making a watery blue ombré quilt

It's done!

I finally completed the quilt I've been working on since April for my new nephew, Nate, just in time for his first visit to the east coast last weekend. It's the only quilt I've completed since having my own kids. I tend to get wrapped up in some kind of intricate colorplay that needs 50 fabrics to pull off and that takes time. That was the definitely the case with the ombré effect I was going for with this water scene.

I found some great watery prints from several fabric shops on Etsy. I used the Micheal Miller fish print for the back.

But to get the ombré effect, I needed many more shades of blue than I could find in quilting cottons. I filled in the gaps with my strangely large collection of men's dress shirts. Using them also made the quilt more masculine. I also like the idea of mixing in apparel fabrics because it is the way people used to make quilts before the whole "charm pack" thing came along. My grandmother would use the good parts of worn-out clothes or scraps from making clothes for her quilts.

The quilt top spent a week in pieces on my work table as I planned out the color gradation. The diamond pattern helps the colors "feather" together because there are no straight horizontal lines. The sea creatures were appliquéd on top after I sewed the background together in diagonal strips.

I actually had never hand quilted any of my past quilts until this one. I used to send them out to an Amish lady who would get them done in a flash. This time I decided to do it myself, thinking it was a pretty small size (48" x 36"). Oh boy! You gotta hand it to those Amish ladies! It took me about a month and would have taken even longer except I was stuck on the couch anyway after having foot surgery. I couldn't remember how to do the binding either, so I watched this youtube video which was very helpful.

Oddly, the foot ordeal turned out to be positive creatively. With grocery shopping, errands, and trips to the gym off the schedule, it's amazing how much time frees up to spend on creative pursuits. Back soon with more...

printing a fabric design on spoonflower

Can I just say how excited I am to be in possession of my first yard of fabric digitally printed with my very own artwork on Spoonflower? It is such a treat to do a design, send it off, and have it in my hands within a week!

When I work for clothing companies, it takes at least 6 weeks for a traditionally printed approval swatch and then another few months for the final yardage. And here's the kicker- a common minimum for traditionally printed fabric is 3000 yards. On Spoonflower, the minimum is 1 yard or a 5" swatch. As a clothing designer, the freedom that this allows is like a door opening wide. It allows a small company to test a print, make up samples, and show to buyers quickly without having to commit to a large run of yardage. With so little investment at stake, there's nothing stopping a designer from experimenting. If you wind up needing mega yardage, digital is probably not the way to go- printing just one yard takes several minutes and the cost is relatively high- but many times you don't need that much and for that, digital is perfect.

And if the low minimum & convenience is not enough, the Spoonflower process is eco-friendly! Traditional printing results in gallons and gallons of excess toxic dye being dumped into the environment at the end of the run. Spoonflower uses dye that is eco-friendly, and because of the nature of the digital printing process, uses only the amount of dye needed for the yardage being printed. AND this all happens relatively nearby in North Carolina, USA as opposed to China or Japan. No airmail necessary! My tree-hugging side is satisfied!

the nitty gritty
When printing through Spoonflower, you will have to submit artwork that is in repeat so your design is seamless. For the general idea of how to do a repeat, this post on Design Sponge gives a good basic idea. For digital printing, you won't be able to make suitable artwork without Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop or something similar. Taking a course in Illustrator was one of the best things I ever did, so I highly recommend it (then you can get the student price on the software which is a plus!).

I like to start with hand-drawn artwork so it will have some spontaneity to it, then scan it into Illustrator, and finish it there. I'm working in an 8" square and black & white knowing I'll increase the scale later and recolor. I just want it to be a manageable size for scanning. I fill the middle of my square with motifs covering a general diamond shape area that comes close to the edges on the points.

Then I open a new file in Illustrator set up the document to have an 8'x8" artboard. I scan in the rough art, resize as necessary, and use "live trace", then "expand" to convert it to vector art. It's important to have the setting "snap to grid" turned on for the next steps. I ungroup the elements and delete the white. I make a new 8" x 8" white background and "send to back" to simplify things. Now I chop art through the middle vertically using the "divide objects below" function. Then I swap the position of the 2 pieces so the middle part of the art is now touching the edges. For a regular repeat, you would do the same thing again, horizontally, so now your artwork is positioned in the corners. I decided to be fancy, though, and do a half-drop repeat, so I only chopped one side horizontally. My design will line up when offset half a step across the width of the fabric.

Once the edges are set up, you can fill in the middle. I scan in a few more motifs, fill in gaps here and there, and shuffle elements around until I like it. If any other shapes need to overlap the edge, I make sure they line up by positioning a twin on the other side and snapping it to the same position on the grid. Tricky, yes, and time-consuming with a pattern this intricate. Patterns with more ground spacing are definitely easier to put into repeat.

I double check the repeat by copying the artboard, opening a new layer and placing the copies as they would repeat. Sure enough, I see a few spots that need adjusting, so I tweak and repeat the process until the edges line up exactly. For a true preview, you can temporarily expand your artboard to include the repeating parts and print. The paper doesn't lie.

It's a busy design, so I like it best with just 2 colors on a white ground. To recolor, switch the color mode from black & white to RGB and go to town. If color matching is important you can use Spoonflower's color map which you can have mailed to you on actual fabric. I was too impatient, so I didn't bother, but I think I will get it for the future.

To finalize the artwork, copy the contents of the artboard and "paste pixels" into a new document in Photoshop. Here is where you will determine the final size of your print. Spoonflower prints at 150 dpi, so I input that under image>size and go from there. I decided to resample my image to be 14" square. Since this is sharp 3-color artwork, I save as a .png file. Jpegs work too.

Now to decide which fabric to print on...When they first opened, Spoonflower only offered basic cotton. Now they have 10 choices including silk crepe de chine ($38) and wallpaper too. The basic cotton is the cheapest at $17. I chose linen/cotton canvas ($27) because I thought it would be nice for an apron, tote bag, or pillow.  The prompts are pretty easy to follow on the Spoonflower site...and voilà!

The fabric got here so quickly, I never fully decided what to do with it. What should I make?

store crush: purl soho

On my window shopping trip to SoHo last weekend, a friend reminded me about the Purl SOHO store at 459 Broome Street.

I was already familiar with them from their blog, the Purl bee. Finally a chance to go there!

I used to be a sweater designer & knitter, but I got burned out on it after doing it too long. For the first time in a long while I was tempted to knit something...

They are not just a knitting store. They also have a nice selection of modern craft supplies like the good kind of felt: wool.

And the best quilting cottons from the Denyse Shmidt, Kokka, Moda, and the like.

Embroidery hoops: what a cute way to show off their fabric selection in the entryway.

Oh, and there are the Liberty prints too. I just drooled over the selection. Liberty cottons are not cheap, though- something like $37/yard. But at least they are 54" wide, not 44" like most. We know we're not here for bargains, anyway. Just the best.

Purl is fully stocked in all things embroidery too, from floss to needlepoint wool, to books galore. Books on everything and only the best, most enticingly designed ones.

Definitely worth the detour!

hand block printed textiles by galbraith & paul

We couldn't stay away. Beth & I made the trek again into Manayunk, PA for Galbraith and Paul's annual sample sale on Saturday. I swore I'd never come back to Manayunk after getting 2 parking tickets in one day last time, but I was so bummed-out that my camera didn't work then, that I was able to be persuaded. I just am so heartened to see a handmade business thriving right here in the USA and on this scale. People fly in for this sale. The fabric is highly sought-after. I'm sure they've felt the pressure to get the price down by taking production off-shore, but so far the fabrics are all made here.

It was the usual feeding frenzy with the piles of pillows and the "by the pound" scrap table seeing a lot of action. I was tempted to start a new decorating project, but I only just finished the padded headboard  using the smokebush printed linen I bought here last year.

Originally, Galbraith & Paul were known for their handmade paper lampshades. Now the lampshades are fabric. Room and Board carries the pillows & lampshades. They have also ventured into rugs and wallpaper.

 So mod- so fab!

A complicated pattern like this takes either multiple blocks and/or requires hand painting more than one color on a block. It requires skilled artisans to execute.

These are some of the "blocks".

The ink is applied with these little rollers.

Just like at the paint store!

My friend Beth's new best friend: Liz Galbraith. Mr Paul was working the register. Even Liz's little boys were helping customers.

A glimpse of future designs on the pin-up board in Liz's studio. The loveliness continues...

vintage finds at the annex

I sneaked out of the house yesterday, kid-free, to run a boring errand and, drunk on freedom, couldn't resist making an extra stop at our local resettlement shop, The Annex Marketplace. They clean out people's homes who are downsizing or who have died and then sell the stuff out of a warehouse dangerously close to my house. It's only open Thursday, Friday, & Saturday every other week, so sometimes I forget to go.

They have all kinds of furniture and housewares, but I usually head straight upstairs to the textiles. I couldn't resist this springy sheet set. I'm liking 1970's- looking Springmaid-ish florals these days.

This doily was so pretty, I had to get it also.

A stack of heavy linen napkins caught my eye. I nabbed them with a vision of a tote bags...

This little piece charmed me as well. It could become a tiny little accent pillow. Don't like the lace though.

PS-don't tell my husband why I took so long!

galbraith & paul sample sale

This past Saturday, the 4th, was Galbraith and Paul's famous annual sample sale. Galbraith and Paul produce the most gorgeous hand block-printed fabrics in a lovely old factory building just off Main Street in Manayunk, PA. I first admired their work in the Room and Board catalog but didn't realize they were nearby.

My Friend Beth is fan enough to own one of their large drum pendant lamps in the "smokebush" pattern, so of course we were going, along with my friend Liz, who is always game for this sort of thing. The sale is held right there in their light-filled work space which was so inspirational to see with its high ceilings, tall windows, brick walls, rows of long printing tables, and all the printing plates and inks out too see. Mounds of pretty pillows were heaped tables. Lampshades, rolls of printed yardage, rugs, and scraps by the pound were all for sale at nice discounts.

This is where the story gets sad. I very conscientiously remembered to put a newly charged battery in the camera for this sure-to-be-blog-worthy event. When I took my camera out to start shooting, it was dead! I was flabbergasted! (Miraculously, it worked at home later when I tried to show my husband the problem). Beth gave me hope by producing her iphone which I proceeded to NOT take about 50 photos with. Apparently I was pressing the wrong button the whole time and got not a single shot! We didn't catch the goof until the next day at which point it was too late to remedy the situation. So, because I am an idiot, you will not be seeing any cool eye-candy shots of the studio (the above picture is from their website), just shots of what we bought. Excuse me a minute while I get a new tissue *sniff*.

Each color in these prints are inked on the block by a real human for every repeat of the pattern. This takes skill, patience and time, therefor retail prices of the fabric are over $100/yard. The sample sale price was $65/yard.

The versatile smokebush pattern. I bought a few yards in gold on linen to make a padded headboard for my guest room renovation project which I will share later.

After the feeding frenzy of a sale, we worked up an appetite and headed back to the car to repark near a restaurant. TICKET! This is what I hate about Manayaunk. The parking is impossible. There isn't enough of it and the meters are not well maintained. This one was broken and so was the next one we fed all our quarters to. The side streets have one hour parking which isn't enough if you want to sit down in a restaurant, especially Le Bus which has painfully slow service every time. Not wanting to receive another ticket, I left the restaurant in the middle of our meal to move the car. I circled the block and nabbed another spot apparently not far enough from my old spot to avoid another ticket. Basically my tickets for the day ate up the money I saved by buying fabric at the sample sale instead of retail!

So the day ended with a bad feeling for Manayunk, but a good feeling for handmade business and good design.

exploring fabric row, philadelphia

One day last week I went exploring on Fabric Row in the Queen Village neighborhood in southeast Philadelphia. Philly is so close to Wilmington, you'd think I'd go there more often than New York City, but so far I haven't. Me thinks that'll have to change.

Fabric Row is like a mini version of the NYC garment district. There are 18 or so shops (listed here) all concentrated on a few blocks of South 4th Street from South Street to Catharine Street.

     green=fabric row   blue=parking   orange= I95

 click on the map to enlarge

Coming from south of Philly, I take 95 north past the airport to the Washington Street exit near Penn's Landing. Follow Washington west to 5th street & turn right. Follow fifth up to Bainbrindge where all the parking is. It's angled metered parking, and on a weekday morning, it wasn't hard to get a spot. I had a finite number of quarters though, so I had to limit my stay to 1 1/2 hours which wasn't enough.

I've had success in the past at B. Wilk Fabrics at 618 4th Street when I was in the market for draperies, but they only do home furnishing fabrics. I wanted to get some classic men's shirtings like maybe some oxford cloth, chambray, or broadcloth. I tried Maxie's Daughter at 724 South 4th Street. Half the store is devoted to apparel fabrics: decent linens, wools and evening fabrics, but no shirtings. Eric, son of the owner, pointed out that "nobody makes their own shirts anymore". I suppose that's true, but I'm gonna make some.

 burn test at Jack B. Fabrics

Jack B. Fabrics at 748 South 4th Street had some shirtings. Yay! I found high quality 100% cotton blue oxford cloth and a sweet cotton lawn covered with tiny flower embroideries. I got the whole bolt of the lawn since I'm sure I'll never see it again. The owner waited on me and did a burn test to make sure the oxford cloth was 100% cotton. She said she's never quite sure since she buys her apparel fabrics from jobbers.

dupionis at Jack B. Fabrics

The majority of the Jack B. store is home furnishing fabrics, but they did have a nice selection of dupioni silks which can go either way.

I went in Kinkus Fabrics at 754 South 4th and didn't find what I needed either, but the kind person who waited on me was ever so knowledgeable and knew right where everything was. They had a lot of men's suitings and a tailor working out of the back. So old school- I love it!

Pennsylvania Fabric Outlet

A peek in Pennsylvania Fabric Outlet revealed a diverse inventory. I found some real camel hair and cashmere towards the back that reminded me I want to make a camel a-line inverted pleat skirt this fall. I didn't get the fabric though, because I'm too busy trying to get the shop ready for fall right now to work on it. Gotta stay disciplined.

 Pennsylvania Fabric Outlet

PA Fabric Outlet also had leather and the biggest selection of buttons on Fabric Row.

On the way back to the car I found some wide 100% cotton ($10/yd) chambray at A & J Fabrics at 757 South 4th Street. It was a clean and organized store compared to most of the others, but not the place to go for bargains necessarily. Most of their cottons were in the $14 range.

Bottom line: if you're looking for something specific, budget for more time and go in every single store on Fabric Row. With patience, you may find it.

a whiff of fall

Before our vacation about a month ago, I forced myself to clean the studio and get organized. I refolded and stacked all my fabrics and shirts by color. I must say, since getting back I've been quite productive making new patterns and prototyping accessories. I'm determined not to let it turn into a mess again.

Yesterday, the weather suddenly turned crisp and I started feeling really excited for fall. It'll be sweltering again soon enough, but I should've been working on fall by now anyway. With my fabrics all nicely stacked, I couldn't resist tearing the piles apart again and grouping together some story ideas.

I am mixing vintage fabric with thrift store shirtings, old but not quite vintage early '90's fabric from when I worked for an apparel company, and a few new pieces. There will be some patchworking happening.

There will definitely be some corduroy involved this fall. I am almost done perfecting a jumper to be made in corduroy. I had it on my little size 5 fit model from up the block last night. Even though I have the size 5 dress form, I like to see things on a real body that moves.

For some reason, teal looks really fresh to me right now. I've hated it ever since the '80's, but I like it again, especially with avocado and and mushroom. And I can't stop thinking about MUSHROOMS! I feel the appliqué urge coming on...