts that friends and family will cherish. We may be biased here but our custom product printing service is ideal for this time of year! Give the kids some colouring pens and task them with drawing the whole family, even down to the houses they live in, or drawing them with their favourite things and pets. Scan them into your computer then jump onto Digital Fabrics and choose some fabulous homeware items or gifts to print these designs onto. It could be our cushions, tea towels (a favourite for gifting!) scarf, pillow case or tote bag. Or order our Creatives Starter Pack with a little bit of everything! Our team will gladly help bring these designs to life.

Now, if the kids are no modern-day Picasso, there’s another thoughtful option to create memorable gifts. You can send us an image of your favourite holiday moment, family or pet portrait and we’ll print them onto a product option of your choice! Leave it with us and we will turn these masterpieces into a special gift to be adored for years to come. We’re in for a rainy summer ahead, so keeping some of these ideas in your pocket to help the kids unleash their creativity will sure come in handy! We can’t wait to see what they’ll create!

 

Lilli of Frocks and Frou Frou – Make an Impressionist

For the launch of our new organic cotton fabric Poppy we asked Lilli of Frocks and Frou Frou to test it for us. Lilli is a creator and a maker and we were so excited to collaborate with her. We sent her the Hearts Garden design print by Susanna April on Poppy sateen fabric to create a dress that her readers would love, and to share with you also! As Lilli said: The Poppy is light enough to billow when it catches the wind, but with a weight of 140gsm, it’s perfect for use in items that need just a little structure! Interested to know more about Lilli’s creation? Keep reading Lilli’s blog post! 
green organic cotton designer fabric-1950’s party-dress

Dress pattern: Cashmerette Honeybourne, made from cotton sateen fabric Poppy printed by Digital Fabrics (print design by Susanna April)

I am not, let’s just say, an accomplished sewist. I can sew a straight(ish) seam, and I’ve more or less learned how to read the instructions of a sewing pattern. I know the difference between a French seam and a felled one. But apart from moving a hem up or down I don’t really know how to do alterations. About this time last year I bought myself a copy of Jenny Rushmore’s book Ahead of the Curve, thinking that it was probably time to teach myself how to do a full bust adjustment at the very least.

Reader, the book sat on my shelf. Then it sat on my shelf a little more. And then the team at Digital Fabrics got in contact to see if I’d like to road-test their brand-new cotton sateen, and I thought ‘Ooooh, I’ll need to make something really special with that!” and decided maybe it was time to try my very first Cashmerette pattern.

Based in Sydney, Digital Fabrics is a digital textile print house that prides itself on its quality, quick turnaround, and ease of design services. All their inks are non-toxic and water based, and they have a huge range of fabrics on offer including cotton, rayon, linen, ponti, lycra, canvas and more. They also offer on-demand cut-and-make product services for people who might not sew, but would like to take advantage of the ability to print their own artwork onto cushions, teatowels, curtains, totebags, etc.

On the website they have straightforward tutorials on how to create your own seamless fabric repeats, and if you’re feeling Very Serious about this textile design thing, you can actually take a one-on-one online class that will guide you through the process. Or you can do what I did, and simply choose an existing print from Digital Fabrics’ gallery of artists.

The print that I chose leapt out to me from the screen with its gorgeous painterly hues of blues and greens and hints of pinks. It reminded me immediately of Claude Monet’s Water Lillies series. Perhaps aptly, it’s called My Heart’s Garden, and it’s by Brisbane based artist, Susanna April.

Digital Fabrics sent me My Hearts Garden printed on their beautiful new Poppy sateen, a 100% cotton fabric with a slight sheen, and a soft hand-feel. It’s light enough to billow when it catches the wind, but with a weight of 140gsm, it’s perfect for use in items that need just a little structure. Which is to say: it was perfect for Cashmerette’s Honeybourne.

The Honeybourne is available exclusively with Ahead of the Curve, and it’s a woven dress pattern with a darted front, sleeves, and a full skirt. It’s the pattern where Jenny teaches you a brand range of alteration techniques, including full and small bust adjustments, a narrow shoulder adjustment, a full bicep adjustment, a swayback adjustment, and broad back adjustment. It comes in sizes 12-32 and in three cup ranges: C/D, E/F, G/H. I made the 18 E/F, and full disclosure – for all my hyping myself up to learn how to do adjustments, it fit perfectly (as far as I can tell) straight out of the packet.

With the full gathered skirt, fitted bodice, and half-length sleeves, it’s got a real 1950’s party-dress vibe to it. There’s an enormous amount of yardage in that skirt – it’s actually six panelled, though the abstract print disguises that well – and it’s actually the perfect length for me to wear over my tulle skirt when I really want to fancy it up.

I love the pattern, and I LOVE the fabric; which at just $44 per metre (limited time only) is virtually the same price you’ll pay for fabric from one of the big European design houses. I’m keen to try my hand at designing my own print next time (or enlisting some three-year-old help!)

Have you felt inspired reading Lilli’s blog post? Are you ready to dive into your own creative project? If so, don’t forget to visit out fabric shop online to view an enviable range print-to-order designer prints!