Tropica

The 'Wildlife' print I designed for Makower UK comes in three colour palettes, but this is my favourite, I love the rich jewel tone colours against the purple background and think it would make a great print for various sewing projects.

If you're feeling really bold, a summer dress would look great in this print. I chose a 1950s style dress and added a bright pink belt to accentuate the waist.

If the dress is a little too much, adding accents of colour to an outfit is easy to do, using accessories. I love this roomy tote bag pattern, great for taking to the beach or for picking up provisions at the local market. The pink straps complement the pink in the main design.

I love this cute little top, perfect for using a tropical print with, The sash tie has been made using a solid dark pink fabric as a contrast.

Mix the little top with this full skirt, which also has a dark pink fabric at the waistband. Alternatively, wear it with a bright pink or bright green t-shirt for a more casual look.

I love these little shoulder bags, which are so versatile and fit in a lot more items than you would expect. The strap is adjustable so it could be used as a shoulder bag or as a cross-body bag.

 

Nursery decor

 There are so many inspiring ways to decorate a nursery, from the traditional pink or blue colour palette to stronger earthy colours or simply creams and beiges.

I love the paint splatter wallpaper above that adds colour to the room in a fun way. Shades from the wallpaper have been used in accessories in the room such as the pink chair and the cute cloud cushion.

This mother and child giraffe print makes a great addition to a nursery. Use it to make a cot quilt or have it printed onto a soft minky blanket.

This soft coral coloured star print makes baby's room less sugary pink.

Go bold with the decor and paint a massive rainbow on the wall. The hand painted feel, with brush marks and paint drips, adds to its appeal.

Elephants are always popular and this cream elephant print looks great as curtains or as a cushion cover.

Mix and match elephants on a variety of ground colours. This elephant print is on a dusty blue background and would look great as a throw.

Pale cream and white nursery decor makes a great backdrop for artwork and makes the artwork sing. I love the unconventional colours of the elephant picture above the sofa which is sweet but modern.

Giraffes come in all colours with this cute giraffe print. Some are even prancing!

Stars and flowers are great co-ordinates to a baby's room. The blue stars print would look great on a duvet cover and the cream flowers print would make a pretty throw cushion.

Shop nursery prints here

Around the world

 I enjoyed designing this world map panel for Makower UK! As you can imagine, it took me quite a while to create as its actual size is 44"x24" and incorporates the traditions and icons from as many countries as I could fit in. The large size means that it is perfect for making up into a floor mat for babies or as a wall chart for a kids room and is a great way of playing I-Spy.

Look up close and you can see images that capture different areas of a country or continent. Can you spot the red lobster and the cowboy boot in North America? And how about the llama in South America?

I learnt a lot about the costumes and traditions of Central Asia. Can you spot the man with the extra long trumpet below?! And how about the Indian tuk tuk or the Russian traditional costume?

Sometimes it's very difficult to sum up one continent with a small amount of space. Asia is so varied, ranging from the plains of Mongolia to the tropics of Thailand.

Australia and New Zealand have an array of interesting animals, so I included those, along with the Sydney Opera House. Can you spot the shark fin in the ocean?!

I also designed some coordinating prints to go with the panel. The luggage labels above incorporate countries and images from the panel in a fun, bright colour palette.

There were so many sweet animals within the panel design that I decided to create an allover animal design with them. My favourite is the toucan.

I also created a selection of matching animal prints. The giraffe print looks great as a black and white version and the zebra print turns into a tiger print when coloured orange.

See full collection here.