Free Downloads Available Now!

Well, I have finally gotten around to adding some free pattern downloads to my website! Click here to go to the Project Ideas page. For now, I have 2 different fabric flower patterns available: Cheery Blossom and Ooh-la-Bloom! Check them out, download and have fun making some beautiful blooms!!
Soon to come will be the Hot Blossom Ruffle Tote you've seen in the Hot Blossom inspiration photo's, as well as the cute neck scarf. Stay tuned for some fun new accessories!

My original flower patterns are free to download. However they are protected under copyright and are for personal use only. Please do not make flowers for commercial use. If you are a fabric store, please feel free to use these patterns to make kits using Hot Blossom fabrics!

Hot Blossom Fabric Giveaway at "My Aim is True"!

Just in - Amber over at the crafty blog "My Aim Is True" is hosting a Hot Blossom fabric giveaway! We've been scheming this behind the scenes for a little while now and are so excited it's out in the open! She'll be giving away four, yes FOUR, prizes of one yard of 44-inch wide Kona cotton Hot Blossom fabric to each of four winners. To enter, please leave a comment on her blog, telling her what you’d make with your yard of fabric. You may comment until 11:59pm on Thursday, June 26. Four winners will be randomly chosen on Friday morning, June 27 and she will ship your packages out that day!

Thanks so much Amber for all your support! I truly appreciate it and have enjoyed chatting with you! To let you know a little about Amber, she is a graphic designer, web designer, craft maker and 24 hour craft daydreamer (love that!) who helps run the 7 Cities Crafters, a collective for indie artists and crafters in southeast Virginia. Hop on over to Amber's blog "My Aim Is True" to check out the fab things she is up to, as well as to enter for the Hot Blossom fabric giveaway!

Weekend Project - Wedding Invitations

This weekend I had the fun task of creating my cousin's wedding invitations! I used to do these quite a bit for friends when their blessed occasion would come up, as my wedding gift to them. I enjoyed the design process, creating something that was unique to them as a couple, and the completion of the huge project...and sometimes I would even enjoy the long process of assembling them, piece after piece into the final product...depending on the quantity - ha! My gracious husband would sit with me for hours and help me assemble, which made it much more enjoyable. So this weekend was quite fun for me getting back into it! Giving of my passion and gifts to a family member, and it being something that she enjoys. That's the ultimate fulfillment.


What was fun about these was that she wanted something modern on sparkly paper, and in her colors: green, black & white. She liked one of my paisley's I had already drawn up, which made designing and creating invitations in one weekend a snap! It was really fun to break-apart the paisley pattern and do some unique placement of the motifs on the invite for a more dramatic and unique look. So, the first piece is the full paisley pattern, complete with their monogram initials popped-up on top, and black grosgrain ribbon tied in a half side bow enclosing the 3 pages together. The second page is the main invite and the third page has the directions and other necessary information. Each page has a different element and layout of the paisley pattern on it, and they are mailed away in sparkly green envelopes.
Wedding invitation information blurred for privacy.

Light Brights - Oh My!

Wow! Has it really been so long since I've blogged?! Well, I've been creating and drawing these past few months, and spending every extra hour doing so. I just get so focused and forget the world outside my design room door. Perhaps someday I will show you the projects I'm working on, but for today I must share with you the fabulous color that came in my mailbox!

I just received the J.Crew catalog and the colors really made my heart skip a beat - absolutely STUNNING! This is the way that I absolutely LOVE to see "neon" being used. Little hits here and there, mixed with soft pastels and loads of neutrals. Everything looks so fresh, feminine and beautiful. Makes me want to dig though my closet right now and say goodbye to the long standing jewel tones and hello to soft color! I like to call these new neon's "light brights". Take a peek and let me know if you love? Would you wear neon this way or incorporate it into your projects in little hits?
click on pictures to view fab color up close!

Some of my Product out at Nordstrom Now

Right now a lot of my product is in stores at Nordstrom. I work there for my day job and at night do the fabric thing on the side. This is almost the last of my product that will be shipping in BP (junior girl's), as I have moved to another position in the company and am not currently working on juniors clothing. Instead I get the chance to support all of the brands and do artwork on a wide variety of product lines. (Yay!) I thought I would take a minute to post some of my work here. If you're at Nordstrom shopping in BP any time soon, check out the Susina, Frenchi, Rubbish & Tildon lines, and chances are, you are looking at my work. Enjoy!

I Spy a Quarterly Challenge at AllPeopleQuilt.com

I came across an apron made out of my Hot Blossom fabrics, in the Fiesta colorway on the web today at AllPeopleQuilt.com, and am absolutely gushing. So fun!!! I love the blue piping they used with it! This is the first time I've seen someone else make something out of my fabrics, and could not be more overjoyed to see it! There's even a "How To" video showing step-by-step how to make the apron.

This sewing pattern is a part of the Quilts and More Quarterly Challenge. Each quarter, editors at Quilts and More and American Patchwork & Quilting will challenge you and a friend to create your own imaginative version of a fun project using a FREE downloadable pattern. Complete this 2nd challenge project (this apron) and upload your team photos (up to six photos). To be eligible for prizes, upload by June 15 at 11:59pm CT.

My Spring 2009 RTW Runway Faves

Spring is here! I'm sure for so many of you, spring has already begun, but here in Seattle, spring seems to be coming and going this year - one day is 70 degrees and sunny and the next is overcast with clouds and loads of rain. For the first time this spring, I was able to wear sandals - YAY! And I hope more of those days keep coming our way!

So, as per my previous posting a little bit back, here are some of my favorites from the Spring 2009 RTW runway's. There's so many beautiful color stories and patterns! These shows truly do inspire me and get my heart racing. It's so inspiring to me to see what fresh ideas come off the runways. Some of my favorite runways are always Anna Sui, Etro, Emilio Pucci, Missoni, and Matthew Williamson because each season they deliver such beautiful print stories. I got all these images from Style.com. Check out the shows in more detail and other designers I haven't listed here, and be prepared to be inspired.

So here we go!

ETRO: This show is by far my absolute favorite. The beautiful and intricately drawn paisley's, as well as the placement of them is stunning. I especially love the softness of the color stories, the sheer billowing fabrics, and the loose styling. This show definitely looks very ethno-romantic.
MATTHEW WILLIAMSON: The prints here are absolutely amazing! I love the techno/romantic/hippie vibe. The ombre in the prints and the overlapping of the printed elements are stunning.
ANNA SUI: This spring collection is bubbling over with such beautiful saturated colors. I love the earthiness mixed with the prettiness of the prints, fabrics and styling. The folk inspired prints look fresh mixed in with traditional elements such as plaid, stripes and ditsy florals.
MARNI: The '50s bubblegum palette mixed with hits of brights and off-beat neutrals really make the modern geometrics and prints from Marni outshine the rest. I love all the print mixing and layering of color!
EMILIO PUCCI: Talk about a new take on geometrics! I absolutely LOVE the patchwork quality of the geometric in the first maxi dress, as well as the kaleidoscope geometric of the last dress. Below are a few of my favorites from different runway collections...


From Left to Right: Erin Fetherston-this is my all time favorite image. The soft colored ombre is absolutely beautiful...and my favorite part of this image is that the girl's skin lookes sun burnt in an ombre pattern. Very creative! Missoni: This geometric is so unique and stunning. The cubism quality mixed with the ombred colors within the pattern make such a hard-edged geometric very soft and pretty. Burberry Prorsom: This runway show was very urban and earthy with the drenched looking colors diffusing together. Junya Watanabe: A new way to use batik and woodblock prints! This collection was very Africana meets Americana/farm country with all of the haystack & wildflower head-dresses and batik prints mixed with gingham and denim. Diane von Furstenberg: The sheer fabrics and vibrant color really makes for a new, feminine tropical feel. Very glamorous flower-child! Alexander McQueen: The patterns in this collection are like no other! Crystals, wood and nature elements collide together to create stunning digital prints. The models looked other-worldly and wood-nymph like.

And there you have it! I hope some of these prints really inspired you and led you to Style.com to check out further collections. I always love seeing what the fashion designers are up to in the world of print, as it takes us leaps forward into new and exciting directions.

True Up Interview - Part 2

As mentioned previously, here is part 2 of Kim Kight's interview of me at True Up. This time it's about the Hot Blossom collection. She asked me about the inspiration around each pattern and color story, which was really fun to reminisce! Thanks again Kim!

That paisley sure got me (read the interview to understand what I mean). Whenever I see it, I find it humbling and those memories keep me pressing on when I feel stuck...which can be often sometimes. I'm super grateful to Robert Kaufman for picking up the Hot Blossom collection, and am really excited to see what people do with it! I think that will be the most inspiring to me - to see it come alive through another person's perspective. There's something about a creative passing something to another creative, who passes it on to another creative... like we're all collectively working on something fun together and inspiring and being inspired by each other. TAG - you're it! Be sure to upload the fun things you make to the Hot Blossom Flickr group!

True Up Interview - Part 1

A short while ago I sent Kim Kight at True Up blog a little e-mail to let her know about my Hot Blossom collection, and she splendidly suggested doing an interview - thanks so much Kim! Today she posted "part 1" of the interview...stay tuned for more on Monday. Yes, this quiet introvert really does have a lot to say - ha! I was super flattered that she would even ask, and found it really fun to chat with someone in this new industry. It was a good exercise for me to push myself to open up and share a small piece of my life.
“True Up” means to make balanced, straight, square. In sewing, “true up” means making a piece of fabric true to grain with a well-placed cut or rip. True Up is a blog devoted to fabric, and Kim Kight is a definite fabric aficionado.

It's been great chatting with Kim, and it's so inspiring to see all of her fabulous work, fabric postings, interviews and information she pours into her blog. True Up just turned one year old a few days ago (Happy Birthday!) and Kim has soared to huge heights in such a short amount of time. What an inspiration!

Thanks for all the information and inspiration Kim! Here's wishing you a fab new year!

New Flickr Group - "Hot Blossom Creations"

Just a little heads-up! I went ahead and created a group on Flickr called Hot Blossom Creations. Flickr is free to join. It is a photo sharing & photo storing website, with a wonderful online community. The group I created is a public group, so anyone can join and upload their work. My hope is for you to upload your fab creations using Hot Blossom fabrics, for me and everyone to enjoy and be inspired by. Go ahead and join the group, and upload photos of your Hot Blossom projects whenever they are ready!