Fabric Friday

Last weekend I went on a little trip up North to visit my dear friend Cherry. She lives in a village called Tickhill, just outside Doncaster, and is a fellow fabric addict! There is a lovely little shop in Tickhill called From Rags to Stitches and we made a pilgrimage there to pick up some inspiration. Needless to say, I came out with quite an addition to my fabric stash and a very light wallet!

Horse designs are popular and this one is pretty in pink and navy blue, with the odd white one scattered around. It will have a pink and white polka dot lining.

The swans are quite quirky and I loved the colour combination. They are going to have a hot pink lining to match the waves in the design.

Pineapple designs are still popular and I thought the lemon slice lining was a great match.

From Rags to Stitches has quite a selection of fabrics that I designed for Makower UK, including these two nautical inspired pieces - blue starfish on cream and cream shells on blue. Both prints will have a fun polka dot lining.

I love a lobster print and just had to have this one that I found at Doncaster market. He will have a red and white polka dot lining for a bit of fun.

The pandas below were also picked up at Doncaster market and I couldn't resist them! They are so sweet and will look fab with a black and white polka dot lining.

Watch this space for some new items to be landing in store soon!

Feeling fruity

We're feeling a bit fruity here at Cheeky Leopard with the addition of this fab little pineapple print. It's so bright and summery and the perfect fabric for making fun items for my store. So far I've added a cosmetic bag, glasses case and a fab tote bag, perfect for a shopping trip or a day at the beach. Bring on the sun!

You can find all these cuties in my shop here.

Fabric Friday

Christmas is nearly here and Cheeky Leopard has shut up shop until 27th December, but I'm still playing with fabrics! This week's offering is a lovely little bunch of novelty cottons, ranging from cute penguins, to fun pineapples. I'm planning on making them up into tissue holders, card cases, cosmetic bags and coin purses and they should be available in store very soon.

Penguins have always been a popular fabric for my Cheeky Leopard items and this one is a great little addition. There's a black and white spotty fabric that will be the perfect complimentary lining.

I love this bicycle fabric and the black and grey colourway means that it's a great unisex design.

Pineapples are a fun motif and still a very popular image. These ones are so sweet and make me feel like summer is just around the corner.

Dog fabrics have done very well for me and these poodles are a slight change in style. I love their purple colouring and think a pink and white candy stripe will make a great lining for them.

Fabric finds

So, after a fabulous and manic trip to Tokyo, I am now safely back home. My case is unpacked, clothes are being washed and I am back at work. But I'm still going through the stash of fabric I managed to buy when I was there.

A big reason for going to Tokyo was to sell my bags at the International Bazaar, but another reason was to stock up on more fabric for my collection. Tokyo is great for its vintage kimono and obi fabrics that can be found at the endless antique markets and shops around the city, but it is also a haven for any fabric lover. Its supply of fabric shops, most of which can be found in the aptly-named Fabric Town in Nippori, would keep any fabric addict happy for a very long time! My favourite shop is Tomato, a haven that is comprised of five floors! Each floor focuses on a different fabric type, cottons on one floor, silks on another, with bargains on the ground floor - this is the busiest floor and some gems can be found there with a degree of foraging and polite elbowing.

These two cottons caught my eye for their vibrant colours and fun themes. Pineapples are a popular image and I liked the juicy turquoise ground and loose rendering of the fabric above. I loved the sunny yellow ground of the origami birds below, with the odd addition of pink to break it up.

Another sunny fabric is this blossom design below. You can't get much brighter than this yellow and red combination which has touches of gold in the centre of the flowers. It will work well on both clutch bags and cosmetic bags and I see a vibrant red lining working very well with this design.

This cat fabric below was a must. Cats are very popular and this fabric would be fab made up into cosmetic bags and coin purses, or even a tote bag. Here and there is a silhouette in gold.

On top of finding new designs, I also like to buy more of the designs that have been popular for me. One of those is the stork fabric below that I have used for clutch bags and cosmetic bags in the past. It's a furoshiki fabric and is a lovely graphic design of storks in flight. I will use a red lining to match the red of the stork's beaks.

The other fabric I often pick up is a furoshiki fabric with happi coats on. It's such a typical Japanese image depicted in a very fun, graphic way. This will also have a red lining.

Along with a number of stunning obi fabrics I bought, which I mentioned in a blog post while I was there, I also bought some pretty vintage kimono fabrics. These are much finer and softer than the obi fabrics and have a totally different feel. I tend to home in on the vibrantly-coloured kimono fabrics and this one below is such a fun one in vibrant reds, greens and purples, using traditional stylised images of chrysanthemums and leaves.

The kimono piece below is slightly more subdued for me, but I loved the design and combination of flowers and bamboo.

On top of the multi coloured kimono fabrics, I also like the black and white versions and picked up two pieces that I liked. The stylised chrysanthemum is a nice allover design and I like the touches of orange and mustard in the centre of the flower here and there. The butterflies would work well with a contrasting colour, maybe a vibrant obi fabric?! Watch this space.....