My New Fabric Line: Hope Chest

 {My mood board for my Hope Chest fabric collection. All images from various magazines.}

Happy Friday everyone!
Well, I have a little news for you...I am really excited to say that I am now a part of the Blend Fabrics team of designers! My new fabric collection, Hope Chest {see the artwork image in the top corner for a sneak peak!} will be debuting at Quilt Market in May. And to top it all off, I'll be attending Quilt Market for the first time on Friday, May 18th! I thought I'd give you a little sneak peek into my fabric collection with images from my mood board, which I create to help keep me on track with my over all theme when designing.

Blend is the new licensing division of Anna Griffin, Inc. I've been a long time admirer Anna Griffin's work for as long as I can remember..years!...back in the days when I was designing wedding invitations on the side and dreaming I would do that for a living......{well, until I met a bride-zilla and realized I liked creating beauty but not dealing with the beast! But that's another story!}

I've always loved Anna's take on product. Her designs are timeless and beautiful and have always been pushing the envelope and paving new paths. I'm just so overjoyed to be a part of such a company and to be a part of such a wonderful team of people. So going forward, my fabric collections with be with Blend Fabrics. Exciting!!

Also, I'm SO excited to attend and experience Quilt Market! I've always wanted to attend, so I'm really excited for the chance to go and be surrounded by pattern, fabric and people. Please do stop by the Blend Fabrics booth to say 'hello' on Friday, May 18th. I'd LOVE to meet you!

Happy Valentines Day!

 {Some valentines I made using from L2R: Rose Wallpaper, Have A Sweet Day, Space Needle with Heart Burst on the Side, Sending Love From Seattle, Typewriter with Love Letter words on the Side}

I've been dying to use my new Valentine stamps, to make some cute cards, and send some love to friends! Thankfully, a good friend of mine was in need of making a few cards herself - which was the perfect excuse to set some time aside and create away! AND the perfect excuse to make a trip to Impress to pick up some new and fun ink colors, papers and ribbons! She came over and we spent a few hours creating away - complete with screams and clapping when we created something we just couldn't STAND the cuteness of. LOVE friends like that! We easily could have spent a full day creating! I made about 20 cards, but kept it do 4 different designs. I had tons of more ideas but not the time to execute them = bummer! These puppies are in the mailbox today and making their way to some friends' homes and hearts.

{A handful of my new Valentine stamps}

You can find all of my new stamps on the Impress website, and loads of card ideas on their Facebook page too. I just love how involved their community is! I think the best part for me is seeing what people makes using my stamps. SUCH a treat!

Even though it's a little early - Happy Valentines Day!! Sending you love from Seattle!

Book Review (& Press!) - A Field Guide to Fabric Design

I just received my copy of 'A Field Guide to Fabric Design' by Kimberly Kight of the fabulous fabric blog True Up, in the mail yesterday, and let me just say it - I LOVE it! Kim did such an amazing job with this book and if you are someone interested in creating your own fabric collection, learning from current fabric designers or wanting to learn how to put your artwork into repeat, either by hand or in the computer - this is the book for you. She also included Designer Roundtables where she holds Q and A with a variety of fabric designers, which I am so excited to be a part of.

I'm super-sure you've heard of Kim and her True Up blog - but to let you know a little bit about Kim, she started her blog in 2008 because of her obsession with fabric, and over that time has used that passion to teach herself fabric design, and now teaches on the subject where she lives in Austin, Texas.

A Field Guide to Fabric Design walks you through how to design, print and sell your own fabric and covers both traditional and digital techniques. I love that she teaches one of my favorite Illustrator tools, the 'Recolor Artwork' tool which allows you to create colorways easily of your designs. As well as the Photoshop 'Offset Filter' which helps you create seamless repeats.

The book is broken down into three sections with multiple chapters within each section, which are:

Section One: Design and Color
Fabric Design Fundamentals
Step-by-Step Design - Covers creating repeats by hand and by computer
Know Your Color - Creating color palettes and colorways
Colorways and Collections - Creating collections of patterns for the fabric industry and balancing color throughout

Section Two: Printing
Know Your Surface: Fabric Basics
Step-by-Step Hand Printing
Digital Printing

Section Three: The World of Fabric Design
Designing for Fun and Profit

There's also a wide variety of page previews of the insides of this book on Amazon, if you'd like to see more. Overall, if you haven't added this book to your library, I would highly recommend it! Kim did such a great and thorough job at including everything you need to know about being a designer in the industry and taking a shot at it yourself. (And by the way - this book is ranked #2 on Amazon's Textile and Costumes Bestseller List - for good reason! Way to go Kim!)

Spring 2012 - D&G

 {Images from Style.com}

The next Spring 2012 runway show that I absolutely love is the print saturated D&G collection. To me, what's better than one print? Two! Three!...FIVE! The more the merrier in my book. These designs are just stunning and full of colorful scarf prints which contain a mixture of medallions, butterflies, polka dots, crests, flowers...you name it - throw it into the pot! All in vibrant, gorgeous color. Yum!

 

I would happily take one of those maxi dresses and add it to my closet. And check out the scarf wrapped shoes! Too bad snow is in the forecast for Seattle, cause this show makes me ready for Spring!

Spring 2012 - Burberry Prossum

 {All images from Style.comhttp://www.style.com/}

The Spring 2012 runways have come and gone, many months ago in which time I spent days scouring through them and saving off image after image of gorgeousness! I usually like to share the beauty with you closer to the season, so it stays fresher in our minds.

First up, Burberry Prorsum. Their show wasn't packed full of print, but the color was just awe-some! I love the deep, rich, Africa inspired colors and the rich, artisan & handcrafted feel to the collection! It's exciting to see color coming back in a BIG way! Aren't these colors DE-lish?!!

Reflection on 2011

 {Image via}

As 2011 comes to an end, and I'm working away on my calendar and deadlines for 2012, I'm finding myself reflecting on what has happened this past year. I absolutely love the optimism of what a New Year brings - the aspirations and intentions and the new slate for new beginnings.

I don't usually do this - reflect on the past year. I'm usually planning the future, not living in the current or the past (um, let me put down my 2012 calendar...). But after many conversations with friends, and going through a huge transition this year in my life, I thought it would be a good exercise for me & my heart and allow myself to reflect.

I thought I'd share with you my 2011 year in recap. Things that pushed me, inspired me and happened in my life.
* I became an aunt! My only brother had 2 twin boys, and they are just cute, balls of joy
* Worked with fellow Textile Designers on a print trend presentation and gave presentations to the company (previous day job)
* I read countless books on managing people & becoming a good leader, just in case my day job turned that way
* I actually ended up becoming a manager
* Within my day job, I developed a company-wide process for working with our new Print Studio, and rolled it out to a room full of leaders
* Met some wonderful women at work with whom I deeply connected with and had transparent & supportive conversations. All of whom had just the right thing to say at the right time.
* Helped a handful more of people figure out their personality profile
* Attended a wonderful friend's wedding and got to catch up with more wonderful friends
* After 12 years of dreaming of working for myself I decided to leave the corporate world and chase my dream
* I signed-up for and prepared for my Surtex booth in 2 months
* I had my first booth at Surtex 2011 in NYC
* Met lots of companies at Surtex and left with exciting opportunities
* My husband Jake and I shared our 10 year wedding anniversary!
* We vacationed at the Grand Canyon and went on to explore Zion National Park. Soaked up the sun, drove many miles, took lots of pics, and spent the last day watching HGTV in the hotel and having pizza delivered (hey, we don't have cable, so it was a TREAT!!)
* Got food poisoning from our 10 year anniversary dinner - lovely
* Signed a few contracts with companies - {psst - fun, new stuff coming next year!}
* Struggled with guilt feelings of absolutely loving what I do
* Allowed myself to be OK with it, to enjoy it, soak it up & run with it
* {Repeat the above 2...quite a few times}
* Went hiking a few times with Jake, after many years of putting it off because I 'didn't have anything to wear'
* Actually spent money on hiking shoes not heels
* Speaking of which - actually added T-shirts to my wardrobe - yes, seriously ; )
* Struggled with 'why am I not going to the gym 4 days a week if I have the time and theoretically want to?' Then realized I'm human.
* Since then, I've lowered my expectations & now find enjoyment in doing said task instead of obligation
* Did the 'Couch to 5K' running plan & started Pilates
* Filmed my first TV spot (details next year!), which is a huge accomplishment of fears for me, as I'm pretty shy
* My family lost my 32 year old cousin to cancer - melanoma - leaving behind 2 twin girls. (Please make sure you go to your dermatologist at least once a year. Especially if you love the sun.)
* Was overwhelmed by the love, tears & memories shared at her memorial
* Thankful for her in many ways, one of which is if it wasn't for her, I wouldn't have met the love of my life
* Beat my child-holding record by helping my brother out with family Christmas photo's
* Was able to keep said children from crying! Ya-hoo!!
* Spent fun times catching up with a distant friend
* Met with multiple friends during the day while everyone else was at work (I work crazy flex hours)
* Enjoyed every minute of it
* After 10 years in the fashion industry (extremely fast paced, high expectations & productivity), I have finally started to learn the meaning of work/life balance

What a year! I'm assuming I'm writing the above to myself, as it's pretty long and non-monumental to someone not living my life. I thought I'd post it so I could reflect back on it...and also to let you know a little bit more about me as well.

I gave up a long time ago on setting New Years resolutions, but I do like to aspire and set-out to be more intentional in my life. Sometimes I'll be great for a few months at something, then it'll fall by the wayside, only for me to get back on the bandwagon later on. I'm working on accepting this : ) I find the more I force myself to stick to a regiment with high expectations (even though I LOVE structure!), the more the happiness gets sucked out of me. Enter - realization that I'm human, not perfect and that life is a constant cycle & roller-coaster of wonderment and bummer-ness.

Enter 2012. I'm excited. I'm ready. I'm optimistic. I hope you are too. Whichever way you embrace a new year, I hope 2012 brings you much joy & awesomeness.

I Heart: Wallpaper

  
{Anthropologie: Enchanted Forest by Rebecca Rebouche}

Check out my bold wallpaper round-up and guest post I did for my wonderful, sweet & super-talented friend Tobe over at the blog Because It's Awesome (she's also part of the fabulous I Am Project, which I posted about here). I'm sure you will get lost for hours looking through her blog pages of awesomeness!

 (And Tobe? Thanks so much for the intro - you made me blush sweet friend. Xoxo)

My 2012 Desk Calendar & Etsy Shop

Whew! OK. After years and years of wanting to make my own desk calendar I FINALLY did it! On top of that, I made a few extra's and opened up an Etsy shop to sell some as well. My little Etsy shop only has this one item in it right now - and I hope to add more products in the future.

My 2012 Desk Calendar is full of bright colors and features some of my most popular designs - maybe you'll recognize some of them from fabrics? It comes in a clear CD case that doubles as a stand and is gift wrapped just for you or to give as a gift. There are 14 pages total - one page for each month and a front and back cover.

Here are all of the month designs at a glance, January to December from left to right... 

 Hope your holiday shopping & gift making is going great!

Cozy Christmas Wreath Project

Between working on Christmas projects, designing my holiday cards & creating a 2012 desk calendar on top of everyday work, things have been a bit busy around here and my blog has been a little neglected. Oopsy! I thought I'd hop on here and go ahead and share with you my Cozy Christmas Wreath project I just finished up. SO fun!!

I helped make some of these for friends and just HAD to rush home and make one for myself! In my rush, I settled for a 14" wreath, but I would have much rather had a larger one, if I took the time to do some research, as this one is a bit smaller than I'd like for my front door. But doesn't this look fun, festive and cozy!! I absolutely LOVE felt flowers, so I kept making them and added more and more...I was even tempted to make a whole wreath out of felt flowers, but I really liked the wooly wreath too much to cover it all up.

Here are the instructions for you, in case you want to make one for yourself. Total time=2 hours. Great to make while watching a movie.

To make this exact wreath, you will need:

• 1, 14" straw wreath - keep the plastic wrapping on it
• 1 package of 'Wool-Ease', Thick & Quick yarn (I used an Oatmeal color with flecks)
• Felt in a variety of colors - approx 2, 9x12 sheets for each large & medium flower. 1 sheet for small & mini flowers.
• Scissors

STEP 1
WRAP THE WREATH
Wrap the wreath with the yarn, making sure you cover the wreath completely. I went over places multiple times to make it thick.

STEP 2
CUT OUT FELT FLOWERS
Make a variety of felt flowers in different sizes and colors. Each felt flower is made up of 8 circles. I made 4 different sizes of flowers for my wreath: 1 large flower using a 5" circle. 4 medium flowers using a 4" circle.  2 small flowers using a 2.5" circle. 3 mini flowers using a 1.75" circle.

STEP 3
ASSEMBLE FELT FLOWERS
Once your felt circles are cut, fold a circle in half. Cut 2 slits at the fold in the center, about 1/4"-1/2" long and leaving about 1/4" of room between the slits. Cut 1 foot of the yarn you used to wrap the wreath, for each flower you want to make. Thread the yarn through the slits of each of the 8 pieces of felt that make up a flower. Once all are threaded, tie a tight knot at the base & leave the tails as you will use them to attach the flowers to the wreath. Arrange the felt nicely to make the flower.

STEP 4
ADD THE FELT FLOWERS TO THE WREATH
Arrange each of the felt flowers on top of your wreath in any way you desire. Tie them down in the back of the wreath with a knot. Snip the edges. Once you are completed, hang on your door to provide a warm welcome for your guests!

Keep me posted if you make one!! I'd love to see!!

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!