Book Review (& Press!): Mastering the Art of Fabric Printing and Design

The highly anticipated book by fabric designer Laurie Wisbrun 'Mastering the Art of Fabric Printing and Design' is Laurie's first book and is an inspirational and practical guide that walks readers through the entire fabric design and printing process. Laurie finds the offbeat beauty in everyday objects and patterns, and translates them into unique surface and textile designs. Be sure to head over to her website to check out her fun & bold work!

This book is currently available in the UK and will be arriving in the US in February! I happily received my copy, read through it immediately, and decided I MUST share the contents with you.

This book not only contains techniques, tutorials and inspiration, but it also contains interviews of some fabulous designers out in the field now, which are very fun to read, and sprinkled throughout the book. And I must let you know that I am thankful to have been included in the designer interviews for this book! {Thanks Laurie!!} I had a great time answering her awesome questions and am super excited to be included in Chapter 2 'Sourcing Inspiration'.

To start things off, I must say that this book is very relevant to the now. It seems like every corner I turn I come across someone who has questions about creating a fabric collection, how to put artwork into repeat, or how to make a profession out of being a surface designer. This book is a great resource geared toward the beginning and budding designer, to assist in guiding you through the exciting field of fabric design and production.

Here's the chapter breakdowns for you:

CHAPTER 1: Designing for Fabric
Walks you through the different types of 'motifs' (such as florals, geometrics and ethnic designs), types of repeats, and working with color.

CHAPTER 2: Sourcing Inspiration
From researching trends, to keeping inspiration journals and creating mood boards, this chapter will guide you though ways to keep yourself inspired.

CHAPTER 3: Designing Patterns
Contains tutorials on how to build 3 different types of repeats in Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop CS4, how to create a digital color palette, and how to create repeats by hand.

CHAPTER 4: Understanding Fabric, Inks and Dyes
Reviews different fabric treatments, textile dyes/inks/paints and resist dyeing.

CHAPTER 5: Hand Printing
Walks you through block printing basics and how to create repeats using block printing. Also includes stencil printing & the screenprinting process.

CHAPTER 6: Digital Printing
Working with a digital printing service, including adjusting color and touching up images.

CHAPTER 7: Going Professional
Chocked-full of designer interviews, and includes lists of examples of courses of study from universities that will put you on the road to this industry, as well as a list of full-time career options. Another highlight is how to approach fabric manufacturers and how to develop collections for licensees to developing a marketing plan and tidbits on trade shows. 

I would highly recommend this book for beginning designers as it is a fabulous resource tool full of important information that will help you on your way to learning more about fabric designing! Be sure to get your hands on a copy!